Stop Them

‘Pupu, I think next time you can just tell me directly instead of being so subtle.’

Lynch spat out a mouthful of sand, deeply missing the Neighbor from when he had first transmigrated. Back then, the goddess was so gentle. How had she turned into this?

【I am sorry. I was absorbed in the scenery along the way.】

‘So you were just watching the show, weren't you? Was it intentional, or an accident?’

【Mm.】

What on earth did “Mm” mean? What was he supposed to do now that his past-life knowledge had corrupted a goddess? Waiting online, urgent.

By the time Lynch was dug out of the ruins, it was already three in the afternoon. Crawling out covered in dust and grime, he found the sunlight exceptionally bright. Finally escaping that blood-drenched ritual site put him in an excellent mood—until he saw a certain someone...

“Hahaha! Well, if it isn't Detective Lynch Levive! Your outfit today is quite unique. Is this the latest trend?”

A coarse, foolish voice rang out nearby. A hideous, bearded brute pointed at Lynch, who was covered in dirt with his clothes askew, and burst into boisterous laughter while holding his beard:

“Seriously, with all these recent mysterious events, how is it that you're always there? You don't happen to have a constitution that naturally attracts them, do you? If so, you're incredibly lucky. I'm starting to suspect you're a spy who sneaked over from the Dreamlands. Otherwise, why would these mysterious events follow you wherever you go? Hahaha!”

Ha my ass, you foolish, bearded Truen.

Lynch wiped some dirt off his face and said flatly, “Do lizards taste good?”

“Gah...”

“My boots happen to be covered in dirt. Why don't you help me—”

“Haha! It's good that you're fine, it's good that you're fine! I need to keep looking for other casualties. I'll take my leave first, take my leave first!”

Lynch gave a thumbs-down to the sneaking, retreating figure of the bearded Truen from the Watchers. He then noticed quite a few familiar faces around him—all Watchers he had met at the Scarecrow Club.

But seriously, was it really that funny? Weren't the Watchers supposed to uphold order and never mock victims? Especially you—you've been laughing this entire time without stopping.

“But it really is too funny. A bunch of people were digging, and suddenly they dug up you.”

Though they had only been apart for half a day, Lynch was still very happy to see her again unexpectedly. Officer Natalie, dressed in men's clothing, stretched out her long legs and laughed uncontrollably. Her long, wavy curls swayed gently with the movement of her waist, and a familiar fragrance wafted over, tempting Lynch to take a deep... Hey, hey, why are you stepping on my foot? Truen was going to lick that clean in a bit!

Having acquaintances made things much easier, and he quickly grasped the situation.

It seemed someone knowledgeable at the school had reported the mysterious event. With the Rangers currently suspended in their entirety, the Watchers had no choice but to step in and handle it.

Lynch wasn't the first one to be dug out. The few who had been recovered before him had already gone mad, and each of them was crippled. The only one left intact was still unconscious, with no telling when she would wake up.

Lynch had nothing to hide and gave an honest account, which left the gathering of Watchers marveling in astonishment. To think a group of young girls could be so crazed; times really had changed.

The rescue efforts were still underway. From the looks of it, the situation was far from optimistic. In the second grade of Lillia Women’s Academy—the grade Monia was in—it was highly likely that barely any normal people would be left.

The world of the mystery was just that cold. Ignorance and arrogance were both cardinal sins, and any attempt to toy with the mystery for amusement would ultimately lead to tragedy.

Yet there would always be people in this world who failed to understand this truth.

“Do you want to hitch a ride back in our carriage later?” Officer Natalie asked softly once the questioning was over and she saw her colleagues returning to their tasks. “It should be wrapped up in another hour or two. If we head back together, we'll make it just in time for dinner.”

“No, thank you. Covered in dirt like this, I'm afraid I'll end up laughing those bored fellows to death. I bet they'd mock me for a whole year, especially that idiot. I'd better go home first and have Mrs. Maggie help me clean up.”

“Hmph. Walk back yourself then,” the lady officer said, tossing her long hair as she strode away.

Wait, why was she angry again? Did he say something wrong?

Unable to figure it out, Lynch could only leave with a sigh. He didn't want to stay in this malicious school for a single minute longer. The remaining matters would naturally be handled by the Watchers. Besides, he had already received his advance payment—the mystery documents containing the Flash arcana. If he didn't leave now, was he supposed to stay for the Divine Descent Festival?

The school was still heavily guarded. Along the way, Lynch was stared at by those stern-faced, elderly ladies as if they were terrified he might leave something behind, which gave him the creeps.

In the end, the old principal couldn't stand it anymore. Hunching her back, she escorted Lynch all the way to the gate. This was probably the highest level of treatment any man who had sneaked in had ever received since the school's founding.

However, Lynch had absolutely no interest in this. He only wanted to flee in a hurry... Hm?

Having reached the main gate, Lynch merely wanted to bid a polite farewell to the old principal. So he turned around to face the hunched old woman once more, only to unexpectedly feel that her silhouette looked somewhat familiar.

Strange. He had never met anyone with this kind of build before. How could it look familiar?

No, holy crap.

Lynch felt a sudden chill run down his spine as he realized that the old principal's hunched posture was almost identical to that of the infant-sized black mummy illusion he had seen behind Monia earlier, only scaled up in size.

An illusion?

No, absolutely not. The physical forms were far too similar.

“Heh, the spines of the Treader of Dust's servants all twist to match its form, just like mine.” The old woman's voice suddenly rang out. She was staring at the dazed Lynch, her smile exceptionally bizarre.

Realization dawned on Lynch, and everything fell into place: “I see. It was you who gave the ritual method to the girl with the silk scarf, and escorted her to secretly place the materials in the warehouse of Monia's family. You must have been behind the Knowledge Library incident as well; with the silk scarf girl's abilities, it would have been impossible for her to get in. You guided Monia step-by-step to find the ritual.”

A smile squeezed onto the principal's stern face. “Heh. This school has been operating for two hundred years, but the atmosphere has been deteriorating in recent years. However, I believe that after this incident, no one will dare to excessively bully their classmates for a long time to come. What do you think?”

“Hiss... just for that purpose?” Lynch's lips twitched. “With such a major disaster, the ones who died were all children of nobles. How are you going to explain this to them?”

“Why should I explain? It was merely the consequence of ordinary people accidentally stepping into the domain of the mystery. For things like this, the Watchers will naturally find a way to fabricate a story and suppress those victimized noble families. There is no need for me to worry about it.”

“Phew, no wonder then.” Lynch let out a sigh. “The others can be considered to have brought it upon themselves, but what about Monia? No matter how you look at it, her sins did not warrant death. Why did you drag her into this too?”

The principal gave him a look as if pitying a fool. “Young detective, are you trying to discuss ethics and morality with a servant of the Great Old Ones, a cultist?”

Lynch was left speechless. Right, what was wrong with his head?

“Besides, 'did not warrant death'... is she dead?”

Lynch scratched his head. “Fine, she isn't. At most, she became the target of the ritual. What was the effect of that ritual anyway?”

“The target of the ritual becomes immortal. However, they will also become the eternal servant of the Treader of Dust.” The old woman explained in detail, “The Treader of Dust walks out of destruction, and everything at its feet decays, withers, and turns to dust. Hence the name—”

“Stop, stop, stop. I've already gotten mixed up with enough evil gods. I don't want to add another to the list.”

“You disrupted my master's ritual to convert a servant, and you expect not to establish a connection?”

“I knew it. Another headache,” Lynch said with a wry smile. “Whatever. I've already gotten mixed up with enough evil gods. One more won't make a difference.”

“Heh, that's a good way to put it. Now that you understand everything, tell me, are you prepared to pay the price for it?”

“Don't joke around. If you really wanted to cause trouble for me, you wouldn't have chosen this place. Let's make things clear first—what will happen to Monia?”

“The filth ended up completely backfiring in the end, so she actually wasn't affected much. From now on, she will probably return to a normal life, provided she doesn't continue to pursue mystery rituals. What, are you not considering reporting this to the police?”

“Did you even do anything?” Lynch spread his hands. “Just a responsible principal teaching overbearing students a lesson. You only went a bit too far this time; just be careful next time.”

“Very well. In that case, my master has something to convey to you.”

The old woman's expression suddenly turned grave as she said solemnly:

“You opened the gates of destruction with your own hands, and destruction is already nigh. Stop them.”

“Who are 'they'?”

“The Shadow Alliance.”