"I... I'll talk..."
Like someone who had been brought back to life, Hiroshi Matsumoto at this moment had completely lost any will to resist. After all, he definitely did not want to experience that kind of pain a second time!
"It was... it was an email. The person who sent the email told me to post that message!"
"Continue!"
"That person promised me one million US dollars for posting it, with an upfront payment of three hundred thousand US dollars. Before I could even reply, the three hundred thousand was already deposited into my account."
"Continue!" the woman's piercing voice commanded without a hint of change in tone.
"I couldn't refuse! After they transferred the three hundred thousand, they sent me a photo—a photo of me sitting in front of the computer, looking at my emails."
Hiroshi Matsumoto's voice gradually took on a whimpering tone, as if he had no other choice.
"That's it?" Seeing the man on the chair had closed his mouth, the woman seemed quite disappointed as she shook her head.
"So, you don't know the identity of your contact? Then you seem to be of no use to us!"
Upon hearing the woman's even colder words, an ominous feeling surged through Hiroshi Matsumoto's heart.
"No... no... you can't do this! I've been cooperating with you; I've told you everything..."
As the woman backed away and the black-robed figures slowly approached, Hiroshi Matsumoto, in a state of panic, began to struggle violently, constantly begging for mercy.
"Wait, don't do this... please, I beg you! I still have the bank transfer record, the sender's email address..."
With a crisp snap, the pleas for mercy in the villa bedroom abruptly ceased.
"It's done! We should leave too. Wizard, make sure the ghoul cleans up nicely!" the woman instructed before leading everyone out.
"You can count on me!"
The black-robed figure standing behind the group, who hadn't spoken a word from the beginning, responded in a hoarse voice.
After everyone else had left, the last black-robed figure patted his pocket, and several items suddenly appeared on the bedroom floor.
A dead crow, a vial of crimson blood, several pieces of unidentifiable animal organs, and finally, a few fist-sized Crystal Stones.
Minutes later, a bizarre Array, often seen in horror movies, materialized on the bedroom floor.
As the black-robed figure chanted in an unknown language with a raspy voice, a cloud of black mist suddenly emerged in the center of the Array.
Following the appearance of the black mist, an indescribable foul stench filled the air.
Yet the black-robed figure, still intoning the Spell, was unfazed; even the cadence of his voice remained steady and unchanging.
It was not until the black mist slowly coalesced into a humanoid shadow that the black-robed figure's chant grew more emphatic.
Then, suddenly, the voice stopped.
In the Array, the now-solid figure, resembling a rotting corpse, let out a howl. It then charged straight at the body still sitting in the chair.
With a series of cracking noises, the solid wood chair shattered into countless pieces.
The black-robed figure looked at the ghoul feasting on the body and let out a sinister cackle. He then picked up the Crystal Stones from the floor, erased any trace of the Array, and left the villa.
...
The next day, in the top-floor office of a firm in New York.
Chu Feng had just hung up a call from Hawaii. He was currently sitting leisurely in his chair, idly twirling his fingers.
The first foolish rat is dead, and news of the second one should be coming soon!
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. The landline on the desk suddenly rang.
"Mr. Chu Feng, there are several people downstairs claiming to be from the police, wanting to see you."
"Claiming?" Chu Feng's voice had a playful tone.
"Yes, sir, but I've never seen these people before."
"Tell them directly that I don't want to see them and to leave!"
After hearing Chu Feng's words, the voice on the other end of the phone readily agreed before hanging up abruptly.
In the lobby on the first floor of the firm.
Debbie, just coming out of the conference room, instantly put on a formulaic smile and walked towards the group of figures in police uniforms waiting at the front desk.
"I'm sorry, gentlemen, Mr. Chu Feng does not wish to meet with you, so... I'm truly sorry!"
The formulaic smile and polite language made the faces of the several police-like figures turn cold simultaneously.
"Please inform Mr. Chu Feng that we have a case that requires his cooperation!" the leading African American man said in a cold voice, his hand resting on the gun holster at his waist.
Debbie narrowed her eyes slightly at the hand the man placed on his waist. Her formulaic smile gradually disappeared, and her voice turned icy.
"Gentlemen, although I don't know how you obtained your badges, I advise you to leave this place immediately."
Discerning the hidden warning in Debbie's tone, the police-like figures simultaneously reached for their service weapons.
"Ma'am, cooperating with our work and leading the way is the wise choice."
The icy command, combined with the motion of several people touching their weapons, was obviously intended as a threat of force.
They were quite in line with the American style.
In such a tense atmosphere, not only did Debbie show no sign of fear, but a mocking smile even appeared on her face.
"Gentlemen, you're the first to dare come to the Exorcist's office building and cause trouble!"
"Is that so? Then that's truly an honor for us!" the leading African American man replied just as defiantly.
But no sooner had the man's words fallen than he felt a slick sensation around his waist.
Looking down, he saw a pitch-black snake, which looked exceedingly venomous, somehow wrapped around his waist.
"Fuck!"
His prior assertiveness vanished in an instant. The panic-stricken man hastily grabbed the head of the black snake at his waist.
With a fierce shake, he flung the black snake to the ground some distance away.
A sharp SNAP echoed, instantly bringing the man back to his senses.
Looking towards the direction of the snake, he suddenly discovered something.
There was no black snake; what had been flung was clearly his own handgun from his waist.
"You~"
The African American man, instantly understanding what had happened, turned to look at Debbie, who still wore a mocking smile.
His subordinates, having witnessed the entire incident and having some understanding of the Exorcist's methods, drew their handguns from their waists and aimed them at Debbie.
"Enough, Miss Exorcist! Put away your pointless tricks. We just want to see Mr. Chu Feng."
As if he thought of something, the leading African American man looked at the ceiling with dread in his eyes, then swiftly pushed down the raised handguns of his subordinates.
"I've already told you, Mr. Chu Feng doesn't want to see you." Debbie's voice was cold. As if she heard something, a flicker of intrigue passed through her eyes.
"Moreover, it's too late for you to leave now!"