absurd deduction game.

Carlos has always been a very good actor.

Upon hearing this, the gatekeeper's face showed an expression of certainty, then he sighed heavily, his wrinkles deepening: "Alas... yes, I know about that. It's so unfortunate, those three were all good children."

He shook his head and lowered his voice: "To be honest, the investigators came yesterday. They came during the day and kept watch at night, but... they both said they didn't find any trace of the monster. It's very cunning!"

This was exactly what Carlos expected.

The researchers in the first phase were either too weak, knowing full well that the monsters at night on campus were not to be trifled with, and dared not take the risk lightly; or they were like Carlos, who had the ability but had higher priority goals and had not paid attention to this matter for the time being, so the monster remained a mystery and had not shown any trace of itself.

“We understand this won’t be easy, but it’s our duty to give it our all.” Carlos’s tone was calm, polite yet revealing the superiority of his investigator status. He didn’t need to ask for anything and directly ordered, “Sir, we need to go in and check out the situation now, familiarize ourselves with the environment.”

"Of course, of course, please come in." The gatekeeper quickly stepped aside and kindly pointed in the direction. "The incident occurred roughly in the grove behind the main building and near the old warehouse. People from the church came to check it out before and said that the smell was strongest there. You can go there and take a look, but please be careful."

"Thank you very much." Carlos smiled and thanked her, exchanging a knowing glance with Yu Xing before the two walked into the university campus together.

Upon entering the campus, the atmosphere that belongs to the college and is somewhat detached from the outside world becomes even more apparent.

Yolikev Town College is not large, and could even be described as somewhat rudimentary.

The main building consists of only three adjacent Victorian red brick buildings with huge arched windows and towering chimneys, used for teaching, experimentation and book storage respectively.

The buildings look quite old, with the brick and stone surfaces bearing the marks of wind and rain erosion and covered with dark green vines, but they are still relatively well maintained. Below them is a large lawn that has not been carefully trimmed. Now that it is late autumn, the grass is withered and yellow, making it look somewhat desolate. Several gravel paths connect the buildings and a small glass greenhouse that looks like it has been abandoned for a long time.

It's already quite an achievement for a town to build a university. The students aren't very high-achieving, and there aren't many of them. Half of them grew up locally, and the other half are young people who came from nearby towns to study. However, there are no dormitories on campus, so the latter mostly live in rented apartments together.

It was during the afternoon break, and a few students were sitting on benches by the lawn, resting or talking quietly. But the atmosphere was not relaxed. There seemed to be an invisible pressure in the air, and everyone's face was filled with a lingering worry. The strange events and shadows of death that had occurred recently also shrouded this academic place.

Yu Xing even sensed several auras belonging to the deducers, deliberately concealed yet still distinct, scattered in different corners of the campus, clearly indicating that others were also using the safe time of daytime to investigate.

Everyone refrains from interfering with each other.

Carlos casually surveyed his surroundings and whispered to Yu Xing, "It seems quite a few people have noticed this strange event. Perfect, it will help us conceal our true objective."

Their primary objective was not the monster that killed the students, but rather to find clues about "James," the astronomer who supposedly went mad thirty years ago while observing the aurora.

However, directly inquiring about events from thirty years ago, especially during this sensitive period, would attract too much attention. It would be wiser to use the investigation of recent student deaths as a pretext to gradually reach out to university faculty and staff.

Instead of heading immediately to the area indicated by the gatekeeper, the two wandered aimlessly through the corridor below the main teaching building, their eyes scanning the course schedules, lecture notices, and some yellowed historical photos posted on the bulletin board, as if they were genuinely familiarizing themselves with the environment and looking for a starting point for their investigation.

The red brick walls are heavy and silent, and the arcades cast deep shadows, cutting the afternoon sunlight into patches of light and shadow.

Yu Xing's gaze swept over the blurry group photos of the instructors, his senses spreading like an invisible net, capturing the subtle information flowing in the air. He knew that finding the traces of "time" required more patience and luck than tracking a monster that had already taken shape.

They can make up for this with their absolute strength.

……

The afternoon sun had dipped a little lower.

Yu Xing and Carlos had just finished a conversation with an elderly history professor, who was the mentor of one of the three students who were tragically killed. When talking about the incident, his face was filled with regret and a hint of guilt for not noticing the abnormality in time.

“Bob, Charlie, and Elliott… well, they’re all very bright kids, but they’re too restless and always have some unrealistic fantasies.” The old professor pushed up his glasses and said in a deep voice, “They’re obsessed with all sorts of mysterious legends and bizarre stories, always thinking they’ll encounter some supernatural event, and even fantasizing that they can become the heroes who solve these events.”

—That is, like an investigator.

But investigators are practically the elite of the world's elite. Apart from the bishops and high-ranking officials of the major orthodox churches, there are few who can rival their status. The fantasy of three ordinary students was not taken seriously by any of them.

How is this any different from the absurdity of shouting "I want to be king" in class?
Ironically, after the students died, many investigators came to investigate the cause of their deaths, a truly unexpected turn of events.

The old professor sighed and pointed out the window: "Our university, though not as prestigious as those in big cities, has always been under the protection of the Church of the Harvest Mother Goddess. The power of their blessing is far stronger than that of private residences. For the past three months, nowhere in town has been safe, except our school, which has remained peaceful and quiet. Not even a single unusual rat has appeared. Many faculty members even feel safer here than at home and want to stay overnight in their offices, but school rules don't allow it."

"So when Charlie—my student—came to me that day and told me that they had heard strange scraping sounds near the old archives on the west side of the fourth floor and had glimpsed something that was 'as fast as a shadow,' I... I didn't take it too seriously."

The old professor looked pained: "I thought it was just their overthinking again, and I scolded him a few times, telling him to focus on his studies."

"Who would have thought that these foolish kids... they actually made a secret pact to sneak over the wall that night and 'investigate' things themselves?" The old professor's voice choked with emotion. "And then... they never went back. If only I had paid more attention back then, even if it was just to go up and take a look..."

Another math lecturer who was questioned confirmed this statement, first offering some words of comfort to the old professor: "You're all old and frail; even if you go up there, you might just end up as another corpse."

He was quite sharp-tongued, and without caring whether he had achieved his intended comforting effect, he turned to Yu Xing and Carlos and added, "These three kids have indeed always been particularly enthusiastic about topics like 'monsters' and 'mysterious events,' and they're always whispering about these things when they get together." "We all thought it was just a common teenage angst that would pass as they get older, and no one expected it to turn into such a tragedy."

"In short, the area around the old archives has been sealed off. Recently, apart from members of the Church of Mother Goddess and investigators like you, all teachers and students are prohibited from approaching it."

The teachers were very cooperative, even somewhat eager, hoping the investigators could resolve the threat hidden on campus as soon as possible.

After all, the deaths of three students had already put enormous pressure on the school.

If a similar incident were to occur again, the school would likely have to close indefinitely for the safety of the remaining students. Given the current situation in the town, the school might be rendered unusable. The fact that it hasn't closed yet is thanks to the support of the church.

After all, the Mother Goddess truly blesses the school. If the school were closed, many people would likely feel that the Mother Goddess is incompetent, and the already precarious faith in the Mother Goddess would be shaken once again, even allowing esoteric religions to take advantage of the situation. This is something the Harvest Church would never want to see.

"We will do our best." Carlos smiled and promised, perfectly portraying the investigator's calm and composed demeanor, yet also his detached indifference from the emotions of the person involved. Yu Xing, who considered herself a tree, rarely took the initiative to play such a role in this instance.

Following the investigation procedure, they went to the classrooms where the three students had been. It was during class time, and none of the three classrooms were in use. They were empty, with neat desks and chairs and clean blackboards. Only the chalk dust and the smell of old wood in the air indicated the traces of daily use.

As the teachers said, the three students' belongings had already been claimed by their grieving families, and they left behind no personal items.

Yu Xing's senses quietly swept across the entire space. Apart from the remaining vibrant energy belonging to the many young students and some faint anxiety, he did not detect any abnormal, monster-like aura or particularly strong resentment.

It is indeed a rather strange situation.

The two left the teaching building seemingly empty-handed, and returned to the sun-drenched main road of the campus, slowly walking towards the school gate.

"It seems that monster is very good at hiding, or... its activities are highly specific, only appearing at night and in specific locations." Carlos stroked his chin thoughtfully. "And it only targets those who come to it?"

Yu Xing did not comment: "The gatekeeper said that investigators had already come to keep watch at night, but they didn't see any monsters."

Therefore, there are other conditions for the appearance of monsters.

His gaze swept over the young faces hurrying by on campus, and just then, his eyes caught sight of a girl walking alone toward the school gate.

The girl was about eighteen or nineteen years old. She was wearing faded brown trousers and a plaid shirt, with a simple cardigan over them. She was carrying several thick books with gear patterns on the covers.

She has thick, brown curly hair, simply tied back, and her face is adorned with a few playful freckles. Her eyes are bright and focused, carrying a pragmatic quality unique to engineering students.

Carlos clearly saw her too; his eyes lit up slightly, and a warm, friendly smile, as if he had just bumped into an old friend, immediately appeared on his face.

He strode forward a few steps and greeted her in a gentle voice, "Hey! Miss Marian? What a coincidence, do you remember me?"

The girl named Marian looked up at the sound of the voice, saw Carlos, and showed a hint of surprise on her face. Then she smiled and said in a hearty smile, "Ah, it's Mr. Carlos! Of course I remember. At last week's mechanical exhibition, your insights into the principle of the difference engine impressed me deeply."

Her gaze swept curiously over Yu Xing, who stood beside Carlos and whose silence made her appear aloof, before she asked Carlos, "What brings you to our school?"

“It’s for work.” Carlos smiled and stepped aside to introduce, “This is my colleague, Mr. Yu Xing, who is also an investigator. Xing, this is Miss Marian, a top student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Yolikev University, a genius destined to shine in the field favored by the ‘Father God of Machines’.”

Marian became embarrassed by his words: "N-no, it's not that exaggerated. I'm just an ordinary mechanical enthusiast..."

Yu Xing said, "That's very impressive."

There are very few female students in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, and she doesn't seem to come from a wealthy family. The fact that she was qualified to attend that mechanical exhibition is probably due to her professor's recommendation, which already proves her academic excellence.

After a brief chat to build rapport, Carlos said to Marianne, "We're investigating... well, that unfortunate incident that happened a few days ago. Do you know anything about it?"

Upon hearing this, Marian's smile faded, and her bright eyes dimmed slightly. She nodded, her voice becoming low: "I know... it's about Bob and the others, isn't it? The whole school was talking about it the day after it happened, but they were quickly ordered to stop publicizing it, saying the church would send someone to handle it..."

"But the Harvest Church hasn't accomplished much either, and there's a reason why many people don't believe in the Mother Goddess." The girl, who already preferred the "Mechanical Father God," spoke to the investigators without any restraint, clearly supporting the construction of other orthodox churches.

“Yes, if other believers of the true god had assisted in the investigation, things probably wouldn’t have dragged on for so long.” Carlos then asked, “I heard… Bob is in your class? If it’s not too much trouble, could you take a little of your time to talk to us? Perhaps some details about classmates can help us understand the situation better.”

He pointed to a small, quiet and elegant-looking coffee shop not far from the school gate.

Marian glanced at the book in her arms, then at Carlos's sincere eyes and the handsome, silent but charismatic investigator beside him. After a moment's thought, she nodded: "Alright. I don't have classes this afternoon, and I'm going home anyway. But I don't know much..."

“It’s alright, any information can be useful.” Carlos blinked, revealing a hint of his flirtatious nature, which dispelled Marian’s last wavering.

The three quickly settled into a quiet corner by the window in the cafe. (End of Chapter)