The Mystery of the Inner Demon

Chapter 225 Group Members
“Iando, you’ve broken the club’s rules.” One of the men, with chestnut hair and enamel glasses, stepped forward from the crowd and said seriously. It seems that “Iando” is You He’s nickname in this science fiction interest group.

“I’m sorry, Swordholder, these three are police officers. They said that one of us killed someone. I… I had no choice…” You He lowered his head in shame, as if he were a heinous traitor.

The once quiet crowd began to stir.

"Is there a murderer here?"

"No way, we know each other very well, neither of us seems like the type to kill someone."

"That's not necessarily true. You can know a person's face but not their heart."

The one who led the conversation, the "Sword Bearer," remained calm. He stepped forward and stood in front of them, saying, "We are just a group of science fiction enthusiasts. What makes you think there are murderers among us?"

Zhong Kui walked up to You He. Before she even spoke, her aura had already extinguished half of the "Sword Bearer's" dissatisfaction.

“Swordholder, I would like to ask, in White City, besides yourselves, who else knows who the Neuromaniac is?” As soon as Zhong Kui said this, the whispering crowd suddenly erupted into a commotion. Clearly, everyone here knew what the Neuromaniac meant.

This reaction delighted Qi Fei, who immediately stared at the "Swordholder" and asked, "Which of you here is codenamed Neuromaniac?"

"Ah, this..." The "Sword Bearer" was clearly not good at lying; his hesitant expression said it all.

As Qi Fei's sharp gaze swept over his shoulder and across the strangely dressed crowd, everyone instinctively turned their attention to one of the men.

Unlike the others' exaggerated attire, this person was simply wearing tattered clothes and had drawn heavy dark circles under his eyes to make himself look even more haggard.

It seems this person is the "neuromonist".

However, he just stood there, clearly not having reacted to anything yet, and showed no intention of running away.

It wasn't until Qi Fei walked up to him and asked him to undergo questioning that he snapped out of his daze and shouted, "I didn't kill anyone! Anyone can call themselves a neurotic!"

"What's your name?"

“I…” The neurotic looked around, “It’s more shameful for you to make me say my real name here than to strip me naked!”

Qi Fei didn't understand and was about to press him for more information when Zhong Kui suddenly spoke up for him, saying, "We can sit in that reading corner, and leave the people here to Xiao Qiu."

With his back against the floor-to-ceiling bookshelf, the reading light made the "neuromaniac's" face look even more sickly.

"Can you tell me now?"

"Jiang Yu, I didn't kill anyone. You've got the wrong person."

Where were you on April 11th, and what were you doing?

"What day of the week is April 11th?" "Friday."

“I’m definitely at work on Fridays.” Jiang Yu looked at Qi Fei, who was full of doubt, and added, “I can give you my colleagues’ contact information. I haven’t missed any work recently, so you can check it out.”

"Besides you, is there anyone else here who likes William Gibson's novels?" Zhong Kui asked from the side.

"It depends on what you mean by 'like'. As a science fiction group, everyone must know William Gibson, right? Who calls himself a neuromaniac?"

"Yes, that's his online name when he writes web novels," Qi Fei replied.

"Online novels?" Jiang Yu frowned. "This person can write novels?" As he spoke, he involuntarily glanced at the crowd not far away.

"Looks like there's a writer in your group?" Zhong Kui immediately noticed something was amiss.

"It's the swordsman who spoke to you at the beginning. He's the owner of this bookstore. I heard he writes articles in his spare time. I'm very busy with work, how could I have time to write this kind of thing? Besides..." Jiang Yu seemed to hesitate.

Zhong Kui gave him an encouraging look. Jiang Yu swallowed and continued, "This Swordholder has a very fiery temper. I'm definitely a pacifist, but he's fought with people in the group before. I suggest you go ask him about it."

Qi Fei sized up the thin young man in front of him and said coldly, "Are you trying to distract us?"

His words startled Jiang Yu, who waved his hands repeatedly: "I meant well, don't misunderstand. If you still doubt me, you can call my colleagues now, or contact more people if you want, just don't call my boss. If he finds out I didn't work overtime and came out to a party, I'm doomed."

Qi Fei made a phone call in front of Jiang Yu. After asking several people, they all said that he was at work on April 11, just like You He. He was in Baicheng when Hao Weiwei died.

The two-hour drive between Baicheng and Nancheng became the perfect reason to rule out these people as suspects.

Jiang Yu's demeanor became even more confident: "They all know I'm the most self-disciplined person in this group, unlike some people..."

Sensing the hidden meaning in his words, Qi Fei couldn't help but ask curiously, "What about some people?"

Jiang Yu glanced at the group of people chatting animatedly: "The rules set by the Swordholders mean we all have our own nicknames and don't know each other's real names. I think some people are mistaken, thinking that using a different name makes them completely different from the person they were during the day. Hehe, let me put it this way, see that woman with the curly hair? The one flipping her hair at that man. That man is called 'K,' and that woman is called 'Joey,' understand?"

Qi Fei looked bewildered and was about to say he didn't understand when Zhong Kui immediately spoke up: "Blade Runner 2049, Joey is K's holographic partner, so it seems they are a couple."

Jiang Yu said disdainfully, "Originally, this group was very pure; everyone came together because of their love for science fiction. It's these people who have corrupted the atmosphere. I don't think this Joey is entirely interested in science fiction; he's just here to hook up with rich guys."

Zhong Kui smiled subtly at Jiang Yu's remarks; the jealousy in his words was far too obvious.

"So, what about the Swordholder? You think his fight with his group was also because of a relationship issue?" Qi Fei continued to ask.

Jiang Yu nodded: "It's true in a way, and it's not true in a way. After all, the Swordholder was the founder of the group, and he actually cares more about rules than I do. I heard that he discovered a member had done something out of line and got into a fight with the other party. We all guessed that the member had some shady dealings with other people in private, but the Swordholder never said anything about it, and that person was expelled..."

"who's that person?"