Have you had enough, Miss Vampire? It's time to get down to business.

Richard saw his intention and exclaimed, reaching out to grab his shoulder:

"The extraordinary power contained in that 'darkness' is simply too strong. Even if you go, it will be useless! Lor finally gave us the opportunity to retreat. Don't let his sacrifice go to waste... hm?"

Before he could finish his words, Richard's expression froze as he suddenly noticed something.

"Lor is definitely not dead yet. He has a flowing light on his hand!" Vivian said anxiously, "Senior Joyce, I will go with you to save him! Please tell me what to do!"

"...There's no need for that." At this moment, Rachel also noticed something strange and shook her head.

"What do you mean 'unnecessary'?!" Vivian was so anxious that tears were about to fall. "Isn't 'salvation and protection' what we in the Church of Holy Light value most? Lor is willing to risk his life for us. How can we abandon him?"

As he spoke, he grabbed Senior Joyce's wrist, as if he was determined to join him in the fight.

However, Mr. Joyce remained where he was, motionless.

"There's really no need for that, Vivian... look." He pointed ahead and reminded her.

Vivian took a closer look and finally understood what the others meant.

The thick, ghostly darkness before him was shrinking rapidly! Lor, who should have been engulfed, reappeared with the light in his hand... and appeared unharmed!

"Huh?" Vivian didn't react for a moment.

"This kid is really lucky."

Joyce blinked, put his right hand, which was already covered with thorn patterns, into his pocket, and smiled.

……

When Captain Ronina and Miles arrived at the scene, the incident seemed to be over.

Joyce and several other people have searched the cabin next to the sluice.

As expected, Miles' body was found inside, but his clothes were different from before. It seemed that he had changed his clothes again on the way here.

...Of course, the actual situation was that the clothes he was originally wearing were "borrowed" by Lor.

Miles' body was in a terrible state and was rapidly decomposing.

The situation is very similar to Della's earlier one.

"The direct cause of death was exhaustion from consuming too much spiritual energy in one breath." Captain Luo Nina only took a quick glance and decisively judged, "The decay occurred after he expired... probably to prevent us from using the 'Communicate with the Dead' magic to spy on him after his death."

"As expected of a member of the Ferryman, he's very cautious." Joyce nodded.

"The deceased seemed to be holding something in his hand... a pocket watch?" Vivian squatted down and curiously pried open the corpse's fingers.

"Don't touch it!" Joyce and Captain Ronina seemed to have telepathy and issued warnings in unison.

Vivian was so frightened that she quickly retracted her hand.

As for the others, they raised their eyebrows, smelling the scent of gossip in the air.

Captain Luo Nina coughed dryly, looking a little embarrassed.

"I can sense that the pocket watch contains the extraordinary power of the 'Shadow' root... I'll have Madam Helen examine it later. Before then, it's best not to touch it lightly, as it could be dangerous."

As she was speaking, she suddenly remembered that Joyce was the one in charge of the "Gorton City Exorcist Team" today, so she quickly added:

"What do you think, Joyce?"

"I think you're right, Captain!" Joyce nodded solemnly and clapped his hands. "That's a very wise judgment! I unconditionally support and uphold any decision you make!"

"Stop flattering me," Captain Rhonina frowned. "Don't forget, you're the captain now."

"Acting Captain," Joyce corrected him. "Compared to you, I'm still far behind! Moreover, after today's events, I've become even more aware that my command abilities are still somewhat insufficient, and it's difficult for me to stay in charge of the Gordon City Church... So, Captain, I think I need one or two helpers..."

"I see you just don't want to sit in the office every day, right?"

Ronina narrowed her eyes slightly and quickly understood Joyce's intention.

...It's so peaceful.

Lor shook his head and smiled bitterly, then walked to the corner of the house and watched several pieces of clothing there.

Coat, leather shoes, trousers, even gloves and wallet, everything was there... Moreover, the lining was wrapped inside the coat, and the socks were left in the leather shoes, it didn't look like they were taken off normally.

It's more like the person who originally wore these clothes disappeared out of thin air, leaving only the clothes behind.

"If nothing unexpected happens, these pieces of clothing are the remains of 'Cleanup Man John,' right?" Lor said, secretly guiding everyone's thoughts. "Tsk, tsk, how tragic... Forget a complete body, there's not even a trace of ashes left... How on earth did this guy die?"

"I'm afraid it was transformed into a 'Shadow Spirit'."

Joyce said seriously:

"Just now, the ghostly figure lurking in that 'darkness' must be a shadow spirit. It's a mid-level transcendental creature with the ability to transform living people into its own kind... Although this process normally takes a while, if surrounded by a large number of shadow spirits, the transformation process will accelerate."

"Shadow Spirit?" Lor made a curious expression.

"Well, those things are really weird," Joyce continued. "I heard that once you're touched by them, they'll leave a shadow-like mark on your body. Over time, the mark will get bigger and bigger..."

"like this?"

Lor slowly lifted up his trouser legs and looked worried.

Everyone's faces suddenly turned pale.

"...Is there any hope?" Lor paused slightly and asked with a glimmer of hope in his eyes.

"Alas, you were finally caught." Joyce slapped his forehead, annoyed. "Really? You were surrounded by those shadow spirits at the time. It's strange you didn't get caught... Damn it, I was careless and didn't check your condition right away."

"Don't worry too much," Captain Rhonina consoled her. "The mark on your body isn't that big, so the transformation won't be too fast. I'll contact His Excellency Helm, the diocesan bishop, as soon as I get back. He'll definitely have a solution."

"Then I feel relieved." Lor breathed a sigh of relief.

well.

Since it can be resolved through the church's formal channels, all that's left is for me to find a sixth-level healing talisman myself...

Save a lot of money!

28. Smooth ending

"This is 'Shadow Gap Moment', a powerful high-level extraordinary item!"

The knowledgeable Ms. Helen quickly recognized the origin of the pocket watch in Miles's hand:

"The information says this is a posthumous artifact of a seventh-rank 'Shadow' origin transcendent. It has been owned by many organizations... It is extremely powerful, but can only be used by transcendents with the same 'Shadow' origin, and it consumes a large amount of spiritual energy."

"So, we can't use it, then?" Captain Rhonina mused. "However, this is a very dangerous object after all. It's a good thing that the church has taken it in, preventing it from falling into the hands of dangerous elements."

As he spoke, he looked at Joyce and smiled approvingly at her:

"Well done, Joyce. On your first day as acting captain, you received a high-level extraordinary relic. That's quite a feat."

"It was just a fluke." Joyce shook his head, looking rather remorseful. "Miles and John, the cleanup man, died together. We didn't do anything, and we even let Lor get hurt... It seems I'm still not fit to be the acting captain."

"My injury is okay, it can be cured anyway." Lor quickly comforted.

"In my opinion, your judgment and command were flawless. I wouldn't have been able to do any better," Captain Rhonina said. "Furthermore, if you hadn't restrained Della in time and prevented her from rejoining Miles, the final outcome might have been different... Even if there was an element of luck involved, the final result was undeniable."

indeed.

"John the Cleaner" is a Level 3 wanted criminal. Miles, a member of the "Ferryman", and his two accomplices are all dangerous illegal superhumans.

Even if these people live one more day, they may endanger many innocent people.

Now that these people are dead, even if they were not directly eliminated by the Gordon City Exorcist Team, it can still be recorded as a merit... What's more, a high-level extraordinary relic was seized in the process.

"As for how to write a detailed mission report to maximize the credit for the grand prize, that's your responsibility as acting captain." Captain Ronina winked at Joyce. "You're a seasoned veteran, so you don't need me to teach you how to do it, do you?"

"Understand."

Joyce sighed lightly, looking annoyed.

"After discovering signs of activity by illegal foreign supernatural beings, we didn't act rashly. Instead, we decided to use them to help us locate and eliminate the elusive 'John the Cleaner,' and ultimately achieved the desired result... In addition, to ensure that the general public wouldn't be endangered during the process, we kept tracking and monitoring these three people throughout the entire process... correct?"

Captain Luo Nina nodded and said with a smile:

"As expected, you are the most suitable person to be the 'acting captain'."

In addition to having qualified strength and judgment, the position of captain also has a very important responsibility...that is, to strive for more bonuses and credit for the team members as much as possible.

Therefore, how to write this report is also a technical job. It is necessary to highlight the ability and performance of each team member as much as possible while ensuring the accuracy of the facts.

"Anyway, I'll leave the report writing to you, Joyce. I'll contact Lord Helm at the diocesan headquarters to give a brief report and then discuss Lor's injuries with him."

Captain Ronina stood up and walked out the door, her expression obviously much more relaxed.

It can be seen that being able to resolve this matter today is a relief for her... In this way, she can go to the Holy City without any worries tomorrow and participate in the trial to be promoted to the fourth level.

"Alright, alright, you've heard it all. I'll write the report, and you just wait to receive your credit and bonus. There's nothing else to do today. Everyone, please tell me everything you've experienced today, and then we'll go our separate ways."

As soon as the captain left the house, Joyce waved to everyone:

"Don't worry, Lor. Bishop Helm will definitely be able to cure you... Well, why don't you stay a little longer and wait for the captain and the bishop to discuss the results. And also, help me sort out any remaining doubts about this matter... After all, you have a sharp mind."

"Okay." Lor narrowed his eyes slightly.

It seems that Senior Joyce has something he wants to tell me in private.

……

"Hmm...right now, it seems there are three suspicious points in this whole incident."

Combining the reports from other team members, Joyce reviewed the entire incident from beginning to end and concluded:

"First, what exactly is the grudge between Miles and 'John the Cleaner'? Up to now, we still don't know."

"They're all illegal transcendents of the Shadow Root. I'm guessing they've had contact before, perhaps sharing some knowledge and resources." Lor shrugged and said, "Perhaps they developed a grudge during that process."

"Hmm, that's a reasonable guess." Joyce didn't delve into the issue. "Let's just write it this way for now. After all, we don't have much information, so we can only leave it to the higher-ups to judge... The second question is, how did Miles discover the 'surveillance bug' set up by Richard? There didn't seem to be any signs beforehand..."

"Before he escaped, Miles had contact with a black marketeer."

Lor brought out the arguments he had prepared long ago:

"The black market is a place where extraordinary people often appear. Miles must have been on high alert. Perhaps that's when he sensed the faint spiritual power emitted by the 'surveillance bug'.

"As for how he located 'John the Cleaner's' location, he likely obtained crucial intelligence from a black marketeer... If I'm not mistaken, this is the third suspicious point in this incident, right?"

"I knew it, you're quite clever," Joyce said with a knowing smile. "Unfortunately, the 'surveillance bug' can only transmit images, it can't eavesdrop on conversations... Hmm, it seems we need to call this black marketeer in for questioning."

"I'll go get someone right away." Lor nodded, stood up and walked towards the door.

He wasn't worried about what the black marketeer would reveal.

After all, when Miles was talking to that guy, Isabella was nearby and heard the entire conversation clearly... Moreover, after Miles died, the eldest lady had returned to the black market, hypnotized the businessman, and rewrote his memory.

If asked, he would say that he had seen a man who looked like John the Cleaner near the sluice gate a few days ago and sold this information to Miles.

In this way, everything falls into place.

"and many more."

Joyce suddenly stopped Lor, who was about to leave, with a slightly hesitant expression:

"Well, let me ask you one more thing... When we were near the sluice gate, about to be swallowed by the 'darkness', and you rushed in front of me, trying to cover everyone's retreat, did you see anything... uh, strange?"

"Strange things? What do you mean?" Lor looked puzzled.

"Ahem, it's nothing, maybe it's just my illusion."

Joyce's expression was somewhat unnatural:

"Anyway, hurry up and bring that black marketeer here. The sooner we can finish questioning and writing the report, the sooner I can finish work... Ugh, this acting captain position is a real pain in the ass. It's one thing to sit in the office every day, but I also have to write reports!"

"Those who are capable should do more work." Lor said with a smile, "Isn't it because Captain Rhonina trusts you?"

"This trust is too heavy!"

……

In fact, Lor did see it.

The strange thorn-like pattern that briefly appeared on Joyce's palm.

Moreover, at that time, the eyes of this senior who was usually lazy and undisciplined had obviously become a little unusual... as if revealing a certain determination.

It seems that Senior Joyce is also a man with secrets.

Lor sighed in his heart.

Although I have said this many times, but... there are really hidden dragons and crouching tigers in our team.

As for what the pattern actually represented, Lor had no idea. In the information he had access to, he had never seen a similar pattern or read any related descriptions.