Girl in the Box: Please tell me why I was reincarnated as a mimic monster!

"Ugh... my head hurts..." I can't think of a solution.

"Hmm, have you not noticed this problem yet?" Koster asked.

“Ahaha… I’m ashamed to say,” Li said awkwardly, “no… we just subconsciously felt that the number of these people was unusual, so we started to have some thoughts about this matter.”

“I see…” Koster nodded. “It’s alright. Not everyone can solve everything perfectly, and adventurers can’t all be omnipotent. Anyway, remember this lesson. I’ll have the counter staff keep an eye on things and make sure the adventurers have as little contact with those people as possible.”

"I'm sorry, thank you so much for your help."

"It's alright, it's alright. But this is no small matter, you must handle it carefully."

"Okay, thank you. We'll be going now..."

“Li, you should go first,” Fino waved her hand. “I still have some details I want to discuss with the old man regarding the commission.”

"Okay, I understand. I won't bother you any longer."

After saying goodbye to the two, Li restored the room to this world, then tiptoed out of the room, closed the door, and left the Adventurers' Guild alone. She was fine near the guild, but as she got further away, Li started to become a little nervous. After hearing Guild Master Coster's words, she couldn't maintain a completely calm demeanor.

Because these half-naked women were practically everywhere in Akihabara, she felt as if she had been easily infiltrated by the enemy without even realizing it, and she always felt like someone was watching her. Although the Holy Sword no longer existed, the danger posed by the ghosts could not be ignored. No one knew what they might do, and it was impossible for Rin to remain calm under such circumstances. Who knew if one of the people around her was a ghost?

In short, she averted her gaze, making herself appear less suspicious, and then quickly headed towards the Sangu Workshop. Soon after, Li arrived at the Sangu Workshop. This newly built workshop was noticeably smaller than before, but overall it was still quite good; at least the equipment was complete, and there was enough space for the craftsmen to work.

The craftsmen didn't ask for much; they just wanted a decent working environment and a job, and that was enough. Akihabara certainly needed them right now, as all sorts of things needed to be custom-made by Sanko Workshop, so the workload was enormous, and the craftsmen were happy to do it. Meanwhile, Ning would take some time to go to the workshop to teach a few things, and today was that day.

So, Ryou and Ning split up for the time being. Ryou had finished her work there and was coming to find Ning. Before she even entered the workshop, she saw the person sitting at the workshop entrance. Her striking light blue hair made her stand out; there was no one else but her. She noticed Ryou approaching, then smiled, stood up, and walked towards Ryou.

"You finished your work so quickly?" Ning asked as he walked towards her.

“That’s what I wanted to ask. Were you slacking off?” Li picked up where she left off, then turned the tables on her.

"No," Ning shrugged. "Why would such a small thing take so much time?"

Her tone was as if it were a matter of course, but this little thing really wouldn't take her much time. All she had to do was provide guidance. Although it was unclear how she usually guided others, she was the type who only taught the key points and left the rest to others to figure out on their own. It was true that the workload wasn't heavy.

"Oh, really?" Ri didn't continue on that topic. "I've finished my work here, and there's nothing important to do today. What are your plans for the rest of the day?"

"Hmm..." Ning thought for a moment and said, "How about this? Let's go to Three Colors Fantasy?"

"Huh? Three Colors Fantasy?" Li frowned. "I remember it just reopened the day before yesterday, right? It seems to be doing really well... Will there still be any seats left if we go now?"

Three Colors Fantasy is the popular confectionery shop that used to open in Akihabara. It was run by Ms. Lamy, who was originally a receptionist at the Borg Merchant Guild. It is still a shop under the Borg Merchant Guild. Most of Ms. Lamy's cooking skills were taught by Rin, who also hoped to spread the food culture of her world through this. However, it seems that the effect is too good. As a result, Three Colors Fantasy has become extremely popular after reopening several months later.

It's so popular that people from other countries flock here. Half of the people who come to the Little Garden are actually there for the desserts at Three Colors Fantasy. The positive review rate is almost 100%, which even Li finds somewhat surprising. Ning's suggestion to go check out Three Colors Fantasy now seems a bit impractical. With a shop this popular, wouldn't they have to wait a long time if they went now?

"It's nothing," Ning said nonchalantly. "I already made an appointment beforehand."

"Wow... Has Tricolor Fantasy become a reservation-only store?"

“No, that’s not it,” Ning said with a wry smile. “I was thinking of going with you when we were still in the Duchy, but I didn’t expect that we wouldn’t be able to go for various reasons. After we reopened the day before yesterday, I went to talk to Miss Lemmy, and she said she would help us resolve the issue.”

"Hmm...it feels like an abuse of power..." Li said somewhat uneasily.

"You're overthinking it." Ning took her hand. "Let's go. We can talk about it as we walk. If we wait until closing time, they might not be able to serve us."

"Huh?! Why didn't you say so earlier?!"

No matter what kind of person Li becomes, she will always be a girl who has no resistance to desserts. No matter how conflicted she is, desserts will always come first. She doesn't even know how long it has been since she last ate desserts. Even if she wanted to make them herself, she would give up because it would take too much time. How could she let go of such a good opportunity?

The two then arrived at the new address of Three Colors Fantasy in Akihabara. They walked straight through the queue, which made some people unhappy, but their dissatisfaction vanished after seeing their faces. Those in the know nodded in understanding; if it were them, such treatment wouldn't be surprising.

The existence of the Three Colors Fantasy is all thanks to those two. Without them, it's hard to say whether we would be able to taste such delicious desserts. After entering the shop, Li glanced around and saw that it was mostly filled with young girls. She couldn't help but think that no matter what world it is, desserts are something that girls find hard to resist.

"Ah—! You two have finally arrived!"

While still working, Lemmy handed over her work to the other employees and quickly walked towards the two women.

"Long time no see, Miss Lemmy." Li greeted Lemmy politely.

"Yeah, long time no see." Lemmy smiled slightly at her. "I saw Ning come to see me when I was making samples the day before yesterday, but I was a little worried when I didn't see the two of you yesterday. I've been waiting for you for a long time."

"I'm sorry... we've been a bit busy lately..." Li said apologetically.

"Oh dear, I didn't ask you to apologize to me," Leslie said with a wry smile. "Come on, come with me. The room has been prepared for you two. Just tell me what you want to eat, no need to be polite."

Lemmy practically ushered the two into a beautifully decorated room, where she selected desserts and prepared tea for them before leaving. The two looked at the closed door and smiled sheepishly, feeling slightly embarrassed by such warm hospitality.

"Business is booming..." Li said, taking a sip of tea.

“Hmm,” Ning nodded and said, “It was alright when I came alone the day before yesterday, but there are so many people today, it’s beyond my expectations…”

"At this rate, we might have a branch in less than a week," Li joked.

"Hmm, probably~" Ning took a sip of tea and continued, "First of all, we still need to train the shop staff."

“Ugh…stop it,” Li interrupted her immediately, “We’ve been dealing with similar headaches almost all this time, so stop talking about it…”

"Haha... then let's not talk about it." Ning stopped the topic with a wry smile.

“Oh, right,” Li suddenly remembered her important matter, “I forgot to tell you, I’ve already started preparing for things at school.”

"Okay, I see," Ning nodded and said, "You can handle this kind of thing by yourself now, right? Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Hmm... not yet, but there are some other issues..." Li snapped his fingers, triggering the effect of his power.

The power was activated, and the surrounding spacetime stopped flowing, except for Li and Ning, who retained their color in this gray world. Li's actions also caught Ning's attention. What could be so important that it required the power of the goddess's proxy to ensure confidentiality?

"Judging from your expression... I think it's about time..." Ning said as if it were a habit, "Has something happened again?"

"Ugh... Your attitude is infuriating..." Li said, her expression twitching. "Yes, something has happened again, but I don't know whether to say it was expected or unexpected. In any case, the situation is quite bad."

Ning asked somewhat perfunctorily, "Okay, okay, so what exactly is wrong?"

“Hmm…” Li reorganized his words and began to explain to Ning, “Ning, you should have noticed it too, right? Among the people who have flowed into our country, there is a group of women who look like they are not good. I just went to the Adventurers’ Guild to post a quest in order to find a suitable teacher. Guild Master Koster mentioned this to me, and that’s how I found out that those people are probably one of the underground forces of the New Kingdom.”

"Huh?" Ning finally took this matter more seriously. "If I remember correctly, the kingdoms attacked by the elves, whether it was the forces of Elise's faction or the underground forces, were all weakened, right? But this number doesn't make sense."

“I also feel something’s not right, but that’s really how it is…” Rin didn’t know how to explain it well. “I think we can’t act rashly right now. Let’s go find Ellis to confirm if there’s such an underground force… But I feel there’s a high possibility that it’s Ghost’s doing…”

Chapter 32 The Undercover Investigator

"Ah... So, I heard there was an emergency, so I came over. So, what is it?"

As always, Demon King Xuanze was casual. As soon as he entered the room, he casually found a place to sit down. He looked quite tired. Just by looking at him, you could tell that he had been extremely busy recently. His eye sockets were much darker than before, and he looked very listless. It would be strange if he fell asleep at any time. Even though his eyes were bloodshot, he still forced himself to maintain his consciousness.

Besides the Demon King, there's Queen Ellisde, Prince Sevi, and the Imperial Agent, Edman; thus, all five major forces of this alliance have gathered. They all possess specialized earpieces, and in the absence of any other more efficient and rapid means of communication, they use these earpieces to communicate with each other. This is because, apart from individuals like Li who possess time-travel abilities, none of these people have a way to travel to other countries using means other than teleportation portals.

Li had informed them in advance, and then gathered them together that evening. Li coughed twice, organized his thoughts, and prepared to start the meeting.

"Ahem, anyway, please all sit down." He gestured for everyone to sit, and once they were all seated, he began to speak, "I'd like to confirm first whether there are now a large number of women like this in each of your countries?"

Ning, who was waiting nearby, used magic threads to construct a holographic image and project it. Everyone's attention was focused on this holographic image, which showed several women dressed in revealing clothes, almost half-naked. Their alluring figures and seductive expressions would definitely attract the attention of any ordinary man. However, if the girls present were there, it would be a different story.

Faced with the women's expressions, everyone reacted differently. Alice's expression turned serious, Xuanze frowned and then lost interest, Edman stroked his stubble and looked at the women thoughtfully, while Savi innocently looked away. Li and Ning didn't show any reaction, simply waiting for the four of them to come to their senses.

"These guys?" Xuanze chuckled. "Yes, of course there are, and quite a few. They're pretty much what you imagine them to be."

"Huh?" —Pfft!

Because of Xuanze's subtle hint, Li's mind immediately conjured up images that could only be censored in this article. Her face flushed red, and seeing the mischievous grin on Xuanze's face, she knew she'd been led astray again. Everyone looked at her questioningly, and Li quickly changed the subject.

"So, there is one, right?" Li turned to Sevier. "What about the duchy?"

“Hmm… I haven’t been to the city much lately…” Savi looked at Edman, “Edman should know more about these things than I do.”

“I’ve thought about it carefully,” Edelman said. “There is indeed such a group of people in the principality, and quite a lot of them.”

“Alice?” Li looked at Alice again. “Don’t misunderstand, I just want to confirm some information with you. I think you should know who these people are, right?”

"Her Majesty?"

All eyes immediately turned to Alice. Alice remained silent for a moment, then quietly stood up.

“Yes,” she nodded, “that’s exactly right. I know these people very well; they used to be one of the kingdom’s underground forces, quite large, but because they didn’t cause much trouble, their presence wasn’t very obvious. I thought they had all disappeared in that attack…”

"What……?"

Because Xuanze understood the situation, he immediately noticed something was wrong. Logically speaking, the force that had been attacked should have been greatly weakened by the attack by the elves, and at least their numbers should not be this many. So why were there still so many people left?

“Demon King, you noticed it too, didn’t you?” Li explained to the others, “The numbers are wrong. The New Kingdom suffered heavy casualties after being attacked once. It’s not surprising that many underground forces were wiped out overnight. Even if they weren’t, their numbers should have been greatly reduced. The strange thing is that this underground force still has so many people left.”

“I’ve also heard from some residents who came from the New Kingdom that the battle that day was extremely fierce,” Edman said. “The casualties were very heavy. Princess Alice did everything she could to save people, but less than half survived. So, logically speaking, there must be a big problem here. Miss Li, do you know anything about this?”

“We don’t know much about this either,” Li shrugged helplessly. “If President Coster hadn’t reminded me, I wouldn’t have discovered this. I originally thought it was just normal personnel movement, but President Coster told me they might be an underground force from the kingdom, and that’s when I noticed this problem. So I called this meeting.”

“This force does exist…” Alice said with a headache, “but they are very difficult to deal with. This force has no name, it’s just a group of women like this organized together. Their usual purpose is not very clear, and they haven’t done anything outrageous. It will probably be difficult to do anything to them.”

"Uh... I don't quite understand what you mean..." Savi rubbed his temples, looking troubled. "You mean, they're an organization, but their actions are unpredictable?"

“That’s roughly the idea.” Alice nodded. “I’ve also investigated the kingdom’s underground forces, but this is the only one I can’t figure out the origin of no matter how hard I try. However, they usually operate in a very organized manner, and I don’t really know who the mastermind behind it is.”

"This is truly troublesome in another sense..." Xuanze narrowed his eyes, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "It can only be those guys, right?"

The group Xuanze was referring to was none other than the ghosts they had been wary of. This time, the ghosts were proving difficult to deal with, having managed to infiltrate the city unnoticed and retain a degree of strength. In a sense, they were now trapped, surrounded, or rather, in a trap set by the ghosts.

"First, I'd like to confirm something," Ning asked, "have you confirmed exactly how many of these people are in the city?"

“Hmm…we can find out if you give us a day,” Edman said. “Any problems?”

“Although we can’t do anything big right now,” Ning said, “it’s okay to do some local work for the time being. I hope everyone here can count their numbers as soon as possible and give us the relevant information. This may infringe on personal privacy, but considering the ghost issue, we don’t have time to worry about that.”

"Understood." Everyone nodded.

In the coming days, until the cause, the mastermind, and their targets are found, everyone here must find a way to monitor these people and avoid any unavoidable consequences.

“Furthermore,” Ning said, “since we can’t move freely, we need one or two guys to help us investigate covertly. Do you guys have any candidates?”

They couldn't just sit idly by and watch these suspicious figures. Although these important figures certainly couldn't move freely, they would ask others to assist them in investigating the matter. Being robbed first was certainly unpleasant, but they still had ways to turn the tables and go from defense to offense. For this, they needed a few people who could take their place.

“Ah… if that’s the case,” Ning remembered someone, “I have someone in mind…”

"That's the situation. In conclusion, this task is now assigned to you."

"Huh?! ...

"Do you even have a say in this?"

"Don't you have any?!"

"This is a mission given to you by the guards, you know?"

"Stop joking, okay?!"

"Do you have any objections to investigating so many girls?"

"Of course there are!?!"

This time, Rika and Ning were talking to someone at the Akihabara Guard's base, discussing an investigation request. Such a request couldn't possibly be posted on the Adventurers' Guild's request board—that would be too conspicuous. Therefore, they came in person to make the request, which was safer. After all, no matter how arrogant those ghosts were, they couldn't possibly get close to this place.

Among the permanent members of the Akihabara Guard are the Flame Dragon King Salid and Akatsuki. We won't go into detail about their active role in that battle, but it was enough to make the ghosts tremble with fear. However, they weren't the ones Riku commissioned, as their actions would be too conspicuous. Their real client was that guy who kept complaining.

That person, well, you could say they were an acquaintance; at most, we just happened to meet by chance.

"Ugh...you're so annoying." Li covered her ears impatiently.

"You're the annoying one, aren't you?!" Leon complained. "Who just runs over like that, blurts out everything, and then dumps it all on someone else?!"

"Yes, the Demon King is one." The Dragon King, who always went his own way, was brought up without a second thought.

"Are you a demon!?"

"Hey, since you joined the guard team, your skills haven't improved much, but your吐槽 (tu cao, a Chinese internet slang term for sarcastic or critical remarks) skills have certainly gotten sharper, haven't they?"

"Can't you stop changing the subject?!"

Leon was currently experiencing a severe headache. He had been on his routine patrol when Miss Black Knight, Esther, called him back. He had initially thought his luck with women had finally turned around, but instead found Li and Ning there, which surprised him greatly. Li then explained the whole story to him.

After he finished listening, the matter was dumped on him without any explanation, which he certainly couldn't accept.

First of all, although he said he would strive to become stronger after arriving here, he hasn't become much stronger in the short time he's been here. At best, he can only exchange blows with some members of the guard team a few times before getting completely beaten up. In short, he is absolutely incapable of handling this task.

Their opponent is the mastermind behind these women, and it's highly likely to be a ghost. With his limited strength, how could he possibly deal with a ghost? Ultimately, he still doesn't understand why Li came looking for him. Could it be... because... his own story has finally begun?

"Um..." Leon asked tentatively, "Why me? There were so many candidates, why did they choose me?"

“Hmm…” Li frowned, and said matter-of-factly, “Isn’t that obvious? There’s no better candidate than you, right? After all, you’re so inconspicuous.”

Unremarkable — Leon

"Pfft!"

Leon, though not actually spitting blood, put on a performance so realistic it looked exactly like he was, a barely noticeable arrow protruding from his chest, before collapsing to the ground. He had still clung to a sliver of hope, but reality was so cruel that he could only collapse to the ground in heartache.

"Alright, stop acting." Li said with a wry smile, "You are indeed very inconspicuous, but that also means it is easier for you to take action. I need you to help me investigate them. Inconspicuous people are the most useful at this time. Putting aside everything else, at least it is difficult for others to tell that you are on our side. So, you can take a few days off. Of course, please do not slack off on the investigation."

"Wait? Something's not right!" Leon sat up abruptly. "I don't know anything about investigation. I'm glad you value me so much, but I just can't do something I can't do! Please, please let me go!"

“No,” Li said decisively. “Only you can do this. There’s nothing you can’t do, and you can learn if you don’t know how. If you want to become stronger, don’t be content with the status quo. Where did your ambition go that day?”