030 Is My Head Still Attached?

"Shall I see you home?"

At the entrance of the maid cafe, under the watchful, gossiping eyes of the three junior maids and the manager, Mo Bai smiled and said, "Leaving a lovely young lady to walk home alone is hardly the behavior of an excellent butler."

"See me home?" Gu Ran turned around and pointed toward the sky. "And how exactly do you intend to do that?"

Mo Bai pondered for two seconds, then replied with a sincere expression, "My soul shall be with you."

"Pfft... Alright, alright. For someone like me, aside from that one white-haired loli from a few years back, no one would dare try to mug me."

Mo Bai rolled his eyes, silently retorting: So, you’ve finally admitted you’re the Red Moon, haven't you?

The woman who had been keeping her identity hidden for so long had decided to stop pretending.

However, at the mention of the moon, Mo Bai couldn't help but ask out of curiosity, "I heard there are four moons like you, right?"

"Is there any connection between you all?"

"None at all," Gu Ran said, looking annoyed. "I and those idiots are only grouped together by your kind because our existences are similar."

"There is no connection between me and them."

"But, since you asked, it means you are already aware of certain concepts." Gu Ran said seriously, "Do not trust any of the moons."

"Especially the purple one."

Mo Bai paused for a moment, then smiled. "Does that include you as well?"

"Yes, of course, that includes me too."

Gu Ran produced her phone at some point and gave it a shake. "I've already sent you a friend request. You aren't allowed to decline."

"Well then, goodbye."

"Mo Bai."

Gu Ran turned and walked away, disappearing from Mo Bai's sight as naturally as if she had never been there.

Mo Bai returned to the shop, only to be swarmed by the maids.

Xie Ziyun spoke first, standing on her tiptoes and flicking her fox tail. "Brother Bai, Brother Bai! Who was that beautiful girl? Do you know her?"

Gu Xiaoxiao, standing behind, looked baffled. "I thought that, being the ultimate sister-complex you are, there wouldn't be any other girls in your life besides your sister."

"And yet, you actually have enough charisma to attract normal people?!"

"Oh no, I’m in danger!"

Mo Bai eyed her dismissively. "Who would be attracted to a flat-chested midget who pretends to be a loli? Don't be so ridiculous!"

"Who are you calling a midget? (Takes a deep breath) Who are you calling a midget!"

Sister Li patted Mo Bai on the back proudly. "I always knew you had a talent for this."

"Starting tomorrow, you are the number one host of our maid cafe... ahem, number one butler."

"The future of the maid cafe is in your hands!"

"A maid cafe that needs to be saved by a security guard might as well just go bankrupt..."

"Oh? Cursing us with bankruptcy, are you? That’s a pay cut."

"Sister Li, no, please don't!!!"

In the distance, the girl with crimson hair watched the lively scene inside the shop, smiling as she closed her brilliant golden eyes.

***

"Is this the everyday life you have chosen, Mo Bai?"

"Then, one day, you will create a miracle once again, won't you?"

"I sincerely look forward to that day."

The girl's figure vanished completely.

It was as if she had never existed in this world at all.

But at the very least, in someone’s heart, the image of that girl had been firmly imprinted—that lovely pink-haired beauty named Gu Ran.

***

Mo Mo let out a weary sigh.

"Sigh..."

The official directive regarding Shen Qiqi had come down, and it was two words, simple and brutal: Forced recruitment.

Since she would be out acting as a "partner of justice" every day regardless of what they did, and they happened to be short-handed, they had finalized her recruitment after a brief consultation with her.

It was faster than Song Jiang’s recruitment in the classics.

Thus, Shen Qiqi was now Mo Mo’s subordinate.

She was currently taking Shen Qiqi out on a mission.

As for the reason for her weariness...

"Mo Mo, Mo Mo, you’re Brother Mo Bai’s sister, right? What is Brother Mo Bai like at home usually?" Shen Qiqi asked curiously, following behind Mo Mo.

Mo Mo: "..."

Brother Mo Bai... Brother... Brother...

Her gaze gradually turned icy.

Her brother should only have one sister, and that was her!

"Please address me by my rank while on duty, Team Member Shen Qiqi." Mo Mo gave Shen Qiqi a light chop to the head. "Call me Team Leader Mo."

"Also, my brother is not part of this team. Do not mention his name casually."

"Oh..." Shen Qiqi rubbed her head with a dim-witted, cute expression. "I understand, Team Leader... Mo Mo."

"Let's continue the mission."

Mo Mo turned away and bit her lip. It seemed she would have to pay more attention to the people around her brother lately to ensure no "home-wrecking cats" suddenly popped up.

After all, there were only two types of girls: sisters and home-wrecking cats.

Passing through a long, narrow corridor, they arrived before a tightly shut door. Mo Mo softened her breathing, pressed her back against the wall, and signaled to Shen Qiqi with her eyes.

They had arrived.

Before Mo Mo had begun tracking Lu Yuan, Chu Aoqing had been investigating a smuggling case involving psychoactive drugs.

It was a drug called [Attachment]. Upon the first dose, it made the user feel the bittersweet sting of high school romance, but as the condition worsened, the user would become hopelessly addicted, wasting away day by day.

Some would even perform bizarre, frantic actions in the middle of the street.

Of course, those weren't the main points. The most serious issue was that with repeated use, the drug planted a seed in the user's brain. Since it was still in the early stages, no one knew what would happen once the seed sprouted.

If they were lucky, it might just be decorative. If they were unlucky, a real-life zombie apocalypse wasn't entirely impossible.

***

The good news was that, for now, [Attachment] was only circulating in the underground market and hadn't spread widely.

They needed to find the source before it broke out.

This hotel was where they had finally tracked down some of the dealers.

It was time to act.

A strand of Alaya’s Consciousness probed into the keyhole. Soon, the lock clicked open. Under Shen Qiqi’s nervous gaze, Mo Mo pressed her palm against the door and slowly applied force.

"Bang!"

With a heavy thud, Mo Mo flew into the hotel room. But the moment she entered, she caught the scent of an incredibly pungent, metallic smell of blood.

Mo Mo: "!"

There were no living people left in the room.

Corpses, corpses, corpses... Everywhere she looked, there were only corpses. There were nine of them in total, and each had been killed instantly with a single wound.

On their necks.

Yes, everyone in the room seemed to have undergone a "Louis XVI happy guillotine"—their heads and bodies had parted ways. Nine heads lay scattered on the floor like marbles, their expressions twisted in absolute terror.

And these people were all on the list provided by Chu Aoqing.

Not one more, not one less.

The viscous blood had formed a lake on the floor.

"This is..." Shen Qiqi, who had transformed into a magical girl and entered a step behind, looked at the horrific scene and retreated several steps in fear.

"Eek!"

Magical girl powers were meant to blast enemies into dust; she had never seen anything this terrifying.

The moment she walked in, nine heads were there on the floor, staring at her.

She was definitely going to have nightmares, right?

Shen Qiqi gripped her magical wand tightly and looked at Mo Mo nervously. "Mo Mo, what do we do now?"

"Should we call the hotel staff to handle this?"

Hotel staff: ? You want me to handle this? Are you serious?

Mo Mo had no time to correct Shen Qiqi. She had already begun to frantically expand her Alaya’s Consciousness to capture the residual information in the room.

The result she observed left her deeply shocked.

The information provided by her consciousness showed that in the dim room, the nine individuals had acted as if they were taking a blood oath, hanging strange smiles on their faces as they sharpened their blades against themselves.

Then, as if they couldn't feel pain, they had slowly and deliberately sliced off their own heads.

Falling to the ground with a thud.

Their expressions had shifted from confusion to terror, and finally, came to a sudden halt.

Just like their lives.

The capture ended.

Mo Mo sighed. "Someone will come to handle this. Let’s head back first and report to Director Chu."

"The operation has failed."

"Tell her to keep working overtime."