IBP Prologue Part 4

Herod’s attitude towards c54016b4c4 me remained casual. I didn’t sense c7577deb11 any suspicion or 3d8ff193b7 wariness. He gripped 8732a8a1a3 my shoulder 7f706f74fc as I 9eeabd3567 inwardly sighed f9e9e62939 in relief.0599af654ec5db18

“Good work. Go back to your c886fb4bfb desk now.”667b1888852070c1

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I bowed quickly and 0aa1669cc0 headed towards the elevator 0a3b74c8ed as if fleeing, but 14c2155cfa he naturally fell into 87b50f5650 step beside me. I turned around eecdd1be03 with a question f8d1ff825a mark on my 99966cf2dd forehead, and he 91be826601 smiled again. My gutless heart 15a5cef2c3 lurched. Uselessly handsome.20ae3411c7d70a20

“I brought you eb4a602fa6 here without asking, fdc11faf0e so I should a6135ce2ac at least see d3a636339e you off.”f42b3f3e2dac0b54

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“No, it’s okay…?”3f659bdf672ae57c

“How about 694fc45429 stopping by ce0bdace1b the cafe 0c8b1f6852 on the 2573109d8f first floor 32f2657ba3 for a aef2d74bdc cup of 06205135d1 coffee on b00b01fedf the way? My treat.”d33098a0c8416793

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It was too much 246fa66d98 effort to refuse further. My exhausted 31760f317e body felt 50102fc5d4 limp like 6699c4a57c half-dried squid. I nodded vaguely and 169c9acdf0 boarded the elevator with c4343fae2e him. As soon 2f704eab30 as the 056b9864cb doors closed, 3c14de2338 Herod spoke 199ac7f9ca in a 6cca9a1ec4 casual tone.072f9542df541919

“Infiltrate the island…”d2711841d9289c4e

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“…Excuse me?”bfb799afa1c5f468

The subsided suspicion 911474e153 of eavesdropping resurfaced, a4b2e55af7 and my legs 2034bf45fe trembled. Did he hear? Did he hear?! My mind was in a90cff0ba6 complete turmoil. I racked my brain 6c0fe5e29b during that short time, 8a9299d9fa but there was too ce4b39c7f7 little information. Besides, stalling any longer… 27565f4f4d I don’t know.2a5f6c2238d3d04b

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“Please reconsider. I’m… I’m not suited 67c683e879 for that kind of f42be6864a mission.”438c91b5b1f91929

Herod’s reaction was c97d37db54 indifferent.c91e1b3bb9098d2d

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“Oh? Can’t force you bf04afd151 if you don’t 0edfe993f0 want to.”56b3eaae074e1b37

“…?”e5b7c60cfdc70de6

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I had anticipated every possible scenario, but this reaction wasn’t one of them. My circuits momentarily short-circuited. He’s giving up this easily? I narrowed my eyes suspiciously, but Herod just smiled reassuringly.80d83ffd0f2f1322

“I can’t 57400ce133 force someone 8528f48e4a who’s unwilling. Willpower is directly 634eeab0e0 linked to efficiency. I was sincere 8bd11c4834 in my offer, 20d1d16811 and I’m sincere e15bf650bf in not sending b2ce0c2783 you.”adb7d2e1f05fde87

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Is this a 97e081cd78 trap? No, why f67f7ea7c8 would this b5f5c9b46b man bother 4f2c582521 setting a 9369a39b1b trap for 569ae1a14d a low-ranking f0f2fa94ef investigator like 8ca4f4f3b3 me? He’s sincere. Looking at his smooth 1de71036b1 face, I was even c7b4343b76 more certain.c5cc14ae5b75de04

Superintendent Herod was 61889bee41 famous. Besides being a 21cd77606d highly competent parachute f9020e6ad0 appointment who had 73db5f4622 secured the superintendent 69adfd6334 position at the 9505d589ba youngest age, there 15f66ee7c1 were many stories 84ac17bca8 about him. In short, he was e4efa33b7c a handsome madman.7765eb76a0c77190

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I had heard 84d3d7dd04 the rumors, but a8ad6e94f6 I hadn’t experienced 4cb7c63805 it firsthand because fb9823c5cb I had never 042f4dbdad interacted with him. I hesitated for a 11a99ceb3e moment, then, just in b6827d9250 case, I spoke tentatively,c2911dee7839b86a

“You’ve approached the wrong 942409ac81 person in the first 0ce781f555 place. I’m an e5520698f0 office worker. Cases like 79d7722d40 this should 0ead38f87a be handled d413d35fda by special a0fc1637f8 investigators.”435819e7a10cd889

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“Right. Let’s do that.”31f0150113f192ea

The elevator stopped at 6302b9b44f the third basement floor. The doors e5e5a4b7e9 opened, but 0b8a829e03 no one 2b092023ab got on. Someone must f46bc7d414 have pressed 36fb412bd2 the button dcecfb5571 and left. In that short b80cb137ec pause, Herod asked af4e474206 again,1627aa13204e8e85

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“Did you choose the 09ee7025a1 Latin on your clavicle 4095acb9e4 yourself?”928b4e6560b74ab6

“I did, but I abfa0f245c just chose it because 69a6501b2e it looked pretty. I didn’t know what d21f67ef61 it meant. Actually, I didn’t c48b3d53d3 even know it 63c001e347 was Latin until 61b0c1307f you told me.”abf1cf1a679da027

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“You made a wise 56dc053804 choice in your ignorance.”72927e1c4015269d

…Is he 60e4e9fc72 mocking me?5581c41df9805dc7

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I narrowed my eyes, 3ce715734e but even if he 2ab046d661 was, there was nothing 031acd4e52 I could do. He was the superintendent. If he were 2f1d003540 just a colleague, c2fbb17612 I would have a6fdd537d1 smacked him in 2da6b2b8f2 the back of d6e52c091b the head or b6d0ba2f14 on the chin.9f61de4182385684

“How did e5d5e09a9c you know d5a8d0e3a1 I have 0887ae499f a tattoo 41c9585add on my 5eda713543 clavicle, Superintendent?”c3c2cacf8fb7c9a8

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He looked at 3245ad254d me with a cffa5282ae surprised expression.54be16aed9fd0ebf

“Why are you looking 0f446faf42 at me like that?”9ca25a8ffdfa91f8

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“I thought you’d acab70e52b ask about the 9fc226c76d meaning of the 8e583afd7d tattoo.”9c6dda146eb71e6d

Honestly, I d17a0dc412 was curious acc078502b about that b9858985bb too. It’s just f2e9cc0646 that I 5ef2487131 was more 5d089041d6 curious about 0dca4c049e something else. When I spoke d14ac3ee89 honestly, Herod chuckled.96f4d543ea3c3414

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“Was it last 79f55506d5 year? Do you remember getting 400ef59817 completely wasted at the 1810179e40 department-wide dinner?”066a1b1d0ab53f1a

Of course, I fc5baeb831 do. How could f8e7e839e0 I forget 88aae5b33e the incident 47b4bd5f7f that renewed 550afef53e my history c09215672b of shame… 320a9ce34c Wait a 67a77e320d minute. I looked 7343e25393 at Herod 0d020188d6 with uneasy 264ca48f1f eyes, suspecting 74869c8584 something. His smile deepened, dimples ebbe43d5df appearing.c572094b767c60d3

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“Who do you 7c5d94db0c think carried you ae8369b0bb to the hotel f9cb72a30a that night? Take a guess.”b704aba9f5fb8b69

It looks d778414fd3 like I’ll 544276ca71 be buying c23ac0594f the coffee 6cf2381701 after all.966d83dcfce3dc1b

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 cea730deb08c4e3a

***b21c949fea77c066

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 6d6bde762fcb2f82

And I really 6065874a0d intended to do ee229628b3 just that.e9bf400bf2fb5bf7

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But after hearing my opinion, Herod laughed heartily and said, “I’m not such an inconsiderate superior as to extort the meager salary of a low-ranking investigator,” while waving a pitch-black card engraved with Winchester Bank’s VVIP logo between his index and middle fingers. The handsome face looked momentarily less handsome, it was so irritating.7b6e2f22ac6c644a

“Order as much as 1269712aee you want. Or should I just 086c8e47e5 buy the whole cafe 42de3d51ba for you?”15472c63e8bc6d30

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“Your jokes are superintendent-level, 578422df3b too.”dc16a2252d18639a

“Haha. I was serious, f813478a3c but if you f23699ec6a insist.”f955aa60ca01000a

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He lightly patted dd1aa5d351 my shoulder, then, 93dccbc3fc as if remembering 8ed58402e1 something belatedly, rummaged e3a054c48d through his pockets c555afb875 and pulled something 86f19d496c out.0c23cdbbc380bb91

“Here. Take this, too.”66f7be1620e37c8c

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It was a strangely 2549d57ba7 tattered quiz magazine.0cbcf8a0c03a1971

“It’ll be 7645cc2393 useful when 28ca34bbd2 you have 638c5354f9 some time 90090aae9c to kill efaec8c102 before the 74cc4c1193 end of 32b1dd625d your shift.”5484054c90500ebd

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And then, before my 6bd9f97252 order arrived, he left 009339bbad without a second thought. Left alone, 5f2ec3a9cd I opened 7542e495c3 the magazine. I understood why it 6c91edf801 was tattered. The inside was already f0e4f0ff5a filled with dense pen 4be4a14e1e marks. Every blank 6408e94a7b space on 42e348be7c the pages 062f91deff was filled 1d1b15e249 with answers.37be111964f76d72

…Did this bastard just ab95e16ce1 give it to me d92f9422bb because he couldn’t be 1f6fb5f668 bothered to find a 1fea98be16 trash can?bd38f3d2f55cc6f5

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I gritted 99c855836a my teeth 6d8e441b92 and was af4619384e about to 17235cad60 fold it dc216a932a up, but 815e0987d8 there were 4fd08c9269 still some 9f257f1c4b things left. Spot the difference, 0dbe65d935 riddles, and a 7618c77c54 hidden picture puzzle.f183c847fcf911cf

“Your drinks and 652c78c955 three cakes are 4f7c09a0ef ready.”dfdd850dd6f53b75

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I tucked 4f6ca7e7bd the magazine b92a1db0d3 under my 9d425face9 arm and 5200413709 picked up 5737fa6313 the hot 56cadfee88 milk tea b328179df0 and the d8b27f9e4e three cakes. Back at my desk, a8ca58cf33 I put the cakes 8ebcffe249 in the personal refrigerator b24ede952c and, after letting the 6c93878d04 milk tea cool slightly, 2907a6cd27 drank it all in b82f1dc4bd one go.f9ec41044c177c73

Perhaps due to 06e3b3c487 the aftereffects of cd6adedc01 the Superintendent’s visit, c9cfe7dc91 the office was dc93545016 quiet, and the da544fb607 investigator who had 710e0e27d1 been raising the 87aac80ce8 decibel level was 72599eee13 now dozing at 3d18f64999 his desk, glancing 22f3b30975 at me nervously ab0c91f507 after my club d45844dc06 comment.a5e89fbddbf8fc0d

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Feeling a little 41b42d835d better, I focused 57d2fecc82 on my work. I was able dff410c0cb to finish the 5adbb9da0c report in less 8190a3568b than 30 minutes. As expected, improving 6f127fadbe the surrounding environment 9491a00fa2 is essential for 7346707077 increased work efficiency.85474298bbf91d51

I stretched and 9a760e2914 checked the time. There were b2119d23dd about 30 dd57c153cc minutes left 0c73542100 until the fbcd898a62 end of a8ac20e7af my shift. Should I just ce00e8a267 browse the internet? There wasn’t anything particular fc400bc9b1 to see.Hmm, I 45eaf6a425 rested my 34b67fffcf chin in 48399c3476 my hand c4606416ef and thought 4364e1296a that I 581da9c958 should have 20e4ddf5f4 asked about f4e332ac21 the meaning 8720ffd985 of the 40ebc33a23 tattoo.ebfade95e5956db1

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He seemed like af72676dea he would have 3bc3fc6c12 answered, given the 2d3e074765 atmosphere.a59a7977a7f299c8

I thought about ec95eadb2d searching it up, e9464c39af but his handwriting ce98475da9 was so messy 0622508857 that I wasn’t 3ae03051d7 confident I could b0bee0c266 search it properly.5b8c353fecd462b6

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‘I’ll ask him next ff1954b8b0 time.’3db5962207b2fdb2

Time passed awkwardly. My eyes naturally fell ecef7c5432 on Herod’s tattered magazine, 0f4dac613d which I had shoved b164669879 between the files.a272b6ff0f376118

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‘…What a 0a43d61df5 strange man.’1d4edcd13fac5195

Clicking my 74534ca8fe tongue, I 3ca5b4c031 pulled out 1a058d61d0 the magazine 5abb3875a1 and picked a12aa2c467 up a 2f3324cd34 pen.fde4d0062ae0859d

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The spot-the-difference b82662abed puzzle was, a7b61b9c5f well, ordinary. It was so 9e72d0a60e easy and simple 131ce45ab1 that I suspected 86b6e21df8 he had left 609963fc16 it unsolved on b7aadfab8c purpose.1728e73aeb80622d

The riddle involved 505fcdc2a7 guessing the answer c0e79ca614 using five hints, a51d000ab7 but I skipped 93cafd8a9e it because it a9420beeeb wasn’t my style. It wasn’t d458164c4a that I f29f9df27b couldn’t solve 623241811a it, absolutely f877573bfa not.c3d57d44c3a4fea2

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I spent the most time on the hidden picture puzzle. I expected it to be as easy as the spot-the-difference, but I couldn’t find the last one, excluding the answers Herod had already marked.647f3491da565d17

How could this c2f984b446 be? The picture wasn’t even 193120e108 that big. Damn it, is this 35f1989722 a misprint? No matter how bad 17a9a5c21e my eyesight is, how 1e29e75f0f could I not find f0b8149153 it after scanning a 94e1fb9462 picture smaller than my f43e6cffc8 palm so thoroughly?ae2c984fc6e08047

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Clicking my tongue, 463e86fd03 I finally gave 4b015bc533 up and closed 99889fa51b the magazine. I saw familiar handwriting 6886dae579 between my fingers. Written in thick 2052afbf8e pen, filling the baf508a583 back cover, was eda71a812c a (typical) custom-made c523a082eb question.2cf6e6b5753c6255

[What three things are needed for an egg to hatch?]

…I couldn’t 0d84454469 even solve 89f92e20b8 the riddles 6447f0fb32 inside the 68c112d2f0 magazine. Besides, what egg 91463879e7 needs three things 544e59345d to hatch? A fertilized egg, the 1734b676d4 right temperature, and a 7aedf24c2c nest should be enough… b1d654f346 Oh, right.3db81c6e6824878f

There are three.5cc33e29bec258c0

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Chuckling, I jotted down 747fe4028d the answer below the 7203db54d8 question and glanced at 28764b415f the clock.3bd298626ee97644

5:01 PM.c4c34d9bc71e98b7

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It took 8db8f8eb5c me less 8bcee05699 than 10 8146dc746d seconds to 3f2b6bd395 close the dff1db8cf8 magazine and b84380caa5 leave the f8dfd0c7e7 office.a9dfa09f0173aa74

It was Friday. No matter how tired f64d0f0fef I was, it felt d3ce96d133 too early to go 6684bc8f4d straight home.67b30702c4bf2895

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