After finishing the backlog of files, it was already deep into the night.
Nishikino An closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, easing the eye strain from hours of work.
Glancing at the time, she saw it was past midnight. She stood up and stretched her stiff limbs.
Though late, sleep felt distant.
She vaguely glanced toward Yueci Ru’s room. *She should be asleep by now, right?*
After a moment’s thought, she pulled a bottle of whiskey from the cabinet beside her desk and slowly headed to her room.
Passing Yueci Ru’s door, she slowed her steps at the sight of darkness within, careful not to disturb whoever might be sleeping.
“Still up this late?”
A melodious female voice suddenly sounded beside her ear.
Nishikino An froze. Turning her head, she saw Yueci Ru standing expressionless in the doorway.
“I stay up late for work. What’s your excuse?”
“I thought you’d be asleep at this hour,” Nishikino An shot back, raising an eyebrow.
“...”
“I prefer sleeping in the daytime.”
Yueci Ru’s eyes flickered, landing on the whiskey bottle in Nishikino An’s hand.
“Want some?” Nishikino An waved the bottle before her.
Through the clear glass, amber liquid swirled, foam rising with each tilt. A soft *clink* echoed as it hit the sides—like a siren’s call, stirring Yueci Ru’s curiosity.
Humans always crave the unknown.
The old Yueci Ru couldn’t touch alcohol—her frail body forbade it.
The newer Yueci Ru, trapped in that cursed woman’s manor, had been force-fed “lovingly prepared” meals. Alcohol? Unthinkable.
“You can have some—if your body can handle it.”
Though Nishikino An suspected supernatural healing left Yueci Ru vibrant and healthy, she had to ask.
“Don’t worry.”
Yueci Ru offered a rare smile, as if proving her strength.
“Then come to my room—”
“But... heh...” Nishikino An smirked, looking down at her with mild disdain. “I think you’ll need cola to cut it.”
Yueci Ru puffed her cheeks, glaring.
Nishikino An just laughed and strode toward her room.
——
Nishikino An was born into a family of police officers.
Her childhood memories held mostly solitude.
Her parents, both cops, were her only family.
Material needs were met, but the roles of “mother” and “father” remained empty throughout her youth.
Night after night, facing a silent dinner table and echoing rooms while watching warm lights glow in neighbors’ windows, she couldn’t help but envy their laughter.
Loneliness became her childhood companion.
At school, classmates chattered about home adventures, their joy forming an invisible wall that left Nishikino An watching from afar.
When peers admired her parents’ jobs, she’d smile politely: *“They’re busy protecting everyone.”*
But resentment simmered beneath.
Yet, seeing their exhaustion and silent blame, the words always died in her throat.
Gradually, they became strangers sharing a home.
To fill the void left by her absent parents, she befriended local delinquents in middle school.
Smoking, drinking, fighting, skipping class—she did it all.
From lookout to ringleader of brawls, she thrived in chaos.
Watching opponents twist in pain from her blows sparked a dark thrill.
Her ruthless style and fearless brawling earned respect in the gang. Those who mocked her age or gender learned painful lessons.
Her innocent face and quick reflexes always helped her evade police raids.
By high school, her gang was locally infamous. Her record stayed clean—no evidence ever caught her.
Then her parents got promoted.
She transferred to a city high school.
Older and wiser, she decided to leave her past behind.
Nishikino An abandoned her old habits, studied quietly for three years, and—following her family’s wishes—enrolled in police academy.
After graduation, she became a local detective.
She wore “justice” like armor, burying her shadowed past. Every case saw her charging ahead, earning even her stoic captain’s faint praise.
But only she knew: justice was just a veil hiding her true self.
Violent urges still coiled in her heart. Repeated warnings for excessive force stalled her promotions.
She first met Yueci Ru on an early autumn evening. He’d been summoned as a murder suspect.
The victim was his classmate. They’d argued the day of the killing.
*Gloomy. Fragile.* That was her first impression.
Yueci Ru had stunning, androgynous beauty, shadowed by melancholy. Thick black glasses added dullness to his aura.
His skin was paper-pale, almost translucent—a ghost clinging to life.
Blood-tinged phlegm often choked his words, forcing him to pause for coughing fits.
*Beautiful. Breakable.*
Like fine porcelain.
Privately, Nishikino An doubted he could be the killer. He looked ready to collapse.
But suspicion lingered.
The victim had been drugged before the killing—a single, precise stab wound.
This method widened the suspect pool.
Yueci Ru’s alibi was weak: home alone, no witnesses.
With sparse surveillance and no eyewitnesses, police planned to detain him.
Then pressure from above forced his release.
Nishikino An wasn’t one to obey blindly. The interference made her dig deeper, seeking chances to observe him.
*Maybe that was just her excuse.*
Unexpectedly, Yueci Ru kept stumbling into murder cases.
Through forced and voluntary encounters, an odd friendship sparked between them.
He even shared his writings and private theories about the crimes with her.
——
Whiskey mixed with cola swirled in Yueci Ru’s glass. Her head spun pleasantly.
She and Nishikino An sat side by side on the balcony, sipping in comfortable silence.
Soft instrumental music drifted from the speakers, deepening the calm.
To prove herself, Yueci Ru had downed most of the bottle.
(Always with cola, of course.)
Moonlight filtered through thin clouds, bathing the quiet balcony.
A cool breeze carried whispers of night air.
“Mmm...”
Yueci Ru turned dizzily toward Nishikino An.
No lights glowed inside—only the balcony’s floor lamp cast a dim, warm glow.
Amber light blended with moonbeams, softening the sharp edges of Nishikino An’s features. For once, her face held not sharpness, but tired tenderness.
*Snort.*
Yueci Ru stared... then burst into tipsy laughter.
