Enforcer Manual
Chapter 333: Crime Scene Investigation_1

Chapter 333: Chapter 333: Crime Scene Investigation_1

It took over an hour by car from the Law Enforcers’ headquarters to the location given by the other party, the journey almost spanning half the city. They drove away from the downtown area until the outlines of the high-rise buildings disappeared at the end of their sightline, the yellow soil on both sides of the road becoming the main theme, before the driver finally pulled over to the side of the road.

"This is as far as I go. The town is just ahead; you can walk the rest of the way."

No matter what, the driver was unwilling to go any further.

He had picked them up from the gate of the Law Enforcers’ headquarters, while the area ahead was currently the stronghold of the gang members of District Seventeen. The intense pressure from law enforcement forced these criminals to move away from the downtown area and hide out here.

He didn’t know the purpose of these four Law Enforcers’ visit to this place. He only knew that he couldn’t let those people see that it was him who brought the Law Enforcers inside.

"Alright."

Valerian understood the driver’s dilemma and didn’t make a fuss; after paying, he got out of the car.

For the Law Enforcers, a town occupied by gang members was the perfect spot for team-building. Only Song Lan, anxious and concerned, raised a doubt, "Doesn’t this place seem a bit unsafe?"

They hadn’t walked far when they encountered a pickup truck driving into the town.

The pickup had been modified, with several people wearing masks and a heavy machine gun mounted at the back.

It was obvious to anyone that the remainder of the town was filled with violent and ferocious thugs, the kind that would pull out guns and start shooting at the slightest provocation. The oppressive atmosphere was almost on par with the old district of the Fourth Neutral Country.

Perhaps for every city, gathering all the lawbreakers together would ultimately result in the same scenario.

Song Lan’s mood was heavy at the moment.

Today the sky was clear, an excellent day that had been long missed. Such good days should be spent lying in the chair of his office, enjoying life.

"Don’t be afraid, they’re all paper tigers."

Zhuang Chi said in a low voice, "Don’t be fooled by their constant bearing of arms; in reality, they haven’t dared to commit crimes recently."

She had seen the recent crime statistics for District Seventeen when she went to the archives. At this critical juncture, those who dared to commit crimes were mostly hotheaded youths whose names had never been heard, while these gang members were all holed up in their own territories, too scared to step out.

"That swindler cleverly used people’s fear of gang members, specifically choosing this place for the meeting. Those who paid the meeting fee and saw the setup of this town might well decide not to show up."

Apart from Song Lan, the other three were quite excited about the situation.

They quickly found the location mentioned in the cellphone, and as expected, the person himself wasn’t there. What greeted them was an old, uninhabitable house. The moldy smell hit them as soon as they opened the door, making Roger cough several times. The house was utterly empty, even the gang members disdained to requisition it.

The four of them found a puzzle left by Mr. Chen in a rather concealed corner. This puzzle would lead them to the next location.

This might have been a brain-burning process for ordinary people, but for someone like Valerian, who had spent years in the criminal analysis department, these puzzles were much too simplistic. The puzzle took them around the town in a large circle, nearly passing by every spot occupied by gang members, before finally leading them to an old office building.

During the early days when District Seventeen was established, this office building had a period of glory. Working in this building was something to be proud of; however, with the onset of the gold rush, large families and companies rushed to the border city, and people flocked to the current downtown area. The population of the town steadily declined, and the office building was gradually abandoned.

"This place is like a haunted house at night, making it a good spot for secret meetings," Zhuang Chi stared at the building and gave a professional appraisal after sizing it up.

There were signs that someone had lived here, with simple daily necessities left in each room, but for some reason, the hallway was now deserted.

Following the last clue, they made their way to the rooftop.

It was a place where the manager of this office building had once stayed, a place where he had reached the pinnacle of his life, only to be knocked down by the tides of the era.

In the grand office, one could faintly see its former glory. At the end of the faded carpet, there was a sofa, and on the sofa sat a man.

He seemed to be intently watching the TV, which was playing a period drama—the kind of show that retirees in their sixties or seventies with nothing else to do enjoyed most. But judging by the man’s jet-black shiny hair, he was far from the age of retirement for rest and recuperation.

"Mr. Chen?"

Valerian, who had been in contact with him via text, took a few steps forward and tentatively called out to him.

Just after a few steps, she smelled the scent of hair gel, and it was not difficult to tell from his clothes that he had dressed with care for today’s meeting.

For him, perhaps this was the day that would lead to a bright future.

The man sitting on the sofa did not respond to them.

Soon, they realized the oddity of the room—it was too quiet, with only the characters on the TV chattering endlessly.

After setting up such a complicated puzzle, the man should have greeted them with much warmth upon their arrival.

Valerian suddenly realized something and quickly approached the man.

Even so, the man showed no reaction. His gaze was fixed on the TV screen, seemingly oblivious to the arrival of Valerian and the others, as if he was also unaware of the fact that he had died.

The mobile phone on the coffee table was blinking incessantly.

ConstaThe last message indicated that an hour ago, he had agreed to a "group purchase" plan and had informed the four of the meeting location.nt inquiries about the Void Sect piled in,

"Contact headquarters, the person is already dead."

Valerian conducted a brief examination of the body, "There are no external injuries, no signs of poisoning, and no signs of a struggle at the scene. This man died very peacefully."

She felt that this corpse must be hiding some secrets they were not yet privy to because even in cases of sudden death, the deceased usually experience a painful struggle before dying. Their bodies are often found curled up on the ground, with some clutching their chests and others scratching their skin due to overwhelming pain.

But there were none of those signs on this body; he remained immersed in the TV drama, as if he had bypassed the painful struggle and arrived directly at the end—death.

From the perspective of the crime analysis department, all the signs at the scene indicated that this was an accidental death.

Yet an hour ago, a fraudster who had been in contact with them, ambitious and hoping to defraud them of a substantial amount of money for his ascent to the top of life, had suddenly and silently died in this room.

Chief Snick once said that the vast majority of coincidences are just connections they have yet to uncover, and Valerian always kept the chief’s teachings in mind.

"Someone must have been here before us, within this hour!"