Enforcer Manual
Chapter 452: The waters are very deep_1

Chapter 452: Chapter 452: The waters are very deep_1

The case against Angle was backed by abundant evidence, and the Investigative Bureau only needed to compile all of it to send him straight to the precinct.

But it seemed the Unnatural Case Investigative Bureau didn’t plan to let the matter rest there; shortly after Lu Xiang had entered, another unwelcome guest knocked on their door.

"Lu Xiang, it’s been a long time."

Compared to Angle, the agent the Unnatural Case Investigative Bureau sent this time at least appeared much more normal at first glance, with a black suit, a white shirt, and her face adorned with delicate makeup, looking every bit the part of a government official.

Upon seeing Lu Xiang, she immediately presented her credentials according to the Bureau’s protocol.

Third-level agent of the Unnatural Case Investigative Bureau, a position equivalent to Angle’s.

"It’s been a long time, Hanna."

Lu Xiang immediately recognized her peer, a top student—she had graduated as the second-best of cohort 111, and afterwards was assigned to work at the Unnatural Case Investigative Bureau. It was evident that she navigated her duties at the bureau with ease, having been promoted three times in less than a year to become a pillar of the organization.

"Although I’d love to catch up with you, I’m here on official business. My colleagues should have given you four ’mixed-color’ glass beads earlier; they’re critical evidence, and I hope you can hand them over to me."

At these words, Song Lan passed over the carefully packaged set of four glass beads.

The death of the assistant, Angle’s arrest, and the sudden involvement of the Unnatural Case Investigative Bureau had made Professor Myles’s death all the more enigmatic.

Relieved upon receiving the evidence from Song Lan, Hanna let out a long breath.

She had truly been worried that Lu Xiang would be as stubborn as Angle and refuse to cooperate with the Bureau’s directives.

After securing the evidence, her eyelids drooped wearily as she warned, "I understand how you feel, but this is as far as it goes. Continuing the investigation will do you no good."

"Mm, I know."

Lu Xiang nodded without objection.

"Then I’ll take my leave now; I still have some work to do."

As they stood at the door, watching Hanna walk away until her silhouette vanished around the corner of the corridor, Song Lan suddenly felt that her attitude was like that of a part-timer who had unexpectedly been called in to work overtime during a vacation, her tone listless and disheartened.

"I need to take a trip to that café."

Hanna hadn’t even descended the stairs before Lu Xiang had completely disregarded her warning. Since the android had played a significant role in this case, they might get to the truth from the café’s serving staff, "I think the assistant was silenced, and the real murderer attempted to frame Angle for the crime."

On this case, Song Lan and Lu Xiang were in perfect agreement.

By the time they arrived at the café where the crime had taken place, the sky was already pitch-black. The Unnatural Case Investigative Bureau had set up a cordon at the entrance, yet the android café staff had been left at the crime scene.

The darkness was teeming with people, giving the café an eerie and terrifying atmosphere.

As a master diplomat between humans and artificial intelligence, Song Lan took the initiative in undertaking this task. As soon as he arrived, the androids welcomed him warmly, albeit their manner of doing so seemed a bit over the top—they grabbed hold of Song Lan’s arms from both sides, as if afraid he would run away.

Before Song Lan could get a word in, he was dragged into the staff break room inside the café.

The curtains were drawn, the moonlight kept at bay outside the windows, and the androids didn’t turn on the lights; the only source of light in the room was the glowing rings above their heads.

The crime scene was preserved as it had been found. The meeting room’s door had been smashed in, and the walls bore marks of blunt instruments scraping across, suggesting someone had grappled hand-to-hand inside the room. The floor was marked with the outline of the assistant’s body in white chalk.

This was all too strange.

According to the report publicly released by the Bureau of Unusual Cases Investigation, the assistant was suffocated to death by Angle covering his head with a plastic bag, and these signs of struggle were left during his fight with the security android, Bo.

Would a well-trained Agent of the Bureau commit murder in front of a group of androids and leave behind so much incriminating evidence at the scene?

After investigating the scene, Song Lan became even more convinced of his initial suspicion.

It wasn’t that the Bureau couldn’t see the flaws at the scene; rather, they deliberately ignored these illogical details and may have even prepared the damning evidence themselves.

There were also these androids behaving extremely abnormally. From the moment he was dragged into the coffee shop, he had felt their oddity, as if their murderous intent was about to overflow.

Even though their programming could effectively control their expressions, the incessant flashing red light on their right foreheads had already exposed their hostility without a doubt.

Because the door to the resting room had been destroyed, the androids used their bodies to block Song Lan’s escape.

With the aid of dim light, Song Lan saw the plastic bag in the security android’s hand, used for suffocation and transporting bodies.

Even the most inept detective, after noticing numerous details, could infer the truth.

"According to your original plan, you intended to dispose of the assistant’s body after silencing him, but you didn’t expect that Angle, who had been tracking and investigating him, would burst in and damage the door, then during your fight with him, you used a stun gun to attack him from behind and conveniently pinned all the blame on him," Song Lan said.

He felt this aligned more closely with what he had discovered at the scene.

The androids didn’t speak; they responded to Song Lan’s conjecture with actions. The security android positioned Song Lan’s arms, while another android, following the same method, placed the plastic bag over his head.

"Help—!"

In such a perilous situation and completely on his own, Song Lan had no choice but to call for help.

Before his cry for help had faded, a figure darted into the coffee shop.

A similar scenario had almost replayed that afternoon, only this time, the person who charged in was much more vicious, targeting the joints with every move. In less than a minute, both the waitstaff and security were on the ground, their joints dislocated by the shadowy figure.

The rescued Song Lan’s face was ashen, he gasped for air with palpable relief and dread.

Lu Xiang supported him, gently helping him to catch his breath. After steadying himself for a while, Song Lan spoke with unsettled shock, "I’m lucky you arrived in time; otherwise, these androids would have finished me off."

At that very moment, the events unfolding in the coffee shop were being displayed before Hanna’s eyes through the surveillance cameras.

She watched Song Lan’s reactions closely and frowned deeply.

This person was too weak and showed no signs of close combat training; once restrained by the androids, he could hardly make an effective counterattack. If Lu Xiang had appeared a few seconds later, he probably would have met the same fate as the assistant.

This is the suspect that the headquarters is wary of?

She recalled the entire incident, trying to find any flaw in his actions.

Would Lu Xiang really send someone completely defenseless as bait?

Hanna remembered all the little details about Lu Xiang from the academy and quickly reached a conclusion.

Yes, this was indeed something Lu Xiang would do.

As long as the mission could be accomplished, she would even use the person she was escorting as bait.

Then the answer was clear; Song Lan was just an ordinary person Lu Xiang was using as a smokescreen.

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