"Sister Beatrice, we're over here!"
Beatrice and the other two ran over after seeing the flames, only to find four Flandres circling around the ring of fire that had yet to dissipate.
"Where's that Sarkaz?" Chen Huijie asked, fanning the air with her hand as she approached and felt the scorching heat.
Flandre pointed at an unidentifiable lump within the flames and some white ash next to it. "Right here!"
At that moment, several dark shadows appeared right on cue. Ignoring the flames, they walked up and poked the pile of black ash with their long blades. The black ash crumbled away, leaving nothing behind. Only then did the other party nod to Flandre.
"Thank you, Miss Flandre, for dealing with this Blood Demon."
"You found him early on?" Chen Huijie hugged one of the Flandres that had floated down and looked at the Black Cloak Shadow Guards with an unfriendly tone. In her view, since the Black Cloak Shadow Guards could appear here, it was ninety-nine percent certain that Wei Yenwu had already found the Blood Demon but deliberately left it for them to handle.
"No, Blood Demons are cunning. We could only confirm the Gravedigger was problematic, but we couldn't be sure of the other's identity."
The Shadow Guard naturally understood the implication in her words, but the person they had tracked before was merely a decoy. Just like the Gravedigger, they were people transformed by that Blood Demon's witchcraft. Fortunately, because they had witnessed the scene after Flandre killed the Gravedigger, everyone had been on high alert when capturing the "suspected Blood Demon." This was how they managed to avoid the other party's self-destruction.
It was also because of this that they entered the area a few minutes later than Chen Huijie and the others. However, they were fast enough to close in upon seeing the flames, arriving just in time to see the enemy burned to death by Flandre's pillar of fire.
"Then we'll be leaving first..."
Chen Huijie looked at them. Seeing that they intended to continue searching the area, she didn't plan to stay and prepared to return to the city.
"Of course. Safe travels, Miss Chen. We still need to check if there are any hidden moves or traps left by the Blood Demon."
Then Chen Huijie and Beatrice each hugged a Flandre. As for our mighty Hoshiguma, whose fists could carry a horse, she had a Flandre sitting on each of her shoulders. Thus, the three of them, carrying four Flandres, walked toward the car parked outside.
"By the way, Flandre, is each of these a separate entity?" Now that the Blood Demon was dealt with, Beatrice's mood had calmed down. She looked at the Flandre in her arms and asked.
"Flandre is Flandre, but Flandre can also not be Flandre!"
Flandre explained that the Four of a Kind shared the same heart and mind, but when playing, they could each do their own thing without any interference.
"So when you said before that you play with yourself, it was several Flandres playing together?" Beatrice recalled Flandre's earlier words and finally had an epiphany.
"That's right!" the four Flandres spoke simultaneously.
"Eek, just one of you answering is enough. Having all four of you look over at once is a bit creepy."
As soon as Beatrice finished speaking, there were three 'poof' sounds, and the other three disappeared, leaving only the Flandre in her arms. Her eyes lit up. "So, the one I'm holding is the original, right? As expected, the bond between Little Flandre and me is indestructible!"
On the other side, Chen Huijie looked at the Flandre in Beatrice's arms with regret, becoming even more annoyed by that smug Little Tiger.
"Get in the car!" She opened the car door irritably and plopped down into the passenger seat.
"Hehe, your luck isn't as good as mine!" Beatrice poked her head in from outside the window.
"Are you sick!" Chen Huijie reached out and pushed the other's head back out.
"I'm holding the real Flandre!" Beatrice, now inside the car, stuck her head forward from the middle again.
"How about we get out and have a fight?" Chen Huijie indicated she was very heated right now and guaranteed she could give Beatrice a very "comfortable" full-body massage.
Beatrice knew when to quit and sat back in the innermost part of the car, hugging Flandre. "Don't learn from this Pink Sausage Dragon whose brain is full of muscles. We are elegant ladies; we must be composed."
Hearing Beatrice's words, Chen Huijie told herself to endure. After all, they were still outside the cemetery and didn't know if there were other dangers. She had to hold her temper; if she was going to beat her, she'd do it after returning to the city.
Hoshiguma, sitting in the driver's seat, couldn't help but smile at the sight of the two bickering. She then started the car and headed toward Lungmen's port of entry. At four in the morning, the vehicle finally arrived outside the gates of the port. Normally, it should have been very quiet here. After all, the Lungmen port only opened at seven in the morning. Coming here now would not only be useless but would also lead to being driven away by the port guards.
But today was different.
When the vehicle arrived, a path leading into Lungmen was actually opened specifically for them. Hoshiguma stepped on the gas and drove straight through. After they entered the city, the passage closed again as if it had never been opened. As the car entered the city, they saw Madam Fumizuki standing at the end of the road. Seeing this, Hoshiguma quickly drove over and pulled up beside her.
Fumizuki looked at the people in the car. Everyone her gaze swept over subconsciously shrunk their heads back. Flandre found it interesting and started to mimic them.
"Why are you copying them?" Seeing Flandre's actions, Madam Fumizuki asked.
"I don't know! I saw them all doing it, so I thought it was some kind of required ritual!" Flandre replied seriously.
"Pfft—" A certain Little Tiger nearby couldn't hold it in and laughed. But when Madam Fumizuki's gaze shifted toward her, she was forced to stifle it back. Her entire face instantly turned bright red.
"It's good that you're back. Is anyone injured?" The others quickly shook their heads repeatedly, fearing that being a step too slow would result in being called over for an inspection.
"It's too late now. Tomorrow morning at eight, you all come to the Governor's Mansion to explain what happened tonight. Remember, everyone must come!"
After Madam Fumizuki finished speaking, she reached out to pinch Flandre's cheek, then turned and walked toward her nearby vehicle.
We're doomed!
The three of them looked at each other. Even Chen Huijie no longer had the mood to deal with Beatrice, feeling only dread for the morning.
"Eh, Madam Fumizuki said everyone has to go. Does that include me too?" Flandre didn't share the fear of the three adults at all, asking with great interest instead.
"Probably!" Chen Huijie said uncertainly.
"We'll go together then. If Madam Fumizuki gets angry, Flandre, you go and hug her..." Beatrice held Flandre while giving her this terrible advice.
"I think it's best if we just come clean honestly. After all, we were helping Flandre catch a bad guy today. Even though Flandre was the one who caught him, we ultimately wanted to do a good deed."
Hoshiguma didn't think Beatrice's idea was good. She knew how shrewd Madam Fumizuki was; Beatrice's little schemes were no different from being naked in front of her.
After arriving at Flandre's place, considering they had to get up early the next morning to go to the Governor's Mansion together, the group decided to just stay there. In any case, Flandre's house was big enough and had plenty of beds.
"I want to sleep with Flandre..." Before the Little Tiger could finish her sentence, she was carried away by the female Lung in a "strongman's lock."
"Uh, I'll just sleep in the living room." Hoshiguma looked around. Aside from the room Flandre lived in and a guest room Beatrice had someone prepare, there were two extra guest rooms, but they were completely empty. She felt it was better to sleep in the living room.
"Won't that be a bit impolite?" Flandre had heard her sister say that one must show sufficient etiquette to guests brought home. Of course, this was limited to welcome guests. As for unwelcome ones like the black and white rats who came to steal books, a kick out the door was enough.
"Of course not. When I'm working back-to-back shifts, I sleep on the iron bunks at the Guard Department. This sofa of yours is so soft; it's much better than I expected."
Hoshiguma lay down on the sofa, sinking right into it. She shifted her hips contentedly to make herself more comfortable. Seeing this, Flandre brought out a blanket for her.
"Thank you, Little Flandre is so good! Go to sleep now; we still have to go to the Governor's Mansion early tomorrow morning." Hoshiguma took the blanket, draped it over herself, and then rubbed Flandre's head.
"Then see you in the morning, Sister Hoshiguma!" Hearing Hoshiguma's words, Flandre also felt a bit sleepy. She said goodnight and returned to her room with a yawn.
This sleep actually didn't last very long. After all, it was already nearly five in the morning. Although this place wasn't far from the Governor's Mansion—only about a ten-minute drive—they couldn't just arrive exactly on time. Plus, they had to wash up and so on. So, the actual time available for sleep was only about two hours.
However, seeing Flandre sleeping so soundly, they didn't wake her. Instead, they scrambled to help her get dressed and then carried her into the car. By the time she woke up, she found herself lying in Madam Fumizuki's arms.
Meanwhile, the other three were standing not far away, writing out the account of what happened last night. Although Madam Fumizuki had a very detailed report from the Black Cloak Shadow Guards, the reason she had the three of them write this report wasn't for information, but to ensure they learned a lesson from this rash action.
If Flandre hadn't been alert and if her strength hadn't completely crushed that other Blood Demon, they would likely have been in deep trouble this time. After seeing the Shadow Guard's report, both Fumizuki and Wei Yenwu were somewhat shaken. That Blood Demon had acted decisively and was sinister and cunning, while the Shadow Guards were too far away. If Flandre hadn't immediately noticed something was wrong and pulled Beatrice back, her old friend might have lost the granddaughter he was most proud of.
It was after ten in the morning when the four of them finally walked out of the Governor's Mansion together.
"Flandre, come with us to the Guard Department to finish recording the statement for this incident! That way, we can close the case directly."
Even though the Blood Demon had been killed without a trace of a corpse, the case still had to be closed, and since there were only oral statements, it was quite complicated.