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It all began with a rather trivial report.

[I’m sure I felt a presence in the house. There was definitely someone else here?!]

Just an ordinary robbery or theft, I thought. But when the police arrived, there was no sign of any intruders—only a vague warning that I might be overly sensitive, saying I should be cautious when reporting such minor incidents.

Like any country, a police officer encounters all sorts of things on the job. Among them are calls about feeling an unusual presence, expressing anxiety because they saw a shadow on the window in the middle of the night, or kids crying because they think there’s someone hiding under their bed or in the wardrobe—those are quite common.

In China, where public security is strong and authoritative, such incidents may be less frequent, but they are certainly not nonexistent. Thus, police often dismissed reports of shadows and feelings of unease as mere delusions caused by regular anxiety.

[I saw a shadow. I really did!]

[No, outside the window, outside!]

The number of such calls seemed to be slightly increasing. Given the current state of affairs, that wasn’t too surprising. Unlike other regions where information is tightly controlled, people here have a vague sense that the terrorists weren’t captured, and even if they were, they might fear lingering remnants from the terrorists’ actions.

In such circumstances, people become stressed. Excessive stress can amplify anxiety and lead to hallucinations, so experiencing such delusions isn’t particularly unusual.

Or perhaps there were indeed bold thieves thinking, “This is a perfect time for stealing!” casually hopping from house to house.

Thus, the first signs of something strange were ignored. What was dismissed as mere nervousness or vague feelings eventually faded away.

After these first signs were brushed aside, the number of reports from anxious individuals significantly decreased. It was as if the trend of tumult had just passed, whispering to one another about how the storm had vanished.

But just because something is invisible doesn’t mean it’s gone. The seeds planted during the first signs were slowly absorbing nourishment, sprouting at an alarming pace.

[Uwaaaaah!]

[What’s wrong? It’s Dad.]

[Uwaaaaah!]

[Oh my, why is this child crying when he sees you? Is there some sort of smell? You should clean up!]

[Is that so? Hmm. It seems our baby is bothered by something.]

This was visible only to those who were extremely sensitive. For example, a very young baby or…

[Bark! Bark! Grrrr! Wrrr! Wrrr!]

[Shyaaaaak! Hah!]

Pets like dogs or cats with well-developed instincts recognized the subtle sense of incongruity that others found hard to detect, expressing their fear in every possible way. Babies would burst into tears or have fits, while pets would bark or display signs of alertness, sometimes even injuring themselves trying to flee the house.

One dog distressed enough to cause its collar to dig into its neck, bleeding as it escaped from the home.

Clearly something bizarre was happening. Under normal circumstances, it would have been enough to feel a sense of incongruity.

But sadly, even with the oddities detected, people failed to delve deeper into their unsettling feelings. They simply assumed that babies and animals were stressed due to the police presence, overly combing through every house at the slightest suspicion. Those who were thinking clearly speculated that it might be connected to some act of terrorism, only to end up dismissing it as a matter of mere feelings… and with that, the second sign passed without any real attention.

Sadly.

How precious those two unnoticed opportunities were. If they had acted during the first signs, even isolating potential threats, they wouldn’t have faced any problems now.

Now it had escalated beyond simple resolution….

A sorcerer had thoroughly conducted a ritual of magic, and the seeds had sprouted, finally blooming. It may not be entirely irreversible, but it had crossed a level that could not be managed with ordinary countermeasures.

Thus began the “strange happenings.”

[…Why are there so many missing persons reports all of a sudden?]

The first spike came from missing persons reports. It felt almost as if we had regressed to a time when public safety was lacking and there were no CCTV cameras, with a staggering rise in reports of missing individuals throughout the city. Simultaneously, it almost felt like a group was abducting people on a massive scale.

However, these missing person reports were insignificant compared to another report that followed closely behind.

[Th-there’s a corpse! The corpse has no face!]

Barely had the missing persons reports surged when, boom! Corpses were being discovered everywhere. And not just any corpses—ones with their facial skin flayed!

Had a madman been on a killing spree, taking faces as trophies? The discovery site and positions of the bodies varied, but one thing remained constant: they all had their facial skin removed.

Shocked, the police poured their efforts into catching the culprit.

Yet, despite their utmost efforts, the perpetrator left no trace behind. It was as if this person had never existed in the first place.

And then, corpses began to be found, one by one, until they finally exceeded ten.

Then change swept through this horrifying serial murder case.

[Photos?]

The bodies were all missing faces, but over the flayed skin of each, a photo was stuck. As if saying, “This was the owner of this body!”

[Did you see this crazy killer…!?]

The grotesque act of skinning someone’s face and decorating their corpse with the picture of the victim was enraging to the police.

It was easy to recognize at the point of committing serial murder that one must be a human scum. Yet, there’s still a line you simply cannot cross. How could one human behave with such cruelty towards another?

The police let out their rage, gnashing their teeth. They would make sure that whoever caught the perpetrator would pay the price. Before the death sentence, they would ensure that this monster would regret the horrific acts committed.

But sadly, their vows came too late. Had they listened to the first warning, or realized the second, they wouldn’t have had to make such a vow nor face this “terrifying sight.”

But it was already too late.

The events had progressed to a point beyond their control.

What was currently happening was not merely a serial murder case or an act of terror—it was a ‘strange happening.’

『 The discovered bodies all confirmed to be the same individual. 』

It was a matter of the bizarre.

The classification of the first batch of unidentified bodies as “first serial murder victims” and those with the added pictures as “second serial murder victims” was based on that pivotal shift of adding photographs, whereas there was also the likelihood of copycats or accomplices.

They mobilized forensic scientists to perform autopsies, examining if any differences appeared or if there were signs of other methodologies. The police surely put forth their best efforts as they vowed to do so.

They filled their heads with every possible scenario and speculation.

Yet even they could not predict the results of the body inspections.

「 The same individual. 」

They confirmed it was not related to family ties. It was the same person in literal terms.

By exhausting every method imaginable, from DNA tests to examining skeletons, and even using magical artifacts and divine objects, the evidence pointed to this startling conclusion.

…An unfathomable event, indeed.

Moreover, what made it even more outlandish was that it wasn’t just a couple of these occurrences; it seemed to be a multitude.

Eleven first serial murder victims.

Eleven second serial murder victims.

With just a minor difference—the addition of one photograph—they appeared to be reflections in a mirror.

…Such a bizarre affair.

There were clearly twenty-two bodies found, yet only eleven individuals were deceased…

How on earth are we to interpret this?

Did they truly reflect people into mirrors, pulling out their mirrored selves, killing them? And then, fearing confusion, skinning the faces of the original’s reflections and sticking photos on them?

Otherwise…

Otherwise, how could such a thing—such an event—happen…?

It was indeed a strange occurrence. It was strange indeed….

 

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