The investigator

Magic.

A kind of mysterious, near-omnipotent energy.

How long had it been there, lurking at the unseen corners of society?

At the very least, the monks, who had been safeguarding the temples from decades ago, were using magic for their task.

Perhaps humans had discovered magic from a much older time.

Then how did magic stay out of the public's eyes for so long?

Then, Kyren remembered his kidnapping. The ghoul bursted through the door in the middle of the night, constricting him with tentacles. Was that how the monsters took their victims to the prison cells? Rough, crude and loud. Such monsters roamed the street and yet no one had heard, read, or knew about them before.

Perhaps their information was suppressed, the same way that the information about magic was.

Someone was controlling the views of public. Someone with authority to suppress information, deal with the media, and tie up loose ends.

Kyren had expected to meet them sooner or later, but it did not occur to him that the encounter happened before he could escape from this dungeon.

"This organization," Kyren rubbed his forehead, "what is it called?"

"The SPD, stands for Supernatural Police Department," Riley answered truthfully, "we deal with any case suspected to be caused by or have relation to supernatural entities and phenomenons."

"And you work for this department?" the boy asked, to which the man trapped inside the cocoon nodded, "Yes. I'm an investigator."

Kyren snorted, "How did an investigator of a police department end up being captured by the enemy?"

Riley frowned, "I let myself be captured on purpose. The SPD does not accept any incompetent members."

The boy let out an even louder laugh, "Incompetent members? Isn't there one right here? You say you let yourself be kidnapped, but you don't even know how to get out by yourself, you don't even know what kind of monster kidnapped you."

Riley lowered his voice, "I volunteered to sacrifice myself for a greater good. I have the gut to jump into a sea of fire for others, do you?"

"Fancy talk," Kyren sneered, "for a bunch of idiots."

"They're not idiots!" the investigator shouted.

"Even I can come up with a plan to gather information and not sacrifice a single life," Kyren forcefully interrupted, "And yet here you are, throwing your life away because your mighty department can't come up with something better. No wonder there were so many victims. The department is filled with nothing but bullshiters."

At this point, the face of the investigator turned red with anger, he yelled, "You ignorant, ungrateful brat! You don't know how many people have laid down their lives so that you can enjoy your peaceful days! Don't you dare look down on their sacrifices!"

Kyren suddenly stopped his laughter, looking straight into Riley's eyes.

"So it's true that the department lacks information about this place," his voice returned to its indifferent tone.

Riley found himself lost for words. He stared at Kyren with wide open eyes, finding his flip of attitude ridiculous.

Then, his pupils shook as realization dawned on the man.

"Let me take a guess," Kyren spoke. The investigator avoided meeting his eyes, but the boy did not stop.

"The SPD figured out that this dungeon was the cause of the recent missing cases, but can not form a proper task force because they don't know what's inside, maybe they don't even know where this dungeon is located. That's why they sent you out, a sacrifice pawn, to gather more data for future missions," Kyren observed the man's face while voicing his deduction.

Seeing no change in the investigator's expression, he continued, "Given how well you guys have been at your job so far, it is unlikely that you don't keep a catalog of known magical entities and phenomenons, which suggests that the creatures inhabiting this place is not like anything you guys have seen before, perhaps unique species that can not be found anywhere else."

Riley bit his lips, Kyren leaned over to speak to his ears, "You don't know what to expect, you don't know the way around, you don't even know if you can survive to get out of this place. Did I get anything wrong?"

Riley kept silent, but it was the affirmation the boy needed.

"I see," Kyren then proposed, "I can help you with your mission."

Riley raised his face, squinting his eyes and looking at the boy in suspicion, "What do you mean?"

Kyren pointed at the man, "I mean we can have a temporary partnership. We both want to get out of here. I know the way around, I even know what creatures are living in here. I can give you a hand in your mission, in exchange for your help."

"...Explain," Riley said after some hesitation.

"First," Kyren asked, "Do you still have your equipment on you right now?"

The cocoon squirmed as Riley checked his body. "No," the man answered.

Kyren nodded, "Then the first thing to do is to find your equipment. I know where it is, I can guide you to the room where it is kept. But before that, you have to help me find someone."

"Get me out of here first," Riley growled, to which the boy snorted, "Not so fast. You can see that I don't have magic, right?"

"Then?" came the curt reply.

The boy pointed to the cocoons, "Then can you see what is inside the cocoons?"

The investigator looked at one of the cocoons, a strange white symbol appeared on his irises.

"I can see that outline of the being inside, but nothing detailed," the man answered.

Kyren nodded, "That's enough. Help me find a girl within these cocoons, then I'll get you out and guide you to where your equipment is. After that, you can decide whether to say goodbye to each other or continue the partnership. I won't force you."

Riley shook his head, "There's too many here, I don't have enough magic."

"You don't have to check all of them," Kyren explained, "Only check the people that have magic."

The man looked around. More than half of the cocoons contained beings with magic. Fortunately, a large number of them radiated magic that did not belong to a person, but a monster. The remaining number was reasonable.

"Fine," Riley agreed, but raised his concern, "but how could I know that you will keep your end of the deal?"

Kyren showed the man the wound on his arm. The burnt flesh had started to discharge yellow pus from the cracks between the dark, charred skin, a sign of infection. While not showing it, Kyren had felt the temperature of his body rising.

"I also need to go to that place to find some antibiotics and cream for burns," he said.

Riley used his finger to pinch himself, using the pain to help keep a straight face, hiding his shock.

He glared at the boy, closed his eyes for a moment to contemplate.

"Deal," the investigator's voice sounded again after a few seconds, "but give me some more information about the girl. If I can narrow down the number of cocoons even further, I can save more magic for later"

Kyren agreed, "No problem. What information do you need? As long as it's nothing too personal."

"Don't worry," Riley assured the boy, "You said the girl has magic. What color are her spells?"

Kyren recalled the scenes where Nora constructed her magic. "Gold," he answered.

Riley frowned, "Gold? Are you sure?"

"What's wrong with gold?" Kyren's eyes turned sharp.

The investigator trembled faintly, shaking his head, "Nothing, just that it's a pretty rare color."

"Gold?" the investigator thought to himself, "how can a golden magician appear here?"

Riley speculated that either the boy had lied, or he was colorblind. It was none of his business, however, and the investigator activated his spell. It was a simple spell that altered his eyesight, adding certain conditions as filters. Right now, he changed his eyes so that only golden magic would enter his sight. As expected, the moment the spell was constructed, his vision turned dark. There was no target that satisfied the requirements.

"She's not here," he informed the boy.

"Got it," Kyren spoke nonchalantly as he stepped forwards and started to tear the cocoon apart.

Soon, Riley regained freedom in his limbs when the bonds were finally undone. He stood up, stretched his shoulders, and cracked his joints.

"Keep your words. Take me to where my equipment is," the investigator was taller than Kyren when standing up, looking down on the boy.

"You haven't found her yet," Kyren did not back down but returned the glare, "I will keep my word, but we will find the girl first. That's our deal."

Riley snickered, "Pretending to be an adult but you're still just a brat. Go get my equipment, we need my weapon first, then we can go get your girlfriend."

Kyren raised a finger in front of Riley, "First, she is not my girlfriend."

Another finger popped up, "Second, we will have to go quite a distance if we want to retrieve your weapon. It'll be too dangerous."

Riley interrupted, "You idiot! Because it will be dangerous that we will need my weapon. If it's already dangerous when we're empty handed, why do you want to carry more baggage?"

At Riley's yelling, Kyren raised another finger, there was not a ripple in his voice, "Three, whatever your weapon is, my friend is better. Our chance will increase if we have her accompanied."

The investigator clicked his tongue, "You are really stubborn, aren't you? Look, you're right, I don't know anything about this place, and I'm likely to die if I just wander around. I want us to succeed, because if you die, I may not escape the same fate, understand? And if we go with your suggestion, we will die, do you get it?"

Kyren nodded, "I understand. We will not die."

"Goddamn it!" Riley shouted, covering his face in defeat. After letting out a sign, he spoke, "Fine. Let's go get your little girlfriend. If we die, I'll drag you to hell with me."

The boy did not offer a reply, instead, he turned around and started walking toward the exit.

"Damn teenagers with their raging hormones," Riley mumbled before following him, huffing and puffing.