World Occult Usage Guide

Chapter 45 Farmington
The branches groaned under the weight of the snow, and as the car drove through the forest, their breaking and falling were like sudden explosions.

Besides, an unusual tranquility enveloped the forest.

Through the fine snow, Lin An gazed at the ghostly white winter moon outside the car window. The sky was a vast expanse of gray, with purplish-red hues surrounding the horizon, and wisps of smoke rose from the sleeping town.

"Captain, is Farmington town just ahead?"

“Yes,” Simon, who was driving, replied. “We’ll go to the police station first. After the formalities are done, you’ll accompany the police to investigate, search, and interrogate the suspects in town. If anything seems amiss, please contact me using your device.”

In addition to weapons and protective gear, the "equipment gift package" sent by the foundation also included a small Bluetooth headset. After inserting the black card, X's voice sounded, fluently explaining the device's functions.

There are generally three uses: location tracking, internal communication, and self-destruct alarm.

“What exactly do you mean by something being wrong?” Barry asked.

“People exposed to ‘Comos’ radiation always have something about them that makes them feel out of place in this world,” Simon said. “I’m staying at the police station to analyze the supernatural aspects of the case and will let you know if there are any developments.”

Simon, with his large wings, couldn't move freely, and Team Control 2 always sent Caroline, who had the lowest level of contamination, to the front, while the other three members remained hidden behind the scenes.

As the town drew closer, the silent cocoon was broken by screams as early risers, wearing boots, frolicked on the frozen pond.

From Lin An's perspective, the ice surface resembled a polished glass tray, with the zero-degree temperature encasing the water in a silvery prison.

The sun rose behind the children, casting rings of colorful fragments, revealing beautiful stripes of yellow, pink, and orange in the greyish-brown sky.

The noise of the crowd grew louder and louder. From the scattered huts in the distance to the rows of houses, the group arrived at the town of Farmington.

Simon parked his car inside the police station and went straight to the sheriff to complete the necessary procedures.

About ten minutes later, his instructions came through the device, instructing Lin An and the others to follow the two policemen at the door to begin their duties. After introducing themselves to each other, the group got into a spacious van.

The fat policeman in the lead explained the whole story as he drove.

"In chronological order, the first report was filed two weeks ago. The bakery owner discovered that her gemstone ring was missing; she had always kept it in the attic safe. Strangely, we checked the attic windows and the safe but found no signs of forced entry."

"The second person to report the theft was a teacher at the town's primary school. He claimed that he had lost a limited edition autographed album. He had kept the album in the storage room. After hearing about the bakery owner's situation, he impulsively opened the box and found that he had also had a valuable item stolen."

“Similarly, not to mention the storage room, there were no signs of forced entry into his house,” the thin policeman added.

"This report came only two days after the first one, and from then on, everyone in Farmington was on edge, fearing that a thief would come. But it was all in vain; three more similar cases occurred within a week, and the suspect still left no trace."

The chubby policeman sighed, looking rather helpless.

"This thief was incredibly cunning, appearing and disappearing like an invisible man. In the end, we all suspected it might be some kind of supernatural event, and had no choice but to try contacting St. Anilov."

"Are there any suspects?" Barry asked in a deep voice.

“There are a few, but… let’s go find the first victim first.”

"Dong dong!"

The bakery owner peeked half her face out from under the door and screamed shrilly when she saw the fat and thin policemen.

"Here we go again! You bunch of tax evaders, you haven't made a single progress in two weeks, and you still have the nerve to harass me!"

"Hey, cooperate a little. I promise I'll give you all an explanation soon." The fat policeman said with a big smile.

The woman came out cursing and leaned against the door frame.

“I’ve told you everything I can say five times already,” she said. “I suspect it was that jealous bitch next door who did it, and her house hasn’t been burgled yet. Why don’t you investigate her?”

"Yes, yes." The chubby policeman chuckled and pointed at Lin An and his group. "This is a special investigation team from Dietrich City."

The woman sized up the three of them, her expression softening slightly.

“My son is studying at the University of Ann Arbor. I hope the people from there are more useful than you.”

"Could you recount what happened?" Mishi asked, confidently pulling out her tablet to take notes.

“There’s not much to say. On the day of the theft, I was going through my daily routine: baking bread, selling bread, closing the shop and going upstairs to sleep. Before going to sleep, I suddenly thought of my grandmother, and then I remembered the ring she passed down to me, so I thought I’d go upstairs to check.”

She clapped her hands in frustration.

"Everything was in the safe, except the ring!"

"Ma'am, have any suspicious individuals been loitering outside your house recently?"

“Our town only has a few thousand people. After living here for a while, we all have some impression of each other. Outsiders can recognize each other at a glance. I swear, I haven’t seen a new face in almost a year. There have been basically no cases in this small town. The police are all so idle that they’re practically rusty.”

"Ahem." The chubby policeman coughed a few times. "The special investigation team is still here."

"So what? Let the facts speak for themselves. You're helpless after just one theft case? To be honest, I'm very disappointed." The woman frowned. "Don't even think about getting any more donuts from my shop for free."

"My God..."

“Could it be someone we know?” Mishi frowned. “Madam, do you have any suspects?” “The bitch next door, it must be her.” The woman was certain. “She’s jealous that my son did better in his exams than hers, jealous that my shop is doing better than hers, jealous that my husband is younger than hers—yes, it must be her!”

Just to be on the safe side, the group knocked on the door next door, but found nothing amiss.

“I’ve lived here for thirty years. Ask anyone in town, and you’ll know what kind of person I am! I care more about my reputation than that little bit of money!” the woman next door said indignantly. “You might as well check all the tourists in Farmington!”

"bump!"

She slammed the door shut.

"Actually, we searched the tourists immediately. They were a young couple on their honeymoon. Well, their alibi was very strong." The chubby policeman awkwardly touched his nose. "Besides them, there are no other people frequently entering or leaving Farmington recently."

"Because the crime lasted for two weeks, we had no choice but to suspect the local residents," the thin policeman said. "Tourists from other places come and go, but no one stays in town for long."

"Hmm, could they be people with criminal records?"

“We had considered that as well. The interrogation route included their residences. However, although these suspects are not clean and are frequent visitors to the police station, they only do petty theft and dare not take valuables.”

Unfortunately, after running around all afternoon, I came up empty-handed.

"Are we going to have to search every house for the mysterious person?!" Mishi slumped wearily in the van's seat. "By the way, have we missed anything unusual?"

After they finished speaking, the two of them looked at Lin An at the same time.

“No, there were no mysterious figures just now,” Lin An confirmed with regret. “They were all just ordinary people.”

“By the way, have you ever considered that this is… a staged drama?” Mishi lowered her voice.

"How to say?"

Mishi grabbed two microphones out of thin air.

"'Sir, how did you solve this case this time?' 'Of course, it's because I'm very capable, unlike the special investigation team in Dietrich.' 'Wow, my sense of security as a resident has increased dramatically.' 'Please continue to support me in the next election.'"

"If that happens, I'll make them regret it."

A deep voice came from the Bluetooth device.

"Captain!" Mishi's eyes widened. "Sorry, we found nothing. How are things on your end?"

“There are some vague clues, we’ll discuss them with you tomorrow,” Simon said. “This notice is to let you know it’s time to leave. It’s your first day on duty, so get some rest.”

"Yay!" Mishi cheered. "The coolest boss is the one who never makes his employees work overtime!"

"Let's go have dinner."

Simon hung up the call, and the group discussed their next destination with great interest. Lin An chatted casually for a few minutes before saying goodbye.

"I'd like to go to the town library and meet you at the motel tonight."

"library?"

"Yes, I glanced at the library's notice board when I went to work, and there was a new book that looked quite interesting, so I borrowed it to pass the time."

“Why go to that lousy place? I’m going to take you to the best restaurant in town.” The fat policeman pulled up his taut belt.

"Thank you for your kindness, but a sandwich will suffice." Lin An smiled slightly. "Enjoy your meal."

After saying goodbye to everyone, Lin An relied on his memory to walk to the entrance of the town library.

This is a dilapidated building. The flickering white paper lights, as if they were overdue for payment, illuminate the aging space. The paint on the walls is peeling, the tables and chairs have only undergone minimal cleaning, and dust fills the corners.

The librarian, who was nearly sixty years old, was dozing behind the counter. Lin An's gaze swept over the books beside him, but he couldn't find the one advertised on the bulletin board.

Walking from one bookshelf to another, Lin An stroked the worn-out title pages. No one cared about organizing them with initials anymore; the books were scattered haphazardly, as if they came from a chaotic disorder.

"What are you looking for?"

Suddenly, a pleasant voice rang out from ahead. Lin An pulled out a thick book and met the eyes of a pair of dark eyes.

"The Suspended Invisible Man. I saw the book's advertisement posted on the library's bulletin board."

"A corpse was hanging from the lamppost, but no one cared except me."

"Yes, this is the one."

Her bright eyes curved into a smile.

“It’s a novel I wrote, and I posted the notice myself. I didn’t expect anyone to actually notice that abandoned notice board by the door,” he said. “Come around here, the book is with me.”

Thank you to Hungry Dragon Died for the donation, thank you to Confused Salty Fish, Gluttony_Gula, and Sound Adornment for the monthly tickets, and thank you to all the readers for the recommendation tickets!

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(End of this chapter)