Boonie Bears: Another World Fantasy

The journey to the detention center took longer than Zhao Lin had anticipated.

In the crowded car, Naya was sandwiched between two tall, burly police officers, like a criminal under special scrutiny. She shifted uncomfortably, her darting eyes pleading for help from Zhao Lin.

"Is this really necessary, officer? She only recently woke up in her hospital room."

Zhao Lin, sitting in the passenger seat, came to Naya's rescue.

"Hey, you two, you're squashing her!" He glanced at Naya in the back seat through the rearview mirror more than once, as if he was on guard against something.

There's clearly a hidden meaning in what he's saying.

"Have you misunderstood something?" she asked anxiously, frowning.

"We didn't do anything!"

"Is that so?" The man with the pompadour curled his lips into a disdainful smile and let out a sneer. This laugh was like a sharp blade, piercing Zhao Lin directly and making her feel extremely uncomfortable.

"You know what just happened, Miss Zhao. The crime scene was practically a slaughterhouse! Blood was everywhere, it was a horrific sight!" The pompadour's voice came coldly, as if accusing Zhao Lin of being the perpetrator of this tragedy.

"Watch your words, officer!" Zhao Lin turned around abruptly, her eyes filled with anger and dissatisfaction. Her fingers gripped the handrail tightly, as if she were about to explode at any moment.

The car slowly turned a corner and then steadily drove into the parking lot at the back of the detention center.

"I have to admit, reporters really can't hold back their tongues..." he muttered to himself, his words revealing his helplessness and resentment towards the media.

Seeing that arguing with him was pointless, Zhao Lin angrily flung her hand away, turned to the car window, and ignored the annoying guy. At that moment, she was filled with resentment and frustration, these complex emotions intertwined like a tangled mess, leaving her unable to calm down for a long time.

……

"Hey, you can't separate us!"

"Separate interrogations are necessary to obtain more valuable evidence. Ms. Zhao Lin, please cooperate!"

Zhao Lin resisted and broke free from the police officer's restraints, returning to Naya's side and protecting her with her body.

"I have the right to refuse such an unreasonable investigation."

"To be precise, Ms. Zhao, you have no right to refuse our interrogation. Citizens have an obligation to cooperate with the police investigation of the case."

The man with the airplane-shaped hairpin came up to her with several documents.

"Moreover, our investigation is quite reasonable."

"you……"

"Take them inside."

Despite her best efforts, Zhao Lin's commotion only bought her time and did nothing to resolve the imminent crisis.

They'll soon notice Naya's unusual behavior and try to find out about her family background and past experiences. Once that happens, the consequences will likely be a hundred times more severe than initially anticipated… What should we do now? Zhao Lin!

Just then, a policeman stepped forward to take Naya away, and Zhao Lin quickly reached out to protect her from behind.

“You can question her if you want, but don’t forget that she is a minor and according to regulations, a guardian must be present to accompany her.”

Faced with the group of police officers, the man with the airplane-shaped hairpin at the front immediately asked a question.

"What? She's still a minor?"

"That's right, she just turned 17 this year."

"Nonsense—"

"Believe it or not, you can go and ask her yourself." Zhao Lin knew that these police officers would definitely not be able to verify Naya's true identity, so she appeared very calm, composed, and confident.

"Is that right, Naya?" She turned around and asked, pretending to be serious.

“Yes.” Naya played along with Zhao Lin. The two of them kept the police officers on their toes in suspense.

"We can't find this person, Captain Chen," said the policewoman with pigtails closest to the front of the plane, her eyes quickly scanning the computer screen with a troubled expression.

"No ID card, and no other documents to prove her identity, it's unbelievable..."

"Could it be a hunter from the mountains over here?" He stared at the inverted triangle mark on Naya's face, guessing.

"That doesn't make sense either. All the forests here have been contracted out, and almost all the trees have been cut down..."

Time ticked by, each second feeling incredibly long, and Naya overheard their hushed conversation. She silently observed her surroundings. At this moment, it seemed only her personal intervention could completely reverse the current predicament.

“Zhao Lin, let them ask. If this drags on any longer, you might get implicated too.” Naya took a deep breath, prepared to face the worst possible outcome.

"Don't be silly! It's come to this, what's there to worry about now?" Seeing that Naya was about to take all the responsibility alone again, Zhao Lin quickly reached out and grabbed her.

"You don't even know what evidence they have, how can you so easily give up?"

"No...maybe I know the answer."

Following her gaze, Zhao Lin noticed the bloodstained dagger sealed in a transparent plastic bag. At that moment, it sat quietly on the desk at the front of the machine.

Not long ago, Naya had held this dagger in her own hands.

"To save Sharp... I killed that person with this knife."

"What?!" Zhao Lin was astonished.

Zhao Lin tried her best to suppress her shock, but she was still spotted by the distracted man with the airplane-shaped hairpin.

What are you two discussing?

As he was speaking, he gestured to several plainclothes officers to separate them. Although extremely unwilling, Zhao Lin obeyed.

"Xiao Li and Xiao Wang have high hopes for her." He pointed at Zhao Lin, then turned to Naya.

"I'd like to learn more about this 'Princess Mononoke' on my own."

"You have no right to know about her private affairs!"

But the man with the airplane head ignored Zhao Lin's shouts and took Naya straight into the interrogation room.

"It's alright, Zhao Lin." Naya's eyes seemed to say this before she closed the door.

Were these police officers targeting her from the very beginning?

"You damned bastard—"

She cursed fiercely.

……

Inside the interrogation room, the light was dim and yellowish, and a cold metal table seemed like a chasm between Naya and the gloomy-faced man with the frizzy hair. His partner's eyes were sharp as a hawk's, and his pen flew across the paper like a moth drawn to a flame. Naya sat opposite him, her hands clenched tightly, trying her best to remain calm like a drowning person.

"Your name is... Naya?" the man with the pompadour spoke first, his tone tinged with skepticism.

"Ah."

Naya deliberately avoided his piercing gaze.

"Let's put aside your background for now. I just want you to admit to one thing." The man with the pompadour took out a stack of photos and pushed them in front of her.

"What exactly happened on that path a few hours ago?"

Naya flipped through the photos; they were all related to the scene. Splattered blood, men in black lying sprawled on the ground, fallen knives…

“Those people were watching us and followed us all the way here. We fought back, and that’s it.”

"A man and a woman beat six professionally trained gangsters, leaving five injured and one dead?"

Her heart pounded like a runaway horse, and her head spun as if struck by a hammer. She desperately searched her mind for fragments of memory of the chaotic scene, trying to piece together clues that could explain everything.

“Do you know that your counterattack fatally wounded one of our men?” the man with the pompadour said to Naya with a hint of helplessness. “He’s dead now.”

"There is a very high chance that this will be considered excessive self-defense, which could lead to imprisonment."

Go to jail?

Sharp… but I can’t be a burden to him anymore… Naya silently closed her eyes. If there has to be a price to pay, then let me bear it.

“It was me.” She admitted it almost without hesitation. “I killed him. Sharp was fighting with that guy to save me, and he was stabbed by him… his life was in danger. Then, I decided to kill him.”

It seemed she had considered her decision for a long time and was quite satisfied with her final choice. The man with the pompadour and his partner exchanged bewildered glances.

When the photos were taken at the scene, the tall man's body was slumped in the corner. A dagger had pierced his collarbone, severing his carotid artery, and the floor was covered in crimson blood.

If she hadn't confessed herself, he couldn't have imagined that such a seemingly docile girl would do something like this...

Do you know why they're following you?

"not very clear."

"..."

Naya's replies were extremely concise, fragmented like squeezing toothpaste. This made it impossible for the man with the flying hair to glean any useful information. Although she admitted to the mistake of resorting to violence, this heinous crime was far more complex than it appeared on the surface.

If they don't resist, then the outcome will be different.

"This matter won't just end like this."

The man slammed his hand on the table and stood up. His expression remained as stern as ever.

“Until we fully understand their motives and the forces behind them, you can only stay in this area. This is a form of soft detention.” As soon as he finished speaking, he took out a silver-gray anklet, pressed a button, and a red indicator light began to flash rapidly.

“It’s equipped with a tracking system. If you leave the designated area by even half a step, it will alert us.”

He walked up to Naya and looked down at her.

"Another point is that it is tough enough to be indestructible."

That irritating tone finally angered Naya. The usually good-natured Naya rolled her eyes at the man with the pompadour hairstyle.

……

At that moment, among the messy pile of photos, a relatively clear one quietly slipped out.

On the back of the photograph, it is clearly written: Close-up—The deceased's neck is tattooed with a mysterious series of "V"s in Gothic script, like an eerie spell, exuding an unsettling aura.