"Chang An, what's wrong?"

As I asked, I took the lead and stepped out of the entrance hall, casually leaving the door to my apartment slightly ajar.

My friend, seeing that I intentionally moved the conversation into the hallway of the residential building, seemed a bit puzzled, but didn’t ask about it. Instead, he started with some casual pleasantries: "I saw your text saying you needed to ask for leave from school. Are you feeling unwell, or is there something urgent? If it's inconvenient right now, I can come back another day."

"It's fine, I just wasn’t in the mood for class today," I quickly brushed off the leave request and steered the conversation back to him. "But let's talk about your issue. You don’t look well, and you came all the way to find me—do you need my help with something?"

"Yes, there is something..." His attention seemed more easily triggered than usual, and he looked clearly troubled. "This matter... I can only discuss it with you."

"Oh?" I immediately became interested. "Could it be..."

Before I could probe further, he straightforwardly admitted, "It's exactly what you think."

I nodded, as expected.

I knew exactly how my friends and others saw me. If there was a topic that required specifically asking me for advice, it could only be something related to strange or supernatural events.

Although I had visited and investigated strange events many times, it was rare for someone to come to me for advice.

What made this even more unusual was that the person seeking my help was my friend. He wasn’t the type to lack basic scientific knowledge or someone who would fabricate stories just for fun. Any clue coming from him was something I had to take seriously.

At this point, a thought from earlier echoed in my mind—what Ma Zao had said.

— "I... am different from you all. I'm a harbinger of misfortune."

— "People who are with me, or get involved with me... are always more likely to be caught up in strange events that can't be explained by common sense."

Wait a minute. She had just mentioned this, and now something related to strange happenings has come knocking on my door. Could it be that her curse or bad luck is really at work here?

Is it really that effective? This feels almost like an instant cure... I mean, the disaster happened so quickly.

Or is it just a coincidence?

In my view, Ma Zao is an incredibly mysterious girl. If this event is somehow connected to her in some cosmic way, then I need to take it more seriously.

But, to be honest, without solid evidence, even I can't fully take Ma Zao's "harbinger of misfortune" claim seriously.

"Since you have time, why don't you come to where I'm staying now?" my friend suggested.

Ma Zao is still at my place, so I don’t want to go far.

"Can't we discuss it here first?"

"It’s possible..." He hesitated. "But if you don’t see it with your own eyes, you might not believe me."

"Is that so..."

"Are you really too busy to come? If so, I can wait until you're done and come back later."

Although he said that, his gaze was filled with eager anticipation. If I refused him here, he’d probably be extremely disappointed.

I made a gesture to pause. "Give me a minute to think."

He patiently waited, while I lowered my head and started thinking—

What I initially wanted from Ma Zao was nothing more than the secrets she was hiding, and she had already revealed all of them, so I could say my main task was already halfway complete.

The other half of the task is to verify whether what she told me is true or not.

In other words, I’ll let her rest for a few days until she’s able to use her abilities again. Everything depends on whether she can truly use her superpower. In other words, Ma Zao’s situation has shifted from an "urgent matter" to something that can’t be rushed.

Stolen story; please report.

I really want to keep a close watch on Ma Zao, but I can’t just stay home the entire time while she recovers—well, actually, maybe I could? Meals could be taken care of with takeout, and keeping the door closed would be entirely feasible. What’s more, I’d be willing to do that.

However, after giving it careful thought, I made the painful decision to go with another course of action.

"Let’s go, we’ll leave now."

"Alright!" My friend was immediately overjoyed.

"Wait for me, I need to go inside and tidy up, it won’t take long."

I told my friend to wait outside, then closed the door after entering my home. I went to the bedroom to inform Ma Zao that I would be stepping out for a bit. Ma Zao didn’t seem to associate her claimed "bad luck" with the events unfolding so quickly. She only reminded me to be careful. To prevent her from taking back the handgun, I packed my bag, hiding the gun deep inside it as I left.

Since Ma Zao can’t move freely right now, I didn’t have to worry about her leaving while I’m out. However, my concern still made me overthink, worried that she might sneak away in my absence. And as I left with my friend, I also had other intentions.

Being alone reveals a person’s true nature, and I wanted to see what Ma Zao would do in my absence, what kind of state she would be in while I wasn’t around.

To do this, I needed to set up "surveillance cameras" in my house.

Naturally, it would be impossible to set up such things without Ma Zao noticing in such a short amount of time. Moreover, I wasn’t the type of person who would usually keep hidden cameras in my home.

So, I’m going to use my superpower here.

Back at the entrance, I turned around and extended my finger toward the air.

As for the specifics of my superpower, I’ll keep it a mystery for now.

In reality, the power I possess isn’t complex enough to warrant such secrecy; on the contrary, in the world of superpowered individuals, this ability is likely very simple and common.

However, my friend will probably take me to witness an event related to supernatural phenomena, and in such a special situation, there may be a place for this unique power to come into play. Many characters with superpowers in fantasy stories use their abilities while explaining the details of their powers, and I kind of look forward to that kind of scenario. I’d like to try it out when the time comes.

Here, I’ll reveal just the "tip of the iceberg" of my power.

An orange-red light dot appeared on the tip of my finger, fluttering into the air like a firefly. Then came the second, third, fourth...

Dozens of “fireflies” scattered across the corners of the room in quick succession.

These little things have a psychic connection with me—they act as my "eyes" when I’m not present.

Once I had set them up, I turned around, opened the door, and said to the friend waiting outside, “Sorry to keep you waiting, let's head out.”

He was eager to go, and together we left the building, heading toward his place.

I quietly monitored the sights and sounds in my home through the “fireflies.”

Strictly speaking, the information shared by the “fireflies” is not visual or auditory. If I had to describe it, it’s like my imagination uncontrollably paints pictures and sounds in my mind.

I’m sure many people have experienced moments when, after watching a movie, the climax keeps replaying in their mind, or after hearing a catchy song, it plays over and over in their head. It’s something like that.

When I first left, Ma Zao had no reaction; she was just sitting quietly on the bed, resting. But as time passed, she seemed to have confirmed that I wasn’t returning anytime soon. The soft expression on her face quickly faded, replaced by one that was cold and numb.

She immediately got off the bed, put on her slippers, and slowly moved to the entrance. She opened the door and stepped into the hallway, looking around.

Was she planning to escape?

I was startled and wanted to return immediately.

But before I could turn around, she had already gone back into the room and closed the door behind her.

My friend noticed that something was off with my expression.

"Ah Cheng, what’s going on?"

"It’s nothing, I just suddenly felt like sneezing..."

I took a moment to calm my racing heart and continued to observe the mysterious and beautiful girl, trying to decipher her every move.

Ma Zao seemed like a small stray dog just taken in by a stranger, her back tense as she looked around the room. Every now and then, she would quickly glance back toward the entrance, likely on guard for my potential return.

Occasionally, she would move objects around, picking them up and carefully putting them back in place. It didn’t seem like she was looking for anything in particular, more like she was trying to investigate my background.

Perhaps it wasn’t just that I found her full of mysteries—she probably saw me as a mystery too.

Realizing this, I felt a little pleased—so I’m a "mysterious character" now?

For someone like me, who was acting "suspicious," her initial attitude was one of full hostility, with clear signs of resistance and an aggressive stance. However, after I dealt with the police, she suddenly calmed down. I had been wondering whether my act of playing the good guy had fooled her, but now I was starting to understand.

The reason she suddenly became more agreeable was probably based on a very practical reason—I had a gun in my possession.

However, even in such an unfavorable position, she had never tried to flatter me. Was it because she had extraordinary integrity, or did she think that changing her attitude too much would make me dislike her?

In the end, why was she considered a serial killer by the police?

Why was she wearing a hospital gown when I first found her? Had she been staying in a hospital before? Perhaps she escaped from some psychiatric hospital and everything she said to me was just the ramblings of a madwoman?

I wasn’t in a hurry to get answers right away. There was still plenty of time ahead, and I wanted to slowly savor this extraordinary cohabitation experience.

---

My friend, looking troubled, led me to a nearby tea restaurant where we sat down. I decided to focus my attention on him first.

"In order to avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings later, I need to explain the whole situation to you before showing you that thing," he said with a serious expression.

"Go ahead," I gestured for him to continue.

He first asked a question: "You still remember where I live, right?"

"Yes, I remember. It's that house where someone died," I replied.