Chapter 15: 15 Reward (Extra Dish)

15 Reward (Extra Dish)

“Send it to the kitchen to be stewed.”

Amid the black goat’s utterly stunned gaze, the red-haired woman closed the archived file on the “Red Brick Road Hospital Incident,” then picked up the goat’s head and tossed it onto the desk in front of Li Ang, calmly instructing:

“We share the kitchen with the Police Bureau. After you take this to them, tell the head chef to make it into goat head soup—same as before.”

“No ginger slices or scallion segments. Add extra cinnamon and cardamom, double the stinking rice wine, toss in a spoonful of white pepper and Eastern-imported soybean paste. Today’s lunch gets an upgrade. Go.”

“Wait… wait a minute! You bastard!”

Unexpectedly, after accomplishing a great deed, he faced this fate—the black goat bristled with rage, struggling in Li Ang’s arms:

“Olli… you bitch! We helped you bring in new recruits and solved this case—this is how you treat us? Do you even have a shred of decency?”

“I’ve been perfectly reasonable!”

Hearing of a major incident in the capital, the red-haired woman, who had rushed back overnight, snorted, then sharply tapped her knuckles against the desk, narrowing her fox-like eyes with a hostile glare:

“Since you want to talk reason, let me ask you—do you know what that director was doing before you and the recruit killed him?”

“What? Wasn’t he controlling a bunch of people to attack Emma?”

“More than that!”

Recalling what she’d read in the operation report, the red-haired woman snapped in fury:

“He thought he had Emma cornered and was gloating about his origins—right when he was about to reveal who his master was, his physical body got shot dead by you!”

“…”

After gaping in shock, the black goat frowned and retorted:

“What… what are the odds? Are you making this up?”

“Hmph…”

Seeing the black goat’s skeptical expression, the red-haired woman pressed her aching chest, too weary to explain, and flung the report onto the desk.

“Read it yourself!”

Fine! I’ll read it myself! I’ve got people now—I don’t need you!

The black goat snatched the flying report with its mouth, turned its head, and passed it to Li Ang, who understood at once: one hand steadied it, the other opened it and held it directly before the goat’s eyes.

Black goat: …

Li Ang: ?

“It means you’re supposed to read it aloud.”

Watching the human and the goat stare blankly at each other across the desk, the red-haired woman downed a gulp of liquor, sneered, and waved her hand:

“Just read it for him—he can’t read.”

“…”

“I’m not completely illiterate… I just… don’t know many characters…”

Meeting Li Ang’s astonished gaze, the black goat flushed with embarrassment and snapped:

“I’m a demon! Do you understand? I speak demon tongue—that’s enough! Why should I learn your human writing? Hurry up! What does it say? Tell me quick!”

“Oh…”

Though the black goat’s tone was rude, Li Ang, mindful of the creature’s past help and its willingness to teach him its methods free of charge, felt he owed it a demon’s favor and let it slide. He turned his attention to the report.

【Red Brick Road Hospital Incident Cleanup Report】

【Incident Rating: Accident Level】

【Incident Status: Cleared】

【Case Officer: Emma Alman, Li Ang】

【Abnormal Objects Deployed: Demon’s Horn, Snake Bandage】

【…】

Glancing over the initial forms, Li Ang flipped quickly to the second page, eager to find the section about the mastermind—but as he read,

his pace unconsciously slowed.

【Subsequent investigations confirmed the identity of the uncontrolled infected as Thomas Walker, director of Red Brick Road Hospital. He is suspected of having received an infusion from a True God, fusing his directorial authority with the hospital itself, fully corrupting the entire facility into his own abnormal object.】

【This abnormal object has two confirmed abilities. The first is controlling hospital staff, forcibly turning them into puppets under his command—a power suspected to be a distorted manifestation of the director’s authority after corruption.】

【Additionally, during the cleanup operation, I observed that one medical staff member remained unaffected, persistently aiding patients to escape even under threat. I therefore hypothesize this ability does not affect individuals with kind hearts or those who resist authority.】

【The second ability of this abnormal object is absorbing patients to strengthen itself. Upon entering its range, any individual with severe illness will be instantly consumed by the entire hospital, slowly draining their life force.】

【Each successful absorption increases the hospital’s structural integrity slightly. After absorbing over three hundred fifty patients, a specially designed nail capable of piercing six walls could no longer penetrate beyond two.】

【Subsequent investigations suggest this life-force absorption ability stems from the hospital’s long-standing practices: overcharging patients, prioritizing high-priced drugs, and deliberately prescribing addictive medications to exploit their wealth…】

So that’s how it was…

As Li Ang reached this point, his expression grew solemn, and he felt genuine admiration for the Bandage Woman’s meticulousness.

Last night, when he arrived with his sniper rifle, she had already gone to the sixth floor, rummaging through the director’s office, taking numerous items—and even smashing open the safe inside, emptying it completely.

At the time, he’d assumed she was after the director’s “secret stash,” not realizing she was conducting an investigation. Yet within a single night, she produced this detailed, professional report—no wonder she was a veteran of the Cleanup Bureau. Her competence was undeniable.

“You kid… why just nod and stay silent? Read it out!”

After waiting in vain for Li Ang to speak, fearing he’d truly be sent to the stew pot, the black goat panicked and snapped:

“Hurry up! If you won’t read, just glance at the record and tell me if it’s true—that’s all I need!”

“It’s true.”

After quickly scanning the relevant records, Li Ang nodded helplessly:

“The director had just started speaking, about to reveal his master’s identity, when we pinpointed his location and shot him dead through the office door…”

“…”

This… could it really be this bad? How unbelievably unlucky!

Seeing Li Ang’s expression was genuine, the black goat, who had been so brazen moments ago, instantly deflated, hunching his shoulders and mumbling weakly:

“We… we were hundreds of meters away—how were we supposed to know that intel was so critical? Even if we ruined your chance to get the info, it was still understandable…”