Plague Doctor

"My Jia Er is a good boy, he will never hurt anyone, he would even purposely take a detour around a line of ants when he comes across them." Inside the interrogation room, Wang Jia Er's mother claimed weakly, "Granted we allow him plenty of freedom because my husband and I are too busy with our business but he has given us no reason to worry about him before… I refuse to believe that he has changed so much in just a span of a few days. Can't you just tell me what crime he has committed? Where is my boy now?"

After Headmaster Chui's explosion, the family of the first batch of patients was quickly quarantined. That was because they had the closest contact with the patients. Among the student families, Wang Jia Er's parents were rather unique because on the week of Arbor Day, they were out of the city on business. This interrogation was not conducted at Mo Bei City but the adjacent Chi Lin City.

"Jia Er is a very obedient child and he knows the limit so we never stop him from inviting his friends to our home. That day when Lee Yuhan's mother called me, I didn't think anything would happen. I merely was concerned for their future when I persuaded her from calling the police. They are still too young to know about the consequence of their actions… Have I told you about this? Jia Er has been donating and volunteering at several stray animal shelters. He always wants to have a pet but we won't allow it so he visits them at the shelters instead. He is a very kind young man and filled with compassion. Sometimes, I feel like he is sent here to teach me and my husband a lesson in life…" Mother Wang's eyes watered, "Jia Er, my son… please let me see him…"

…

Dawn broke and the sun rose to the sky. A new day was beginning at Mo Bei City. Even though the city was not a metropolis, it had a population number of about 2,000,00. The city did not have many skyscrapers but the place was still bustling with activity. Cars jammed the business centre.

Today, it was Zhu Haiwei's holiday break. His girlfriend, Jin Lixin also applied for an off day. They could finally leave the base for a sweet outing. Both of them worked at Mysterium, one was in the Investigation Department, the other Medical Department. This kind of holiday was extremely rare. However, since Mysterium managed to deliver a heavy blow to the Land of Mu Cult last year, their lives had quieted down a lot. Compared to members of the Spell Department, their lives could not have been freer.

Today was not exactly a holiday. Zhu Haiwei had a plan, something that he had been preparing for months already. He and Lixin were in a relationship for 3 years already and they were both heading into their 30s. Since things were relatively peaceful lately, why not tie the knot now? After all, they might not have this break in their schedule anymore. The pair walked down the busy street. There were several restaurants with outdoor seating and 70 percent of them were occupied by tourists.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Jin Lixin pushed on the glasses sitting on her nose. "You're never good at keeping secrets, come on, spill it."

Zhu Haiwei was quite nervous. He smiled bashfully. He didn't know how to be romantic, he went online to search for templates of proposals but he couldn't find one that fitted himself. Furthermore, with the nature of their career, they couldn't make too big of a commotion even for a proposal event.

"Lixin." Zhu Haiwei began sincerely. He was about a head taller than his girlfriend. If he went down on one knee, it would attract too much attention so he could only assume a strange half-kneeling posture. "Marry me, be my wife and let me take care of you forever."

Jin Lixin was first startled before she started to laugh. "That's all… there's not even a wedding ring?"

"I haven't bought it yet." Zhu Haiwei chuckled as he scratched his head. "Well, we are on holiday break today, right? Why don't we go make the purchase now?"

"That has to be the most casual proposal I've ever seen…" Jin Lixin grumbled but she could not hide the smile on her face. "But I guess that's why I love you. Okay. Yes."

'She said yes?' Zhu Haiwei's heart quivered. He did not show much excitement outwardly but internally he was overjoyed. He sighed in relief. "Then let's go ring shopping now!" He grabbed his girlfriend's hand and headed towards the mall. The two walked for a distance, before they even got into the mall, they heard a surprised yell from a person in the crowd. The security uncle who guarded the mall entrance had his mouth gaping as he looked up into the sky. 'What's wrong?' Both Zhu Haiwei and Jin Lixin turned back to look with confusion. Their hearts squeezed. On the previously clear blue sky, there were now flying shadows. They were giant birds flying down different directions. One of them soared towards the mall. They could see clearer now the 'bird' had a bat-like wings, elephantine body, an equine head and the body was covered in strange scales and feathers. There was a man standing on the back of the bird. The man looked about 17. He wore a green school uniform, he looked like a high school student.

"What is that?!" Some of the tourists took out their phone to capture this moment. Others were stunned. Zhu Haiwei was confused for a moment before he recovered. Instinctively, he reached for his gun and shouted, "I'm with the police! This is dangerous! Evacuate into the mall now, quick! Lixin, call the headquarters!" He did not know any spell but he raised the pistol and aimed it at the swooping shadow. He pulled the trigger several times.

"Get into the mall please!" Jin Lixin tried to control the crowd. She realized that this was not a mutated creature in Mysterium's database!

The bullets hit the bird on its body and wings. Black blood spurted. It was corporeal. However, it did not stop and continued to fly their way. The citizens at the plaza were dumbfounded. Some did follow the advice to head into the mall but others came out from the mall, wishing to take a closer look.

Suddenly, Zhu Haiwei, Jin Lixin and the citizens saw a strange scene. The young man who sat on the giant bird had his head turn red due to blood rushing to it. There was a glow that emitted from under his skin. His skull turned transparent and the worms that resided inside his brain were shown. The worms… were the ones giving off the light as they wiggled in the man's brain…

The young man did not raise his voice but everyone could hear him clearly, "The storm is imminent, insects and worms shall ride the wind; The flood is imminent, mayflies shall ride the waves."

Bang! With a crisp snap, the translucent brain exploded. The worms splattered everywhere and fell from the sky. They landed on Zhu Haiwei's face and on the ground. The industrial plaza echoed with another wave of screams.

This kind of shrieks echoed throughout the entire Mo Bei City as the birds descended upon it.