Divine Oracle [Transmigration] (ORACLE)
After inspecting Hong Yi's residence, the Third Division split into two teams—one staying in M City, the other remaining in F City—to simultaneously investigate the potential mysterious figure.
Hong Yi's phone had been wiped clean, and no electronic devices were found in his home. The identity of this mysterious person remained enigmatic. Apart from the glimpse Song Si had unintentionally caught, they had no additional leads, leaving them to comb through surveillance footage like searching for a needle in a haystack.
Song Si felt there was something he hadn't considered yet.
In the afternoon, he grabbed paper and a pen, planning to head to the self-service restaurant downstairs for an ice cream and to wake up the Twin Butterflies, inviting them to collaborate on a mind map.
Everyone else in the office was intently reviewing surveillance footage. Song Si stood up and informed his supervisor, "I'm going to the self-service restaurant; I'm hungry."
Chu Mingyi didn't even look up, merely saying, "Don't eat too much ice," and waved him off. As Song Si tidied his desk and took the elevator down, he couldn't resist tapping his own head, which echoed hollowly, like a melon.
Although his mind housed an extra Twin Butterflies compared to normal people, he didn't actually feel its presence. Unless he was in danger or treating patients, that invisible "Butterfly" remained well-behaved and unnoticeable, leaving him wondering what it did inside all day.
Sometimes Song Si thought that if he were in the Butterfly's position, he'd probably be scheming to seize power and usurp the throne every moment—otherwise, such excellent abilities and position would be wasted.
It was the Twin Butterflies that detected Lu Ling's assassination attempt and the malicious ability user among the protest crowd. Without it, Song Si might have died several times over.
He decided to conduct an experiment.
Approaching the end of the workday, the self-service restaurant was crowded.
The restaurant was run by the Special Investigation Bureau as a cover, and all the customers were colleagues from the bureau. The moment Song Si entered, half the restaurant turned to look at him.
There was a long line at the ice cream station. In front of him stood a beautiful female colleague who looked familiar, but he couldn't recall her name. She accepted an ice cream from the server and cheerfully said, "Another one, please~ Vanilla flavor."
The server gave her another.
She turned and handed the ice cream to Song Si, her eyes curving into a smile. "Doctor Song, this is for you."
Unable to recall her name, Song Si felt awkward for a second but found it inconvenient to refuse, so he smiled and said, "Thank you."
The female colleague covered her mouth with a laugh, happily joining her companion's table and whispering something to them. Holding the ice cream, Song Si was asked by the server, "Do you want one too?" Hesitating between one or two, he replied, "Another one, chocolate, please."
Carrying two ice creams, he found a window seat under the gaze of half the restaurant and spread out an A4 paper.
To avoid being peeked at, he began organizing a mind map of the case using abbreviated English.
Hong Yi - Drug dependency - Dual personality - Drug withdrawal - Protest - Suicide?
X - Strong ability - Protest scene - Suspected inducement to suicide - Supporter of Liu Cenning?
At the protest scene back then, it was his Butterfly that first detected the malicious intent. If he were to ask the Twin Butterflies now, would it answer? Or would it only absorb the energy in this restaurant?
Song Si took a bite of ice cream, twirled the ballpoint pen, and wrote "X's ability?" in the lower right corner of the paper. Then he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, his eyes had become vertical slits.
Other than that, he appeared completely normal, except for a mechanically indifferent expression. He tilted his head slightly, his reptilian-like vertical pupils shifting toward the paper on the table. His gaze paused briefly before moving to the ice cream beside it.
This was the quietest, most secluded spot in the restaurant, with no customers in front or behind. But after all, this was the Special Investigation Bureau's cafeteria, and most of the people sitting here had special abilities, their energy waves vibrant—a veritable feast for the Twin Butterflies.
Song Si, having lost most of his consciousness, observed "his own" reactions with a vague sense of tension.
His tension was undoubtedly shared in real-time with the Twin Butterflies.
The vertical pupils shifted again, gazing toward the long line in front of the ice cream machine.
"He" frowned slightly, withdrew his gaze with a hint of weariness, showed no reaction to the colleagues with abilities throughout the cafeteria, and picked up the ballpoint pen on the table...
Five minutes later, Song Si reopened his eyes.
His pupils had returned to normal. He rubbed his cheeks uncomfortably and quickly scanned the tabletop after losing control.
The two ice creams on the table were gone.
Their destination was unquestionable—they were in his stomach.
The A4 paper with the mind map looked largely unchanged from before. Over the words "X's ability?" he had written earlier, his previous self had drawn a diagonal line. The stroke was sloppy and forceful, the tail nearly tearing the paper, betraying the line drawer's bad temper.
Song Si stared at that line for a long time. It was a meaningless stroke, yet he managed to decipher the message from the creature in his mind.
—Don’t bother me with trivial matters.
—Chocolate-flavored ice cream tastes fucking awful.
Song Si couldn’t help but let out a self-mocking laugh, though it died halfway. He felt a chill down his spine, cold sweat seeping from his neck.
It was just a simple experiment, but the results were enough to prove—the thing in his head wasn’t merely a parasite, but a true creature with self-awareness and intelligence!
How had he coexisted peacefully with such a being for decades? What was the principle behind it? Would he one day wake up to find himself displaced by the Butterfly, imprisoned forever in his own mind, forced to watch it play out the rest of his life?
He couldn’t dwell on it; the more he thought, the more unsettling it became.
Song Si took a deep breath, folded the A4 paper, wiped the cream from the corner of his mouth, and comforted himself inwardly: At least for now, it seemed uninterested and incapable. After being awakened, it could even control its instincts, refraining from absorbing his colleagues' abilities and only eating two ice creams.
Song Si packed his things, bought another ice cream—vanilla-flavored this time—and ate it earnestly, expressing gratitude for the Butterfly’s mercy in sparing him.
After finishing, he left the cafeteria. Just as he reached the entrance, he noticed something hanging across the street in his peripheral vision.
At the same time, his phone rang.
Song Si turned his head, then furrowed his brows as if he had swallowed a fly. Directly across from the cafeteria, and opposite the Special Investigation Bureau, someone had hung a long banner between the greenery trees. It had a red background, super large Microsoft YaHei font, and was written with great momentum: "Doctor Song, the benevolent healer who saves the world with his miraculous hands."In the far right corner of the banner, there was a very small signature: "Respectfully submitted by Zhang Mou.""
Song Si: "…………"
He finally understood why his colleagues in the cafeteria were whispering and glancing at him.
His phone was still buzzing. Feeling speechless, Song Si pulled out his phone and saw the caller: Chu Mingyi.
"Finished your ice cream?" Chu Mingyi said over the phone. "We've got a lead. Hurry back."
Song Si replied, "I'm on my way now. Also, boss, I need to visit Chief Yang again tomorrow. Those patients suffering from the side effects of Ninghai medicine might know something."
•───────•°•❀•°•───────•
The completed novel is now available in my Ko-fi page.
If you appreciate what I do, please consider supporting me on kofi. Thank you!
•───────•°•❀•°•───────•