Mysterious Hunting Ground

Chapter 287 277. The stolen badge
  As Orion disappears to the southwest.

Dean's attention turned to the phantom snake scales in front of him, which were as large as an average person's upper body. Wisps of starlight shone in the color of cosmic latte, outlining a half-prismatic pattern the size of a palm.

This is an arrow that has not yet been formed. It contains hundreds of tiny points inside. The points are connected by faint dotted lines like earthworms. The edge of the arrow is inlaid with feather-like spikes, which looks ancient. And mysterious.

Dean's God's perspective observed along the outline. The starlight flowing on the surface of this figure was like a desolate and dead liquid energy.

Unfortunately, only [-]% of the current arrow graphics are drawn, which is incomplete and cannot store starlight for a long time. They continue to escape into the air.

"This pattern can store starlight, so it's called Star Rune·Arrow."

Dean tried to infuse vitality and telekinesis into the arrow runes again, and wisps of starlight rushed forward ferociously like beasts that smelled flesh and blood, devouring every bit of the "intruder" in the blink of an eye, nourishing and strengthening itself.

"The starlight can actually swallow up my life energy and telekinesis. It's so overbearing. Therefore, rather than being carved on snake scales, star runes and arrows should be engraved on weapons for attack and destruction."

"Continue to stargazing tonight, and you will be able to completely carve out the complete rune tomorrow. Then you will see its true effect."

With deep anticipation, Dean put the snake scales into the space and returned to the room to rest.

……

The next morning.

Catherine woke up from her deep sleep, pushed away the quilt and stretched out. The sunlight outside the window illuminated the beautiful scenery of mountains, hills, and fertile fields, and a comfortable smile appeared on the corner of her mouth.

I have never slept so comfortably and happily as I did last night in my life, and it's all thanks to Dean!
  But she turned around and found the empty bed. As soon as her mind was empty, she ran into the living room with bare feet. Her expression relaxed when she saw the busy figures in the kitchen, and she giggled and hugged the man's waist.

"What magic did you cast on me last night? You actually made me sleep until eight o'clock in the morning."

"Sleeping spell, that's why you are still dreaming now," Dean flipped the fried eggs in the pot without looking back, "Everything you see, hear, and smell is false."

"Since it's a dream, then I can do whatever I want?" Catherine jumped behind him and bit his ear, and Dean turned around and bit back.

The two of them were fighting until they were covered in sweat. Catherine said, "I want to take action with you, but I have to report back to the club first and process some information."

"Then we will meet at the restaurant outside the school at [-]:[-] in the afternoon."

……

Make plans.

Dean put on a more mature black windbreaker and returned to No. 36 Maple Street, where he decorated the Christmas tree together while his uncle, aunt, and mother interrogated and joked about his girlfriend.
  Then he went to Teacher Owen's house and continued to guide Jian Honglong in the first movement of meditation and the technique of manipulating energy with mind power. There was almost no progress in the former, but the little girl showed extraordinary potential in the latter. After just one day of hard practice, she was able to create a ball on her fingertips. A small flame, although smaller and weaker than the flame of a match, can only last for a few seconds before extinguishing.

But this is also a breakthrough from scratch and a qualitative change in the power of thought.

Dean gave Jane a generous burst of encouragement and encouragement, which made Jane so happy that she smiled so hard that her gums were exposed and vowed to continue training hard.

Dean then rushed to the Hawkins Police Station to learn about the progress of the case.

Director Hope has great prestige throughout Hawkins, and the case is progressing very quickly. In just one day, the police have found no less than ten suspects whose height and appearance match Dean's description of the murderer, and who have tendencies to worship Nazis. Unfortunately, they either have tattoos or tattoos. The location does not match, or there is no time of crime, or it does not match the traces of evidence at the crime scene.

It will take a lot of time to find the suspect, so there is no need to rush.

Dean stayed at the police station until about four o'clock, when the sun began to set in the west, and an orange-red glow spread across the sky.

He came to the restaurant next to Hawkins Middle School and met Catherine. Not long after, he changed into a brand new blue denim jacket, with messy hair neatly arranged, but with clear panda eyes on his face, Jonathan led five anxious people peers came over.

"Dean, I brought everyone here."

Dean nodded at Jonathan, "Great job, but what happened to your eye? Who hit it?"

Jonathan smiled casually, "No, I accidentally dropped it myself."

As he spoke, he pointed to a thin, good-looking girl with long brown hair and a blue shirt, jeans, and a shawl behind him and introduced, "This is Nancy."

"Dean, a temporary detective with the Hawkins Police Department." Dean stretched out his hand towards Nancy, who shook it back hesitantly, her whole body tense like a frightened little rabbit. Dean shook his head and smiled. , "Don't be so nervous, actually I know you, you are Mike's sister, right?"

"Yes, have you met Mike?"

"Well, Mike's good friend Dustin and I are neighbors."

Nancy's face relaxed when she heard this, "That's right, these little brats have been out D&D and running groups all day long."

Seeing that the atmosphere between the two had relaxed, Jonathan pointed to a fat girl next to him who was wearing a pink knitted sweater and old-fashioned black tortoiseshell glasses, with a bit of a nerdy temperament, "This is Barbara, Nancy's good sister."

"Hello, Barbara."

The little chubby girl waved towards Dean shyly.

A handsome boy with medium-retro hair similar to an airplane head said, "This is Steve, the son of a wealthy family in the town."

A boy with freckles on his face, chewing gum and looking at Dean and Catherine wildly, said, "This is Golan."

Next to Golan was the girl with long dark blond hair, delicate features, but a mean expression, "Hala, Golan's girlfriend."

"Have a seat, six students. I guess you haven't had dinner, so feel free to order whatever you want to eat." Catherine smiled and threw the menu to Nancy, "Let's chat while we eat."

"No need, we are not here to fill our stomachs, we want to know the facts." Steve looked at Dean and Katherine defensively across the dining table, and then pointed at Jonathan, "What are you asking this photo geek to take?" What do you mean? What do you mean we are in danger and may die like Marcus at any time?"

"I've never heard of any detectives working in the Hawkins Police Department. You look like you're not much older than us." Golan looked at Dean with disdain. "I think you're just a liar who's trying to blackmail us." money."

"Shut up and don't slander my friends!" Jonathan turned around and pushed Golan hard in the chest. The latter sat down at another table.

"Beat him, Golan!" His girlfriend Hala pushed Golan on the shoulder and started yelling like a little girl.

Every freckle on Golan's face turned blood red. He spat the gum on the ground and raised his fist.

"Freak, who begged me before? If you go crazy again, I'll blow out your other eye!"

Jonathan pushed his chest again, "If I didn't stand still and let you take revenge, could you hurt me? Try again!"

"Quiet! Everyone sit down!"

Dean's majestic voice made the hearts of several teenagers present tremble. They couldn't explain what was going on, just like a mouse seeing a cat, he sat down at the dining table obediently.

Dean asked Catherine to order eight lunches, and his sharp eyes like a beast slowly swept across the faces of the six students, "Do you know that you are in danger now?"

"What do you mean?" Steve asked, "Could it be that what Jonathan said is true, that Marcus's death is related to our expedition last Wednesday?"

"That's right." Dean asked, "You found a skeleton in the cave, right?"

Steve and Golan exchanged looks and nodded.

"Then have you ever thought about why there are human remains inside? Because it is not a natural cave, but a place used by a murderer to destroy corpses and eliminate traces." Of course, Dean couldn't tell these teenagers that the truth was related to the supernatural. We can only use a more euphemistic and realistic explanation, "You have discovered the secret that he has hidden for many years. He does not want the secret to be revealed but to kill you."

Dean's cold voice hit the hearts of a group of teenagers like a machine gun, making them hold their breath.

"He first tracked Marcus and Samantha last Wednesday night and killed them all at once. Whose turn will it be next? Golan, Hala, Nancy, or Steve, you are all dead, His secret will be sealed again."

With a pale face, Nancy hugged her good sister Barbara, and her freckled face held her girlfriend's hand tightly.

Steve took a deep breath and smoothed the hair from his forehead. The blood vessels in his neck objected suddenly, "Fuck the murderer! There was no one outside when we entered the cave. He couldn't have seen us!"

Dean shook his head, "I went to the cave to check yesterday and the skeleton was missing. Who do you think took it away?"

Steve's expression froze, and there was a hint of fear in his eyes.

"There is no doubt that the murderer took away the remains, and then he should clean up the hidden dangers." Dean suddenly turned around and glanced at the woods across the road, "Maybe he is hiding nearby and peeking, waiting for you to be alone. People walk on the street at night, launch a sneak attack from behind and slit your throat, and even break into your bedroom with a knife and stab you indiscriminately on the bed!"

"Poke dozens of bloody holes in you like we did to Marcus and Samantha!"

hiss--

Catherine was so frightened that she changed color slightly and moved closer to Dean.

The students who were involved turned around and looked around, trying their best to find the murderer Dean mentioned.

"I don't want to die!" Hala couldn't help but screamed in fear and stood up, "What should we do, call the police at Hawkins Police Station?"

"Don't be afraid, sweetheart, I have several guns at home!" Golan put his arm around his girlfriend's waist. "Go to my house to sleep at night. I will guard you with a gun in front of your window to protect you. If the murderer dares to come, I will shoot him into a sieve. !”

Instead, Hala pushed him away violently, complaining with red eyes, "It's all your fault. If you hadn't run into the forest and fallen into a hole last time, you wouldn't have caused so much trouble!"

Golan lowered his head sadly.

"Come on, everyone, do you really believe this Asian's nonsense?" Steve slammed the table, spread his hands, and looked at his companions with a speechless expression.

"Dean won't lie to us," Jonathan said.
  "Even if there is a one percent chance, I don't want to take the risk." The fat girl Barbara exchanged a look with Nancy beside her, her plump face showing perseverance beyond her years, "You put us There must be a way to save us if you call here, right?"

"Yes, I need you to provide clues to find out the true identity of the murderer," Dean stared at Steve and Golan, "With so many people, you two were the only ones who went underground at that time, right? What did you see?"

"What else? There's just a skeleton." Steve grabbed the cranberry biscuit on the table and took a bite, frowning in disgust.
  "you sure?"

"I swear to Jesus Christ!"

"What clothes is the skeleton wearing?" Dean asked,
  Next to him, Golan took the beef and onion soup from the waiter, took a sip, and handed it to his girlfriend, "The dress is very unique, a white flat-collar robe..."

White robes, the image of the murderer flashed in Dean's mind, but he was wearing black robes when he committed the murder. So the murderer is unlikely to be a resurrected skeleton. Of course, it may also be that he changed his clothes later.

"Are you sure it's white and not black?"

"We're not blind, it's just a white robe with a fold in the middle." Steve took the burger and took a big bite. "It's also wearing a red and white plaid headscarf, rolled up on both sides of the head, and on the back of the head. A black circle encircles it.”

"This dress is weird, it doesn't look like American style, but it reminds me of Arabs." Catherine spoke at this time, with a thoughtful look in her bright eyes, "Yes, most Arabs dress like this. "

Arab!

Dean's eyes gleamed. When he was on the phone with Professor Aiden yesterday, the other party mentioned that the characters in the four-pointed star array found in the cave were Kufic script in Arabic script.

This corresponds perfectly with the skeletons dressed in Arabia.

There is a high probability that it was the skeleton who set up the magic circle during his lifetime!

The system progress jumped to [-]%.

The only thing that Dean couldn't figure out was why were Arabs in Hawkins?

At this time, the waiter brought several portions of curry rice from the side. Dean took it, took a bite, and asked, "Was there anything unusual about the skeleton at that time?"

Steve rubbed his hair, "It's not lying on the ground like an ordinary dead person. It's sitting directly in the middle of the ground. From the back, it looks alive. It's scary."

Sitting skeleton in white robe?
  Dean thought about this scene for a while, but couldn't think of any use for this message for a while, "Is there anything else?"

Steve and Golan's expressions froze for a moment, and they shook their heads at the same time, "No more."

Dean glanced at the table with his index finger, his eyes seeming to penetrate his soul, "Then why did you have to let your companions keep it a secret and not call the police? What did you three hide at that time?"

As soon as this question came up, Jonathan, Sister Nancy, and Hala all cast questioning looks at the two companions. Barbara took the lead and said, "I thought it was strange at the time. There was only one human remains in the cave, and it wasn't you. There is no reason to keep it secret."

"Really, Steve?" Nancy looked at the boy with pure deer-like eyes, her disappointment palpable, "You lied and deceived everyone?"

"No, Nancy, listen to my explanation, I didn't mean it." Faced with his sweetheart's doubts, Steve was so anxious that he almost cried.
  When Jonathan saw this, the corners of his mouth curved slightly.

Catherine gave Dean a thumbs up, appreciating his ability to see into people's minds.

"What else are you explaining!" Hala grabbed a tortilla on the table and hit the two boys on the head, "It's all your fault that brought the murderer, and that made me so worried that I couldn't sleep well this week. !”

"Stop arguing, let's say it, let's say it's okay!" Golan yelled, slammed the table, and looked at Dean dejectedly, "You are really a devil - you guessed it, we hid it As a matter of fact, there was an antique in the skeleton’s arms, and Marcus took it away. He didn’t want others to know, so he kept it secret.”

antique?

"Fake Squid, why are you taking things belonging to the dead?" Hala asked in a hissing voice, "You are desecrating the dead. Are you going to church every week in vain?"

Dean nodded, "You are so brave that you should even get your hands on the relics of unknown dead people in the wild. What kind of antiques are they?"

"A brass badge the size of half a palm," Steve avoided Nancy's gaze and lowered his head to recall. "The style is very ancient, with sixteen unique symbols evenly inlaid around it. There is a cross-shaped bar in the center. The ravine is carved with some strange patterns, I can’t remember clearly.”

Steve's description is complete,

Catherine's big eyes rolled, and she quietly took out her notebook and started jotting down.

Dean discovered that the progress of the incident had skyrocketed from [-]% to [-]%, and he suddenly realized that this stolen antique badge was the cause of everything.

In his mind, the four-pointed star formation, the sitting Arab skeleton in white robes, the murderer in black robes, the stolen badge, the dead Marcus... suddenly connected in series, and he had a rough guess, but he still lacked some details to support it.

"Where's the badge?"

Golan said, "It was always with Marcus. He was almost inseparable from him, like a demon."

"I think I understand," Barbara said suddenly. "The murderer first killed Marcus and Samantha to recover this badge."

Jonathan looked at everyone and said, "Has the murderer recovered the badge from Marcus?"

No one can answer.

"Even if he gets the badge back, it doesn't mean you are safe, not to mention everything is still unknown." Dean put down the smooth glass plate, stood up suddenly, and said without any doubt, "We must confirm the whereabouts of the badge, everyone. , taking me to any place where the badge might appear, Marcus and Samantha's lockers at school, and both of their homes."

Nancy hugged her schoolbag tightly and pursed her thin lips, "We should go to the police station to call the police and let the police protect us!"

"Director Hope has given me full responsibility for this matter. The police officers are busy tracking down the murderer outside and have no time to pay attention to you." Dean took out an M1911A1 from his arms, pulled the slide and clicked to load it. He held the trigger with his index finger and turned it. "I can protect you. I'll call Director Hope later and ask him to notify your families, so there's no need to worry."

"I believe Dean." Jonathan stood up unswervingly and led Dean towards the school. Catherine took Dean's arm and followed closely.

The remaining students hesitated for a moment and followed.

(End of this chapter)