Chapter 2: Spy?

Crack! Crack!

The crisp sound of a whip tearing through the air echoed in the cold, damp basement.

“Mmph… ngh…!”

Bai Li bit down hard on her lower lip, forcing the pained groans deep into her throat.

Coarse hemp rope dug deeply into her wrists, binding the entire fox girl to a wooden post.

Her back was already a bloody mess, crisscrossed with welts. Every lash made her body tremble uncontrollably.

“Not only did you fail the mission,” a cold female voice came from behind her, “you also lost a precious replica.”

Crack!

Another lash fell, landing precisely on top of a previous wound.

Bai Li’s vision went black, and she nearly fainted.

The wielder of the whip was a tall woman dressed in nun-like robes. However, the curved horns on her head and her dark purple skin marked her as a demonkin. She was a cadre within the organization responsible for “punishment” and “training.”

“That’s enough, Martha.”

A languid voice drifted from the depths of the basement.

Martha’s whip froze mid-air. She turned slightly and bowed toward the source of the voice. “Madam.”

Bai Li struggled to lift her head.

Snap.

A snap of fingers, and two sconces lit up in the deep part of the basement, illuminating the figure.

She sat on a stone throne, propping her chin on one hand, her posture relaxed.

The dim, yellow light outlined her graceful figure and the intricate, luxurious contours of her long gown. She wore an exquisite half-mask of silver, revealing only a beautifully sculpted jawline and a hint of a smiling red lip.

“Don’t beat our little one to death,” the woman addressed as ‘Madam’ raised a hand. “She still has her uses.”

“Yes.” Martha retracted her whip and retreated into the shadows.

The ropes binding Bai Li automatically loosened. Her legs gave way, and she collapsed onto the cold, damp stone floor, her whole body aching as if it had fallen apart.

Every breath tugged at the wounds on her back, the searing pain making it almost impossible to think.

“Asking you to confront the ‘Blazing Knight’ head-on was indeed asking too much of you.” Madam slowly rose from her throne, her long gown trailing silently down the stone steps.

She walked to Bai Li, crouched down, and extended a finger, gently lifting Bai Li’s sweat-drenched chin.

Bai Li was forced to look up and meet her gaze. The eyes behind the mask were a deep purple, devoid of any warmth.

“After all, before you, we lost who knows how many agents.”

Madam raised her other hand. An eerie green light coalesced in her palm, radiating a dense aura of life. She then placed her hand on Bai Li’s bloodied back.

“Gah!”

Bai Li couldn’t help but arch her back. The pain quickly faded, replaced by an indescribable, tingling numbness that swept through her entire body.

She could clearly feel her flesh wriggling and growing. The wounds stopped bleeding, scabbed over, and the scabs fell off at a visible rate.

In just a few breaths, aside from the bloodstains on her tattered clothes, her skin was smooth and flawless again, without even a faint scar left behind.

“So powerful…”

With some strength returning, Bai Li pushed herself up from the ground and looked down at herself.

Her shirt was already shredded by the whip, barely covering her body, and covered in dust and bloodstains.

“Tsk tsk, what a pitiful sight.” Madam stood up, brushing off nonexistent dust from her hands.

A shadowy figure dressed in servant’s attire silently appeared, holding a silver tray in both hands with reverence.

On the tray, neatly folded, was a set of clothes: a blue-and-white tracksuit jacket, matching pants, and a pair of ordinary white sneakers. Next to the clothes lay a dark blue canvas backpack and a simple silver metal bracelet.

“This is…?” Bai Li was somewhat bewildered.

“A new mission.” Madam turned and walked leisurely back to her throne, sitting down and crossing her legs. “Given the difficulty of a frontal assault on A-City’s core combatant, the ‘Blazing Knight,’ I have already applied to the ‘King’ for more powerful support. However, before that…”

She leaned forward slightly, her gaze from behind the mask carrying a hint of scrutiny.

“We need a pair of eyes. A pair of eyes planted among humans. Or rather, a spy.”

“!”

Bai Li’s heart gave a violent thump.

“Next, you will enroll in a high school in A-City as a transfer student. As for your name, you can continue using ‘Bai Li.’ It’s a good name; it sounds like a good student.”

“Why a school?” Bai Li couldn’t help but ask.

“Based on an analysis of the Blazing Knight’s appearance locations over the past three months,” Madam said in a flat tone, “eighty percent of the eyewitness reports are within a three-kilometer radius centered on a school. His transformation requires time and a relatively concealed location. Someone in a school uniform blending into a crowd is the least likely to arouse suspicion. And…”

She paused, her fingertips lightly tapping on the armrest of the throne.

“The scattered energy fluctuation signals we’ve captured indicate an intermittently active energy source in this area. While we cannot pinpoint it precisely, the greatest possibility is that the Blazing Knight himself, or someone very closely related to him, is hiding in that school or the surrounding community.”

The explanation sounded quite reasonable, with logic and evidence.

Bai Li fell silent. In the comics she read in her past life, high schoolers saving the world was the norm. It wasn’t strange for this world to have a super-powered high school student as its protector.

“Then… what about operational funds?” She suddenly thought of a practical problem. In this world, she was penniless.

Madam let out a light laugh, interrupting her.

“Funds? Bai Li, do you think that bullet we gave you earlier was cheap? The core material alone is enough to buy a decent apartment.”

Bai Li was left speechless. She had witnessed the power of that bullet firsthand; it was indeed extraordinary.

“You’ll have to figure out your own operational expenses.” Madam raised an eyebrow, her tone carrying a hint of amusement. “Need me to give you a hint? I’m afraid you have no self-awareness about that face of yours.”

She looked Bai Li up and down. Even now, ragged and covered in grime, it was hard to conceal her stunning beauty.

Her fox ears drooped on either side from unease, adding to her fragile, pitiable appearance.

“Find some sucker to act cute for, or sell a little…”

“No!” Bai Li’s face flushed instantly, and the words burst out. “I can’t do that!”

“Just teasing you, little girl.” Madam seemed to have anticipated her reaction, her smile deepening. “You appeared in this world out of thin air, with no connections, a clean slate. Let me guess… you’re not from this world, are you?”

Bai Li pressed her lips together tightly, offering no rebuttal.

“So, let’s make a deal.” Madam leaned back, her voice softening. “Complete this infiltration mission properly. Collect all information about the Blazing Knight’s true identity and report regularly. As long as the mission is successful, I will personally contact the King and apply to allocate resources to send you back.”

“Really?” Bai Li jerked her head up, a spark of hope igniting in her blue eyes. “You have a way?”

“You don’t know how we demons came to this world, do you?” Madam said with a smile. “It was the King who opened the [Gate] that connects worlds. Since we could come, naturally, there is a possibility of returning.”

She leaned forward, her voice dropping even lower. “And this is your only chance, isn’t it?”

Bai Li fell silent. Although she had few ties in her past life, being an ‘otherworldly freak’ not accepted by humans in this world, the confusion and struggle of the past six months, the troubles this unfamiliar body brought her…

The temptation to go home was too great.

“…I agree.” Her voice was somewhat hoarse.

“A wise choice.” Madam nodded with satisfaction, pointing to the bracelet on the servant’s tray. “That bracelet can generate a perception-distorting force field. It can last for twelve hours a day, perfectly disguising your ears and tail, making you look like a normal human. Use the time well.”

Bai Li picked up the cool metal bracelet and slipped it onto her left wrist.

The bracelet automatically contracted, fitting snugly against her skin. At her mental command, the fox ears on her head and the large tail behind her indeed vanished, as if they had never existed.

A strange feeling washed over her, yet it was mixed with a sense of emptiness.

“Change into the clothes. The backpack has basic items prepared for you and some pocket money. Remember, starting tomorrow, you are Bai Li, the transfer student at Red Sand High School. Your home is in another city; you’re renting a place alone to attend school. The detailed information is in the bag. Martha will take you to the safe house.”

Madam waved her hand, indicating she could leave.

Bai Li gathered the stack of clothes, glanced at Martha standing like a statue in the darkness, then looked toward the enigmatic Madam on the throne. Finally, she lowered her head and said softly,

“Yes, Madam.”

—

Late at night, in a rented room in an old residential complex.

“Whew—”

Bai Li, wearing her newly changed pajamas, lay face-down on the somewhat hard bed, burying her face in the pillow.

All the injuries on her body were healed, even the tail fur torn out by the knight had regrown.

But the phantom pains from the whipping and tearing still lingered. What troubled her even more was that ‘Blazing Knight.’

“Damn it… that damned tin can… violent maniac…” She pounded the pillow as if it were someone’s face. “Does he really think he’s a Kamen Rider? And that Rider Kick—I hope he sprains his ankle!”

She hugged the pillow, her tail swishing in circles behind her. “I’m the one who transmigrated. I should be the protagonist… Where’s my overpowered protagonist script?”

Bai Li rolled over, staring at the dim yellow light bulb on the ceiling, imagining the scene of finally trampling that person underfoot one day. She couldn’t help but snicker.

“Hmph, just wait until I uncover your true identity. Let’s see how arrogant you can be then… A high school student? Probably some scrawny bookworm… No, more likely a self-important jock…” She muttered, scenes from the morning’s battle flashing in her mind.

When his mask was torn off, did he freeze?

Was it because of this face?

Bai Li subconsciously touched her cheek, then shook her head vigorously, dismissing that inexplicable thought.

She pulled the blanket over herself, wrapping up like a cocoon, leaving only a pair of silver-white fox ears exposed.

Outside the window, the city lights still twinkled. This world felt both familiar and alien.

“Damn that knight…”