Feeling done with their business, some of them did some casual stretching. The drunk man who was apprehended earlier was allowed to move around freely, but he was being closely watched by the team. Just like before, he was bewildered observing the events, especially with the presence of these uniformed people.
"You guys aren't the police, are you?"
"What do you mean? Do we look like police officers from the outside, sir?"
"Don't joke around!! Who are you guys?! What was that all about?"
"It's okay, don't worry. You don't need to remember what just happened."
Just when he had relaxed, the drunken man was suddenly apprehended for the second time. Unfortunately, he was restrained more tightly so he couldn't escape.
"What?! Let me go!!"
The young woman typed something on a strange camera.
"Hmm... the memories of returning from the drinking place. On the way home, you got too drunk on the road until you passed out. When you woke up, you didn't remember anything and were confused, and that was you! hehehe."
"What are you talking about?! What are you going to do to me?"
"Don't worry, sir, you don't need to be afraid after this," replied the police officer's colleague.
Hearing the commotion, it seemed that the sniper woman was disturbed. She quickly fixed her weapon, took off her hat, and casually walked towards the victim. Instead of trying to calm him down, she slapped him hard.
SLAP...
"You! getting drunk and wandering around at night! Meeting ghosts will only get you in trouble! It's better for you to focus on working tomorrow instead of thinking about what just happened."
The man didn't understand why he was slapped. He also didn't understand why he was scolded like a father who always comes home late.
"Okay, sir, now look at the camera and don't forget to smile."
Without taking his eyes off the person who just slapped him, he suddenly noticed something on their shoulder. Specifically, a logo that he had only just noticed because of the darkness of the night. A logo that was not unfamiliar to drinkers. It is likely the identity of this strange force.
"Hah? A..."
He felt familiar with the logo, but before he could say anything more, right after he looked towards the camera, he saw a very blinding white flash of light. Instantly, his consciousness faded, and he fell helplessly, unconscious.
* * *
Late at night on Rowosari Street, the mysterious squad in charge of handling supernatural beings was still there. Five more people dressed in scrub suits and gas masks approached the scene to tidy up the victims. They looked like suspicious medical personnel. The team outside the military secured the victims so that they wouldn't be lying on the road.
"Mission accomplished, let's return to base," their leader said, putting on his hat again. With the situation deemed safe, they became a little more relaxed now.
"Nimi, you're going home alone again, right? I'm too lazy to go home," one of them interjected.
This man had been carrying a strange and suspicious pair of gloves since earlier. The girl of the squad suddenly blushed and became annoyed because he called her name out of nowhere. Moreover, he said it as if he wanted to sleep at her house.
"Call me by my stupid code name! Besides, what's going on?"
"Just relax, we're done now."
"Don't be like that, Panji! We cannot let our guard down because we're still on duty. Anyway, our identities are secret," their leader scolded sternly.
Hearing such a response only made these two people look at each other in confusion.
"Uh... didn't Lisa just call my name?"
"Huh?"
These three people looked at each other in silence, puzzled. The woman called "Lisa" suddenly slapped her forehead, feeling stupid. Her behavior caused laughter between the two members until they almost burst out laughing.
"Ugh, if Lisa's tired, let's go home now. Where's Udin?"
Their identities were no longer taboo now. Freely and unintentionally, they called each other by their real names without any burden. It may seem careless, but their interactions looked so intimate despite the professionalism required by their job.
There was still one person left who was called "Udin" earlier. If counting their membership, then this Udin was the one who had the duty of carrying a tool called the extractor in the form of a spray paint can. After investigating his whereabouts, it turned out that he was sitting against the wall while playing a game on the gadget he brought.
"Hey! What are you doing!? Let's go home now."
"Just a moment, it's almost time for the game's daily reset. I have to log in here, so I won't miss it."
"Ugh, haven't you logged in all day?"
"No, besides, we haven't rested all day," Udin replied.
Lisa, as the leader, smiled faintly at their conversation. She immediately ordered them to return to the base so that her members could rest.
"Alright, let's go back to base so you guys can relax."
"Okay, Lisa!"
They packed up and tidied up the scene again so as not to leave any traces. The roadside surveillance camera seemed to be of no concern. Instead, the four of them waved to it. Lisa gave a motion code to the surveillance camera, indicating that they were leaving the scene.
Just before they were about to leave, a detector held by Nimi blinked a few times. The blink was soundless. The four of them immediately fell silent and took on a cautious stance. Lisa quickly readied herself and took out her pistol, as it was easy to grab and was in her right pocket.
"Leader!" Panji exclaimed in panic.
"I know..."
From within the night fog, about 20m away, a figure observed them from afar. The figure stood casually on the electric cable, not losing balance. The person was surrounded by black mist and wore a barong mask. Slowly, the figure's presence became visible as the direction of the fog changed.
"Hmm, you're watching us again," Lisa continued.
"Leader, what should we do?"
"Let him be. According to the information from headquarters, he's not dangerous."
"But... the radar signal..."
The person in the barong mask disappeared immediately. The dark aura surrounding the person grew thicker, and then they left without saying a word. It was as if the darkness had swallowed them up. Nimi's detector stopped blinking, and the team members were made calm again by lowering their guard.
"Ugh!! This annoying person."
"He might be...,"
"Hmm, people who are a poison to the world. Those who call themselves espers, shamans, and paranormal," Lisa said, still in a cynical tone.
They cleaned up their equipment, as they had been in a state of alert previously. Lisa quietly observed the pistol she was carrying. She thought something was strange, but in the end, she chose not to care.
"The order from headquarters is to not look for trouble. No matter how strong these people are, a special team is being formed to take care of them," Lisa said.
"I wonder if the esper who was watching us earlier was someone from headquarters?" Udin asked.
"I don't know. The order to not attack people wearing a barong mask is absolute," Lisa replied.
Their debate left Nimi still silent. To be honest, she was afraid when she heard the term "esper" from her leader. She would rather face the most terrifying ghost than meet the so-called espers. Even now, she was still trembling, although the figure on the electric pole had disappeared.
"Okay, let's forget about it and go back to base!"
All of their activities were closely monitored through CCTV cameras. A young man with a relaxed appearance observed the team's movements. He watched both the four military personnel and the five strange medical personnel. He sat behind the many monitors, observing and eavesdropping.
"Once again, the person in the barong mask appeared," he muttered to himself.
He typed something on his computer. The screen that should have displayed the events on the field was empty. He modified the CCTV footage to make it look ordinary, even though something was happening at the location.
"Phew, it's a good thing everything went smoothly," the young man said, relieved. "My job is much easier if they finish up in the field quickly."
* * *
The birds started chirping and singing to each other slowly. It was still quite dark even though the dawn was beginning to break. Julius woke up with a slightly ruined mood. The reason being that he woke up 20 minutes earlier than the alarm he set. Even though he woke up early, being made aware before the time he set felt annoying. Actually, he was still sleepy, but if he slept again, he was afraid he would oversleep. Hearing the birds chirping reminded him that he had to check social media. As usual, to read news and search for trending information.
"Ugh..." he grumbled irritably.
KNOCK KNOCK Knock ~~
Julius was startled by the loud sound of knocking on the front door. The copy-shop was not open yet. He wondered if there was a customer who came in the early morning. But it seemed unlikely that a customer would knock on the door that loudly.
The man became alert and took a kitchen knife to be on guard. Regardless of him still wearing his pajamas, he was ready for whatever would happen.
KNOCK KNOCK~~
"Just a minute."
Slowly, he opened the door. There was someone who looked as cold and disoriented as he was. They looked at each other confusedly as they were still attacked by drowsiness.
"Um... yes? Who are you?"
"Can I have a blanket, please?"
"Huh??"
"I... got drunk last night and... I don't remember what happened. Next thing I knew, I fell asleep in front of this place."
* * * *