Chapter 83: Suspicion

Chapter 83: Suspicion

"I'm not sure." Wen Ying placed Beros on his shoulder and took out a mask from his spatial bracelet to put it on.

With a baseball cap, sunglasses, and a mask – the trifecta for anonymity – at a mobile game's exhibition, there would be plenty of people dressed similarly.

Wen Ying tried to hold Beros again, but the latter refused. So he allowed Beros to remain on his shoulder as he opened the bathroom door and stepped out.

Outside was a public restroom with sinks. Turning a corner, Wen Ying found himself in a bustling shopping mall filled with an array of items and people. Everywhere he looked, humans were walking about.

In the Flower Nation, both population and residential density far exceeded that of the Demon Realm. Today being Saturday, the mall was bustling with people, and Wen Ying hadn't seen such a crowd in a long time.

This mall didn't have any bizarre items for sale, which made Wen Ying feel both nostalgic and estranged.

Boros lay on his shoulder, too lazy to even open his eyes.

Wen Ying suppressed the demonic aura emanating from his body, left the mall, and hailed a taxi at the entrance. He instructed the driver to take him to the Huaguan.

"Your dog won't pee in my car, will he?" The driver peered over, somewhat reluctant to let Wen Ying onboard.

Boros, with his eyes shut, abruptly opened them. Wen Ying swiftly scooped him up into his arms and chuckled. "Don't worry, he's in my embrace. Even if he needs to relieve himself, it'll be on me. Look how adorable he is."

The driver took a few glances at the irritable puppy and found it hard to believe that such a tiny creature could have such fierce eyes. He was a little intimidated and declined Wen Ying's request.

Wen Ying sighed as he watched the car drive away, addressing Boros, "Boros, our destination is quite far from here. It would take a lot of time to walk."

Boros turned his head away, ignoring Wen Ying. That human had actually asked if he would urinate in the car?! He was already sparing Wen Ying's face by not spewing flames from his mouth.

Wen Ying waited for a while until the second car arrived. This time, the driver didn't refuse, and Wen Ying boarded the vehicle smoothly.

Half an hour later, they reached their destination, which was packed with people and many wild cosplayers. After Wen Ying got out of the car, Boros nestled on his shoulder and whispered in his ear, "It's so strange that humans dress up as devils."

Wen Ying stroked his head, but Boros dodged away.

There was already a long queue outside Hua Guan, so Wen Ying hurriedly joined the line.

The exhibition was supposed to open at 9 am, but it was almost 10 am now.

Boros remained motionless on Wen Ying's shoulder, and those around them assumed he was a doll. Initially, Wen Ying had planned to put Boros in a bag, but to his surprise, the ticket checker treated Boros as a doll without questioning and allowed Wen Ying to enter.

Wen Ying cast a sidelong glance at Belphegor, who was sleeping with his eyes closed on his shoulder. The fur and cleanliness indeed resembled that of a doll.

Scanning the colorful signboard at the entrance for vendor information, Wen Ying noted down his objectives and locations before embarking on a joyful shopping spree.

His top priority was the limited edition doll available only at this event. Wen Ying desired the cat yokai and nine-tailed fox dolls, along with a Moon Rabbit figurine.

When Belphegor opened his eyes, he saw Wen Ying hugging a fox doll and still in the process of purchasing another one. This new doll was roughly the same size as the three-headed dog doll he had seen in Wen Ying's hands previously, belonging to the same series.

With two dolls in his arms, neither of which were the three-headed dog but a cat and a fox, Belphegor's fur stood on end. He rose from Wen Ying's shoulder, growling angrily in a low whimper that startled those queuing nearby.

"A living dog is on your shoulder? I thought it was a doll!"

"So fierce, will it bite?"

"Sorry, he's just in a bad mood. He won't bite."

Wen Ying hastily placed the two dolls into a large bag and gently lifted Belphegor down with both hands, walking towards a less crowded area.

In a more secluded spot, Wen Ying softly asked, "What's wrong with you? Why did you suddenly get angry?"

Boros stared at the bag on Wen Ying's wrist, feeling that his territory had been violated. He said angrily, "You're asking me?"

This guy originally hugged his doll!

It took Wen Ying a moment to realize that Boros was upset about the bag in his hand. Suddenly, he understood why Boros was angry. He couldn't help but laugh and cry, "Are you angry because of this?"

Boros didn't speak, pouting. His current expression made it easier to see his emotions than when he was in human form.

"It's my hobby to collect these," Wen Ying tried to reason with Boros, "I bought your doll too because it's so cute, so I wanted to buy it."

Boros still gave Wen Ying a cold look.

Wen Ying's heart was bleeding, "Shall I not buy any more then? Just these two."

Boros turned his head away.

This meant that he didn't want any of them to stay. Wen Ying's heart ached, he wanted to discuss it further with Boros, but he felt Boros' body suddenly tense up, causing Wen Ying's muscles and nerves to involuntarily tense as well. He whispered, "What's wrong?"

Is there a problem? Wen Ying surveyed the area and felt a hint of curiosity when he noticed a trio not far away. Upon closer inspection, he realized they seemed to be exorcists.

"Exorcists?"

Beros let out a soft hum in response.

Wen Ying gently stroked Beros in his arms, his gaze darkening slightly. They were novice exorcists with such weak magical power that he hadn't recognized them at first glance.

He lowered his eyes in thought. Was it a coincidence or had they discovered Lu Qingyuan's actions?

He carried Beros away from the corner.

Beros had kept his eyes closed during their journey, but now he opened them, scanning their surroundings. He whispered, "Aren't humans unaware of demons? Why do they seem to know them so well here?"

"They don't know demons in reality," Wen Ying explained, "But in this 2D mobile game world..."

"No," Beros interrupted confidently, "I'm talking about the demons from the Demon Realm. Those demons, those races, exist in the Demon Realm as well."

"Humans are familiar with demons like succubi and fallen angels," Wen Ying continued. "Before I went to the Demon Realm, I already knew the names of many demon races living in human society. In human perception, succubi, mermaids, and such demons are mythical creatures, meaning they don't exist in reality."

Wen Ying's pace suddenly slowed down. He had just seen an exorcist and now he was encountering a demon – not an advanced one, but a mid-level demon from the human realm.

It disguised itself as a human girl, dressed up like a demon from a cosplay, engaging in conversation with a few other girls using homemade accessories.

"Makes me wonder if there were genuine ones mixed in during previous conventions," Wen Ying muttered to himself. Among a sea of fakes, there might be one real one.

Beros took one glance and lost interest.

Wen Ying pondered whether he should approach and deal with that mid-level demon. Thanks to the creepy-looking low-level demon, he found all low and mid-level demons from the human realm unpleasant.

As he approached, he noticed two people engaging the demon in conversation before forcibly taking it away in a manner acceptable to the surrounding humans.

"So that's how the exorcists catch those demons," Wen Ying realized. Such places were likely where genuine demons would blend in, using sweet words to deceive humans before draining their life force.

Thankfully, Lu Qingyuan hadn't summoned him yet.

Beros still felt something was off about this place. The demon mobile game that Wen Ying mentioned – he had a feeling that the game developers possessed knowledge of actual demons. Many of the species depicted in the game matched reality.

Furthermore, this guy seemed incredibly familiar with the human realm, as if it were his home.

Wen Ying originally intended to purchase more dolls, but with Boreas watching him intently, he found it impossible to do so. He had planned on sneaking a purchase and tossing it into his spatial bracelet when Boreos wasn't looking. However, after the incident earlier, Boreos never closed his eyes again.

Wen Ying had no choice but to settle for other items like badges or inflatable decorations. To his surprise, as soon as Boreos saw Wen Ying picking up something belonging to another demon, he angrily nipped at his hair.

"Ouch... ouch ouch, I won't buy it if you don't want me to." Wen Ying hastily put down the item, tilting his head towards Boreos to ease the pressure on his hair.

The stall owner watched in astonishment as Wen Ying and the dog on his shoulder.

Wen Ying offered an apologetic smile to the vendor before reluctantly leaving, his heart aching and filled with reluctance at every step.

In the end, he only managed to buy two dolls. Standing in a quiet corner, Wen Ying observed the bustling crowd before him. Many held numerous bags, their spoils abundant, while he stood there alone, holding just two dolls.

"Sigh... Boreos, what is the problem here?" Wen Ying let out a deep sigh, asking wearily.

Boreos had finally cheered up since arriving in the human realm. Seeing Wen Ying unhappy made him happy. Bringing him to the human realm and wanting to buy things from other demons? Ha.

One couldn't pet the dog and shop simultaneously. Wen Ying suddenly regretted bringing Boreos to the human world.

There were indeed merchandise related to three-headed dogs, but Wen Ying already had the real thing, so he wasn't much interested in the peripherals.

In the meantime, Wen Ying had already spotted two mid-level demons and several waves of exorcist patrol teams passing by. This was indeed a high-priority area for the exorcists' surveillance.

Wen Ying deliberately chose a less crowded spot, disguising himself as someone with social anxiety to avoid contact with others.

He couldn't buy any souvenirs, but he could wait for the upcoming concert, where several renowned cosplayers were expected to appear.

Sitting in the corner, he waited idly. Since he hadn't brought his human world phone and dared not take out his demonic world phone, time seemed to stand still without it.

Feeling drowsy, his mind wandered. The demon mobile game had launched two years ago and became an instant hit within a month. Afterward, many cosplayers from the cosplay community began to dress up as characters from the game, including three well-known gods who would be attending the event today.

One of them was particularly famous for his portrayal of Cerberus. Before entering the demonic realm, Wen Ying had been eagerly looking forward to seeing him at the memorial exhibition. Absentmindedly, he stroked Beros's fur, only to have his hand bitten by the three-headed dog.

"I haven't even bought anything yet, so stop being jealous," Wen Ying sighed, pulling his hand out of Beros's mouth. "Why are you so possessive?"

Beros lifted his chin. "Don't flatter yourself. I just don't want you to get what you wish for."

"Sure, sure."

"What's with your tone?"

"You don't sound jealous at all…" Wen Ying was chatting with Beros when he suddenly noticed some commotion ahead. He squinted to see better and, upon recognizing the figure, his eyes widened in excitement.

It was none other than the Hell Orange, the demon dog he had been longing to see in the COSplay of the Three-Headed Hound from Hell!

Feeling Wen Ying's excitement, Beros turned his head slowly, failing to understand what could be so thrilling about the crowd.

Wen Ying had taken a few steps forward when his enthusiasm began to wane, replaced by a more serious expression.

That person, Hell Orange, seemed to be an Exorcist.

Wen Ying's mind was suddenly flooded with Beros' earlier words, how the demons in the mobile game resembled those from the real Realm of Devils.

Once suspicion took root, it was hard to shake off. Images of various scenes from the game over the past two years flashed through Wen Ying's mind, leaving him uncertain and uneasy.

Beros nudged Wen Ying with his head, "What's wrong?"