Memory Lost

Xu Nan Bai shows an intrigued expression as he listens attentively.

“Whether it’s the choice of victims, the method of the explosion, or the location, we can clearly see this trait. Not only are targeted individuals killed, innocent civilians are also killed. Among them are both young and the elderly; male and female. There are no connections or patterns, showing rather a randomness in choices. He changed his method of explosion and location many times, and this was definitely not a criterion from the criminal organization. It feels as if he was constantly trying new things, and as if he takes this murdering act as a game.”

Xu Nan Bai nods with a focused expression.

Su Mian continues.

“Secondly, his age from back then was likely to be around 20 to 30 years-old. He was already an adult and not too young. If he was too young, it would have been hard for him to grasp the intricate knowledge of creating the explosives and he would not have the strength to complete his crimes. He wouldn’t have been too old either because if he was an older person, he would have completed many crimes and even a psychopath would not be so enthusiastic about trying new things. His process of killing would have been more stable and he would have chosen a method that he was most comfortable with——yet he executed his crimes like a new amateur adventurer. Therefore, he should be around 25 to 35 years-old right now.

Thirdly, although he behaves like a child, he is merciless and has no sympathy. He left the many victims out in the open surrounded by bystanders and then let them explode and die. This was a way of toying with the victims as well as mocking the public and the police. To go a step further, this is a child’s act of revenge.

Therefore, he, himself, must have experienced a certain kind of betrayal or psychological harm.

Fourthly, since he possesses this kind of mind while committing all these murders, I’m going to guess that he must have hidden among the crowd and watched the victims feel helpless and embarrassed, and then felt satisfied inside. And since we haven’t been able to catch him all this time, this proves that he hides very well. His looks didn’t attract others, and he might have disguised himself as a college student or an ordinary passerby. He kept his emotions under control and was very observant.

Lastly, I believe that him back then and T have the same characteristics: young, don’t have a fixed personality, and have intense emotions inside. And at the same time, his loyalty to the organization might also be the highest……”

Speaking about all this, Su Mian smiles, “Who knows, maybe when we begin our mission to capture them, he would be the first to jump out and challenge the Black Shield Team.” fre𝙚𝓌𝒆𝚋noѵel.c𝚘m

Xu Nian Bai’s smile on his face grows bigger as he nods, “Your analysis is very good. But isn’t there one thing that you missed?”

Su Mian’s interest sparks. She puts the whiteboard marker down and walks to him with her hands behind her back looking at him, “What is it, what is it?”

The corners of Xu Nan Bai’s mouth move upward. He lifts his cup up, sips his tea and answers, “Most of the time, criminal psychology finds evidence through the criminal’s ‘already’ existing actions and behaviors. But sometimes, you can also find evidence from actions and behaviors that they ‘don’t have.’”

Su Mian is a bit stunned. She has really never heard of this before.

Xu Nan Bai puts down his cup and continues, “With this many explosion cases and this many victims, there is one similarity——there were no children injured. If it was just once or

or twice, we could say that it was a coincidence, but with this many times, it can only be said that this serial killer was deliberately avoiding it. He did not want to kill any children.”

Su Mian’s jaw drops. She bends down to hold the mouse and flips through the documents again quickly——it really is the case!

“Therefore……” she lifts her head and looks directly at Xu Nan Bai, “this serial killer still has one last bit of sympathy, but only towards children.”

Xu Nan Bai nods.

Su Mian absorbs his words into her mind slowly. She has really learned a new technique from him, so she can’t help but show admiration. She cups one hand with the other towards him like a martial artist, “Senior, I’ve learned a lot from you! You have my utmost admiration.”

Xu Nan Bai smiles and jokes with her as well, “There’s no need for admiration. Just go pour me a cup of water.”

Su Mian chuckles while taking the cup from him and really helps him pour water from the water dispenser on the side.

_____

“The second killer used poison. He must have been Xin Jia’s partner,” Xu Nan Bai drinks a bit of water and says calmly.

Su Mian leans against the desk with him and nods. She has only skimmed through the documents regarding the second killer and hasn’t had time to draw out a profile. She might as well listen to Xu Nan Bai.

In contrast to her long-winded summary, his conclusion is much more concise, “Firstly, among the serial killers, he killed the least people and they were all targeted individuals. He did not kill the innocent——From reading the documents, only he and T were able to do this. Only after April 20 did he start to kill normal civilians out of revenge. This shows that he had great self-control and similar to T, his morals may

morals may not have been completely destroyed.”

Su Mian nods.

“Secondly, although he did not kill many people, his killing method was the most twisted,” Xu Nan Bai points to the photos on the computer, “Look, these are all the dead bodies that were killed by him. Due to the use of potassium cyanide and other poisons, the victims’ looked rather healthy when they were found. Not only that, the police also found out that the ironing tools and makeup at the scene had been used by someone before——he ironed the victims’ clothes before putting it on them and he also combed their hair neatly. And he even put makeup on the last few male and female victims he killed.”

Su Mian shifts her gaze to where his finger is pointing. It is really the case. The male and female victims have makeup on but it isn’t to the point of having too much on. On the other hand, they look even more lively as if they are actors and actresses in the spotlight. This makes her heart feel disgusted.

She then hears Xu Nan Bai continue, “In the whole process of murdering as well as dressing up and putting makeup on the victims’ bodies, it shows his taste and likes. Therefore, I believe his age back then was between 25 to 35 years-old and had a stable job and social circle.

He possesses strict self-control and twistedness at the same time, so in his normal life, he must be rather dignified and serious but also very repressed.”

_____

There is the least amount of information on the third killer and he’s also the most mysterious.

There is no fancy killing method; the killer simply extracts the victims’ hearts from their bodies. According to the autopsy reports, the victims had their hearts extracted while they were still alive. It makes Su Mian feel sick inside. ｆ𝓇𝘦ℯ𝙬𝑒𝐛n𝐨νe𝙡.c𝑜𝗺

“The killer’s murder method was neat and was neat and professional, clearly someone who has been professionally trained before,” Xu Nan Bai says, “A professional doctor, military personnel, police officer……or someone who has at least gone through a period of training and learning.”

Su Mian nods and says looking at the information on the computer, “Besides targeted individuals, all the other victims he killed were pretty women, which clearly shows his preference. He took away their hearts as souvenirs, signifying a kind of ravening. As to why he wanted to raven a woman’s heart and what it meant, we still don’t know yet.”

“And the hearts…..” Xu Nan Bai continues from where she leaves off, “have either been mounted as trophies or……eaten.”

Su Mian becomes silent. Looking at the history of crimes, sometimes, the simpler a criminal’s methods are, the crueler and twisted he is. He didn’t leave behind any traces of evidence at the scene; he only came for the heart. It is possible that he ate it.

Due to the limited information on the case back then, they can only come up with a preliminary profile. Su Mian says, “Senior, I’ll record our findings from just now into the computer then. If we find anything new later, we can continue.”

“Okay, I’ll go read some more documents,” he returns to his seat.

Su Mian enters their conclusions into the computer very quickly. She’s a bit exhausted nonetheless, so she leans back, closes and reopens her eyes. Immediately, a phrase on the screen catches her eyes, causes her to fall into a daze.

Back then, before the police shot one of the criminals dead, the criminal said one thing. Unlike the other outside gang members, according to what is recorded in the documents, this criminal was responsible for a series of suffocating cases, and he was also a real serial killer.

He said, my life had long been over. It was later that it truly started to ignite.