novelraw Chapter 100: Justice by the Rules
Chapter 100: Justice by the Rules
If you were to slap a label on each of Belfast's hundreds of streets, the Rom Quarter would undoubtedly fall into the "filthy and chaotic" category. It lies close to the waterfront, somewhere between the third and fourth rows of buildings. As its name suggests, the quarter is mostly a collection of bars and strip clubs. Thanks to the relatively low prices, it's a frequent haunt for common folk and sailors looking for a bit of entertainment.
And, as is often the case in such places, darkness thrives. Gangs and petty thugs, for instance.
The Rom Quarter, Severed Finger Boarding House.
A knock sounded on the door of apartment 33 on the second floor.
From inside came the sound of hurried footsteps, a click, and the door swung open, releasing a wave of stale alcohol fumes.
"Who are you?"
The burly man who opened the door sized Lu Li up, noted that he didn't look like an ordinary person, and asked the question with a hint of suspicion.
From behind the large man, several thugs, as scrawny as Oliver, emerged and eyed Lu Li from head to toe with menacing expressions.
They did not, of course, see Anna standing behind Lu Li.
Lu Li's gaze swept across the room. A few gas lamps illuminated a squalid space cluttered with junk and garbage, a perfect illustration of the idea that filth attracts filth.The big man shifted his body, blocking Lu Li's view.
After a brief silence, Lu Li mentioned Marcus's organization. "I'm an exorcist from Prosperity. I'm here to find out some details. Are you the clients?"
"Oh. Come on in."
The big man acted as if he understood and stepped aside to clear the way.
Lu Li and Anna entered the apartment, walking past the man. He suddenly shivered, an inexplicable chill running down his spine.
"Damn weird..." he muttered, glancing habitually down the corridor before closing the door.
As he passed the group of thugs, Lu Li wrinkled his nose slightly at the sharp stench of sweat, tobacco, and alcohol. Out of professional courtesy, he said nothing and walked into the relatively spacious living room.
"I don't see a ghost," Anna whispered into Lu Li's ear after making a quick circle around the room.
"The ghost isn't here," Lu Li said, addressing both Anna and the five men. His eyes scanned their faces. "The request mentioned three people."
"I called two more myself. The more people, the less likely the ghost is to show up," the burly man declared, crossing his arms and looking at Lu Li with a defiant air. "What do you mean, the ghost isn't here?"
"Exactly what I said."
"Hey, we hired you to get rid of a ghost, so get on with it!" one of the thugs behind him shouted.
"Is a ghost attacking you right now?" Lu Li asked calmly.
"What?" The thug was taken aback. He exchanged a glance with his companions and shook his head. "No."
Lu Li shifted his gaze to the large man, who appeared to be their leader.
"Any other questions?"
The subtext was clear: if a ghost were here, they wouldn't be standing around so casually.
Though the words were perfectly reasonable, the gang of thugs who ran the Rom Quarter didn't appreciate Lu Li's tone. A young man, moving like an enraged bull, lunged forward and grabbed Lu Li by the collar. He tilted his head up, glaring with malice, and exhaled a cloud of alcohol fumes. "You bastard..."
Two thugs behind him picked up chairs and bottles, ready to join in, but suddenly saw their friend, the one holding Lu Li's collar, fall silent. Then, with trembling hands, he began to straighten the exorcist's clothes.
"S-Sorry!"
He slowly backed away, putting distance between them. As the young man retreated, the others saw Lu Li's hand resting on the holster at his hip.
And in the holster was a flintlock pistol.
The burly man froze, a sudden urge to flee seizing him.
"If you refrain from causing any more trouble, I'll let this go," Lu Li said, his hand still on the holster. "So, shall we continue?"
"We can, we can..." The thug, drenched in a cold sweat, retreated to his companions.
Clatter!
A chair slipped from his hands. Another young man looked at the bottle in his own hand and sheepishly hid it behind his back.
"I don't want any unnecessary complications. So the faster we resolve this, the better for all of us," Lu Li stated, his expression unchanged. He carefully smoothed the wrinkles on his tie and collar. "Tell me what happened."
The large man eyed Lu Li warily and pushed his perpetually brawling subordinates back. "My boys weren't thinking straight, my apologies, Mr. Exorcist. Here's the situation..."
The man briefly recounted the details of their request. A few nights ago, while heading home, they met a pretty street girl. Naturally, guys like them couldn't pass up such an opportunity, but after bringing her back, they realized they were in deep trouble: she was a ghost.
From that night on, the ghost began to haunt them. To solve the problem, they sought help from other gangs, but Marcus, who somehow seemed to know everything that happened in the city, found them. He had contacted them himself, accepted the job, and set the price at 200 shillings.
"When did the ghost last appear?"
"Last night... by the way, it seems this ghost doesn't show up during the day."
"I see. I don't detect it in the apartment now, so I'll return after dark."
"Right, right, we'll be waiting," the large man said, seeing Lu Li to the corridor with visible relief.
Click!
The door slammed shut, and all five thugs exhaled in unison.
But relief was quickly followed by the sting of humiliation.
The thug Lu Li had intimidated hissed, his face twisted with rage, "That bastard... Does he think he's some kind of nobleman?! Boss, he's got a pistol! We can call the police, have them arrest him!"
"Call the police, call the police, call the police!" The enraged leader swung his arm and started slapping his subordinate. "You idiot! Have you forgotten who you are and what we've done?!"
The thug covered his head and scrambled away as the others cowered in fear.
Having vented his anger, the big man, breathing heavily, turned to his men. "Everyone lay low for a while, no more stupid stunts, you hear me? I'm asking you, do you hear me or not?!"
His fury rising again, the leader started chasing his subordinates once more, kicking and beating them as they scattered with cries of pain.
"Yeah, yeah, we get it..."
"Those guys are definitely not good people,"
Anna murmured as they left the building.
"That's normal. Clients aren't always on the side of justice, and their motives aren't always limited to self-defense," Lu Li explained, sharing stories of the adult world with Anna, who had died young, never having left her ivory tower.
"Maybe they killed someone at sea, and that person came back as a ghost to get revenge?" Anna suggested.
"It's highly likely," Lu Li replied.
"Then you..." Anna paused, not understanding why Lu Li would still take the case.
Subtly turning his head to glance over his shoulder, Lu Li answered:
"An exorcist is like a lawyer. He serves the rules, not justice."
"So, these bastards hired you to kill me..."
Just then, a sinister, chilling female voice spoke from right behind Lu Li.