The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 142: Eye of the Hurricane

In a wooden hut planted in the middle of a dangerous swamp, sleeping soundly was a difficult feat.

Lu Li forced himself to rest, needing to recover his strength, but true sleep remained elusive. He drifted in a constant state of half-slumber.

The downpour drumming on the roof, the fire crackling in the hearth, the sharp whistle of wind slipping through the cracks, the whisper of turning pages—all the sounds of the waking world wove themselves into Lu Li's dreams, creating something dizzying and surreal.

The wind outside howled, growing stronger until it drowned out every other sound. The little hut itself seemed to tremble under the storm's relentless assault.

In his sleep, Lu Li unconsciously turned toward the warmth of the hearth. The howling wind made him frown, but then a ghostly hand gently touched his forehead, and he settled once more.

Growing bolder, Anna stroked his forehead one more time before returning to the hearth. She picked up Reina's diary again, hoping to find some detail she might have missed, determined to help Lu Li in any way she could.

She soon finished the diary, but it yielded no new or useful information.

Suddenly, a clump of branches and brush scraped violently across the roof, the sound a harsh, unpleasant screech. Anna glanced worriedly at Lu Li. He only frowned in his sleep, not waking.

The fire in the hearth was beginning to die down. Anna reached for a log—she could have simply lifted it with her power, but she enjoyed the illusion of being able to touch things.

A translucent hand extended the log toward the flames. Anna carefully placed it in the hearth and withdrew, casting another glance at Lu Li to be sure she hadn't disturbed him.Outside, the wind and rain intensified. The thin walls of the hut groaned, and the door began to rattle in its frame. Anna braced it with a table.

With growing anxiety, Anna watched the small hut battle the elements.

An uncertain amount of time passed, perhaps several hours. The logs Anna had added to the fire were nearly embers, and the roar of the wind at last began to fade.

The sound of the rain returned, now gradually softening. The storm, it seemed, was finally retreating. Anna even thought she could see a patch of clear sky peeking through the clouds.

Anna floated up, intending to get a look outside, when she suddenly heard a familiar voice.

"How long was I asleep?"

Anna turned to see Lu Li awake, sitting up and watching her with his dark eyes.

"Um... a few hours, I think..." Anna replied, uncertain. She had lost all track of time.

"The wind has died down," Lu Li observed, touching the coat he'd been lying on. It was perfectly dry and felt warm, as if it had been near the fire.

"Yes! I think the storm has passed!" Anna confirmed.

Lu Li pulled on his dry trousers and coat and went to the door. Anna moved the table aside and pushed the door open.

A rush of cool, fresh air, fragrant with the scent of damp earth, swept into the hut. A few stray raindrops landed in Lu Li's hair. He surveyed the desolate space around them, his gaze lingering on the petrified woman, still kneeling, before he looked up at the sky.

Dark clouds still blanketed the sky, but directly above the Shadow Swamp, a rift had opened—the eye of the hurricane, ringed by ragged clouds. Rays of sunlight pierced through the opening, scattering the gloom.

Bathed in sunlight, the gloomy swamp forest looked almost sacred.

It was the second time Lu Li had seen this world's light from behind the clouds, and the sight was just as stunning.

"It's so beautiful..." Anna whispered.

After admiring the view for another moment, Lu Li went back inside the hut and pulled on his still-damp boots.

"Are we leaving?" Anna asked.

"Right away."

Lu Li buttoned his shirt, then picked up his pistol holster and flask.

They were in the eye of the hurricane. It was calm now, but once the eye passed, the storm would return with full force.

Anna watched in silence as Lu Li gathered his things. By the time she blinked, he was ready to go, stepping out of the hut with his cane and lamp in hand.

Lu Li tossed the last of the logs onto the fire. They might need it again on the way back.

If the eye of the storm didn't shift, they could make it to the road. If it did, they could at least fall back to the hut.

Assuming, of course, that Lu Li didn't get lost in the swamp.

Lu Li wasn't about to waste this opportunity. Now that the swamp had taken notice of him, he might not get another chance to venture this deep.

The only thing that troubled him was the storm's suddenness. He hadn't seen any mention of a hurricane in the papers...

Pulling the hut's door shut, Lu Li turned to Anna. "Let's go," he said.

He then headed toward the Bloody Tentacles, which hovered over the forest beneath the open sky.

The figures of Lu Li and Anna vanished into the trees, and silence returned to the clearing. Rays of sun, piercing through the eye of the storm, illuminated the dark, wet earth, lending the place a serene, almost peaceful air.

The petrified body of the hut's mistress, frozen in a prayerful pose, looked like a statue that had stood there since time immemorial.

Suddenly, one of its fingers gave a barely perceptible twitch.

...

The hurricane had wreaked havoc on the swamp.

Fallen branches littered the ground, and stripped trees stood like skeletons—the evidence was everywhere.

If the Mother of the Swamp was indeed the consciousness of the Shadow Swamp, she was likely too preoccupied with the storm's aftermath to notice Lu Li.

The hurricane had created problems for Lu Li, but it had also given him an advantage.

Lu Li raced through the swampy forest. The rain had left more water and mud, but he found himself moving even faster. The fallen branches helped him distinguish solid ground from treacherous mire.

Making use of every moment of the lull, Lu Li rapidly closed the distance to the site of the Bloody Tentacles.

The deeper he pushed into the swamp, the more the landscape changed. The trees grew thicker, and the ground was now carpeted with dark green vines that must have hung from the branches before the storm, forming a canopy over the gloomy forest.

In the distance, the Bloody Tentacles appeared motionless, as if frozen in place.

Their master, it seemed, was hiding somewhere within.

A few minutes later, Lu Li was nearly upon it. He touched the holster at his side, ready for a swift and decisive fight.

But reality, as it so often does, proved to be far stranger than he could have imagined.

Lu Li could now see the destination of the Bloody Tentacles. The ghostly, swaying appendages descended from the edge of the clouds, vanishing into the hollow of an enormous tree about twenty meters away.