The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 171: Simulated Event 5

“Your pockets are full of stones, and they’re about to come in handy. As you walk, you toss a stone behind you every few paces to draw the attention of whatever might be lurking in the darkness...”

Tesla didn’t ask, “What do you do next?” implying it wasn’t yet Lu Li’s turn to act. But Lu Li spoke anyway. “I’m throwing the stones for his sister to hear.”

“If she’s still alive, she’s gone more than ten days without food. In such a weakened state, she could easily miss a single call for help, so the frequency is important.”

“You continue tossing stones at the same interval, feeling your way through the dark ruins with one hand on the right wall. The hand touching the stone has grown numb from the cold, and the stones in your pocket are dwindling. You’ve lost track of how many corners you’ve turned, but thankfully, you’ve kept to the right wall, so you haven’t lost your way. You can turn around and go back at any moment.”

“An endless darkness presses in on you, and even your eyes, now accustomed to the gloom, can see nothing. The absolute blackness and silence begin to stir a sense of panic and anxiety within you. A slight drain on your mental fortitude. You start to think that perhaps you shouldn’t have pressed on. The investigator’s task is nearly complete; you could just turn back now. If you tell the villager his sister is missing, he’ll understand. It’s been nearly half a month, after all. With that in mind, you decide to...”

“Calm down,” Lu Li said.

“Your hand brushes against a jutting stone on the wall, and a sharp pain jolts through you. You snap back to your senses, recalling your recent thoughts—such cowardice is unlike you. You realize that exploring the ruins has caused your Mind Level to drop to a rather dangerous point. You need to hurry.”

“Just as before, you pull a stone from your pocket and toss it behind you. The sound of it clattering and bouncing echoes through the empty corridor. Just as you’re about to move on, a faint voice reaches you from somewhere ahead.”

“‘Brother, is that you?’ It’s a girl’s voice, warped by the echoing walls, making it impossible to pinpoint its source. You flinch and decide to...”

“Remain silent,” Lu Li replied.“The strange voice puts you on high alert, and you don’t answer. ‘Brother?’ the voice calls again, more anxiously this time, but you still can’t determine its location. You wait a little longer, but the voice doesn’t call out again, and silence falls once more. What do you do next?”

“I’ll ask who it is,” said Lu Li.

“You have a feeling it isn’t a monster, so you decide to break the silence. ‘Who’s there?’”

“‘It’s me, brother, it’s Remi...’ The voice is filled with joy. You’re about to...”

“Tell her that her great-grandmother brought the villagers to rescue her,” Lu Li answered.

“‘What are you talking about? Our great-grandmother has been... ugh...’ The voice cuts off abruptly. You’ve confirmed her identity, and now you’re about to...”

“Tell her: ‘I’m not your brother. I met him outside. He made it out of the ruins, but when he tried to lead you out, he found the entrance blocked by monsters again. He couldn’t find a way to get to you until I showed up. He offered to distract the monsters while I came to get you,’” Lu Li said.

“Perhaps out of sympathy, or perhaps because this isn’t the time for long explanations, you don’t tell Remi what really happened to her brother, choosing instead to embellish the story. ‘You really know my brother...?’ the voice asks again, laced with caution and doubt.”

“I’ll say yes and describe her brother’s appearance,” Lu Li stated.

“To convince Remi, you describe what her brother looks like. This confirms you know him, and she starts coughing with excitement. ‘Can you get me out of here...?’”

“I’ll answer, ‘I can, but first I have a question. What have you been eating all these days?’” said Lu Li.

“Your question makes Remi fall silent for a moment. ‘Insects,’ she answers after a few seconds. ‘There were insects in the cracks in the floor. I don’t know what they were, but I was so hungry I just picked them up and ate them... They were still moving, and I was afraid they’d eat through my stomach, so I chewed them up and swallowed... Then I’d lick the drops of water from the walls to wash away the taste... I... please... don’t ask any more...’”

“Remi’s voice is filled with anguish; she’s on the verge of breaking down. She is, after all, just a young girl who has spent more than ten days in these strange ruins. Her Mind Level has likely dropped to a terrifyingly low point.”

“‘Hurry, come here!’ she suddenly cries out, her voice full of alarm, which worries you.”

“I’ll go to her,” said Lu Li.

“You suppress your unease, ask where she is, and follow her voice in the right direction. ‘I can hear your footsteps,’ Remi’s weak voice calls out from just ahead. ‘Help me, I don’t have any strength left.’”

“I’ll carry her on my back, and while I’m doing it, I’ll discreetly feel her body,” Lu Li said.

Old Man Pick, who sat nearby completely absorbed in the story, couldn’t help but raise his hand, as if about to applaud.

Tesla was not so easily stirred. He had already guessed Lu Li’s intentions and continued his narration.

“‘Let me carry you,’ you say, walking over to Remi and helping her up. As you lift her, you inevitably touch her body and, feeling a flicker of doubt, intentionally do so a few more times. The girl’s body is cool but has traces of warmth, and other than being incredibly light, there’s nothing unusual about her. She’s definitely human.”

“You attribute her unusual lightness to the fact that she’s spent over ten days here eating nothing but insects and has probably lost several kilograms.”

“‘Thank you...’ she whispers in your ear, her arms wrapping around your shoulders. ‘Just don’t light a torch,’ she adds, though you already know this.”

“You carry Remi out of the room and start back the way you came, guided by memory. After a few steps, a sense of unease creeps over you. You should have touched the wall by now, but your outstretched hand meets nothing but empty air...”

“You quicken your pace, but even after several more meters, you still can’t find the end of the corridor. You instinctively reach out to the side and finally feel the cold stone of a wall. Your anxiety mounts—it seems you’ve lost your bearings...”

“Remi senses your agitation and asks what’s wrong. You answer...”

“I’ll tell her the truth,” said Lu Li.

“You tell her what happened, and to your surprise, Remi sighs as if she’d been expecting it. ‘We’re too late...’ she says. You ask her anxiously what she means.”

“She explains that the corridors and rooms in the ruins shift their positions at regular intervals. She discovered this on the second day after her brother left, when she finally dared to step out of her room. In fact, the room you just rescued her from was not the one where she and her brother had originally been hiding.”