The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 197: The Library Ghost

All of that was still a long way off for Lu Li; he wasn't even a full-fledged investigator yet.

However, the grading system for mission difficulty intrigued Lu Li. The qualification trial was rated at only three-quarters the difficulty of a simple mission, and the Inquirer's trial had taken place in the Shadow Swamp... Did that mean the Shadow Swamp itself didn't even qualify as a simple-level threat?

Or perhaps the rating applied only to the mission, not the Shadow Swamp as a whole?

The corridor was surprisingly long. Tristan had been talking for several minutes before the view ahead finally changed.

A stone staircase appeared at the end of the passage, leading upward.

Lamplight spilled down from above. Lu Li followed Tristan to the top of the stairs, where an old wooden door stood before them, completely at odds with the overall style of the investigators' headquarters.

Tristan pushed the door open, revealing rows of towering bookshelves packed with books.

Lu Li stepped out of the underground passage after Tristan, who pulled the door shut behind them.

Lu Li glanced back. The door, the same color as its surroundings, had closed so snugly that it blended into the wall, making it nearly impossible to spot.

It was a hidden passage.Tristan led Lu Li through the aisles of bookshelves and into the main library hall.

Subdued light filtered through stained-glass windows, illuminating the quiet library. Rows of towering bookshelves, their highest shelves accessible only by ladder, stretched toward the far side of the hall. The air smelled faintly of printer's ink.

A few figures stood before the shelves, silently hunched over their books.

"Are we above ground?"

The library had many tall windows to let in light, with sills so high you had to stand on tiptoe just to reach them.

"The underground rooms are too damp for storing books," Tristan explained, walking toward a counter in the corner of the library. "And we're not in the investigators' headquarters anymore."

"See those people?" Tristan gestured. "Some are investigators, others are from the Night's Watch or are exorcists working for the government. This is the True Library of Belfast, jointly established by the three major organizations. Since the Night Calamity, it's the most comprehensive library in the entire region."

"So I can come here directly next time?"

"Yes, that's right... But you could always stop by the headquarters first... and then come here."

It was hard to imagine a giant like Tristan speaking so timidly. He was practically begging Lu Li to visit him at the headquarters more often.

"Alright," Lu Li nodded.

He could drop by the headquarters for some milk, and then come here.

"But if you want to leave, you can exit directly from here." Tristan quickened his pace and headed for the counter. Waving to the man behind it as if greeting an old friend, he called out, "Reys, could you show our young friend Lu Li the way out?"

Behind the counter stood an elderly man in a gray robe, wearing glasses with lenses as thick as bottle bottoms.

"A new face? No problem." Reys offered Lu Li a friendly smile and a nod. "Welcome to the True Library."

"If you have any questions about the books, just ask Reys," Tristan said, turning back to Lu Li. "He knows every volume in this place."

Lu Li nodded. Tristan gave Reys a final wave. "I'm heading out. Let me know the next time any new training manuals come in."

"Will do."

Reys squinted over the top of his glasses, watching as Tristan headed to a bookshelf in the corner and vanished. Then he turned to Lu Li. "Hello, young man."

"Hello."

A librarian's work brought him into contact with all sorts of people, so Lu Li's composure didn't surprise him. "You may read any book you like here, but please remain quiet and be careful not to damage these valuable editions. Also, due to certain issues that have arisen since the Night Calamity, books cannot be checked out. My apologies for the inconvenience."

The prohibition against checking out books wasn't because of the Night Calamity itself, but its aftermath. As Lu Li filed this information away, Reys added with a smile, "Feel free to look around, or you can tell me what genre you're interested in."

"Books on geography and history."

"Geography and history... Just as I thought." Reys lowered his head in thought for a moment, then pointed toward several rows of shelves near the center of the hall. "The seventh, eighth, and ninth rows. That's where you'll find most of our geography and history collection. You should find what you're looking for there."

Lu Li made his way to the shelves Reys had indicated, moving past a rolling ladder to gaze at the rows of books packed tightly together. These volumes held the condensed history of this world.

History of the Klotian War, The Historical Records of the Bensenkforst Principality.

Lu Li's gaze drifted across the spines. Judging by the titles alone, none of them sparked any desire to be read.

Lu Li didn't even know where Klotia or the Bensenkforst Principality were.

These books were too specific. Lu Li needed something broader, more large-scale—a history of the continent, perhaps, or a map of the world.

When it came to geography and history, Lu Li's knowledge was less than that of a child.

A History of the Hodgkin United Empire, The History of the Ocean.

Once again, they were words Lu Li recognized but whose meaning he couldn't grasp.

He continued down the aisle, eventually finding himself near the middle of the row. Just as he took another step, a translucent skirt shimmered into view directly in his path.

"Are you looking for a particular book?"

Lu Li pulled his gaze from the shelves and looked at the transparent figure before him.

It was a ghostly, almost invisible silhouette in a long dress of some indeterminate color. Her face was in constant flux, shifting like ripples on water into distorted shapes that inspired both nausea and fear.

She gave off no discernible presence, as if nothing were there at all.

"A ghost?" Lu Li asked, surprised. The Spirit Gun was at his hip, but he had no intention of reaching for it.

This was a library established by the three major organizations and the government; Lu Li didn't think an anomaly could simply appear here.

"I am the library ghost," a voice issued from the distorted face. "I help people find the books they need."

"Do you know where I can find a book on the history of the continent, or a world map?" Lu Li asked, then added, "Something suitable for a beginner who hasn't studied history or geography before."

"There is one book that may suit your needs."

The library ghost raised an arm, pointing somewhere behind Lu Li. "Seventh row. The one with the brown cover."

Lu Li looked in the direction she indicated. On a shelf about a foot above his head sat a book with a brown cover.

"Thank you," Lu Li said, turning back, but he found the space empty. Fine dust motes swirled in the air between the shelves.

After a quick glance around, Lu Li set aside his thoughts of the library ghost for the moment and returned to the shelf she had pointed out. He reached up and took down the brown-covered book.

The cover depicted a wooden cabin in a forest, its brown color matching the wood of the structure. The cabin door was open, and a trail of footprints led away from it into the distance.

"Steps of Mankind."

An unusual title for a book.