The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 237: The Horn that Pierces the Night Sky

From somewhere deep within, a faint sound echoed, its distance impossible to gauge, as if calling out to Lu Li.

Hearing the call, Lu Li was roused from his sleep. A black crow was perched before his eyes.

It sat at the entrance of the shelter, its talons gripping the deck chair. Its black eyes reflected the image of the waking Lu Li. The crow opened its beak and let out a cry.

“Caw!” The crow’s sharp, hoarse cry echoed through the small shelter, loud enough to wake any sleeper.

Perhaps it was this crow that had called to Lu Li.

A Black Crow...

Lu Li’s gaze fell to the bird’s feet. A small message container was attached to its right leg.

Lu Li recalled Friday’s words about a messenger. Could this be the one?

Lu Li reached out to the crow. It didn’t shy away, calmly preening the ruffled feathers under its wing as it allowed him to open the container and remove a rolled-up piece of paper.

Lu Li unrolled the small, palm-sized sheet of thin, yellowed parchment. It was covered in various lines—a map of the surrounding sea.On the map, Lu Li identified several islands and reefs, including the Atoll Reef—the hurricane’s point of origin—and the Isle of Gaze.

Understanding the map’s purpose, Lu Li took a thin piece of charcoal from the fire and circled the Isle of Gaze, their current location. He gently blew away the excess ash before rolling the parchment back up and returning it to the container.

After a moment’s thought, Lu Li picked up a can of food, deciding to offer a treat to the crow for its long journey.

Assuming, of course, that it would eat it.

“Caw!” The crow’s black eyes mirrored Lu Li’s movement. It cawed again, spread its wings, and flew out of the shelter.

Lu Li set the can back down and followed the crow outside. He watched it soar into the air and fly toward the trees on the far side of the cliff.

Over there lay the decaying carcass of a monkey next to a small pool of water.

It seemed there was no need to worry about the bird. It had clearly surveyed the entire island before finding him.

Help from the Investigators should be arriving soon, Lu Li thought.

He just wondered if Friday was aware.

Lu Li glanced up toward the top of the cliff. The black shadow was gone. If it was still pursuing Friday, it had likely reached the summit by now.

The bright patch of light behind the clouds, which had been in the east that morning, had now shifted to the west, heralding the approaching sunset.

Lu Li refilled his water jug and took the path behind the cliff, climbing to the top.

This time, he didn’t sense the unsettling presence he had felt earlier. As he rounded the hut, he saw the black shadow.

It was pressed flat against the wall by the window, its palms flat against the frame as it peered inside.

The sight was deeply unsettling.

Thud!

With a dull sound, the door to the hut burst open. Lu Li took half a step back, his hand going to his Spirit Gun.

Friday appeared in the doorway. Paying no mind to the black shadow on the wall, she stepped out of the hut, walked right past it, and greeted Lu Li with her usual nonchalance.

“Good afternoon.”

...

Sizzle...

Lu Li flipped the meat sizzling on the hot stones, and the aroma of grilled fish filled the air.

He set aside the stick he was using and scraped some sea salt from a hollow in a nearby rock with a stone shard, sprinkling it over the half-cooked fish.

Night enveloped the island in impenetrable darkness, and a cold sea wind began to blow.

The shelter, by contrast, was bright and warm. The cozy hollow seemed to invite a peaceful sleep.

Smoke and the crackling of the fire rose from the shelter, dissipating into the night air.

The catch had been good today. The meat left as bait in the tide pool had attracted a school of fish at high tide. There must have been more than twenty of them at a glance. Lu Li had only taken the four largest, each about the size of his hand, gutting and rinsing them on the shore before bringing them back to the shelter.

He tossed the entrails back into the water to serve as bait for next time.

This should be enough for his and Friday’s dinner. But if Friday finished her two fish and was still hungry, she’d have to go down to the tide pool herself.

Nearly half an hour later, the fish was almost done. To be safe, Lu Li let it cook until it was nearly crisp before skewering one on a branch and offering it to Friday.

Friday took the fish. Her thin, bandaged fingers gripped the branch on either side as she lifted it to the shadows beneath her hood. When she lowered it again, a large bite was missing from the fish, revealing the white meat inside.

She accepted the food just as Lu Li accepted her—without words, but with a simple reciprocity of action.

Lu Li moved the other three cooked fish away from the direct heat. He skewered one for himself, held the branch on both sides just as Friday had, took a bite, and began to chew slowly, grinding even the small bones to bits.

Friday ate much faster than Lu Li. She seemed oblivious to the bones, devouring one piece after another until nothing was left but the skeleton.

Lu Li, who by then had only finished half of his own fish, paused and held out another one to her. Friday took it and devoured it just as quickly as the first.

Lu Li didn’t offer the third fish, and Friday didn’t ask.

A few minutes later, finished with his meal, Lu Li tossed the branches with the leftover fish skeletons and heads into the fire. He picked up the still-warm jug of water, blew across the opening, and took a small sip.

The only sounds in the shelter were the crackle of the fire and soft, steady breathing.

The canned food lay untouched in the corner.

After a while, Lu Li asked, “When will the help from the Investigators arrive?”

“Soon.”

“What does ‘soon’ mean?”

The word was too vague, so Friday gave him a precise time. “Two hours and twenty-five minutes.”

“I hope so.”

“I’m going to sleep. Wake me when the ship arrives,” Friday said after a moment, leaning back against the stone wall. Her breathing grew steady.

Lu Li considered her words for a few seconds, then poured the dregs of water and sand from his jug onto the edge of the fire.

He didn’t trust Friday unconditionally, but he didn’t entirely doubt her, either. In any case, he began to keep track of the time in his head.

An hour passed, then a second...

Two hours later, Friday suddenly lifted her head and whispered, “We can go now.”

Lu Li looked toward the shelter’s entrance. The sand wall blocked most of his view, but around its edge, he could see a brilliant beam of light piercing the darkness of the night.

The piercing sound of a horn echoed across the island.

Help had arrived.

Pushing the deck chair aside, Lu Li and Friday stepped out of the shelter and gazed out at the sea.

In the dark water, several dozen meters from the shore, a steamship stood at anchor. Its searchlight swept across the beach.

“Do you want to complete your mission and become a full-fledged Investigator?” Friday asked suddenly.

Despite seeing rescue at hand, Lu Li remained composed. “What do you mean?”

“If we don’t tell anyone I helped you, no one will ever know,” Friday said, stepping back into the shelter to hide from the searchlight as it swept over their part of the beach.

Lu Li could only see the edge of her black cloak. Her voice drifted out from the shadows. “Remember, you never met me. Don’t worry about me. I’ll find my own way onto the ship.”

She paused, then added, “And welcome to the ranks of the Investigators.”