The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 278: The Source of the Contagion

The Little Thunder District.

This district was situated next to Elm Street, geographically closer to the heart of Belfast.

Yet, property values here were no higher than on Elm Street. In fact, it was one of the few districts in Belfast with remarkably low prices.

This was due to its distance from both the city center and the Elm Forest.

Elm Street, at least, bordered the forest, a feature that attracted nature enthusiasts.

Alfred Reynold was the owner of house number 158 in the Little Thunder District, which neighbored number 1 on Elm Street.

Alfred suffered from rheumatism, so on rainy days, he enjoyed spending his time by the fireplace, wrapped in a plaid blanket with a cup of hot coffee and a book in hand.

He avoided sitting by the window, however, as the sight and sound of the downpour seemed to intensify the ache in his knees.

On this particular rainy Sunday, Alfred sat by the fire, engrossed in an adventure novel, listening to the accompaniment of crackling logs.

At some point, through the drumming of the rain, he heard a growing rumble that soon drowned out the storm's noise entirely.Rising from his armchair, Alfred set aside the blanket and walked to the window. Through the downpour, he saw dozens of police officers cordoning off the road to Elm Street. Among them were figures in black uniforms, an emblem of an eye on their shoulders that seemed to radiate a chilling aura.

"What's going on...?"

Alfred stood frozen, watching the scene unfold on the adjacent street.

One of the figures in black noticed him at the window, cast a cold glance in his direction, and then turned away.

The police officers who had arrived earlier stood at the edge of Elm Street. Confusion and fear were etched on their faces, yet they held their positions, performing their duty without speaking to their colleagues outside the cordon.

Their task was to explain the situation to the residents of Elm Street, all of whom were potentially contaminated.

All of Elm Street was completely sealed off. No one was allowed in or out.

...

Within the cordon on Elm Street.

After the café owner finished speaking, Plis and Metty exchanged a look, as Lu Li's gaze was directed elsewhere.

"What do you know about the cup she used to bring?" Lu Li asked.

The café owner, his expression shifting as he caught on, replied, "You think the cup is the problem...?"

Lu Li gave a slow nod, his gaze fixed on the man. The café owner muttered something to himself before continuing, "I don't think it can be the cup itself... I mean, not on its own. Miss Petra has been doing this for nearly five years. It couldn't just start now..."

He trailed off, his words hanging in the air.

"We can analyze that later," Plis interjected. "Just tell us more about the cup."

"Alright... It was part of a silver tea service. Miss Petra mentioned she had three sets, but I've only ever seen the one... Perhaps they all look identical. Oh, and it was a mug, specifically..."

"Did she say where she got the cup?"

"Yes, from one of her students."

"Go on."

"Go on... Hmm... I don't think... Wait, I remember now! Since it was inconvenient to carry the cup around, Miss Petra would occasionally leave it with me. That way, she could come in the next day and have her tea immediately. But she treasured that service, so she rarely did so."

"Anything else?" Plis asked.

"That's all I can recall for now..." the café owner replied.

Plis glanced at the pensive Lu Li, waiting patiently for him to finish his line of thought before asking, "What are you thinking?"

"The person and the cup are the most suspicious elements right now. The cup might not be the primary source, but it could have been the vector that contaminated this café. Something—or someone—infected Petra's house first, and the cup, brought here, caused a secondary infection."

"We can investigate both leads at once," Lu Li said. "You contact the outside world and find out who Petra was in contact with recently, paying special attention to the past week."

An Anomaly's consciousness typically awakens after about a week. Assuming the infection of Petra's house followed the same timeline, they needed to rewind a week and find out what happened then.

Metty remained while Plis went to make the call. He returned to Lu Li six minutes later. "The Alliance is already moving," he reported. "Elm Street is completely sealed. Shall we wait here for them to deliver the intel?"

Lu Li nodded.

...

Hot beverages were readily available, but food was another matter. The café's pantry wasn't well-stocked, and it was nearly impossible to procure more supplies in this weather, especially while cut off from the outside world.

Still, aside from the members of the Night's Watch, no one—not even Lu Li—was accustomed to three meals a day, so there were no complaints.

During the agonizing wait, Lu Li stepped away from the window and walked over to a bookshelf in the corner. He selected two volumes: a field guide to the wildlife of the Allen Peninsula, and a popular paranormal romance novel—the story of a human girl who falls in love with a young, aristocratic ghost.

Anna would like this one.

With the books in hand, Lu Li returned to his spot by the window. He set one down in front of himself and placed the other beside him.

As Plis watched and Metty raised a curious eyebrow, the book beside Lu Li began to turn its pages, as if flipped by an unseen hand.

The Alliance moved swiftly. Three hours after Lu Li had arrived on Elm Street, and two hours after Plis made his call, the police at the cordon received a file.

It contained the information Lu Li and Plis needed.

When the file was delivered, Plis passed it to Lu Li out of habit. "You take the first look."

While Anna read her book, Lu Li opened the file, which had been protected from the rain by a canvas sheet.

The pages were a mix of typed and handwritten text, the ink still fresh on some.

In the last week, Petra had interacted with numerous people, speaking with many of them.

The previous Saturday, Petra had been invited to give a lecture at Bolivar University. In a remarkably short time, the Alliance had questioned most of the students and faculty she interacted with, recording their statements. Particular attention was given to three individuals: Hawkins, a twenty-nine-year-old associate professor of mysticism at the university; a student named Nancy Lin; and Dean Robert.

After scanning the information on the latter two, Lu Li focused his attention on the file for Hawkins.

The problem, he suspected, lay with the associate professor.

A week ago, when Petra had visited Bolivar University, her former student, Hawkins, had given her an antique book.

What's more, the young associate professor had vanished right after.