The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 283: On the Eve of the Rainy Season

Ten minutes later, Lu Li appeared in the tavern’s main hall.

His placid expression suggested that nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.

Only the Spirit Gun holstered at his hip told a different story.

Metty was also in the hall, sitting at a table and eating. Her damp chestnut hair was unbound, her cheeks flushed from a bath.

She had already finished her ablutions, far more quickly than the men.

Lu Li didn't join her. He took a separate table by the wall and waited for his food and medical supplies to be brought out.

Plis was the third to emerge. He exchanged a few quiet words with Metty, then grabbed a mug of beer and sat down across from Lu Li.

"If I'm not mistaken, you don't often encounter incidents like this, but you handled it exceptionally well."

Lu Li wasn't surprised that Plis had noticed. His inexperience had been apparent at every stage of the investigation, but the outstanding results had almost entirely compensated for it.

Soon, the food arrived: hot sausages, bread, meat broth, and a glass of milk that Lu Li had specially requested."Where will you go next?" Lu Li asked.

Just then, the tavern door swung open, and the Night's Watch members Plis had left behind on Elm Street walked in. Plis nodded to them before turning back to Lu Li.

"We'll rest for a bit, then continue our patrol."

Plis didn't elaborate on the topic. Finishing his sentence, he raised his mug.

"To you."

"Thank you," Lu Li replied, raising his glass of milk.

Having washed up, the other members of the Night's Watch began to appear in the hall. Plis quietly excused himself and joined his subordinates.

The expected noise and clamor never materialized. Even off-duty, the members of the Night's Watch tried to remain quiet, speaking in hushed tones.

Lu Li finished his meal, dipping the last piece of bread into the broth, and wiped his fingers and the corners of his mouth with a handkerchief.

An Alliance employee cleared the table and informed Lu Li that if he wanted to leave, he just needed to let them know, and they would prepare a carriage to take him wherever he needed to go.

"Please prepare a carriage for me. I also need a telephone and the contact information for a close friend of Petra's."

"Petra? I'm sorry, who is that?" asked the Alliance employee, who was accustomed to handling only logistical matters.

"The owner of the house at 33 Elm Street. The central figure in this case."

"Very well, please wait a moment."

A few minutes later, the Alliance employee led Lu Li to the tavern owner's room.

The room had been tidied up a bit, but it still looked quite cluttered. The owner himself was nowhere in sight.

The telephone receiver lay on the desk, the line active. The Alliance employee explained, "We've already contacted the person you need. Her name is Luna; she was Petra's childhood friend, and they remained very close."

Lu Li walked to the desk, picked up the receiver, and, wasting no time, asked, "Did Professor Petra have any unusual habits?"

The Alliance had already briefed Luna on the situation, so the elderly voice on the line didn't sound surprised by the question. "Habits? Let me think... What exactly do you mean?"

"For example, did she have a habit of reading without any clothes on?"

The Alliance employee, who hadn't yet left the room, shot Lu Li a surprised look.

Silence hung on the line, followed by a soft sigh.

"...I thought that with her passing, this... It's truly hard to believe, isn't it?"

...

The drumming of rain on the carriage roof completely drowned out the clatter of hooves.

The coachman steered the horses toward the detective agency.

Lu Li peered through the curtain at the street. A strange scene unfolded before his eyes. Many residents were outside despite the downpour. They were standing by the walls of their houses or on the roofs, smearing something or cleaning out gutters.

"What are they doing?" Lu Li asked.

Anna, sitting beside him, explained, "They're preparing for the coming rainy season. People in Khimfast did the same, but not on this scale."

"The rainy season..."

Remembering that the rainy season lasted one to two weeks, Lu Li asked the coachman to stop by a department store and the market.

He needed to stock up on provisions and other necessities to get through it.

It was obvious that the already difficult situation would only worsen with the arrival of the rains.

Just in case, Lu Li decided to prepare more thoroughly.

Therefore, when the carriage stopped at the department store, he not only bought kerosene, waterproof tarps for the walls, and sandbags to block the front door from water, but also hired a stonemason.

Two cubic meters of Deep Sea Stone wasn't enough to line all the walls of the detective agency, but it would suffice for the bedroom, which was better than nothing.

If he could quickly get paid for the "Cries for Help in the Alley" and "Man-Eating House" cases, Lu Li could buy another cubic meter of Deep Sea Stone before the rainy season began.

After arranging for the stonemason to come in the afternoon, Lu Li returned to the carriage with his purchases.

The carriage moved on, leaving tracks on the wet road that vanished almost instantly.

...

Half an hour later, the carriage stopped in front of the apartment building.

As they had seen all along the way, the residents of Sailor Street were also stretching tarps to protect their homes from leaks during the rainy season. The landlord, standing shirtless in front of the building, loudly directed the tenants who were checking the roofs and walls.

Lu Li didn't participate. When he stepped out of the carriage, the landlord broke into a deferential smile and greeted him. He'd learned through the grapevine about Lu Li's profession and what it meant—with him in the building, they didn't have to fear the strange.

Lately, supernatural incidents in Belfast were on the rise. If it weren't for the fact that things were even worse outside the city, many residents would have seriously considered moving.

The only problem was that this exorcist seemed to be planning a move himself.

"Did you buy a tarp? Don't worry, we've already taken care of your wall," the landlord said helpfully, noticing the items in Lu Li's hands.

"Thank you," Lu Li nodded and headed into the detective agency.

The newspaper had already been delivered and was lying on the floor by the door.

Lu Li handed his purchases to Anna and, picking up the newspaper by its edge, placed it on the table.

A strong smell of damp wood hung in the agency. It wasn't pleasant, but it was tolerable.

"Stay here, I'm going to the investigators' headquarters."

Lu Li had already mentioned this to Anna in the carriage. After every case, everything had to be documented and submitted to the investigators' headquarters. This one was no exception.

Since it was impossible to detail everything that had happened on a single sheet of paper, Lu Li had to go to the headquarters in person.

"Come back soon."

"I will."

Remembering something, Lu Li pulled the book he had forgotten at the shop from his pocket and placed it on the table. Then he turned and left.

Anna, who had already forgotten about the book, stared at it for a few seconds before shifting her gaze to the window.

The figure she had grown to rely on climbed into the waiting carriage. The wheels began to turn, and the vehicle slowly disappeared from view.