The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 346: The Coming Storm

The Spirit Hunters Association had officially declared the Awful Giant incident closed. The active search was suspended unless the creature reappeared.

From beginning to end, the affair had been shrouded in an atmosphere of hopelessness and helplessness. In the few days of the Awful Giant's existence, humanity's finest exorcists had failed to learn anything about it, much less do anything to stop it.

Lu Li let his gaze linger on the headline for a moment before moving on to the second news item.

[Construction of Doomsday Shelters Begins].

[Due to the critical situation and the potential for it to worsen, the Spirit Hunters Association, the Night's Watch, the Investigators, and the Alliance have officially launched a plan to construct shelters for the preservation of humanity. This is no exaggeration. The Spirit Hunters Association has issued a preliminary forecast: anomalies will appear with increasing frequency over time. Nightmarish events, difficult to combat, will spread across the land like wind-borne spores.]

[The families of exorcists will be given priority placement in the Doomsday Shelters. The four major organizations are sparing no effort to ensure the safety of all exorcists and their loved ones.]

If the first story offered a brief moment of relief, the second brought a heavy sense of foreboding, a premonition of the coming storm.

Outside the corridor window, lightning flashed deep within the thunderclouds, followed by the rumble of thunder. The wind whipped against the glass, driving sheets of rain with it.

Lu Li cast a glance out the window, then turned his attention to the third news item.

The bad news didn't end there. The first two articles had only filled half the page.[Investigator Team Sent to Fallow Lands is Missing].

[Senior Investigator Charles, Valentine, Agent Finsen, and three warships dispatched by the principality of the Lennon Archipelago have all vanished without a trace while investigating the incident in the Fallow Lands.]

[The principality of the Lennon Archipelago has currently suspended exploration of the waters surrounding the Fallow Lands, but we cannot afford to do the same. We must determine what transpired there. A new Investigator team, composed of senior officers, will depart from Port Roadster this Wednesday.]

The disappearance of an entire continent had shrouded everyone in a fog—both literally and figuratively.

Everyone knew something terrible and inexplicable had taken place there, but as the Investigator Weekly stated, it was their duty to find out what had happened in the Fallow Lands.

Making a mental note of the team's departure date, Lu Li turned to the last story on the front page.

[Fog from Deep Ocean Spreads Outward from the Coast].

[We know next to nothing about the situation in the Fallow Lands. Or rather, we have now observed new activity from whatever is responsible for the continent's disappearance.]

[An Investigator team remaining on the periphery of the Fallow Lands has observed the fog that enshrouds the continent begin to spread across the surface of the sea. Fortunately, the fog only appears at nightfall, and its expansion is limited for now—assuming, of course, that it does not accelerate.]

Lu Li turned the page.

The one piece of good news amidst the bad was the lack of sensational headlines on the second page. Even the forecast for Belfast was mundane: no mutagenic rain, no strange fog, only the Unending Night that continued to shroud the world.

"Things are looking grim, aren't they?" Petra, sitting beside him, inquired. He waved a dismissive hand as Lu Li offered him the paper. "I've already read it. The news was so upsetting I couldn't even manage breakfast."

"Let me have a look," Vincent said, stepping toward Lu Li, wreathed in clouds of smoke. The haze parted behind him like a disturbed fog.

Lu Li handed the newspaper to Vincent.

The retired Night's Watchman, a man of about fifty whose back had lost its straightness, scanned the page quickly and snorted. "So, that day is finally approaching."

"What do you mean, 'approaching'?" Petra asked before Lu Li could.

"The meal is on the table; it's time for the guests to eat," Vincent replied, handing the paper back to Lu Li. His words were cryptic, seemingly laced with some hidden meaning, but he refused to elaborate when Petra and Rola pressed him further.

"May I see?" Rola asked with curiosity, accepting the paper from Lu Li with a polite nod. "Thank you."

Rola was a common exorcist. He'd had dealings with both the Investigators and the Night's Watch, so he was aware of certain things, but he wasn't privy to their inner workings. He knew nothing, for instance, of this internal newspaper or the Alliance's peculiar radio broadcasts.

He read slowly, his expression growing graver as he took in the contents. Ten minutes later, he handed the paper back to Lu Li.

"This is truly..."

Rola drew a deep breath, at a loss for how to comment on what he'd just read.

Petra offered, "You can buy this paper from the Traders. But since you aren't an Investigator, it'll cost you a few extra shillings."

Rola nodded. "I know. After we're done with this... this commission, I'll make sure to catch up on my intelligence."

The four men resumed their wait in the corridor. Every so often, the sound of the baroness's footsteps drifted from the room, followed by a rhythmic knock—the prearranged signal that she was safe.

[Bright sunlight streamed onto the writing desk, casting a hallowed glow. Only the absence of birdsong outside the window deprived the clear day of some of its vitality.]

White light cut through the gloom. The long corridor, illuminated by electric lamps, felt slightly chilly. With the rainy season setting in, maids in thick, long-sleeved dresses had brought out heaters to warm the occupants.

[Perhaps it was because the veil obscuring the world had been parted, or perhaps it was the lack of birdsong, but Sara was unusually serene, just like any other young lady of noble birth.]

The indistinct, ancient voice slowly pushed the narrative forward.

Around noon, the housekeeper departed to prepare lunch for the baroness and her guests, and the interrupted story resumed.

[When Sara finished her book, the maid, Eileen, asked, "It is noon, miss. Shall I bring you your lunch?" "Yes, please," Sara replied with her usual gentle smile.]

[Eileen was delighted to see Sara return to her usual cheerful self and happily exited the bedroom. But behind the closed door, not a trace of a smile remained on Sara's face.]

Accompanied by her butler, Lulu, the baroness entered the dining room, where dark food waited on dark plates. She took a plate and returned to her bedroom, and the indistinct, ancient voice began to speak once more.

[Sara didn't eat. When Eileen wasn't looking, she sprinkled a brown powder over the cake. "I'm not very hungry," Sara told the maid. "Give the cake to the other servants."]

["You are too kind, miss," Eileen said with a smile, taking the cake and heading out into the hall. "This is from the miss," she announced proudly, her chin held high. "Hurry and eat it."]

"I've already eaten. I'm full," Lu Li stated.

It was the truth.

Vincent was the second to refuse, followed by Petra.

After a moment's hesitation, Rola was the last to speak. "I'm not very hungry..."

[The servants had only just had their breakfast. "I'm not very hungry..." the servant Rola repeated, but a growl from his stomach gave him away. He scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "Well... if you're all sure you don't want it, I won't refuse." With that, he took a piece of the cake and popped it into his mouth.]