novelraw Chapter 510: A New Home
Chapter 510: A New Home
Belfast, shrouded in the strange fog, was not lifeless.
At least, not on the main street.
Citizens eager to leave the city, carrying oil lamps and torches, escorted their families and their belongings. They streamed from various side streets onto the main road, forming a long, winding chain of lights that stretched toward the peak of Sugard Mountain.
After everyone had witnessed the three monstrous figures of flesh and blood rising from the sea and spewing fog, the most fearful had already fled the city. And when night fell with no good news coming from the radio, even more alarmed townsfolk packed their belongings and set out, hoping to escape the danger.
They feared a repeat of the Zenster tragedy.
Among the crowd, a strange group stood out: a tall man in a black coat, followed by seven children holding hands.
The exorcists guarding the citizens noticed this unusual procession, but after seeing the badge on the man's chest, they simply nodded to him.
After walking with the crowd for about fifteen minutes, the man and the children turned onto a deserted side street.
As they moved farther from the crowd, the already fragile sense of security slowly dissipated. The children huddled closer together, trailing behind Lu Li.
The youngest girl, whose hand was held by Vir, clutched her favorite teddy bear in her other. Staring at Lu Li's back, she suddenly quickened her pace and held out her arm, trying to give the bear to Lu Li.Vir gently pulled her back and patted her on the head, silently urging her to behave.
They had brought only the bare essentials, leaving everything else behind in their "camp," including canned food and some dried fish. Lu Li promised he would return for it all later.
"Is it much farther? My feet hurt," the little girl said, hopping on one foot.
"Let me carry you," Vir sighed, scooping the girl into her arms. The little one giggled, plucked the glasses from Vir's nose, and tucked them into her pocket.
"We'll move too slowly like this. Should I carry them?"
Anna inquired, addressing Lu Li.
"They're too young; it's not wise to expose them to that," Lu Li answered. "A child's mind is more susceptible to the influence of the In-Between."
After a moment's thought, he added, "There's a police station a little farther on, near Love Street. We can ask them for a wagon."
"Alright."
Anna fell silent.
The light spilling from the windows of houses, the few pedestrians hurrying by with their families and belongings—all of it helped to calm the children a little.
The sound of footsteps that had accompanied them for several minutes suddenly ceased as Lu Li came to a halt.
"Something's ahead..."
Lu Li frowned, peering into the gray gloom ahead. A faint, sinister aura hung in the air.
Without hesitation, Lu Li walked up the steps of the nearest house and knocked on the door.
"Anna," he said quietly.
A click sounded.
From behind the door came the sound of a lock being undone.
Pushing down on the handle, Lu Li opened the door and turned to the children. "There's something dangerous ahead," he told them. "Get inside."
"Alright," Vir answered promptly, and taking the younger children by their hands, she filed past Lu Li into the house.
Once all the children were inside, Lu Li shut the door and slid the bolt across, then moved to the peephole to look out at the street.
Footsteps sounded from above.
Footsteps sounded from upstairs, and then a surprised voice called out, "Who are you?"
The owner of the house descended the stairs, gripping a wooden stick. His face, however, held only surprise, not fear.
It was unlikely that thieves or monsters would break into a house with children.
"Shh..."
Vir and Mela both pressed their fingers to their lips, pointing at the door. "There's a monster out there."
The little girl in Vir's arms tried to shush as well, but Vir gently lowered her hand.
A worried look crossed the man's face. He wondered if the children themselves had attracted the monster, but seeing that the man at the door didn't turn, he held his tongue and looked anxiously toward the front of the house.
The sinister presence on the street drew nearer, and soon a figure came into view through the peephole. It was a hazy silhouette, nothing more than the fog-distorted outline of a person moving slowly down the street.
The children in the entryway and the homeowner on the stairs held their breath in unison. The drawn curtains kept them from seeing outside, but the ominous crunching of joints from the street grew steadily louder.
A minute later, the chilling sound began to fade into the distance.
After waiting another couple of minutes, Lu Li straightened up and stepped away from the peephole.
"What... was that?" the homeowner asked in a hoarse whisper, finally finding the courage to speak.
"Something from the fog," Lu Li said, glancing at the man. He unbolted the door and gestured for the children to exit. "Thank you for the shelter. It's time for us to leave."
"Y-you're welcome..."
The man stammered, his eyes following Lu Li and the children.
The footsteps outside faded away. For some reason, the man felt an inexplicable pang of anxiety, as if he were the one leaving the warmth of a hearth to venture into the cold darkness.
He almost called out to them.
"Dear, what happened?" his wife's voice asked from behind him. He turned to see her standing there, one hand on her rounded belly, her face etched with concern.
"It's nothing. Go back to our room and stay there," the man said softly, trying to push down the strange feeling of loss as he followed her back to the bedroom.
...
Fifteen minutes later, Lu Li reached Love Street.
He borrowed a wagon from the police station, settled the children inside, and headed swiftly for the warehouse on Elm Street.
After settling the little girl next to Mela, Vir climbed out of the wagon bed to sit beside Lu Li on the driver's bench. Looking up at him, she asked, "Mr. Lu Li, what kind of creature was that in the fog?"
"I don't know."
"Even you don't know?" Vir asked, surprised. She had already learned who Lu Li was back at the police station.
"Most people who see creatures like that don't survive to talk about it," Lu Li decided to explain a bit more to the clever girl. "And even just knowing they exist can be dangerous."
"Dangerous?"
Vir tilted her head, not understanding.
"Knowledge has a price," Lu Li replied.
Otherwise, the spirit exterminators would have long since published information on every anomaly, and there would be no need to destroy books or maintain a distance from ordinary people.
Humans were so fragile that even the knowledge of such things could be dangerous.
"Mr. Lu Li, this world... it isn't ours anymore, is it?" Vir asked, her young voice sounding unnaturally solemn.
After a brief silence, Lu Li answered, "Perhaps it never was."
...
The wagon was much faster than walking, giving them ample time to detour around any dangerous spots.
Shortly before seven in the evening, the wagon rolled into the Elm Street area. It passed the charred ruins of the houses destroyed during the man-eating house incident before pulling up to a warehouse at the far end of the street.
"We're here."