The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 546: The Only Refuge

Sentry Post.

This town, which once thrived in Belfast’s orbit, ultimately faded away with it.

A deep silence hung over the gray, deserted streets. Belongings, clothes, and newspapers lay scattered across the cold, empty lanes. The shops looked as though they had been ransacked.

Even so, a few residents chose to remain in the town they had called home for decades.

Anna pushed Lu Li's wheelchair down the cobblestone road. Occasionally, a face would appear in a fogged window, its gaze lingering on them for a moment before the curtains were hastily drawn shut.

Passing a clothing shop, Anna stopped. From the floor of the shattered display window, she picked up a black, dust-covered cloak. She draped it over her shoulders, concealing her spectral form.

As they continued on their way, the remaining townsfolk no longer shied away from Anna, and the curtains stayed open.

A few minutes later, they arrived at Gades's detective agency. The second-floor window remained shattered, just as they had left it.

Raising the oil lamp, Lu Li rolled into the main room. The bell on the door chimed, but the sound echoed unanswered. Anna scanned their surroundings and reported to Lu Li, "Gades isn't here."

"Let's check the basement," Lu Li said.They moved toward the basement door, only to find the way blocked by a cave-in of rock and soil that had completely sealed the entrance.

Anna passed through the rubble to take a look, returning a moment later with a faint smile. "Someone's cleared a space around the door on the other side."

Clearly, Gades had retreated into the basement, taking his "treasures" with him.

It was hard to say whether Gades was smart or foolish. In some ways, the basement was indeed safer than the surface—at least the enemies there were not as strange and unpredictable. But Gades had hoarded a pile of now-useless shillings instead of stocking up on food and supplies.

Of course, if Gades were ruthless enough, he would have no shortage of "food" in the basement.

"Let's head to Khimfast," Lu Li decided. There was no longer any reason to remain in Sentry Post.

But just as they turned to leave, a knock sounded at the door.

Knock... knock-knock...

Lu Li gazed at the unlocked wooden door.

"I'll check," Anna whispered. She drifted to the wall and passed straight through it. When she returned, her expression was grim. "It's the Uninvited Guest."

"Wheel me closer," Lu Li said.

Evil spirits rarely appeared during the day, so they were unlucky. Then again, they were also lucky—at least this was a familiar one.

A second knock sounded.

Once at the door, Lu Li reached for the handle and pulled it open.

On the threshold stood a tall figure in a wide-brimmed hat. Water dripped from the hem of its pale gray cloak, forming a puddle at its feet.

The figure's face was lost in shadow, impossible to make out.

"Come in," Lu Li invited.

The Uninvited Guest didn't answer. Like a stranger who had simply knocked on the wrong door, it turned and walked away.

Nothing happened.

Anna suppressed her aura, and as soon as the Uninvited Guest was out of sight, she wheeled Lu Li away from the building.

"Its aura has grown deeper, more refined..."

On the way to Khimfast, Anna continued to ponder the Uninvited Guest's aura. "It's like... a law. We have to follow its laws..."

This was what exorcists called an "evil spirit's ritual."

Anna had her own ritual, too, but the rituals of vengeful spirits were not as potent or absolute as those of evil spirits.

A few minutes later, the silhouette of Khimfast appeared on the horizon.

"Should we go into the city?" Anna asked softly.

Lu Li gave a slight nod.

A city wall was being erected in Khimfast—not a high battlement like those from the wars hundreds of years ago, but a low barrier, more like a fence that an adult could easily climb over.

Lampposts had already been installed on the completed sections of the wall.

The wall was intended to encircle all of Khimfast, serving as a nightly barrier to protect the city from supernatural creatures.

A few hundred meters from the city, Anna completely suppressed her aura and wheeled Lu Li into Khimfast through a passage in the wall.

A squad of exorcists guarded the road leading toward Sugard Mountain. They greeted Lu Li and Anna with a mixture of surprise and wariness, but once they recognized him, their caution turned to respect, and they allowed them to pass.

After the destruction of Belfast, Khimfast had become the only safe haven on the Allen Peninsula, and masses of people had flooded into the city.

The former capital of the arts was now noisy and crowded. The streets were filled with people, their voices completely drowning out the silence of Sentry Post. Every house was occupied, and wooden huts and barracks were being built everywhere. They appeared in fields, on wide streets that had once served merely as decoration, and even on the estates of the nobility. Fences, withered trees, bushes, and fountains had all been torn down.

City officials stood at every intersection, announcing that residents who took in refugees would receive rations of food, kerosene, and additional protection.

Even more common than the new buildings were lampposts and drainage ditches. Light could bring safety and dissipate the strange fog where monsters lurked.

The previous night, the strange fog had spread nearly fifty kilometers from the foot of Sugard Mountain. If it continued to advance at the same rate, Khimfast itself would be shrouded in fog by nightfall within a week.

After navigating the crowded streets, Lu Li and Anna arrived at Mery's house.

Several notices had been posted on the white birch door, requesting that the homeowner report to the city hall upon her return.

They had seen many empty houses with similar notices along the way. If the owners didn't appear before the fog arrived, these homes would be declared abandoned and given to refugees.

Before she left, Mery had transferred the house to them. Lu Li found a city official at an intersection and gave him the keys and the deed, telling him that there were canned goods stored in the basement.

To avoid any trouble, their shelter was not suitable for permanent residence, so Lu Li and Anna had retained ownership of this house. If necessary, they could return here at any time.

Lu Li also visited Anna's former home. Like the other estates in Khimfast, its fence had been torn down, and wooden huts now stood in the garden.

Aside from the old building itself, Anna recognized nothing.

The one place that might have stirred her memories was where her remains were buried, but neither Lu Li nor Anna had any desire to go there.

Half an hour later, they left Khimfast on the opposite side of the city. Once they were a safe distance away, Anna lifted Lu Li into her arms and flew west.

Below them, sparse groups of people and wagons moved like ants. All were heading for Khimfast. Only when they neared the Shadow Swamp did they see people traveling in the other direction, toward the Main Continent.

At eight in the morning, the dark outline of the Shadow Swamp appeared in the distance.

Anna descended on the outskirts of Tenebrae. Before them lay the charred ruins of the town.

The tallest remaining structure was the half-destroyed church tower, which was their destination.