The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 582: The End and the Beginning

Only a few shadowy figures roamed the garden.

Lu Li had already seen some of the creatures several times. They patrolled the same routes, repeating their actions at regular intervals as if locked into some rote pattern of behavior.

While this made Shutes University feel less deserted, it only made the place feel more unsettling.

Lu Li had overheard two disguised creatures talking and learned where most of the "students" were gathered. They were in a row of dormitories behind the university, buildings originally intended for workers and students.

According to the rules of Paradise, it was now lunchtime at Shutes University, and the creatures—who, it seemed, adhered to the university’s regulations more strictly than actual students—had all congregated there.

Before long, Lu Li left the bench by the fountain and headed toward the dormitories, planning to observe them from a distance.

Lu Li’s loitering caught the eye of one of the wandering creatures, disguised as a student. It broke from its patrol route and approached him.

"You seem new here?"

"I only got to the university a couple of classes ago," Lu Li replied calmly, affecting a guileless expression. "I heard it was safe here, but I can't seem to find my room."

This was an open area; any sudden move would draw unwanted attention. Lu Li knew he couldn't make his move here.There was a touch of artifice in his words and demeanor, but the creature never suspected the awkward young man was faking it. Convinced Lu Li was human, it replied quickly, trying to mask its eagerness so as not to spook its prey.

"I can help you. There's a spare bed in my room. If you can't find yours, you can stay with me for now."

"Thanks," Lu Li answered without hesitation.

...

Footsteps echoed on the staircase, stirring motes of dust in the gloom.

On the second floor of the long dormitory, a line of doors stretched into the distance like a row of tombstones. The only light came from a window at the far end of the hall, plunging the rest of the corridor into shadow.

Lu Li followed the creature to the second floor, his eyes scanning the surroundings.

"Do you know where my room is?" Lu Li asked, playing the part of a helpless victim walking into a spider's web.

But the web was being spun by both sides. Even as the creature lured Lu Li into its trap, he was setting one of his own.

"Maybe you're my neighbor?"

The creature couldn't risk losing its prey. It kept glancing over its shoulder as they climbed the stairs, making sure Lu Li hadn't bolted.

But Lu Li had no intention of fleeing. He followed calmly until the creature stopped before one of the doors.

The victim, it seemed, had walked willingly into the snare.

The creature turned the knob and opened the door.

Lu Li peered inside. Dust danced in the dim light, and a musty smell wafted from the room—a mix of rotting wood and dampness.

The smell was intriguing at first, sharp like kerosene, but it quickly turned cloying, making him feel as though mold were growing inside his nostrils.

Such smells were common in wooden buildings, and this one was still bearable. He remembered the rainy seasons in Belfast, when the dampness was so thick you felt like you were living in a forest. But everything was different now. Everything had changed after the catastrophe.

"Is this my room?"

Lu Li looked around. There were beds in the four corners of the room, each with a nightstand. On the windowsill overlooking the university grounds sat a withered flower in a pot.

"Perhaps. No one's going to tell you otherwise, anyway," the creature said, stepping into the room. It turned back, waiting for Lu Li. "Aren't you coming in?"

"What about the other two?" Lu Li remained in the doorway, hesitant.

"Newcomers, just like you. You'll meet them soon enough. Now, come on in and see your bed," the creature urged again, its voice dropping low, unable to hide the predatory hunger in its eyes.

"Alright."

To the creature's delight, Lu Li finally agreed and calmly entered the room.

Click.

The door swung shut. The creature, its back now to Lu Li, let a vicious grin spread across its face.

In that same instant, Lu Li's hand clamped around its neck, covering its mouth.

"Mmph..."

A muffled groan drifted from the room, followed by a dull thud and the sound of something heavy being dragged across the floor. Then, silence. A moment later, a splintering creak echoed, as if someone was tearing up the floorboards.

A moment later, the wet sounds of tearing and feasting filled the air, only to be abruptly cut off by silence once more.

A few seconds later, the door swung open.

Lu Li appeared in the doorway. He was holding a flower pot in his hands—or, more accurately, just the empty pot—and backed out into the corridor.

"The next exam is starting soon. I should go get ready," he said, directing his words back into the room.

A passing creature glanced at him for a moment before looking away, uninterested.

It never occurred to them that a human could be here.

In the silence, Lu Li tilted his head as if listening to a reply from within the room, then gave a slight nod.

"Alright, just hurry up."

Click.

Lu Li closed the door behind him and headed back downstairs.

Had any creature, grown suspicious, peeked into the room after Lu Li left, it would have found nothing out of the ordinary. Even a thorough search would have revealed only the damaged floorboards under one bed, which looked as if they had been broken long ago.

Every trace had been meticulously erased.

...

"What's that?" Gavril York asked, staring in surprise as Lu Li walked into the office carrying an empty flower pot.

"A flower pot."

"Er... I meant, why did you bring it with you?"

Gavril York had last seen living plants in the ground six months ago.

"A hunch."

When Lu Li's Mind Level had recovered, he'd lost the sharp intuition that came with being on the brink of madness. However, the power boost from the evil Book of the Apocalypse had restored that sense to him. It wasn't as keen as before, but it was present.

Lu Li normally operated on logic, but now he had intuition to guide him as well. As he was leaving the room, his eyes had fallen on the nondescript flower pot, and an inner voice urged him to take it. So he had.

"Fair enough. Class starts in ten minutes. We should get going," Gavril York said with a shrug.

Lu Li had come back empty-handed. Gavril York hadn't managed to get any information about the upcoming exam—not its content, nor the correct answers.

What's more, Professor Gavril York, who was supposed to be proctoring the exam, had been assigned to monitor other classrooms instead.

There was nothing he could do to help Lu Li.