The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 584: The Former Protector

The story of Prada was difficult to understand.

Unaware of its true meaning, Lu Li could only lend it a fraction of his attention, keeping that slender thread of connection alive.

Lu Li had done something similar before—with Jimmy and his sister from the story. So, he showed neither confusion nor hesitation.

He turned the rest of his attention to the test questions before him, pondering whether he should answer in keeping with the general atmosphere of 'Paradise', or...

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the young instructor. After handing out the papers, she headed straight for Lu Li. Her narrow eyes narrowed further, and the unconcealed heat radiating from her was almost scorching.

Maintaining his connection with Prada, Lu Li watched as the young instructor squeezed in beside him. Her soft body felt like it was trying to swallow him whole.

"The first three questions are just a front," she whispered. Her body trembled as if she were in unbearable pain, her voice laced with a soft moan. "For the last three questions... follow your heart..."

Trembling, she rose and left her seat. Lu Li watched her go, deep in thought.

She had already helped him once. Could this be the second time?

His gaze fell to the flowerpot on the edge of the desk. Lu Li suddenly recalled the vague urge he'd had to bring it with him, and the single clue he had received upon entering 'Paradise'.[The Master knows everything and will arrange it all.]

And so, Lu Li made his choice: in the first question, he decided to protect the townspeople and attempt to exorcise the evil spirit. In the second, to escort the traveler to a safe place. In the third, to try to coexist peacefully with the Eye-Worm.

Lu Li did not favor extreme measures. If there was an opportunity for dialogue, he wouldn't be stingy with his goodwill.

Having written down his answers, all that remained for Lu Li was the final question, which could barely be called a question at all. It seemed it didn't require an answer. It was like a smudge on the page, something to simply be ignored.

As soon as Lu Li finished, the young instructor took his paper. Until the results were announced, he was free.

He left the classroom under the strange stares of the other students.

The wandering shadows were gone from the empty, quiet, gray garden. Lu Li sat on a bench to wait for the results.

But an unexpected figure appeared on the steps. It was the young instructor, clutching Lu Li's paper. With a fanatical gleam in her eyes, as if she had just received a long-awaited answer, she rushed toward him.

She ran toward Lu Li, who had already risen to his feet, and slowed abruptly just before reaching him. Then, with the tenderness and passion of a long-lost lover, she threw herself into his arms.

"Can you feel it? I have a body..." came the faint whisper. It was the young instructor's voice, or rather... Anna's.

She had almost forgotten what it felt like to be human. As a ghost, she had lost her sense of touch, taste, and smell—even the ability to feel pain. Anna felt like a self-aware shadow, severed from the world. It was a sensation far worse than eating bland, flavorless food.

But upon entering Paradise and gaining a body, Anna had rediscovered all those lost sensations. And now, held in Lu Li's arms, every cell in her body and soul was exultant.

"Why are you here...?" Anna murmured, gently rubbing her cheek against Lu Li's shoulder and neck, feeling herself melt in his embrace.

Lu Li's voice remained deceptively calm. "An hour is up."

"But I told you to go back."

"I didn't listen."

Coming from Lu Li, those simple words were more moving than any declaration of love. Anna lifted her head, her narrow eyes clouding over.

It felt as if something momentous was about to happen, but Lu Li, seemingly oblivious to the atmosphere, asked, "What is happening in the royal city?"

He already understood why Anna hadn't returned to the farm within the hour.

"It's a long story..." Anna replied, not wanting to spoil the moment.

"Just the important parts," Lu Li said, gently pulling away from her and sitting back down on the bench.

Anna pressed up against him. "The 'Master' is an Ancient God. He's searching for something."

"What is he searching for?"

"I don't know... Maybe a living being, or perhaps something more ephemeral."

"Who told you that?" Lu Li asked. That way of speaking wasn't like Anna.

"An old exorcist... a scholar... He told me before he died." The human body amplified Anna's emotions, and her thoughts were reflected in her narrow eyes. A flicker of sadness appeared in them. "He was a wonderful man... He talked to me as if I were just a normal person..."

Anna had only ever been treated that way by Lu Li. While some others could converse with her without fear, their deliberate effort to treat her normally was, in itself, a form of strangeness.

Moreover, an exorcist of his caliber was equivalent to a legendary agent—a great individual, on par with the all-seeing Night's Watch.

"Do you want to hear his analysis?"

"Yes, but first, tell me what an Ancient God is."

The last time Lu Li had encountered the term was in connection with Richard's plan involving the 'Corpse of the Ancient God.' But that name had been incorrect. At least, the ghostly entity had corrected him, calling itself an Ancient One.

"Ancient Gods are ancient deities who have existed since time immemorial. They are closely connected to humanity and are more like the 'gods' of religious belief," Anna explained, clearly paraphrasing the old exorcist. "They're like more powerful Evil Spirits, but not as chaotic or malevolent."

They were like protectors of this world, safeguarding it from external threats. Toward humanity, they were largely indifferent. Only their worshippers might receive a sliver of their attention. The Ancient Gods felt no baseless benevolence for humanity, unlike the gods fabricated by religions, but that was enough. Indifference to the ants in one's backyard, rather than crushing them, could in itself be seen as an act of kindness.

But for some unknown reason, these beings, who had existed for eons, gradually disappeared. Some fell into a deep slumber, others were sealed away, and the rest simply died...

The dead gods did not disappear without a trace. Their bodies and their divine essence, according to their will, remained in the world, slowly altering everything around them.

This was precisely what caused the incident in the royal city. The corpse of a long-dead Ancient God had found its way here, and its immense power had altered the rules of reality, transforming the city into 'Paradise'.

"He believed this whole invasion was a malicious game. Beings from beyond noticed the gathering of exorcists and tossed the corpse of an Ancient God in here..."

Forcing a former protector of the world and humanity to turn against the very people it once guarded—the act reeked of unspeakable malice.

"But its lingering essence refused," Lu Li whispered.

In Paradise, humans were only being killed by the strange creatures... The city guards, the very embodiment of the god's divine essence, were still upholding justice.

"Yes, the old man said the same thing..." Anna recalled the tremor in the old exorcist's voice as he'd spoken. "A great god has died, its corpse is a plaything for outsiders, yet its lingering divine essence still refuses to harm humanity..."

"What was its name?" Lu Li asked, recalling the final lines on the test paper.