The Bizarre Detective Agency

Chapter 836: The Place of the Whirlpool

"If that's her name."

The cultist quietly relayed the words of the Distorted Figure.

"Where is she?"

"Bring Helena back, and I will tell you where she went."

"That's what you said when you sent us to the library ruins," Katerina pointed out abruptly.

"I am very sorry for what happened before."

The cultist bowed his head in apology.

"Pay up first, then we'll help," Katerina repeated.

"But then you'll just leave."

Katerina said nothing more; that was exactly what she had in mind."We're just ordinary people," Lu Li stated again.

"The Prophet believes you can do it."

The Distorted Figure clearly placed more faith in the Eternal Dreamer from beyond the library than in Lu Li and his companions.

"I hope he's right."

Lu Li decided to accept the Distorted Figure's deal and asked about the situation in the Place of the Whirlpool.

Twenty-four years ago, the Whirlpool Church had failed in its attempt to summon its god. The church was destroyed, its cultists either converted or were absorbed by other factions, leaving behind only the Place of the Whirlpool, imbued with a residual, distorted power.

After all, the place had once been touched by an evil god. And since the ruins of Belfast were vast and held little value, the anomalies inhabiting the city saw no reason to waste energy conquering this twisted land. So it remained.

Over time, creatures with nowhere else to go fled to the Place of the Whirlpool. Most were survivors, a smaller portion were weak anomalies, and a handful were beings who had stumbled into the area by chance.

Such as those escaping danger or hunting prey.

The residual power of the evil god still warped the land; those who entered found their bodies twisting into spirals the longer they stayed. Once the changes became significant enough, the afflicted creatures could no longer leave the Place of the Whirlpool.

It was not just their bodies that spiraled, but their minds as well.

In the early stages of the transformation, creatures entering the Place of the Whirlpool might still have wished to leave, and could have done so without issue. But once the first signs of spiraling appeared, the area—originally only a few blocks in diameter—would seem to stretch infinitely in length and width. The land's warping power would prevent them from escaping until the spiraling intensified and they assimilated, becoming residents who no longer had any desire to leave.

In a way, it was a kind of utopia within the ruins of Belfast. Its inhabitants never left the Place of the Whirlpool to wage war; inside, there was no strife or murder, only the distortion itself.

Before Lu Li could ask how to get out, two pendants emerged from the Distorted Figure's silhouette. They constantly shifted, refracting and folding like multifaceted crystals, and were presented to Lu Li by the cultist.

"It will protect you from the corrupting power of the Place of the Whirlpool, provided you wear it at all times."

Lu Li took the two shimmering pendants. An obscure power resided within them, and he sensed that if he touched them with his left hand, he could probably destroy them.

"How do I find Helena? Is she still alive?"

"I can feel that my sister is still alive... She has a stronger pendant protecting her from the influence... The pendant will allow you to sense her. The closer you get, the stronger the sensation will be."

"If she has a pendant that protects her, why doesn't she leave?"

"I don't know."

The situation inside the Place of the Whirlpool was a mystery. An eternal, unceasing fog shrouded it, and no one knew what was happening within unless they entered or destroyed it.

"Why don't you go in yourselves?"

"The evil god's influence runs too deep. Our presence would provoke the residual powers, accelerating the corrosion. Only humans are unaffected."

That was why the Distorted Figure had provided only two pendants, meant for the only two humans in their group—Lu Li and Katerina.

This also meant that Prusius and their new companion, Ofelia, could not join them.

"Is there anything else we should know?" Lu Li asked.

The cultist replied softly:

"The pendant's power will only last for one day. Be quick, find Helena, and bring her back."

"Why not give us a stronger pendant?"

Katerina frowned; the one-day countdown unsettled her. If any problems caused them to linger too long in the Place of the Whirlpool, they might never get out.

"It would drain too much of its essence..."

With their questions answered, Lu Li and his companions left the church to prepare for their entry into the Place of the Whirlpool.

The Distorted Figure gradually faded, and "Saint Helena" reappeared on the divine throne, leaning slightly as she watched the departing group through the church doors.

Members of the Church of Distortion escorted Lu Li and his companions to the edge of the Place of the Whirlpool. The food and water they carried were also enough for just one day.

"Ofelia, how do you maintain your sanity?"

Lu Li asked the charred figure as he put on the pendant.

After a moment's hesitation, Katerina took the remaining pendant, fastened it around her pale neck, and tucked it beneath her leather armor.

She had no reason to let Lu Li go alone.

"Obsession... knowledge. I like these books..."

Ofelia's raspy voice suddenly became agitated and rushed:

"How... did... you... know... my... name...!"

"During the Ancient Era, I was exploring the basement, and you almost discovered me."

Lu Li tucked his own pendant inside his shirt.

"You're... that... intruder... from back then..."

Ofelia still remembered what had happened.

The Prophet's words were proving to be an interesting puzzle.

He had said Lu Li would meet familiar people here, and it was true. Not just one, but three.

As for the so-called "not a bad ending," one could only hope.

Prusius and Ofelia followed Lu Li to the edge of the Place of the Whirlpool, still escorted by the tentacled cultists.

Lu Li realized the Church of Distortion was less a traditional church and more of a settlement, a pan-church. He also understood that not all its members were followers of the Distorted Figure.

Some, including a few cultists with the features of sea creatures, worshipped another entity. They accepted the Distorted Figure's patronage and also spread their own faith within the settlement, but found it difficult to compete with the Distorted Figure's influence.

A squad of eight cultists and the vengeful spirit escorted them halfway across the city ruins to the Place of the Whirlpool, which had swallowed the Soul-Eating Oak Forest and several surrounding blocks.

The cultists, Prusius, and Ofelia stayed behind as Lu Li and Katerina stepped into the swirling fog.

A billowing haze enveloped them, stirred by their arrival. Visibility was limited to just over ten meters, and as they went deeper, it shrank to only a few.

From the outside, the haze had not seemed so thick; from Sea Gaze Cliff, Prusius had even been able to make out the outlines of the whirlpool.

Lu Li and Katerina stayed very close to each other, so as not to get lost in the fog.

After walking silently for several hundred meters, the dense fog began to thin, and they emerged from the zone of swirling haze.

The fog around them grew sparser. The cobblestones beneath their feet suddenly gave way to dirt. After they had walked a little further, the thin mist receded completely, revealing the interior of the Place of the Whirlpool.

Tattered, funnel-like clouds hung low in the sky. The trunks of the trees in the surrounding forest were covered in spiral patterns, like snail shells. Looking down toward the base of the hill, they could see that the houses were joined together, forming long, winding structures that coiled around the landscape in concentric rings, resembling a massive whirlpool on the surface of the sea.

Magnificent and grotesque.