The stove in the kitchen flickered on and off, driving away the dampness and coldness in the detective agency.
Qiaoqiao sat on a wooden chair, rainwater gathering at her feet.
Bang.
After closing the door, Lu Li returned to his desk and sat down, moving away the oil lamp that blocked his view: "What's wrong?"
"The police officers didn't find my brother. They didn't find any trace of the convoy going out. My brother and the others were still in Shadow Town! Then last night, Shadow Town suddenly lost all contact with the outside world! I know something must have happened. Please help.
I!"
This girl, who is quite outgoing and cheerful, with an explorer temperament, begged with red eyes.
Lu Li said nothing, he was thinking about Shadow Town.
He has entered the Shadow Swamp and knows how weird and strange it is there, as well as the evil god named "Mother of the Swamp".
The letter from the figure in the beak mask once told him to stay away from Shadow Town, something was wrong there.
And Lu Li was marked by the "Mother of the Swamp".
Oliver was a good helper and was the first person Lu Li came into contact with in this world, but this kind of thing was beyond Lu Li's ability.
The enemy is not just a weird or wraith.
"I can't help you." Lu Li answered Qiao Qiao calmly.
Qiao Qiao looked gloomy and opened her mouth to say something else, but the unchanging calmness in Lu Li's eyes told her that it was useless.
Qiaoqiao stood up silently and walked towards the door.
Lu Li's voice came from behind: "I'll give you a suggestion. Go find an investigator or a night watchman. If what you say really happens, they should be ready to deal with it."
"I will, thank you..."
Qiao Qiao left the detective agency.
"Don't blame yourself, we can't help her." Anna appeared and comforted Lu Li.
"I know."
Lu Li stood up and walked around the desk, took a mop and wiped the floor clean, then returned to the sofa to rest again.
The sound of wind and rain outside the window never weakened. Perhaps a girl wearing a poncho and soaked to the skin was begging for help from others on a cold rainy night.
…
There is no bright sunshine, no chirping of birds, and no sound of crowds outside the window.
The stormy morning seemed like evening. A faint light shone into the detective agency from the unshielded kitchen window, and the sharp whistling made people feel uneasy.
Two oil lamps must be lit in the detective agency so that it will not be too dark during the day.
The longhouse was very lively. The residents who were unable to work due to the storm opened their doors, and the sounds of talking and cooking echoed in the corridor without being muffled.
The children loved this atmosphere and were running back and forth in the corridors.
Lu Li slowly woke up.
After washing himself with the warm water prepared by Anna, Lu Li put on his tie and woolen coat, and went out to buy ingredients with Anna. When he went out, he met the postman who was delivering newspapers in the wind and rain, and delivered some wet newspapers to Lu Li.
.
Putting away the newspaper, Lu Li continued to the market at the end.
The arrival of the storm made the bustling market deserted, with only a few shops open for business.
After buying the ingredients, Lu Li walked into the adjacent bakery to buy bread.
While waiting, Lu Li saw a familiar figure walking slowly on the street.
The man had no raincoat, and his soaked clothes clung to his thin body as he walked on the windy and rainy streets. He looked around the streets in a strange way, as if he was feeling nostalgic after seeing these houses for a long time.
Passing by the bakery, he looked inside the shop and saw the tall figure.
The steps stopped.
…
Two cups of steaming coffee were delivered to the table by the window.
A pair of wet hands held the water glass, and the warmth that spread into his body made the man squint his eyes.
The brown paper bag containing ingredients and bread was placed by the window. Lu Li looked at the man without saying anything.
"I remember you." The man said slowly, water still dripping from his body under the chair.
His speaking speed gave people a slow feeling, and his back and shoulders were hunched unconsciously, like an old man, but the man looked only about thirty years old.
Lu Li answered him: "The last time we met was less than half a month ago."
"But it's been... a long time for me." The man let out a long sigh. "I remembered something. You are an exorcist, right? Thank you for reminding me... Otherwise I might have gone crazy.
"
"You're not in a good condition."
Lu Li felt the twilight on the man's body, as if he was about to die.
The man smiled carelessly: "I just ended a period of my life as an old man not long ago. Don't worry, I will be fine soon."
"Do you still remember your name?" Lu Li asked him.
"Of course, that is the first of my thousands of names, which is very memorable. If you mean to ask me whether I have lost my nature in the long time and space... I can only say that I am still me."
The man retracted his gaze and looked out the window.
"A ship sailing on the sea is constantly replacing parts. Even if it is brand new, it is still the same ship as the original one. But I haven't used that name for a long time... and I don't plan to use it again."
"Then what should I call you?"
The man smiled at Lu Li and said, "I will tell you when I decide what my name will be."
"If you remember."
"Yes, if I still remember..." A flash of recollection appeared in the man's eyes.
Lu Li was not good at talking to others, and the long years made the man almost lose his memory and emotions for Lu Li. After a few minutes of silence, Lu Li drank the coffee in his cup and called the clerk to pay.
"You seem to have a little trouble." When Lu Li paid and the clerk walked away, the man suddenly spoke.
He was still holding the cup of warm coffee: "I can see from your eyes...the hesitation in your heart."
There was a wave of fluctuation in the void.
"Yes." Lu Li admitted frankly, looked directly at the man and said, "Do you have any insights?"
"Just some trivial experiences." The man answered Lu Li. "I don't know what is confusing you. What I want to tell you is... choose a decision that won't make you regret when you look back on the past."
The man's tone was full of nostalgia and recollection of the past.
"I can't remember that day, hundreds of thousands of years have passed, but I still remember that at a certain time, I chose a decision that I regretted because I was afraid. I thought that time would erase that memory, but it was like
The scars that penetrate the stone become clearer as the stone is smoothed away."
"Time can never go back, so don't let yourself regret it."
…
After leaving the cafe, Anna protected Lu Li from the wind and rain on the way.
After a few minutes, they returned to the longhouse.
A figure sitting under the eaves with his legs crossed, waiting for a long time, stood up.
"No one wants to help me—" Qiaoqiao, who was soaked to the skin and her cheeks were pale from the cold, looked at Lu Li desperately.
Lu Li knocked on the longhouse door, and then turned his dark eyes to Qiao Qiao.
"Come in. Tell me what happened to Oliver and Shadow Town. The more details the better."
