[I'm looking for a hiding place, but unfortunately the detective agency is empty. You and Mr. Lu Li are not here.]
[There are not many supplies left. I plan to go to the back of the mountain, hoping that there will be something left in Watchtown. 】
[I will leave a mark on the window. If you come to me, there should be my second letter there.]
The scrawled handwriting means that Aunt Mary was not careful when writing. The surface of the envelope was stained with a lot of dust, and it seemed that it had been left for a period of time.
"She should be at the Lennon Islands." Lu Li frowned and said.
The ship Avitannis they took successfully arrived at the Lennon Islands a long time ago, so there was no reason why Mary Poppins would still be on the Allen Peninsula and leave letters.
"Maybe there was an accident." Anna said, her red eyes falling on Lu Li: "Lu Li... I'm worried about Aunt Mary..."
"Let's go to Watchtown." Lu Li said.
Mary Poppins is either in Watchtown or left a mark there, so it won't be too hard to find.
"Could it be a trap?" Remi asked thoughtfully.
An ordinary person walking around on the streets of an old city where weirdos roam? This sounds a bit eerie.
"Perhaps this letter was in the mailbox before Belfast was reduced to rubble?"
"Maybe, but I still have to go."
Regardless of whether it is a trap or not, Lu Li and Anna cannot ignore it.
"When are you leaving?" Remi asked Lu Li, who was putting on his coat.
Lu Li opened the drawer and brought a flashlight, oil lamp and "lighthouse".
"Now."
…
The gloomy sky seemed to be daubed with a pencil and cast a shadow.
The twisting vortex of southern Belfast still exists, making it look even more deformed and vivid from an aerial view.
Staring at it for too long will cause a person's sanity to drop, even if it has no weird power.
Anna took Lu Li to the shore of Agate Lake and stopped briefly at the Baron Manor.
The cave and safe house have been expanded to hold almost all the books in the library. They are still here, and Anna plans to take them to Wanghai Cliff when she comes back.
But when Lu Li was about to leave the library, an empty jar rolled out from the corner behind the bookshelf.
"Who's there?" Anna shouted coldly, while Lu Li looked with dark eyes.
In the dark corner, a shrinking figure slowly walked out.
"Human?" Anna whispered.
She was a filthy woman with a stooped back and a blanket. She was missing a large piece of her lower lip, and her sunken lower jaw looked like a monster.
"You...are you..." A voice of questioning rang out, and the woman lowered her head, not daring to look at Lu Li and Anna, who was wearing a cloak.
"Same as you." Lu Li said.
The appearance of the same kind seemed to revive the poor man's hope. He didn't even doubt whether Lu Li was lying, and excitedly stepped forward to hug Lu Li.
Lu Li thought Anna would stop her, but strangely Anna did nothing and allowed the woman to rush into his arms.
Her body and shoulders were shaking, as if because of excitement, or because of the cold aura that Anna suddenly exuded.
Lu Li backed away from the woman's embrace, ignoring the stains and blood on his clothes, and pointed to his lower lip: "Your wound is open."
Mouth wounds are destined to be difficult to heal. In fact, the woman's face is only pale due to lack of blood, and she is lucky not to be infected.
She didn't care about the open wound. Lu Li frowned and opened the book at hand, tore out a few pages and covered his lower lip casually.
"Follow me to the second floor to deal with it," Lu Li said.
The Shadow of the Thread incident added an infirmary on the second floor of the manor, and there should be clean gauze and alcohol there.
Eileen did still keep the infirmary. There was enough gauze and only half a bottle of volatile alcohol was left.
Lu Li first disinfected the woman's wound and then wrapped gauze around it.
Although the wound may open if you move too much or eat something, at least you don’t have to worry about bacterial infection.
After bandaging, the woman talked about her experience.
Her name is Celica Dallaire, a survivor from Belfast. She met several waves of survivors but was forced to leave due to many accidents. The loss of her lower lip was caused by a survivor.
After hiding everywhere, she hid in the manor a few days ago until Lu Li showed up.
"Why don't you leave Belfast." Lu Li looked around the medical room. There were many things here that could be taken back to Wanghaiya.
Celica Dallaire's voice was trembling: "I heard that other places are even worse. Himfast is full of monsters. They also issued broadcasts to deceive survivors that it was safe and lure people there..."
"I don't know where you got the news from," Lu Li answered her. "But there are no monsters in Himfast. It is a gathering place for people."
"Really……"
"Um."
Lu Li withdrew his gaze and fell on Celica Dallaire: "We are going to Watchtown, and we may pass by Himfast. You can go there on your stomach, or follow us."
"...Thank you, I won't hold you back."
Next, Lu Li introduced Anna's identity to Celica Dallaire. After learning that Anna was a wraith, she only trembled and did not show any more fear.
This survivor is surprisingly resilient.
Taking Celica Dallaire and a roll of gauze, Lu Li and Anna left the manor and arrived at Watchtown before dark.
…
Squeak—squeak—
The rusty plaque at the door of the tavern shook in the wind.
Watchtown is desolate and dilapidated. Many survivors have plundered the place, leaving a mess.
Fortunately, they were not interested in damage, and only some wooden doors and windows were broken.
With the cold wind blowing, Lu Li and the three of them walked on the empty streets, and soon found a mark drawn by an oil pen on the second-floor window of a hotel.
Lu Li had seen this symbol before at Madam An Lei Art Gallery.
"That was the symbol of our family..." Anna said.
Lu Li came to the hotel door and opened the ajar door.
Dust fell, floating dust moved around under the light of the oil lamp, and the creaking of the wooden floor disturbed the silence of the hall. But when the lingering sound of footsteps dissipated, they came again.
"Your heart is beating very fast." Lu Li tilted his head slightly.
In the silent hall, Celica Dallaire's heartbeat was like the dull drumbeat in the distance.
"Sorry, I'm still very excited..."
Celica Dallaire lowered her head, her dirty hair tangled in braids hiding her eyes.
Lu Li removed his dark eyes, stepped onto the wooden stairs to the second floor, and found the room with the mark on the window.
The hotel, like most houses in the town, had almost nothing of value left after being looted by the survivors. If the wood hadn't been everywhere and was too heavy, even the bed boards and cabinets would have been removed by them.
However, Aunt Mary's letter was unexpectedly not lost - it was placed on the window sill, and you could see it at a glance without searching when you walked into the guest room.
The letter was covered with dust. An invisible hand picked it up, shook off the dust and floated it towards Lu Li.
Anna took the oil lamp from Lu Li's hand and silently watched the envelope being opened.