Lu Li came back to his senses and his eyes fell on the ringing phone.
He finally picked up the phone and put it to his ear silently.
"Great you're in the detective agency."
A familiar voice came from the microphone, and Lu Li associated it with Marcus. After a brief pause, Lu Li whispered: "Is something wrong?"
"Uh... do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"
"I want it all."
"Oh ho ho, Detective Lu Li is really greedy. The lie is that I came here to connect with each other. After all, we haven't contacted each other for a few days... The truth is that I have a new client here."
"I won't..."
"Don't be too busy to refuse. This time the employer is very generous."
"……How many."
"300 to 500 shillings. The client is a victim from Himbest. He doesn't know much about local prices. There are not many opportunities like this."
"when."
"Uh... do you want to hear good news or bad news?"
"I want them all."
"The good news is that the client is in a hurry, and you will get the money soon. The bad news is that other exorcists have taken over the commission, so you have to hurry up."
…
[Tesla Brothers Transportation Company]
Two horse-drawn carriages with the name of the transportation company drove through the bluestone road and stopped on a street with an elegant environment and few pedestrians.
It is close to the forest, will not be disturbed by neighbors, and can overlook the sea. It is a place that everyone dreams of - well, the real reason is that it is too remote, almost at the edge of Belfast.
Two carriages, one behind the other, stopped in front of a single-family house.
In the back of the carriage, a family of three and a golden retriever jumped out of the carriage. The shirtless coachman put the reins aside, got out of the carriage, and walked into a single-family house with the family with a smile on his face.
Ten minutes later, a family of three and a groom appeared from behind the door. They seemed to have agreed on something. The two workers who had stayed in another carriage jumped out of the carriage and began to carry debris into the house.
Bookshelf, books, piano, workstation.
Every item that did not look like an ordinary home was carried through the door by porters.
The couple stood by the door, whispering something. Then there seemed to be an argument, and the faint sound of the argument was carried by the wind and sounded intermittently.
"...I've wronged you..."
"...Child...she goes to school...New College..."
"... Same thing... I don't want to move here..."
McPherson, an artist who combines music and piano.
But the name of an artist is not valuable, at least not in Himfast.
His reason for moving to Belfast from Himfast was simple: life here needed to be cheaper and quieter.
Of course, what's more important is that there are too many "artists" in Himfast. If you are an artist, even if you are good enough, it will be difficult to survive there.
Although Belfast is known as an art barren land or a city full of money stench by those who believe in themselves as artists, Macpherson decided to try his luck and bought a house on the edge of Belfast.
, a single-family house near the forest. It is not very expensive because it is remote. The price of this two-story single-family house is equivalent to that of a long house in a bustling street.
In contrast, this single-family house looks dilapidated, with its dark and dusty appearance and the overgrown weeds in the yard indicating that it has not been taken care of for a long time.
Macpherson looked at the workers coming and going. His collection of books was being moved into piles behind the courtyard gate.
Originally, Macpherson had many more books than this, but after the group of guys arrived and forcibly confiscated the geography and history books, his collection was reduced by more than half.
He didn't know whether he should thank those unsmiling guys, because it cost him several shillings less in moving fees.
The wife's words rang in her ears: "I think this house is very weird...don't you feel it? Jack didn't dare to run around when we entered."
McPherson turned around helplessly and said: "That's just your illusion, wife. It's been raining all the time during the rainy season, and the room will definitely be damp and cold if no one lives in it. We can just move here. Jack is a dog, and he will definitely be a little scared in a strange environment."
, you can let Beth play with it."
The husband held his wife's shoulders and said seriously: "Listen, but I believe everything will be fine. Sooner or later, an orchestra will take a fancy to me, and sooner or later a singer will choose my work. Trust me, okay?"
"...Well. I don't care about these, it's just the children..."
"I know...I know everything..."
The husband held his wife in his arms, and the couple cuddled together, seemingly burying the hatchet.
After a while, the two carriages finished carrying the sundries on the carriages and collected the fees. The family of three saw the carriages off at the door, and then walked into the iron gate holding hands.
…
“The lighting in the corridor is very poor.”
Accepting the current situation for the time being does not mean that Doreen will not complain about it.
"Big houses are like this." McPherson next to him was smiling and saying good things, and suddenly looked around. "Where's Jack?"
The daughter bouncing in front of her pointed to the dim corridor ahead: "It's in front. Jack, Jack!"
She called her best friend's name loudly.
"Woof!"
At this moment, at the corner of the corridor, a dozen meters away from them, the golden retriever Jack was tearing up a piece of wallpaper with a corner raised on the wall.
"Woo——"
Jack grinned, revealing his sharp teeth, revealing his ferocious side.
After the wallpaper was torn apart by it, a dark and dry arm appeared on the wall, like a child's unintentional graffiti on the bare wall.
"Jack! Jack—"
At this moment, the little master's shout came from deep in the corridor. Jack's ears stood up and he turned and ran away.
The deserted corridor became quiet as Jack left.
After the wallpaper was chipped, the same dark and dry arm retracted little by little behind the wallpaper.
…
Five p.m.
The dark sky is as dark as the sky.
The windows of the houses were lit up, and the streets without street lights were dark.
MacPherson and Doreen were nestled on the sofa in the living room. They had just met their new neighbors not long ago. The neighbors were very warm and hospitable, but there was no answer from some houses. They thought the owner was not at home, but until after dark
Before the lights came on in those houses, they realized that those houses were unoccupied.
"Maybe we shouldn't buy a house on this street, and we shouldn't buy such a big house." Doreen worried. The house was too big, and their savings didn't support their extravagant efforts to put oil lamps in all rooms and corridors.
After nightfall, oil lamps will only be placed in the bedroom. This means that more places here will be plunged into deep darkness.
This is somewhat disturbing.
"That's good. At least you won't be disturbed by neighbors and passers-by." McPherson patted his wife. "Go prepare dinner. I'll go work in the study."