Detective Agency of the Bizarre
Chapter 156 - 156 Fourteen

156: Fourteen.

The Girl Holding an Umbrella 156: Fourteen.

The Girl Holding an Umbrella “I don’t hope so,”

Lu Li gently shook his head in the glow of the oil lamp behind the desk.

“But there’s no other way.

O’Connor is rotting every day, and maybe by tomorrow he will have turned into something else, and we won’t be able to find him.”

Anna wanted to find O’Connor before he attacked another victim, but that was impossible.

“I know but…it still feels bad,” mumbled the Ghost Girl, her kindness enough to make many humans feel ashamed.

Lu Li, however, thought of Hades’ seemingly meaningful looks; he seemed to be quite opposed to strengthening ghosts—Lu Li planned to ask why when he had time.

Like tomorrow.

The surroundings quieted down, and Lu Li began to ponder the whereabouts of Richard.

Richard’s plan had been fully laid out before him, and now Lu Li needed to find O’Connor and get Richard’s location from him.

He already knew what O’Connor was about to do, so all he had to do was wait.

However, to keep the plan watertight, after some thought, Lu Li took out a piece of paper from his pocket.

When he left the Police Station, the Deputy Chief of Watch Town, Valentine, handed him a note with his private number.

Of course, it wasn’t that Valentine was smitten with Lu Li; he hoped that the two could maintain communication, a kind of overture.

And just as Valentine was impressed with Lu Li’s prospects, Lu Li was equally impressed with Valentine’s abilities.

He called Valentine and told him what he needed help with.

“Please keep an eye on the recent missing person cases in Watch Town and whether any highly decomposed bodies appear.

As soon as there is one, contact me immediately.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll have my subordinates pay attention,” Valentine replied.

After hanging up the phone, Lu Li leaned back calmly into his chair.

The net was cast, and now all that was left was to wait for O’Connor to take the bait.

The night grew thicker and at some point, there was a knock on the door.

Anna, who was wiping a sculpture, turned her head in surprise, momentarily placing the towel aside to conceal her form.

Lu Li had recently seen the manager of Stephen’s Carriage Service standing outside the door, bringing with him the unanticipated earnings Lu Li had received: 963 Shillings.

The flowers were returned along the same path by Stephen’s Carriage Service.

However, the florist only agreed to take back half, as the trimmed flowers could only last two to three days at most.

The remaining half was sent to other florists by Stephen’s Carriage Service, but only half sold.

After deducting the thirty percent service fee he had promised, seventy percent of the Shillings were already placed on the table, along with the remaining quarter of the tulips on the street outside Long House.

Before the carriage service manager prepared to leave, Lu Li stopped him and pulled out 20 Shillings from the stack and pushed them towards the manager, “Keep one of the tulips outside for yourself; distribute the rest to the other residents on the street.”

This time the carriage service manager did not refuse.

In his eyes, earning an extra 20 Shillings for delivering to an entire street was a good deal.

He bowed with a smile, “I think the people of Sailor Street will surely appreciate your generous gift.”

The carriage service manager left the Detective Agency, only to return shortly with a single tulip, then backed away and left.

“This is for you,”

Lu Li handed the flower to Anna, who was sneaking glances in his direction.

Bashfully accepting the flower, Anna hinted coyly, “Do you know the language of tulips?”

Lu Li, the embodiment of absolute rationality, looked at her and replied, “It doesn’t matter, it’s meaningless; it’s just the florist’s sales strategy.”

Anna floated away with a stiff smile.

…

The following day, at nine-thirty in the morning,

Lu Li woke up slumped over his desk.

The oil lamp dimly lit the room, and Anna sat elegantly in the painting on the bookshelf.

Lu Li extinguished the oil lamp.

The room’s color scheme shifted from a mix of warm and cool tones to a clear coldness as his gaze fell outside the window, where a solitary tulip stood tall in a water glass on the windowsill.

Glancing at the time, he realized he needed to return the carriage before ten in the morning, which meant there was no chance of returning it after coming back from Hades’s Detective Agency.

Fortunately, the carriage depot was only one street away from Hades’s Detective Agency, not too far.

Dressed in a black trench coat, Lu Li left the house.

Perhaps it was because they had woken up to find a tulip inserted into every door on the street that morning, but the residents were all being extremely friendly, greeting Lu Li as he passed.

Children holding several golden tulips were chasing each other, running past him while leaving behind crisp words of thanks.

Boarding the carriage, Lu Li drove toward the depot.

As he neared the carriage depot a dozen minutes later, he noticed a police line drawn across the adjacent shops.

Under the umbrella, familiar police uniforms huddled in front of the line, speaking in low voices.

In the patter of the rain, muffled voices carried on the breeze to his ears.

It seemed that a resident had discovered a half-body corpse beside the shop’s trash can.

The cross-section of the body was riddled with bite marks, as if devoured by a wild beast.

Yet the upper half was not found, and it was likely it would never be found.

Lu Li passed the police line, returned the carriage, and stood quietly under the eaves, watching the busy police through the curtain of rain.

They were trying to determine whether the victim had been without a light source after nightfall.

Just then, the lighting around him dimmed as a figure appeared at his side, holding a light gray, overly large umbrella, completely mismatched with her delicate frame.

“Sir, would you like an umbrella?” asked a ringing voice like jade beads on a silver plate, addressing Lu Li.

The gray umbrella was held low, obscuring most of the face, revealing only a small section of snow-white chin and bright red lips.

She wore a white lace long dress.

Lu Li’s body stiffened momentarily as he replied, “I have an umbrella.”

The girl beneath the umbrella spoke softly, “It might be best if I take you.

See, my umbrella is quite large.”

“…Thank you.” After a brief silence, Lu Li stepped under the opened umbrella.

“I’m headed to 36 Star Street.”

His right hand remained close to his trouser line, near his gun holster.

He turned his head to look at the girl’s profile.

Her snowy-white face was breathtakingly gorgeous, as if stepping out of an oil painting.

“Don’t mention it, but remember, no matter what, never look up,” said the girl gently, her pale green finger lightly touching her red lips.

“What happens if I do?” Lu Li asked.

The red lips hidden by her finger curled into a beautiful arc, and she chuckled, “You might get eaten.”

Lu Li said no more and walked shoulder to shoulder with the girl, the fine rain creating a hazy atmosphere.

Together under the umbrella, they passed by shops cordoned off with police tape, walking side by side.

To an onlooker, the scene may have appeared quite romantic—but the principals involved would not think so.

Occasionally, there would be faint sounds of chewing overhead, like the grinding of teeth.

The girl would often remind him, “Don’t look up, okay?”

“I know,” Lu Li replied.

A walk down one street should only take a few minutes.

After a dozen or so minutes, they arrived in front of Hades’s Detective Agency, and Lu Li stepped out from under the large gray umbrella.

“Thank you,” he said, turning to offer a calm word of gratitude.

The girl lifted a corner of her skirt and chuckled as she curtsied slightly.

Lifting her face to watch Lu Li turn and push the door to enter the dim interior, the sound of wind chimes followed by the closing door obscured her from view.

“He’s gone.”

The red lips beneath the umbrella moved slightly, a trace of regret in her voice.

“What a pity, I thought I’d have a full meal.”

Gurgle, gurgle—

A rumble like distant thunder came from below the umbrella, as if responding to the girl.

The massive maw at the underside of the umbrella writhed, oozing dark green slime.