Detective Agency of the Bizarre
Chapter 303 - 303 One hundred sixty

303: One hundred sixty.

Barely counts as a date.

303: One hundred sixty.

Barely counts as a date.

“`

The Investigator Weekly’s price of 100 shillings a week per copy was enough to make one think twice.

Especially now when Lu Li was in need of money.

But this expense couldn’t be spared, the timely and relatively safe weekly news allowed Lu Li to keep abreast of current affairs.

Moreover, he planned to purchase past newspapers from the merchant once they appeared, to assess the direction in which this world had moved during this period.

Whether it fell like a feather, descending at a constant speed, or like a giant ship hitting an iceberg, briefly floating for a few hours before rapidly sinking into the abyss.

Thus, the list on the blank sheet of paper grew to include old newspapers and a material that blocked soul penetration.

The latter was essential for building a safe refuge.

“Did the merchant come while I was at sea?” Lu Li asked Anna.

Anna shook her head.

“You’re holding the book upside down.”

Lu Li reminded her, folded up the Investigator Weekly neatly, and put it away.

Anna quickly turned the book the right way, her cheeks reddening.

Lu Li took out the to-do list tucked in the book’s crevice, scanned it without adding anything new, and put it back in place.

Glancing at the clock, it was almost one in the afternoon, the merchant wouldn’t be coming today.

They usually appeared in the morning.

The results of the rationality test following each event, and the assessment of the previous event were also unlikely to be available in the afternoon — after all, Lu Li had only just returned to Belfast that morning.

Taking advantage of the downtime, Lu Li decided to step out.

The bill for the telephone charge was pasted outside his door; he had seen it when he returned in the morning but had forgotten to pay due to the incident with Anna.

He rarely forgot things.

He put on a brand-new coat of the same style from the coat rack, and tilted his head slightly.

Anna was sitting on the sofa, holding a book correctly this time, although she held it nearly against her face, her clear, large eyes stealthily watching from over the top.

Noticing Lu Li’s gaze, she fumbled again to cover her face with the book.

After a moment, the book held up by Anna lowered bit by bit, first revealing her smooth forehead and then those clear eyes.

Whoosh—

Seeing that Lu Li was still watching, Anna quickly covered her face with the book again.

“Come with me.”

After tying his black tie, Lu Li said to Anna.

…

The phone office was on Commercial Street, separated from the City Hall by only two streets, with tall and ornate stone buildings lining the road as far as the eye could see.

The passersby were well-dressed; the men’s clothing crisp and sharp, the women elegant and graceful, the wide and bright street like something out of a writer’s description of a prosperous commercial metropolis.

Banks, shipyard factory agencies, detective agencies, law firms, embassies—all kinds of shops not seen on Sailor Street were scattered along this long road.

Bakeries and clothing stores commonly seen in other districts had transformed here into pastry shops and tailors.

The money earned from selling black and white bread and burlap clothes wouldn’t cover the rent in this place.

Compared with here, the Sailor Street where Lu Li was from seemed as decrepit as the suburbs.

Men, women, old people, children, shop assistants, police officers—all these ordinary people were unaware of the other side hidden beneath the real world, and at present, that side was brewing with unseen currents.

Lu Li did not dawdle.

After asking a passerby for directions, he went straight to the phone office and paid the telephone charge.

The Detective Agency was running low on kerosene, and since there were no shops selling kerosene on Commercial Street, Lu Li bought two kilograms on the way back, carrying the aluminum bucket that cost him an extra 5 shillings back to Sailor Street.

Passing by a corner bookstore, Lu Li paused briefly, gazing at the shelves and reflections in the window, before pushing the door open and entering the shop.

“Go pick something.”

Lu Li whispered to Anna, who had been closely following him.

Anna now had three states of being: the disappearing state where she infiltrated the Inner World, the normal state with suppressed aura, and the battle state where releasing her aura would manifest her Soul Projection.

“`

There wasn’t much difference between the three states; with a single thought, Anna could freely switch between them.

In the Windless Bookstore, Lu Li’s black hair tips slightly twitched, signaling that Anna must have left.

Lu Li walked over to the old shopkeeper and picked up a book from the shelf in front of him to flip through, occasionally responding calmly.

On the edge invisible to the old man, books on the shelf seemed to be pulled out by unseen hands, pages turning.

One drew the attention, another acted.

The scene resembled theft, but Lu Li was merely trying to mask the sound of Anna turning the pages of the books.

After about a dozen minutes, something nudged Lu Li’s hair tips again.

He put down the novel in his hands about a story of revenge and proceeded to a particular bookshelf as guided by Anna.

“These three…”

Anna whispered into Lu Li’s ear.

The three conspicuous books on the shelf in front of him were half pulled out.

In the quiet bookstore, even a whisper was clear.

However, the old man had poor hearing and remained seated in his chair, his legs covered by a blanket with a biography resting on top, enjoying the leisure of the afternoon.

He was only missing a cat, a cup of coffee.

Lu Li picked up the three books Anna had selected.

“My Island Survival with Him,” “Princess Seredd’s War Chronicles,” and “The Lost Country.”

The titles made them sound like a science popularization novel, a biographical novel, and an adventure novel, respectively.

Skimming through the contents, he discovered all were written from a female perspective and contained elements of romance.

Anna seemed to have developed a recent fondness for romance novels.

After paying for the books, Lu Li returned to the Long House, carrying the three wrapped-up books and an oil barrel.

When he got back, he encountered the landlord of the Long House.

He asked how much his room could sell for; the landlord thought for a moment and told him 2300 Shillings.

If not in a rush, it could go for about 2500 Shillings.

That amount was equal to the cash Lu Li had on hand.

Back at the Detective Agency, just after he put down his things, the door closed and Anna’s figure and voice impatiently appeared, “Are you going to sell this place?”

“Yeah.”

Anna asked with some confusion and reluctance, “Why?”

Lu Li looked at her calmly, “You know about my experience at sea.”

“Yeah.”

“You’ve seen the Investigator Weekly.”

“Uhm… yes.”

“Were there such frequent occurrences when you were still alive?”

“…No.” Anna answered after a brief silence, a shadow flickering in her eyes.

“Is the entire continent of Tillage Garden losing contact just a coincidence?”

Anna pursed her lips lightly, grasping what Lu Li wanted to express, “Is it that same notion, that the world is on the brink of collapse…”

Lu Li nodded, “The environment is deteriorating at a visibly rapid pace, we need to prepare quickly.”

“Then I’ll listen to you, as long as there’s…”

Anna coughed awkwardly a few times, changing the subject, “So have you found a safe… it’s called a refuge, right?

Have you found a safe refuge?”

“I’m still thinking about it.

I’ll let you know when I have a definite idea.”

“Oh.”

Anna obediently acknowledged, her eyes sneaking a glance at the leather-paper-wrapped books near the edge of the desk.

Noticing her gaze, Lu Li picked up the leather paper and handed it over.

“Ehehe…” Anna chuckled foolishly, clutching the books to her chest as she threw herself onto the couch, the noble demeanor she once had completely gone.

Once seated, Anna stole glances at Lu Li who was undressing his coat.

Speaking of which, that just now was like a date, wasn’t it…

With that thought, a curve formed in Anna’s eyes.