Detective Agency of the Bizarre
Chapter 311 - 311 One Hundred and Sixty-Eight Anna's Treasure

311: One Hundred and Sixty-Eight: Anna’s Treasure 311: One Hundred and Sixty-Eight: Anna’s Treasure Lu Li never asked Anna about her past, knowing only that her mother was called Ann Lei and seemed to come from noble lineage.

In fact, calling them nobility wasn’t quite accurate, unless the term was prefixed by “destitute”.

By the time Anna was born, her family no longer held noble titles, possessing only a manor and a sparsely visited gallery.

With an inexplicable sense of shyness, Anna divulged the aforementioned details.

A few months after Anna succumbed to an infectious disease, her not-yet-recovered mother also died, heartbroken and exhausted.

“Are there any other members in your family?”

The successive deaths of mother and daughter gave rise to more thoughts in Lu Li’s mind.

Anna’s eyes revealed a sense of desolation, “No…

it was just me and Mother, and then…”

Then both she and her mother were gone.

Eliminating the possibility of relatives murdering for inheritance, Lu Li turned and asked, “What about that manor?”

His gaze landed on the picture frame on the bookshelf, behind the lush green garden was a three-story residence.

Lu Li knew what became of the gallery; it was given to the stingy boss Benjamin by Madam Ann Lei on her deathbed, who also indirectly facilitated Lu Li’s meeting with Anna.

“It was…

donated, I think…” Anna’s voice faded.

Seemingly asking casually, Lu Li said, “Tell me about the treasure.”

“‘Little Anna, let me tell you a secret, our family has hidden a treasure, containing the Lota family’s and to me, the most precious wealth.’ That’s what Mother told me, when I was six…

seven years old.”

Anna was too young at that time, and perhaps Madam Ann Lei was just appeasing Anna without a real treasure, but as an artistically cultured former noble, she wouldn’t have lied to Anna.

Distinguishing reality from fairy tale was easy, and Lu Li asked, “Did she tell you where the treasure is hidden?”

“Um… let me think…” Anna let herself sink into her memories.

Warm afternoon sunlight spilled through the window, the warm-toned cozy bedroom resembled autumnal maple leaves, little Anna sat in her mother’s embrace, clutching her dress and asked, “Where is the treasure?”

Madam Ann Lei’s face had now blurred in Anna’s memory, but she remembered her mother’s gentle and kind laughter as she said, “You know where it is.”

“How would I know where it is?” little Anna asked, tilting her head in confusion.

Madam Ann Lei rubbed her little head, “The treasure is buried in the deepest place in your memory.”

“Oh…” little Anna obediently responded, pursing her lips and falling silent, unlike other children who would likely whine and cry out to their mothers.

Madam Ann Lei pinched little Anna’s cheek on impulse, “I’ll tell you when you’re a bit older.”

Little Anna tried to dodge, but couldn’t escape the soft, warm hand and began giggling.

This scene slowly faded and became patchy, the pages turning yellow and faded, with the bleak hues of cold gray filling her vision.

The contrast between warmth and desolation suddenly brought an extreme discomfort and resistance to Anna’s heart, almost in an instant, a chilly aura emanated from her body, a hint of crimson surfacing in the depths of her pupils.

The shadows began to stretch outward but then stopped.

Lu Li’s palm rested on Anna’s shoulder, his lowered dark eyes met Anna’s mournful ones, “Stay calm.”

His voice and that shadow suddenly collided into view, and Anna stared at him, her eyes fixed on those unwavering, calm black irises, felt an inexplicable sourness in her nose, and turned her head slightly, emitting a mosquito-like whisper, “I miss my mother…”

“…”

Lu Li remained silent, knowing neither how to console nor what to say or do at such a time.

But usually, one is supposed to say something.

He tilted his head in thought, then Lu Li added, “The pot is already boiling.”

The kitchen was broadcasting sounds of boiling water and the clatter of a lid being jostled.

Snapped out of her memories by his words, Anna hurried anxiously into the kitchen.

“Seems like everything’s all right now,” Lu Li thought to himself.

“It looks like everything is okay now…” Anna reined in her breath and, looking in the mirror, saw the crimson in the depths of her eyes fade away, she thought to herself.

She removed the steaming lid of the pot, stirred the contents with a soup spoon, and then replaced the lid.

Having composed herself, Anna floated back to the living room.

Lu Li had already returned to his desk and sat down.

Blushing slightly from their recent contact, Anna said, “Mother told me I would know where it is, buried in the place I remember most clearly.”

“So where is it?”

“…”

Anna fell silent, looking at Lu Li and blinking.

“Forgot?”

“Mmm…”

Anna’s gaze drifted away, vacant and unfocused.

Her mother hadn’t told her the location of the treasure after she grew up.

“Maybe it won’t be hard to guess,” Lu Li suddenly said.

“There wasn’t much in your life when you were six or seven.

You just need to think about what was most precious to you back then.”

“Mmm…” Anna hummed thoughtfully, pondering.

“Playmates, friends, elders, family,” Lu Li offered key words to help Anna’s recollection.

“Mmm……” Anna continued her long, thoughtful hum.

“Servants, food, beloved things.”

“Mmm……….?” The elongated hum ended with an upward inflection of confusion.

It seemed Anna had remembered something.

Lu Li followed the clue about ‘beloved things’ as he continued, “Potted plants, dolls, vegetation, drawings—”

“I remember!

The most memorable thing in my memory!” Anna suddenly exclaimed, her eyes sparkling like stars: “I buried it beneath the roots of my sister’s tree!”

Lu Li said nothing, only looking at her with an inquiring gaze.

“It was a doll called Nini…

well, my sister is a tree that mother planted after I was born.

I always used to play with it as a child…

I buried it under the tree after the doll named Nini ‘died’.”

“Died?”

Anna’s cheeks turned pink as she stammered, “I didn’t understand back then, I thought it died because its cotton stuffing was coming out…”

“And then?”

“Then it seems…

I can’t remember clearly, but the treasure must be there!”

Anna could no longer recall the details.

She only remembered that her mother had mentioned something about a “treasure” at that time.

Indeed, that event was the most memorable for six or seven-year-old Anna; she even remembered waking from dreams crying and shouting for Nini on several embarrassing occasions.

“Do you still remember where the manor is?”

“How could I possibly forget that,” Anna muttered, giving Lu Li the address of the manor and the location of her “sister.”

“I wonder how it is now…”

Anna’s tone was somewhat melancholic; she naturally couldn’t regard a tree as her sister, but indeed she had a special bond with that tree.

Having been led into a nostalgic reverie by Lu Li, Anna slipped back to the kitchen to attend to the food.

Lu Li had no reason not to believe Anna.

Anna’s former manor was in Himfast, in the central part of the Ailen Peninsula.

A trip there wouldn’t take long.

However, he would wait until a few days later, after the merchant’s arrival before setting out.