Detective Agency of the Bizarre
Chapter 698 - 698 Two hundred and seventeen

698: Two hundred and seventeen.

The empty Ghost Prison 698: Two hundred and seventeen.

The empty Ghost Prison The second monster to be dealt with had been hiding beneath the bed of a residence, its compound eyes, like that of a spider, glinting in the dark as it lay in wait for its prey, until the soul of the creature was shattered by a boomerang-like flying salvation.

Some monsters possessed shells and their outward appearance was not so repulsive; Anna kept them as preserved food without driving them away or hunting them.

Another who received the same treatment was a servant that had wandered in, enveloped by the breath of an Evil God.

Its death would attract the attention of the unknown Evil God behind it.

The rest of the monsters were not so lucky.

The Spirit-Calling Gun was one of the most effective means for humans to fight against monsters.

They could indeed harm the monsters, but the drawbacks were equally clear: the long reloading time and the frailty of the wielders.

Exorcists often were killed by strange and mysterious powers before they even had time to discover the monsters’ true forms.

Anna was an exception; she was kin to the monsters, without human weaknesses and even more powerful, plus she had a Spirit-Calling Gun that could kill them.

She often found and killed the monsters before they were even aware of her presence.

Occasionally, there would be some that slipped through the net and caused Anna some minor nuisance—like a monster that had parasitized an entire house, with its body attached to a sitting clock.

As soon as one set foot in the wooden house, they would experience weightlessness, and then be struck by household items flying like arrows, items such as cutlery, wooden chairs, and coal treated like playthings, shattering upon impact.

However, it had encountered Anna, and she had to spend a few extra seconds to deal with it.

The monsters in several blocks near Elm Forest had met with utter destruction, which was indicated by the 0.3 portions of humanity Lu Li had gained.

Unfortunately, Anna found no survivors.

There were fewer than 9 days left until The Time of Silence spread to the Ailen Peninsula, when Lu Li’s actions would be limited.

Anna took advantage of the time before the third calamity arrived to scavenge all visible resources from those blocks.

As a result, Elm Forest became busy.

Jimmy’s true form squatted in front of the cellar, while his duplicate squeezed into the cellar to expand the space.

Raimy and Aidanvoya were reinforcing the furniture, to prevent deadly noises during critical moments.

The old single bed that creaked whenever one lay down on it had been discarded by Anna, replaced with a bed she had moved from Joseph Manor.

It was quiet and soft, and one would quickly enter quiet sleep on it.

After the merchant’s arrival, Lu Li obtained a second Evil Spirit Broadcast—for free.

Each Exorcist could receive one for free, the first one was a gift from the Exorcist Association and was not counted.

The second Evil Spirit Broadcast was placed in the Jimmy Siblings’ cabin.

When it sounded, the Jimmy Siblings would come to the cave to help out.

The cooling reduced the speed at which Anna’s new shoots flourished, taking two to three times longer to achieve the same effect as before, but at least it did not die like the crops in the storm and the subsequent drop in temperature and frost.

However, the frost had already lasted for two days, and if the temperature dropped further, Anna would fall into hibernation again.

“How cold is it normally during the winters on Ailen Peninsula?” Lu Li asked Anna.

In the past few days, the temperature was just in the single digits, even lower, and given that the Ailen Peninsula had a temperate maritime climate, even winter should not be this cold.

And it was not even autumn yet.

“It’s not usually as cold as it is now in winter,” Anna said.

She rarely saw frost or exhaled fog.

Was it because the unrelenting clouds blocked the sunlight?

Or was something else affecting the temperature?

Whatever it was, it was most certainly linked to the monsters in innumerous ways.

But it was not all spread of despair; the green plants in the flowerpot were thriving, with narrow tips of the leaves dripped with dew and the tips bulging with buds.

By the fifth day from the countdown, everything was ready at the cliff top.

The expanded cellar held a great deal of supplies that Anna had brought back from Belfast, and even without going out to scavenge anymore, the supplies in the cellar would be sufficient for a year of use, including food.

Aidanvoya used the cloth and cotton that Anna had brought back to make clothes, giving everyone a piece of clothing that fit, even including Jimmy’s monstrous body and sculptures.

Lu Li also had one, which he put on a clothes rack, alongside a dozen identical black woolen overcoats and white shirts.

On the fourth day from the end, Anna fried fish for Lu Li in the early morning before heading to Ghost Prison for an investigation.

…

Whoosh——Whoosh——

The sound of the waves on the shoreline of Oak Forest was softer and more comforting than those crashing against the rocks beneath the cliffs.

There were fewer wooden ships stranded on the beach than before, not because the heretics had returned, but because the tide had swept them away.

Some of the wooden ships sank in the shallow waters.

The other wooden ships slowly drifted towards the deep-sea with the tide, either shattered by the waves and sinking into the abyss or reaching unknown areas that humans had never explored.

After inspecting the coastline, Anna flew toward Ghost Prison.

It was as she had left it last time, or even cleaner—the sea breeze had swept everything away.

The pitch-black stones and the gloomy entrance exuded an ominous aura that made one halt in their tracks.

The moment Anna stepped in, she felt the entire Deep Sea Stone Mountain isolating the atmosphere of the Inner World.

It suppressed Anna’s power and her connection to the Inner World.

“The more Deep Sea Stone, the stronger the effect,” “The entire Deep Sea Stone Mountain seems to be sealing something,” Anna knew these things, but the pressure from the large amount of Deep Sea Stone was more oppressive than she had imagined.

Under the prison’s suppression, Anna’s power was almost equal to that of a ghost’s.

Her gaze swept through the depths of the prison, where sealed sarcophagi made of Deep Sea Stone were neatly arranged, their surfaces chiseled open to reveal their pitch-black, empty insides.

With her power suppressed, Anna had no intention of venturing further and began to retreat.

“Please…

wait…”

A hoarse and aged whisper echoed deep within Anna’s mind.

Without any hesitation, Anna hastened her retreat until the voice resonated once more: “I am the warden…”

Once she left the interior of the prison and the connection to the Inner World deepened, Anna finally stopped.

Remembering the information Lu Li had given her, Anna cautiously asked, “An evil spirit?”

“Yes…

they call me…

the Rope of Descent,” the whisper replied.

“Who are they?”

“Those who gave me my identity…

the Exorcist Association…” the whispering voice, not tempting Anna into the prison and seemingly without ill-intent, replied, “When you came last time, I noticed you…

I thought you were like your kind…

but you are not like…

them…

”

The aged whisper was weak and the voice faltered as it spoke: “You have no malice…

only curiosity and caution…

just like humans…”

“My lover is a human,” Anna answered, frowning, “What are you trying to say?”

“My essence and the prisoners…

they were taken away by them…

they want to strip away the power…

to transform Belfast…

stop them before their conspiracy succeeds…

hurry there…”

“Who are they?”

“Monsters in black robes…”

Indeed, those heretics were brewing a conspiracy.

But Anna was not about to easily believe the other party and slowly backed away: “I will verify what you have said.”

“Please, hurry…

child…”