Bizarre Detective Agency

   Chapter 367 Two hundred eighty-two. The storm is coming

   bang bang bang bang ——

  The percussion of bound boards rhythmically sounded from behind the corridor wall.

  簌簌——

The   longhouse seemed to be afraid of something, trembling slightly, and the water in the barrel rippled.

   Oil lamps emitting dim light hung on the corridor, and the sound of conversations spread from the room to the corridor.

  woooooooo——

   A mournful whimper swept across the corners of the deserted street.

  Three or four children and teenagers in the longhouse crowded behind the door, stepping on sandbags, and the little ones stood on tiptoes, peeping out through the cracks in the wooden door.

  Depressed sky, dark streets, like night is coming.

The    pattered down, but there were raindrops the size of small bugs. Enveloped by the strong wind, the empty cans rolled over. Returning home too late, a passerby who was struggling to walk in the wind.

   A horrific and oppressive cloud hangs over Belfast, hiding a purple thunderbolt.

The sound of    knocking on the board disappeared.

  Suddenly a white light ripped through the darkness and illuminated the entire city. At the same time as it disappeared, the sound of thunder that seemed to explode in the ear came from the sky above the city.

   Several children screamed in fright and ran to their homes noisily.

"Be careful!"

   Holding a few wooden boards, the resident with a hammer hanging from his waist came towards him, and quickly raised the wooden board to avoid the children who ran by. Shaking his head helplessly, he came to the door, put down a few pieces of wood, picked up one of them and bound it to the cracked door.

   The rhythmic percussion sounded again.

  …

   Taking off his dirty and wet woolen coat, Lu Li, who was unbuttoning his shirt, walked out of the bedroom and closed the half-closed door.

   The sound of running in the corridor became faint.

  The oil lamp on the desk radiated a steady light. Anna stood in front of the window, looking out at the coming storm, her translucent pale cheeks reflected on the glass.

  Lu Li walked to the desk, took away the burnt matchstick held by the sculpture, wiped off the stains on its fingertips, carried the sculpture back to the door, and went back to the bedroom to continue changing clothes.

   "How long will the storm last?"

  Ana's gaze followed a staggering pedestrian until he disappeared into a blind spot.

   Lu Li's voice came from the bedroom: "Three to five days, the radio said so."

  Anna pursed her lips, her indifferent scarlet eyes hesitated for a moment.

   She was worried about Annie's condition and whether she could survive the storm. But she couldn't let Lu Li take the risk and run out of the city in the storm.

  The rustling in the bedroom disappeared, and a figure walked out of the bedroom.

  Anna's eyes fell on the reflection on the window, and then condensed.

   "What are you going to do?"

   She saw Lu Li put on a new set of clothes.

   Lu Li tied his black tie, raised his head and said to Anna, "Go to the shelter."

  …

  Boom...Boom!

   After binding a piece of wood, the carpenter lowered his head and took one. He suddenly noticed his shadow extending forward and looked back: "...Mr. Lu Li, are you going out? The storm is coming soon."

   Lu Li was wearing a poncho and carrying an oil lamp: "I will pay attention."

   "Okay...I'll open the door for you."

   The carpenter hurriedly removed the sandbag behind the door, held the latch, and looked back at Lu Li.

   "Thank you." Lu Li put on his hood.

  The carpenter picked up the latch, and a huge force suddenly came from behind the door, and the wet wind rushed into the corridor.

  The oil lamp squeaked and swayed, and Lu Li pulled the edge of his hood so that it was not lifted by the wind.

   Stepping over the sandbag, Lu Li lowered his head and walked to the wind-ravaged street. The wooden door behind him, which was nailed with crooked planks, was re-closed by the carpenter with great effort, and the latch was hung up.

  On the empty street there are only a few figures hurriedly passing by.

  The terrifying dark clouds have all shrouded Belfast, only the sky behind the mountain is only a light-colored cloud, it looks like an unspeakable existence emerges from the abyss of the sea, encroaching on the land.

   Before the rainstorm officially fell, Lu Li came to the carriage shop.

   Walking into the car dealership filled with the smell of grass and horse manure, the clerk told Lu Li regretfully, "Sorry sir, we can't provide carriages in this weather."

   "Add money."

  The clerk looked embarrassed: "The weather is too bad, unless you are willing to pay half the price higher than usual and bear the cost of horse injuries."

   The four deep-sea stones have used up all the 50,000 shillings and Lu Li's deposit given by the baron, and now he only has the investigator's 700 shillings weekly salary. But the carriage is a must, and he has to go to the old craftsman to retrieve the custom-made still, and bring the four deep-sea stones from the Elm Street warehouse to the top of the cliff.

   paid the rent and waited for a few minutes. When the rain outside was obviously heavier, the clerk brought a carriage in a simple poncho on the street.

   "The hay in the car can be fed to it at night and in the morning," the clerk said as usual.

   took the reins, Lu Li got into the carriage, fixed the oil lamp on the wooden board beside him, and drove away.

   The ponchos of the horses were shaking, and Lu Li's hood was blown off by the wind.

  The wind poured into the carriage, making a shrill whistling sound, and disappeared abruptly after a few seconds of sound. It was still raging in the streets but could not affect the carriage.

  Ana uses the ability to protect the carriage from the storm.

   Doing so might attract the attention of exorcists, but now there are hardly any pedestrians on the streets.

The rain was getting heavier and heavier. On both sides of the street, the lights and figures in the windows became hazy. The heavy rain that covered the sky and the sun enveloped the whole city. Terrifying thunder.

   This kind of bad weather made Lu Li think of the hurricane he encountered in the Shadow Swamp, but it was not so hopeless.

  …

  嘭嘭——

   The door vibrated uneasily.

   There was nowhere to go, and a figure raised his head in the depths of the hut full of debris.

   Put down the handle of the axe that was being installed, and the old craftsman walked slowly to the door.

  Call——

  The wind rushed into the room, blowing off the corners of the old man's clothes, revealing his wrinkled belly.

   "I thought only creditors would come to the door in this weather."

  The old craftsman turned around and walked back, and behind him, Lu Li came in and closed the door.

  The old craftsman dragged three ready-made stills from the pile of debris and pointed to them: "The stills you want, if you want to build—"

   "I need five more."

  The old craftsman paused, as if thinking: "Why do you want so much of this stuff?"

"use."

   "I have no reason to refuse." The old craftsman gave Lu Li a deep look and said nothing. He returned to the desk and continued to install the axe handle with the help of the oil lamp.

  Lu Li picked up three stills: "I'll give you the money next time."

   The old craftsman waved his hands without raising his head, indicating that he knew.

   left the cabin with the still, Anna helped close the door behind him.

   After a short stop, the carriage continued to drive.

   After a while, Anna suddenly reminded Lu Li: "There is a ghostly atmosphere, just ahead."

  Lu Li followed the direction Anna pointed. Beside the road, a figure in a long translucent dress stood under the street lamp. Sensing the approaching carriage, the ghost raised its head, revealing a confused face.

  Lu Li looked away, there was a wet and mutilated missing person posted on the street lamp.

   That's her picture.

   (end of this chapter)