Early the next morning.
Ding-ling—ding-ling—
The wind chime above the door rang crisply, its pleasant tone echoing through the empty, quiet hall.
Lu Li glanced at the wind chime, which hadn’t been there the day before, before stepping into the dimly lit hall.
The oil lamp on the counter illuminated a small area, and the figure behind it seemed to be counting something. Upon hearing footsteps, the figure quickly stashed the items on the desk.
“Oh, look who’s here? I knew I wasn’t wrong about you. You managed to save up the money so quickly! You’re truly the rising star of exorcists… I mean, the gold digger… no, I mean, rising star.”
Exaggerated words of admiration came from Hades’ mouth. His gold teeth gleamed as he spread his arms wide, as if welcoming an old friend he hadn’t seen in years.
Lu Li approached the counter. The same wooden chair from yesterday was still there. He sat down and said, “I only have 500 shillings.”
The exaggerated enthusiasm visibly faded, his outstretched arms dropping to rest on the counter.
“That’s not enough, and you know it.” In the faint glow of the oil lamp, Hades’ expression turned uncertain.“I have some other questions, about the ghost last night.”
The golden gleam returned to Hades’ teeth as he grinned. “That’ll do. What do you want to know?”
Ignoring Hades’ obvious greed, Lu Li recounted the events of the previous night.
“So, what’s your question?”
“Can ghosts communicate?”
Instead of answering, Hades posed a question of his own: “What’s your understanding of ghosts?”
“Shapeless, intangible forms.”
“Not like that. I mean, what were ghosts before they became ghosts?”
The answer was practically spelled out for him.
Lu Li understood what Hades was implying. “So, ghosts can communicate?”
“They were once human, so of course they can. But it depends on whether they’re willing to talk to you. If you’re brave and have some personal charm, you can absolutely try communicating with them.” Hades opened up a new perspective for Lu Li. ꞦÅ𐌽Ộ₿Ε§
“It’s not common, but it happens from time to time.”
…
“But… but do I really have to do this?” Oliver was shoved forward, stumbling toward the telephone, looking weak, helpless, and pitiful as he raised his head to meet the massive figure looming over him.
In the dark of night, those eyes, as steady as a lighthouse, looked down on Oliver. The voice was gentle. “Dear Oliver, go ahead and make the call.”
Oliver had never heard Madame Slav speak so softly before and instinctively asked, “Are you talking to me?”
“No, I’m talking to the painting on the wall behind you… Hurry up and call your boss!”
The wind howled violently past his ears. Startled and trembling, Oliver threw himself at the phone and began dialing his boss.
As the phone dial turned, Oliver kept nervously glancing at the robust figure standing beside him, her hands on her hips. After a minute, he forced a sheepish smile and held up the receiver. “He’s not answering. Maybe he went out for breakfast?”
“Oh, poor Mr. Lu Li, with no one to take care of him. How could you, as his employee, bear to see him like this?”
“I… I can’t…”
“Good. Call again in half an hour.”
Madame Slav turned and walked away. Oliver, feeling drained, swayed like a leaf before letting out a long sigh of relief.
…
After hearing Hades’ explanation, Lu Li fell into silence.
It deviated somewhat from common folklore about ghosts but was logical. Ghosts were once human, so they naturally retained human emotions, reasoning, and intelligence.
This matched the ghost Lu Li had encountered.
After some thought, Lu Li spoke. “But it’s not that simple, is it?”
“Of course not. After all, even humans can’t always be reasoned with—let alone ghosts. I can see you’re tempted, but remember my warning: our relationship with ghosts is not an equal one. The stronger the ghost, the less you can rely on what little rationality they might have. They’re hunters, and we’re prey. Don’t place your safety in their potential reason. If you’re not vigilant… the graveyard outside Kelsas Cathedral is full of careless exorcists.”
“I’ll be careful.”
Lu Li’s humility pleased Hades, who waved his hand dismissively. “Still, it’s not always that severe. Ghosts weaker than vengeful spirits have limited abilities. You can safely listen to what they have to say. There might even be some unexpected rewards.”
“Like an inheritance or a valuable final request.”
“And what about vengeful spirits and evil spirits?”
“Ghosts grow stronger at a cost. The stronger they are, the deeper their connection to that other realm, and the more twisted their minds become. You can try communicating with a vengeful spirit, but my advice is to either deal with them or run.”
“You skipped over evil spirits.”
Hades fell silent for a moment before speaking slowly. “That’s a core secret of exorcists.”
In other words, it wasn’t free information.
“Go on.”
“Ritualistic behavior,” Hades said.
“I’ve never encountered an evil spirit myself, but I’ve heard stories from older exorcists—most of whom are dead now. If you’re being targeted by an evil spirit, you’re almost certainly doomed. But before it kills its target, it often demonstrates a peculiar sense of ritual. If you can disrupt that pattern, there’s a slim chance of escaping. This is something you have to experience firsthand to fully understand.”
Hades seemed unwilling to discuss evil spirits further, as if doing so might bring misfortune upon him.
But he didn’t forget the real business at hand. Stretching out his palm, he demanded, “500 shillings. Pleasure doing business.”
“100.”
“Pay up.”
After completing the consultation, Lu Li stood up from his seat.
“Not staying for a bit longer?”
“If it doesn’t cost extra.”
“Then don’t let the door hit you on the way out.”
Adjusting his hat as he exited the detective agency, Lu Li climbed into a waiting yellow carriage.
“To the nearest detective agency.”
The carriage began to move, heading toward their destination.
In this world, “detective agencies” were synonymous with exorcists, a tradition that could be traced back three centuries.
Ten minutes later, the carriage arrived at a new detective agency. This one was arranged more traditionally, at least not resembling a tavern.
Pretending to be an ordinary person troubled by ghosts, Lu Li asked the exorcist inside some general questions. Their answers aligned closely with what Hades had said.
But when the topic turned to Hades, the exorcist displayed a brief moment of disdain and agitation.
“That guy is a disgrace to all exorcists!”
“Why do you say that?” Lu Li asked.
“He has no professional ethics! Once, he exorcised a ghost for a poor nobleman, splitting the process into five sessions and charging over a thousand shillings!”
That did sound like something Hades would do.
Lu Li said he’d consider whether to hire the exorcist and then turned to leave.
“Don’t ever hire Hades! That guy would do anything for money!” the exorcist shouted from behind.
What they didn’t know was that this was precisely why Lu Li worked with Hades.
Trading money for knowledge—Lu Li found it worthwhile, and so did Hades.
Returning to the carriage, Lu Li didn’t make any more stops and went straight back to his detective agency.
Shortly after arriving at the quiet agency, the phone rang.
Lu Li picked up, and Oliver’s voice came through. It was about the same issue as yesterday: Madame Slav wanted to meet him.
Lu Li didn’t refuse.
“I’ll be there in about an hour.”
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