Detective Agency of the Bizarre

"Tell me about the Land of Deceit."

Lu Li avoided the topic of Tesla and opened a wooden box much smaller than the Sunshine Box.

"I think the rumors about Paradise Valley originated from there..." Tesla looked at the Merchant's Eye inside the box and continued, "A poet accidentally stumbled into the Land of Deceit and thought it was paradise. Upon leaving, he documented his beautiful experiences, which were then spread among people during the Weird Times. Lu Li, to speak correctly, the Land of Deceit is Paradise Valley, and what we're standing on is merely a sanctuary accidentally found by those escaping from there."

He had lived in "Paradise Valley" for twenty years and knew more.

"Everyone here escaped from there. Fortunately, it never stops us from leaving, but those who stay too long are never seen again... The Land of Deceit presents everyone's cherished visions. I saw Aidanvoya there, the Jimmy Siblings saw you, and the children saw their friends. And you? What did you see?"

"All of you," Lu Li replied.

Tesla's gaze turned to Raimy and the others waiting not far away. "Is it because their clues deepened your subconscious?"

The oil lamp at Seaview Cliff was real, not a bait crafted by some presence to lure Lu Li into searching for Paradise Valley. However, the topic inevitably reverted to what Lu Li wished to avoid.

"Have you seen Anna?" Lu Li inquired.

"Yes... in the Stone Forest. At that time, my mind was entirely on finding Aidanvoya. After reaching Paradise Valley—this land beneath us—I recalled noticing something unusual about Anna, and that was the last time I saw her."

Lu Li, listening silently, closed the wooden box.

The Merchant indeed could not tread into the Eternal Forest.

"Can you tell us more stories about the Land of Light?" Tesla took a towel from his pocket, slowly and carefully wiping the tombstone in front of him, as if caressing the cheek of a companion: "As an old man, I prefer hearing beautiful stories, as does Aidanvoya."

Lu Li obliged the aged Tesla's wish, starting from their return to the Land of Hope: the allies of the Evil God, the rekindling of civilization, the Land of Vortex, Ashes District, Silent Hill, the Strange Residents, then journeying forth on a path to find Anna.

When speaking of the shelter, Tesla informed Lu Li that the lost connection might be related to the Exorcists' backup plan for the Spark Project—the Exorcist Association's plan wasn't rigid, and the Exorcists clearly knew time's randomness. Thus they devised various contingency plans, including the shelter's early interaction with the outside world.

At this time, the power hidden in the shelter would prevent these events from happening or remedy them afterward.

The disconnection of the Ailen Peninsula shelter might be a result of these remedies. Likely, the shelter's inhabitants have migrated deeper into the underground caverns.

The shelter repelled outsiders, much like Paradise Valley did, and Lu Li anticipated needing effort to make them leave.

"I'll talk to them, but many won't want to leave," Tesla gazed into the dark Fluorescent Forest-enshrouded haven, where people gathered in front of the Sunshine Box, its light occasionally spilling out from the crowd.

"Compared to a distant paradise, the earth beneath us feels more real and reliable."

Lu Li remained silent.

Tesla lingered a while longer by Aidanvoya's tombstone, then, aided by Lu Li, stood up and joined Raimy.

"Raimy, will you leave with Lu Li?"

"Yes, my brother, Wei'er, Little Jimmy, and I will all go with him."

In the livestock pen, Amber neighed, and Raimy translated for it: "Amber will come too."

Tesla seemingly anticipated their decision: "Those unwilling to leave might try to stop you."

"We've sheltered them for so long. What right do they have?" Raimy expressed disdain for them. As an Evil Spirit, as was the detached-from-human Jimmy, they could protect themselves and leaving Paradise Valley wouldn't be as dangerous for them as for humans. She stayed only for Tesla and the children, and because Tesla said Lu Li might come for them.

She was eager to return to the Land of Hope, her old home, Seaview Cliff.

Paradise Valley, where she'd lived for over twenty years, held no allure for her.

Raimy conveyed the news to everyone. As Tesla had said, few residents wanted to leave, and those who didn't obstructed their departure.

After Raimy's resolute response, they then pleaded with Lu Li.

"I won't stop you from leaving, nor will I stop you from staying," Lu Li stated simply.

Then, when Tesla announced he would leave too, nearly half the residents decided to follow. Those heavily polluted, having heard that Strange Residents existed in the Land of Light, chose to follow entirely.

Tesla asked Lu Li to follow him and help uproot Aidanvoya's tombstone.

"Aidanvoya left nothing," he said, holding the tombstone stained with blackened soil, winking at Lu Li, "I think those Exorcists need a real teacher, though I pray I won't die on the road."

Knowing the rivers of the Eternal Forest would flow into the sea, Raimy drove her brother and the residents to craft a wooden boat from their stored logs.

Lu Li gave Tesla and Raimy a few Merchant's Eyes, telling them Andrea wandered around the coast of Niss Town. Upon exiting the Eternal Forest and summoning a merchant, Andrea would come to fetch them within two days.

"You're not leaving with us?"

"I need to go back to the Land of Deceit once more."

"Why?" Raimy froze, not thinking Lu Li would indulge in the beautiful illusions of the Land of Deceit.

"You mentioned the sculpture lost in the Eternal Forest, and I saw it in the Land of Deceit."

"Perhaps it's part of the illusion..."

"Or it might be real."

To them, the sculpture was also a companion.

"I'll go with you."

"No need. The forest won't harm me, and these residents need more protection."

Lu Li declined Raimy's offer, giving her half the potions for self-defense.

"Have you forgotten I'm an Evil Spirit..."

Raimy was reluctant to accept, but Lu Li's response was simple: "The Dark Era has long since replaced the Weird Times."

He also rejected Raimy's offer to wait here for him, and she resignedly informed him of the route: "Follow the river upstream to reach the Land of Deceit."

Once aware of Lu Li's plan to visit the Land of Deceit, the residents lost their calm, unable to bear the Exorcist who arrived merely half a day ago but was taking away more than half their population and all their guardians.

They protested and cursed Lu Li's actions, accusing him of depriving them of survival.

They tried to provoke Lu Li, but he remained indifferent, aware of the root of their fear: his arrival was akin to the Shadow Thief of Fire, snatching away their torch in the night.

The pitiful people were blinded by the Eternal Forest's darkness, unable to see the path ahead, thinking only of the abyss surrounding them and finding security in the small patch of land beneath them.

Lu Li understood them.