Detective Agency of the Bizarre

Tesla and Raimy looked at the Mother of the Marsh, marveling at the coexistence of her divinity and humanity.

Lu Li instructed Merchant Anthony to take Jimmy and the children to be settled: "What's the problem?"

The Mother of the Marsh asked them to leave the wooden house and gaze at the bay glimmering with its last light.

Mountains shrouded in a mist of strangeness emerged from the sea, swirling and spreading towards the bay, engulfing Andrea and the port itself, docked at Rodest Port.

Lu Lili had been away for over a month, and since a few days ago, the mist of strangeness had taken over the bay, encroaching on Old Belfast.

This meant the mist of strangeness had begun to invade the Land of Light, and the trouble didn't end there——the mist of strangeness might herald the horn of a peculiar invasion, not to mention those presences that emerge with the dense fog.

The last glimmers of twilight vanished deep within the clouds, casting the Land of Light into darkness, shrouding the newly arrived people's hearts with gloom.

"Can your powers protect the Land of Light?"

"Not yet..." answered the Mother of the Marsh.

"How did the Land of Vortex and the Ashes District manage it?"

The Land of Vortex used to repel the mist of strangeness, and so did the Ashes District.

"Because their power delves deep into the earth."

The aura of the Evil God would construct a lair like a divine kingdom on earth, such as the Shadow Swamp of the Mother of the Marsh.

But they were residents of the Land of Hope, not lords. Even if they could transform the Land of Hope into their territory, the polluted land would no longer be suitable for other Alien Gods to inhabit.

Unless...

Tesla and Raimy exchanged glances, collectively thinking of a solution: split the Land of Light.

Let them occupy Old Belfast and shield the threats outside.

The Mother of the Marsh seemed to understand their thoughts: "We shouldn't do this... The Land of Hope is cherished for its purity, and if that purity is lost, we and they will be left with nothing but greed, falling into a pitiful and shameful struggle for possession and invasion..."

One thing was agreed upon by Lu Li, the Mother of the Marsh, and the Twisted Shadow——never test humanity.

Tesla understood why Lu Li trusted an Evil God so much and altered the proposal: "What if the territory only extends to the edges?"

Raimy cooperatively drew a circle in the air: the circle represented the edge of the Land of Light, where Alien Gods would build a defensive circle along the periphery, protecting the true Land of Light within.

Lu Li remained quietly observing the Mother of the Marsh.

"Perhaps it's possible, but time is required for transformation."

"How much time do we need?"

"If I and the Twisted Shadow work together, we can encircle the Land of Light before winter arrives."

"How much time do we have left."

"If the mist of strangeness maintains its pace, it will envelop the camp by the rainy season."

About two months or so.

"We can first let the Twisted Shadow transform Rodest Port to test if this can be done."

The Twisted Church is more suited for the coastline than the Swamp Church, and the Twisted Shadow has coveted the bay for a long time.

The Mother of the Marsh nodded gracefully, conveying the plan to the Twisted Shadow, and soon returned with a response: the aggressive Twisted Shadow wanted to go further and leave traces at the edge of the bay, which is also the edge of the Land of Light.

Lu Li approved of his proposal, starting from the next day.

"Will you become a god?" Raimy suddenly asked him.

"Not sure yet."

"Can we worship you?" Raimy asked bluntly, feeling that Lu Li, who took them out of the story, was like a creator, and nothing was more satisfying for her and her brother than staying by his side.

"...Yes."

Lu Li was still waiting for the "maybe or maybe not" prophecy of the Eternal Dreamer, and until then, the Jimmy Siblings could worship Lu Li like the Shadow Church.

As night fell, Raimy planned not to disturb Lu Li further and inquired about where her new home was.

"Where are Jimmy and the children being settled?" Lu Li asked the Mother of the Marsh.

"At another Tesla residence."

"Does it have anything to do with me?" Tesla asked.

"A distant relative of yours."

Lu Li informed Tesla of the Knight Captain Tesla's current situation, and Tesla lamented his never-seen distant nephew's misfortune: "Can I meet him?"

As one of the only two remaining members of the Tesla Family, Tesla felt a long-forgotten emotion brought on by his abandoned bloodline.

"Someone will take you to meet him tomorrow."

Raimy and others would also be arranged——to become members of the strange residents of the Land of Light.

"Thank you." Unable to bend his stiff waist, Tesla bowed in gratitude: "I want to know, what can I do?"

"Just what you said in Paradise Valley, be a good teacher."

...

Hades hadn't felt a sense of crisis for a long time.

Especially after Hell's Castle was built, he couldn't find anything except time that could kill him. Hell Demons? They had long retreated into their territories due to the lack of souls, like noble ladies who never ventured out. Human peculiarities? Who would covet this barren land of magma and sulfur, with monster meat being sour and tough.

Even leaving hell and arriving at the slightly better Land of Light compared to his own castle didn't trigger a sense of crisis, especially after bribing a worm to carry him back to the Gates of Hell in times of crisis; nothing could make Hades feel a sense of crisis again.

Not now, though, as a dense sense of crisis enveloped him——because Tesla had arrived.

Hades didn't care if Tesla had a higher or more popular reputation than him; he only knew that before, it was one person with one salary.

Now it's two people with two salaries.

Even if that Glatan intended to raise his salary, it couldn't offset the tearing pain in his heart from the money being divided.

That beautiful money, like adorable spirits, with the sheen of ink, like a woman's skin, never being refused.

The joy of the Exorcist and Apprentice Exorcist was inversely proportional to Hades'.

The names of Hades and Tesla, while not as renowned as Lu Li's companions, were equally known.

And their positions were innumerably delineated: Hades guided Lu Li into becoming an Exorcist, Tesla taught Lu Li to become an Exorcist.

So when Langeler excitedly ran to tell Teacher Hades the "good news," he was driven away with the Spirit-Calling Gun.

The next morning, knowing what he should do, Tesla donned a neat tailcoat, different from the shabby, money-saving resident clothes of Hades, appearing before all the Exorcists in the classroom.

Lu Li and Hades were also present.

Hades stared at Tesla on the podium, his lips moving, cursing Tesla for a disastrous failure on his first class.

It wasn't about dignity, only about money.

Although Hades understood this was impossible to happen——

"The first lesson I prepared for you is——"

The resounding clock chime interrupted words and thoughts, anxiously resonating under the school building.

The sound of the watchtower bell echoed urgently in the sky above the camp, having never been used since its construction.

The Mother of the Marsh's whisper resonated in the ears of all residents of the Land of Hope:

"Silent Moments invade, everyone remain silent."

All pessimistic speculations were confirmed——peculiarities began invading the Land of Light.