Trist Detective Agency

The police carried the man away, Xiya put the books on the table.

Lu Ban felt the cover looked familiar. It depicted a man in a suit working at his desk, but around him were various ugly and abstract monsters, creating a strong sense of incongruity and making the whole picture seem extremely crazy.

The book's title, as seen in the translation of "The Silent Land," is "Shadows of Terror." Looking back at the illustration on the cover, one can see that these monsters emerge from the man's shadow.

Lu Ban subconsciously looked at his shadow, which was empty and dark.

"These are books from the Gudu."

Trist picked up the book.

"It is sold in all the bookstores in the Ruined City, and there are even handwritten copies in many places. Whether it is people from high society or shop assistants, as long as they can read, they all like this author's stories. Even if they can't read, it doesn't matter, the storytellers outside the teahouses are also telling his stories."

He pointed to the storyteller standing at the entrance of the teahouse across the street, who was still unaffected. He was wearing a long gown and mandarin jacket, holding a folding fan, and wearing sunglasses.

A group of porters, laborers, and children had gathered before him, listening intently to the storyteller's tale.

"Gudu?"

This was clearly the first time Xiya had heard the name.

"I think he's a writer. I've heard of him before."

During his previous mission to the Ruined City, Lu Ban had heard of the name Gudu and knew that he was a writer who liked to write horror novels and romantic stories, and seemed to often hang out with married women.

Could it be that the writer we're looking for this time is him?

"Yes, actually... the Gudu has disappeared."

Trist's expression was somewhat bitter.

"Actually, my colleagues before me received a commission to find traces of the Gudu. However, at that time I thought it was just that some husband found out he was being cheated on and wanted to take revenge on the Gudu capital. But today, I received a commission from the publishing house to find the Gudu. He disappeared two weeks ago and there has been no news of him since."

After leaving the teahouse, Trist led the way, and the three of them headed to a corner of the street.

Lu Ban listened to Trist's words while observing his surroundings.

Just as he had seen it, the place was filled with signs for all kinds of shops. Most of the people walking on the street were dressed in old, tattered clothes and looked dusty, while those riding in rickshaws were dressed in suits and cheongsams, making it seem like two completely different societies.

The main road in the center was flat, but the alleys reeked of a foul stench. In some areas, the cries of vendors drowned out everything else, noisy and bustling like a vegetable market. In other areas, only the more upscale shops selling antiques, jade, and books were quiet and oppressive.

The three of them soon arrived at a two-story building. The first floor was a small teahouse, where most of the people sitting were ordinary civilians. As they went up the stairs to the second floor, Lu Ban saw a sign that read "Trist Detective Agency".

As Lu Ban Door Opening, the first thing he heard was a lazy meow.

The fat orange cat didn't seem wary of strangers. It only glanced at Lu Ban and Xiya before falling into a deep sleep, without even moving its tail.

"This is the landlord's cat. I don't know why it likes to sleep here."

Trist took off his coat, removed his hat, and placed his pipe on the shelf on the table.

His desk was cluttered, covered with files and archives of various formats, and scattered photos. Next to the desk was a bookshelf, also piled high with files.

In the living room on the second floor, there is an old sofa, and the orange cat is sleeping in the middle of it. On the coffee table, there is some leftover food, a half-empty wine bottle, and many other trinkets whose purpose is unknown.

There was no bed on this floor, only an unmade blanket next to the sofa, which looked like Trist was sleeping on the sofa.

"Alright, now we can organize the mission information."

Trist picked up a bottle of wine from the coffee table, glanced at the two of them questioningly, and Lu Ban and Xiya both shook their heads. He then poured the wine into a cloudy glass and drank it all in one gulp.

"Gudu a writer who became famous about seventeen years ago. He is good at writing horror stories, the kind that scare people. His horror stories are very popular among the upper class, so his books quickly became bestsellers. He wrote several more books and made a lot of money."

Trist put down his cup, went to his desk, casually pulled out two files, and handed them to Lu Ban and Xiya.

"Some of these wealthy women, you know, are either widows who lost their husbands early and inherited a large fortune, or whose husbands frequented brothels and kept several mistresses. Of course, there are also some who simply didn't like their husbands and married purely for family reasons."

"These noblewomen were so engrossed in Gudu's novels that they naturally became interested in the author. They would sometimes hold poetry salons and invite writers to participate. Gudu was one of them. After the salon ended and everyone else left, Gudu would sometimes stay overnight at their homes."

He smiled, poured himself another half glass of wine, but this time he didn't drink it directly. Instead, he sat down on the sofa and stroked the sleeping orange cat beside him.

"Over time, Gudu's reputation became strange. Sometimes, some of his female readers were even willing to exchange their bodies for spending a night with him. But this guy was indeed remarkable. He could say all sorts of sweet nothings and was very energetic. Sometimes he could go to three different places in one night."

"Three families?"

Xiya tilted her head in confusion.

"Ahem, in short, because his works are quite popular, the rich people in the Ruined City can't openly harm him. However, some eccentric lords even invite Gudu to their homes to create with their wives. But his behavior always leads to some dissatisfaction. The publisher wonders if it's possible that some lords have killed or hidden Gudu because they were cuckolded."

Seeing that Xiya didn't seem to understand, Trist changed the subject.

"I think our mission this time is to find the Gudu."

"Since it's a mission, then Gudu shouldn't be dead. He was probably just kidnapped. Hmm, wait a minute, what about that person just now? Is there anything special about that novel?"

Lu Ban had never read the books of the Gudu, hence the question.

"The book itself is an ordinary book, nothing special, except that it's a novel."

Trist pulled a book from his bookshelf; it was "The Shadows of Terror," and it was even newer, as if it had just been bought and hadn't been read yet.

"I wasn't interested in these novels before and hadn't read them, but I still got a set from the publisher for the sake of the investigation. I read another one last night, and I have to say that there's a reason why Gudu became famous. Since that man said this book was the reason he attacked us, maybe we can see what it's about."

Trist opened the novel.