Li Wei had no idea whether the story of Little Red Riding Hood existed in this world, but now he seemed to have stepped right into it himself.
According to the girl-he might as well call her Little Red Riding Hood-her parents worked at a logging camp near Fog City, so she lived here too. Their original home was in Wolfhead Village, near the Delicate Mountains, but only her grandmother still lived there.
On her days off, Little Red Riding Hood would take food and liquor her parents had bought in the city to visit her grandmother. Of course, given the distance, she usually rode on the logging camp's timber wagons, occasionally catching a ride on a passing carriage.
Her luck had been poor this time, however, and she had failed to find a ride. Normally, it would have been fine to skip the visit, but a letter from Wolfhead Village had said her grandmother was ill, leaving the whole family worried. So even without a carriage, Little Red Riding Hood had decided to go see her.
As for why she had suddenly dashed onto the road, Little Red Riding Hood had sensed some sort of wild animal nearby while walking along the roadside. Then the bushes had suddenly rustled, frightening her into running onto the road.
Li Wei chatted quite a bit with Little Red Riding Hood along the way. Using the conversational tricks he had learned from Inspector Lestrade, he had thoroughly sounded her out. Clearly, she was just an ordinary girl. At least for now, there was nothing unusual about her.
But... Little Red Riding Hood... and Wolfhead Village... hmm...
Calling it a coincidence would be stretching things a little too far.
In any case, he would find out once he got there.
Li Wei's steam car