Detective Agency of the Bizarre

"The Spirit-Calling Gun, with its wooden handle and silver-plated barrel, is the best companion for a novice Exorcist. Just as its name suggests, it allows the wielder to sense ghosts and simultaneously harm them."

Hades' deep narration gently rose, a pair of glittering gold teeth dazzling enchantingly under the oil lamp's light.

Yet in an instant, a chill ran down Lu Li's spine.

The moment he picked up the flintlock pistol, the entire tavern filled with an obscure malice, as if resentful gazes peeked from every dark corner, and the empty seats seemed packed with various figures.

The brightness of the oil lamp and the beams of light from the window dimmed at a visible rate, swallowed by darkness. An endless gloom encroached—

"If I were you, I wouldn't keep holding onto it."

Hades' abrupt voice startled Lu Li out of the illusion.

Lu Li's pupils slowly contracted, and he lifted his gaze, silently looking around. The flame in the oil lamp burned straight and steady, the light from the window was still hazy, and the seats in the hall were empty.

"Why."

Lu Li put the flintlock pistol back on the counter, casting a shadow.

"You've already felt the reason," Hades chuckled a few times with a schadenfreude sneer.

Lu Li was briefly silent, "...What was that."

"The truth of this world."

Lu Li's pupils shrank to pinpoints.

Unconcerned, Hades added, "Or should I say, the first layer of truth."

Lu Li felt he was drawing closer to the true face of this world. He pulled a high stool over to himself and sat down, "Can you explain in detail."

"Sure, since you only haggled once," Hades pocketed the Shilling, also pulled up a chair, and sat down. Due to his height disadvantage, he could only lean on the counter without any imposing presence, "You're very calm, so you must have noticed when the ghost appeared last night, that after it disappeared, you couldn't find it anymore, right? That's because that ghost doesn't exist in this world at all!"

Lu Li's expression remained calm, and he said nothing.

Trying to see a look of shock on Lu Li's face, Hades was disappointed when his expectation fell through and continued, "Although ghosts are mostly transformed after human death, they belong to another world. The form that appears in reality is merely their projection, which is why we can't touch most ghosts."

"The Spirit-Calling Gun is an exception. The Enchantment inscribed on it allows the wielder to enter the world where those evil spirits exist, and thus harm their essences—I hope you understand my explanation? Sorry, this is my first time explaining this stuff; no one wanted to know before."

"I sort of get it," Lu Li nodded slightly.

Surprisingly, people at the dawn of the Industrial Revolution already had the concept of space,

This statement sounded somewhat irritating to Hades' ears. In his understanding, sort of getting it was the same as not really getting it.

He fidgeted while adjusting his sitting position, pondering how to verbalize what was in his mind, until his eyes fell on the kerosene lamp nearby.

"I've got it, how to explain it. Look at this oil lamp!"

Hades picked up the handle, placing the oil lamp between them.

"Now, inside the lampshade is akin to the world where ghosts exist, and the flame is like the ghost," Hades adjusted the oil lamp's range of light, soon casting Lu Li's side out of the illuminated area. "At the moment, the ghost is hiding in that world, and you can't observe it, nor can it observe you."

While speaking, he adjusted the light's range again, restoring it to its original state.

The flickering light cast their faces in an uncertain gloom as Hades continued, "Now the ghost is projecting itself into our world, where we can observe it, and it can observe us."

With that, Hades placed his hand on the lampshade.

Mottled light and shadows peeked through his fingers, and Hades wore a self-satisfied grin, having explained a tricky problem: "But due to the barrier, we can't harm the ghost inside, yet the ghost can affect us. The stronger the ghost, the stronger its projection. You can touch the glass shade; it's quite hot now."

Lu Li didn't speak, nor did he reach out. His brows were slightly furrowed as he digested the information from Hades' words.

"And when you pick up the Spirit-Calling Gun, it's the same as—" Hades suddenly lifted the glass cover, causing the flame to flicker. He brought his hand close to the oil lamp, inching it closer. "—the barrier that was there between you before is gone. Now, you can harm it, and it can harm you."

"But at the same time, they from the other world can sense you now."

Hades whispered, emphasizing the word "they" heavily.

"Ah haha, that's hot!"

Hades suddenly recoiled his finger that had been burned, shaking it rapidly.

Lu Li lowered his eyes, maintaining silence.

"So becoming an Exorcist is a very dangerous thing, especially when you've made up your mind to get rid of a certain ghost." Hades covered the lampshade and moved the oil lamp to the side, speaking to himself, "It's even more dangerous than going to sea. According to statistics, seventy-three percent of Exorcists' deaths are ghost-related."

"What about the remaining twenty-seven?"

A questioning voice sounded obliquely, with Lu Li seeming to have digested all the information.

"They were taken away by Night Watchmen." Hades shrugged.

"What are Night Watchmen?"

"Hey buddy, the one-time free offer with the price talk is over," Hades tapped his fingers on the table, complaining about Lu Li's disregard for rules.

Lu Li's gaze shifted, landing on the Spirit-Calling Gun exuding elegance and danger, "How do I confirm it really works?"

"Go back and give it a try. If it doesn't work and you're lucky enough to survive," Hades leaned forward, reaching over the counter to pat Lu Li's shoulder. "you're welcome to return it, my friend."

"What about the bullets?"

As if prepared, Hades took out a silver-plated bullet engraved with an Enchantment from under the counter and stood it on the table: "I'll give you one for free, the rest you'll have to buy. You can come to me, or go to other Exorcists."

"How much?"

"50 Shillings each."

"That's pricey."

Lu Li furrowed his brows.

A fresh three-pound black loaf cost only 2 Shillings, and a full day's hard labor in Belfast only earned 10 Shillings.

"Breech-loading rifled Flintlock Pistol, no lead bullets needed, no gunpowder to load. Insert the bullet, cock the hammer, pull the trigger, and the silver-plated bullets will penetrate everything, person or ghost, within 50 yards."

Hades rattled off a string of data, not worried that Lu Li would refuse such a price.

"If that's the case, it's worth the money."

Lu Li nodded, understanding better than anyone from Earth what faster loading meant.

"So, how many bullets do you want?"

When money was mentioned, Hades couldn't help but display his trademark smile, revealing his gold teeth.

He felt more like a businessman than an Exorcist.

Lu Li picked up the bullet: "If you're willing to tell me some things about this place, I think I'd be very happy to buy more bullets and to keep buying them from you for a long time."

As expected, Hades showed an interested look.

"What do you want to know?"