I created the myth of the Great Old Ones.

"Hey bro, what did you say she did?"

Trist was dumbfounded.

Chapter 217 Trist Detective Agency

The police carried the man away, and Xia 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 "Silent Place," 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 ancient capital."

Trist picked up the book.

"It is sold in all the bookstores in the ruined capital, 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.

"Ancient capital?"

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

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

During his previous mission to the ruined capital, Lu Ban had heard of the name Gu Du and knew that he was a writer who liked to write horror 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 ancient capital has disappeared."

Tristana's expression was somewhat bitter.

"Actually, my colleagues before me received a commission to find traces of the ancient capital. 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 ancient capital. But today, I received a commission from the publishing house to find the ancient capital. He disappeared two weeks ago and there has been no news of him since."

After leaving the teahouse, Drizzt 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 "Tristan Detective Agency".

As Lu Ban pushed open the door, 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 Xi Ya 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."

Drizzt 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 Twisted Fate was sleeping on the sofa.

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

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

"Gu Du is 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 Xia.

"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 the ancient capital that they naturally became interested in this writer. They would sometimes hold poetry salons and invite literary figures to participate. Gu Du was one of them. After the salon ended and everyone else had left, Gu Du 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, Gu Du'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?"

Xia tilted her head in confusion.

"Ahem, in short, because his works are quite popular, the rich people in the ruined capital 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 Sia didn't seem to understand, Trist changed the subject.

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

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

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

"The book itself is an ordinary book, nothing special, except for this..."

Drizzt pulled a book from his bookshelf; it was "The Shadow 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 books before and hadn’t read them, but I got a copy from the publisher for the sake of my investigation. I read another one last night, and I have to say there’s a reason why the ancient capital became famous. Since that man said this book was the reason he attacked us, maybe we can see what it says.”

Trist opened it.

Chapter 218 "The Shadow of Terror"

The story of "Shadow of Terror" is simple. The protagonist is an ordinary office worker who works at a soap company and lives a monotonous life. But one day, he always feels that someone is secretly watching him. At this time, his life also changes. He meets a nice girl and falls in love with her. However, the spying gaze always follows him like a shadow, making the protagonist neurotic and causing him to have many arguments with his lover, boss and friends.

Later on, it wasn't just his sight that caused the protagonist to hear strange sounds, and he could always see strange things in the corners of his field of vision. He became eccentric and lonely.

Then, one night, the protagonist finally discovered the source of the gaze: his own shadow. Monsters lurked in his shadow, and these monsters were not only in his own shadow, but also in the shadows of other people.

As he walked in the sunlight, and his shadow enveloped his lover, monsters emerged from her body. The protagonist was terrified and distanced himself from everyone, but the monsters in the shadows multiplied.

Finally, one day, his friend found the protagonist, who had fallen into extreme madness. He picked up a gun and killed the monster that emerged from the shadows on his friend. The bullet also pierced his friend's body. After killing his friend and the monster on his friend, the protagonist gradually understood everything. He went out into the street and shot at all the monsters in the shadows. Finally, after killing his girlfriend, the protagonist was shot dead by the police.

What makes this book truly remarkable is its ending. After everyone concludes that the protagonist is simply hallucinating and the so-called monster doesn't actually exist, a tentacle quietly disappears from the shadow left by the protagonist's corpse, leaving a chilling impression upon closer examination.

Moreover, the author's meticulous descriptions evoke a strong sense of empathy, as if there were some monster lurking in one's own shadow.

Darkness and shadows are fears that have existed in humankind since ancient times, and the author's depiction of them makes them even more frightening.

"...This seems a bit addictive."

Trist took a deep breath, put the book down, and suddenly, a soft thud sounded from the shadows behind him.

His heart skipped a beat, and he quickly looked over.

The fat orange cat had woken up at some point and was jumping off the sofa, making that sound as it landed.

"The writing in this book is very uncomfortable."

Unlike Trist, Sia wasn't suspicious; she just frowned.

"So that man just now was in a similar situation to the protagonist after reading this book, believing that monsters also exist in reality, which is why he was holding a gun and preparing to attack others?"

Lu Ban stood up and hugged the orange cat. The orange cat struggled a little unwillingly, but in the end, Lu Ban grabbed the scruff of its neck and made it behave.

He tugged at the cat's mouth and rubbed its belly. The orange cat looked utterly hopeless and could only let Lu Ban torment it.

"He's obsessed with reading."

Drizzt commented, but he was still somewhat shaken.

After finishing the book, I don't know if it's because the things in it are too realistic or for some other reason, but Trist always has a subtle sense of fear, afraid that he might see some monster crawling out from the shadows of Lu Ban or Sia.

"But if it's a mission in the Silent Land, then perhaps there really is an extraordinary force behind this writer called Ancient Capital."

Xia added.

"really."

Trist nodded.

"Now it seems that perhaps the publisher's approach to me was also influenced by the Quiet Place."

His current career development mission is to solve a far-reaching mystery. While he was still choosing a case, he received an invitation from Lu Ban. Thinking of the case in the ancient capital, Trist immediately realized that this might be the case his career development mission required.

Drizzt was originally just an ordinary, down-on-his-luck policeman. After being dismissed from the police force for making a mistake, he gained the favor of the Silent Land and became a Chosen One. His chosen profession was [Detective].

Along the way, his career development missions have all involved solving a few cases and opening a detective agency. Although this can be considered as punishing evil and promoting good in a certain sense, Trist still feels some fear as he faces increasingly difficult missions in the Silent Land and his dwindling rationality.

"Here is the information the publisher gave me, along with the key to the accommodation in the ancient capital. I'd like to check it out when you arrive."

He shook the key to the file folder and took out the documents inside.

The documents show that Gudu's mother was a textile worker who used to work for a wealthy family. She was later kicked out after being slept with by the young master of the family. However, she was already pregnant with him at the time. Later, the young master of that family died young without leaving any offspring, and the family took Gudu and his mother back and raised them as an illegitimate son.

Gu Du's mother had passed away before he came of age. He started writing short stories when he was a teenager, and later became famous for his book when he was twenty. His family gradually became proud of him, but Gu Du never went back.

"Illegitimate children are very common in the ruins. If they are lucky, they will be helped and live a relatively normal life. If they are unlucky, they will never be found again and eventually die somewhere unknown."

Drizzt sighed.

“The house in the ancient capital is in an affluent area, within the third ring road of the ancient capital. We can go there now.”

The ruined city has a ring structure with ten rings in total. The outermost ring is the poorest, and the further in you go, the richer you become. Within the fourth ring, you can be considered rich. Twisted Fate's detective agency is located in the fifth ring, which is the boundary between the rich and the poor. You can see both the rich and the ordinary people there.

The further out you go, the more chaotic the security becomes, with gangs firmly controlling that area. The Fifth Ring Road is already the furthest area that the police can reach.

"In addition, no outsiders know about Gu Du's disappearance yet, but some people, mainly his lovers, have already noticed. The publisher contacted me this time mainly because Gu Du's new work has already provided a partial draft, so what they actually want is the rest of Gu Du's manuscript."

Drizzt said another thing.

"Is that the supreme masterpiece mentioned in the mission description? Have you seen it?"

Xia asked.

"Of course I haven't seen it. The publisher said that if I agree to the investigation, they will show me the manuscript to look for clues. I plan to reply to them today."

Trist put down the file folder and looked at the two of them.

"So, should we go to the publishing house first, or to our home in the ancient capital?"

"Let's put those aside for now. Can we get something to eat? We're a little hungry."

Lu Ban put the orange cat down, and the kitten, which had been thoroughly abused, immediately let out a meow and disappeared to who-knows-where.