NOVPUBHearing the conversation between Daniel and Alex, Mike asked, "Feel what?"
Julia looked at the two, her face a picture of puzzlement. Clearly, she and Mike hadn’t sensed the voyeuristic gaze that had just fallen upon them.
"Nothing," Daniel shook his head calmly. "It’s getting late. Let’s move along the road. We should encounter some locals soon."
"Alright."
They hadn’t walked far when a roar of engines erupted behind them. They turned around just in time to see three exotic sports cars zoom past them at high speed.
"Damn it!" Mike cursed, exasperated. "Think you’re something special ’cause you drive a fancy car? Racing down these rural roads like you’re in a hurry to reincarnate or something!"
Daniel found it odd. Who were those people? And what were they doing in a godforsaken town like this? It probably didn’t matter, he thought.
Just as he was about to gesture for the group to continue their journey, a sudden noise rang out not far away, startling them all.
Mike chuckled. "Haha, could it be that those speedsters we just saw had a crash? Let’s go check it out!"
Daniel exchanged a glance with Alex; both were thinking the same thing. The noise was too close to be from a car accident. What could it be?
Following the direction of the sound, they came upon an old, rundown house at the roadside.
The noise had come from there. Mike stepped forward and pushed open the yard gate.
What Daniel saw made his eyes narrow sharply.
In the yard stood a coffin, surrounded by floral wreaths. The sounds of women and children weeping emanated from inside the house.
Clearly, someone in this household had just passed away and they were in the midst of funeral preparations.
As his gaze unintentionally swept across a black-and-white photograph beside the coffin, Daniel noticed an elderly man with white hair, twinkling eyes, and a gentle smile.
Mike touched the wood beside him and muttered, "Damn, what rotten luck. Day’s barely begun and we run into something this ominous."
They were here to investigate a monster sighting, and encountering a funeral now didn’t feel like a good omen.
Julia scoffed, "Some man you are, scared by a mere coffin. What’s it going to do, spring to life and run away?"
Mike looked at the trio earnestly, "In a world where monsters are real, it wouldn’t be that strange if we came across resurrections or ghosts!"
Normally, this kind of talk would incite laughter, but for some reason, Daniel couldn’t find it amusing. Looking at the photograph of the old man, he couldn’t shake an eerie feeling. Ghosts? Shouldn’t be real... right?
Daniel quickly regained his composure. Regardless of what it might be, he neither cared nor feared it. If it dared to come, he’d dare to kill it.
"Let’s move on," Daniel urged. "The fact that there’s a funeral means there are still people in this town."
So, the group continued down the road. Their objectives were twofold: to inspect any suspicious areas and to familiarize themselves with the town layout, preparing for any fights that might ensue.
The town was small; within half an hour they’d traversed all its streets. By now, the sun was well into the sky, and a few pedestrians appeared—mainly older folks.
This wasn’t surprising; the town’s economy was stagnant, and few young people would choose to stay. Mike felt relieved. "As long as there are people, it means the level of danger from any monster isn’t too high. It hasn’t caused widespread panic."
Daniel remained silent, still contemplating the information Andy had provided. Was this town truly as peaceful as it seemed? Everything was still an enigma.
"Here’s what I suggest," Daniel said as they returned to the car, "We check into the motel at the town center first. After we’ve conducted a thorough investigation of the town, then we can draw conclusions."
Alex nodded, "That sounds best. We have too many questions right now; it would be good to speak with a local."
Daniel started the engine, "That’s easy. We can just ask the motel owner."
As they spoke, the car was already heading toward the motel.
As for Julia and Mike’s opinions, Daniel couldn’t care less. If it weren’t for the sake of team harmony, he wouldn’t even be interested in what Alex had to say.
The car stopped in front of an aged building—the town’s only motel. As the four stepped out, they were surprised to see the three luxury sports cars parked next to them. They were staying here too? Daniel found it unexpected.
Walking into the motel, they encountered a man in his sixties busily cleaning.
"Hey! Sir," Mike greeted.
The man looked up briefly at them, then went back to his cleaning.
"We’d like to ask you some questions," Mike tried again, a fake smile on his face.
The man straightened up and growled, "Either book a room or get lost."
Mike’s lip twitched. This old man’s temper was something else.
At this point, Alex stepped forward. "Sir, we will stay. Three rooms, please."
Hearing this, the man’s attitude improved—though just enough to lower his levels of hostility.
Daniel pulled several hundred-dollar bills from his wallet and held them up. "I want to ask you some questions. One bill for each answer."
He pinched a bill between two fingers and extended it towards the old man.
At the sight of money, the man dropped his cleaning supplies, approached Daniel, accepted the bill, and broke into a grin.
"Ask away. As long as I know, I won’t hold back. I can even tell you my daughter’s measurements," he chuckled.
Mike widened his eyes, "Holy crap, talk about a 180! This old guy is brutally pragmatic!"
The power of money is indeed the strongest force.
Daniel posed the first question. "Sir, has this town always had so few people, or did something recent cause a decrease?"
The old man replied offhand, "It’s always been like this. These days, young folks are too captivated by the city’s glitz and glamour. One by one, they’ve moved away. Now the town’s just left with a hundred or so old-timers like me."
Daniel asked another question, "Have any strange events happened in this town recently?"
The old man conscientiously took another bill from Daniel before shaking his head. "Nothing strange has happened."
"If I have to name something strange, it’d be you folks asking me these bizarre questions," he added.
Daniel handed over another bill and asked, "The family near Highway 1 holding a funeral—who died?"
The question made the old man furrow his brows in thought for a moment. Finally, he shook his head. "I don’t know. No one in town has died; it must be someone from outside."
Suddenly, Daniel caught a whiff of something unusual.
Isaac Town was small, with only five or six hundred households at its peak, and now barely over a hundred.
Everyone should be familiar with each other, having spent their entire lives in this close-knit community.
The fact that the old man didn’t recognize the mourners was unsettling.
However, there was no time to dig deeper.
He asked one final question: "Has there been any fog in town over the past few days?"
The old man shook his head emphatically. "No, the weather has been bright and clear. Not a hint of fog."
This response made Alex, Mike, and Julia visibly puzzled.
"Are you sure? Could it be that you just didn’t notice?" Mike urged. "Think carefully; this is important to us."
The words irked the old man. "I’m not senile; I know the difference between a clear sky and a foggy one. I haven’t left this town for years and run this motel daily. There’s been no fog."
If Isaac Town never experiences fog, then what had Andy and his crew encountered? Had they mistaken the location? The four were at a loss.
Just then, noisy footsteps echoed from the staircase.
Quickly, three young men descended from the upper floor.
They were the owners of the luxury sports cars parked outside.
Upon seeing Daniel and the others, they paused briefly.
The blonde in the middle blurted out, "The Investigation Bureau is here too?"
The words put Julia and Mike on high alert.
Julia shot back coldly, "Who are you?"
To their surprise, the trio approached with smiles. "We’re members of the Rebirth Organization."
Rebirth?
Daniel’s brows furrowed, and Julia and Mike grew tense.
They were well aware of the bad blood between Daniel and Rebirth—the one who claimed to be the General Manager of Rebirth Corporation was still behind bars at the Investigation Bureau.
The blonde youth sneered, "Don’t worry, we have no ill intentions towards you, at least not this time. You must be here for that ’thing,’ aren’t you? Well, that’s unfortunate; we at Rebirth consider it non-negotiable."
That ’thing’? What thing?
Neither Daniel nor Alex responded, not wanting to give themselves away.
The blonde youth chuckled, gestured to his companions, and they made their way towards the exit.
