The cries for help in the alley 323: 180.
The cries for help in the alley A homeless man curled up under a streetlamp near the eaves.
Beneath him was a layer of tarpaulin laid to block out the damp ground, though the coolness of the earth still managed to seep through his many layers of clothing and into his body.
That was how his predecessors had fallen ill.
This was one of the homes he had carefully chosen, just slightly inferior to the one where he usually stayed long-term—it was perfect in every way except for being too low-lying and not rainproof.
Every time it rained, it would turn into a stream, so most of the homeless who lived there sought other temporary shelters on rainy days.
I should move somewhere else, I’ll have to follow the others tomorrow…
The sleepless homeless man thought as he clutched his dirty clothes tighter.
He had thought this rain-sheltered streetlamp would attract many homeless people, but it was only him.
He had miscalculated; if there were others, at least they could huddle together for warmth, and if a patrolling officer came by, scattered companions could draw their attention…
He had heard people with jobs, standing under doorways smoking tobacco, complaining that tomorrow’s rain would be heavier and colder while he was picking up trash during the day.
So he must join the other homeless; being alone, he would definitely fall ill.
If only I still had one of my arms, I’d be just like them…
The homeless man thought, curling up even tighter and tucking his hands into his chest for warmth.
Hopefully, I can make it through the night.
In a half-dreaming, half-awake state, a noise suddenly reached his ears.
The homeless man jolted awake and prepared to gather up his tarpaulin to leave.
Except for the newcomers, seasoned homeless veterans had developed the habit of waking up at any disturbance—it often meant that officers had come looking.
Halfway through his action, the homeless man distinguished that the noise wasn’t from officers who loved to shout and curse at them but a cacophony of cries for help and frantic footsteps.
The homeless man didn’t want trouble, but his involuntary glance toward the source of the sound made him see a face filled with despair under the light of a streetlamp in the nearby Dark Alley, before it was yanked back by hands into the darkness.
The homeless man paused, then fished out a “dagger”—a sharp metal shard he had fashioned by flattening and sharpening a tin can.
The screams continued to echo through the night sky, and, swallowing hard, the homeless man suddenly gritted his teeth, gripped the “dagger,” and charged into the Dark Alley.
He didn’t forget to shout loudly, both to muster his courage and to wake the wealthy living nearby.
But as the homeless man stepped into the alley, the woman’s cries, the men’s sinister laughter, and his own courageous shouts, along with their shadowy figures, completely vanished without a trace.
It was as if nothing had happened.
Nearby, under the streetlamp, the warmth left by the previous occupant on the tarpaulin gradually faded.
In the distance, a carriage approached.
The carriage traveled along the desolate street.
The Champs Elysees District, located at the center of Himfast, usually housed the residences of the wealthy, indicating that the nearby infrastructure was better.
The crisp sound of horse hooves echoed down the street, just a few blocks away from where Mary lived.
As the carriage entered the lit area, Anna in the carriage noticed that Lu Li’s body was no longer tense.
“What happened?” Anna asked.
“Just some minor stuff,” Lu Li replied without turning back as he was about to inform Anna of the arrival of the Black Raven when a cry for help tore through the night.
Lu Li pulled the reins to a stop and looked towards the source of the cry for help several meters away.
This uncontrollably reminded him of the contents on the mailbox.
“I sense the presence of my kind…
The curtain falling onto the shoulder was pushed aside, and Anna whispered to Lu Li as she came from the carriage.
Lu Li felt it too—an overwhelming malice emanating from the alley that made it hard for him to breathe.
The lowered Sanity Value greatly enhanced Lu Li’s perception of those presences, even without using the Spirit-Calling Gun.
The note in the mailbox didn’t mention what encountering the “Cries from the Dark Alley” would entail, but it surely wasn’t anything good.
Lu Li picked up the reins, intending to leave the area, but Anna stopped him, “Don’t leave.
Its Soul Projection envelops this place, and we are within its ritual…
Leaving would subject us to an attack similar to what would happen if the ritual failed.”
Soul Projection is what vengeful spirits release during a ritual, and when the power reaches the evil spirit, the Soul Projection becomes the essence of those desouled ghosts.
This is why evil spirits always take various forms.
“Can we deal with it?” Lu Li calmly asked.
“The projection is slightly stronger than I am…” Anna squinted her eyes and clenched her fists, “But if it attacks you, I can protect you!”
Lu Li nodded, then suddenly said at that moment, “When you were in Mary’s room, a crow delivered a regional broadcast.
You can take it as a notice.
It described a new event, named ‘Cries from the Dark Alley’…”
Anna didn’t understand why Lu Li was bringing up past matters here.
After hearing the continuation, the confusion in Anna’s eyes faded, and she quietly waited for Lu Li to finish.
“It seems there’s no helpful information.”
“Yes, we’ll have to deal with it ourselves.”
“First, let’s observe the situation.”
Suddenly, amidst the continuous cries for help, the jumbled sound of running feet grew closer to the exit.
A disheveled, blood-stained woman’s face appeared at the edge of the Dark Alley, ghastly pale and blood-red under the streetlight.
She looked towards the carriage, opened her mouth as if to say something, but then several burly male arms reached out from the intense darkness behind her, grabbing her hair and cheeks and pulling her back into the alley.
Lu Li quietly watched.
The cries for help intermittently continued, and the sound of dragging gradually moved away from the alley entrance, mixed now with the sinister laughter of men.
A few seconds after the dragging noise ceased, a scream suddenly erupted from the alley.
Lu Li still quietly watched.
The cries for help ceased, completely replaced now by the screams and intermingled with the men’s sinister laughter.
The screams were so piercing and tragic, as if the darkest deeds were unfolding in the alley, that even Anna could not contain her emotions.
Her pupils flashed crimson, and her body leaned forward slightly, wanting to intervene and help.
Suddenly, she remembered something, turned her head to look at the motionless Lu Li, the crimson in her pupils faded, and her emotions gradually calmed down.
She knew Lu Li never made mistakes; if he acted this way, he had his reasons.
then surely the problem must be with the other party.
Lu Li continued to watch quietly.
The desperate screams lasted for two or three minutes, during which no nearby residents were awakened, nor did any passersby appear.
The screaming also began to fade, and tranquility returned to the area around the alley.
Anna still felt the tumultuous aura surrounding the alley; Lu Li still felt the oppression weighing on his chest.
Several seconds later, a slow, resentful female voice drifted out from the alley.
“Why didn’t you save me?”