“She was sitting under the persimmon tree in the yard, wearing a white dress. She still looked like a normal person, though her face was a bit pale and bluish. Postmaster Byrne was standing right next to her with his back to us, and we couldn't tell what he was saying to her.”
“We planned to wait until Postmaster Byrne left before talking to Isabella, so we hid quietly behind a haystack. But before we could even hear a word, Isabella suddenly whipped her head around and looked straight at where we were hiding. And then... she lost control.”
“It was so sudden, with absolutely no warning. Isabella's body, which had looked somewhat normal, began to twist and deform, merging... with the ground. Even more terrifying, the house itself began to sprout flesh and blood, becoming a part of her. It started spreading along the ground, trying to consume us.”
As she spoke, Lin Wan shuddered, her brow furrowing deeply in disgust as she recalled the scene. “I've never seen so many flies in my life. Their bellies were bursting with maggots, and they kept trying to fly into our ears, noses, and mouths.”
Flies, plague, Beelzebub?
Bai Ci wondered if the instances of Anomalous Infection had any connection to the mythological systems of the real world. She made a mental note to search the forums once she got back.
“Don't go into so much detail, I'm going to throw up again,” Chen Mo said, patting his chest to suppress his nausea. As the one who had to draw the monster's aggro, he had paid a heavy price.
“Oh, right, sorry,” Lin Wan replied. “Where was I? Postmaster Byrne was closest to Isabella, so he was eaten first. Then, she tried to eat us too.”
“We had no choice. We wanted to communicate, but in that situation, there was absolutely no room for negotiation. We had to fight.”
“Fortunately, she was still technically a biological entity, and we had bought bombs earlier. Once we wore her down with our ammunition, we threw a bomb right into her core.”
Lin Wan summarized the brutal battle in just a few sentences. She made it sound easy, but looking at their injuries, Bai Ci knew it had been anything but simple.
Having finished her story, she let out a long sigh of relief. “And that's how it went. We dealt with Isabella, and we set fire to the place before we left. The house, the flesh, and the flies all burned to ashes, ending the plague. We just didn't expect... that we still wouldn't be able to save Mr. Hugo...”
Bai Ci listened quietly. She had long guessed that Isabella wouldn't be in a good state, but she hadn't expected it to be this bizarre. Postmaster Byrne's ultimate fate was tragic, but perhaps it was simply the karmic retribution for his obsessive delusions.
Once Lin Wan finished speaking, Bai Ci slowly spoke in a calm tone, “I understand. You've worked hard. It's already a miracle that you all made it back alive.”
Her eyes swept over the injuries of the three, taking in their disheveled states. Looking at the sky darkening outside the window, she added, “Since you're all injured and it's not convenient for you to travel back, you can stay here for now. There are spare rooms. I'll go find some clean clothes and bedding for you.”
Over the next three days, the town gradually returned to its usual tranquility.
With Isabella's death, the plague vanished completely. Pedestrians gradually filled the streets again, the fatigue and anxiety on their faces largely dissipated.
Due to Postmaster Byrne's death and the prior chaos, the post office was temporarily closed.
Mrs. Ella, as the most senior employee, temporarily took charge of the post office's affairs.
Whether because she knew something or out of humanitarian concern, she took it upon herself to withdraw a portion of the remaining funds from the post office's account and delivered it to Bai Ci as compensation.
Bai Ci accepted the money. She needed it to pay for Hugo's funeral, as the funds she had brought with her were nearly depleted.
Hugo's burial site was chosen in a quiet, open spot, backed by green hills and facing open fields, offering a view of the distant landscape.
A simple tombstone was erected, engraved with the name "Hugo Durom" and a short line of small text: “May you rest in peace and find eternal tranquility.”
Not many people attended the funeral. There were only the four surviving colleagues from the post office, neighbors including Aunt Martha and Lena, and Evan, who had made a special trip to be there.
The funeral was simple, with no complex ceremonies. Bai Ci just stood quietly before the tombstone, holding a bouquet of white daisies. She didn't cry, her eyes reflecting only a quiet, sorrowful regret.
After the funeral ended, Lin Wan and Chen Mo walked over to Bai Ci's side.
Lin Wan looked at her, her tone carrying a hint of guilt. “Miss Lora, we have to leave now.”
Bai Ci nodded and looked at the two of them, a faint smile gracing her face. “Alright. Take care on your journey. Thank you for everything during this time.”
Chen Mo scratched his head, an awkward expression on his face. After venting his anger by cursing Zhao Yu on and off over the past few days, he had calmed down quite a bit. “No need to thank us. This was our goal to begin with. We're very sorry about Hugo.”
“It's not your fault,” Bai Ci shook her head. “You've already done wonderfully. Ending this plague has saved so many people.”
Lin Wan and Chen Mo offered a few more words of comfort before turning and leaving the cemetery.
As their figures gradually disappeared down the path, Bai Ci stood before the tombstone for a brief moment longer before turning to leave.
Just then, she noticed that Evan hadn't left with the others. He was still standing by the tombstone, his gaze fixed on the freshly turned earth, his expression complex and unreadable.
Bai Ci paused in her tracks and walked over to him. She didn't speak, choosing to wait quietly beside him.
After a long silence, Evan spoke in a low, quiet voice, half to himself and half to Bai Ci. “Even now, I still can't believe any of this is real. Edmond is dead, Byrne is dead, and Isabella became... that bizarre thing. It feels like the world has suddenly turned into something I can no longer understand.”
He raised his head to look at the distant fields, his eyes filled with confusion. “I've been a detective for years. I've met all kinds of people and handled all sorts of cases, but I've never seen anything like this.”
“What on earth did Isabella turn into? A monster? Or some kind of existence I don't know about? I can't wrap my head around it. I really can't.”
Looking at his bewildered state, Bai Ci spoke softly in a calm and gentle tone. “Perhaps the world has always had a side that ordinary people aren't meant to touch. Lin Wan and Chen Mo... they look like people who specialize in handling these kinds of situations.”
In the eyes of players, these anomalous events were a regular occurrence, but to an NPC, they would likely leave a lifelong trauma. Bai Ci was trying to gloss over and patch up Evan's crumbling worldview.
Evan nodded, agreeing deeply. “You're right. They really are different from us, each unique in their own way.”
“Take Lin Wan, for instance. Her strength is unbelievably abnormal. Back in that house, she literally ripped apart the fleshy tentacles Isabella wrapped around us. She even managed to sprint while carrying both Chen Mo and me to escape the explosion. That's simply impossible for a normal person.”
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