The Grim Reaper's Banquet (1) Part 2

Song Qingluo asked, “What about the last message they sent?”

He Huai'an said cautiously, “The last message said that this village has a huge problem. It might not just be an Aberration's influence; there might also be signs of human involvement...”

Song Qingluo nodded, indicating that he understood, and then scheduled a time with them to enter the village the next morning. The two nodded and quietly backed out of the room.

Song Qingluo lowered his head and continued to check the files, looking for anything he might have missed. He said, “If you're awake, get up.”

Lin Banxia popped his head out. “Good morning.”

“Morning,” Song Qingluo said. “I didn't mean to disturb your sleep, but this town is too small. I was afraid talking outside would arouse suspicion.” He turned his head to look at Lin Banxia. “Did you sleep well?”

“Quite well.” Lin Banxia slept well everywhere.

Song Qingluo said, “Let's have breakfast together, and take a look around while we're at it.”

Lin Banxia nodded. He quickly got dressed and went with Song Qingluo to grab a bite to eat in the small town. This town was also very remote. Song Qingluo observed his surroundings, bought a few things, and casually asked about the village. Perhaps because he was good-looking, the old lady selling things was very enthusiastic. She said with a smile, “Young man, why are you asking about that village? It's poor and remote, nobody wants to go there.”

Song Qingluo asked, “Has anything been happening in the village recently?”

“Happening?” the old lady said. “Something does seem to have happened, but we don't know the specifics.” At this point, she looked around and lowered her voice. “I'll tell you, but don't tell anyone else. I have a nephew who works at a funeral home. I heard that their village suddenly ordered dozens of coffins over a month ago... It's very strange.”

Song Qingluo said, “Oh, so that's how it is.”

“I don't know what you all are going there for, but I have to advise you against it,” the old lady said. “That place isn't easy to get to, and it's not easy to get out once you're there. If you're just curious, it's better not to go.”

Song Qingluo smiled, thanked the old lady, and left with Lin Banxia.

Lin Banxia pondered, “What kind of situation would cause so many people to suddenly die in a month? It's either a natural disaster or a man-made one. But even a serial killer couldn't do this, right? Could he make someone suddenly die of an allergic reaction?”

Song Qingluo said slowly, “That's not necessarily true.”

But inside, Lin Banxia was growing more and more curious.

After resting in the town for a day, buying all the necessary supplies, and filling up the car with gas, the four of them headed into the mountains the next morning.

However, as they were leaving the hotel, Song Qingluo took out his two dice, one black and one white, handed them to the two of them, and said softly, “Let's go through the motions.”

The two didn't find it strange at all. He Huai'an picked up the dice first, expertly taking both and tossing them onto the table. The nearly round dice rolled on the tabletop and quickly came to a stop. One black, one white, showing the numbers 3 and 4 respectively. Seeing this, Song Qingluo nodded and gestured for Mou Xinsi to continue. Mou Xinsi was a bit more nervous than He Huai'an. She took the dice, took a deep breath, and gently tossed them onto the table. When the dice stopped rolling, the black one showed a 4, and the white one showed a 5.

“What's going on?” Song Qingluo seemed displeased with these numbers, frowning as he glanced at Mou Xinsi.

Mou Xinsi said nervously, “I-I'm a little nervous. I didn't sleep well last night...”

Song Qingluo said, “Just didn't sleep well?”

Mou Xinsi gave a bitter smile. She said, “Yes... I really just didn't sleep well.”

Song Qingluo took the dice back and said nothing.

Mou Xinsi seemed afraid that Song Qingluo would reject her and quickly said a string of things. Song Qingluo didn't respond, merely looking coldly at He Huai'an.

He Huai'an said in a low voice, “Mr.... Song.” He couldn't quite bring himself to say Song Qingluo's name. “She's my new partner. Her last partner had an accident not long ago... so her mental state might be affected.”

Song Qingluo said softly, “Aren't you afraid something will happen to her in the village too?”

He Huai'an was at a loss for words.

“Have her go back,” Song Qingluo said. “I'm doing this for her own good.”

He Huai'an looked at Mou Xinsi. Mou Xinsi said in a low voice, “Mr. Song, I'm begging you, please let me go. I really need this money.”

Song Qingluo glanced at her, said nothing, and turned to leave. Lin Banxia and the other two were left staring at each other. Fearing they would come to him for help, Lin Banxia quickly followed Song Qingluo into the car. But before getting in, he still gave them a kind reminder that money could be earned anytime, but life was more important—though it wasn't very convincing coming from him.

In the end, Mou Xinsi still got in the car.

Song Qingluo drove, with Lin Banxia in the passenger seat. He Huai'an and Mou Xinsi, feeling guilty, didn't dare to make a sound. The atmosphere in the car was a bit gloomy for a while. Lin Banxia thought for a moment, then quietly took a bottle of Coke out of his backpack, twisted the cap off, and held it to Song Qingluo's lips.

Song Qingluo gave Lin Banxia a sideways glance but still took the bottle and sipped twice. He said, “What made you think of buying this?”

Lin Banxia said, “I saw it at the convenience store and bought it on the way.”

Song Qingluo asked, “Didn't buy a roasted sausage for yourself?”

Lin Banxia took a sip himself. “The convenience store didn't have any.”

Only then did much of the coldness in Song Qingluo's eyes dissipate.

The road to the village was a dirt road, just wide enough for one car to drive on. Because it had rained a few days ago, the road was even muddier. Fortunately, the car Song Qingluo was driving was a high-chassis SUV, otherwise, it would have been quite troublesome.

According to the file, the village was a four-hour drive from the town, and that was under good weather and road conditions. It seemed that reaching it in four hours was out of the question now. The road was winding and narrow, requiring full concentration to drive. Lin Banxia didn't dare to disturb Song Qingluo, sitting beside him and quietly playing on his phone. As he played, he suddenly remembered something. “Is there a cell signal in that village?”

“Cell signal?” He Huai'an chimed in. “There is a cell signal, it's just not very good when the weather is bad.”

Lin Banxia said, “Those two have been missing for four days, right? You haven't received any more news?”

“No,” He Huai'an said. “Actually, the Village Chief had been in contact with the outside before; he was the one who called the police. But later, the signal got worse and worse, and we couldn't contact him anymore... so no one has been communicating the situation to the outside.”

Lin Banxia asked curiously, “You guys go to places like this? Aren't you scared?”

He Huai'an glanced cautiously at Song Qingluo and said, “Actually, following Mr. Song... is very reassuring.”

Lin Banxia smiled. “So you're still scared, actually?”

He Huai'an nodded.

Lin Banxia comforted him, “Sometimes, being scared is a good thing.”

Fear is humanity's most basic defense mechanism. The fear of the night is just an instinct inherited from our ancestors' genes. Nocturnal beasts were more than capable of tearing fragile human bodies to shreds, and so, humanity carved the fear of the dark into its inherited bloodline.

Lin Banxia also felt fear, but by the time he felt it, everything was already over. This was a good thing, as he didn't have to indulge in fear, but it was also a bad thing, as he never knew where danger lay.

Lin Banxia was thinking when he heard Mou Xinsi say timidly from the back seat, “Mr. Song, did Mr. Lin forget to roll the dice? We haven't made a record yet...”

Lin Banxia froze upon hearing this.

Song Qingluo said, “He doesn't need to.”

Mou Xinsi asked, “Really? He doesn't need to?”

Song Qingluo said, “He doesn't.”

Mou Xinsi looked a bit surprised, probably thinking that the always-by-the-book Mr. Song would actually make an exception.

Lin Banxia sat beside him without daring to speak, holding the Pepsi bottle and sitting like a wooden statue, fiddling with his phone from time to time. After about an hour or two, Lin Banxia noticed the sky outside was gloomy and looked like it was about to rain again.

“Song Qingluo, it looks like it's going to rain again outside,” Lin Banxia said. “Should we drive a little faster?”

Song Qingluo glanced out the window, grunted in agreement, and stepped hard on the accelerator.

The author has something to say:

Song Qingluo: I'm very worried about my colleagues.

Lin Banxia: What's wrong?

Song Qingluo: It's getting cold. I wonder if their coffins are warm enough.

Lin Banxia: ............