Chapter 120: One Hundred Twenty-Seven, Affectionate Yet Troubled by Ruthlessness

One Hundred Twenty-Seven, Affectionate Yet Troubled by Ruthlessness

"I am a failure. I barely notice whether the sun is shining or not, because I have no time.

"My parents couldn't provide me with any support, my education isn't high, and I am all alone in the city, searching for a future.

"I found many jobs, but I couldn't get hired. Perhaps no one likes someone who isn't good at speaking, doesn't like to communicate, and hasn't shown enough ability."

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"I went three whole days eating only two loaves of bread. Hunger kept me from sleeping at night. Fortunately, I had paid a month's rent in advance, so I could continue living in that dark basement, without having to go outside and endure the abnormally cold winter wind.

"Finally, I found a job, working the night shift at a hospital, guarding the morgue.

"The hospital at night is even colder than I imagined. The wall lamps in the corridor aren't lit, and it's dim everywhere. I can only rely on the little bit of light seeping out from the rooms to help me see my feet.

"The smell there is terrible. From time to time, the deceased are brought in stuffed into body bags, and we help move them into the morgue.

"This isn't a very good job, but at least it allows me to afford bread. The free time at night can also be used for studying. After all, no one wants to come to the morgue unless there are bodies that need to be delivered or transported for cremation. Of course, I don't have enough money to buy books yet, and I don't see any hope of saving money for now.

"I have to thank my former colleague. If he hadn't suddenly quit, I might not have even been able to get a job like this.

"I dream of being able to rotate to the day shift. Now, I always sleep when the sun comes out and get up after night falls, which has made my body a bit weak, and my head occasionally throbs with pain.

"One day, the movers brought in a new body.

"I heard from others that this was my former colleague who had suddenly quit.

"I was a bit curious about him. After everyone left, I pulled out the cabinet and quietly opened the body bag.

"He was an old man, his face blue and white, covered in wrinkles, looking very frightening in the very dim light.

"He didn't have much hair, most of it was white, and all his clothes had been stripped off, not even leaving him a scrap of fabric."

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"I saw a strange mark on his chest, blue-black. I can't describe exactly what it looked like; the light at the time was really too dim.

"I reached out and touched that mark, but there was nothing special.

"Looking at this former colleague, I wondered, if I keep going like this, when I get old, will I end up like him..."

"I told him that tomorrow I would accompany him to the crematorium and personally take his ashes to the nearest free cemetery, so that those responsible for these things wouldn't find it troublesome and just throw them in some random river or wasteland.

"This will sacrifice a morning of my sleep, but fortunately, it's Sunday soon, so I can make it up.

"After saying that, I fixed the body bag and shoved it back into the cabinet.

"The light in the room seemed to get even dimmer..."

"Since that day, every time I sleep, I always dream of a thick fog.

"I have a premonition that something will happen soon, a premonition that sooner or later, something that I don't know if I can call human will come looking for me. But no one is willing to believe me; they think that in such an environment and such a job, my mind has become abnormal and I need to see a doctor..."

A male guest sitting at the bar looked at the storyteller who had suddenly stopped:

"And then?"

This male guest was in his thirties, wearing a brown tweed jacket and light yellow trousers. His hair was pressed very flat, and he had a simple dark round top hat by his side.

He looked ordinary, just like most people in the tavern: black hair, light blue eyes, not good-looking, but not ugly, lacking any obvious features.

And the storyteller in his eyes was a young man of eighteen or nineteen, with a tall, straight figure and slender limbs. He also had short black hair and light blue eyes, but his features were deep and striking, enough to make one's eyes light up.

This young man looked at the empty wine glass in front of him and sighed:

"And then?

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"Then I quit my job and went back to the countryside to come here and brag to you."

As he spoke, a smile appeared on his face, a smile with a hint of mischief.

The male guest was stunned for a moment:

"The things you just told were bragging?"

"Haha." A burst of laughter erupted around the bar.

When the laughter subsided slightly, a thin, middle-aged man looked at the slightly embarrassed guest and said:

"Outsider, you actually believed Lumian's story? He tells a different one every day. Yesterday he was a loser whose engagement was broken by his fiancée because of poverty, and today he's become a morgue guard!"

"Right, talking about thirty years on the east side of the Serenzo River, thirty years on the right side of the Serenzo River, he only knows how to babble nonsense!" another tavern regular followed up.

They were all farmers from this large village of Cordu, wearing short jackets that were black, gray, or brown.

The black-haired young man called Lumian propped himself up on the bar with both hands, stood up slowly, and said with a smile:

"You know, this isn't a story I made up; it was all written by my sister. She loves writing stories the most and is even a columnist for some 'Novel Weekly'."

After speaking, he turned his body, spread his hands toward the outsider, and smiled brightly:

"It seems she writes really well.

"I'm sorry for misleading you."

The man in the brown tweed jacket with ordinary looks didn't get angry; he stood up as well and smiled in response:

"A very interesting story.

"What should I call you?"

"Isn't it common sense to introduce yourself before asking others?" Lumian laughed.

The guest from out of town nodded:

"My name is Ryan Cos.

"These two are my companions, Valentine and Leah."

The latter sentence referred to the man and woman sitting right next to him.

The man was twenty-seven or twenty-eight, his yellow hair dusted with powder. His eyes, not particularly large, were a shade deeper than lake blue. He wore a white vest, a blue fine-wool coat, and black trousers, clearly having dressed up carefully before going out.

He had a rather cold expression and didn't look much at the surrounding farmers and herdsmen.

The woman looked younger than the two men, her light gray hair tied into a complex bun, wrapped in a white veil that served as a hat.

Her eyes were the same color as her hair, and the look she directed at Lumian carried undisguised amusement, as if she only found what had just happened interesting.

Under the light of the tavern's gas wall lamp, this woman named Leah revealed a pert nose and beautifully curved lips. In a countryside village like Cordu, she could definitely be called a beauty.

She wore a white, unpleated cashmere tight-fitting dress, paired with a beige little coat and a pair of Marsil long boots. There were two small silver bells tied to her veil and boots respectively. When she walked into the tavern just now, she jingled all the way, which was very eye-catching, making many men stare straight at her.

In their eyes, this must be the kind of fashionable attire only found in big cities like the provincial capital Bigor or the capital Trier.

Lumian nodded to the three outsiders:

"My name is Lumian Lee. You can call me Lumian directly."

"Lee?" Leah blurted out.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem with my surname?" Lumian asked curiously.

Ryan Cos explained for Leah:

"This surname of yours is terrifying. I almost couldn't control my voice just now."

Seeing the surrounding farmers and herdsmen looking puzzled, he explained further:

"Anyone who has had contact with sailors or sea merchants knows that there is a saying circulating on the Five Seas:

"Better to encounter those pirate generals or even kings than to run into a person named Frank Lee.

"That person's surname is also Lee."

"Is he very scary?" Lumian asked.

Ryan shook his head:

"I'm not sure, but since there is such a legend, it definitely won't be bad."

He ended the topic and said to Lumian:

"Thank you for your story. It's worth a drink. What would you like?"

"A 'Green Fairy'." Lumian was not at all polite and sat back down.

Ryan Cos frowned slightly:

"'Green Fairy'... Absinthe?

"I think I need to remind you that absinthe is harmful to the human body. This kind of wine can lead to mental confusion and cause you to have hallucinations."

"I didn't expect the fashion trends of Trier to have spread here already." Leah added with a smile from the side.

Lumian said "Oh":

"So people in Trier also like to drink 'Green Fairy'...

"For us, life is already hard enough. There's no need to care about a little more harm. This kind of wine can let our spirits get greater relaxation."

"Alright." Ryan sat back in his seat and looked at the bartender, "A 'Green Fairy', and add a 'Spicy Heart' for me."

"Spicy Heart" is a famous fruit shochu.

"Why don't you give me a 'Green Fairy' too? I was the one who told you the truth just now, and I can even tell you the situation of this kid from beginning to end!" The thin middle-aged man who first exposed Lumian for telling stories every day shouted with dissatisfaction, "Outsider, I can see that you still have doubts about whether that story is true or false!"

"Pierre, you really can do anything for a free drink!" Lumian responded loudly.

Without waiting for Ryan to make a decision, Lumian added:

"Why can't I tell it myself? That way I can drink another 'Green Fairy'?"

"Because they don't know whether to believe the situation you're talking about." The middle-aged man named Pierre laughed triumphantly, "The story your sister loves to tell children the most is 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf'. People who always lie will inevitably lose their credibility."

"Alright." Lumian shrugged his shoulders and watched the bartender push a glass of pale green wine in front of him.

Ryan looked at him and asked for confirmation:

"Is it okay?"

"No problem, as long as your wallet is enough to pay for these drinks." Lumian didn't care at all.

"Then another 'Green Fairy'." Ryan nodded.

Pierre was suddenly all smiles:

"Generous outsider, this kid is the biggest prankster in the village. You must stay away from him.

"Five years ago, he was brought back to the village by his sister Aurore and has never left since. Think about it, before that, he was only thirteen. How could he possibly go to a hospital to be a morgue guard? Hmm, the nearest hospital to us is in Daliege at the foot of the mountain, which takes a whole afternoon to walk to."

"Brought back to the village?" Leah asked keenly.

She tilted her head slightly, producing a jingling sound.

Pierre nodded:

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"Then, he followed Aurore and took the surname 'Lee', and even the name 'Lumian' was chosen by Aurore."

"I've forgotten what I was originally called." Lumian drank a sip of absinthe and said with a grin.

It seemed that he was not at all inferior or ashamed about his past being exposed like this.