Chapter Eighty-Nine: Something Is Amiss

At the station in Shale there were still gas lamps, but in the town itself there was no public lighting in the streets, except for lamps hung outside places like inns. When many people were sent off in groups to their lodgings, they could only follow the residents who had come to receive them, and the light was provided by a kerosene lamp in the resident’s hand.

The one guiding Mulan was a man with a slight injury to his left leg. He walked at the front, slightly to the side, holding up a lantern and thoughtfully keeping its glow trained as much as possible on the ground beneath Mulan and Hendrel. Beside him another man, also carrying a lantern, walked ahead.

Though he had a lame leg, the man did not walk slowly; if anything, he was faster than an ordinary person. Like the Shale resident in front, he had a hunting rifle slung over his back.

“Gentlemen, mind your step. Some of the paving stones are loose, and if you are careless you might trip. There are also shallow holes in some places, so please be careful not to step into them.”

“Thank you. We’ll be careful. It seems Shale rarely has visitors.”

Mulan asked casually, and the man answered with a smile.

“It really is rare. But don’t let Shale fool you as it is now. When I was a boy, it was a lively place.”

“Yes, I’ve seen mention of that in books.”

Mulan and the man exchanged a few words now and then, mostly about the town of Shale.

Hendrel followed silently behind, and beside him walked another silent figure: the same man who had spoken with Mulan earlier on the train.

In truth, the three of them were headed to two different households. The reason Mulan had chosen the man with the lame leg was precisely because he had seen him arrive laughing and talking with the other man, clearly a friend, or more likely a nearby neighbor. Since the sallow-faced passenger had chosen one of the two, Mulan simply chose the other.

The two Shale residents walking in front maintained a brisk pace, frequently urging the three behind them to keep up.

“We’ve walked so long already. When will we get there?”

The silent, sallow-faced man suddenly asked this, and the resident with the lame leg hurriedly replied with a smile.

“Soon, soon. It’s mainly because we’re not walking very fast. At most another ten minutes.”

The Shale resident walking ahead looked back and muttered under his breath:

“City folk really are precious.”

Mulan and Hendrel pretended not to hear the complaint behind them, but in truth their pace was not slow by ordinary standards. If the other passengers were the same, someone would probably already be gasping for breath.

Hearing the complaint from ahead, the passenger’s face grew even more unpleasant. To be honest, even at night Mulan felt that this face belonged to someone who had long been owed a great deal of money. Still, he said nothing.

The man leading the way kept hurrying forward, from time to time raising his eyes to the full moon above. The lame-legged man, who was in charge of lighting Mulan’s path, also glanced at the moon now and then.

Mulan and Hendrel took note of these actions, but did not expose them immediately.

The surroundings seemed to grow more and more secluded, though the whole town of Shale was hardly better off. Outside, on the contrary, it felt somewhat nicer, at least with a touch of rustic charm.

About ten or so minutes later, the two pairs were to part ways. The man in front took the sallow-faced passenger down a side road, while the resident with the lame leg continued forward with Mulan and Hendrel.

“Do they live far apart?”

Hendrel asked directly the question that concerned Mulan. He knew the professor had been paying attention to that passenger.

“Not far, not far. They’re neighbors. It’s only a minute or two to their house. Look, the house ahead is mine.”

Ahead stood a small two-story house, with warm yellow light spilling from its windows.

“Mm, then I’ll pay you the lodging fee first.”

Mulan thoughtfully brought up the matter of payment and handed the six small silver coins in his hand to the man, who accepted them with great delight and immediately quickened his steps.

“Come, come. There’s still some soup at home to warm you up.”

“Knock, knock, knock. Open the door! I’ve brought the guests back. Is the soup ready?”

The man crossed the last stretch in a few steps and knocked for his family to open the door.

When the door opened, there stood a middle-aged woman in an apron, a tall thin young man whose face still carried some trace of youth, and three children whose ages were obviously in descending order.

“This is my wife, and these four are my children. These two are honored guests from Digao. Is the soup ready?”

“It’s ready, it’s ready! It’s hot!”

The woman gave a somewhat nervous smile, gripping her apron as she pulled the children aside to make room for her husband and the two guests to come in. The couple also wanted to help carry the luggage, but Mulan and Hendrel both declined.

In a place like the countryside, not having gas lamps installed was perfectly normal. In the kitchen, two candles were lit. The man set his kerosene lamp on the table and blew out the candle beside it, using the lamp as light instead, which made the room much brighter.

Mulan and Hendrel sat down by the table. The four children stood against the wall, watching them with curiosity and a little unease, while the two parents busied themselves at the stove, lifting pots and washing bowls, and of course speaking quietly to one another.

The woman asked the man in a low voice:

“How much?”

“Six silver dinars! Brand-new Empress silver coins minted by the Empire!”

“Heh, heh, heh...”

The couple looked very pleased. In a rural place like Shale, six silver dinars was not much for an ordinary family, but as extra income it was certainly considerable.

“Come, come, drink some soup. It tastes wonderful, and there are even bones with meat on them!”

Two bowls of thick soup were served up, steaming hot, though not looking very scalding. Clearly they had been leftovers from dinner and only reheated in the evening. Mulan and Hendrel did not mind, however. On such a frighteningly cold night, a bowl of hot soup always felt wonderful going down.

“Thank you.”
“Thank you.”

Mulan and Hendrel thanked them, lifted their spoons, and took a sip, then looked up with smiles.

“The soup is delicious.”

Then Mulan simply gave up the spoon and lifted the bowl to drink. Hendrel, who had originally been very gentlemanly, holding the small wooden spoon and sipping one mouthful at a time, saw Mulan’s example and immediately abandoned the spoon as well, raising the bowl to drink.

The actions of these two “city people” also brought smiles to the family’s faces.

“Oh, right, gentlemen, what exactly happened to your train? Why did it stop in Shale in the middle of the night?”

Unlike the residents who had gone to help at the station first, this group had not been informed about what had happened there. Mulan glanced at Hendrel and said offhandedly:

“There was some trouble on the train, and it was damaged, so it wasn’t suitable to keep running. Besides, everyone was exhausted and needed a proper rest.”

“Oh, I see. By the way, I should remind you both: in Shale, it’s best not to go out at night. Of course, since you’re only staying temporarily, you surely won’t wander about carelessly.”

“Of course not. Only if we need to go out for convenience.”

Mulan answered with a smile. In a family like this, when one needed to relieve oneself at night, one either used a bucket or went outside.

“Heh-heh, it’s best to use the wooden bucket, around the corner on the other side of the corridor.”

...

A few minutes later, the two were brought by the man of the house to the end of the upstairs corridor. There was only one room, but it contained two beds. Clearly, Mulan and Hendrel had taken over the room of two boys.

The man of the house gave a few more reminders before leaving the room, leaving Mulan and Hendrel alone. Hendrel walked to the door, looked outside, and quietly closed it.

“Hendrel, what do you think?”

“They’re hiding something from us. From the way they kept looking at the moon, maybe the people of Shale know something about werewolves.”

Mulan sat down on one bed and shook his head slightly.

“Perhaps they’ve heard some unpleasant tales. Be on your guard when you sleep, but in Shale town itself, it should not be a major problem.”

Hendrel sat on the other bed and took off his hat, loosening his collar.

“Professor, where are the werewolves hiding?”

Mulan looked out the window. On such a bright moonlit night, the outlines of the distant mountains were clearly visible. Although their train had gone on for a while afterward, it had basically been circling around the mountains, so by distance alone they may not have gone very far from the place of the attack—at least not as far as the passengers imagined. Ordinary passengers, however, had not realized this.

“In the mountains over there. There are labyrinthine mine tunnels everywhere. This place called Shale is problematic.”

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