Chapter 17 - 17 Seventeen

Words : 1311 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

17: Seventeen. Madam Anne’s Art Gallery 17: Seventeen. Madam Anne’s Art Gallery Benjamin Allen was a middle-aged man with a plump figure and thin hair, unexpectedly warm and friendly, perhaps due to being aware of Lu Li’s identity. “Have you really decided to take the night shift at the gallery? With Mr. Lu Li here, the nights in the gallery should be very peaceful now.” “Let’s talk about the haunting.” Accompanied by the gallery owner, the two men walked through the sparsely visited, desolate gallery. Benjamin’s body visibly stiffened: “Mr. Lu Li is really humorous, this gallery has never had any—” “If that were the case, you wouldn’t have welcomed me so warmly,” Lu Li said in a calm voice that spared no mercy. “...Alright, the gallery at night might indeed experience some strange phenomena, but they are harmless.” That was also why Lu Li was here. The few night-shift workers who had resigned were unharmed and healthy to this day, which meant that even if there were hauntings, they were relatively harmless. This was a perfect opportunity for Lu Li, a novice exorcist, to practice his skills. Benjamin sighed as he recounted the eerie events that occurred at night, such as the ghost of a former female employee who wandered around and would ask the living if they had seen her child, or the ghost of a female employee whose eyes had been gouged out, as well as some sculptures and paintings that would come to life at night. “When did these happen?” “After coming to Belfast,” Benjamin replied. “Are you saying that these incidents had happened long ago, but only started appearing after coming to Belfast?” “That’s correct,” Benjamin confirmed. The parts of the gallery that were open to the public were only on the first floor, while the second floor was used for storage, staff rest areas, and other internal facilities not open to visitors. After viewing dozens of exhibits, Lu Li, who hadn’t touched the Spirit-Calling Gun, couldn’t detect anything unusual about them. “This information isn’t enough, I need to know more,” Lu Li stated. After a quick glance on the second floor, the two men returned downstairs, taking the same route back. Benjamin said with a bitter smile, “I’ve already told you everything I know, what else does Mr. Lu Li want to know?” “You could contact those former night-shift workers; they would know a lot.” Benjamin thought of someone and called out, “Franklin! Franklin would definitely know something!” Franklin was a local who had become the first night-shift worker after the gallery opened in Belfast and had also worked the longest in this position. He had spent a full fortnight on night duty in the gallery, and it was during this time that rumors of paranormal events started to circulate. “What was the reason he resigned?” “Er... I was only willing to pay 8 Shillings a day for the job.” Lu Li said nothing, his gaze moving between the oil paintings and sculptures on the walls. “What do night-shift workers need to do?” “They need to protect the exhibits at night, preventing theft or fire.” Fires were frequent in Belfast, perhaps due to the necessity of having light at night. “I will stay tonight to take the night shift, but I need to understand more about the situation. While there is still some time before darkness, you go and contact Franklin, who used to work here, and ask him about all the phenomena that appear at night.” “Isn’t it unnecessary to go through such trouble when you are here—” Lu Li once again interrupted Benjamin, “Right now, these are just ordinary supernatural events, but can you guarantee they won’t escalate into ghosts harming people? Guests come to the gallery to appreciate art, not to be haunted by ghosts.” Nothing could make a capitalist more desperate than not earning money. Hearing about the possible future that Lu Li described, Benjamin no longer procrastinated and had an employee show Lu Li around while he rushed to contact Franklin. Time relentlessly moved toward evening, and the sound of ship horns from the port never ceased. The gloomy sky grew darker, and the number of pedestrians on the streets started dwindling as the sound of closing doors echoed from surrounding shops. Shortly after the last visitor had left, Benjamin finally returned, bringing with him an envelope. “So I’ll leave the night shift to you then, if there really are ghosts—” “I hope my commission isn’t reduced.” “Certainly, certainly ...” As Benjamin and the other gallery staff left, the noise ceased. The desolate gallery was left with only Lu Li. Serenity and darkness encroached on Lu Li, whom the oil lamp illuminated a few meters away. The night duty post was right behind the main door, where a table and wooden chair were positioned; this spot served as the ticket booth during the day. Lu Li opened the envelope, reading its contents by the light of the oil lamp. [Hey, that stingy boss told me he actually hired an Exorcist for the night shift, I can hardly believe it. Whether he’s telling the truth or not, brother, you’ve taken over this mess. If you’re not an Exorcist, I advise you to quit while you can because there really are ghosts in the gallery.] Lu Li raised his eyes, glancing at the dark corridor in front of him, and continued reading. [If you are an Exorcist, then please fleece that balding man mercilessly after you’ve exorcised the ghosts. He is truly stingy.] [Enough chit-chat, that guy is still waiting beside me.] [There are two ghosts in the gallery, they were once employees of the gallery and then died under some, um, circumstances, transforming into spirits that wander the gallery at night, every night.] [You’ll see one ghost with a dress all blood-stained; she’s the spirit of a female employee who died in childbirth. She will unconsciously ask, “Have you seen my child?” multiple times each night. Just respond with ‘I haven’t seen them,’ and you should be fine.] [You’ll also see a ghost lacking eyeballs; she’s the spirit of a female employee who was murdered. If you spot her around, you just need to stay quiet and not make a sound. If you accidentally make noise, well, you’re an Exorcist, so it shouldn’t be a problem.] [Aside from those two wandering spirits, there are some problematic paintings and sculptures in the gallery. First about the sculpture, it’s somewhere near a wheat field oil painting or somewhere, I can’t quite remember] Upon reading this, Lu Li picked up the oil lamp and walked towards the hallway, seeing the sculpture mentioned in the envelope at the middle of the corridor: a gray stone sculpture with the appearance of a woman. [This mischievous fellow might wander around when unattended; once, I saw it almost jump out of a second-floor window. I hurriedly moved it back to its original spot. If you see it out of place, just move it back, unless you plan to exorcise it then forget what I said.] [Next is about that painting, the girl in the painting is named Anna; you may not know her, but if I say she is Madam Anne’s daughter, you should understand. She becomes active in the painting after nightfall.] Lu Li, holding the oil lamp, moved forward and saw, about ten meters away from the sculpture, the painting mentioned in the envelope. In the painting was a beautiful young girl in a Gothic white gown, her features delicate and doll-like. The darkness had now completely settled. From behind, a strange noise of stone scraping against floor suddenly echoed in the darkness. [That’s basically it] [Lastly] [Wishing you a wonderful night]

Chapter 17 - 17 Seventeen

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