Night Journey

Chapter 73 Urban Legend
Elton has recently hit a low point in his life.

Few people know that while working for the City Guard, Elton was also a radio host in his spare time.

Unfortunately, after several years of operation, Elton's audience has remained small. Due to the busyness of the City Guard and the depletion of his personal inspiration, even the few remaining listeners are now on the verge of leaving.

"Since it's all out of interest anyway, I might as well give it up completely and focus on my work."

Elton often questioned himself in this way.

The pressure of work, the dire financial situation, the hopeless future... no matter how ambitious Elton was, it could only turn into a helpless sigh.

Moreover, misfortunes never come singly.

The outbreak of the Tidal Night plunged the entire city of Hull into panic. Citizens frantically tried to move into the city, even if it was just a block away from the Lighthouse, as that was enough to give them a great sense of security.

Unfortunately, Elton's rented house was in a good location, and the landlord took the opportunity to raise the rent sharply.

"In other words, if I don't find a way to change my fate within a month, I'll be kicked out by my landlord."

Elton took a big gulp of beer and sighed, "I already have enough troubles at work. If this continues, I really won't have the energy to do any radio programs."

As he spoke, his eyes filled with tears.

"I...I don't want to give up my dream."

"Hey, relax, friend. Things will be better once this busy period is over. Don't think too badly of things."

At the table, Benny patted Elton on the back, comforting him.

Benny was one of Elton's few friends; the two met through shared interests and the Yanxun radio station.

Elton shook his head. "No...you don't understand."

“How could I not understand?” Benny said with an air of knowing everything. “You say it’s for the sake of a larger audience, but actually, you’re just thinking about her, aren’t you?”

Elton froze, unsure of what to do.

"You guessed right!"

Benny burst into laughter.

“I knew it. You wanted to make the radio station bigger, not for fame, but just so she could hear it.”

He then joked, "Your current dejected look isn't because your audience has dwindled, is it? Over the years, your audience has remained the same few people; you should be used to it by now."

Benny lit a cigarette and mumbled incoherently.

"Let me guess, is it because she hasn't been contacting you much lately?"

Elton was silent for a long time, then said in a low voice, "Do you know you're annoying?"

"Ha ha!"

Benny couldn't stop laughing.

They got up, paid the bill, and the two of them, drunk, wandered aimlessly through the streets.

“She is part of it, but another part is that my financial situation is really bad and I need some extra money,” Elton muttered. “You know, Yanxun Radio is a very expensive thing.”

What about the house your parents left you?

Benny knew about Elton's family situation; his parents had died in an accident long ago, but fortunately, they left him some property.

Elton smiled wryly, "It's rented out. If it weren't for this rent, I would be in even worse shape."

"Ugh……"

Benny looked up at the sky. It was already late at night, and there were only a few scattered figures on the streets and alleys.

Suddenly, he lowered his voice, "Elton, I have a way to revitalize your radio station."

"any solution?"

Elton's eyes widened.

"What do people like to hear? Nothing more than tense, exciting, and mind-bending things."

Benny paused, then gave an example, "For instance, certain...urban legends."

Elton said instinctively.

"Reverse Falcon?"

“No, no, no,” Benny scoffed. “The Reverse Falcon is an outdated urban legend. It’s something only my dad’s generation believed in. No young people these days know about it.”

Benny glanced at the dark corner and remarked, "People need something newer, something more exciting."

"for example?"

“You’re an employee of the City Guard, you should know more than I do,” Benny patted Elton on the back. “Isn’t the City Guard constantly arresting Chaos cultists in the city? Just talk about it, and you’ll definitely set the whole city on fire.”

Elton exclaimed alarmed, "Are you crazy? This is a leak."

“I didn’t say I was going to tell the truth. We can make up whatever we want,” Benny said cautiously. “Guess how I got so many listeners? Don’t worry, I’m very good at this kind of thing.”

"forget it."

Elton shook his head firmly. Although he was just an ordinary person, as a civilian worker in the City Guard Bureau, he was well aware of the risks of such behavior.

"Alright alright."

Benny didn't insist. He put his arm around Elton's shoulder, and the two stumbled along, turning into the wrong alley at some unintentional moment.

Under the influence of alcohol, Elton was unaware of the changes in his surroundings until his feet stepped on something sticky, like a pool of blood that had been dried in the sun for a long time, the water evaporated, leaving behind viscous blood plasma.

Elton blinked, and before he knew it, he had walked into a dark, narrow alley... no, it wasn't an alley, but an underground water channel.

“Ben…Bennie?” Elton called out to his friend, only to see a cold, indifferent face.

“I’m sorry, Elton, I owe a lot of money to loan sharks. They said that if I bring you here, the debt will be wiped clean and they can even help me get rid of it.”

Benny pulled down his clothes, revealing a sharp claw tattoo etched on his abdomen.

A dense hum of sounds came from all directions, like hundreds of billions of ants crawling along the wall.

Elton instinctively took a step back, but felt a sticky, clinging sensation under his feet.

He looked down and realized that countless pale mycelia had covered the ground, baring their fangs and claws, trying to entwine his ankles and calves, and even devour him completely.

"Quiet."

A murky sound rang out, and the restless mycelia retreated, moving away from Elton.

"Sorry, I startled you, friend."

The owner of the voice approached and continued speaking.

"Don't worry, we won't contaminate you. After all, you still have to go back to work at the City Sanitation Bureau. It wouldn't be good if someone found out."

Elton recognized the newcomer; pale mycelium was growing from the person's mouth, nose, and ears, swaying wildly and completely covering the entire face.

"You...what are you going to do?"

Elton's heart raced and he broke out in a cold sweat. As a clerical worker, he had never been on the front lines, let alone confronted the forces of chaos head-on.

Panic and despair filled Elton's mind, but he forced himself to remain rational.

"It's nothing, I just want you to do me a favor, but to avoid any accidents, I need to place a mark on you."

Elton was no stranger to the concept of engravings, and Valerie immediately came to mind.

As Cillian said, Valerie's goal was to infiltrate the City Guard, and once she was exposed, the enemy desperately needed another infiltrator.

"damn it!"

Elton struggled to get his shoes off the sticky shoe and ran backward, only to be met with a heavy punch from Benny.

"Stop resisting, just help me out."

Benny restrained Elton and whispered, "On the bright side, if you become one of them, maybe you can leave Hull City, right?"

"You bastard!"

Elton repeatedly struck Benny's body, but the suffocating feeling in his throat grew stronger, and the figure entangled with countless mycelium was getting closer and closer to him.

Suddenly, a cold evening breeze swept in, and the distinct chill made Elton a little more alert.

He heard it.

"Cuckoo..."

A low, mournful bird call came from behind me. The sound seemed familiar, as if I had heard it somewhere before.

"Cuckoo..."

The sound grew closer, accompanied by a sharp, piercing sound.

Elton felt much less suffocated in his throat, and then something wet and slightly sticky landed on him and slipped into his clothes.

He turned his head, and the stench of blood hit him.

"Ben...Benny?"

His former friend was looking at him with a look of despair, his hands covering his throat, but blood was still seeping out from between his fingers.

"help me……"

These were Benny's last words.

The next moment, the hook that had pierced his throat tightened sharply, dragging Benny's body backward.

In mid-air, the fragile neck was completely torn apart, the head separated from the body, and it crashed to the ground in a sorry state, spurting out a large amount of blood.

A hazy mist rose from the end of the blood, and blurry figures appeared and disappeared.

"Cuckoo..."

Six eyes illuminated the darkness.

Elton's heart stopped for a moment.

As Benny said, his legend was already a story from the older generation. Elton had only seen a vague figure of him in some materials, and sometimes he even began to doubt the authenticity of it all.

Until today, he reappeared and stood before me.

"Reverse Falcon..."

As Elton muttered to himself, the Reverse Falcon sped away, and in the instant the two passed each other, a deep, hoarse voice rang out.

"Get out of here."

The Falcon plunged headlong into the overgrown, pale hell, while Elton ran towards the outside world without looking back.

He only stopped walking after Elton returned to the brightly lit streets.

Despite narrowly escaping death, Elton felt no lingering fear or panic. On the contrary, he was very calm, and even felt a slight...joy.

Elton gazed at the deep darkness of the night and muttered to himself.

“The Falcon… is back.”

(End of this chapter)