Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 62 Special Rewards
[Mission "Dead by Daylight" Completed]

[Time taken: s]

Survey efficiency: S

[Impact/Effect: S]

Overall Rating: SSS

Li Wei wasn't surprised by this evaluation. If he had run away or chosen to back down, his mission evaluation might have been lower. But he had already gone ahead and argued his way out of it, and won, so there was no way he would get a low evaluation.

[Received Rewards]

[Lifespan +100, additional +50]

Yes, that's normal.

Li Wei glanced at the screen and wasn't surprised; this meant he had gained another six months to live. Although he had used Shadow Movement and Death Eye several times in the battle with the Ghost Knight, and had kept Soul Vision active the entire time, effectively wasting several days' worth of life, it now seemed the return on investment was substantial.

Next is the point.

[Special Reward: Skill Level +1]

Li Wei delayed claiming the reward mainly because he valued this.

Skill level.

This word may seem ordinary, but it can be really useful when needed.

Currently, Li Wei has four skills: [Soul Vision (LV1)], [Death Eye (LV1)], [Shadow Movement (LV1)], and [Puppeteer (LV1)].

And these skills, of course, also have a level of proficiency required.

Li Wei calculated that, basically, the more lifespan a skill consumes, the faster its proficiency increases.

For example, with skills like Shadow Movement, Li Wei gains approximately 3% proficiency with each use. Meanwhile, the basic skill Soul Vision gains only 0.5% proficiency per use, somewhat implying that "time spent = proficiency gained."

That makes perfect sense. If different skills required the same proficiency level, it would be unfair. Besides, this is about consuming your life force, not MP; you can't do it without some kind of boost.

Therefore, although Shadow Movement was the last skill Li Wei acquired, its proficiency has already reached 55%, and Death's Eye's proficiency is also 50%, while Soul Vision's proficiency is currently less than 40%.

Li Wei is now facing a dilemma: should he use this special reward to directly upgrade [Puppeteer] to LV2, or wait for [Shadow Movement] to level up to LV2 on its own before upgrading it to LV3?

This kind of thing that can directly upgrade a skill by one level is considered a powerful weapon in the game. As players know, in many games, skills are easy to upgrade in the early stages, but become increasingly difficult to upgrade in the later stages.

Compared to [Soul Vision], the [Puppeteer] skill level up much slower, perhaps because it doesn't consume lives. Li Wei couldn't even accurately measure its proficiency increase value, but it's definitely lower than [Soul Vision].

This is also what Li Wei is struggling with.

The [Puppeteer] skill is indeed very useful, and after upgrading, Li Wei can imagine that the range he can control and the size of the puppets will further expand. Judging from this battle, the [Puppeteer] skill is indeed very useful. And with an even larger range, Li Wei could even deploy a low-altitude drone for reconnaissance.

However, [Shadow Shift] is also important as a survival skill. Fortunately, the enemy this time was a melee class with a limited attack range, so kiting from a distance wasn't impossible. But if you encounter ranged enemies in the future, it would be best to be able to run a hundred or two hundred meters in an instant, then you'd be fearless.

Similarly, if you want to eliminate a target, you can prepare from 100 meters away, move there, take action, and then move back out.

It's even cleaner than a secret room.

It seems simple, but it determines Li Wei's current choice. In game terms, it means choosing between a hunter-pet style or a stealth assassination style.

"Um……………"

Li Wei stared at the system interface before him, hesitated for a moment, and finally decided... to directly upgrade [Puppeteer] to [LV2]. Soon, the system notified Li Wei that his control range had reached 150 meters, and he could control 2 puppets at the same time.

He had previously considered getting a drone, especially one equipped with [Soul Vision]—an infrared-scanning drone, which would be incredibly convenient for a detective. A kitten can crawl through sewers, but it can't fly. If Li Wei were to create another flying puppet, he could almost guarantee flawless reconnaissance both on land and in the air.

After all, the prescribed altitude for low-altitude drones is only about 100 meters, which is about right.

I'll go back and discuss it with Eileen again.

Having determined the next steps, Li Wei breathed a sigh of relief. Eileen had a real talent and ability in this area; she could even make small toys out of spare parts. According to Eileen, she had always dreamed of opening a steam engine shop like her father when she grew up, mainly selling interesting steam toys. So, from a young age, she had put a lot of effort into this.

And he does indeed seem very talented.

Having determined the path ahead, Li Wei relaxed and began to look at the other rewards.

Special skills [Basic swordsmanship/riding skills/combat skills]

Yes, no need to guess, this must be the Ghost Rider's skill.

He's just a reckless brute.

Li Wei cursed inwardly. He didn't want any of the three skills. What use was swordsmanship? What use was riding? What use was hand-to-hand combat?
With that little strength, how could he possibly be giving someone a pedicure?
As for horsemanship, needless to say, there's also a supercar waiting for him. Li Wei thinks this is much more comfortable than riding a horse.

However, the system seemed to sense Li Wei's dissatisfaction and soon displayed a prompt.

[Users can make a random selection, randomly selecting a skill level +1] Buying a four-piece set of rapeseed oil, huh? This system seems pretty good at doing business.

Li Wei rolled his eyes, silently clicked on [Random], and then saw the skill icon in front of him spin rapidly like a pachinko machine before suddenly stopping.

【Martial Arts (Level 2)】

As the system notification appeared, Li Wei immediately felt an endless stream of knowledge flooding into his brain. It contained a collection of all sorts of close-combat techniques used by this warrior, from "Monkey Steals Peaches" to "Catching a Dragon's Hand," from "Throwing Sand" to "Groin Slap and Bricklaying"...

It's so dirty.

Li Wei silently shrank back, thankful that he hadn't been foolish enough to engage in hand-to-hand combat with that Ghost Knight. If the opponent had actually resorted to such dirty tricks, he probably would have been taken down in an instant.

This thing can be called fighting?
Li Wei now feels regretful; the LV2 fighting skills seem to have polluted his brain.

On the bright side, however, if we face enemies in the future, we can guard against them using such despicable tricks as gouging eyes, sneaking into groin, sprinkling sand, and hitting bricks.

And then comes the final...

Li Wei put this troublesome matter out of his mind and focused on the reward for the last task in front of him.

[Soul Fragment +1]

The simple line of text, without any explanation, was like the system saying, "I've already told you what this is," leaving Li Wei somewhat at a loss for words.

He could guess that the so-called soul fragment was probably the part that the ring absorbed and was wrapped around the little girl. If that was the case, then why was it that before with the big-headed doll… oh, he hadn't gotten the ring yet.

That's fine.

Now the question is, whose soul is this fragment? The Ghost Rider's soul?

still……………

Li Wei thought of the red glowing dot in the Ghost Rider's head, but he still didn't know what it was.

At least this time the problem has been solved.

As for what this soul fragment is used for, maybe we'll find out once we have a few more pieces...
After confirming the reward, Li Wei packed up and headed back to Fog City, leaving the others to dig the pit. As for the inn, it would reopen after that, but the manager and staff would be replaced by MI7 agents, primarily responsible for monitoring the ruins and the surrounding area.

It's a healthy way to spend one's time; sending a few unpopular people, or those who are too old to work, to this place for retirement is a good option.

If more people die, it will be easy to cover it up.

After returning to the foggy city, Li Wei rested for a night, but the next morning, as soon as he got up, his walkie-talkie rang impatiently.

Li Wei picked up the intercom and soon heard Inspector Lestrade's voice coming through.

Do you remember that hotel manager?

"Ah."

Li Wei said he remembered very clearly that there were no clues in the other party's office or on his person. MI7 and Inspector Lestrade were investigating his identity and trying to figure out who this guy was.

“I’ve already investigated. This guy’s name is Alexander Bratton, he’s from Chongqing, and he’s a businessman with some wealth.”

At this point, Inspector Lestrade took a breath.

"Then the problem arises... According to my investigation, this guy died three years ago!"

"……………Um?"

It must be said that this answer was truly beyond Li Wei's expectations.

"died?"

"Yes, he died three years ago. It seems he died of illness."

"Where are his family members?"

"I need to check this again, but the identity is basically confirmed; it is indeed this guy."

Inspector Lestrade's voice carried a hint of lingering fear. This was understandable; someone who had been talking to him just moments before was now dead—it sounded like a horror story.

"Then please investigate further, mainly about him personally."

"No problem, I'll let you know as soon as I have any leads."

Inspector Lestrade cut off the communications, while Levi squinted and began to think.

This matter seems to be more than just a minor problem.

(End of this chapter)