Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 67 Target Locking
Hearing footsteps, Levi's eyes narrowed instantly. He quickly scanned his surroundings, grabbed Katie, and hid in a newly excavated tomb nearby. Although it was a blind spot, Levi's [Scout] ability determined that few people came here, and the location was well-hidden, so they shouldn't be discovered.

"Keep your voice down."

Levi made a "shh" gesture to Katie and turned off the gas light. Katie nodded, clearly understanding what Levi meant.

“Da…Da…Da…”

With the sound of footsteps, streaks of light appeared from the passage on the other side. Before long, Li Wei and Katie saw four figures walk out of the passage.

Each of them carried a torch and was draped in a long white robe, looking like the kind of suspicious individuals who would be stopped by the police on the street. Although Li Wei desperately wanted to see their faces, they were all wearing masks, making it impossible to ascertain their true identities that way.

The four people came to the architectural model, stood at the four corners, held up torches, and began to chant softly.

Katie gently tugged at Levi's sleeve and whispered in his ear.

"This sounds like a church hymn."

"Yes, a little."

Li Wei nodded. Although he couldn't understand what the other person was singing, the drowsy tune was indeed the tune of hymns sung in church.

The singer wasn't sleepy, but the listeners were.

After singing for a while, everyone stopped, and then one of them spoke up.

"This node also seems to be working fine."

"Can't we do something about it?"

The other man in white robes spoke in a low voice, carrying a hint of coldness.

"Four nodes have already been destroyed, including two core nodes! If we don't do something, this node might also be destroyed!"

"It is not advisable for us to act rashly now."

But soon, another authoritative voice rang out.

"The royal family has their eyes on us. If this plan goes smoothly, then we can free up our hands to deal with that annoying guy."

"But……………"

"In previous missions, we were careless in some aspects, but this time the situation is clearly different. As long as we can successfully complete our mission, the Lord's glory will shine in this city once again, and at that time, we will also receive God's grace!"

"what?"

Upon hearing the voice, Katie let out a soft cry, but thankfully she reacted quickly and covered her mouth, avoiding attracting the attention of the others. Meanwhile, Levi stared intently at the four robed figures, trying to memorize their tone and characteristics so he could immediately recognize them if he encountered them again.

However, just as the man in the long robe was speaking passionately, he suddenly groaned, then curled up like a shrimp, his left hand gripping the torch, his right hand clutching his waist tightly, trembling violently, as if he had suddenly been stabbed.

The other three weren't surprised by this scene. They simply stepped forward, and another man in a long robe handed him a bottle of medicine. He took it and drank it, recovering after a short while. However, his labored breathing, like a broken bellows, revealed that he had suffered quite a bit.

"Sir, are you alright?"

Do I look like I'm doing well?

The long-robed man, panting heavily, raised his head and glared at his subordinate who was speaking without thinking.

"I'm just a little worried. Your health has been getting worse lately, and also... if you really need it..."

"I'm not sick!"

The white-robed man's roar was deafening, echoing in the tomb chamber like thunder.

"I told you, it was just an accident! I don't have that kind of hobby! Those damned cops, how dare they issue such an arrest warrant! If I find out who did it, I will definitely... Waaah... By the Holy Lord, that evil, shameless, and insidious scoundrel will surely get his comeuppance!"

This time, the man in white robes reached out again and covered his face through the mask. The other three hurriedly stepped forward and took out another bottle of medicine.

Seeing this, Li Wei was almost certain that this guy was the mastermind. After all, he had deliberately written those disgusting things on the wanted poster to torment the target, including many diseases that could cause unbearable pain. The main point was to make him feel disgusted to death, even if he couldn't kill him. This robed man had been walking with a limp earlier, and now he was clutching his back and face, which matched the description he had given him.

After all, he did include the cavities in his report.

With the medical standards of this era... haha...

Judging from his current state of suffering, he's clearly been in considerable pain lately. This means Li Wei's guesses and actions weren't in vain. Hmm… this is what they call reaping what you sow; he deserves his bad luck.

Li Wei sneered inwardly, then activated [Soul Vision].

In an instant, everything around him turned black and white. But that didn't matter. What mattered was that Li Wei saw a black line fly out from his arms and connect with that guy's soul.

Yes, as expected, it seems this guy is the murderer who killed Mrs. Durex.

Li Wei withdrew his gaze, his eyes darkening slightly. He had taken a portion of Mrs. Durex's ashes and kept it in a cigarette case. Whenever he encountered someone suspicious, he would activate [Soul Vision] to take a look.

It seems we've finally found the culprit!

In other words, the person who killed Mrs. Durex and the person who instigated Betty are the same person!

This is the guy right in front of me!

For a fleeting moment, Li Wei's hand even touched the gun handle, but in the end, he calmed down and watched the other three, holding torches, silently help the limping unlucky fellow leave the tomb.

Only after the four figures disappeared did Li Wei breathe a sigh of relief and then turn on the gas lamp.

"Shouldn't we go and catch them, Detective?"

Katie clenched her little fists, clearly eager to try. "It's not the right time yet, and even if we catch it, it won't prove anything."

Ideally, the perpetrators would be caught red-handed at a crime scene, but this situation clearly doesn't qualify. The other party was simply singing around a model, and no country in the world has laws prohibiting this. Although Li Wei's [Soul Vision] revealed the relationship between Mrs. Durex and the robed man—after all, it was confirmed that the guy was the mysterious person X he had been searching for—unfortunately, he currently had no way to arrest them.

After all, this is church territory, and it's only natural for church members to come to the catacombs to perform some kind of ceremony. If anything is suspicious, it's that strange model of the Imperial Bridge.

However, this thing cannot be used as evidence.

"But I think I know the person who spoke."

"Really?"

"Ah."

Katie nodded.

“Bishop Raphael, it must be him.”

"you sure?"

"Yes, his accent is funny. I want to laugh every time I hear it."

"This name doesn't sound like it belongs to an Imperial."

“Bishop Raphael was a Franciscan.”

"Oh I got it."

No wonder Katie wanted to laugh when she heard Bishop Raphael's accent. The Imperials' discrimination against Francis was all-encompassing, and accent was naturally one of them. Given the deep-seated hatred between the two countries, Katie's reaction wasn't entirely surprising.

So, could Bishop Raphael be Professor Franz? I remember the police files showed that the latter was also from abroad... As a bishop, would he need to disguise himself as a professor? If this was planned from the beginning, then it means that this not only involves the Holy Lord Church, but may even involve the Franciscan Republic.

The more they investigate, the more complicated it becomes. To make matters worse, they still don't have any evidence, only speculation and conjecture.

What specific role did Bishop Raphael hold in the Church?

"I do not know either."

Katie shook her head.

“I’ve only seen him a few times around the archbishop, and I only remember him because his accent is interesting. But he doesn’t seem to be there when I attend services or any other activities.”

"Do you know when he came to the Empire?"

“I don’t know… but I can ask around. Anyway, it seems that he’s the only Franciscan bishop here.”

"Then trouble you."

"give it to me."

Katie puffed out her chest and raised her head proudly, then turned around and looked at the model on the altar not far away.

"Then what about this model?"

"Um……………"

Faced with Katie's question, Levi remained silent, deep in thought. He was recalling what the people had said earlier: they claimed to have destroyed four nodes, including two core ones. Levi immediately connected their words to the case he had solved.

Socialite assassin, vampire, haunted house, ghost rider.

The cases I encountered happened to be these four.

In the cases of the haunted house and the Ghost Rider, both bosses have red dots on their heads.

Is this what they mean by the key core?

Since that's the case...

Looking at the bridge model in front of him, Li Wei already had an idea. He activated [Soul Vision] again and carefully examined the model and its surroundings. Apart from the red light emanating from the model itself, everything else seemed normal, with nothing strange about it.

Of course, unlike the red light that Li Wei had seen with the Big Head Doll and the Ghost Rider, the red light on this model did not seem to have solidified into a physical form; it simply emitted a hazy glow.

Is it a lack of time? Or a lack of energy?

Li Wei walked in, then reached out and picked up the model.

He then turned around and looked at Katie.

"You like this?"

"Yeah, I like it very much."

"Then I'll give it to you."

As he spoke, Levi handed the model to Katie.

"Take it home and play with it."

This group of people seems quite capable. Li Wei is curious to see if they have the ability to rob Katie's house.

(End of this chapter)