I have a long-lived pawn shop.

It was dusk when Wei Xi woke up.

The night turns to dusk, and the sky becomes dim as smoke.

The light and sparse sunset color could hardly disguise the illusion of warmth. The hazy golden light poured in from the window. The Alencon jacquard on the gauze curtain crushed the light, spreading out the delicate and soft gold under Wei Xi's feet.

She didn't know when she changed from standing to sitting, with her knees together, her cheek supported by her hands, and her head down reading a book.

Her black hair was braided behind her ears, and a silk headband decorated with sapphires hung on her shoulders. Her right hand gently pressed the corner of the page, as if she was about to turn the page... Well, the title of the book was "A Brief History of the Empire of Kafa".

Wei Xi raised his head and rubbed his neck naturally. He glanced around and found himself in an empty bedroom, leaning against the window.

The mountains in the distance were covered with shades of green, like a painting. There was no sound at all. Outside the window, the courtyard was filled with delicate roses, and their fragrance flew in like a butterfly, perching on the tip of her nose.

She withdrew her gaze from a distance and looked at herself in the shadow of the glass.

Her face and figure remained the same, but she was dressed like a 19th century Western aristocratic girl.

She had an elaborate bun and wore a long silk dress with a blue flowing hem adorned with jewels that fell to the ground. She wore a gold lark brooch inlaid with colorful gems on her chest and a ring engraved with the family crest on her finger.

Wei Xi closed her eyes and accepted the information. She roughly understood the current situation, which was not much different from what she observed.

[Current world time: Mid-Dark Age 1893

Your identity: Countess Abigail de Monty

Mission 1: Reach Yalai, the capital of the Kafa Empire within seven days

Mission 60: Survive in a high-intensity battlefield for days

Mission 3: Become the only saint of the Silver Moon Sect of the Kafa Empire

Mission 4: Obtain recognition of the Talakmirava spirit relic

The ultimate mission: Seize the Demaria divine relic from the Korba Federation

Mission duration: Three years

You can return after completing tasks one to four. Completing the final task will increase the amount of experience gained by 40%.

Challenge mission: Help the Kafa Empire win the war, with a contribution of no less than 20%

After completing the challenge mission, you will receive 1 Daqian Library admission ticket and 1 talent baptism.

The next second after this information appeared in Wei Xi's mind, she felt as if a membrane between her and the world had been pierced and they had truly merged.

The frozen scene seemed to come alive in an instant, the window screens fluttered in the breeze, nightingales chirped in the woods, and the world came alive again.

Wei Xi didn't move much. She turned to the first page of the book in her hand and started reading. After finishing reading, she found the General History of the Continent and the Brief History of the Korba Federation on the desk. Twenty minutes later, she finished reading the three books and seemed to be thinking about something.

The gods of the two major sects in this world, the Silver Moon Sect and the Tree-Born Sect, have been confirmed to have fallen. Against this backdrop, theocracy gradually declined, the authority of the Church was no longer there, the two major religious states were torn apart, and war burned throughout the early Dark Age.

By the end of the early Dark Age, the continent had reorganized its structure, the Kafa Empire and the Korba Union rose, the power of the emperor and parliament surpassed theocracy, and the pope became subordinate to the highest authority.

Although the church has preserved a baptism technique called psychic power, which can greatly enhance the strength of the baptized and grant them various abilities, now that the gods have fallen, psychics are far from reaching the legendary level of power.

The Empire and the Federation controlled the Church and recruited psychics to maintain social stability, but did not force the Church to hand over baptism technology. Instead, they maintained a cooperative relationship. In the same year, the relationship between the Church and the highest authority eased.

In 1703, in the middle of the Dark Ages, the steam engine was invented.

Using coal and oil as the main energy sources and assembling the most basic metal parts, in just thirty years, mechanical technology developed rapidly and created technology that was almost magical.

When humans have mastered real technological tools, the mysteries of the past can only be used by technology.

In 1738, the two major churches, the Empire and the Federation established research institutes respectively, engraved the psychic matrix on the mechanical core to create steam soldiers. Since then, steam soldiers have continued to develop, and the two major forces on the continent began to engage in military preparations and competitions.

Three years after the establishment of the institute, the Empire's Perpetual Motion Institute and the Federal Mechanical Institute almost simultaneously created individual machines that were eight meters tall.

Although the psychic matrix is ​​portrayed with different focuses, the same thing is that ordinary steam guns and even light steam cannons are powerless against it.

It was a monster that no human power could defeat, and one man could block the passage of ten thousand.

In 1892, in the middle of the Dark Age, small-scale conflicts broke out from time to time on the border between the Kafa Empire and the Korba Federation in order to compete for the extremely scarce resource "vitality crystal" needed for the steam core.

In the following year, the conflict intensified and both sides began to deploy their troops in a small country on their common border.

The timing of Wei Xi's arrival in this world was very coincidental, as it was almost time for the powder keg on the continent to reignite.

She weighed all the options and had a rough idea in her mind, but no matter what, the first thing she should do was certain.

She needs to improve her fighting power.

Firstly, she had to acquire some power to protect herself; secondly, she had to do some exercises to ensure that she could calmly pull the trigger at someone.

Wei Xi closed the book and quietly looked at the imperial flag on the cover.

The dusk is heavy, and a faint glow of sunset glow remains between the pages and has not yet left.

"Knock, knock, knock." There was a measured knock on the door, and Alan Fuston, the butler of the Monty family, reminded outside: "Miss, dinner is ready."

"Got it, Allen." Wei Xi stood up naturally, put the book on the table back on the bookshelf and pulled the bolt. Outside the door was a middle-aged man in a neat tuxedo, with blue eyes, a high nose bridge, and some gray hair on his temples.

She sniffed a little, and finally a smile appeared between her eyebrows: "I hope I haven't missed the best time to eat puff pastry cream soup."

"Beckman would be very happy if he knew that the young lady liked his craft so much."

Allen Fuston followed behind Wei Xi, "But I'm afraid Beckman won't be able to prepare meals for the young lady in the next two days."

"Hmm? Is the carnival in Lendim tomorrow or the day after tomorrow?"

"Yes, the kitchen staff and maids have all asked for leave. After all, this only happens once a year, and they are all looking forward to it like crazy."

"Sorry, I was probably so distracted by reading this afternoon that I forgot about this."

Wei Xi walked through the ancient mansion. The portraits of each head of the family on the wall cast gentle glances at her. She was so familiar with them as if she had been born here.

"I remember that the Rose Theater in the town of Lendim is almost finished. Will it open in time for the carnival?"

"Mrs. Betty has sent an invitation," said Alan Furston, solemnly, "but I think you should think about this after dinner."

Wei Xi smiled and looked back at him, "Well, you are right, delicious food is really not to be missed."

From a distance, Wei Xi noticed an antique mechanical clock in front of the restaurant. Countless gears meshed with each other, and springs and levers worked together, fully demonstrating the beauty of mechanical precision and complexity. She glanced at it and walked into the restaurant without stopping.

The restaurant was in a typical Victorian style, with furniture decorated with warm wood inlays and carvings. Alan Foster helped Wei Xi pull out a chair, and the maids brought the meals one by one.

They are all dishes that can't go wrong, beef tenderloin with foie gras in oil, baked snails in herb sauce, cream soup with rye bread, and the main course is charcoal-grilled T-bone steak with black pepper sauce and sautéed mushrooms.

Wei Xi cut the meat skillfully with a knife and fork.

The skin of the beef tenderloin is roasted to a crispy texture, the fat layer is just the right thickness, not greasy at all, and the gravy combined with the mushroom juice almost melts the diners' tongues.

She ate happily while recalling the information.

There is a housekeeper, a head maid, three maids, five housemaids, six servants, a chef, two kitchen assistants, two coachmen, and three guards in this house. Today the head maid is out shopping and is not in the manor, so Wei Xi only has to pay attention to the housekeeper.

After dinner, the butler brought a gold-lacquered tray with a wax-coated invitation and a new document on it. Wei Xi took a look at them and swallowed the last bite of raspberry caramel mousse in his mouth.

"In the last letter, Mrs. Betty told me that she would invite the Queen's Band to the theater for its premiere. Even in the imperial capital, the Queen's Band is a top star. I can't think of any reason to refuse the invitation. After all, the Monty family still has shares in the theater."

Wei Xi picked up the coffee beside him and saw his butler took out another newspaper from somewhere. Although it was yellowed due to age, he could still make out the large bold headline in black:

"A murder occurred in the town of Lendim, and six Mrs. Black died unfortunately"

"I'm afraid you still remember this case, Miss Abigail," Alan Furston sighed as he looked at the human figure covered with white cloth in the newspaper:

"Ten years ago, in the Black tragedy, six beautiful black-haired girls were brutally murdered. At that time, your father, Count Monty, was the governor of the territory. He, along with the police chief and his subordinates, spent a lot of effort to catch the criminal psychic."

"My mother never allowed me to go out during that time." Wei Xi slowly put down the cup, turned it in his hand, and said in confusion: "I don't understand what the case ten years ago has to do with the present."

"I think you need to update the information," Allen Furston said with an inclusive smile, "The psychic who was hanged recently is said to have 'come back to life'."

The coffee spoon deftly drew circles in the cup, and ripples appeared on the brown water. Wei Xi said calmly: "Is there someone copycat crime?"

"Perhaps, the latest case happened a day ago."

As soon as he finished speaking, a new stream of data flashed before Wei Xi's eyes.

【Talent Quest Activation

Mission requirements: Find and kill the criminal psychic within two days]

Wei Xi sighed softly.

Accidents always pile up in a mess.

She doesn't like things to get out of her control, and no matter what will happen, good or bad, even if there is no accurate plan, she tends to come up with an estimate that is not far off.

"There's already a rumor going around town that the hanged man is back from hell for revenge."

Allen Furston handed two newspapers to his master. A moment later, he heard the young girl tapping her fingers on the table. "Revenge? For my dead father?"

She sneered, and the silver spoon made a hard and crisp sound when it hit the wall of the cup. "The reputation of the Monty family must not have such a stain. What progress has the police station in this town made in their investigation?"

People murder souls with words, and because they cannot see the bleeding corpses, they regard it as tolerance and mercy.

Allen Fuston shook his head regretfully. "This is why I stopped you from going to Lendim. The dead girl didn't struggle at all. She even smiled. It looked like she was killed by a ghost. No one knows why she left home so late at night. The police checked their connections but couldn't find a suspect."

“What about the outside population?”

"You know, the carnival is about to begin, and the people coming to town come from all over the country and have different identities..."

"Okay, okay, this is the response from the police department, right?" Wei Xi flipped through the documents. She was tired of all the excuses. "I don't allocate funds to them every year for this kind of thing."

"That……"

"Write back to Mrs. Betty that I will be in Lentim before ten tomorrow morning. Also, inform the chief of police that I want to see a detailed, no-nonsense report of the case tomorrow afternoon."

The earl can be in charge of the civil and financial power within the territory. The military power of each place belongs to His Majesty the Emperor, and no one can establish a private army under any name.