Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 715 Is the Great Detective Very Uninformed?

Ling Ge originally thought that the mysterious detective girl in front of him should be a member of the Thirteen Hermits, which is the only supernatural force that knows about the existence of the Witch Society, and seems to have been recruiting people to fight against the society. Although the Thirteen Hermits are always at a disadvantage in this confrontation, it is a remarkable thing that they can persist until now, which also indirectly proves the strength of this organization.

The Celestial Feaster, who caused the Blood Moon incident in Linville City, sought to join the Thirteen Hermits, and Gundaruf, who was already a member, had invited Lingge, but he refused. According to the Dread Witch Feier, Solomon, the leader of the Thirteen Hermits, was once a philosopher of the Witch Society, but now he is the biggest traitor. If Gloria is related to the Thirteen Hermits, it is not surprising that she knows so much secret information about the Witch Society.

However, she denied it. Not only did she deny it, she also asked back: "What is that?"

Lingge didn't know what to say for a moment, but from his reaction, the detective girl seemed to see something interesting, so she grinned and said, "Ah, the Thirteen Hermits? An organization I haven't heard of, and you mistook me for a member of that organization. Does this mean that they are hostile to the Witch Society and know their enemies very well? That's really interesting. Maybe I should pay more attention to this organization in the future. Thank you for bringing me valuable information, Mr. Lingge."

She took off her deerstalker hat and bowed her head slightly to express her gratitude. Her movements were very formal and really looked like the real deal.

Lingge replied dryly: "You're welcome."

Alice next to him couldn't help but burst out laughing, and while laughing she said with a gloating look, "Are you frustrated, Lingge? I didn't expect that you would have this day, hahaha!"

That's enough. Which side are you on?

Lingge glared at her, and the golden-haired maid immediately took a step back, putting on a serious expression as if to say, "Are you so angry that you want to kill someone to silence them just because I hit your sore spot?" Although her involuntarily raised mouth corners and trembling eyebrows did not show any seriousness at all.

Infiltrate the witch society and disguise yourself as one of their members?
If this is the case, it does explain her source of information, but the question is, is it really as simple as she said? As a supernatural organization, the existence of the Witch Society itself is secretive enough, and on the surface there are also cult alliances and various official identities disguised. It is difficult for ordinary people to contact the mysterious world, let alone cross another layer of fog under the darkness and uncover the mystery behind history?

Gloria had a fascinated expression on her face, but Lingge and the other two had no intention of agreeing with her. Instead, they were confused about the most crucial sentence in the conversation.

Saint Xia Liya didn't pay attention to the interaction between the two companions. Her eyes stayed on the detective, as if trying to observe something. Suddenly she spoke, and said calmly: "If the information we brought is useful to you, it's a good thing, Miss Gloria. However, according to the principle of equal exchange, perhaps you should also tell us the information you have? I think mutual trust is the basis of cooperation, right?"

Gloria blinked her big grey eyes. "Maybe it's because I'm a different detective, with unique channels and methods, that's why I can do things they can't. For example... sneaking into the Witch Society, disguising myself as one of their members, and getting some information that's unlikely to be made public, such as your existence. So, actually, I've been following you for a long time. I think the first time I checked your files was when the incident happened in the Salia Wilderness? A giant whale soaring in the sky, that sounds really romantic~"

Linger immediately responded: "I don't think an ordinary detective can get the information about the Witch Society."

This guy is really... Lingge is completely helpless with her.

Gloria put on her hat again, adjusted her fringe, and smiled. "Of course, I was planning to do that, Miss Saint Charia. But before that, I'd better explain the source of the information to you, lest Mr. Lingge misunderstands me as a member of a certain organization. In fact, I am just a detective. In the land of Old London, it is hard to find weather without rain, but there are a lot of detectives who can talk, so it's not surprising."

Moreover, even if you can achieve the first step, that is, contact and infiltrate the Witch Society, it is not so easy to complete the second step. From the Blood Moon incident in Linville City, to the God-inviting ceremony in Nimcher City, to the annihilation war in the Void Root Swamp... This series of actions secretly planned and implemented by the Witch Society, the confidentiality of its preparatory work and the organization of its wartime personnel dispatch, all show that it is a mature force with a strict internal structure, strict membership hierarchy, and complete rules and regulations.

The ignorant peripheral members of the cult, the combatants of various action departments such as the Night Watch or the Balance of Order, the elite apostles, the philosophers as the core members of the association, the witches and the mysterious leader as the leadership... In this hierarchical system, if you want to collect enough intelligence, you must at least reach the level of an apostle. Can this detective girl who is obviously weird at first glance really do this?
Lingge was not a good communicator, and there was no point in hiding his thoughts in this situation, so he pointed this out bluntly. After listening to his questions patiently, Gloria smiled subtly, and it was hard to tell whether it was confidence or a deeper meaning: "Mr. Lingge's concerns, of course I can understand, but as I said, I am a unique detective with unique channels and means, and I am naturally capable of doing things that are impossible in the eyes of outsiders. Please don't confuse me with those colleagues who can only follow and break into houses illegally, okay?"

After that, the detective blew a breath into her pipe leisurely, and her assistant Mr. Peanut jumped out, turned a few times in the air, and then fell back, as if to express his agreement: "Look, Mr. Peanut also thinks so. Even if you can't trust me, you should at least believe it, right?" Why should I trust a peanut? And what makes you feel that your credibility is not as good as a peanut? Is it Alice?
Linger wanted to complain, but he finally held back and said with a straight face: "Then let us listen to the information you have to share."

The young man thought he already had a certain understanding of the Witch Society, and if she was making up stories, he would know it at once.

"Okay, then listen carefully. This is the information I got after going through untold hardships and almost risking my life." The girl described the process as extremely dangerous, which Lingge did not deny. If she had really infiltrated that dangerous organization and disguised herself as one of their members for a period of time, the process would have been a thousand times more dangerous than what she described.

"Cough cough."

After Gloria put down the coffee in her hand, she pretended to clear her throat, and then said seriously: "First of all, the first information is about the personnel level within the Witch Association. As far as I know, the official members of the association are divided into four levels, namely ordinary members, apostles, philosophers and the highest level witches. It is said that there is a mysterious leader among the witches, but the information about her is confidential and only a few people know it. The identity I pretended to be is only at the apostle level, and I am not allowed to access high-level confidential information files. How about it, is this information valuable?"

"..."

Ling Ge and his two companions looked at each other and were silent for a while before they spoke: "We already know this."

"Ah? Ahem, no, it's okay. This information is just an appetizer. I have a lot of similar information. For example, the following information will definitely shock your worldview: many of the philosopher-level members of the Witch Society actually correspond to famous people in history. For example, Galileo and Dante during the Renaissance, Marshal Napoleon during the Hundred Years' War, Joan of Arc and King Barbarossa the Red Bearded were all members of the Witch Society. If this information is made public, it will definitely cause a huge shock in the historical community, right?"

"I don't deny this." Ling Ge's expression was subtle: "But we also know this information."

Even know more than you, for example, the names of these philosophers all come from another world, the planet called Earth.

Gloria's mouth twitched: "This... I didn't expect you to know so much, but it's not a big problem. The following information will satisfy you: the largest religious organization in the Western Continent, which also has a profound influence in various fields such as politics, culture, economy and military, and even promoted the colonial war, has been deeply infiltrated by the Witch Society. It is even possible that this organization is simply a disguise established by the Witch Society and is their shell for activities in the surface world. In other words, all members and believers of the Church Union are actually equivalent to members of the Witch Society, but most people are not aware of it. How about it, this information is finally worth it, right? Uh, why are you all looking at me like this, could it be that..."

The three guests' simultaneous silence made Miss Gloria a little flustered, and she lost her previous calmness and composure.

Alice looked at the gray-haired girl opposite her with sympathy, and then said something ambiguous: "Nobita is really out of touch with the news, calling everyone out just for such a small matter."

If it was before, this information might have surprised them; but on the way here, Linger had already shared his guess. In other words, the information shared by Miss Gloria was still outdated, and outdated information was not as important as Alice's game save file.

"..."

The great detective sitting opposite fell into a long silence.

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)