Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 19 The Investigation Continues
Li Wei didn't get up until noon the next day. Although his lifespan was limited, precisely because of this, Li Wei would never mistreat himself. He would sleep when he was supposed to sleep and eat when he was supposed to eat; only in this way could he ensure he didn't waste a single day and enjoy life to the fullest. His experiences before transmigrating had taught Li Wei that he should never think of enduring hardship now to enjoy life later.

Because the more you act this way, the more likely you are to end up suffering and unable to enjoy life.

When Levi changed his clothes and came downstairs, Eileen had already laid out a steaming breakfast on the table, including milk, white bread, tomato salad, ham, and fried eggs. Levi ate his breakfast while casually picking up a newspaper and flipping through it.

Hmm…as expected, the fire at the Brilliant Club became the top news story. Of course, the reports were exactly what Li Wei had expected: the club had caught fire, the club owner, Ms. Durex, had died in the fire, and the police were currently investigating whether there was any arson involved, etc…

Li Wei skimmed through it; it only briefly mentioned Mrs. Clarty's life and said that the police investigation was ongoing. It seemed that Mrs. Clarty had likely fallen ill and collapsed while trying to sleep, and the candle in her hand ignited the carpet, causing a fire... Well, at least from the news reports, there wasn't anything worth mentioning... Hmm?

Just as Li Wei was about to ignore the news, he suddenly saw the following text.

However, according to our investigation, two new members joined the Brilliant Club on the day of the fire. One of them was none other than the renowned detective, Mr. Li Wei, who had previously solved the case of the socialite killer. Could he be connected to this incident? Our reporter will conduct an in-depth investigation for you…

"…………………"

Looking at the newspaper, Li Wei felt that even the ham in his mouth didn't taste good anymore.

Those damn gossip reporters!
Where did they find this information?
This isn't surprising, but he doesn't really like his news appearing in the newspaper like this... Oh well, it's not a big deal anyway.

Levi wasn't surprised that the reporters would dig up which club he'd been to. With the Brilliant Club on fire, the reporters would definitely be like detectives, asking around everywhere, and naturally they'd find members of the Brilliant Club. Levi and Katie's appearance was clearly the most memorable thing for them; it would be strange if they didn't mention it.

However, I didn't come away empty-handed.

Thinking this, Levi touched the cigarette case in his hand. Inside weren't cigarettes, but rather some of Madame Clarty's ashes. Perhaps the mastermind behind it all thought that killing Madame Clarty would completely sever his trail. But for Levi, doing so actually gave him the opportunity to pinpoint the killer!

If you hadn't killed Lady Clarty and methodically stopped my actions, I might not have been able to do anything to you. Now, all I have to do is use my Soul Vision to find out who's connected to Lady Clarty's death, then lock onto them, and that's it!
The only downside is that this ability has a limited range; based on Li Wei's current experiments, it's roughly within a radius of one hundred meters. Furthermore, because it's a life-threatening skill, he can't keep it active all day long, otherwise he might not be able to get up the next day. Therefore, unless Li Wei has someone he suspects, he won't activate it on just anyone.

"Ding dong!"

The elevator bell rang, and Li Wei looked up to see the elevator doors open. A figure wearing a baseball cap then skipped and jumped in.

"Mr. Li Wei! Have you read the newspaper? What exactly happened?"

Yes, it was none other than Katie.

Li Wei first gestured for Katie to calm down, then finished his breakfast. Eileen brought Katie a cup of tea, then picked up her tray and left. Katie remained seated until Eileen left, then hurriedly went to the desk.

"What happened? I saw on the news that the Brilliant Club caught fire, and that Mrs. Clayty died too? Could it be that you did it?"

"I wish I had really done it."

Levi sighed, then recounted the events of the previous night to Katie. Upon hearing that Mrs. Clarty had broken her own head, Katie turned pale with fright.

"Oh my god, is this some kind of...dark magic? Or a curse or something?"

"Maybe, I'm not entirely sure, but in any case, they definitely possess some kind of extraordinary power."

"Now what?"

Katie frowned slightly, looking quite troubled.

"Actually, it's not like there are absolutely no clues."

Levi explained to Katie what he had thought about in the carriage the night before, as well as the report he had overheard from Mrs. Clarty.

"She said to the mirror, 'Everything is going well, Doolittle's sacrifice was expected...'"

"Hmm...hmm?"

Katie listened and nodded repeatedly, then suddenly realized what she meant.

"Wait, we clearly stopped Dr. Dolittle's plan! Emilia didn't come back to life, so how can it be called a success? It was clearly a failed plan!"

"That's the problem."

Li Wei snapped his fingers.

"Just as I suspected before, Mrs. Clyde lied to Dr. Dolittle. It may be true that she needs the organs of criminals, but it doesn't necessarily need to be a courtesan. There are plenty of criminals in the Lower City, and those courtesans are the least harmful by comparison."

At least they are manual laborers who earn money through their work.

"That's true... I know a few bad guys, but there are far more bad ones than this."

"Therefore I suspect that for Mrs. Clytie, whether Dr. Dolittle succeeds or not is not important, but whether he does it or not is very important."

"???"

Katie looked at Levi with a puzzled expression, completely bewildered.

"I just have this idea, but I can't really explain it to you."

Li Wei shook his head. He vaguely grasped the concept, but he wasn't an expert in the occult. He only had this feeling based on the movies, animations, novels, and games he had watched and played. However, he didn't know the specifics.

"Speaking of which, Mrs. Clarty didn't seem to recognize you last night?"

"of course."

When this topic came up, Katie puffed out her chest and held her head high with pride.

"My disguise is perfect, and I don't usually meet Mrs. Clarty much. I mostly help those young ladies."

How can you help them?

"Run errands, buy things they want but can't buy, or drive away some troublesome customers."

Katie spoke, her expression somewhat somber.

"I feel sorry for them, but there's nothing I can do to help." "I'll do whatever I can."

Li Wei sighed, then stood up.

"Since you're so worried, let's go check on them now."

"Okay!"

The news in the newspaper didn't cause any trouble for Pink Lady, or rather, the people there didn't know that the "Ms. Durex" in the newspaper was their boss. So when Levi and Katie returned to Pink Lady, it seemed quite peaceful.

The gatekeeper was still the same young, burly man. Li Wei greeted him and then used a penny to gain passage—perhaps the man thought Li Wei was here to see some socialite again.

But not this time.

What are we doing here today?

"Let's go check out Mrs. Clarty's room."

In response to Katie's question, Levi said in a low voice.

“There are some things that she might not keep at the Brilliant Club, but here.”

"You mean go to her office? You know how to pick locks?"

"I don't need to know how to pick locks."

As Li Wei spoke, he sighed silently to himself.

"I have the key."

As a detective, you're simply not qualified if you don't have lock-picking skills.

Perhaps because everyone was off work and resting, there was hardly anyone in the Pink Lady office. Levi used the key he got from Mrs. Clarty to easily open the office door, and the two of them quietly slipped inside.

"Wow...that's so exciting!"

Katie cautiously slipped into the office, her eyes shining.

"It's just like being a thief!"

"We're not here to steal; we're here to investigate."

Li Wei corrected her, then began rummaging through drawers and cabinets. Katie, meanwhile, looked around anxiously, much like a player rushing into an NPC's room, ready to sell everything they owned.

What are we looking for?

"Any valuable clues you can look at: the table, drawers, or behind paintings—see if there's a safe..."

Before he could finish speaking, Li Wei saw Katie reach out and pluck down the oil painting hanging on the wall, revealing a hidden safe inside.

"There's a safe here, Mr. Levi!"

"Ah, um..."

Li Wei was speechless for a moment. He stood up and walked to the safe. He examined it carefully. To Li Wei's disappointment, it was a combination safe. Opening the safe required a combination, not a key.

Unfortunately, he didn't have the password...

"What's wrong, Mr. Li Wei?"

Seeing Levi standing silently in front of the safe, Katie asked curiously, and Levi nodded.

"I'm thinking about how to open this safe."

"Huh? It won't open? Let me try..."

As she spoke, Katie stretched her arms and reached for the handle of the safe. Seeing this, Levi was startled and stepped forward to stop her.

"Wait, let me try first, hmm... I remember there's a way..."

Li Wei remembered seeing this kind of safe somewhere before; thieves would open it by placing a stethoscope on it and turning the dial to listen for sounds. Although he didn't have a stethoscope, he could try using his [Reconnaissance] and [Perception] abilities—so Li Wei immediately moved closer to the safe, reached out, and slowly turned the dial. Sure enough, he keenly detected a faint "click" sound coming from inside the heavy safe door.

"call……………"

Fortunately, the safes in this era weren't too complicated, otherwise he would have been completely stumped. He also didn't dare let Katie force her way in. Although Levi felt that with Katie's strength, opening the safe shouldn't be difficult, he didn't want others to know that they were able to open it... It would be best to leave no trace.

After turning the safe several times, it finally opened, and Katie stared in astonishment at what she saw.

"Mr. Li Wei, you're amazing..."

"It's just a little trick, nothing serious."

Li Wei waved his hand, then looked into the safe. Inside, he saw a money bag, several punched cards, and a black notebook.

Li Wei took the black notebook and opened it. Inside were records of accounts, the income and expenses of the Pink Lady, and some criminal records such as smuggling.

Normally, this would be good evidence, but now that Mrs. Clarty is dead, her business dealings are meaningless... Hmm?

Just as Li Wei finished flipping through the notebook and was about to put it back, he suddenly paused.

It feels wrong!

(End of this chapter)