Battlefield Priest's Diary

Chapter 87 The Magician's Treasure
Qin Hao was slightly surprised when he saw the water tank in front of him.

Based on the timeline, Houdini invented the water tank escape trick last year, so it's probably still in its early stages. How could this magician dare to perform it in such a setting? It really seems like he doesn't value his life at all.

However, the escape techniques for water tanks have been largely deciphered in later generations, and generally fall into two categories.

The first method involves the magician hiding a master key somewhere on their body. The seemingly locked chains are not actually as tight as they appear, and the magician can use their flexibility to break free and create some space. Then, the magician can use the key to unlock the chains and escape as quickly as possible.

However, this method has certain flaws. Body space is very limited, and if the key is hidden on one's person, it's very likely to be discovered by a professional. If it's found beforehand, the entire magic trick is considered a failure. (Therefore, some people in later generations practiced hiding the key in their esophagus.)
To exploit this flaw, some magicians have invented a second escape technique: the person and the key are separated on-site. After entering the water tank, the magician uses a special thread to pull the master key into the gap at the top of the water tank before proceeding to the next step.

The second risk far outweighs the first; every time a magician performs, he is essentially playing hide-and-seek with death.

Which one do Americans use today?

Qin Hao looked around and noticed a hidden door on the other side of the room.

From the audience's perspective, the door is conveniently obscured by the water tank and the female assistant; if something were to be hidden there, perhaps…

Qin Hao looked toward the door, and just then his gaze met that of his assistant.

The two exchanged a fleeting glance before looking away, but the worry in the lady's eyes was impossible to completely hide.

Is it really the second one?!
That guy has some nerve!

Beth gently bit her lip. Just a moment ago, she seemed to have read a knowing look on the face of the priest in the black robe.

That's impossible! Harry has only practiced this kind of magic trick with himself in private. This is the first time he has performed it in public. There's no way anyone else could know about it.

Could it be...? A certain guess arose in her mind, but the woman quickly banished the thought from her head.

The husband is still in the water tank; whatever it is, we'll talk about it after the performance.

Thirty seconds had passed; the husband should have broken free of some of the chains and should now be retrieving the keys.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that a thin, almost imperceptible thread in the gap of the water tank had moved slightly and subtly disappeared into the tank. The end of the thread was the door that I had been blocking.

Everything went smoothly; now we just need to wait for the key to be brought in…

Suddenly, something unexpected happened in the audience.

"Dad, I feel a little stuffy," Alexei whispered to his father.

When the Tsar bent down to ask if it was serious, the little boy waved his hand, indicating, "I'm just a little nervous. I'll be fine after getting some fresh air."

"It seems this kind of magic trick is too exciting for children. Let the children avoid it for a while," the Queen suggested in a low voice.

The Tsar nodded. "Then my little sun and little pumpkin, go to the lounge for a while and come back later!"

After speaking, the Tsar looked around and finally focused his gaze on the door opposite him.

"Children, go over there first, you'll be out in a bit."

The Tsar's finger was pointing to the door where the key was hidden!

Good heavens! Something terrible is about to happen!

Someone left halfway through, and their destination turned out to be the place where the key was hidden!
Knowing that his loved one was still in the water and couldn't hear anything, everything was proceeding as planned.

Once the Crown Prince pushes open that door, he will definitely see a key being dragged around! Then everything will be over!
How to do? !

Should she risk signaling to her husband to stop dragging? But the chances of being discovered are still there, and more importantly, if she wastes time doing so, her husband could even be in mortal danger.

She knew how passionate her husband was about his career, and the previous "failure" had already left him resentful. To experience being exposed in public again would be a huge blow to him.

That would be just as painful as killing him!
Alexei had already stood up and was about to leave, accompanied by his attendants.

No time to think!
Beth bit her lip and made up her mind. She planned to cause some kind of accident to delay the child in front of her. Although it would seem very abrupt and suspicious to outsiders, she had no better choice.

But the next second, someone blocked her way.

“Your Highness, please wait a moment.” The priest in black robes stepped out from the crowd and blocked Alexei’s way. Such behavior was considered extremely impolite in the court, but when the attendants saw who was blocking their way, they were wary of the person’s status and did not take any action.

“Father Pugin, what’s wrong?” The head maid stood up and asked on behalf of the king.

“Your Majesty, I sense danger and feel uneasy. Please do not allow Your Highness to go to that room,” the black-robed priest said with an unusually serious expression.

Not only the Tsar, but also the empress and princesses around him, were all stunned.

Although Father Pugin was their most trusted "master," he never claimed to have "divine power" and never made any prophecies for the royal family.

The more this was the case, the more dangerous his unusual propaganda seemed, and the more the Tsar took it seriously.

"Take Alexei to another room to rest." The Tsar waved his hand and agreed to Father Putin's suggestion without much consideration.

During this process, the key had already entered the pre-reserved gap in the water tank through the thread.

A few minutes later, applause rang out again in the room.

Soaked to the bone, Houdini freed himself from all his restraints and stood in the center of the room, basking in the cheers of the audience for him alone.

His wife, Beth, watched all this with a complicated expression.

Finally, after everyone had left, she leaned over and whispered a few words in her husband's ear.

Houdini's bright smile gradually froze.

At night, the magician knocked on the black-robed priest's door and handed him a document.

"I lost!" These were the first words the magician uttered.

"I've already signed the agreement, and all subsequent assets will be transferred to your name, it just will take a little time." The American stood at the door with the air of a bachelor who had accepted defeat.

“I am an ascetic, I have no use for your wealth, and I don’t recall ever winning anything from you,” the black-robed priest said calmly, seemingly unmoved.

“My wife told me that without you today, I would face the biggest failure of my career.” Harry Houdini pushed the documents in his hand forward.

"I don't lie, I accept my losses."

What if I said that everything yesterday was an accident?

"Do you think I'd believe it?"

“Well, it seems neither of us can convince the other.” The priest in black robes shrugged jokingly, then continued, “How about we try a different approach?”

Houdini watched as the other person turned around excitedly and returned with a small notebook about the size of a palm.

"Could you explain the principles behind your magic tricks to me in detail? I'm really interested in these things!"

"What?!"

Houdini felt that the guy in front of him was simply unreasonable, giving up a large sum of money but being interested in the so-called magic trick reveal.

Of course, these magic tricks are his livelihood skills, but in the eyes of ordinary people, they can't compare to half of his wealth, right?
"Are you serious?" the American asked again to confirm.

He's starting to waver, genuinely beginning to suspect that the other person isn't interested in worldly wealth and is simply living like a hermit or sage.

"Of course." The other person handed over the prepared notebook, smiling as they said, "Please write it down yourself; a signature would be even better."

When Houdini left, he felt completely dazed. He felt that he had no control over the priest in the black robe. Was the priest's help during the day just a coincidence?

As dawn broke, he abandoned the idea once again.

A servant told him that the chandelier in the previous small room had fallen down.

(End of this chapter)