Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 124 The First Battle
"Attack?"

Upon hearing Levi's words, Lieutenant Colonel Smith was immediately taken aback.

"Here? Who could it be...? No, how did you know?"

"My guess."

Li Wei looked at the small screen in front of him. In the pitch-black screen, hundreds or even thousands of soul light points were flanking them from the left and right.

"And there should be quite a few people."

"But……………"

Lieutenant Colonel Smith looked at Levi and decided not to ask him how he knew for the time being.

"Do we have enough time to get back to Lakeington?"

Looking around through the observation hole, Lieutenant Colonel Smith also sensed something was wrong. The area was surrounded by forest, making it too easy to be ambushed. If they could return to Lakeington and use the buildings there to set up a defensive line, they might still have a chance. But here?

"I'm not sure, you can try it."

"…………………"

Faced with Levi's answer, Lieutenant Colonel Smith was also somewhat undecided. If it were when they had just arrived, it wouldn't have been so difficult, but now his troops had traveled for so long and were exhausted. They were still twenty minutes away from Lakeington; if they went full speed ahead…

With that thought in mind, Lieutenant Colonel Smith made his decision. He picked up the walkie-talkie and immediately gave the order.

"Attention everyone! Turn right immediately into the forest! Level alert! Husky, full speed ahead! Proceed to the fortress immediately and request assistance from Governor Geller! Everyone else, prepare to defend your positions!"

"Yes!"

Upon hearing Lieutenant Colonel Smith's order, the soldiers who were walking on the road suddenly quickened their pace, and at the same time, a Hound-class mech accelerated straight ahead!

"Damn it, we've been discovered!"

Captain Pike, who was preparing for action in the rear, was also taken aback by this scene. He immediately understood the opposing commander's intentions—he had dispatched a Hound-class mech to request assistance, while he himself remained on standby. If they wanted to track that mech, they would inevitably have to cross the blockade set up by the Imperial army!

Damn!

Captain Parker didn't have time to think about how they had been exposed, and hurriedly issued orders.

"Attack! We can't let that mech escape!"

There was a flash of fire.

"call-------!"

From the depths of the once-dark forest, a burst of fire suddenly shot out, trailing a long tail of flame as it hurtled toward the mech speeding down the road!
"Rocket launcher? Damn it! How could those militiamen possibly have such military equipment!?"

Lieutenant Colonel Smith was also taken aback by what he saw.

Imperial law allows individuals to own firearms, even standard rifles or machine guns; you can get them if you have the connections.

However, items like rocket launchers, artillery, and mechs are purely military equipment and are not available to civilians. Although the Melesian militia is nominally a militia, it is essentially a group of armed civilians.

It is illogical that they possess military equipment!
"It seems your transport team has lost quite a bit of equipment, that's all I can say."

Li Wei made a sarcastic remark, then opened the hatch and leaped out of the command vehicle. He then raised the Persuader in his hand and pulled the trigger.

"boom!"

The rockets following closely behind the Hound-class mech exploded with the sound of gunfire, turning into a burst of fire in the air. However, after the firelight disappeared, the Hound-class mech also vanished at the end of the road.

"Damn it!"

Seeing this, Captain Parker slammed his hand down.

"Send men on horseback to pursue it immediately. Destroy that mech; don't let it return to the fortress! The rest of you, attack!"

At Captain Parker's command, armed militiamen shouted and surged out of the forest, rushing towards the others.

"First, third, and fifth squads, establish a defensive line. Mech squads, form a defensive formation. Second and fourth squads, keep an eye on the prisoners and don't let them escape!"

Lieutenant Colonel Smith was also holding a walkie-talkie, his forehead covered in sweat.

"Mech squad, listen to my command, covert bombardment! One hundred meters! Open fire!"

"Boom boom boom!!"

The sound of cannons rang out.

A deafening roar, like muffled thunder, echoed through the forest, blasting the surrounding trees into fragments. The intense bombardment even made the ground tremble, but this did not shake the attackers' resolve.

"Second wave! Fifty meters! Coverage bombardment!"

Soon, the cannon fire rang out again, this time at closer range and with greater power.

However, Lieutenant Colonel Smith wasn't sure how effective it would be. Just then, he saw Levi lean out of the car and climb out.

"Mr. Li Wei?"

"The command is now in your hands, Lieutenant Colonel Smith. I will go scout the enemy; you just need to wait for my signal."

After saying this, Li Wei left the command vehicle. By the time Lieutenant Colonel Smith came to his senses, there was no one outside the vehicle.

"Seriously... everyone, listen up!"

Lieutenant Colonel Smith could only hope that Levi would bring him some good luck.

After leaving the command vehicle, Li Wei's figure flashed, and the next moment he appeared on the canopy of a large tree not far behind. Then, Li Wei quietly leaned out and looked ahead.

Under the [Soul Vision], the enemy's formation is almost immediately apparent.

So that's how it is; the previous attack was a feint.

Through the puppet bird, Li Wei keenly observed that although the force ahead was impressive, the militiamen, aside from shouting and firing blanks, showed almost no intention of advancing; at most, they threw a few grenades as a show of force. Conversely, from the cliff to his left, Li Wei saw a force of several dozen men approaching the camp.

Clearly, their target was the remaining mechs. For the militia, taking down these mechs first was obviously the priority. Otherwise, charging forward under the mechs' firepower would be suicide.

However, Li Wei certainly wouldn't let them succeed.

He stared at the cliff beside him, then silently took out an incendiary bomb, loaded it into his cane rifle, raised the gun, and aimed.

Then he pulled the trigger.

"boom---!"

The bullet spun through the gaps in the leaves, through the branches, and struck the leading militiaman in the face—he didn't even know what had happened before his head exploded.

However, compared to his companions, he was clearly lucky.

The scorching flames scattered in the instant of the explosion, splattering the surrounding militiamen who were caught off guard. They immediately dropped their weapons and began to scream in agony—the blazing white phosphorus flames mercilessly seared their flesh and bodies, refusing to be extinguished no matter how hard they tried to fight it off. On the contrary, their arms and hands became stained with the deadly fire as they struggled to extinguish it, making the flames burn even more fiercely.

The small flame was inconspicuous, but in the dark forest, it was enough to attract attention.

"Mech squad, two o'clock! Fire!"

Lieutenant Colonel Smith immediately recognized this as Levi's "signal" and quickly issued the order. The Knight mech then shifted its cannon, aiming at the source of the flash.

"boom!"

Then, accompanied by muffled thunderous cannon fire, the shelling covered the small flame, and after a moment, the area was plunged into darkness again.

Li Wei glanced around, confirming that the soul radiance there had completely vanished, before turning to another target. "Bang—! Bang—!"

What followed was a one-sided massacre.

Li Wei used [Soul Vision] to pinpoint the location of the militia groups hidden in the forest, then fired a Molotov cocktail at them—this was merely to guide the mech. Of course, after a few attempts, the militia learned their lesson. They all hid behind trees or rocks to avoid Li Wei's gunfire.

However, it was all for naught. Li Wei didn't really care whether he could hit them or not—the mechs' firepower had a wider range and was more lethal.

So even if he can't hit anyone, he can achieve the same goal by firing a shot at the trees or the ground.

Of course, Li Wei couldn't handle everything, and some of the soldiers were lucky enough to break through the defenses—but the other soldiers weren't pushovers either. If they couldn't even take down these stragglers, then Li Wei would have no choice but to run away.

Fortunately, the Imperial soldiers were of fairly good military quality.

Soon, the situation on the battlefield changed.

"boom---!"

Captain Parker hid behind a rock, trembling all over.

The terrifying gunfire had become his nightmare. Every time gunfire rang out, it was immediately followed by deafening artillery bombardment. Although Captain Parker didn't know how they did it, the fact that each assault team had lost contact with him indicated that the enemy clearly knew the locations of his assault teams and had killed them one by one.

How can this be?

Captain Parker was completely baffled. For these militiamen, this area was as familiar as their own backyard. And the Imperial soldiers, who rarely even left the fortress, shouldn't have been able to pinpoint their comrades' location so precisely.

But they did it! How did they do it?
No, that's not important. The question is, what should we do?
The opportunity to launch a surprise attack using the advantageous terrain has been lost. The Imperial army has regrouped, and continuing the fight is pointless except for further casualties. Should they retreat? But if they retreat, the militia will be at a disadvantage…

Just then, a shadowy figure appeared beside Captain Parker, patted him on the shoulder, and Captain Parker shuddered. He turned around and saw a person completely shrouded in a black cloak silently emerge from the shadows and stand silently before him.

At that moment, Captain Pike suddenly remembered the rumor circulating in Melicia.

"Could it be that you are...?"

The other person held up a finger to Captain Parker's lips, stopping him from speaking. Then the figure looked up, glanced ahead, leaped up, landed on a rock, and disappeared into the bushes.

Captain Parker was left standing there, staring blankly into the darkness.

The shadow moved swiftly among the branches like a nimble animal, so fast that no one else noticed. Stepping on the branches, the shadow silently passed over the heads of the militiamen who were firing, then dodged the howling artillery fire and the blinding searchlights, and like a ghost, lightly climbed upwards on the vines.

Then, the shadow silently appeared on the treetop, staring at its prey, and drew a short knife from under its cloak.

Before it, Li Wei remained with his back to the shadow, aiming at the battlefield before him.

The shadow leaped up, wielding a short knife, and forcefully stabbed at Li Wei!

The sharp blade pierced the air, thrusting downwards—then Li Wei's figure vanished instantly, replaced by a large, jet-black cat. It stared at the attacker, opening its mouth to let out a piercing scream. At the same time, the cat's body exploded, the sharp blade transforming into layers of unfolding petals, biting down forcefully at the shadowy figure!

Faced with the blade that continued to tear him to pieces, the shadowy figure suddenly twisted its body, then transformed into a cloud of mist, passing through the tearing blade and landing directly on the ground, where it solidified again.

At the same time, gunshots rang out.

"boom!"

Li Wei's persuader unleashed a torrent of furious flames, bullets bursting forth and catching the shadowy figure in the instant it solidified. The latter, however, raised his dagger and deflected the bullets with a flick of his wrist. Then, with a swift flick of his left hand, three throwing knives aimed at Li Wei's eyes and chest.

Li Wei moved his gun again and pulled the trigger. With a gunshot, the three throwing knives were knocked away by the bullet fired by Li Wei.

But at that moment, the shadowy figure rushed in front of Li Wei, and without hesitation, stabbed Li Wei in the heart with the short knife in its hand.

However, the shadowy figure did not notice that the bullet fired from Li Wei's gun, after deflecting three throwing knives, struck a nearby sloping bluestone, then suddenly bounced back and hit the short knife thrust out by the shadowy figure!

"clang!"

Even the force of a weakened attack was enough to stop the shadowy figure's assault. Li Wei stood there without dodging or flinching, his Persuader extended forward, directly pressing against the shadowy figure's chest.

Then, Li Wei pulled the trigger.

"Bang bang bang bang!"

The remaining four bullets were unleashed by Li Wei almost all at once, blasting into the shadowy figure's body. The figure swayed, then transformed back into a wisp of smoke, somewhere between illusion and reality, and retreated. The smoke then churned and solidified again.

However, judging from the way the dark figure was clutching his chest at that moment, it was clear that this guy was not completely unharmed either.

"You're the Phantom Assassin?"

As if completely ignoring the other party, Li Wei snapped open the magazine, letting the spent cartridges clatter to the ground. He then took out a makeshift loader from his pocket, reloaded, chambered a new round, and then snapped off the hammer.

"He does have some skills, though not many."

"Who are you……………"

The shadowy figure's voice was low and hoarse, indistinguishable as male or female, like that of a ghost.

"My name is Li Wei, and I'm a detective."

Li Wei gripped the gun in his right hand, pressed his left hand against the brim of his hat, and nodded to the other person.

"My purpose in coming here is to eliminate the Phantom Assassin... Oh, by the way, are you the Phantom Assassin?"

"...You cannot...destroy the shadow..."

"But your actions do not support this claim."

Li Wei looked at the latter's chest, which was oozing blood. Hmm... It's a pity. It seems that silver bullets are the ones that will work on this guy.

If it were a mercury bullet or a white phosphorus bullet, this guy would be dead long ago, and he wouldn't be breathing and talking to me now.

Despite Li Wei's words, the Phantom Assassin seemed unmoved. He simply lowered his body, like a cheetah tense up, ready to hunt.

"The enemy... must be... eliminated..."

"Then it depends on whether you have the ability."

Livy raised the Persuader again, aiming it at the other party.

After a moment of silence, the Phantom Assassin leaped up, pouncing on Li Wei like a ferocious beast!
At the same time, Li Wei pulled the trigger again!
"boom!"

To the Phantom Assassin's surprise, Li Wei's shot wasn't aimed forward, but at the ground. Instantly, flames shot into the air, forming a wall of fire in front of the Phantom Assassin. Without hesitation, the Phantom Assassin's figure once again transformed into smoke, swiftly passing through the wall of fire before solidifying back into a physical form.

However… at this time, Li Wei had already disappeared.

What about people?

The Phantom Assassin stopped in surprise and looked around. But before he could find any trace of Li Wei, he saw a flash of light in the distance.

"boom-----!"

The mechs, using the flames as their coordinates, launched another relentless barrage, the roar of cannons echoing and the earth trembling.

Moments later, when the bombing was over, the battlefield had been completely transformed.

Only then did Li Wei quietly emerge from the shadows and return to the ravaged battlefield.

"They actually got away? Looks like they're quite capable."

Looking at the scene before him, Li Wei sighed with slight surprise, then smiled slightly.

"But it's okay, you won't be so lucky next time."

(End of this chapter)