Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 132 Arrival
"…………………"

This was an unimaginable scene for everyone present.

In the hall of the Mainland Conference, a delegate who was giving a passionate speech was suddenly arrested!
"Alright, you two."

Li Wei waved the arrest warrant in his hand.

"Come down like a gentleman. Oh, by the way..."

At this point, Li Wei raised an eyebrow and looked at Adams.

“Mr. Adams, your speech was quite good, but I need to correct something you said. This land…”

As he spoke, Li Wei pointed to the floor beneath his feet.

"This is not your territory, but the territory of the Empire. I hope you are not mistaken."

"you-----!"

Adams clenched his fists and glared angrily at Levi. Hancock stepped forward, grabbed Adams' shoulder, signaling him not to act rashly, and then looked at Levi and spoke.

“Mr. Levi, could you please give us a moment? We would like to speak with you. You may not be aware of the current situation in Melicia…”

“I’m not here to have a war of words with you, and I’m not interested in that.”

At this moment, Li Wei behaved like a cold, ruthless machine that only executed commands.

"The arrest warrant clearly states that Samuel Adams and John Hancock are guilty of treason, and my mission is to arrest them. As for what you want to say, I neither care nor concern myself with it."

"…………………"

Faced with Levi's indifferent response, Hancock was speechless for a moment. He had hoped that the other party would give him some time so that he and Adams could explain the current situation in Melicia to him, regardless of whether Levi was sympathetic or opposed, at least he would represent the government's stance.

Perhaps this opportunity can be used to encourage those hesitant centrists.

But to Hancock's surprise, Levi completely ignored him and was a ruthless executor.

"Alright, please step down from the stage and surrender. Or do you want me to come up here and handcuff you?"

Li Wei put away the arrest warrant, then pulled out a pair of handcuffs and waved them at the two men. He didn't mention the content of the meeting at all, nor did he express any opinion. It was as if he had come here solely to arrest these two people, and he didn't care at all where he was or what he was doing.

"…………………"

The two men exchanged a glance, hesitant and completely unsure of what to do. They certainly didn't want the other to come up and handcuff them in front of everyone, but to walk down? Wouldn't that be tantamount to declaring their defeat?

No, or rather, they have already failed...

Adams lowered his head, the once impassioned man now looking as dejected as a defeated rooster. Hancock silently patted him on the shoulder, said nothing, and walked towards the bottom of the podium. There, Levi stood calmly, waiting for them.

"and many more."

However, at that moment, another voice suddenly rang out. The two looked up and saw Clyburn stand up from his chair, gripping the railing with both hands, and staring coldly at Levi.

"This is the Continental Parliament, not a place where the Queen's lackeys can run rampant! Guards, seize him!"

As he spoke, Clyburn waved his hand, and then several guards stepped out from the side, gripping rifles with bayonets fixed, and walked toward Levi.

Almost at the same time, gunshots rang out.

"boom!"

Gunfire rang out.

Clyburn's massive body shuddered violently, and a bloody hole appeared almost without warning between his foreheads. He stared wide-eyed at Levi—who was now looking up at Clyburn, his right hand, which had been holding handcuffs, now held a smoking revolver.

Clyburn swayed, then flipped over the railing and fell headfirst to the ground.

"Boom!!"

Everyone was stunned as Clyburn turned into a corpse in the blink of an eye, and the entire venue fell into a deathly silence. Even the guards, gripping their weapons, were pale-faced, their legs trembling, and they almost ran away.

At this moment, Li Wei's voice rang out again.

"What a disappointment."

Li Wei turned around to talk to the persuader, and slowly looked around at the crowd.

"On the territory of the Empire, in broad daylight, under the watchful eyes of everyone, someone actually dares to defy Her Majesty the Queen's decree? Obstruct the enforcement of the law? Is there no justice left? Is there no law at all?"

Li Wei's voice was extremely calm, as if he were discussing the weather, yet not a single person in the entire hall dared to utter a word. Because Li Wei had already proven with his actions that he not only dared to act, but even dared to kill! Anyone who dared to stop him would be killed!

Of course, Levi is not a cold-blooded animal. If it were someone else, he might have used other methods to threaten them. But who would have thought that it was Clyburn who spoke up?

Li Wei had no choice but to take action.

Let's consider this revenge for the victims within the Empire's territory.

As expected, after Clyburn demonstrated the consequences with his own life, everyone else fell silent. They also realized that Levi wouldn't bother the guards; on the contrary, he would ruthlessly kill the person who gave the order. At least—that was the case in front of him.

Life is only once. As mentioned before, those who come here are the pillars of their respective industries. Don't be fooled by Adams' impassioned speech, his "Give me liberty or give me death" rhetoric. Given their status, even on the battlefield, they would be among the last to die. If they're lucky enough to surrender, they might still be able to survive.

No matter the outcome, at least there is a future if we survive.

And what about Clyburn?

He has no future now.

Adams and Hancock walked down from the podium with their heads down and came to Levi. Once again, as if by magic, Levi put away his gun, took out handcuffs, and cuffed each of them. Then he gestured for them to come in.

"Alright, gentlemen, let's go."

The two walked ahead dejectedly, with Li Wei following behind, seemingly unafraid of their escape. The guards dared not move, watching this bizarre scene, unsure what to say. However, the others dared not speak, nor dared to approach, and could only watch helplessly as the three walked out of the venue.

"I must say, you are really brave, Mr. Li Wei."

Once outside the venue, Hancock felt much less burdened. He was already handcuffed; what else could he do?

So he started talking to Li Wei as they walked.

"I never imagined you would actually dare to do such a thing at the Continental Conference. Did you really think you could walk out of the gates of Faithah alive?"

You mean I can't get out?

Levi chuckled, and Hancock went all out.

“Your actions are truly unexpected, but by doing so, you will only strengthen the Continental Parliament’s resolve to confront the Empire. I assure you, however, that the situation will be quite different when you leave City Hall.”

"I don't think there's a problem. Okay, please hurry up and leave. Don't waste time dawdling here."

Levi remained unmoved by Hancock's threats, while Hancock exchanged a glance with Adams and shook his head.

He didn't believe Levi could do anything. Perhaps he had already contacted the garrison near Fairhart to come and meet them, but they hadn't received any prior notice. Moreover, if he really came alone, Hancock thought there was no way Levi could leave Fairhart alive.

The Continental Parliament would never allow such a thing to happen. After all, if they really turned a blind eye to this, then there would be no point in talking about the struggle between Melisia and the Empire.

Perhaps he and Adams were no longer of any value to the Continental Congress, but what Li Wei was doing was tantamount to spitting in the face of the Continental Congress!
They will definitely take action!

Hancock wanted to slow down, to buy himself more time to think, but Levi clearly didn't care. Hancock and Adams, being adults, couldn't afford to dawdle like children. Even as they slowed their pace, the three of them finally arrived at the city hall's main entrance and then walked out.

"Wow!"

The moment the three stepped out the door, they saw hundreds of fully armed militiamen raise their guns and surround them in layers.

"You thug, you have trespassed into the Mainland Affairs Council and threatened elected representatives! Your crimes are unforgivable!"

The militia commander standing at the rear stared at Li Wei and shouted loudly.

"Put down your weapons and surrender immediately!"

"Unforgivable crime?"

However, Li Wei remained unfazed by the militia commander's shouts, calmly leaning on his cane and staring at them as if the dark gun barrels in front of him did not exist at all.

"As a representative, I have an arrest warrant issued by the Parliament and signed by the Governor, approved by Her Majesty the Queen, to arrest criminals on Imperial territory. What crime have I committed? Or perhaps..."

Li Wei stared at the militiamen, his gaze as calm as if he were looking at a group of dead men.

"You want to rebel against the empire?"

"You smooth talker! Release them right now! Or we'll open fire!"

The militia commander clearly didn't care about Levi's threats and just shouted angrily. Seeing this, Hancock and Adams were secretly pleased. After all, Levi had been arrogant in the council just now, but now, no matter how capable he was, he couldn't fight against so many militiamen. They wanted to see what Levi planned to do when faced with so many militiamen.
However, just as the two looked at Li Wei, they were surprised to find that Li Wei did not care about the gun barrel in front of him at all. He simply reached out and took out a pocket watch from his clothes and looked at it.

"Well, it's almost time."

"What are you talking about? What do you mean by 'more or less'..."

"Buzzing—!"

Before the militia commander could finish speaking, a strange sound suddenly rang out. It sounded like the wind, or perhaps like the vibration of the atmosphere.

Then, a dark shadow gradually appeared, blocking out the sunlight.

Hancock and Adams looked up in surprise, instinctively gazing at the sky, and then their eyes widened in astonishment.

In the distance, a colossal steel structure burst forth from the clouds.

Its appearance resembles an overturned ship, and its size is as large as a warship. On both sides of the hull, there are four pairs of propellers that are constantly spinning rapidly.

On the steel-cast hull, a falcon with outstretched wings stands proudly, gleaming in the sunlight.

This is the technological culmination of the Empire's steam industrial revolution, and also the Empire's strongest trump card for its resurgence.

The Imperial Royal Navy's Third Fleet, the airship Cyclops, makes its grand entrance.

(End of this chapter)