Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 145 There is everything in the dream

When you dream of being triumphant, confident of victory, and smug, believing that everything is under your control.

But then suddenly someone runs out and slaps you, telling you it's nothing—clearly, this is a nightmare.

The same applies to Creed.

"What's this!?"

Looking at the enormous, terrifying beast before him, Creed felt a chill run down his spine. From that day on, he spent every night plagued by nightmares. Creed thought himself a seasoned veteran, someone who had seen it all, and that no nightmare could defeat him.

However, when this beast, seemingly from the ancient primordial era, burst forth from the darkness, it mercilessly tore apart everything he possessed.

"Gah—!"

Even the Night Demons were no bigger than bats in front of this terrifying behemoth. They flapped their wings, let out sharp cries, and pounced on the beast. The beast, in turn, let out a deep, chilling roar, opened its mouth, and bit and tore apart the Night Demons that pounced on it, while swinging its tail to swat away the "flies" that hovered around it.

But it's not over yet.

"———————!"

With a sharp whistle, several velociraptors shot out like arrows, quickly passing through the chaotic Night Demons and lunging at Creed, who was hiding behind them.

"Get out of here, you monsters!"

Seeing the velociraptors pounce, Creed clearly showed a look of utter terror. Well, that's normal; after all, these adorable creatures always elicit the same reaction from audiences in movie theaters. However, Creed's reaction was noticeably more exaggerated than the other viewers—after all, there wasn't a screen separating him from these velociraptors.

He frantically backed away, drawing a gun from his waist, but the next moment, a velociraptor opened its mouth and bit his wrist.

"Ah ah ah ah ah!!"

Creed screamed and howled, struggling to break free, but the other velociraptor held onto his arm tightly, pulling him down. Before Creed could make any further move, another velociraptor leaped up, its thick, sharp hind claws stomping directly on Creed's chest, digging deep inside, while simultaneously opening its mouth to bite down on Creed's neck.

Just one bite would be enough to kill him.

That's how it should have been.

"Boom!"

However, the velociraptor that rushed up to bite Creed was sent flying backward, crashing heavily into the wall or other Night Demons.

Then, Creed stood up again.

"You can't kill me!"

Creed's appearance had completely changed. His body was torn open with several wounds by the velociraptors, but instead of blood, a substance resembling black sludge flowed from them. This substance involuntarily reminded Levi of the murky and rotten sewage in the lower reaches of the Fog City. It flowed and roamed within Creed's body, like some kind of monster hiding inside him.

"I am the messenger of God! The great God is with me!"

“If it were truly that great, it wouldn’t have been locked in a sarcophagus.”

Li Wei muttered a complaint, simultaneously pulling out the Persuader from his pocket. He still didn't understand what was in the coffin, but it was clear that the old professor hadn't been able to completely destroy it. That thing had obviously managed to survive by residing in Creed's body in some way. Although he didn't know what that thing was, he was certain that if they didn't act, they would be the ones who died.

Levi fired two shots at Creed, hitting his target both times, but it was to no avail. This guy seemed to have completely stopped pretending, or rather, Creed didn't seem human at all; he seemed more like something possessed by some monster.

He roared and his body began to transform. At the same time, more and more Night Demons appeared around him, fighting against the ancient behemoths, and the surroundings became chaotic.

so troublesome!
Li Wei frowned as he led the others back. Could this thing also be some kind of mechanic-based monster, requiring a specific order to defeat?

But then again...

Li Wei suddenly remembered the statue of the Goddess of Night that he had seen in the temple hall before.

This coffin was sealed in the temple of the Goddess of Night, which means the Goddess of Night should be able to handle this thing.

The thought only flashed through Li Wei's mind for a moment, but then, something strange happened.

Everything was plunged into darkness.

Shouts, sounds of fighting, ruins, night demons and giant beasts—everything vanished without a trace.

There was only unparalleled silence and darkness all around, and nothing else.

"???"

Li Wei turned his head and saw that Annie and the others who should have been beside him were also nowhere to be seen.

He was all alone in the darkness.

No, he wasn't the only one.

Li Wei suddenly felt something, then raised his head and looked up at the top of his head.

Then, he saw it.

Everyone has looked up at night and seen the dark sky.

So, who would see the night sky as a person?
That's exactly what Li Wei is like right now.

Before him, Li Wei could see the figure of a woman in the night sky. The bright, clear moon formed her eyes, and countless stars scattered down, as if outlining the lines of her hair. Her long, black hair flowed in the air, transforming into the night sky that covered the earth.

Goddess of the Night.

Li Wei had seen her twice, but on both occasions, the Goddess of Night appeared no different from a mortal, and her height and build were also human-sized.

This was the first time he had ever seen such a colossal goddess of the night; or rather, this was what a true god should be, exactly as people imagined.

However, Li Wei didn't feel any awe when he looked at her. Strictly speaking, it was like being a tourist in a 5A-level scenic area and seeing the magnificent mountains and beautiful scenery. His mind was basically filled with nothing but "Holy crap, that's awesome?"

The Goddess of Night slightly shifted her eyes, staring at Li Wei, while Li Wei stared back at her.

I don't know what to say... but this is your problem, so solve it yourself!

Whether the goddess of the night heard Li Wei's inner complaints or not, she lowered her eyes again, and then Li Wei saw the night sky begin to drift.

Indeed, the night beneath the Goddess of Night's head had transformed into a curtain-like shape, giving the impression of a billowing, floating robe. Then, Li Wei saw a hand emerge from it, pointing at him. Next, a beam of light shot from the Goddess of Night's fingertip, striking the Persuader in Li Wei's hand.

A cold sensation came from his hand. It wasn't ice, but more like the cold night wind, cool and gentle. Li Wei looked down and realized that the persuader in his hand had completely changed.

The entire gun turned as black as night, with a faint, star-like shimmer forming constellation-like shapes on its surface. Holding it felt incredibly comfortable, as if the gun itself had transformed into the soft, boneless hand of a young girl, gripping it from behind.

Then, everything vanished.

The dilapidated ruins, the Night Demon, and the behemoths returned to Li Wei's sight once more. He heard the roars of the behemoths and the wails of the Night Demons. Li Wei gripped his gun tightly, raised it, and aimed it again at Creed, who was hiding behind the Night Demons.

At the same time, a system notification sounded in Li Wei's ear, but he no longer needed to look at it.

Then, Li Wei pulled the trigger.

"Bang-------!"

The bullet spun as it flew forward, leaving a trail of afterimages like those illuminated by moonlight. It passed through the horde of Night Demons fighting the giant beast and struck Creed squarely in the chest.

The latter's body trembled violently, then his eyes widened, and he looked down at his chest. Then he raised his head and stared blankly at Li Wei.

At the same time, beams of light surged from Creed's body.

"Ah...ah...ahhhhh!!"

It wasn't the sun's dazzling brilliance, but the soft, cool moonlight. Yet, at this moment, this gentle light seemed to transform into countless blades, mercilessly tearing and slicing through Creed's body. With a piercing scream, Creed's body was sliced ​​open, turning into fragments that exploded in all directions.

At the same time, the entire world collapsed completely.

"……………………"

The world turned dark again.

"call……………"

Li Wei let out a long breath, put the persuader back into his waistband, and then looked up, and sure enough, he saw the Goddess of Night again.

The latter continued to gaze at him silently, without uttering a word.

"...Aren't you going to say anything?"

Li Wei spoke first.

"You must have something to tell me."

In Li Wei's view, this was the third time this goddess had appeared in front of him; surely she wasn't just there out of boredom to watch the show?

But the goddess of night merely watched him.

A moment later, a whisper came from Li Wei’s ear.

"The world will change..."

"Change?"

"Humanity is facing a completely new choice. What will your choice be? Or will it be as a mortal?"

Faced with the question from the Goddess of the Night, Li Wei thought about it very seriously.

"Eat well, sleep well, play well?"

"…………………that's all?"

"I think there is nothing more important in life than this."

Before transmigrating, Li Wei was a very ordinary person who believed in enduring hardship before enjoying happiness. However, after that serious illness, Li Wei's thinking completely changed.

After all, you never know which will come first, tomorrow or an accident. Perhaps you're thinking that you should work hard while you're young and then enjoy life when you're old.

The result is that upon waking up, one realizes they've worked so hard but haven't even had a chance to enjoy it before dying—all that hard work for nothing. All their retirement money went towards medical treatment; if they recover, that's fine, but if not, it's a complete waste. Thus, the first half of their life was spent suffering at work, and the second half suffering in a hospital bed.

Forget about the idea of ​​"bitter before sweet"; there's only bitterness first and even more bitterness.

So after transmigrating, Li Wei's attitude became: "No matter what tomorrow brings, I am the most important person. I can't let myself suffer today."

Eat when you want to eat, drink when you want to drink, sleep when you want to sleep, and play when you want to play.

That way, even if something unexpected happens, you won't regret not having lived a good life, nor will you be saddened by not having had time to enjoy it.

Hoarding pine nuts for winter like a squirrel is a dead end, because you're not sure if you'll be snatched away and eaten by an eagle before winter, and the pine nuts you hoard will just go to someone else.

"…………………"

The Goddess of Night remained silent, perhaps stunned by Li Wei's answer, which defied mainstream values. It wasn't until quite some time later that the Goddess of Night's voice reappeared.

"But you will eventually have to make a choice."

"We'll talk about it then, it's not now anyway."

Li Wei quickly gave an answer: it's like taking an exam. Staying up all night to cram is one option, and playing games all night and then falling asleep during the exam is another.

In fact, staying up all night to study doesn't necessarily guarantee a high score, and playing games all night and then sleeping through the night doesn't necessarily mean failing.

But if we're talking about which is more comfortable, the latter is definitely the better choice.

"...Interesting mortals."

The Goddess of Night was clearly speechless at Li Wei's lazy reply.

"The gods will eventually return. I'll see how long you can enjoy this."

After saying this, the Goddess of Night vanished without a trace, while Li Wei sighed silently.

"Doesn't this mean that I have plenty of good days ahead of me before you come back?"

(End of this chapter)