Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 213 Night Dream
It's getting late.

The expedition team ultimately decided to set up camp near the corridor of the chapel. Although Levi had blasted a large hole in the roof of the chapel, the sturdy walls around it could still provide shelter from the wind. Most of the monsters' corpses had completely vanished in the flames; only a few unfortunate ones were dragged aside by Annie for analysis and comparison.

When Levi was bored, he told Anne the story of King Solomon.

"So, Mr. Levi, you mean these monsters are humans turned into humans?"

Anne's scalpel showed no sign of stopping. She deftly sliced ​​open the monster's skin, speaking as she did so. Of course, Anne's expression remained unchanged, as natural as an office worker casually chatting and drinking coffee while working.

What do you think? Do you believe magic exists?

"That depends on how magic is defined."

Annie put down the knife and parted the skin on the monster's abdomen to the sides.

"In my opinion, the abilities that Duchess Baskerville's little dog possesses are also quite 'magical'."

What do you think magic is?

Levi looked at Anne with great curiosity. In Levi's world, people always regarded magic as fantasy, or some kind of irrational superstition and ignorant imagination.

"In my view, magic might be a kind of energy that can alter the external characteristics of living beings..."

"energy?"

"That's right. Fire is also a form of energy, and as you and I both know, if someone is burned by fire, the injured part will not recover to its original state, but will become the burned part again. From this perspective, fire, as a form of energy, has changed some of the physical characteristics of humans."

"What you're saying makes some sense. In your opinion, is magic the same way?"

"Yes."

Anne carefully extended her gloved hands and scooped out an internal organ from the sticky abdomen.

"The Baskervilles' pet has the ability to freely change its size, which may be a unique way of using power. So, assuming that the legendary King Solomon also possessed power similar to that little dog, but even greater, it wouldn't be unreasonable to say that he could use this power to change other people's appearances and turn them into monsters."

"oh……………"

"Moreover, my anatomical results also prove that this statement has a certain degree of accuracy."

"is it?"

"Yes."

Anne placed the entrails she was holding on the nearby alcohol stove and then lit it.

"For example, teeth. An average adult has 32 teeth, while a dog has 42 teeth. Judging from the skull shape of these monsters, their number of teeth should be closer to that of animals than humans. However, according to the examination results, most of these monsters also have 32 teeth. Moreover, the distribution of these teeth does not seem to be naturally grown."

"So you mean, these monsters were really the people of King Solomon back then?"

Hearing this, Li Wei was also taken aback.

King Solomon lived during the time of Emperor Arthur. How could these monsters have lived for so long?
"That's not necessarily the case."

"What do you mean?"

"Go and take a look at that guy's mouth."

As she spoke, Annie gestured with her chin toward the enormous monster not far away—the very same unfortunate fellow whom Katie had punched to death earlier, who was still embedded in the wall.

Li Wei walked up to the monster, put on his gloves, grabbed its mouth, opened it, and examined it closely. To his astonishment, he discovered that inside the monster's long, dog-like jaw, outside its sharp teeth, were inlaid objects connected by metal rings.

"This is?"

"Orthodontic appliances".

"oh……………"

Li Wei knew about braces, although he had never used one himself, he had seen some people wear them.

"So what do you mean?"

"Unless there were orthodontic appliances in the time of King Solomon, I don't think these monsters are that far removed from the past."

"I see."

Hearing this, Li Wei narrowed his eyes and began to think. He immediately recalled what Olivia had told him before, when she had inquired with the Luddites, that she had learned that Luddites would occasionally enter the deep mountains and then disappear.

In other words, these guys didn't die, but turned into these monsters?

But then again…

"How did you find out?"

"Since an autopsy is not possible, I want to collect some external physical characteristics first..."

"oh……………"

Li Wei silently glanced at Annie again; she really was a ruthless person.

Even if you can't cut it, there are ways to play with it.

"Thank you."

Levi nodded to Annie and then returned to the camp. Olivia was having tea with Katie, but neither of them seemed to have any appetite for the sausages in front of them.

“Miss Olivia, I have some questions for you.”

Li Wei walked over, picked up a sandwich, and glanced at Olivia.

"What is it, Mr. Li Wei?"

"You said earlier that, based on the questioning of those Luddites who were arrested, some of them have disappeared?"

"Yes."

Are there any relatively wealthy people among them?

"A rich person?" Olivia frowned and thought for a moment, wondering why Li Wei was asking this question.

“There is one, William Krent, the second son of the Krent family. From a young age, he loved those Luddite tales. He once told me that we should give up everything we have now and live a primitive, natural life in the forest like those shamans…”

At this point, Olivia sighed.

"After I arrested those Luddites, I discovered that he had been in contact with them all along and had even sponsored some of their activities. The Krent family was also implicated as a result, which is a real shame."

Has he had orthodontic treatment?

"Hmm... I think so."

"You know him very well?"

“We grew up together, and our two families had a good relationship back then.”

Olivia's expression was quite complicated.

“When he was little, he liked to tell legends about fairies and such. I just thought he liked myths and legends, but I never expected... Oh well, it's all in the past.”

"Then please come here."

"?"

Li Wei beckoned to Olivia to come with him. She stood up, puzzled, and followed him to the monster. Looking at the monster, which had been beaten and embedded in the wall, Olivia frowned.

"Why do you want me to look at this?"

"Because I suspect that this might be the missing Mr. Krent."

Li Wei shared his conjecture with Olivia: the braces were definitely a modern invention, something that wouldn't have existed in King Solomon's time. Since these things were on the monster's teeth, it couldn't have been some dentist with the audacity to perform orthodontic treatment on a monster.

In this era, orthodontic treatment is still a service that only the wealthy can afford, and obviously there are not many people who can meet all these conditions at the same time.

"So you think this monster might be... him in disguise?"

"It's just a hypothesis; whether it's true or not, we'll have to look at the evidence."

Levi shrugged and stepped aside, while Olivia hesitated for a moment before stepping forward. She first cautiously glanced at the head that had been interrupted by Katie and was now hanging on her chest, then carefully examined the monster's corpse. After a long while, Olivia withdrew her gaze.

"Indeed...that's possible."

"you sure?"

"more or less."

As Olivia spoke, she pointed to the monster's left foot. Levi looked over and saw that the monster's left foot was missing its big toe.

"When he was little, he always liked to play with animals. Then one time, he somehow angered a stray dog, which bit off his left big toe. His father was furious and even sent guards to hunt down and kill all the stray dogs in the neighborhood..."

"Hmm... it seems that we can at least answer some of the questions now."

Li Wei nodded. As things stand, the answer to the question of why the Luddites came here has been largely resolved. Whether they came to eliminate the Mechanists or to return to nature, the point is, they came here and, with the help of King Solomon, transformed into these inhuman, monstrous creatures.

As for whether they regret their choice... Li Wei doesn't care.

Now another question is, why is King Solomon's power manifesting here? What is hidden here that is related to King Solomon?

Or is it that King Solomon was sealed here?

Thinking of this, Li Wei subconsciously looked at the mural opposite the All-Knowing Eye again. However, just as he looked at the mural, an unexpected scene appeared.

On the mural, Solomon's eyes, which were originally fixed on the All-Knowing Eye, were now staring intently at himself!

Why are you looking at me? I don't even know you!

Li Wei glared back unhappily, but when he blinked, the latter's eyes returned to normal.

"Forget it, let's talk about the rest tomorrow. It's getting late, everyone should get some rest."

Li Wei looked around. Aside from the bloody mess Annie was creating, resembling a scene from a horror movie, the other monster corpses had mostly vanished completely in the flames. Everyone was exhausted after a long day, and Li Wei felt drained too. Fortunately, everyone had already set up their tents, and the task of keeping watch at night could be left to the other guards.

Anyway, they weren't of much use in the daytime battle.

Li Wei yawned as he returned to his tent, then entered his sleeping bag and quickly fell into a deep sleep.

The night is getting darker.

"…………………"

A voice rang in Li Wei's ear.

It sounded like a wail, yet also like a roar.

Li Wei opened his eyes and looked around, but everything in front of him was blurry. He could only vaguely sense that he was walking in that dark corridor, and in front of him was a tightly closed stone door.

That should be the sealed stone door in the opposite corridor.

But why should I go there?
Li Wei continued walking forward, as if it were not a problem at all, as if he was going there all along.

"Rumble rumble rumble..."

The stone door slowly opened, and the sound grew louder and louder, echoing like thunder in the corridor and in Li Wei's ears.

"...Who!...Who is it!"

"...Who is it?!"

The next moment, Li Wei walked through the door, and a bright, dazzling light appeared before his eyes, causing Li Wei to instinctively reach out and shield his eyes.

A moment later, he lowered his hand.

At this moment, the scenery before Li Wei had completely changed.

(End of this chapter)