Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 252 New Life
Levi stared at Adele in front of him, curiously examining her.

Adele felt a little nervous facing Levi's gaze, but she didn't lower her head. Instead, she mustered her courage and stared straight at him.

Then, Li Wei spoke.

"you know me?"

"Hey?"

"The way you look at me doesn't look like the way you look at a stranger meeting for the first time."

"ah……………"

Upon hearing Levi's question, Adele's heart tightened. She suddenly remembered that Levi wasn't a nobleman, but a detective. The newspapers said that no matter how well a criminal hid, a single glance from him was enough to tell whether they were guilty or not, as if he could read minds.

This is far more terrifying than a typical employer.

“You are very famous among us.”

"Very famous?"

"Yes, many students at our school are yours..."

Adele paused for a moment, realizing that the word "fan" didn't exist in this era, so she didn't know how to say it.

"They are all your admirers, and reports about you are widely circulated in my school."

"oh……………"

Upon hearing Adele's answer, Levi was taken aback before realizing what she meant. He knew, of course, that Adele attended a convent school for girls—in this era, girls' schools were almost always closely linked to the church. Otherwise, a school for all girls wouldn't be so easy to run.

Li Wei knew that girls of this age loved to follow celebrities, but generally they didn't follow singers or movie stars... Oh, that kind of thing didn't exist in this era.

No wonder then.

Li Wei pulled himself out of his thoughts and looked at Adele again. She wasn't particularly beautiful, or rather, her appearance was average. However, she had a very decisive and efficient demeanor, giving off a rather elegant feeling. Moreover, her expression was very calm, not indifferent or expressionless, but rather calm and composed.

That's a good start.

"Although I've already seen your file, I still want to talk to you. Please sit down. Eileen, Alice seems a little sleepy. Let's take her back to bed."

Levi gestured for Adele to sit on the sofa next to him. Then Eileen quickly went over and poured her a cup of tea. Afterward, she took Alice's hand, and the latter obediently followed Eileen out of the huge study.

After the two figures disappeared, Li Wei looked at Adele again.

"The information says you attend St. Francis Convent School?"

"Yes, I entered that school when I was ten and stayed until I was sixteen. I also taught there for two years."

Adele answered honestly.

"So, what is the reason you came here?"

"Mrs. Helen—the headmistress told me that a nobleman of considerable standing wanted to hire a governess, and she thought I was qualified."

"So, do you think you're capable of doing it?"

Li Wei's smile remained unchanged, but his tone was clearly not as calm as his smile suggested. Adele straightened her back and stared at him.

"I believe I can do it."

"So, tell me about yourself. What skills do you have?"

"I speak Franciscan and some Kronte, and I am also good at math. I play the piano, paint, and play chess. Of course, I have also studied geography, history, dance, and etiquette."

"Is that your painting?"

Li Wei's gaze fell on the sketchbook Adele was carrying, and the latter nodded.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to take a look."

"Of course, please do."

Adele took the sketchbook and handed it to him. Levi took the sketchbook, opened it, and quickly scanned its contents.

"Most of them are natural scenery and animals, which really surprised me, Miss Field. I thought you would draw something about religion and monasteries."

"I'm not really interested in that kind of thing..."

Adele had originally intended to come up with a random excuse. She understood what Levi meant: she had spent eight years studying and living in a monastery school, and by all accounts, she should be a devout believer. Levi's words subtly implied that she wasn't necessarily a devout religious person.

Generally speaking, Adele could have used the same rhetoric she used with the nuns at the convent, such as how the divine authority was too dazzling for a woman like herself to casually depict or even blaspheme with her writing. However, she remembered that Levi was a detective, and lying to him would only be self-humiliating. Therefore, Adele decided to be simpler and more direct.

“Okay, I understand. Miss Adele, I have one last request for you.”

"please say."

"I need to explain something to you here. Alice's situation is a bit complicated, and she's not like other children. So I need you to do one thing: if you notice anything particularly strange about Alice's words or actions, please tell me immediately. If I'm not around, you can tell Eileen."

"Strange words and actions?"

It must be said that Levi's request was truly unexpected for Adele, and she frowned slightly.

"Excuse my bluntness, but children always do a lot of strange things."

“I’m not talking about the kind of normal behavior that children exhibit. Since you’ve been teaching for two years, I think you can distinguish between what is normal and what is abnormal for children. Also, if you notice anything strange—even if you think it’s just your imagination or hallucination—please tell me. And if I’m not around, tell Eileen.”

“……………………”

Adele did not answer immediately; this time she fell silent.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem, Miss Field?"

"I am very puzzled by your request..."

“I understand what you mean. Alice is a good girl, but… there are some special things to be aware of. I don’t mean you should be wary of her or spy on her all day like a spy. What you need to do is very simple: do your job. If you notice anything strange about her while you’re working, or if you think you’ve seen anything strange, tell me, understand?”

"understood."

Adele understood perfectly well that Levi clearly didn't intend to elaborate, and she could understand that. After all, she was a tutor who had just arrived here, and he had no need to explain things she shouldn't know.

"So now, the last thing is—are you willing to accept this job?"

Levi stared at Adele, and Adele stared back at Levi.

"Of course, sir."

“Very good.” Li Wei smiled, then picked up the bell on the table and shook it. Soon, the butler came in from outside.

"Owner."

"Take her back to her room to rest. Work starts tomorrow. Oh, right..."

As the butler prepared to leave with Adele, Levi suddenly remembered something.

"Your annual salary is one hundred pounds, that's settled, go ahead."

"……………Why?"

Adele was taken aback by Li Wei's last words, but she didn't show it and obediently followed the butler away.

Watching Adele leave, Levi sighed and leaned back on the sofa.

"I hope this young lady is reliable..."

Then, he muttered to himself.

And so, Adele's new life began.

As Levi said, Alice is a good child. Of course, she can be willful and sometimes even unwilling to study, but these are common things for children. Adele has faced children like this before and knows how to educate them.

What put Adele at ease was that Levi rarely stayed home. Of course, he would have breakfast with Alice and Adele every day, and then he would usually leave home to go to the club until he returned for dinner in the afternoon. This allowed Adele to relax and do her work. As for Alice, apart from studying, she would basically stay with Irene.

In Adele's eyes, Irene was different from ordinary maids. She wasn't responsible for cooking, laundry, or sweeping; those chores were done by others. Besides taking care of Alice, Irene's main job was to stay in her workshop, making all sorts of strange things.

According to Eileen, these were all part of her job, but she didn't say what she intended to do with the dolls she created.

Overall, Adele's work here was very easy and comfortable, and the servants treated her very well. The only thing that gave Adele a bit of a headache was that a Miss Katie would always come to play with Alice.

No one knew who this Miss Katie was, but according to Miss Eileen, she was a noblewoman who had known Levi for a long time—the two had known each other before she arrived.

This young lady is naturally lively, but sometimes she does some strange things. For example, when Adele first met her, Katie circled Adele three times and then inexplicably blurted out "Pass!" She even proudly puffed out her chest, looking like she was saying, "As expected of me."

I have no idea what she's talking about.

However, Miss Katie doesn't come here for Levi or Alice most of the time. Basically, as soon as she hears that Levi isn't here, she'll excitedly run to the swimming pool on the sixteenth floor—Adele is actually quite envious of her, after all, it's the first time she's seen someone build a swimming pool in their own tower, and a hot water pool at that.

In Adele's opinion, it was somewhat inappropriate for an unmarried young lady to go swimming at a single man's house. Even wearing a swimsuit was highly improper. However, Katie clearly didn't care, and the servants were used to her visits, so Adele didn't interfere.

Perhaps this young lady is Mr. Li Wei's fiancée and will become the mistress of this house in the future?

Adele didn't dislike Katie; she was lively, cheerful, and enthusiastic. It was rare to see a girl like that in the convent, where everyone was strictly disciplined by the nuns. Such a cheerful and lively girl was quite endearing.

Of course, Alice liked her very much too.

For Li Wei, Alice's appearance did bring some changes, especially when he returned home, the lovely little Alice would call "Daddy" and come over to hug him, and after dinner she would recite the poems or paintings she had learned that day to him in her sweet, childlike voice.

It has to be said that this really made Li Wei feel like he was raising a daughter.

Of course, life is ordinary, but there are also things that are not so ordinary—for example, at noon this day, while Li Wei was having tea at the Golden Mead Club, he saw a middle-aged man with a pale face appear in front of him.

Well, even if he didn't say anything, Li Wei knew that business had come knocking.

"Hello, Sir Levi."

The middle-aged man in front of me was dressed in a suit and tie, looking quite respectable (of course, this was also a rule of the Golden Mead Club; men who were not wearing formal attire and bow ties were not allowed to enter), but his pale and thin face was completely unworthy of this expensive suit.

Li Wei could tell he was tense and very listless. Hmm... judging from the dark circles under his eyes, he probably hadn't slept in a long time.

“My name is West Wood, and this is my business card…”

As the man spoke, he carefully handed over a business card, which Li Wei took and glanced at.

"An art dealer? How did you know I was here?"

"I introduced them."

At this moment, another person walked over. Li Wei remembered that he was another male member of the Eastna quartet. If he remembered correctly, his name was... Borent Beth.

“Mr. Wood’s gallery sells my paintings, so I know him. He has recently encountered some… danger, so I introduced him to you for help.”

Borent was clearly not a good talker, but Levi didn't mind. He looked at the art dealer with curiosity and asked.

"So, what danger did you encounter?"

"In fact, I encountered some very strange things..."

The art dealer was clearly hesitant about whether to explain things to Li Wei, but in the end he decided to.

As an art dealer, his main job is to find paintings and then put them in galleries for sale. Not long ago, he bought a painting from an artist named T. Pickman. The dealer said that he was initially attracted by the painting's strong use of color, but after looking at it for a while, he developed an instinctive aversion to it.

Not only that, after seeing the painting, the art dealer began to have nightmares every night, and even suffered bad luck as a result.

The art dealer didn't consider himself a superstitious person, nor did he believe that a painting could cast a curse on someone. However, he couldn't help but inquire about the situation and discovered that several people who had bought his paintings had encountered some kind of accident, and some had even disappeared without a trace. This terrified the art dealer, keeping him awake at night.

He certainly didn't want to sell the painting and affect those unsuspecting customers, but he didn't know what to do with it.

Just then, Borent came to the gallery to consign his paintings and learned about the art dealer's situation. Considering that the dealer had always taken good care of him, and that Borent had also seen the paintings and found them strange, he introduced the art dealer to Levi for help.

"A painting that gives off a very eerie feeling?"

Li Wei frowned, somewhat surprised by the incident.

"It's not weird, it's repulsive."

"Borent spoke up."

"The painting's use of color was very vivid, enough to attract people at a glance, but the more you stared at it, the more you felt an instinctive disgust and aversion—I even vomited."

"Is it that powerful?"

Li Wei also became interested at this moment. Putting aside whether this was some kind of mysterious event, he wanted to see what kind of painting could make people nauseous.

I can't miss out on this fun!

Thinking of this, Li Wei also stood up.

"Let's go take a look and then make a decision."

(End of this chapter)