Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 264 A Letter
【Dear Sir Levy, Greetings】

I don't know if this letter will ever reach you, but I desperately need your help. I am currently in the most painful, agonizing, and unimaginable situation. Please allow me to explain my situation to you, so that perhaps a noble and kind gentleman like you can understand my current predicament.

I'm an ordinary person. My parents died in an accident when I was young, and I've been living alone ever since. After graduating from school, I found an office job, barely enough to support myself. I thought my life would continue like this. But a letter that arrived not long ago shattered the peace of my life… The sender claimed to be my grandfather, saying he was old and about to pass away. I was his only blood relative, and he said he owned a piece of land in the Great Salt Lake, and I would become its owner.

To be honest, I initially thought it was some kind of prank, because from birth until now, in my memory, I've just been a child from an ordinary family; neither of my parents ever mentioned any aristocratic background. But the letter included a land deed, which they confirmed was genuine, so I finally made up my mind to quit my only job, sell my house to raise enough money, and head to the Great Salt Lake, hoping to start over there.

But I was wrong.

I had never seen such a terrible, desolate place, filled with curses and evil. I wished it were a prank, but unfortunately, it wasn't. After arriving at the Great Salt Lake, I received a letter from an old friend of my grandfather's. After reading it, I realized his true purpose in calling me back… I had been tricked!
I want to leave, but I have nowhere else to turn, so I can only write to ask for your help. I have read about you and the cases you have solved more than once. But I am certain that what happened here is far more terrible than what you have experienced. If you are willing to extend a helping hand to a vulnerable woman in despair, please have mercy and come to the Great Salt Lake. I will pray for your arrival here…

(PS: I have attached my grandfather's last letter with this letter.)

Sofia Krant

"Isn't this a letter addressed to me?"

After reading the letter, Li Wei complained to the old butler, who chuckled.

"Almost all the letters sent to the editorial department are addressed to you. Are you planning to read them one by one?"

"Forget it then."

Li Wei shook his head, then looked at the old butler.

Do you think this is true?

"Well, compared to those that are obviously made up, this letter does seem a bit problematic, so I plan to send a small team over to check it out."

The old butler nodded as well.

“Many readers’ letters are obviously fabricated. After all, they describe everything clearly, such as where the place is haunted, what kind of ghost it is, and why it turned into a ghost. It’s obviously fake.”

"That's true."

Li Wei chuckled. Ultimately, it's just like urban legends. Everyone says encountering evil spirits will kill you, but if people actually die, how did these stories survive? Some are even told in vivid detail, almost like they're from the first person. Those that are described in such great detail are even less believable. Or rather, if you know everything, what's the point of us investigating?
"Some people even said they need you to personally go and exorcise the demon."

"I don't know if it's serious or not, who knows if the one eyeing me is a person or a ghost..."

Li Wei made a sarcastic remark, bringing the topic back on track.

Where is the Great Salt Lake?

"Let me see the map. Oh, here it is, in the northwest of the empire."

The old butler took out a map, looked at it, and then pointed to a place.

"This place is quite remote."

Li Wei glanced at it and couldn't help but complain, "When I went to find Alice, Clover Town was remote enough. This place looks ten times more remote than Clover Town."

Moreover, Muxu Town is surrounded by mountains on all sides, with beautiful scenery.

This godforsaken place looks like it's surrounded by wilderness...

"Judging from their position, they should be pioneer nobles, which is quite rare."

"I remember the pioneering nobles were from a long time ago?"

"Yes, it can be traced back to the founding of the empire. At that time, there were still many uninhabited areas, so Emperor Arthur issued a special decree to expand the empire's territory. Anyone who could expand the empire's territory would be granted the power to rule that area and a title. Of course, since the empire's territory was fixed, there have been no new pioneering nobles for several hundred years. Most of the pioneering nobles in the past were either swallowed up by the surrounding powerful nobles or stayed in some poor places, like here."

"Indeed, nobody would want this place even if you paid them."

Li Wei also complained, wondering what the ancestors of this person seeking help were thinking, choosing such a place to build a house in a vast, desolate wilderness. If there weren't any particularly valuable minerals or anything like that nearby, no one would go there.

Of course, it's also possible that they simply seek this sense of tranquility away from the world.

"It says there was also a letter attached?"

"Yes."

The old butler took out another letter from beside him.

"It was this letter that made me decide to send someone to investigate."

"Um………"

Li Wei took the letter and examined the envelope carefully. Unlike the previous, which looked quite ordinary, this envelope was rather luxurious, sealed with ink. He opened the letter and took out the letter paper with gold patterns. He then carefully read its contents.

"...Our family has fallen. Do you still remember our old, grand mansion, so rich and majestic? Proudly standing tall and unyielding in the wilderness. I spent my life in that ancient mansion, shrouded in rumors..."

Having indulged in that life of luxury and decadence, I grew weary of the almost unchanging glitz and glamour. Then, strange and unsettling rumors began to circulate, hinting that the manor itself might be a gateway to some unspeakable, incredible power. This piqued my interest…

[...Our footsteps disturbed this ancient land. But at this moment, we were plunged into a realm of death and madness! In the end, I alone ran, howling, through those darkening ancient arcades until I finally lost consciousness...]

"I beg you, go home, claim your inheritance, and save our family from that greedy demon that's devouring us..." "Hmm..."

After reading the letter, Li Wei fell into thought. The letter itself was quite simple: an old man, bored, heard rumors and began investigating his own manor. He then released some kind of monster, and now his whole family is probably dead. In desperation, he has no choice but to seek help from his descendants.

"What do you think, Sir Levi?"

"This shows that people shouldn't be too idle, because if they are idle, they are more likely to cause trouble."

Li Wei gave a decisive answer.

"Sometimes, it's better not to be too ambitious. Since many things are secrets, there are naturally reasons why they are secrets. If you insist on uncovering the secrets, then you will naturally have to pay a price."

Aren't many scientists in science fiction horror movies the same way? They're supposedly pursuing the truth, but in the end, they end up in the crematorium.

As the saying goes, you can't investigate everything.

What if they actually find something?

Wouldn't that mean we'd all end up just like this old man?
"I'm asking if you think this letter looks real?"

The old butler looked at Li Wei speechlessly, while the latter smiled slightly.

"It doesn't look fake."

"Oh?"

"Judging from the handwriting, the writer was indeed very agitated, even somewhat fearful; there's no faking that. At the very least, it shows that he was in a state of extreme anxiety when he wrote this letter. As for the specifics... well, I'll go take a look and see."

Li Wei also became somewhat interested in the letter. Perhaps something extraordinary was indeed happening in that place.
"I'll go back and make some preparations first. Could you please gather some information about the Great Salt Lake?"

Since the Great Salt Lake is within Imperial territory, there must be records of it.

At least there must be records of tax payments and geological surveys.

"Well, leave it to me."

The two chatted for a few more minutes, then Li Wei got up to say goodbye and returned to his home.

"You're back, Master."

"Yes, I'm back. Oh, by the way, get my things ready, I'm going on a long trip."

"about how long?"

"We'll see, at least a month. Oh, and get Phantom II ready for me."

"Yes."

Currently, Li Wei owns three cars. He most often drives his replica Phantom sports car, in addition to the Phantom II and a Black Horse steam car manufactured by Uncle Hank's company.

Li Wei has now hired a driver.

He hadn't originally intended to hire a driver, but the butler reminded Li Wei that as a nobleman, he occasionally had to entertain guests, and Li Wei couldn't very well drive to pick them up himself. Although Li Wei felt he could manage on his own, he then realized that he was so busy and didn't always have the time to pick people up.

Hiring a full-time driver is convenient for things like shopping, hauling goods, and picking up or dropping off people.

Anyway, I'm not short of money.

As for the Black Horse steam car, it's a high-end model manufactured by Uncle Hank's company, mainly used by senior executives. Using it to pick up guests won't lower its status. This car doesn't need any modifications; we can just buy a ready-made one.

Next, let's talk about Phantom II.

Ever since Li Wei's [Puppeteer] level increased, he'd been wanting to create something similar to the base vehicle in strategy games. So he simply ordered a campervan from Uncle Hank. As for its appearance... well, let's just say it doesn't quite look like it…

It's hard to see them on modern streets anymore, but when Li Wei was a child, he remembered the double-section buses that ran on the streets. Simply put, they were two bus carriages connected by a train-like device, and they could carry a lot of people.

These buses are typically around 18 meters long and have three to four pairs of tires; they used to be the main mode of public transportation. Now, it's rare to see such large buses on the streets.

Li Wei actually thinks this kind of bus is quite good, and he doesn't know why it was phased out.

The Phantom II's design was based on this type of bus. It was 15 meters long, had three pairs of tires, two carriages, and was about the same size as a normal bus in terms of width and height. Actually, when Li Wei first told me this, Uncle Hank and his team were building it with the goal of creating a trackless train—which, strictly speaking, wasn't entirely wrong.

The interior of the Mirage II was similar to that of a train carriage, with beds, chairs, and sofas. The engine itself could also be used to boil water and heat food. There were also heating pipes all over the undercarriage, and with the excellent suspension system of the time, it was quite acceptable.

If the destination was on a mountain, Li Wei would absolutely not take this; that would be suicidal.

But since this great salt lake is in the wilderness, Li Wei decided to try taking a spontaneous trip in a motorhome.

Of course, he didn't forget to cram a bunch of drones, turrets, and ammunition into the cargo container...

(End of this chapter)