Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 277 The Depths of Darkness
Based on experience, Li Wei had already reached this conclusion.

When people want to do something secret, they like to do it underground. Whether they are good or bad, everyone seems to want to find a place underground to hide their secrets.

"Looks like from now on, if I suspect anything, I'll just go look in the basement."

Entering the basement, Li Wei twirled the key in his hand, muttering to himself in disbelief. He'd lost count of how many times he'd encountered problems underground, including the catacombs of the Holy Church and the secret underground chambers of the sanatorium…

Oh, right, their own MI7 secret base is also underground.

From now on, I need to find my own way; at the very least, I absolutely cannot build any secret bases underground.

After making a silent vow to himself, Li Wei finally turned his attention to what was ahead, or rather—that's why he started complaining in his mind.

After all, this basement is quite unusual.

The basements of churches are usually cemeteries. But perhaps because this chapel is built as a school, its basement is not a cemetery.

Instead, it's... a prison cell.

Indeed, it looked just like a prison cell, with each room sealed off by thick iron bars. Under the dim light, it was a shocking sight.

"You guys are really going to do things differently. What's the point of putting a prison under a chapel?"

Li Wei turned his head and looked at the nun beside him, who explained very embarrassedly.

"This is to discipline those naughty students. If they break the school rules, they will be locked up here so that they can reflect on and recognize their mistakes—but very few people are sent here."

Goodness, this is like being locked in a dark room in a physical sense.

Li Wei silently gave a thumbs up in his heart. This is really awesome. But doesn't it feel awkward to put something like this under a church building?
Oh, probably not, since the point is to make the other party admit their mistake.

Is it reasonable to confine someone under the chapel?

"There's nobody here."

Li Wei looked around and found the entire underground cell completely empty, without a single person in sight.

"Have you never come down here before?"

“I used to come here occasionally.”

The nun blushed and answered in a low voice.

"My main job was cleaning the cells and delivering meals to some students in solitary confinement. But starting three years ago, the principal told me that no one else was allowed to enter or leave the dungeon."

"Three years ago? What happened at the school three years ago? Were there any accidents? Like a student dying unexpectedly while in solitary confinement?"

"No, no, no!"

The nun quickly shook her head.

"This has never happened before! I can guarantee it!"

"So what happened three years ago? Tell me what you know."

“I know…”

Faced with Li Wei's question, the nun frowned and pondered deeply.

“Three years ago, nothing particularly special seemed to happen… If I had to pinpoint anything, it was that the patriarch of the Krant family was apparently carrying out some kind of construction project in the castle… But that had nothing to do with our academy…”

"Oh?"

Upon hearing this, Li Wei raised an eyebrow.

While Deans was excavating inside the family castle, the Dean sealed off the entire dungeon.
In terms of distance, the inner city castle is quite far from this academy. Logically speaking, there shouldn't be any connection between the two, right?

How many floors are there in total?

"Two floors, but the bottom floor is mainly used for storing supplies."

Li Wei stared at the ground, slowly moving forward in the dungeon, using the light in his hand to search for traces. Soon, he found what he was looking for.

footprint.

The same as what appeared at the crime scene.

"Sister, I remember you said that only you and the Dean had the keys to this place?"

"Yes, yes... I'm mainly in charge; the spare key is with the dean."

"Um……………"

Something's not right.

Li Wei stared at the footprints, but his mind was preoccupied with the nun's testimony.

Li Wei had just checked and there were no signs of forced entry on the dungeon door, but the suspect's footprints were found inside, which meant that the person had simply walked in.

The problem is, how did she get in? This place has always been locked.

The nun said she always had the key with her, and the spare key was with the head priest. If the other person used the key, it's more likely they used the head priest's. But this presents a contradiction.

If the dean made her do all of this, then she could have simply given her key to that girl instead of letting her break the glass… Oh, no, she really shouldn’t have done that.

Li Wei's mind raced, and he quickly understood. The supervising teacher had said that only the dean had the key to the glass display case. If the case hadn't been broken, Li Wei would have immediately suspected the dean. But now it seemed the perpetrator was clearly trying to stage an outside attack…

But the question is, why?
Li Wei continued walking forward, while continuing to ponder this question.

If the Dean was behind all of this, why didn't he just take the sacred stone disc himself and find an excuse? Why go through all this trouble to let everyone know that the sacred stone disc was stolen?

Oh, and this is the important part!
A thought flashed through Li Wei's mind, and he immediately grasped the key element.

If it's been taken, then we'll know who took it.

But if it's stolen, you won't know who stole it! And naturally, you won't know where it went!
When Li Wei first arrived at the academy, he was also at a loss when faced with the smashed, empty glass display cases. Because the items had been stolen, and there were no clues, he naturally had no idea where they had gone!
In other words, this is the dean's goal!
She wasn't trying to take the disc for herself, but rather to keep it a secret from everyone else!
So who is she guarding against?
Li Wei frowned. He recalled the strange man urging them to find the sacred stone discs, claiming it was the only way to leave. Both discs were difficult to find; Deans had used some kind of evil god's worship to bewitch the fishermen, turning them into monsters to guard half of the sacred relic.

And now, the Dean has stolen the other half of the sacred relic in this same way and hidden it away…

In other words, what they were guarding against was that strange person?

Why did that strange man not go himself but let them go? Did he also know that he didn't have the ability to deal with those monsters?
So this guy is planning to use us as pawns, waiting for us to retrieve the disc before achieving his own goals?
Unfortunately, the clues are still insufficient. At least for now, Li Wei hasn't found a way to leave this place. If he could find a way out, he wouldn't care what that strange man was up to; he'd go out and call for backup, then come back and raze this place to the ground.

Of course, this place looks so beautiful, it's a bit of a shame to raze it to the ground... um?

Li Wei stopped in his tracks. He had reached the end of the wall, but his footprints continued to extend forward, as if he were passing through the wall—could there really be a cheat code that can pass through walls?

Li Wei now somewhat understands Katie's dislike for ghosts.

Hmm? No, that's not right...

Li Wei raised his head and looked down the wall. He then saw a push-pull mark below the torch next to the wall, which made him smile slightly. He then reached out, grabbed the torch, and pulled it down.

"Click."

"Rumble rumble rumble..."

The next moment, the wall slowly slid aside, revealing a dim, pitch-black tunnel.

On the ground, the footprints are clearly visible.

found it.

Li Wei looked at the ground in front of him, nodded in satisfaction, and then turned his head away.

“Sister…”

Li Wei didn't finish speaking, because at that moment, the nun who had been standing behind him was gone, and even the underground cell that had been illuminated by the dim torches was now completely dark, looking as if it had been abandoned for a long time.

"………………………"

Li Wei withdrew his gaze and looked ahead again.

"Forget it, it's here now."

He sighed and then walked into the dimly lit corridor.

The corridor seemed endless, stretching on and on without end. Moreover, the style of the corridor was quite different from what Li Wei had imagined.

Originally, such secret passages should have been primarily for practical use. However, the walls of this corridor are decorated with exquisite carvings, and on both sides of the walls, one can even see towering pillars supporting the dome above.

As Li Wei walked through it, he felt as if he were walking through a "historical corridor" in a physical sense. At that moment, the contents of the letter written by his ancestor suddenly came to mind.

[...Our footsteps disturbed this ancient land. But at this moment, we were trapped in a realm of death and madness! In the end, I was left alone, howling as I ran wildly through those ancient arcades that were gradually darkening...]

Is this why the dean sealed off the entire basement?
Li Wei looked up, and he seemed to see the scene: in the incredibly dark ancient arcade, a man stumbled and ran forward, crying and shouting. He had almost no manners, tumbling and crawling, as if he had completely lost his mind and was just running forward on instinct.

He came toward Livy, passed through Livy, and disappeared into the dark shadows.

"roar-----!"

Then, the monster's roar rang out.

But this is not an illusion.

Li Wei turned his head and looked ahead. He saw scarlet dots of light emerging from the shadows, and then their figures gradually appeared.

Those were young girls—or rather, they were once young girls.

But now, apart from their heads which still retain a human form, their bodies have completely transformed. These girls have limbs as thin as insects, while their bodies are as large as spiders, and their abdomens are swollen like balloons.

"Why……………"

Li Wei sighed silently, then took out the Persuader.

"I never expected you guys to be able to hold on until now, but... this is the end of it."

(End of this chapter)