Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 285 Craze
Back in the Fog City, Levi didn't plan to take the Mirage 2. He and Katie would take the MI7 airship back, and Phillips and Anna could fly the Mirage 2 back.

Of course, Levi also praised the two of them highly in his report. After all, if Phillips and Anna hadn't fired mortars and killed the enemy as Levi ordered, Levi himself, who didn't have wings, would have had a lot of trouble fighting.

Well, it's not too troublesome, actually.

After all, Levi and Katie had agreed that if the artillery support from the rear wasn't timely, Katie would just punch the spire of the tower and throw it directly at the monster.

Anyway, the buildings here are basically decorated with dense spires, so they could be used as cannonballs.

On his way home in the airship, bored out of his mind, Li Wei finally opened the system to check his gains this time.

[Mission "The Best of Both Worlds" Completed]

[Time consumed: s]

Survey efficiency: S

[Impact/Effect: S]

Overall Rating: SSS

[Lifespan +400, additional +200]

Hmm, it seems like they gave quite a lot. But for Li Wei, it's not actually that much. After all, although he actually fought one BOSS, Li Wei could be said to have fought a total of four BOSSes, including the fishman, the spider monster, the flesh tree man, and the last alien monster.

Hmm, looking at it this way, the lifespan reward isn't much at all; in fact, it's rather short.

[Mystic Resistance +20%]

The resistance is getting higher and higher, and 100% is just around the corner!
[Detection indicates user has read "The Necronomicon"]

[The following skills can be obtained]

[The skill "Disguise and Transformation" can be replaced with "Appearance Capture Technique"]

[Ghost Ship - Mist can be replaced with R'lyeh Mist]

【Outer God Servant Summoning Spell (Can be used to summon specific characters such as Byakki/Black Goat Cub/Void Ghost/Flame Spirit/Terror Hunter/Night Demon/Star Spirit)】

[Mysticism +20]

"Um……………"

That Necronomicon looks really powerful. Li Wei examined it closely. The [Appearance Absorption] technique allows the caster to disguise themselves as the other person. Unlike [Disguise and Transformation], the [Appearance Absorption] technique does not consume lifespan.

However, there's a small problem—the [Appearance Absorption] spell requires a corpse, and it must be a fresh one. Simply put, you kill someone, then eat a part of their body to activate the [Appearance Absorption] spell.

As expected, it's called "Absorption," and the name is spot on.

Hmm... never mind.

After seeing how this move was used, Li Wei decisively chose to refuse.

So what if it costs him his life? At least his "disguise and transformation" doesn't require him to eat human flesh. He has no interest in cosplaying Hannibal.

The [R'lyeh Fog] and [Ghost Ship] fog abilities are similar in nature. The only difference is that tentacles will emerge from the fog to attack anyone who gets close... Well, never mind, I don't know where those tentacles come from.

As for the [Outer God Servant Summoning Technique]... Li Wei did see a few familiar names.

For example, Byakki, or the Sky Ghost...

Although I don't know what that black goat cub and Star Spirit are, since they're sitting at the same table as Byakki and Sky Demons, they're probably not good people. When I summon them, will they help me or cause trouble?

As it turns out, there's absolutely nothing usable in this Necronomicon!
After reading these skill descriptions, Li Wei was speechless.

Since it's called "The Necronomicon," doesn't it have some spells that allow communication with the dead? Like talking to souls or summoning the undead—those are the spells I need!
The book is full of alien creatures and gods, as well as some ancient creatures... This thing should just be called "Encyclopedia of Alien Creatures," not "The Necronomicon." It's a complete rip-off!

In the end, Li Wei could only silently choose the [Mysticism +20] option, directly raising his [Mysticism] skill to 80.

At least after reading this "Necronomicon," if I encounter those alien monsters in the future, I'll at least know where they're from and what their names are...

[Additional Skill +1]

Li Wei, without even thinking, immediately added it to [Puppeteer], raising it to LV7.

[Gain the trait "Hit the Bullseye" (Shooting damage +10%)]

A trait? That's another interesting reward, but the damage-boosting ability is indeed quite good.

Li Wei glanced at the system interface, confirming that he had received all the rewards, and then stopped thinking about it and closed his eyes to rest.

After all, it will still be some time before we return to the foggy city.

It wasn't until noon the next day that Levi and Katie's airship returned to the Fog City. Of course, they docked at the military airport, and Katie was picked up as usual. Although she invited Levi to come along, Levi planned to wander around the streets, so the two went home separately.

After Katie left, Levi also strolled around the streets of the foggy city.

but……………

"Well, this really was beyond my expectations."

Li Wei looked at the street with a strange expression. He saw people walking their dogs every now and then, some walking their own dogs, and others walking their servants. Moreover, the fur color was basically the same as the dog he had drawn in the comic... wait, or rather, the appearance was quite similar, although they were not the same breed of dog.

Is it that exaggerated?
Li Wei shook his head and continued walking forward. He then saw several people queuing in front of a bookstore on the street. Just then, a clerk came out and put up a sign that read, "Betty the Dog is Sold Out." Upon seeing this sign, the people in line immediately sighed in despair.

"No way? Sold out again?" "Are you kidding me! Couldn't you have ordered more? The little bit we had before wasn't enough! My little rascal is begging to see it!"

The crowd dispersed amidst their complaints, while Li Wei remained speechless. To be honest, although he had already learned from the old butler that his book was selling very well, Li Wei hadn't expected it to be this successful. After all, he felt that his comics were actually quite average, incomparable to those of the comic masters, and purely amateurish.

And... they actually sold out?

Surely not...

"Ah, Sir Levi!"

Just as Li Wei was racking his brains trying to figure it out, a voice suddenly rang out. He turned around and saw a man wearing a baseball cap and a vest rushing towards him, holding a notebook in one hand and a pen in the other.

"I never expected to run into you here!"

"Who are you……………"

"I am Frank Bell, a reporter from the News-Information newspaper. May I ask you a few questions?"

"what is the problem?"

"Regarding your book 'Betty the Dog,' which has already caused an unimaginable sensation in Chongqing, what are your thoughts on this?"

"Even if you ask me what my thoughts are..."

Li Wei shrugged.

"To be honest, I've been out dealing with cases for a while and have no idea what's going on here. I actually only got back today."

"Oh? Is that so? Then regarding the cases you've handled... Ah, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked that."

Frank's eyes lit up upon hearing Levi's answer, but he quickly regained his composure. Levi was quite well-known among journalists; partly because he was approachable, and partly because his face alone could attract many readers—any news about him was sure to be popular.

However, it's not easy to interview Levi, and Frank was quite excited and thrilled to finally meet him.

"So, going back to the previous question, what are your thoughts on this? What prompted you to start creating 'Betty the Dog'?"

"To be honest, I was a little surprised by its popularity. As for the reason, I had a dog when I was a child, so in my spare time, I wanted to recreate the days I spent with it as a way of remembering it. And I originally drew it for children, since there don't seem to be many suitable picture books for children on the market these days..."

"Ah, indeed, Betty the Dog is very popular among children. You may have already seen that, influenced by this picture book, there are many more families in Chongqing keeping dogs these days."

"I'm glad they liked it; it's a recognition of my efforts."

"Sir Levy, when do you plan to publish your next picture book? Everyone is eagerly anticipating seeing more stories about Betty the dog and her owner as soon as possible."

"Uh... well, I'll see when I have time. After all, I'm not a painter... to be honest, being this popular is quite unexpected..."

Upon hearing the other party start urging him to update, Li Wei quickly ended the chat, exchanged a few more pleasantries, then patted his behind and turned to leave.

Fortunately, I have the ability to control myself unconsciously, otherwise I might not even be able to get home.

After returning home, Levi asked the butler Kane and learned the whole story.

The "Betty the Dog" comic strip was initially published in the "Discovery Newspaper," and the first issue was a huge success. To Levi's surprise, there were quite a few people who enjoyed the simple, everyday narrative style of the comic. Moreover, this novel art style attracted the attention of many art critics, and perhaps because it was drawn by Levi, other newspapers also took notice and wrote reviews of "Betty the Dog" in their respective publications.

In today's terms, this is basically equivalent to free advertising.

So naturally, when everyone became curious about what kind of comics Li Wei would draw, they would buy the "Exploration Newspaper" to read, and those who liked it would naturally choose to subscribe.

If I had known this would happen, I should have chosen a pen name in the first place.

Li Wei sighed speechlessly. It was his own fault for not thinking things through and submitting it carelessly, without the old steward reminding him. But then again, in this era, painters generally used their real names.

For example, Picasso, whose full name could be read in a hundred words.

In other words, his canvas was full.

In short, the mundane daily life of "Betty the Puppy" seems to be quite popular, and because Levi used comic techniques to draw the puppy in a cute and adorable way, that chibi-style art style immediately attracted many people. After all, most art these days is realistic, and they had never seen such a cute and adorable anime style before; it was their first time seeing it.

Just looking at the little dog in the picture book wagging its tail at you makes many people's eyes sparkle.

So they wanted a puppy too, and they searched everywhere. Thanks to this, many families in the city now own a pet dog.

Of course, those who have some money can only look at picture books to satisfy their cravings.

After all, Li Wei's paintings are in black and white, and he also told the printing company that the price should be low so that most people could afford it.

Miss Alice also loved that comic book; she would hold it and read it every day, never putting it down.

"That's good."

Hearing this, Li Wei nodded in satisfaction. After all, this book was originally drawn for Alice, so it was great that she liked it.

Is Alice in class now?

"Yes, there's still half an hour until get out of class ends."

"Then I'll go to the practice room first, and then I'll go see Alice after class."

Coincidentally, Li Wei originally intended to conduct an experiment when drawing this comic, to see if the public's impression could be successfully solidified and used to create a fantasy creation.

Since this book, "Betty the Dog," is so popular right now, I'll strike while the iron is hot and see if I can actually summon Betty the dog in real life.

(End of this chapter)