Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 364 A Heroic Deed
For Li Wei, having his own warships would naturally be a great advantage.

Just like now, after dealing with that giant reptile, the first thing he did was return to the Sky Eye with Katie, and then... take a good shower.

When that giant reptile vomited blood, it covered them all over. Now that the fight was over, they felt a foul and stinky smell on their bodies, and the blood was sticky and disgusting.

As for the legendary ability to become invulnerable by bathing in dragon blood, Li Wei thought it was all bullshit. He was drenched in dragon blood, and the system didn't even react. Instead, he was covered in foul-smelling blood, which was incredibly disgusting and repulsive.

Since the system isn't responding, it means this piece of junk is just a legend.

Of course, since he hadn't prepared any spare clothes, Li Wei was left with nothing to wear after throwing away this outfit. Fortunately, the system served as a decent wardrobe, and the hunter's clothes he had worn before fit perfectly, so Li Wei simply changed into them. As for Katie, she found a military uniform somewhere, which seemed to be Mariana's spare clothes, and it was a bit too big for her... but given the current situation, there wasn't much to worry about.

When Li Wei returned to the bridge after showering, he was startled to find several airships hovering around him. However, upon reflection, it made sense; their battleground was deep in the mountains, and it would have taken an unknown amount of time to get there by car. Airships were clearly much faster.

However, what puzzled Li Wei was that there seemed to be a lot of airships.

However, when Li Wei returned to the ground, intending to talk to the person in charge, he saw a figure standing on a hillside not far away with his back to him, staring at the dragon's corpse under the searchlight.

That was exactly...

"Her Majesty the Queen?"

It has to be said that this really surprised Li Wei, but it also explained why so many airships were coming from all around.

Li Wei simply couldn't understand why Her Majesty the Queen would come here so late at night instead of sleeping. Was this dragon really that beautiful? He had thought only the old butler would come, but the Queen herself had come, which really surprised Li Wei.

"Hehehe, you've arrived, Dragon Slayer Knight."

Queen Victoria II turned around, looked at Levi, then at Katie, and nodded.

"I am truly surprised, Your Majesty, I never expected you to come in person."

"Of course I have to come and see."

As the queen spoke, she turned her head again to look at the dragon's corpse.

"After all, it is a dragon, isn't it? You can imagine how shocked the people of the empire will be when they hear the news tomorrow morning."

Only then did Li Wei notice that several photographers were jumping around like monkeys, taking pictures with great enthusiasm, near the dragon. But since they were brought by the Queen, they certainly weren't reporters from third-rate tabloids; they were probably royal photographers.

But what surprised Li Wei the most wasn't this, but rather...

"Are you planning to make this public?"

Ever since the Discovery News and Olivia's Cerberus, Levi knew that the Queen was consciously pushing news of mysterious things to gradually unfold before the public. Of course, he also knew this was inevitable; after all, from Alice, the little mermaid, and this series of mysterious events, it was clear that mysterious things had been appearing more and more frequently in the human world in recent years. At this point, saying that "mysterious things don't exist" was simply burying one's head in the sand.

Moreover, the reports in the Discovery Daily during this period have basically followed this principle. The newspaper will publish some mysterious rumors and then determine them to be false, but some will be determined to be true and others will be asked to avoid danger and not to approach.

In other words, it's different from "Approaching Science"; it doesn't simply deny the existence of these mysterious creatures...

“I have read Anne Branson’s research reports and papers on sea monsters and nightmares.”

However, Her Majesty the Queen suddenly brought up a topic that seemed completely unrelated.

"Sir Levy, what do you think of those papers?"

"This is a very good perspective, and I think this kind of understanding is very necessary."

"Yes."

Her Majesty the Queen nodded.

"Dragons, nightmares, sea monsters—in legends, they were evil creations, terrifying beings born from the mythical world. They symbolized destruction, nightmares, and death. In tales, humans could only tremble and pray before these monsters. But is that really the case?"

At this point, the Queen suddenly raised her voice.

"Are humans truly powerless against these terrifying monsters? No, I don't think so! Humanity now possesses entirely new power. We have broken free from the old world where we fought and survived solely with swords and blades, and entered a completely new world driven by steam and machines! Must we still be intimidated and fearful of those ancient shadows, living in their shadows?"

"………………………"

Li Wei didn't speak, but he understood Her Majesty's meaning. Clearly, as the Queen said, humanity had left the old world and entered a new one. They had created enormous steel constructs and, for the first time, challenged this world. Airships, giant ships, mechs—these were things that had never existed in the old world.

Just as Livy felt the moment he came into this world—freedom.

Humans seemed unrestrained and free from any constraints, using the tools they created to attempt to conquer the world.

In modern society, if someone were to discuss whether a fighter jet could defeat a dragon, nobody would know, and the discussion would only end in arguments. But in this world, discussing whether you can win is useless; if you can win, that's the best proof!
Could this be Her Majesty's plan?

Thinking about this, a sudden flash of inspiration struck Li Wei, and he seemed to understand why Her Majesty the Queen had done this!

In this world, human thoughts seem to be able to influence reality. If Her Majesty the Queen were to announce in front of all the people of the Empire that the Empire had successfully killed a dragon, it would definitely shock the people of the Empire. If they could actually see the dead dragon with their own eyes, then at least in the hearts of the people of the Empire, the idea that the Empire could defeat monsters should be formed.

So, once this idea is in place, can Imperial weapons truly possess the power to fight monsters?
Just like Levi's Sky Eye, if everyone knows that this Sky Eye can beat dragons so badly they can't even lift their heads, will it eventually get a "counter dragons" attribute?
Judging from everything Li Wei has experienced since coming into this world, it's not impossible at all!
"I have already issued orders to summon Miss Anne, members of the Royal Biological Society, and biologists from various countries to the capital to participate in the dissection of this dragon in person!"

Sure enough.

Although he had already guessed this, Li Wei was still taken aback when he heard Her Majesty say this, and couldn't help but look at the Queen. Tsk tsk tsk, he realized how ignorant he had been; he had only thought of the Empire, never imagining that the Queen would actually use the power of the entire world… Indeed, when it comes to stirring up trouble, Your Majesty is the best.

"Your Majesty is wise."

Li Wei silently sang a greeting, and there was nothing more to say.

Her Majesty the Queen is indeed amazing. No wonder she is the Queen; her vision is different from others.

However, Li Wei could understand the Queen's thoughts. The Empire was the first country in the world to give birth to the steam industrial revolution. Today, steam technology has permeated every aspect of the country. It can be said that from the highest level to ordinary people, no one can live without it.

In this situation, completely negating the current direction of progress and turning around to embrace mysterious forces was impossible for the empire, and the people would not agree to it. However, it was uncertain whether other countries would use mysterious things to gain an advantage over the empire, so the queen made this bold decision.

We must persist on the current path of steam-powered mechanical technology development, while simultaneously utilizing the collective wisdom of the people to add another layer of resistance to the mystical to the empire!
As long as everyone knows that these mysterious entities are not invincible but can be defeated, then even if other countries develop the ability to use mysterious powers, the empire will not be helpless against them!

It must be said that the Queen's move was indeed bold, but upon closer inspection, it is quite interesting.

Because this time, they are going to showcase a dragon.

In this world, in every legend, dragons are portrayed as final bosses. Rumors say that whenever a dragon appears, it will destroy the world, breathe fire, and destroy entire cities, and so on.

We all grew up listening to these kinds of stories, so naturally we are very afraid of dragons.

But what if we put the dragon's corpse in front of everyone? Then, with a few editors writing articles, wouldn't it be easy to change the minds of the empire's citizens?

They might think that while dragons were powerful in the past, the Empire's steam engines are now far more powerful, and dragons are nothing special!
If everyone thinks this way, then even if dragons still exist in this world, will they be weakened like the sea monsters of the past?
Because people think dragons aren't very powerful, their strength will decrease?

This possibility cannot be ruled out.

In fact, Li Wei also felt that there was no harm in doing so. His first reaction was that Her Majesty the Queen would secretly bury the dragon. He had watched too many movies. But after thinking about it carefully, since it has been proven that such a thing really exists in the world, why not inform the public in advance so that everyone can be prepared?

Just like the current debate between those who believe in the existence of extraterrestrials and those who don't, some say that if extraterrestrials had been discovered, it would have been announced long ago. Others say that extraterrestrials have actually been discovered long ago, and their bodies are still preserved in formalin in Area 51, but the truth is being concealed to avoid causing public panic.

At first glance, it seems reasonable, but upon closer inspection, it's actually quite illogical. So what if we announce the existence of aliens? Especially a dead body, which means aliens aren't invincible either. Perhaps humanity will become even more drawn to the universe, and instead of focusing on internal conflicts, we'll strive to make contact with aliens or fight against extraterrestrial attacks.

Even if you capture a live alien, let alone a dead one, people won't all jump off buildings overnight. It's not like the stock market is crashing.

Of course, the Queen was also taking a risk in doing this; if things didn't turn out as she expected, that would be a different story.

But clearly, Her Majesty the Queen doesn't care about any of that.

"By the way, Sir Levi, why don't you tell me how you slayed the dragon? This is the first time I've ever heard a story about slaying a dragon in person."

"Yes, Your Majesty..."

Since Her Majesty the Queen wanted to hear, Li Wei decided not to hide anything. There was nothing to hide anyway, so he told her everything he could. As for how the dragon died, Li Wei only said that he used a method to throw an explosive charge into its body and then detonated it, killing it.

After listening to Li Wei's story, Her Majesty nodded and then glanced at Katie beside her.

"Looks like you did a good job this time too."

"Hehehe, I'm a hero now."

Faced with Her Majesty's words of praise, Katie puffed out her chest and looked smug.

Seeing Katie's expression, Her Majesty shook her head speechlessly, then looked up at the Eye of the Sky in the distance.

"So that's the airship you requested to be built? It is indeed somewhat different... According to you, this airship also played a role in this dragon-slaying battle?"

"Very important."

Li Wei nodded. If the Eye of the Sky hadn't caught the dragon off guard at the start, preventing it from taking flight, Li Wei and Katie would never have been able to kill it, no matter what they did. Although they were knocked unconscious by the dragon's might afterward, it wasn't their fault. After all, that's how Li Wei's battles are; often, even after finding the boss and starting the fight, he still doesn't know what cards the opponent holds. They can only learn through trial and error, just like playing cards: if I can beat you, you're dead; if I can't, I'm dead…

"If that's the case, can it be mass-produced?"

"Um... I think we should wait and see how things go. After all, this kind of airship is a bit special, and I'm not sure if other people can use it..."

"This is not a problem."

Her Majesty the Queen waved her hand.

"As long as it can serve the empire, that's enough."

Wow, that domineering aura is overwhelming! I almost bowed down in awe.

"That's what you said."

Li Wei no longer objected. If the Queen wanted to do this, there would naturally be people specifically tasked with studying its feasibility. He shouldn't meddle. What if the Queen then made him lead the team? Wouldn't that be disastrous?
At this moment, one should act like a proper imperial bureaucrat and pretend one doesn't exist.

As for the rest, let others deal with it.

(End of this chapter)