Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 371 Hide and Seek?
Although he didn't know Professor Andrew's situation, Li Wei still planned to visit the Royal Academy. Of course, not just anyone could get into the Royal Academy. But for Li Wei, that was a different matter.

Previously, while assisting Lestrade with the scientific investigations for the Metropolitan Police Department, Levi had become acquainted with Professor Henry, an anthropologist from the Royal Academy of Sciences. In fact, Lestrade spoke highly of these anthropology professors, as they had indeed helped the police determine the causes of death for some victims.

For example, there was once a place where homeless people frequently died without any visible injuries, leading many to believe it was a curse. Several police investigations failed to uncover the cause. Finally, after the bodies were sent to the Royal Academy of Sciences, the police received confirmation that the deaths were due to poisoning, with the specific type of poison clearly stated.

Based on this clue, the police investigated and discovered that a nearby steam factory was secretly emitting toxic fumes at night. Because the location was on higher ground, the fumes easily enveloped the factory. As dawn approached, the factory would stop emitting the fumes, and once they dissipated, nothing would be detected.

There have been several similar cases, and it's fair to say that Lestrade now trusts these anthropologists quite a bit. Levi would occasionally chat with them, discussing the application of anthropology in criminal investigation. As a result, some anthropologists are considering switching to criminal investigation; after all, research in the same field always has its strengths and weaknesses, and some people feel they're falling behind, so they simply switch tracks and start afresh.

Li Wei naturally welcomed this idea. In this way, he only needed to put forward a concept, and people would take the initiative to conduct research and write papers to explore new research fields... Once completed, Li Wei only needed to use them.

Aside from having to say a word, you don't have to contribute anything and can still enjoy the research results, making it a win-win situation.

For this reason, Li Wei was quite familiar with the scholars at the Royal Academy of Sciences. In order to find out about Professor Andrew's situation, Li Wei also contacted Professor Henry, who specializes in footprint studies, directly.

"About Professor Andrew's disappearance?"

Upon hearing Li Wei's inquiry about this matter, Professor Henry on the other end of the microphone immediately became serious.

Is he involved in some case?

"Oh, no, it's just that I have some research questions I'd like to ask him."

"A research question, related to physics?"

"More or less, do you know anything about it?"

"Uh... well..."

Professor Henry seemed somewhat reluctant to speak, and Levi understood the hidden meaning in his words.

"Do you know something, Professor Henry?"

"Ah, well... you could say that. We all know he's missing, but we don't know where he is..."

Aren't you worried?

"Oh, I'm not too worried about that, because he disappeared on his own initiative..."

"...disappeared intentionally?"

It must be said that this word did catch Li Wei's attention.

Could you please explain in more detail?

"Well... alright, since I've already troubled you, I can't very well hide it from you..."

Professor Henry then recounted the events to Levi.

Actually, it all started with a conversation.

Everyone was having afternoon tea in the Masters College lounge when Professor Andrew and Professor Stewart got into a debate. According to Professor Henry, Professor Stewart was boasting that he was the first to arrive at the Royal Masters College and knew every single thing about it.

Professor Andrew then offered a rebuttal.

“I don’t think so, Professor Stewart. The Royal Academy has been established for decades and has been renovated many times. It’s impossible for you to know everything about this place. There are definitely places you’re not familiar with, I can assure you.”

Professor Stewart naturally refuted this, stating that Professor Andrew could not prove it at all—this is a common problem among scholars: you make a hypothesis, how do you prove that your hypothesis is correct?

Professor Andrew then offered a suggestion.

"We can make a bet."

"bet?"

“That’s right, I will ‘disappear’ in this school for a month and will not leave the school. You can come to find me alone, or you can get the students to come to find me, but I guarantee you will never find me.”

"But how can you prove that you've been in school all this time?"

Professor Stewart was clearly not going to agree so easily. No matter what the hypothesis was, proof was very important, but how could he prove that the proof was reliable?
"I will provide proof in due time, but please allow me to keep you in suspense for now."

Professor Andrew ultimately did not give a direct answer to the question.

"I guarantee it with my reputation."

"…………………"

Professor Stewart stared at Professor Andrew, remained silent for a moment, and then slammed his hand on the table.

"It's decided then! I bet 100 pounds! I will definitely find you!"

“I bet 500 pounds that you will never find me.”

In response to Professor Stewart's reply, Professor Andrew spoke calmly.

"…Anyway, that's the situation. We all found it very interesting, so we all got involved. That's why I said everyone knows Professor Andrew is 'missing,' but nobody knows where he went. After all, if someone had found him, Professor Andrew would have already lost."

After hearing Professor Henry's answer, Levi was speechless.

"You guys have a lot of free time?"

"Haha, a little gambling is harmless..."

"So the reason for calling the police is..."

"Of course it's because Professor Andrew really disappeared. We really can't find him anywhere, and we haven't found anything. And Professor Andrew also said at the time that we could ask the police for help, but he believed that even if the police came, they wouldn't be able to find him."

"Isn't this a baffling overconfidence? Has anyone of you gone to investigate? Have you mobilized the students?"

“We did look around, but getting the students involved is obviously not going to work. After all, this is just a game among teachers, and there's no need to waste the students' time. Besides, if we let them go looking, these kids probably won't even go to class.”

That's true.

"However, if it were you, you might be able to find it, after all, you are the most famous detective in the empire. And when we made the bet, Professor Andrew didn't say you couldn't come and look for it."

"Oh? You're quite enthusiastic."

"Because I bet £100 that I could find it, and if I can't, I'll lose money."

The professor is quite the character; I'm speechless.

"Okay, I'll give it a try. I hope this game of hide-and-seek won't be boring."

Li Wei was speechless; he never imagined the professor's disappearance would be due to such an absurd reason. But regardless, since the suspect's location was limited to the school, he should be able to be found there. For Li Wei, this was much simpler.

So Li Wei went to the Royal Academy again.

The place was almost unchanged from when Li Wei had seen it before. High walls stood tall, and the gates were locked. Li Wei looked up at the fence in front of him, frowned, and began to think.

The entire Royal Academy is sealed off by high walls, and there are security guards at the main gate. The main gate is only opened during school hours, and at other times only the side gate is opened.

In Li Wei's deduction, Professor Andrew was simply being mysterious. It wasn't impossible that he had secretly left the school under a different guise, but since he claimed to have a way to prove he had been there all along, he probably wouldn't resort to such a tactic. Besides, this was just a small bet between teachers, not a life-or-death duel. Cheating would only damage his reputation, and intellectuals like him, who value their reputation more than life itself, would certainly not engage in such underhanded dealings.

Just then, Professor Henry came out and saw Levi, looking quite smug.

"Ah, Sir Levy, you've finally arrived. You see, Professor Stewart, Professor Andrew is sure to lose this time."

As Professor Henry spoke, he chuckled at the bearded old man beside him, whose expression was somewhat embarrassed.

"Really, this is making a mountain out of a molehill. It was just a little joke, why bother Sir Levi with this..."

"It's not Professor Henry's responsibility."

Li Wei also stepped forward and greeted Professor Stuart.

"The main problem is that I had some things I wanted to discuss with Professor Andrew, but I didn't expect him to pull this disappearance stunt..."

"That's right, I can only say that Professor Andrew was unlucky, hahaha, he placed such a big bet, and it just so happened that Sir Levi needed to see him."

Professor Henry also burst into laughter.

"It seems I'll be able to recoup my bet this time."

"Then I'll trouble you, Sir Levi."

Professor Stewart was tall and burly, like a black bear, but he was as shy as a squirrel when interacting with people. He lowered his head shyly in front of Levi and said in a low voice.

"I thought I knew this place pretty well, but I didn't expect that after so long I still couldn't find him. Sigh... I'm a little worried that something might have happened to him. After all, he said he was hiding in a place we can't find. If something happens to him, we won't be able to find anyone to help us."

"I'll see how it goes."

Li Wei exchanged a few words with the two professors, and then entered the Royal Academy. However, he did not start searching immediately, but instead found a secluded spot to sit down and stared at the academy before him.

Li Wei's method was simple: once the Royal Academy was empty and school was over, he would release the puppet bird and use [Soul Vision] in the air to find the soul lights within the academy. By checking them one by one, he would be able to find Professor Andrew.

Soon, time passed by, minute by minute.

As school ended, the students left the school, the professors stayed a little longer, and Li Wei mostly just wandered around the neighborhood, occasionally chatting with people.

As night fell, most of the professors had left, leaving only the gatekeeper and Li Wei in the Royal Academy.

Li Wei sat in his chair, watching the soul points of light within the school decrease one by one. Gradually, his expression changed from relaxed to solemn.

Because under the [Soul Vision], the Royal Academy is now completely empty, devoid of any souls.

(End of this chapter)