Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 375 The secret behind it

When Li Wei returned home, he quickly buried himself in the huge pile of documents on his desk.

"What are you looking at, Mr. Levi?"

Katie, who was playing with the puppy nearby, watched Levi sitting in the chair, staring at the files in front of him, and asked curiously. Incidentally, Katie had no intention of getting involved in this case. After hearing Levi's story, she vowed never to go to the Royal Academy again until he resolved it.

Yeah, I'm still afraid of ghosts.

"Look at the information."

"What about the case of the living dead?"

"I'm investigating that guy's true identity right now."

"Really? How will you investigate?"

Upon hearing Levi's answer, Katie excitedly ran to the desk, curiously looking at the documents in Levi's hand. Then she saw one after another…

"What is this? A list?"

"Yes, I asked the police station to give me a list of everyone in the area where Mr. Brown used to live."

"Huh? What do you need these for?"

"Of course, it's to find out that guy's real identity."

Li Wei flipped through the documents in his hand and then spoke.

"Currently, we know that the missing classmate B is Mr. Andre Brown. According to the story, classmate A was a good friend of classmate B. Considering that the story says that classmate A died in an accident before going to school, Mr. Brown and classmate A did not meet at the university. They could only have met before the university. The most likely scenario is that they lived in the same neighborhood and were familiar with each other."

At this point, Li Wei took a breath, and Eileen walked over at the right moment and filled Li Wei's teacup with tea.

"Thank you. Um... The admission age for the Royal Academy is 18. So, if I just look for the death records in this neighborhood from 25 to 30 years ago and then filter out the list of those under 20, the investigation will be much easier."

"Wow... this is so troublesome?"

Upon hearing Levi's answer, Katie gasped, while Levi chuckled.

"Otherwise, do you think detective work is all about romance? Actually, most investigative work is this tedious: searching through documents, asking people questions, going through documents, and then doing things like tracking and eavesdropping depending on the situation... Information is the most important thing. Tracking, investigating, reasoning, but ultimately, it all comes down to information."

As he spoke, Li Wei shrugged.

"I believe that humanity's greatest invention is recording—recording the past, recording the present, recording everything. Through these records, we know what happened in the past and what is happening now. Memory, history, and intelligence are passed down from generation to generation in this way. In any case, the past has shaped the present, and records have shaped everything in human civilization. Without records, there is no inheritance, and therefore no civilization."

“…………………?”

Katie tilted her head in confusion, clearly not understanding what Levi was talking about. Levi didn't say anything more and continued to quietly look at his documents. Katie sat down on the sofa next to him, continuing to play with the puppy, the little mermaid blowing bubbles in the pond, and the black cat lying comfortably by the roaring fireplace, yawning contentedly.

These days are really nice.

Li Wei leaned back in his chair, gazing at the heartwarming scene before him. He loved fireplaces; the light from the burning flames illuminated the entire room, giving it a warm, vibrant feel. Being able to relax here after a long day was truly one of life's greatest pleasures.

“La la la………”

Oh, right, there's also a little mermaid singing on the side. It's quite rare to see a mermaid providing live accompaniment, isn't it? She's recently become interested in the instruments Li Wei uses and is currently learning the guitar. Perhaps the Narcissus clan all have this kind of gene? It didn't take much effort, and the little mermaid started playing quite well.

Li Wei pulled himself out of his thoughts and continued looking at the intelligence reports in his hand, one after another, and then... his hand stopped.

"This is faster than I expected."

Looking at the documents in his hand, Li Wei narrowed his eyes and muttered to himself. Then he took out his pocket watch and checked the time.

Then, Li Wei stood up.

"What's wrong, Mr. Li Wei?"

Seeing Li Wei stand up, everyone in the study looked at him, and Li Wei gestured to Eileen, who immediately took a coat and hat from the clothes rack next to her.

"The case has made progress; I need to go to the graduate school."

"Now?"

Katie looked out the window at the pitch-black night with surprise.

"It's already ten o'clock."

"Yes, are you coming?"

"Well…………………"

When faced with Levi's invitation, Katie hesitated for a moment, but in the end, curiosity prevailed.

"Do you need my help, Mr. Levi?"

"of course."

"Then I'll go."

Hearing Li Wei's answer, Katie breathed a sigh of relief. She had known Li Wei for so long and knew that he wouldn't call her if he thought he couldn't handle it. Now that Li Wei had chosen to call her, it meant that the incident wasn't as terrible as she had imagined.

Well, it should.

Soon, Li Wei brought Katie back to the Royal Academy and obtained the key to the West Building from the guards.

Then, as the door opened, the two entered the long-sealed house.

Schools at night are always eerie, even the Royal Academy is no exception. Not to mention that it's usually just used for storing documents and nobody ever comes here. Even with the lights on, the dim light and silent corridors are utterly still. Just looking at it is terrifying.

Yes, this is definitely a scene from a school horror movie; no special effects are needed.

"Mr. Li, Mr. Li Wei, is he really not scary?"

Seeing this, Katie was so frightened that she hid behind Levi and asked in a low voice.

"Don't worry, this time our priority is to solve the case, not the incident..."

"case?"

Katie was taken aback by Li Wei's answer.

"Wasn't it supposed to be something about ghosts or curses...?"

“This is just speculation…” Li Wei walked into the west building and said in a low voice.

"There is indeed a ghost story here, but the ghosts were not the cause of the ghost story in the first place."

"???"

"Let's go, we can talk as we walk."

As Li Wei spoke, he stepped onto the stairs, and Katie hesitated for a moment before following him.

Li Wei then began to explain.

"First of all, the whole strange story begins with classmate A dying in an accident before she even had a chance to attend the Master's School. After that, her soul attends the school... In my opinion, this is very abnormal."

"unusual?"

"That's right. Generally, souls appear in the place where they are buried or where they lived in life, right? That's what everyone knows, isn't it?"

"Ah, um..."

Katie nodded vigorously, which was why she disliked cemeteries.

"So here's the question: Student A never studied at the Royal Academy, never came here, and didn't die here, so why is her soul here?"

"Now that you mention it...it does seem a bit strange."

Upon hearing Li Wei's question, Katie also began to think.

"Isn't it because of... persistence? Because she really wanted to study at the Master's Academy, so her soul came here?"

"That is indeed a reasonable explanation, but I have an even more reasonable one."

"How to say?"

"It's simple. Ghosts usually appear in cemeteries, right?"

"Yes."

"I found the death record of that deceased classmate A."

Li Wei waved the document in his hand as he spoke.

"According to the records, this student A was also an orphan. After her death, she was cremated, and then her ashes were taken away with a signature. The signatory was Andrei Brown."

"Hey? Wait a minute, isn't that classmate B?"

"That's right, guess where he buried his ashes?"

"Well…………………"

Hearing this, Katie shuddered.

"Wait, you're not saying he buried his ashes at the Master's Academy, are you?"

"Isn't it romantic? Since classmate A couldn't study at the Royal Academy while he was alive, it's the same as letting him study here after he died. But the school definitely won't agree. This is the Royal Academy, not a cemetery. No matter what, they won't allow someone to bury their ashes on campus. So he must have secretly buried his ashes somewhere."

"So that's why student A's soul appeared at school?"

"Yes."

Li Wei nodded.

"According to my guess, this is what happened: After Mr. Brown received the ashes of his classmate A, he did not bury him in the cemetery. Instead, to fulfill his wish, he secretly buried him somewhere in the Master's School. Of course, for Mr. Brown, this was perhaps just a simple way of remembering his deceased friend, a way of finding solace. But he did not expect that the other party would actually appear."

"So it's about the extra person from before?"

"Yes, as the story says, after learning about this, classmate B went to investigate. He probably didn't expect that his unintentional act would actually lead to a ghost... Of course, he doesn't know if it's really haunted, after all, the idea of ​​ghosts is a bit hard to imagine for a master's student who has received a modern education. But there's one thing he will definitely do."

"Things you'll definitely do?"

"That's right, it's about proving the rumors to be true or false, and confirming whether it's really haunted."

As Li Wei spoke, he took out his notebook and flipped through it.

"According to Mr. Brown's friend, after that incident, Mr. Brown would often go to a certain classroom to daydream. Why would he keep going to a certain classroom to daydream in such a large place as the Master's School?"

"Uh... Mr. Levi, you don't mean... that Mr. Brown hid classmate A's ashes in the classroom?"

"It's unbelievable, but upon closer inspection, it makes sense. After all, classmate A wanted to attend school, so placing his ashes in the classroom so he could attend classes with everyone is a way of fulfilling his wish, isn't it? Besides, Mr. Brown's friend said that after returning to school as a teaching assistant, classmate B volunteered to teach in that classroom. Couldn't that be considered letting his friend see his current situation?"

"Um…………………"

After hearing Levi's reasoning, Katie fell into thought.

"If that's all there is to it, then the story doesn't seem so scary?"

"It's not scary at all."

"But if that's the case, Mr. Li Wei, there's another question: where exactly did classmate B hide the ashes? And how did he disappear on his own?"

"I suspect it was an accident."

"Accident?"

"When Mr. Brown heard the rumor about the extra person, he probably thought about taking the ashes with him and moving them to a cemetery or a church. Then something might have happened, and he died. And because the place where he died and the urn were both hidden places, no one found him."

"Didn't the police already search the place?"

"That means they didn't find the target either."

As Li Wei spoke, he stepped onto the last step. Right in front of them, the classroom door was tightly closed, and the nameplate on it was covered with cobwebs and dust, making it impossible to read.

"We're here to find the body and ashes... I hope my guess is right, otherwise it would be a real problem if we made this trip for nothing so late at night."

"But what if we really can't find it?"

Upon hearing Katie's question, Levi glanced meaningfully at the dark shadows deep in the corridor.

"If you really can't find it, just ask the person in question."

(End of this chapter)