Mr. Rat of the Steam World

Chapter 109: A Narrow Escape? (6k)

The stone house fell silent again, with only the faint crackling of the burning oil lamp.

“Abandoned factory…”

Lu Ran pondered for a moment, then suddenly spoke again.

"Those shop owners involved, such as the old lady in Mrs. Polly's trinkets shop, the owner and waiter of the maple syrup shop... weren't their backgrounds investigated?"

Furthermore… is it possible that the target's motives are questionable—money, revenge, or… other hidden matters?

Although Lu Ran knew many details, given his current identity, he should normally know nothing about Sherlock, whom he was meeting for the first time.

So, he was actually hinting at the Clinton family's bloodline and why it was coveted by extraordinary people.

It's unclear whether Mattia is aware of the situation, or even if she's willing to answer.

“It seems like the police are investigating this. I’m not really sure, but Mrs. Polly and her family have been running their shop there for decades. I’ve been going there from time to time since I was a kid, so there shouldn’t be any problems.”

After speaking, Mattia paused for a moment before carefully saying, "As for the target's motive, I do have some guesses, but I'm not entirely clear on this part. I need to go back and find out more before I can give the detective an answer. When I do, should I contact you to send it here or to the Morse Machinery Factory?"

“Moss Machinery Factory.” Lu Ran didn’t press for details, but thought for a moment before replying. “If that’s the information… then I understand. I will begin investigating soon, but don’t get your hopes up too high. I can only say I’ll do my best.”

Mattia remained silent for a moment before replying, "I understand..."

……

Moonlight filtered through the sparse oak branches, casting dappled, swaying shadows on the ground like restless, ghostly claws.

On the path after leaving the stone house, Mattia wrapped the fur cloak Afra had given her tighter, but still felt the night wind chill her to the bone. She walked absentmindedly, her steps much lighter than when she had come.

“Afra,” Mattia’s voice broke the silence, a slight tremor in it, “Mr. Sherlock… can he really help me find Auriel? He seems…”

She paused, seemingly searching for the right words, "...It seems a bit too bland? Or even a bit unconfident?"

Afra held the lantern, its dim yellow light creating a warm but small area around her feet. She turned her head to look at Mattia's pale profile, which flickered in and out of the light.

“Matia,” Afra stopped and comforted her.

"Didn't you ever contact those detectives who talked big and confidently quoted prices before accepting a case, only to end up with nothing? He's not one to make empty promises. You and I both know how difficult this is. He doesn't want you to finally emerge from the gloom only to be disappointed again because your expectations were dashed."

Mattia stared blankly at the flame flickering in her friend's eyes, her tightly pursed lips slowly relaxing as she nodded.

"Afra, thank you."

……

Inside the stone house, Lu Ran didn't rest immediately. He sat down on the ground with a thud, propped his chin up, and began to think.

Before long, the foodie yawned and swayed over.

"Boss... what's wrong with you...?"

"It's okay, go to sleep quickly."

Lu Ran smiled, got up, and patted the little guy's head.

"Even if something comes up, I'll tell you tomorrow."

Paji.

The gluttonous rat yawned and collapsed to the ground, clearly the effects of the drug were kicking in. Lu Ran was both amused and exasperated. He picked it up and crawled towards the underground passage.

The night passed.

Lu Ran quickly found a few key rats and gave them instructions.

“I won’t stay here for long. I’ll be going back to Baker City soon. But Bella won’t be coming with me this time. When you have time later, have that silly dog ​​come over. When you’re teaching magic to the other mice, you can try teaching it some too. If these spells aren’t suitable for Bella, you can start by teaching her meditation. I mainly want to know if she can learn.”

The novel mouse, the gluttonous mouse, and One-Ear all nodded in agreement.

Lu Ran continued, "Of course, the most important thing is to study the magical power contained in that potion. This period should be another peak period for magic creation. My requirement is to try to create some magic with offensive capabilities. Our current abilities are still too limited."

"And I," Lu Ran changed the subject, "will select a few rats who are familiar with the principles of magic and have a quick tongue to take to Territory Number Two, to spread magic and rat culture there."

"If there are no problems, the meeting is adjourned."

Before long, a dozen or so magical mice puffed out their chests and followed Lu Ran along the path behind the stone house toward Baker City.

Although Bella is gone, all the hamsters are currently at level 4, and each tiny body moves like the wind.

Not long after Lu Ran rushed out.

Bella's large white head peeked out from behind a thick bush, her eyes filled with disappointment, her tail drooping.

One ear stood beside it, its paws straining to hold a simple little notebook.

"Waaah... Second Brother..." Bella was about to howl when One-Ear slapped her paw to remind her.

"Alright, alright! Stop howling! The boss and the others are gone, but we still have homework!"

With a low voice, DouDou said earnestly, "Come on, let's continue learning... First, stay focused..."

Bella tilted her head in confusion, sniffed hard, and then sneezed loudly.

……

Baker City, under the second territory of the Moss Machinery Factory.

Because of the short notice, we went on the same day and returned the next day, so not much time had passed.

Back in the familiar underground laboratory, Lu Ran's round body had just slid down the hidden staircase connecting to the ground when the greedy rat quickly came to greet him, its furry face showing a hint of urgency.

"My lord! You're back!" Its voice was low, getting straight to the point, "We've made a new discovery about the snake tattoos on those two thugs!"

"Speak." Lu Ran habitually patted the dust off his fur.

The money-grubbing rat spoke rapidly, its paws swiftly pointing to the sketching area in its small notebook: "As per your instructions, we deployed three groups of our most skilled scout rats, taking turns to watch that alley and the sewer entrance, monitoring it around the clock. Just yesterday evening, the target appeared!"

It continued, "There were six people in total, dressed like typical street thugs, with fierce eyes. They were very cautious, first spreading out at the entrances of several nearby alleys and pretending to be passersby. Later, two of the bolder ones sneaked into the vicinity of that alley to scout out the area."

"Is the tattoo confirmed?" Lu Ran pressed.

"Yes! Very clear!" Money-grubbing rat nodded affirmatively.

"The burly guy who was the leader, with a scar on his temple, opened his coat and looked down at the marks on the ground. Right below his right collarbone, there was a tattoo of a venomous snake with its head raised and its tongue flicking out. The pattern was exactly the same as the pattern on the other two dead thugs!"
Furthermore, a tall, thin young man next to him, with a particularly sinister look, had the same snake-like markings revealed on his forearm when his right sleeve was rolled up!

Lu Ran pressed further, "Can you confirm which gang it is?"

"They weren't swearing loudly, but the mice we had hidden in the pipes caught the key words!"

The greedy rat repeated what was written in his notebook: "They mentioned 'that idiot Black Dog,' 'the goods were lost,' 'the heroin was lost,' and also said something about 'the boss being furious.'"

As they left, the scarred man who led the group muttered viciously, "Go back and report to the snakehead! Damn it! Let the boss decide!"

"Snakehead...new heroin...never mind, let's just call this stuff the Poisonous Snake Gang."

Lu Ran pondered, unable to discern any clues for the time being, but it seemed unnecessary to get too involved in this matter.

"Alright." He gestured with his paw. "Take the Viper Gang's name and tattoo information, as well as a brief explanation that the man-eating rats were actually hallucinating passersby who accidentally inhaled drugs. Go find that reporter, Janna! Give her the information and let her make her own judgment. Anyway, we just need to have an explanation."

Lu Ran naturally couldn't say that the mouse had accidentally inhaled the substance, causing it to hallucinate; blaming someone else would have yielded the same result.

"By the way, please give my regards to that Mr. Bobo and invite him to come over often when he has time..." Lu Ran stopped midway through his sentence.

He suddenly remembered Bobo's strange divination ability. He didn't know if it was just a charade or if there was any truth to it. He was about to investigate Auriel's matter, but it seemed to involve that huge magic circle. Lu Ran dared not make random divinations and offend some unknown entity again.

I wonder what the principles behind Bobo's divination are, and whether he has the ability to foresee risks.

Thinking of this, Lu Ran changed his mind: "Forget it... I'll go myself. It'll be a good opportunity to see Lord Bobo's divination skills and see how they differ from our magical divination methods."

The greedy mouse paused for a moment, then immediately replied, "Yes, my lord. Would you like a mouse to lead the way?"

"No need, just tell me the exact location." Lu Ran waved his paw. "You continue to keep a close eye on the factory and territory, and also arrange for the magic books I just brought back. Find a group of clever mice from the Day and Night shift mouse group to start learning the basics of magic."

Besides that, there's the condition of the two sick rats and the continued surveillance of the Viper Gang's perimeter by the reconnaissance rats. Report any new information immediately.

Leaving the bustling underground laboratory, Lu Ran returned to the twilight above the factory.

The secluded courtyard with bare old trees deep in Blackstone Street is not hard to find.

...The night was as dark as ink, and the bare branches of the old tree in the courtyard stretched out their claws in the moonlight.

Jenna sat with her knees drawn up at her desk. The paper in front of her was covered with words like "man-eating rats," "Morse factory," and "talking animals," which were then haphazardly crossed out.

That harrowing experience filled her mind like a huge mystery; the truth was about to be revealed, yet shrouded in a thick fog, leaving her both excited and uneasy.

“…Bobo, tell me, what exactly are they…” Jenna looked up at the black-feathered raven standing on the window frame.

"Gah! Don't bother Master Bobo! Divination requires peace and quiet!" Bobo impatiently flapped its wings, its beady eyes glancing at the pile of scattered tarot cards on the table. It had just pecked out a few cards to arrange, and was now irritably scratching at one of the cards depicting a tower and lightning bolt with its paws.

Just then, a very slight scraping sound came from outside the window.

"How have you been these past few days?"

A clear and steady voice followed.

In the dim light outside the window, Janna was startled! Almost instinctively, she swept the draft papers covered with writing on the table into the drawer!
The bob on the window frame reacted even more strongly, startled by the sudden sound. It squealed and flapped its wings, sending a few black feathers fluttering down. The carefully arranged tarot cards on the table were also scattered by the airflow.

"Who?!" Janna's voice was tense as she stared warily at the shadows outside the window.

A small, round, gray figure peeked out from the edge of the windowsill with remarkable agility, its beady eyes gleaming with a familiar, slightly helpless light in the dim light.

"...Gah?!!!!" Bobo recognized who it was and instantly bristled, its voice changing tone, "It's you!? Boss Mouse?! What are you doing here?! Gah!"

Startled, it leaped from the windowsill to the top of the wardrobe, staring warily at the mouse in the distance.

Jenna recognized him too; it was that mysterious rat boss from the Morse factory!

After the initial shock, he gradually calmed down and cautiously asked, "Boss Rat, what...what brings you here?"

"What, can't I come if there's nothing wrong? We're all people who know each other's secrets, what's wrong with making friends?"

Lu Ran easily squeezed in through the crack in the window and landed steadily on the edge of the desk. He disdainfully shook off the bird feathers that had fallen on the desk, then glanced at Janna's instantly pale face and Bobo's ruffled feathers, and raised his little paw and waved it with a bit of a laugh.

"Relax, ma'am. I'm not here to bring up what happened last time, of course..."

He watched as Janna instinctively protected the drawer and said irritably, "There's no need to hide it anymore. I've already seen the half of the paper that's sticking out. It's normal for people to be curious. I just happened to come here to talk to you about this."

"The cannibal rat incident has been resolved." Lu Ran cut to the chase, concisely stating, "It's an organization called the Viper Gang located underground in Baker City. They produced a hallucinogenic white powder that's similar to morphine, but with stronger and more dramatic effects."

Janna was taken aback, but then her eyes lit up. Her reporter instincts made her quickly pull out a pen and paper and start taking notes.

"I suspect that those who claimed to have seen the man-eating rats were just hallucinating after inhaling this white hallucinogen. So the man-eating rat thing is a misunderstanding. By the way, this stuff is highly addictive; once you use it too much, you can't quit. You could educate the residents about this."

Lu Ran made a knowing look with her little paws.

“The Viper Gang? New stuff? Hallucinogenic powder…” Janna chewed over these words, her journalistic instincts immediately picking up on the key information. “So what are they doing with this new stuff? Making money?”

"Probably." Lu Ran shrugged. "Reality is too painful, and that thing might bring people a brief, illusory pleasure. Although it's not banned by law, I don't think it's a good thing."

Lu Ran nodded and fumbled in his small handbag to take out a roll of toilet paper, placing it next to Jenny.

"Here is some information about the Viper Gang. If you don't believe me, you can hire some private investigators to look into it. Anyway, as the first reporter to clarify the cannibal rat issue, that should be sensational enough."

Janna paused, took the roll of paper, and nodded: "Okay, I'll check it out."

"Alright, business's done." Lu Ran nodded in satisfaction, then turned his gaze to Raven Bobo, who was still huddled on top of the wardrobe. A keen interest flashed in his beady eyes.

"Hey, Bobo," Lu Ran said, his tone becoming relaxed and slightly teasing.

"Wh...what are you doing?! Gaa!" Bobo cautiously gripped the edge of the cabinet top with its paws.

"I heard you say last time that you're quite good at divination?" Lu Ran teased.

"Gah! What do you mean 'quite good at'! Lord Bobo is the most famous prophetic bird in Baker City!" Bobo instantly forgot his fear, raised his head, his feathers fluffed up, and his tone was full of pride, "Tarot, astrology... there's nothing Lord Bobo can't do! Gah!"

"Oh? That's amazing?" Lu Ran rested his chin on his little paw, his eyes playful. "Talk is cheap. Perfect timing. I have a bit of a troublesome business to attend to tomorrow. Can you help me predict whether it's auspicious or inauspicious? If it's accurate, I promise I'll sing your praises when I get back. Before long, all the animals in the city will know your name, Lord Bobo."

"Huh? Really?" Bobo's eyes lit up, but it immediately coughed reservedly, "...Ahem, just some empty titles!"

Lu Ran smiled and asked directly, "How does the divination work? Do you need my cooperation? Also, I'd like to remind you, if divination reveals something very powerful, could it harm you? Do you have any experience in this area?"

"Of course I need your cooperation! As for the idea that divination might harm you, I've never encountered that."

Bobo finally deigned to fly down from the top of the wardrobe and land in a corner of the desk, trying to stay as far away from Lu Ran as possible. It cleared its throat, trying to look like a fortune teller, and tapped its wing on the scattered stack of tarot cards.

"First, silently recite what you need to do tomorrow, the clearer the better, haha! This involves the threads of fate!"

As Bobo spoke, he pawed at the deck of cards with his wings, but his movements were not as casual as last time.

Lu Ran's smile faded, and his expression turned serious. He silently confirmed his objective: Was the magic circle in the abandoned factory dangerous?

As Lu Ran silently recited the command, Bobo's paw stopped at the top of the deck. It closed its beady eyes, paused for a few seconds, as if listening or sensing something. Then, its beak swiftly pulled three cards from the deck, without the panic it had shown when startled last time; its movements were swift and precise.

"Swish!" It places the three cards on the table in sequence.

Bobo carefully used its paws to arrange the three tarot cards one by one on the table.

First card: Judgment (upright). On the card, an angel blows a trumpet, and the dead rise from the grave.

The second card: The Chariot (reversed), depicts a valiant warrior driving a chariot pulled by a black and white sphinx, but the card is upside down.

Third image: Stars (upright), a beautiful woman pours two jugs of water into the earth and a river, with a huge eight-pointed star and seven smaller stars twinkling above her head.

"Gah gah gah!" Bobo stared at the cards, his little bean eyes widening suddenly, and the feathers on his wings bristled. "Oh wow! Interesting! What an interesting fate line, meow! Uh... gah!"

Jenna also curiously leaned closer to take a look, even though she didn't know much about tarot.

Bobo pointed at the first Judgment card with its paw. "Judgment upright! Gaa! First of all, let me tell you, this matter involves a lot! A lot! Like a horn sounding across the land, it will awaken something sleeping... uh, something very deep hidden!"

It mimicked the tone of some lousy human fortune teller, trying to sound mysterious: "What you're doing will touch upon a... how should I put it, ugh... a mechanism that has been dormant for a long time!"

Its claws moved toward the second "reversed Chariot".

"Reversed Chariot! Screech! Warning! Warning! Lord Popo must warn you!" Popo's voice shrilled. "This journey won't be smooth sailing. Like a chariot overturned, it'll be chaotic and out of control!"

Lu Ran's beady eyes narrowed.

Finally, Bobo solemnly placed his paw on the third star, his tone suddenly softening.

"But! Waaah! Do you see that?! A star! A star in the right place! A bright, shining star!"

Bobo flapped its wings happily, "Light of hope! Guiding light! Although there is chaos, judgment, and whirlpool ahead, the ending is good!"

It tilted its head, trying hard to recall some mystical phrases: "So what Lord Bobo saw was... a perilous situation, but he always managed to turn misfortune into good fortune!"

After summarizing, Bobo proudly preened the feathers on its chest with its paw and raised its head: "So? Was Master Bobo's divination accurate? Gaa! Where are you planning to go... uh, go on an adventure?"

Lu Ran listened quietly, then unconsciously tapped her little paws lightly on the table, looking on with suspicion.

"Hmm...it sounds like a universal divination formula. You didn't specifically learn this to deceive people, did you?"

Bobo was taken aback by what he heard. His fluffy feathers froze instantly, and his paws, which were grooming his chest fur, hung awkwardly in mid-air. His beady eyes glanced unconsciously at the ceiling, then swept over Janna's mischievous smile, before finally landing back on Lu Ran with a bluff.

"Huh?! Are you...are you kidding me?!"

Bobo's voice suddenly rose, trying to cover up the barely perceptible guilt with its volume, "What do you mean by lying? Huh! Lord Bobo is an honest prophet bird! Every card is full of profound meaning from fate! It's just... it's just that the revelations of fate are sometimes rather vague, yes, that's it! Huh!"

Lu Ran caught Bobo's expression and was speechless.

They look quite professional; no wonder they never worry about their divination practices attracting dangerous attention.

"Alright, that's all settled. Mr. Bobo, come visit me anytime."

Having figured out the raven's background, Lu Ran had no intention of lingering any longer. After speaking, he got up, jumped towards the window, then slowed down by scraping his claws against the wall. With a few light kicks, he landed lightly and instantly disappeared into the darkness.

"Gah...he ran away, doesn't he believe me?!"

Popovich is still protesting.

Seeing Bobo's flustered and evasive manner, Janna tried hard to suppress her laughter, but finally couldn't help but burst out: "Haha... Do you want me to buy you more books on divination so you can study them and won't easily slip up next time?"

"Gah... What mistake? Lord Bobo never lies!"

……

(End of this chapter)