Mr. Rat of the Steam World

Chapter 88 I know Sherlock!

"Something happened?"

Afra's smile froze, worry instantly replacing the joy of reunion. She instinctively took a step forward and naturally took Mattia's slightly cool hand.

“Yes…” Mattia’s voice was so soft it was almost drowned out by the gentle laughter of the noble youths around her. She tilted her head slightly, seemingly unaccustomed to Afra’s sudden closeness.

"I'm so sorry... I, I've been..."

She hesitated to speak, clearly feeling embarrassed and ashamed to confide in this companion, whom she had only met a few times and who, although she had a very good impression of him, was not particularly close to him, about the changes in her family.

The crystal chandelier in the salon illuminated the polished floors and the meticulously groomed faces of the people. Professor Al had not yet appeared, but several young scholars were already discussing certain historical mysteries in hushed tones.

Afra subtly led her to a tall, floor-to-ceiling window, where the light was bright but the atmosphere was relatively quiet.

“Matia,” Afra’s voice softened further, “you know who I am, perhaps… I can be of some help? After all, we’re friends, aren’t we?”

Lu Ran, hidden inside Afra's exquisite beaded evening handbag, carefully adjusted the gap through which he peeked.

Why do they seem not to know each other very well? Is Afra so outgoing with everyone?

Mattia was silent for a moment before sighing.

“It happened a while ago. It was my sister, Auriel… She went missing a while ago… That day, she was shopping with me on Oak Street, and then when I went into a store to buy something, she disappeared in a flash… and never came back…”

“How could this be…” Afra blurted out, but quickly noticed the guilt on Mattia’s face, realized something, and swallowed the rest of her sentence. She gripped Mattia’s hand tightly, “Have you notified the police? Do you have any leads?”

Mattia nodded, her voice beginning to choke, a hint of self-reproach on her face: "I searched! I called the police immediately! But there's still no news!" Her voice was filled with despair, "Auriel is only seven! She's so well-behaved, there's no way she would run away and not come home!"

Upon hearing that familiar name, Lu Ran's heart skipped a beat.

I feel like I've seen this story somewhere before.

Oak Street, seven years old...

Lu Ran opened his eyes.

Olivia Clinton, the bank president's daughter?

However, he remembered that when he saw the missing person notice, it seemed that the incident had already happened for about a week. A seven-year-old girl had been missing for so long, and even with a large reward for clues, she had not been found. Lu Ran did not have much hope.

Since he was busy with other things, he didn't accept the commission.

Lu Ran felt inexplicably embarrassed to actually encounter the victim of the incident, since he remembered that the other party had specifically mentioned him.

Lu Ran shrank back, looking at Afra's worried face, and could only hope that neither of them would mention him.

But what I feared most came to pass.

Afra's heart tightened when she heard that a month had passed since the police inspector intervened and there was still no news. Her brows furrowed, and she already had an answer in her heart that she had to accept, but the words that came out of her mouth were words of comfort.

"Wait! Don't be discouraged, Mattia!"

Afra suddenly brightened up. “We can’t find it at the police station, but there’s someone who might! I know a very capable and mysterious detective! He must be exceptionally good at finding things and people!” “A detective?” Mattia looked at her blankly.

“Yes! Mr. Sherlock Holmes!” Afra nodded vigorously, afraid that Mattia wouldn’t believe her. “He’s very low-key, but he’s definitely the top detective in Baker City! Just tell him Auriel’s characteristics, the exact location and time she went missing, and perhaps he…”

However, before Afra could finish her enthusiastic suggestion, Mattia's eyes, which had just begun to light up, dimmed instantly, replaced by a deeper bitterness and helplessness.

A forced, almost painful smile appeared on her lips.

"It's no use. We've tried at home, but ever since the First Detective Agency burned down, the detective seems to have vanished into thin air. We can't contact him at all. Back then, we sent him newspapers every day, trying to ask him for help, but we never received a letter..."

Afra was taken aback for a moment, her expression turning slightly awkward, but she quickly replied, "It's alright, it's alright, I can find a way to contact him for you! I know where he is!"

Mattia paused for a moment, then shook her head with a wry smile.

"Never mind, it's been almost two months already, we all know..."

At this moment——

“Miss Afra, Miss Mattia,” a gentle male voice rang out. Pal Perez approached with a smile. He was of medium to tall stature, dressed in a perfectly tailored dark three-piece suit, well-maintained, and with a perfectly warm smile on his face.

"Why are you two beautiful ladies still here? Professor Al has arrived, and the salon is about to begin."

As if relieved, Mattia immediately suppressed the sadness on her face and quickly forced a polite smile in response.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Perez, we’ll be right there.”

Hearing a new man's voice, Lu Ran, who had been hiding in her Afraid bag like an ostrich, finally breathed a sigh of relief and quickly pricked up her ears to look at the man called Perez.

So, this is the guy Anthony was talking about?

But to his surprise, this guy had excellent eyesight and immediately spotted a pair of small eyes in Afra's bag. Perez's smile deepened, tinged with friendly curiosity.

"Miss Afra, I didn't expect you to bring a lovely little guest. Would you like to let it out for some fresh air? If you're worried about it disturbing the salon, you can have a servant take it away and look after it."

Afra hurriedly pulled her handbag closer to her side. She blushed a little embarrassed at being caught bringing a pet, but quickly said, "Oh, thank you, Mr. Perez! But it's no trouble at all! It's very well-behaved and will definitely not bother anyone."

"It's alright, this salon isn't that serious."

Perez smiled and offered some words of comfort, then turned his gaze to Mattia beside him, his voice softening unconsciously.

“Matia has been very depressed since her sister went missing. I couldn’t bear to see her so gloomy every day, so I thought of organizing this salon gathering. People can’t stay in sadness forever. Perhaps engaging in topics they love and participating in things they enjoy will make them feel better.”

Mattia lowered her head somewhat embarrassed upon hearing this and said softly, "Thank you for your trouble, Mr. Perez."

Perez didn't continue, but simply smiled and gentlemanly extended his hand forward.

"Then, ladies, please follow me."

(End of this chapter)