Mr. Death in the Steam World

Moen gazed at the twilight outside the window, pondering Vera's whereabouts.

From the night the battle ended, she completely disappeared from everyone's sight.

Before returning to the church headquarters, Archbishop Cecil ordered the church's combat monks and intelligence personnel to conduct a 48-hour sweep of Ironcrown City and its surrounding areas.

Got nothing.

The woman seemed to have never existed, leaving no trace.

Arthur was leaning against the hospital bed.

Still no news?

"No, the church people turned Ironcrown City upside down, even searching through the abandoned mine tunnels deep in the mining area, but they still found nothing."

"Do you think she can get away?" Moen asked.

Arthur paused for a moment, then said, "Of course."

Moen glanced at him: "How did you know?"

"Just a gut feeling." Arthur didn't explain, but Moen noticed that his eyes were quite certain when he said that.

As a mysterious priest, Moen trusted his intuition more than most people's intelligence sources.

"Let's just pretend she's still alive," Moen said. "Anyway, she's not our enemy for now."

Arthur nodded and said nothing more.

Meanwhile, in the top-floor conference room of the Iron Crown City Chamber of Commerce building.

Catherine Ashton sat at the top of the long table, a thick stack of documents spread out in front of her.

The main branch of the Ashton family was severely weakened by this incident.

Although old Sidwin had transferred some assets in advance, the money he had invested, as well as the subsequent penalties for breach of contract, severely shook the family's cash flow.

Several minority shareholders who had previously relied on the Ashton family withdrew their investments, and the old guard in the Chamber of Commerce also began to stir, wanting to take a bite out of this shrinking pie.

However, Catherine did not give them a chance.

On the third day of her house arrest in Sidwin, she sent a message by carrier pigeon to her family—the Hal family, a steel dynasty.

The next morning, the Hal family's head butler appeared at the gates of Ashton Manor with a cooperation agreement.

The agreement was simple: the Hal family would invest in the Ashton family in exchange for a 30% stake in three high-quality mines owned by the Ashtons, as well as a seat on the Hal family's board of directors for Catherine herself.

This deal caused quite a stir in Ironcrown City's mining circle. Some said that Catherine had let a wolf into the house, handing over the family's interests to someone else.

Some say she was using someone else's money to secure Ashton's position.

Some people say that she was simply a pawn planted by the Hal family within the Ashton family, and that this was the day they had been waiting for.

Catherine did not respond to any of these comments.

She simply showed up at her office in the Chamber of Commerce building every day on time to process documents, sign contracts, meet with clients, and gradually right this ship that was about to capsize.

"Madam Catherine," the butler's voice came from the doorway, "Miss Manro has arrived."

Catherine looked up, closed the folder in front of her, and straightened her collar.

"Please let her in."

Emily pushed open the door and walked in, sitting down across the long table, her turquoise eyes crinkling into a smile.

"Mrs. Catherine, you look very well."

"It's all thanks to you." Catherine smiled slightly, took a black card from the drawer, and pushed it in front of Emily.

"This is for you, Miss Manro."

Emily picked up the black card, flipped it over, and glanced at it, raising an eyebrow slightly.

That was a VIP pass, granting the cardholder the highest level of treatment in any property controlled by the Hal family and Ashton.

This kind of thing can't be bought with money.

But... it meant nothing to Emily; she didn't need any VIP pass at all.

In this land, as long as she reveals her identity, she will undoubtedly be a guest of honor for all forces.

"Mrs. Catherine, you're too kind." Emily put the black card into her pocket. "However, this gift seems a bit too expensive."

"It's not valuable." Catherine shook her head, looking directly into Emily's eyes.

"Miss Manro, you have helped me so much during my time in Ironcrown City. Without you, the Ashton family might not exist today."

"Therefore, you deserve this gift."

Emily was silent for a moment, then smiled faintly.

"Then, I shall accept your kind offer." She stood up. "Mrs. Catherine, I wish you great success in your business."

"I wish you all the best too." Catherine stood up and smiled as she saw Emily off.

As Emily reached the door, Catherine lowered her voice and whispered:

"Well, Miss Roman, if you think I'm qualified, please introduce me to your family."

Emily paused noticeably, and narrowed her eyes.

"Okay...if there's a chance."

"Miss Catherine, I must warn you—sometimes being too well-informed isn't necessarily a good thing."

......

"Detective, look at this!" Emily handed the black card to Moen, her eyes crinkling with a smile.

"This was a gift from Lady Catherine; it's a VIP pass for the Hal family!"

Moen took the black card and examined it from all angles.

"The Hal family? You mean the steel dynasty you mentioned last time?"

"Yes!" Emily stuffed the black card back into her pocket and patted it.

"With this, I can get discounts on everything I buy in the north, have priority in purchasing, and be better informed than others."

"Are you planning to switch careers and go into business?"

"That's not the case."

Emily smiled, but the smile seemed somewhat forced, and Moen gave her a surprised look.

Her profile appeared exceptionally serene in the dim light of the day; her usually smiling face was expressionless at this moment.

She simply looked up at the sky, as if she were looking at something very, very far away.

"What's wrong?" Moen asked.

"It's nothing," Emily said, looking away. "It's just that I feel Mrs. Catherine's information network is more efficient than we thought."

She didn't explain what that sentence meant. Moen didn't press her for an answer.

But he noticed that Emily sat alone on the roof of the inn that night, looking at the night sky over Ironcrown City, and didn't come down for a long time.

......

The owner of the Brad mine became the biggest winner in this incident.

After Sidwin's downfall, several of his mines were redistributed by the Mining Association.

With his extensive network of contacts and voting power within the Chamber of Commerce, Brad acquired the two largest seats in one fell swoop.

With his existing businesses, he has now firmly secured his position as the second-in-command in Ironcrown City.

But what surprised Moen was not his business acumen, but what he did after acquiring these mines.

The first thing is a plan to improve the treatment of miners.

Basic wages will be increased by 20%, unreasonable fines will be eliminated, a work injury compensation fund will be established, and subsidies will be available for miners' children to enroll in school.

This plan has caused considerable controversy within the mining association, with several veteran mine owners expressing their opposition on the spot, saying that if things continue like this, the mines will eventually go bankrupt.

Brad didn't argue with them. He simply slammed the proposal on the table and said, "It's my mine, and I call the shots."

Then came the reform of mine safety.

He hired a retired miner as a safety consultant and had all his mining areas thoroughly inspected.

The old miner was none other than Bowen Flynn's father, who died in the fire mayfly and indirectly provided Moen with the precious essence.

Bowen Flynn's name was officially engraved on a newly built monument in the mining area.