Investigation Report of the Gods

Chapter 82: 「Meilan」 Was Found

【Don’t know.】

To Han Su’s question, Black Rose’s answer was unusually crisp: 【In fact, many of the excavated mechanical fragments—we don’t know what they’re used for either.】

【It’s said these machines are all related to the Radiation Era. That was a time when humanity suffered calamity after calamity, nearly facing extinction several times. Reportedly, a few pioneers stood up, leading mankind to resist the disasters, and finally succeeded in ushering in the Reconstruction Era.】

【Only, so much time has passed, all the information has been obliterated. Many things are unclear whether they’re true or false. But researchers believe that organization must have possessed technology even more advanced than ours today.】

【For instance, in our Eastern District, quite a few machines were unearthed through ruins excavation. It’s said that their intricacy is such that even the cutting-edge technologies of our society cannot replicate them.】

【But precisely because many of these technologies are extremely dangerous, only those with permission are allowed to study them.】

【·‥】

She typed a lot in one breath, yet her tone carried a faint hint of sarcasm: 【Heh, but I suppose it’s precisely because the Administrative Bureau has protected this technology too well that it’s led to many exaggerated discussions at the societal level.】

【Like these machines supposedly containing Mysterious Power and such… that’s how the Tractor Cult emerged within the mysterious circles.】

【...】

What the hell, Tractor Cult!

Even Han Su was speechless. He couldn’t tell whether Black Rose was complaining or if such a thing really existed.

He had no intention of debating the authenticity of the mysterious with Black Rose. Instead, he stared at the mechanical fragment, vaguely falling into a long-lost memory.

It was confirmed—back then, he and the other children had gone to see an exhibition of mechanical fragments like this. That was why the school bus went missing midway, and ultimately, everyone ended up inside the Ancient Castle.

Theoretically, neither he nor the children should’ve seen this fragment.

But its disappearance was too coincidental, the process too bizarre. Han Su stared at the news report Black Rose had sent. It stated that, according to the security personnel, they had absolutely not let their guard down. Yet everything that occurred that night was inexplicable.

Someone was watching the surveillance, someone patrolled on schedule. All power systems even had backup supplies. Various cutting-edge technologies, even laser alarms, had been set up in advance all over the venue.

And yet, the Science Museum was still burglarized.

All security staff fell asleep without realizing it, and upon waking, all they saw was the empty pedestal.

Reviewing the footage, they found only that the video had been distorted during the relevant timeframe. No complete images could be seen at all throughout the entire period.

Naturally, even the follow-up investigation by the Security Department uncovered no viable leads.

Footprints, fingerprints, video, lock tampering—none existed.

It was as if a ghost had infiltrated the Science Museum and stolen that mechanical fragment.

Many other valuable exhibits were on display that day, yet only that newly unearthed piece—which hadn’t even been fully studied—was stolen.

From the report, it seemed the security staff kept trying to frame the incident as bizarre. But the writer of the piece harshly criticized them, seeing it as the company’s attempt to shirk responsibility with laughable excuses.

Sure enough, that security company later went bankrupt from the enormous compensation. And quite unwillingly, at that. After browsing through the report, Han Su also pulled up another report from the same time about the kidnapping case, focusing especially on the list of names.

Though he had already found and memorized that list after returning this time, many people listed had no clear identity. Their names were simply listed mechanically.

After slowly going through all the data, just as he was about to exit, a video piqued his interest.

It was footage from the Science Museum, showing staff members testing that exhibited machine. In the explanation, although its purpose hadn’t yet been determined, researchers believed it had a remarkably perfect structure—almost eerie in its beauty.

A slight pull on one component of the device made the entire mechanism start operating.

Countless gears, large and small, clicked into place. With the movement of one part, all the gears rotated together. Just the simple running of the mechanism was mesmerizing enough to watch endlessly.

「Tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock——」

The dense sound of the gears spinning came through the speakers and echoed into Han Su’s mind. Suddenly, he felt a chill on his scalp and stood up abruptly.

His eyes had turned strange, fixed unwaveringly on the screen.

It was his first time seeing the machine in operation—but the sound of those gears? He knew it too damn well.

Too damn well.

Every time he was kidnapped back to the past, this was the very sound he heard first.

At this moment, Han Su felt goosebumps all over. He didn’t know if others could distinguish the nuances in the gear noises, but to him, this sound had been etched deeply into his instinctual fear. He could recognize it instantly.

The sound of these gears was bizarrely identical to what he’d heard during his kidnappings.

I…

Was I kidnapped because of this machine?

This discovery shook him to the core. Just then, from the corner of his eye, he caught a strange sight: the water in the cup in front of the computer had started to ripple faintly, giving off a strange reflection. He wasn’t sure if it was from his sudden movement—or something else.

He hurriedly sat back down, cleared his mind, and stared blankly ahead, using only the corner of his eye to observe the cup.

Only when the surface of the water settled did he let out a breath.

Looking at the machine again, a strange idea suddenly occurred to him: 「Theoretically, none of us ever reached the Science Museum. We were kidnapped before then———」

「So we never saw the machine—」

「—but what if… we did see it, and all the children, including myself, simply forgot?」

The thought startled him, but he couldn’t suppress the strange spiral of his thoughts.

He was now certain: no matter what, he had to find a way to get his hands on that mechanical fragment. Only, since it had already been stolen—where was it hidden now?

Another crucial piece of information was what Song Chu‑shi had told him: that this mechanical fragment could, at different times, allow certain people to remember it, and even… hide from others. How should one interpret that?

He had no trouble now finding information related to this machine.

Han Su silently pinched the bridge of his nose to process all this more rationally, when a message came from Black Rose: 【Hey, are you still there?】

【My cat recently learned to walk the tightrope. Wanna come see?】

【·.】

He shut the laptop immediately, speechless. Spare the cat, please.—

Just as he planned to rest a bit, another message came in. Han Su opened it and, to his surprise, found it was from Doctor. The message was brief: 【Regarding the ghost freight truck research and capture plan you asked me to do, I’ve come up with something.】

【Wanna meet and chat?】

【.】

Looking at it, Han Su felt somewhat reassured. Truly worthy of being the kind of genius who could discover the existence of the Disaster Management Bureau on his own. Entrusting him with something was indeed reliable.

However, with the flickering potentially arriving tonight, he could no longer afford a meeting. His eyes kept flicking toward the wall clock, watching the hour hand inch closer to midnight.

But just as he was about to pour himself a cup of tea, his phone rang unexpectedly.

He had planned to ignore all messages, but when he saw the caller ID, he paused and picked up. A polite but distant voice came through: 「Mr. Han, do you remember the person you asked me to find last time?」

Han Su’s lazy mood instantly sharpened. He sat upright: 「Special Assistant Xu, you found Meilan?」

「I’m not sure if it’s her.」

Special Assistant Xu’s voice remained calm, tinged with doubt: 「She does resemble the person you described, but her surname is Wei—Wei Lan.

She grew up in Qinggang, moved with her family to another city ten years ago, and just recently returned.」

「Her age matches your description, and she does have a scar on her forehead—it’s just very well concealed.」

「Out of respect, I couldn’t directly ask her anything. But if needed, I can arrange a meeting.」

「A meeting」

Han Su’s heart skipped a beat, and he almost agreed aloud, but then swallowed it back, glancing at the clock on the wall.

If his eyes weren’t deceiving him just now, the minute hand had twitched.

「Tick-tock tick-tock tick-tock———」

......

The sound of old clock gears turning—clear and intricate—once again echoed in his ears. Han Su confirmed with a glance that he had not opened the video link this time.

It was coming?

He kept staring at the clock. Only when the hand jumped a second time did he finally confirm something. He exhaled lightly and said into the phone, 「I’ll go with your arrangement, Mr. Xu.」

If… there’s still a tomorrow!

He hung up the phone and quietly sat back on the sofa, staring directly at the clock on the wall.

The surrounding temperature had suddenly dropped, as if he were standing before a vast void.

A distant, profound sensation seized him. Everything in the apartment—phone, second‑hand computer, walls, curtains, lighting—seemed to be drawn away by an invisible force, rapidly receding from him.

Han Su felt himself uncontrollably falling into some unknown place.

All he could do… was sigh: 「Looks like I won’t be seeing Meilan this time. Let’s see what she brought me back in the Ancient Castle..」

「Good thing, good thing, this time I went back well prepared——」」