Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 18: An Unexpected Accident

With Levi’s command, the carriage immediately stopped, and Levi opened the door.

“Eh? Mr. Levi, where are you going?”

“I’m going back to watch Madam Clattie. She will definitely do something.”

Levi glanced at the street.

After getting into the carriage earlier, in order to avoid arousing Madam Clattie’s suspicion, they had left immediately.

Luckily, they had only reached the street corner by now.

From here, Madam Clattie should not be able to see them.

“Watch? I want to go too!”

“Dressed like that?”

Levi glanced at Katie’s gown.

Although the gown looked neat and crisp, it was obviously unsuitable for climbing around.

Katie seemed to realize this as well.

She pursed her lips unhappily, stomped her foot lightly, clenched her fists—then finally gave up.

“All right then, but tomorrow you must tell me if you find anything.”

“Of course.”

After making the promise, Levi stepped down from the carriage.

The door closed again, and the carriage quickly sped away toward the end of the street.

Levi watched the carriage’s silhouette, then turned his gaze back, walking toward the direction of the Splendor Club.

When he arrived again in front of the Splendor Club, all the surrounding buildings had already extinguished their lights.

It was night now.

The club had “closed for business,” and it seemed the other guests had also left.

But Levi had his own way of confirming.

He closed his eyes, then opened them again.

【Soul Sight!】

In an instant, the world once again turned black and white.

From Levi’s perspective, he could clearly see a vivid humanoid soul form on the second floor of the Splendor Club.

Obviously, that should be Madam Clattie.

Judging from her appearance, she had not gone to sleep yet.

Levi quickly deactivated 【Soul Sight】, and the world returned to normal.

This move, used well, could be like a wallhack cheat in a shooting game……… just that it cost lifespan………

Levi muttered under his breath, then leapt up.

His hands and feet moved nimbly as he silently climbed along the stone bricks and balconies.

He wasn’t afraid of being discovered.

After all, there was no one on the street at this hour.

As for whether his clothes would get dirty from the climbing……… forget it, he would deal with that later.

Anyway, there was now a maid responsible for laundry.

Levi silently reached the second-floor balcony.

He activated 【Soul Sight】 again to confirm.

That figure was standing in the corner of the room, facing sideways, unaware of Levi’s presence.

So Levi slowly leaned forward and peeked inside through the balcony window.

And then, he saw Madam Clattie.

She looked completely different from the dignified elderly lady of before.

At this moment, she was draped in a blood-red robe, wearing a strange black mask, holding a candlestick in her hand, staring at a mirror in front of her.

Why did all these cultists love dressing up like some half-human half-ghost freaks?

Couldn’t they be normal?

Looking at Madam Clattie’s current appearance, Levi grumbled inwardly.

In movies and games, one could say it was for artistic effect.

But in reality, if you dressed like that, weren’t you just begging others to notice you weren’t normal?

Levi pressed his ear against the window, listening to the faint voice from inside.

“…………Everything is proceeding smoothly, my lord……….”

“Yes, no problem, Doolittle’s sacrifice was within expectations.”

“The long night is coming……….”

Levi had no idea who Madam Clattie was talking to.

There was only her in the room, and no communicator.

The only thing was that she was facing a mirror.

Could it be she was speaking into the mirror?

Was that a magic mirror?

Levi wanted to listen more, but unfortunately, Madam Clattie’s report seemed to be ending.

Finally, she hesitated a moment.

“My lord, that detective… he came to my club, should I…………… no, my… my lord…………!”

But before she finished her words, she suddenly let out a shrill scream.

Levi was startled, quickly peering inside through the window.

What he saw shocked him—

Madam Clattie was floating in mid-air!

The iron mask she wore fell to the ground, revealing her twisted, hideous expression.

Her hands clutched her own throat tightly, as if an invisible hand were strangling her!

Then, with a loud “crack,” her head twisted 180 degrees.

Her body collapsed like a lifeless puppet, crashing to the ground, never to move again.

She just died?

Levi stared dumbfounded at Madam Clattie’s corpse, dead beyond doubt.

The mastermind was far too cautious!

Just because she reported his presence, she was killed?

And by some curse-like method, no less?

He had only ever seen this kind of remote-killing trick in movies.

He never thought such a thing could exist in this world.

This was insane!

But it wasn’t over.

The candle that had fallen from Madam Clattie’s hand suddenly erupted with bright flames.

In an instant, it set the entire carpet ablaze!

They were going to destroy the corpse?

What, not even giving him a chance to investigate?

Levi was stunned.

He hadn’t expected the mastermind to be this cautious.

Just because Madam Clattie reported that he had come to the club, the mastermind not only killed her, but also wanted to burn the entire place down?

What to do?

He couldn’t let the evidence burn away!

Levi’s eyes swept the room quickly.

Then he gritted his teeth and made a decision.

He crossed his arms before his chest and charged headlong into the room!

“Crash!!”

The glass shattered instantly.

Levi rolled inside, but he didn’t rush toward the fire.

Instead, he pressed himself against the wall, moving to the side of the mirror.

He reached out and shoved it over, turning it face-down against the floor.

After all, Levi had watched too many horror films and played too many supernatural games.

The other side might be controlling the mirror.

If he was reflected in it, who knew what might happen………

These thoughts flashed through Levi’s mind.

Then he hurried to Madam Clattie’s corpse and lifted it onto his back.

Thankfully, the old lady wasn’t too heavy, or Levi would have been crushed flat.

After all, he wasn’t exactly built for physical labor.

By now, flames had already spread across the carpet, engulfing almost the entire room.

If Levi didn’t get out, he would roast along with her.

So he just took a quick glance, then bolted, carrying Madam Clattie’s body.

He dashed across the rooftop into the neighboring building.

Only then did he set her down, exhaling heavily.

Next step—he needed to contact Inspector Lestrade!

For Levi, this wasn’t difficult.

Upon receiving his report, Inspector Lestrade immediately arrived at the scene.

He directed the firefighting while secretly having Levi and Madam Clattie’s body brought back to the Police Station.

Back at the station, Levi recounted everything he had seen.

“If I hadn’t experienced strange things with you before… if her throat wasn’t marked only with her own handprints, I’d think you were just drunk and hallucinating.”

Behind his desk, Inspector Lestrade’s expression was grim.

“So it seems, the case of Doctor Doolittle really does involve a very dangerous conspiracy.”

Lestrade was a professional.

If you set aside the curse-like mysterious elements, the case boiled down to this:

A criminal group suspected exposure, so they decisively silenced their subordinate who might leave traces.

That alone showed the enemy was extremely cautious.

Which meant—what they sought must be enormous!

“Too bad you don’t know what they’re plotting.”

“I’m a detective, not a fortune-teller.”

Levi shook his head.

The system hadn’t given him any divination skills.

“Any clues from the things I brought back?”

“So far, nothing unusual.”

Inspector Lestrade shook his head, pressing the bell.

Soon, Officer Fletcher entered carrying a metal tray.

On it lay various items.

“These were found on Madam Clattie’s body. See if you notice anything.”

Levi approached the desk, inspecting the items: a necklace, rings, a wallet, a set of keys, several punched cards—

The last were nothing strange in this world, just like people commonly carried licenses, passports, or ID.

“Do we have Madam Clattie’s identity information?”

Levi examined the objects while asking.

The good thing about this world was the difference engine.

Anyone with a citizen number had their information stored.

“Of course.”

Inspector Lestrade nodded, picking up a file.

“Grey Durex. Original name: Grey Carlst. Later married Butler Durex, changed to Grey Durex……… Why are you laughing?”

“No, nothing……… it’s just……… fine, that name is a little odd.”

Levi barely stifled a laugh.

But the thought of there being a “Durex family” in this world nearly broke his composure.

“Really? I don’t find it strange.”

Inspector Lestrade, not understanding the joke, continued.

“She had two sons. Husband died of illness. One son died in an accident, the other in war. No criminal record. A devout believer of the Holy Lord Church.”

“Any relatives? Or now that she’s dead, any heirs to her estate?”

“That depends on whether she left a will. A lawyer will notify us. But based on current records, she had no other relatives.”

“Any findings from the autopsy?”

“Nothing significant.”

Officer Fletcher shook his head.

“The forensic doctor’s official report isn’t out yet.

But based on the initial check, there’s nothing unusual.”

“No tattoos, or strange marks?”

Levi asked based on the movies and games he had seen.

After all, cultists loved such bizarre symbols.

“This……… I’ll check more carefully later.”

Fletcher clearly hadn’t thought of that, but gave the answer after a pause.

At that, Levi suddenly had an idea.

He looked toward Inspector Lestrade.

“What will happen to Madam Clattie’s body after this?”

“Normally, it would be stored until her family claims it for burial. But to prevent the mastermind from discovering that you carried her out of the fire, we will secretly cremate her and hand over the ashes instead.”

Good.

A faint smile appeared on Levi’s lips.

“I have a request.”

“What is it?”

“After cremating Madam Clattie, please give me part of her ashes.”

“???”

Both Inspector Lestrade and Officer Fletcher looked stunned.

“What do you want that for?”

“I might be able to use it to find the killer.”

Levi’s eyes glinted.

He had just remembered—

He had located Madam Clattie earlier through 【Soul Sight】 because she was linked to Doctor Doolittle’s death.

Now, Madam Clattie was clearly killed by the mastermind.

That meant, on the soul level, there was a connection between them.

So maybe, through 【Soul Sight】, he could find the mastermind!

But that wasn’t urgent for now.

Because by the time Levi returned home, dawn had already broken.

“Ding-dong.”

The lift reached the top floor and opened.

Levi stepped inside, seeing Irene in a maid’s dress dozing on the sofa, a lamp lit beside her.

When the lift door opened, she started awake, quickly standing up.

“Ah, sir, you’re back………!”

“Mm. From now on, you don’t need to wait for me so late.”

Levi yawned, taking off his coat.

Irene hurried over, taking it from him.

She noticed the dirt on it, looking slightly surprised.

“Sir, did something happen?”

“A detective’s work always involves some rough-and-tumble.”

Levi waved it off.

“Go to bed. We’ll handle the rest tomorrow.”

“Understood.”

Since Levi said so, Irene didn’t press further.

She nodded, walked to the lift, shut the gate, then went downstairs to her room.

Levi stretched, returned to his bed, and let out a long breath.

“Hoo……… what a mess.”

He closed his eyes, thinking back.

Though he hadn’t heard Madam Clattie’s words in full, it was clear she intended to get rid of him.

That was normal—after all, she realized he might investigate her because of Doctor Doolittle, so her first instinct was to eliminate him.

But obviously, her superior thought otherwise.

They didn’t even bother to test him, simply abandoned her, cutting the line entirely.

Of course, maybe Madam Clattie no longer had much value.

And now, Levi was a well-known detective.

If they tried to kill him, it might draw even more attention and investigation.

Compared to that, killing Madam Clattie was more cost-effective………

Levi recalled the old lady again.

She had seemed sincere, not like a villain.

But who knew?

Villains didn’t wear labels on their foreheads.

Forget it, the rest could wait for tomorrow.

For now, he needed sleep.

With that thought, Levi closed his eyes and sank into deep dreams.