Chapter 160: The Mysterious Card |
After finally crossing that cursed forest, the group arrived at the next station. One could only imagine the sheer shock of the platform staff when they saw such a train roll in.
As for the specifics, Levi naturally claimed it was the result of a flash flood, forcing them to risk a breakthrough. The railway company staff did not pry further, content to accept the explanation at face value.
Following this, the staff prepared a new train for everyone, and Levi compensated each of the second and third-class passengers with retirement funds of ten pounds. Although those inventors seemed unreliable, it was thanks to their inventions that Levi had managed to escape the pursuit of that bizarre forest.
Since the luggage and belongings of those poor devils had gone up in smoke during the explosion, Levi was more than willing to grant them some compensation. Beyond that, Levi also intended to build a rapport with them.
After all, judging by the blast radius, the whimsical ideas of these inventors were incredibly potent. Who knew if a genius of demolition might emerge from among them in the future? Right now, what Levi lacked most when dealing with those monsters was raw, overwhelming firepower.
The inventors were absolutely overjoyed by Levi's compensation. They were not wealthy people to begin with, and attending the Steam Expo was entirely to secure investments. Although their creations had dissolved into thin air, they were still alive, and the blueprints were perfectly preserved in their minds. As long as they had funds, they could simply rebuild everything when they returned.
The compensation Levi offered was exhilarating for them. For ordinary people, this was a substantial sum, more than enough to offset their losses. Consequently, they were filled with nothing but gratitude toward Levi, promising that if they created any new inventions in the future, they would definitely inform him first. This was exactly the outcome Levi had aimed for.
In stark contrast to the ecstatic inventors, Anthony was having a miserable time. The target he was tracking and monitoring was dead, and not even a intact corpse remained. He had practically stripped the wallpaper off that cabin and still found nothing useful. It was a certainty that he would be done for once he returned. Therefore, when he said his goodbyes to Levi, his face was entirely devoid of life.
"Well, I'll take my leave now, Boss. Sigh..."
"You don't know our superior. He isn't someone easy to fool. I've botched things so badly this time... If I get kicked out, you've got to take me in, alright?"
"We'll see when the time comes..."
While Levi was casually humoring Anthony, he saw Ovelia walking toward them.
"Miss Ovelia, is something the matter?"
"There is an unusual matter, Mr. Levi."
Ovelia nodded to Anthony, then looked toward Levi and drew a punch card from her handbag.
"I actually should have mentioned this to you last night, but so much happened all at once that I didn't have the time... Please look at this."
As she spoke, Ovelia handed over the Black Punch Card.
"What is this? A punch card?"
Levi took it curiously and examined it, though he clearly knew nothing about it.
"This punch card does not belong to me."
"Oh?"
"I asked Anna, and she mentioned she might have accidentally swept it into the bag while gathering things from the floor..."
"Gathering things from the floor... Ah, right, I remember."
Hearing Ovelia's explanation, Levi reflected for a moment and immediately recalled the incident where Ovelia had collided with the victim. Not only had the victim's case burst open across the floor, but the handbag she was holding had also dropped. At that time, Ovelia hadn't gathered the items herself; instead, she had her maid retrieve them.
In other words, the maid had accidentally slipped this item into the bag at that moment?
Levi looked at the punch card in his hand. It wasn't entirely far-fetched. The punch card was black and rather inconspicuous, looking somewhat like a comb or a similar accessory. If the maid hadn't paid close attention while gathering the scattered items and shoved it inside, it was perfectly plausible.
Wait, which meant...
"This belongs to the victim?"
"I believe so..."
"Really?!"
This time, the cry did not come from Levi, but from Anthony. He practically lunged to Levi's side, staring wide-eyed at the punch card.
"Miss Baskerville, are you certain?"
Faced with the agitated Anthony, Ovelia was taken aback for a moment but still spoke.
"I cannot be entirely certain, but when I left my room yesterday afternoon, this strange object was not in my bag. I discovered it inside by evening. The only time this bag left my hands was in the afternoon when I collided with that man, so I believe it should be his property."
"Thank you, thank you so much, Miss Baskerville!"
At this moment, Anthony looked exactly like a drowning man grasping at a lifeline. He clutched the Black Punch Card, turning it over and over in sheer excitement. Ovelia, meanwhile, cast a puzzled glance at Anthony, wondering why he was so thrilled over a mere punch card. However, seeing Levi signal her not to worry about it, she did not pry further and soon took her leave.
Once Ovelia had departed, Levi looked back at Anthony.
"Is this the item you were looking for?"
"Very likely!" Anthony stared intently at the Black Punch Card, nodding vigorously. "When that fellow was murdered earlier, wasn't the killer searching the trunk for something? I suspect this might be exactly what he was looking for!"
"So what exactly is it? Are you going to take it back for inspection?"
"Um... No, that won't do." Anthony's excitement flared for a moment, but he quickly regained his composure and shook his head. "I must find out what this thing actually is. Otherwise, if I foolishly bring it back and it turns out to be some love letter written by that man, my superior will strangle me alive..."
"So?"
"So I'll continue traveling with you, Boss. It just so happens that I know an expert in this field in Bisbalu. We can have him examine it then. If we can figure out what this punch card is used for, perhaps we can deduce what the other party is truly after."
After this, the railway company dispatched another train for the passengers. Unlike the Orient Express, however, this train did not feature any additional carriages. Furthermore, the majority of the second and third-class passengers no longer intended to travel to Bisbalu; most opted to take the return train back. Consequently, only the first-class passengers, along with Anthony and a handful of second-class passengers, boarded the new train to continue their journey to Bisbalu. The rest remained on the platform to wait for the return trip.
Compared to the Orient Express, the rooms on the new train were relatively less luxurious. Yet, after surviving such a night, Levi was in no mood to fret over minor details. Upon entering his room, he collapsed onto the bed and opened the System's mission log.
[Quest "Escape to Safety" Completed]
[Time Elapsed: S]
[Rescue Efficiency: S]
[Impact Evaluation: S]
[Overall Rating: SSS]
[Lifespan +300, Bonus +100]
'This mission was remarkably difficult.'
Staring at the addition of four hundred days to his Lifespan, Levi knit his brows. Indeed, if he hadn't possessed that trump card, the Ghost Ship Core, under last night's conditions, he would have been lucky just to escape the forest alive. But this matter wasn't over yet!
Levi had already made up his mind. Once he reached Bisbalu, he would find an opportunity to file a report with MI7. If possible, he would bring a squadron of bombing airships back to settle the score! He would rain incendiary rounds down to burn the entire forest to ash, and see how arrogant it could be then!
[Mystery Resistance +10%]
[Strength Attribute +10]
[Bonus Skill Selection Available]
[Steady Shot / Burst Fire / Piercing Shot]
'Ah, here it is again.'
The last time Levi had faced this three-way skill choice, he had passed up Burst Fire and Piercing Shot to select Ricochet Shot, which had proven to be incredibly effective. Now it was another three-way choice for marksmanship skills, though Ricochet Shot was gone, replaced by Steady Shot. Following the logic of his previous choice, he bypassed Burst Fire and Piercing Shot once more to select Steady Shot.
As a passive skill, the function of Steady Shot was quite straightforward: it allowed the user to execute highly stable shots, much like pressing a key to steady one's aim when looking through a sniper scope in an RPG Game. This skill was quite useful for Levi, especially now that he could dual-wield; a stable aim was absolutely paramount.
Next was the Mystery Resistance... It had now accumulated to a total of 45%.
He wondered if reaching 100% would grant him something akin to magic immunity. If it included magic reflection, that would be even better. When Levi played games, reflection mechanics were always his absolute least favorite. Conversely, if he could become the very thing he hated most, nothing could be finer.
This time, his Strength had increased by ten points, bringing it directly to 50, though it wasn't particularly impactful. After all, in terms of base attributes, 50 represented the baseline of an ordinary, average human. Levi had long since discovered that within the System's attributes, 90 was considered the peak of human capability, while 50 was the average. In other words, falling below 50 meant being weaker than an ordinary person...
In truth, if given the choice, Levi would have preferred to invest points into Agility or Perception. However, since the System was providing the rewards, he had no say in the matter.
Incidentally, the Steady Shot skill wasn't placed after the Marksmanship attribute like Ricochet Shot had been; instead, it appeared behind the Strength attribute value. This revelation allowed Levi to discern a pattern regarding how the System distributed skills. Evidently, the skills offered by the System were calculated based on the thresholds of specific attributes. Because his Strength attribute had met the requirement, the System had presented the option for Steady Shot. Had he raised a different attribute, the marksmanship skill offered by the System might have assumed an entirely different form.
Having confirmed his gains from the mission, Levi let out a yawn and drifted off to sleep. After an exhausting night, he was spent. He only hoped this train wouldn't present him with any further crises.
Fortunately, from that point onward, the journey proceeded exactly as Levi hoped, free of any murders or complications. A day later, Levi and the others finally arrived at the Steel City—Bisbalu.