Chapter 167: Danger Arrives |
The warehouse was dead silent.
Levi walked forward to untie the old doctor, nodding to the girl slumped on the floor beside them. Qiya stared back at him, dumbfounded, completely at a loss for words.
"How did you..."
"I assume you want to know why I am here. The reason is quite simple. Naturally, I have my methods. The moment I had Anthony call the police, I knew someone on their side would definitely pass the word. All I had to do was identify that informant and follow him."
Levi scanned the floor. The attackers were all lying on the ground, reduced to lifeless corpses.
"Furthermore, I also know that the research on that punch card actually had nothing to do with Dr. Tester. Miss Qiya, you were the one responsible for it. If I were to make an even bolder guess, the card was never on Dr. Tester at all. It is on you, correct?"
"How did you know?"
Hearing this, Qiya stared at him in open-mouthed shock, looking like a squirrel that had just discovered its entire winter food supply had been stolen.
"Simple. You told me yourself."
"You did."
Levi wagged a finger.
"During our earlier conversation, you complained that the card had broken your difference engine, remember? You also mentioned that resetting it would take a considerable amount of time."
"Ah..."
"Moreover, you are far too familiar with this card. If Dr. Tester had been the one researching it, you should not have known the details so intimately. And the machine it broke should not have been your difference engine... Am I right, Dr. Tester?"
Untying the last knot, Levi turned toward the elderly man with a smile. The old man could only offer a bitter smile in return.
"You truly live up to your reputation as a famous detective."
"It was just a very ordinary deduction. However, we cannot remain here any longer. To be honest, Miss Qiya, I am incredibly curious as to how you managed to get this thing here..."
Levi looked at the steam mecha not far away with a complex expression. He had to admit that Qiya's arrival had taken him completely by surprise. He never expected this young lady to possess such capabilities.
"I... I used the material supply transport channel..."
Qiya explained with some embarrassment. After all, she had driven the machine out of the house in a sudden rush of blood to her head, and even she did not quite know what she had been thinking...
"Alright, let us discuss the details after we return."
As he spoke, Levi urged the two of them to get back inside the mecha immediately. Although it was just an ordinary engineering mech, it had been modified from a Hound-class design, so carrying two or three people was not an issue. Soon, the three of them returned to the cockpit. Levi and the old man each found a seat and buckled their safety belts.
"If possible, Miss Qiya, please take me to the Central Data Tower first. According to the information I gathered just now, those thugs will launch an attack on the Central Data Tower very soon."
"What?"
Having just sat down in the pilot's seat, Qiya barely had time to settle before she almost jumped out of her skin.
"They are going to attack the Central Data Tower?"
"That is indeed the case. Their leader told me so himself just moments ago."
The old doctor also nodded with a serious expression.
"Furthermore, because of our raid here, they might launch the attack ahead of schedule once they realize they cannot establish contact. We must rush to the Central Data Tower at maximum speed to warn them to prepare defenses."
"But... but don't they lack this card?"
"I heard there are four cards in total. Three of them have already been delivered, and the one in our possession is the final piece."
The Unconscious Control ability was truly convenient. Levi had easily gathered a wealth of useful information just by casually strolling through the warehouse.
"Indeed, there are four massive difference engines inside the Central Data Tower that perform data integration for the Bisbaru region..."
Qiya operated the controls with nimble hands. The massive iron giant spun around swiftly, quickly exiting the warehouse and speeding down the road ahead.
"In that case, the data interface on that punch card makes sense. However, an incomplete program should not be able to function effectively, right? According to my previous analysis, the punch card we hold is the core. Without it, even if they insert the other three, the damage caused should be quite limited..."
"They are Luddites, Miss Qiya."
Levi interrupted her.
"Can you expect people who spend their days dreaming of pumpkin carriages and white horses to understand scientific principles? It is enough for them to know that inserting the black cards into the card readers can destroy the entire Steel City."
"But... but..."
Faced with Levi's response, Qiya was momentarily left speechless.
"But at the very least, they would need someone who knows the trade, right? A plan like this could not have been conceived by Luddites."
"There was indeed someone who knew the trade. Unfortunately, he is dead."
"Dead?"
"Yes, killed by a robber."
Levi was quite speechless when he reached this point. He now understood that the reason the fellow insisted on keeping the final card with him was to prevent the other party from backing out after the fact. As for the programming of a difference engine punch card, those Luddites who could barely count to a hundred certainly did not understand it. This meant that before the plan succeeded, that man should have been safe...
Well, he should have been. But now, the expert was dead. The remaining group was running around like headless flies, but they could hardly cancel the plan because of it, could they?
What else could they do? They had to bite the bullet and push forward.
As for why the other party had not assigned him a bodyguard... who knew? Perhaps they thought a first-class carriage would be perfectly safe? Indeed, under normal circumstances, a first-class carriage was very safe. This was not Merisia, that lawless place. It was impossible for someone to rob a train halfway through its journey.
Who could have anticipated a conductor turning into a murdering thief? It was not a detective novel, after all...
In any case, he was not the one who had to deal with the fallout. Levi was certain that when the contact here learned of that unlucky bastard's death, he would have exhausted every curse word in his vocabulary.
"...I truly never expected such a thing to happen..."
By this time, Qiya had driven the mecha onto the cargo platform heading toward the upper data tower platform. Finding himself bored, Levi recounted the story to them as a joke. After listening to his tale, both the old doctor and Qiya were utterly speechless. Who could have imagined such a sequence of events... though for those Luddites, it was far from a laughing matter.
"In this world, all sorts of bizarre things can happen. At least from my perspective..."
Levi shrugged, about to add something more, when a sudden clang echoed out, and the rising cargo platform ground to an abrupt halt.
"...What happened?"
The old doctor looked around, and Qiya also wore a look of surprise.
"Did the elevator malfunction? At a time like this...?"
"I don't think it's a simple malfunction... Watch out, grab the outer wall!"
Before the words could fully leave Levi's mouth, the cargo platform beneath the mecha plunged violently downward. Fortunately, almost simultaneously, Qiya operated the mecha to leap from the platform. Its two steel claws dug firmly into the adjacent wall, saving them from sharing the platform's fate. The platform slid all the way down the tracks, and a dull, heavy crash echoed from below moments later.
One did not even need to look to know it had been smashed into pieces.
"What on earth is going to happen? An accident?"
"Perhaps it is more than just an accident."
Levi peered through the observation port. Several muffled impacts and faint screams could be heard in the distance...
"In any case, we need to get up there as quickly as possible!"
This time, without needing Levi's prompting, Qiya knew exactly what to do. She carefully manipulated the mecha, utilizing its four large claws to scale the wall, climbing upward skillfully and rapidly.
This was clearly no easy feat. It took them a considerable amount of time before they finally reached the top-level unloading platform. By now, the mecha had become incredibly fragile. After all, it was designed for hauling cargo, not engineered for climbing walls. It was akin to a person operating an excavator with four arms to scale a cliff. It could climb, but what it looked like upon reaching the top was another matter...
Clang! As the mecha hauled itself onto the unloading platform, another mechanical arm detached from the strain and fell to the ground. Instantly, several police officers rushed forward, raising their weapons and surrounding the mecha.
"Step out of the vehicle immediately! Do not make any sudden movements!"
"We are not enemies."
Levi opened the hatch, stood up inside, and nodded to the crowd before leaping down.
"I am Detective Levi. What is happening here?"
"The Central Data Tower is under attack!"
A familiar voice echoed from the crowd. Levi turned his head to see Anthony pushing through the officers, panting heavily as he waved his hand to the others.
"Lower your weapons!"
Hearing Anthony's command, the police officers hesitated for a moment before lowering their guns. Levi glanced at Dr. Tester and Qiya, who were carefully stepping down from the mecha, and walked over to Anthony's side.
"What is the situation? Didn't you go to warn the Governor?"
After discovering Dr. Tester's disappearance, Levi and Anthony had split up. Levi went to search for Dr. Tester, while Anthony took charge of warning the Governor about the potential threat.
"I went."
"And?"
"The Governor did not believe me at first."
Anthony looked around, shrugging helplessly. The subtext was clear; whether the Governor believed it or not now, he had no choice.
"What happened?"
"I convinced the Governor to send men to reinforce the defenses at the Central Data Tower. However, before we even entered the doors, the workers inside staged an uprising."
"An uprising?"
"Yes, they barricaded the main gates and pulled out weapons. Currently, only the internal security personnel of the Central Data Tower are resisting, but they are achieving very little..."
"Have you called for reinforcements?"
"Communications are completely chaotic. The call I placed to the Governor went straight to the dining room... Furthermore, there seems to be a problem with transportation..."
"Yes, the cargo platform we just used to come up dropped down. It seems the impact of this incident is even greater than we imagined."
Levi turned to look. Fire and thick smoke could be seen rising throughout the Steel City. It was obvious that the failure was not limited to just the elevator platforms. In all likelihood, systems connected to the difference engines, such as the subway, were experiencing issues as well.
"Was that card not found?"
"That card was not lost. The problem is that there is more than one."
Levi explained the results of his investigation at the warehouse to Anthony, whose expression shifted drastically.
"You mean to say there are four of those damn things in total?"
"Yes, Miss Qiya said our card is the core. While the other three can cause some disruption to the Central Data Tower, the effect should not be massive."
"You call this not massive?" Anthony widened his eyes, staring at the apocalyptic scene in the distance. "Then what qualifies as massive? Blowing the entire city into the sky?"
"It is useless to argue about this with me. The urgent priority now is to enter the Central Data Tower and deal with those cards before they take full effect."
The only thing Levi felt fortunate about was that the calculation method of the difference engines in this era was entirely mechanical. That meant the transfer of each digit physically rotated the gear representing that number to a designated position before starting the calculation for the next digit. This meant they still had enough time to resolve this mess. Had it been the electronic era, they would be completely doomed.
"That will not be easy. Those rioters can operate mechas. They have taken control of several internal maintenance mechas and blocked the main thoroughfares. With the weapons in our hands, we can do absolutely nothing against them."
As he spoke, Anthony pointed ahead. Levi looked over and saw that in front of the Central Data Tower, a group of police officers had set up barricades using vehicles and wooden crates, firing toward the entrance. Inside the gates, several mechas were attempting to halt the police advance. They carried no weapons, but the sweeping movements of their massive mechanical claws were powerful enough on their own.
"This is indeed a problem..."
Faced with such massive mechas, Levi had no good solutions either. Just then, another familiar voice reached his ears.
"It seems you require assistance, Mr. Levi?"
"Miss Ovelia? Why are you here?"
Seeing Ovelia appear, Levi was somewhat surprised. She offered a slight smile.
"I was planning to come here for a final financial settlement, but I did not expect to encounter these minor troubles..."
Her eyes darted toward the entrance.
"If you need help, I believe I can assist."
"Are you certain?"
Levi glanced at the puppy poking its head out from Ovelia's coat, knowing full well what she intended to do.
"Will this be an issue?"
"Of course not. Her Majesty the Queen has already granted permission, expressing her hope that my family and I will contribute our strength when the Empire faces a threat." As she spoke, Ovelia patted the puppy's head. "Furthermore, if all goes smoothly, I might be able to earn a favor from the Governor of Bisbaru. After all, building connections is very important for me."
"That is true."
Levi was not surprised. Ovelia was now the Feudal Lord of Delicat, so she naturally needed to establish her own network of relationships. Extending a favor to the Governor of Bisbaru carried no disadvantages for her.
"Then I will trouble you to assist us."