novelonline Chapter 3977 The Stolen Baron
Chapter 3977 The Stolen Baron
Chapter 3977 The Stolen Baron
Today, the "City of Scholars" is no longer bathed in sunshine. While still inside the Blue Ink Library, Xia De heard the sound of rain pouring down outside. When he appeared in the alley with an umbrella, he found that it was indeed raining.
However, both the upper and lower city districts of Arcadia are situated on cliffs, so there is absolutely no need to worry about flooding. As for landslides, the city has existed for a thousand years, so this issue should be completely unnecessary.
On rainy days, even finding a carriage is difficult. Xia De waited for quite a while at the entrance of Qing Teng Street before finally getting a carriage to head to the "Strange Machine Tower" in the Upper City. Because it was uphill, the driver didn't dare to make the carriage go too fast on the slippery, rainy streets.
This led to Shad being unusually late for a meeting. When he said goodbye to Margaret, he had already anticipated the possible unexpected situation, but when he got off the carriage at the entrance of the Strange Tower next to Scholar's Square, it was already 11:03, three minutes past the scheduled time.
Shad felt very apologetic and had even thought of how to apologize. But when he went to the counter on the first floor and explained that he had arranged to meet Mr. Finch and Mr. Munoz, the manager of the Qixie Tower who rushed over said to Shad very apologetically:
"The two gentlemen mentioned they wanted to meet with you, but they haven't arrived yet, probably because it's raining outside. How about you rest on the fifth floor for a while? Or, how about I have someone show you around the Tower of Wonders?"
Both gentlemen are shareholders of Qixie Tower. Although they don't interfere too much in the operation of the tower on a daily basis, they are quite influential.
Thinking they would arrive soon, Shad decided to wait upstairs. He waited from 11:00 until 11:30, and shortly after the grandfather clock in the lounge, which played music like a music box, struck the hour, Mr. Finch finally entered, looking apologetic.
"I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting. I've run into some trouble. This morning, the Church of Creation suddenly sent invitations to some of the more well-known inventors and mechanics in the area, inviting us to attend a lecture at the Candleburg Library at 10 a.m. today."
He sat down as he spoke:
"The Vatican rarely does this kind of thing, and the invitation was only sent out a few hours in advance. I was worried that it contained very important information, so I went to attend the lecture, but I didn't expect it to be a lecture on laboratory safety."
The old man's lips twitched slightly:
“They’re still talking over there, so I asked Muñoz to listen for me while I ran out.”
Shad felt he roughly knew the reason behind it. Although yesterday's accident occurred in Tobeskoye, the Church of Creation was involved in the entire investigation and seemed to have known about the "Spark of Life" beforehand. It was understandable that the Vatican would react quickly in the surrounding cities.
Mr. Finch had apparently not yet received any news from Tobesk, so Shad used the excuse that "I have friends in the church" to give him a brief description of the explosion in the northern capital.
Mr. Finch was also present when the "automatic coffin" in the Tower of Mechanics malfunctioned the day before yesterday. Upon hearing what Shad said, he immediately understood the Church's intentions:
"Yes, Arcadia City has no shortage of sophisticated artificial devices. What if this infectious, intelligent plague spreads widely?"
Mr. Finch frowned, clearly also aware of the threat this plague posed to civilization:
"Let's set aside whether the church knew about the 'Spark of Life' all along. The key question now is, is there no way to detect and prevent this mechanical activation phenomenon in advance?"
"This is beyond my ability to explain. Let's wait and see what the church says."
"I will contact my colleagues in the Secret Order later. The impact of this disaster on civilization is just too great. Although Munoz is still attending lectures, I have brought you the [Active Metal]."
As he spoke, he placed the briefcase he had brought on the coffee table, deftly opened the metal clasp, and revealed a wrist-thick crystal tube embedded in the lining.
The crystal tube has silver hoops at both ends, and the hoops are engraved with strings of runes that clearly contain elements of enlightenment.
The crystal tube contained a two-colored liquid, divided into upper and lower sections. The lower section was a liquid metal, like mercury, which was the object itself; the upper section was a crimson metal.
"This is copper amalgam, a copper-mercury alloy, which is highly toxic. Mr. Watson, I don't know what you intend to do with this relic, but before using it, make sure it doesn't leave the containment container. I can guarantee it will be effective for the next year and a half, and I can also give you the method for making the container."
He represented Mr. Muñoz, who was not present, in making the deal with Shad, and Shad also gave the price that had been agreed upon.
Then Mr. Finch said rather apologetically:
"I originally arranged to meet you at 11 o'clock so we could have lunch together, but it seems I won't be able to entertain you this time."
"It's alright, Mr. Finch, you can go ahead and do your work."
Now that he had obtained the relics, Shad didn't care about anything else.
But the old man from the hermitage still felt very apologetic, so he didn't let Shad leave immediately and shared with Shad various local news he had recently heard.
First, of course, was what happened Friday night in Oakham Park. As expected, not only did Shad and Mr. Bernhardt manage to escape successfully, but the local church also failed to capture the group of ring sorcerers suspected to be from the Blood Spirit School.
Although the church later pulled Mrs. Connaught and her young lover from the lake, who had nearly drowned, neither of them knew anything, not even the memory of the last hour.
This further confirms Xia De's suspicion that they were the bait that was thrown out.
“I was also at the park’s exhibition hall that night, accompanying Ms. Astley to a charity gala. Both sides involved in the transaction had high-level sorcerers, and there were suspected high-level relics involved.”
Shad said, half-jokingly, that he had not yet seen Mr. Bernhardt's investigation report on the body, so it was best for no one but Viggo to know what he had done.
Mr. Finch's second message was somewhat unexpected for Shad:
"Baron Ramsay's house was robbed last night. His collection room was completely ransacked. I don't even dare to think about how many crowns were lost."
"Who?"
Xia De was taken aback, then quickly realized what was happening:
"Baron Ramsey, who possesses the original design manuscript of the Mark I steam engine? Then that manuscript..."
"That was the Baron's most important collection; the chances of it surviving are slim."
Mr. Finch said this, and Shad frowned immediately. It wasn't that he was worried about the design manuscript; even if he couldn't get the manuscript, it wouldn't be a big problem. He was worried about something else:
"Ms. Astley introduced me to the Baron at the charity dinner on Friday night, and I also expressed my desire to purchase the design manuscript, but the Baron flatly refused. Now, the day after I was rejected, the Baron's house has been robbed. Won't this cause trouble for Ms. Astley?"
"Probably not. Although Baron Ramsay is of a prominent status compared to ordinary people, he is not particularly special in Arcadia City or among the Astley family. Besides, many people covet the Baron's collection; he is a very famous collector."
Mr. Finch said that he did not doubt Shad, after all, given Shad's methods, he wouldn't have made such a fuss to get the manuscript.
"But this makes it even more difficult for you to obtain the manuscript."
Mr. Finch sighed, while Shad seemed indifferent, saying he would at most go and talk to Mr. Leber again.
"Let's talk about this later. I've run into some other things locally. I'll pay attention to it if the manuscript appears on the black market or at an auction later."
As he spoke, he picked up his teacup. Shad didn't have the time to help the Baron find the thief; at the moment, the matter of Mr. Bernhardt's suspected presence of the Blood Spirit School was more important.
Mr. Finch nodded:
"I'll keep an eye out for you. Today, during the tea break at the Candlecage Library, I overheard other people chatting, and they said that some of the stolen items were quite remarkable. Apparently, one of the Rhodes cards can be traced back directly to the original lineages."
Then the old man saw that Shad's eyes suddenly turned to him, and his gaze was very powerful.
"What's wrong? Are you interested in the Rhodes Card?"
Shad does not deny this:
Is it the Founders series?
"I'm not sure about that, after all, the Baron doesn't usually publish his stolen collection in the newspapers. The loss of the valuable Rhodes card definitely happened, but no one knows exactly which one it was."
Mr. Finch found Shad's behavior amusing, yet also felt it was more in line with the temperament of a young man:
"Regarding the theft, the 'mechanical plague,' and the 'spark of life,' I will contact you again if I have any further news. Now, Mr. Watson, please leave your contact information. Where are you currently staying in this area?"
Do you know that Fragrant Mansion in the Upper Town?
Shad asked, and Mr. Finch, a local, immediately nodded:
"Of course I know, that's..."
He recalled that it was Viggo Astley who had taken Shad to trade the botanical encyclopedia with Professor Thorne, and that Shad had recently admitted that he had attended a charity gala with that woman. Prior to this, there had never been any rumors in the area of that unwell woman being intimate with any man.
She doesn't even have close contact with women—because of her unusual physical condition.
"you"
The old man looked at Shad in surprise, never expecting that this young man, whom Old John had introduced from out of town, would have such an ability.
For a moment, he even suspected that Shad might have used the methods of a ring sorcerer to bewitch the unwell lady, but then he thought of Shad's outstanding temperament and his stunning appearance even after being concealed by illusion, so he wasn't too surprised.
"Alright, I'll send another letter to Fragrance Mansion if anything comes up. I hope there's no bigger conspiracy behind all this."