Chapter 1330: Moving in
Alfred felt the room temperature plummet when he heard his squire.
An indescribable chill invaded his body, freezing his blood and bone
marrow.
When the liner stopped at Utopia Port, he had expected the worst
situation to happen---Utopia was the headquarters of some cult, and that
everyone there was a dangerous lunatic.
But now, the truth was even worse.
Perhaps Utopia never existed!
At that moment, Alfred was unusually thankful that he was no longer the
noble scion he was when he left Backlund. He had accumulated a great
deal of experience and had thus, not really entered Utopia Harbor.
Under the gaze of the adjutant and squire, the major general paced back
and forth with a solemn expression. He calmly instructed, "Draft up a
telegram and report to MI9 about what happened in Utopia.
"At the same time, request the local official Beyonders to immediately
take action and contact the captain to list down all the people who
entered Utopia Harbor. If necessary, pay each of them a visit and
confirm if there are any problems."
"Yes sir!" his adjutant immediately stood at attention and saluted.
After the adjutant walked out of the study, Alfred said to a squire,
"Bring up the typewriter from downstairs. I want to write a detailed
report."
His plan was to first use a telegram to report the key information to
the brass and not delay the initial actions necessary. Then, he would
reveal more details with a confidential document and provide more
information for the military brass to make a decision.
Wendel walked into a second-class carriage with one hand on his top hat
and the other carrying a suitcase.
He wasn't even thirty years old. His sideburns were deep-black and his
brown eyes were calm. He didn't have any unique features that anyone
could remember, but he exuded comfortable vibes.
A few months ago, he was still a Feynapotter intelligence officer who
was active in Desi Bay, and had contributed greatly. Now that he was a
Sequence 7 Beyonder, he was part of MI9's internal affairs department.
Today, his goal was to send a confidential document to Backlund and
personally hand it into the hands of MI9's director.
After sitting down, Wendel bought a newspaper from the paperboy and
leisurely read through it.
This was just a superficial act; in reality, he began to use his
Beyonder powers to illustrate portraits of the passengers around him,
remembering all their characteristics, making meticulous and perfect
preparations for any accidents that might happen later.
Choo!
The steam locomotive was chugging forward as the scenery outside sped
past the windows.
A few hours later, Wendel cast his gaze out of the window with some
anxiety. The sky was already filled with dark clouds, and a storm was
about to descend.
This meant that the steam locomotive would stop at a station ahead of
time to tide through the storm. It might only continue its journey the
next morning, and not reach its designated location.
In Wendel's opinion, this would undoubtedly lead to more risks due to a
deviation in his expectations.
However, it was beyond him. He couldn't change the weather like the Sea
God, who was promoted by the Rorsted Archipelago's new government.
The only thing he could do was pray to the Lord of Storms.
Reality proved that praying was useless most of the time. By the time
the sky turned dark, the station in front of them had already sent a
light signal to get the train to slow down and stop.
Choo!
The steam engine whistled again, and the train slowed down. Finally, it
stopped at an unfamiliar platform.
In the next second, near the steam-powered train's head, the mechanical
door opened. The train conductor stood at the entrance and shouted to
the staff on the platform, "What happened up ahead?"
"Heavy rain. Visibility is zero!" the white-sideburned employee answered
loudly.
Just as he finished speaking, a muffled thunder sounded, causing
everyone to tremble as they sensed the incoming storm.
"Damn it!" the train conductor cursed. "Which station is this?"
As it wasn't a normal stop, he didn't really know which station he was
at. After all, the schedule he was in charge of didn't stop at every
station in the past.
"Utopia! It's a small station! You can arrange the rest yourself!" the
staff shouted and ran towards the other end of the platform with the
glass lantern in hand. "I have to give the train behind a signal!"
The train conductor had no doubts about the staff's attitude because
this was a normal dispatch process. Otherwise, an accident between two
steam locomotives would happen.
He could even be certain that the other staff members of the Utopia
Station had already sent a telegram to the other stations to warn them.
Of course, they must've received a telegram to learn of the area ahead
being enveloped by a heavy storm.
"Utopia..." Wendel repeated the name in a low voice, not finding any
useful information in his mind.
Of course, he didn't think too much of it. This was because there were
many unknown steam locomotive stations in the entire Loen Kingdom. This
was a manifestation of the country's overall strength.
The train conductor looked at the dark sky and muttered a few words
before using the newest megaphone to speak to the passengers on board.
"A storm is coming. The train will stop at Utopia station until eight in
the morning tomorrow."
He estimated the storm to continue the entire night.
"You can stay in the carriage, or you can exit on your own accord to
head into the city to look for an inn. Tomorrow, simply show your ticket
stub to board the carriage again. Remember to be on time." The train
conductor gave the passengers two choices.
Wendel looked at the passengers inside the second-class carriage and
pondered for a few seconds before carrying his suitcase and walking out
of the train.
It wasn't that he couldn't handle the harsh environment that wasn't
conducive for good sleep. When he was an intelligence officer, he had
been through plenty of hardship. He was only relying on his
professionalism that the sealed carriages, which were limited in space
for passenger movement, weren't as safe as a single room in an inn.
Of course, he could also stay up all night, but this would definitely
affect his condition tomorrow. Clearly, he still had a long journey
tomorrow.
After exiting Utopia Station, Wendel got on a rental carriage by the
side of the road and said to the carriage driver, "To the municipal
square."
In the Loen Kingdom, there would definitely be a cathedral and a hotel
near the municipal square.
"Sir, are you planning on going to the hotel?" the carriage driver asked
as he made the horse turn around, seemingly capable of getting along
well with anyone.
"Yes." As a Sequence 7 Beyonder, Wendel didn't hide it.
In his opinion, as long as he lived in the city center while overseas,
he could easily find a group of helpers with his status, and his
strength was enough to support him in completing this task.
"The best hotel in Utopia is Red Boots. Are we going there?" the coach
driver asked in a suggestive tone that all men knew.
If he didn't have a mission, Wendel wouldn't mind pleasuring himself.
However, he could only shake his head without any hesitation.
"I want a quiet hotel."
"Alright..." the coachman replied disappointedly. "Let's go to the
Irises Hotel. No one will disturb you there."
As the carriage advanced, Wendel cast his gaze outside the window to
observe the situation outside.
Perhaps it was because the storm was about to arrive, the people on the
road were all in a rush. Even the paperboys looked down.
A very small city... Wendel came to a preliminary conclusion
from the lack of a track carriage.
He only saw one trackless carriage. This meant that most of the areas in
Utopia could be reached on foot in an adequate amount of time.
Just as he had expected, in less than ten minutes, the rental carriage
stopped at the entrance of the Irises Hotel.
Wendel paid the fare and rushed into the hotel before the rain fell.
He heard pattering sounds behind him just as he entered.
After checking in and putting down his luggage, Wendel rested for a
while. He kept the confidential document close to him and went to the
restaurant on the first floor to enjoy dinner.
He cautiously didn't have any alcoholic beverages and asked for a cup of
"Fizzling Ice Tea," which was supposedly a local specialty, and a fried
pork chop drenched in apple juice.
As a former intelligence officer of high society, Wendel didn't have
much expectations for dinner this time, but he was surprised by the
meal.
The pork chop was fried in a succulent and juicy manner that gave off a
strong fragrance. The apple juice that was poured on it had a slightly
acerbic texture that washed away most of the cloyed taste. The Fizzling
Ice Tea was refreshing and especially delicious...
When he foot the bill, Wendel nodded at the medium-build waiter and
said,
"Please send my compliments to the chef for giving me the pleasure of
this wonderful dinner."
The ordinary-looking waiter smiled and replied, "That wouldn't be an
issue.
"In all of Utopia City, our chefs are the best."
Wendel didn't chit-chat and quickly returned to his room to make some
arrangements to prevent others from sneaking in.
Then, he fell asleep without any hesitation.
He used a relatively safe period of time, which any possible enemies
would find unsuitable for taking action, to sleep and pass the time late
into the night.
After an unknown period of time, Wendel was suddenly woken up by an
intense argument.
He snapped open his pocket watch to take a look and realized that it
wasn't even midnight.
It's from next door... A woman's voice... A man's voice...
Wendel sat up and listened carefully.
Initially, he suspected that it was a man and woman flirting, but later,
he realized that it was too intense. Some of the items were even thrown
onto the wall.
A quarrel turning into a fight? Just as Wendel mumbled, he
heard the shouting, cursing, and screaming of a woman.
Beating a woman? As a Loen gentleman, although Wendel believed
in the Lord of Storms and discriminated against women, it didn't stop
him from thinking that men shouldn't be violent towards women.
After two seconds of consideration, he decided to knock on the door and
remind his "neighbors" to take note.
At that moment, a tragic cry rang out.
This was obviously from a man!
Thud! Something heavy fell to the floor.
Wendel's brows twitched as he sharply caught the scent of a criminal
case.
He stood up, put on his coat, and went to the room next door. He bent
his fingers and knocked twice.
A few seconds later, the door creaked open, and a beautiful woman with
long, wavy hair appeared in front of Wendel.
Her hair was in a mess, and her face was ghastly pale. Her light-green
clothes were stained with blood, and she was holding a dagger that was
dripping with blood.
The lady in her early twenties stammered for a while before speaking in
a dreamy tone, "I killed someone..."