Chapter 1332: Shocked in the Middle of the Night
*Why is the confidential document that I'm dispatching mentioning
Utopia?*
What's so special about this place?
Many thoughts flashed through Wendel's mind as he heard a buzzing sound.
At this moment, he felt as though he was going to fall sick from
overexertion.
Wendel quickly forced himself to calm down. He carefully recalled all
the experiences he had encountered after coming to Utopia, and he
discovered that there were no problems with every detail. They were all
things that he might encounter in daily life.
The only thing that made him uneasy was that his arrival was too
coincidental.
It was common for the steam locomotive to stop at the last minute due to
a storm, but to stop somewhere related to the confidential document in
his hand couldn't be explained away with coincidence.
Wendel stared at the confidential document on the table with a solemn
expression. He hesitated as to whether he should open them and read them
carefully.
*Perhaps it's just a passing mention of "Utopia." My actions will
severely violate internal affairs. Perhaps this is the report of a
certain intelligence agent secretly investigating Utopia. The contents
will decide whether I survive to a certain extent, or die...*
After struggling for a while, Wendel looked out the window at the dark
night sky and reached for the document.
Only by being alive could one consider the punishment!
Having made up his mind, Wendel swiftly removed the envelope outside and
flipped through the typed files inside.
As he read, his hand trembled slightly. He felt a chill run down his
back. Even the burning furnace didn't help.
No matter which angle he read it from, the confidential report in his
hands indicated that there was something wrong with Utopia---the entire
town.
This might be a city that didn't exist in the real world!
Wendel felt his mouth go dry, as though he had heard the footsteps of
Death slowly approaching him with a sickle.
Instinctively, he wanted to get up, but in the end, he controlled
himself and didn't react rashly.
This was because he could feel pairs of eyes staring at him in the
darkness outside, the room upstairs, and the corridor outside.
*What should I do? Up till now, nothing abnormal happened... This means
that if I didn't know anything, it's possible that I'd be safe and
welcome daybreak... I've read through a lot of information, and if I
rashly show that I already know about the strange environment around me,
it would only cause danger to erupt ahead of time... However, I can't
just not do anything and leave my fate to luck...* Wendel
recalled all the dangers he had experienced before and quickly made up
his mind.
He was prepared to immediately return to the steam locomotive, and stay
far away from Utopia to a certain extent.
At least, most of the people there were normal, while the city was full
of danger.
Of course, Wendel couldn't just run back like that. He had to act
normal, as though he had left the hotel in the middle of the night to
return to the steam locomotive station.
Amidst his thoughts, Wendel put away his confidential report and stood
up calmly. He put on his coat and put on his top hat.
Then, with his luggage in one hand and an umbrella in the other, he
calmly walked to the door and turned the doorknob.
At this moment, the corridor was dark, with only a few gas lamps on both
sides of the corridor giving off light that wasn't bright enough. It
added signs of human life to the silent environment in which he could
hear a pin drop.
When Wendel entered the corridor, the wooden floor beneath his feet made
a slight creaking sound. It was so clear in the silent night that it
traveled far into the distance.
With a slight frown, Wendel intentionally took a normal step forward and
approached the staircase in the middle of the corridor.
He walked without any worries and had no intention of acting furtively.
As he saw the stairs getting closer, he suddenly heard a squeaking sound
behind him.
"Sir, where are you going?" A slightly hoarse and intermittent male
voice sounded in Wendel's ears.
Wendel's body stiffened. He slowly turned back and saw the wooden door
to the service room open. An attendant came out and stood in the shadows
of the door.
He quickly smiled and said calmly, "I have an important item on the
steam locomotive. I'm afraid that someone would take it away, so I have
no choice but to return now."
At this point, he softly grumbled, "A murder happened at the hotel. I
don't want to stay here anymore. I can't sleep at all."
"I'm very sorry." The attendant bowed slightly and responded.
"I won't spread the news." Wendel nodded with a promise and then walked
back up the stairs.
Perhaps it was due to the dim lighting in the night, he walked very
carefully. Every step was like walking on the edge of a precipice.
One step, two steps, three steps... Wendel, who had been on guard
towards the attendant behind him, finally returned to the first floor.
At that moment, not a single person was present in the hotel lobby. All
the items were hidden in the darkness, and the faint light from the
outside cast a blurry silhouette, just like monsters eager to devour
people.
Wendel looked ahead and walked through the dark lobby before reaching
the door.
Just as he pushed open the door and went out, he suddenly heard some
rustling sounds behind him. It was as if there were rats moving around,
or it was as if someone was approaching him with light footsteps.
The back of Wendel's head went numb, but he held back his impulse to
make a dash for it. He raised his head normally and looked up at the sky
which had already stopped raining.
Then, he inhaled the cold, fresh air and made his way to the steam
locomotive station.
He quickened his pace, looking like he was afraid of the night and eager
to end this journey.
As he walked, Wendel saw a signboard from the corner of his eye.
"Utopia telegraph office."
*The telegraph office... Perhaps I can try sneaking in and send an
emergency telegram to the Backlund headquarters and Eskelson military
base. That way, I can look forward to the rescue from demigods... If I'm
really trapped here and unable to leave, this will be the only way to
save myself...* Wendel thought for a moment before taking a few
steps diagonally, arriving at the entrance of the Utopia telegraph
office.
He wasn't in a hurry to find a place to sneak in. Instead, he focused
his attention and listened to the movements inside.
Following that, he heard intermittent sounds of heavy breathing.
This made Wendel occasionally feel that there was no one inside, and at
times, he felt that there was more than one person inside.
Suddenly, the sound of breathing stopped.
All of Wendel's hair stood on end.
His intuition told him that a figure was standing quietly behind the
door of the telegraph office!
Without any hesitation, Wendel immediately gave up the thought of
sending a telegram. He walked past the door and continued proceeding
forward.
For the rest of the journey, even a gust of wind left Wendel trembling
in fear. He was afraid of encountering an unknown danger.
Time passed slowly as Wendel experienced the torment. Finally, he
reached the entrance of the steam locomotive station and saw that the
door was tightly shut. He couldn't enter.
This wasn't a problem for Wendel. He first passed the umbrella to his
left hand that was carrying his luggage, then went to the side and found
a wall. With a press of his palm, he rose into the air and easily
flipped over.
After landing his feet firmly on the ground, Wendel heaved a sigh of
relief and began walking towards the platform at an unhurried pace.
At that moment, an inaudible sound of footsteps could be heard behind
him.
"What are you doing here?" A deep and hoarse voice rang out.
Wendel's toes tightened as cold sweat broke out on his back.
He didn't hesitate. As he prepared to get violent, he made his body turn
slowly and stiffly.
The first thing that entered his eyes was a classic glass lantern,
followed by the staff member from before.
Wendel exhaled and grumbled, "It's not appropriate for you to appear in
such an environment on such a night.
"As a gentleman, you have to avoid scaring others."
"I'm not a gentleman," the staff member replied in an unfriendly manner.
Wendell pointed to the corner of the platform.
"I'm going to the bathroom."
He had already observed the platform's environment and layout of the
platform earlier in the day.
"Then, why are you here?" the worker asked.
"I'm lost," Wendel answered simply.
Following that, he ignored the staff and walked towards the bathroom.
Behind him, the staff member watched silently without saying a word.
This gave Wendel a lot of mental stress, but he maintained his gait very
well.
In the bathroom, under the illumination of the wall lamps, Wendel took
nearly a minute to relieve the tension in his body and successfully
peed.
After returning to the steam locomotive, Wendel finally found a sense of
security as he looked at the passengers lying on their beds.
In the next few hours, he didn't sleep at all and was on guard against
any accidents.
Just as Wendel's grasp of the passage of time slowed down, the sky
gradually brightened and dispersed the darkness.
In the next two hours, the travelers who had gone to Utopia returned one
after another. Some bought a bottle of local red wine. Some looked
haggard. They looked like they had been beaten up or were hungover.
Wendel was very wary of them, but he couldn't discover anything unusual
in the details.
Choo!
Finally, the whistle sounded as the steam locomotive slowly began to
move.
Amidst the chugging sounds, the train left Utopia Station.
After that, they went through another dark, gloomy weather. Fortunately,
no thunderstorm descended, and the sun quickly pierced through the
clouds and illuminated the ground.
For Wendel, all of this was normal. It had been like this since he
arrived at Utopia last night. If not for the confidential report which
was hidden near his chest, he definitely wouldn't have believed that
there was any problem with Utopia.
When the steam locomotive reached the next stop, one that everyone was
familiar with, Wendel finally relaxed. He felt as if his brain ached
with a throb, as though he had been drained of his energy.
At this moment, he quickly recalled his experience in Utopia.
As he recalled, Wendel suddenly sat up straight.
He had used the excuse of going to the bathroom last night, but he was
carrying his luggage and an umbrella. He didn't look like a passenger
who had just come down from a steam train.
The station worker didn't realize this, or rather, he had already
discovered it, but he did not expose him for some unknown reason!