Alice in the Land of Steam

Chapter 755 Are alchemical items useful?

The fog was hazy, and a small building in classical style was hidden deep in the scattered branches and leaves. It was two stories high and of quite old style. The mottled gables and sloping roofs were covered with green vines. The palm-sized leaves were tightly clustered together, covering the windows and porches. When the wind blew, a gentle sound of waves was set off. Because the fog was too humid, dew had begun to condense on some leaves, which looked quite natural and interesting.

But Nevile was not here to admire the building. She asked Leticia to wait outside the house for a while while she walked around the building and observed it. She did not find any traces of the night watchman, but found two tracks of carriages on the ground in front of the door. The soil was still fresh and seemed to have been left there not long ago. However, Professor Heinrich was receiving guests in the mansion, and without his permission, no one dared to approach the building without permission.

So the question is, who is the person in the carriage?
Someone from the Witch Society?
The countess was alert. At this moment, her granddaughter's voice came from beside her: "What's wrong, grandma? Aren't we going in yet?"

When she turned around, she saw Leticia squatting beside her, blinking her clear ruby ​​eyes, trying to look innocent, as if to say: I didn't run around, it's because grandma was too procrastinating, so I came to check on the situation.

Nevile was speechless, but the current situation did not allow her to lecture her granddaughter, so she explained briefly: "There is someone else in the room, maybe a member of the Witch Society."

What's so confusing about this?
Leticia stretched out five white and tender fingers, made a hand knife gesture, and chopped down fiercely: "Then I'll kill him!"

"kindness?"

Nevile looked unhappy, and Leticia quickly changed her words: "Ah, I, I mean, I'll knock him out, and he won't find out that we're sneaking in!"

Nevile's expression eased a little, but she still shook her head: "It's too risky. Let me go in first to check the situation. Leticia, you will be responsible for supporting me from behind. If you encounter any unexpected situation, escape first. Remember, if it is an enemy that I can't deal with, you have no chance of winning, understand?"

Leticia pouted, as if she was dissatisfied with her grandmother's underestimation of her ability. Even if it was an enemy that her grandmother couldn't deal with, if I were included, maybe there would be a chance of victory? Despite this, facing Nevile's oppressive gaze, she could only nod and reluctantly agree. Her small arms couldn't twist the long legs, so could she still disobey her grandmother?
Nevile sent her granddaughter outside to guard the place, and she went around to the back of the house. She didn't plan to enter through the front door because it was too dangerous. Since Professor Heinrich could dispatch the magic knights of the Night Watch to patrol nearby, couldn't he set up some secret mechanisms in his own residence? Even if these mechanisms didn't pose any threat to Nevile, the noise they made would be enough to make her infiltration attempt fail.

Similarly, the Countess had no intention of entering through the window or balcony, because climbing over eaves and windows were things that only thieves and night robbers would do, which was not in line with the noble status and elegant demeanor of a Dark Night Vampire.

She used a simpler and more direct method: the countess took out a silver fountain pen from her coat pocket, unscrewed the pen cap, and casually drew two vertical lines and one horizontal line on the wall, forming a simple door pattern. Then the next moment, something magical happened: within the range of the drawn lines, the wall that should have been made of bricks and stones gradually blurred and became transparent, and finally disappeared directly. A doorway just big enough for one person to pass through was opened in front of the countess, unobstructed.

If someone else saw this, they would definitely shout that this was impossible. To be honest, the Countess herself was also shocked by its actual effect. She was stunned for a moment before she reacted. She put the silver pen back into her pocket and whispered to herself, "Miss Lorena's alchemical tool is indeed magical."

Fortunately, Lorena said that this thing is only effective against dead objects and has no effect on living creatures. Otherwise, Nevile could hardly imagine how evil the prop would become. It would probably be not much different from those infamous holy relics in history.

If they had this fountain pen, they wouldn't have been so embarrassed when they faced the blockade of the Inquisition in the Void Root Swamp. While sighing, Nevile did not forget the business. She walked through the doorway drawn with the fountain pen and entered the backyard of the house. It looked like a garden, but due to the season or lack of care, there was not a single flower in the flowerbed. Only lush weeds and shrubs grew wantonly, and the ancient cypress stood tall, with its crown almost touching the roof.

Nevi'er restrained her breath, floated up like a shadow, and quietly crawled under the windowsill. She looked through the window and saw no trace of people, not even the smell of human activity. Was it her illusion, or had that guy left long ago?

She thought about it and felt that it was pointless to dwell on it, so she might as well go in and take a look. She also trusted her perception talent very much. As a demigod, her ability in this area was even more acute than the magic detection device that the cult relied on. If there was something wrong in this room, even if it fooled her vision and smell, it would never fool her intuition.

She no longer hesitated, took out her fountain pen and followed the same method, entering the first floor of the mansion from the backyard. This was a very ordinary hall, and apart from the luxurious decoration, there was nothing else worth noting. However, luxurious decoration was also considered ordinary for the Countess of the Valenhild family, so overall, everything was mediocre.

After successfully sneaking in, without attracting the attention of the patrolling guards (because they all mailed it), and without triggering the magic mechanism protecting the mansion (because it was not an ordinary way), everything was perfect. Next, it was time to find Professor Heinrich's secret study. Since it was a secret study, it would definitely not be displayed in the open, but a secret room that needed to open a mechanism to enter. Nevelle had no experience in this regard, and time did not allow her to search the entire mansion inch by inch. Fortunately, the alchemy props provided by Miss Rolena could still be used here.

The countess reached into her bosom and fumbled around. When she took it out again, there was an extra... uh, toy bird in her hand.

Although it is exquisitely crafted and lifelike, from many details - such as the body with a faint brass luster, the feathers outlined with silver wire, or the two sparkling eyes carved from broken diamonds - it can still be seen that the bird in her hand, whose scientific name is the Papilio thunbergii, is not a living creature, but a man-made handicraft. Perhaps it will be very popular with children in a doll shop, and some collectors who like this kind of objects will not be stingy with a high price, but what can a little bird do?

The answer is yes.

Nevile put her mouth close to the head of the flower-tailed sparrow doll and whispered something. The next moment, something magical happened again: the bird's body could be heard to make the sounds of gears turning and pistons starting. Then, without anyone controlling it, it flapped its silver wings and flew up. Its movements were agile and free, without any trace of artificial sluggishness or awkwardness. The small flower-tailed sparrow flew around Nevile's head three times, then suddenly spun around and flew to the second floor without hesitation. Nevile quickly caught up with it and followed closely behind.

What she said to the toy bird was: Help me find the location of Professor Heinrich's secret study.

……

A minute later, in a bedroom on the second floor, Nevile held a sparrow doll that was preening its feathers in her hands, facing an open hole in the floor and a staircase leading downwards, silent.

　Give me some meow
　　
　
(End of this chapter)