Mechanical Alchemist-Chapter 420 - 419: The Hanged Man Card

A huge vessel slowly approached from a distance, the four towering smokestacks emitted billowing white smoke into the sky.

The "Queen Rodrica" was a long-distance ocean liner under the jurisdiction of the Luying Sun Shipping Company. It wasn’t actually the asset of any princess; it was just given this name to convey a sense of luxury and high class.

The ship rose approximately the height of a dozen floors from the waterline to the highest point, with at least ten decks visible by estimate.

This steel behemoth boasted all the characteristics of its era: steam power, enormity, rivets, and numerous gun turrets.

Gigantic steel plates, fastened by coarse rivets, formed the ship’s hull, which was painted in black and gold. Unlike ordinary liners, this one featured gun deck chambers, with thick gun barrels protruding outward. It gave the impression of a muscular gentleman armed with a harpoon. Though not particularly aesthetically pleasing, this design could fend off attacks from the majority of pirate ships.

After discerning the white lettering on the ship’s hull, Su Lun beckoned the Kama siblings, Albert and Abert, "Let’s go."

...

Su Lun took the two into his small void dimension, teleporting repeatedly until he waited in the sea.

As the giant vessel came within less than a hundred meters, he found an unoccupied area and teleported directly onto it.

The ocean liner appeared to be roughly the same size as the "Eternal Night Emperor," but the steel ship was much more stable than a sailing battleship. The weather was good with no significant waves, allowing for a steady stance on the deck.

Having boarded the ship, Su Lun took out the communication device from the Mirror Organization and asked, "Mr. Kit, I’m already on board. Where are you?"

After a moment’s wait, the communicator responded, "Su Lun, you’re already there? Oh~ just a sec, I’m having a deep conversation with a beautiful lady about life."

Su Lun guessed at what was happening and spoke with a strange tone, "It seems I’ve interrupted you at an inconvenient time?"

Laughter came from the other end of the communicator: "Hahaha... just wait a bit, I’ll be done soon."

"No rush, you carry on..."

Listening to the heavy breathing that sounded like exertion, Su Lun was torn between laughter and tears, muttering to himself, "Kit is as flirtatious as ever."

He then released the Kama siblings back out.

The two apprentices couldn’t always stay cooped up in the lab; it was better for them to come out and gain more world experience.

Abert continued to chew on an alchemy tome, seemingly uninterested in traveling by ship. Having been trapped in "Boyle’s Mechanism Golem Heart" for years, he had developed the ability to stay focused and undistracted at any time.

Kama, on the other hand, looked around with great interest, her coffee-colored braid swaying in the sea breeze. A deep sense of nostalgia appeared in her eyes, "Many years ago, when my father was still alive, I also traveled on such an ocean liner. I was only seven years old... Time flies."

After spending years in pirate circles seeking the murderer responsible for the destruction of their estate, returning to civilized society felt like another world.

Abert tilted his head, looking at his sister without fully understanding the emotion she felt.

Su Lun observed discreetly, listening.

He extended his soul perception, quickly becoming familiar with the spatial layout of the ship.

...

The three of them looked at the scenery by the railing.

Before they could meet Kit, several young students around Kama’s age passed through the corridor.

They were referred to as students because they were wearing uniform school attire with "Emperor Luying Academy" eagle emblems on their chests.

This was the premier Alchemy Academy of Luying.

Su Lun had not expected to encounter students from the Emperor Luying Academy on board and hence took a second glance.

The wine-red high-quality fabric was obviously costly. The collar and cuffs were finely decorated with golden button embroidery and silver threads. The boys wore sharp suits with shiny shoes, while the girls were dressed in checkered pleated miniskirts, youthful and attractive.

Almost all the students from the royal academy were noble descendants.

The six or seven students who passed by certainly had a different demeanor from any other people of the same age that Su Lun had encountered before, with their confidence, arrogance, and commanding presence.

However, that good impression shattered in an instant.

As these youngsters passed by, they cast a clearly disdainful glance at Su Lun and the others’ attire and walked away like proud swans, whispering among themselves.

"Amy, did you see? That kid just now seemed to be reading quite an advanced alchemy tome."

"Psh, just putting on an act. Could a little brat like that understand Master Basil Valentine’s ’The Triumphal Chariot of Antimony’? Oh, please, not even the seniors in the graduation class could understand that complicated alchemical text. People from the countryside always try to stand out."

"Let’s hurry; we still need to go to the exhibition hall. That report ’On Ancient Artifacts’ assigned by the professor? I plan to study the ’Twenty-Two Chapter Secret Tarot cards.’ Rumor has it that it’s a genuine relic from the Dawn Era."

"It must be the real deal since ’Phantom Thief Kit’ has claimed he would steal that Tarot card. After all, that guy only steals good things..."

"Oh, don’t even mention that accursed thief! Last month, our family’s jewelry store safe was visited by him, and he stole a Tetra Era antique necklace. My father was furious about it."

"I heard that ’Phantom Thief Kit’ is a super-handsome guy. They say he is gentlemanly, romantic, and charming... Oh, I’d love to meet him."

"Yeah, I’ve heard that too. Everyone who’s seen him says he’s super handsome."

"Oh! Lena, Elizabeth, stop fawning over him. He’s nothing but a despicable rogue. Moreover, he specializes in seducing high-society ladies— he’s not interested in young girls like you."

"..."

Su Lun and his companions were just standing in the corridor enjoying the breeze, yet they were inexplicably caught in the crossfire.

Albert had always been engrossed in the alchemy tomes, not intending to pay attention to the others, yet it was this behavior that subjected him to mockery. After all, his physical age was only six.

But now, under Su Lun’s tutelage, he had already been exposed to many advanced fields of alchemy.

This "Triumphal Chariot of Antimony" was a high-level reference book used by alchemy magicians for materials crafting. Normally, academy-style students were expected by their teachers to have a solid foundation before tackling such complex knowledge.

However, Su Lun and his group were different; as long as Albert could understand, he would continue to guide him deeper.

After all, the learning methods of geniuses are different from those of ordinary people.

So much so that now Albert’s knowledge was specialized, but in certain areas, he knew far more than his peers.

Despite the mockery, Albert seemed to turn a deaf ear, still focused on his book.

Kama, indignant for her brother, murmured, "Those guys are really arrogant."

"Hehe."

Su Lun also smiled.

He had heard before that the people from Emperor Luying’s capital were born with a kind of arrogance, viewing people from anywhere else as country bumpkins. He didn’t expect to encounter it on the ship before even reaching Old Lington.

However, what he was more concerned about was another piece of information.

"Phantom Thief Kit sure has quite a reputation..."

Su Lun was amused and exasperated.

Just then, a head popped out from a window two decks above, calling out enthusiastically, "Hey, Su Lun!"

When Su Lun looked up, he saw the blond, blue-eyed, strikingly handsome fellow and responded, "Kit... over here."

He had meant to call out the name, but thinking of the man’s dubious reputation, he decided against it.

This person was none other than one of the veteran members of Mr. Jing’s organization, "Magician" Curtis M. Kit.

Su Lun still vividly remembered, when they were hunting anomalies in the Dawn Relics, how this man had stylishly flown about using a card.

Just like now, as the man jumped down from the two-story deck, grabbing the railing and hopping in.

Quite a flashy entrance.

...

Although Su Lun thought he was more handsome than Kit, he had to admit that Kit had better appeal. Your journey continues at novelbuddy

Kit was dressed in a crisp white suit and glossy shoes, sporting the trendiest slicked-back hairdo, with even his eyebrows meticulously groomed, emanating a faint scent of men’s cologne. He was the image of a handsome, wealthy young gentleman in every regard.

This demeanor wasn’t just for show; Su Lun knew that back in Old Lington, Kit had indeed been a young master from a prominent inner city family.

The guy was a gregarious sort, and since Su Lun had joined Mr. Jing’s group and collaborated with Kit a few times, they naturally became acquainted.

Upon seeing Su Lun, Kit embraced him warmly, saying, "Oh, my friend, long time no see."

Su Lun, used to this enthusiasm, joked, "I tell you, Kit, aren’t you afraid that one day you’ll be cornered under a bed and have three legs broken?"

Kit didn’t care in the slightest, "Oh no, Su Lun, you don’t understand, that’s love."

Su Lun laughed, "You sure have a lot of love."

Kit unabashedly preached his Sea King perspective on love, speaking tenderly, "How can one possibly fall in love with just one person in their lifetime?"

Showed with resignation, Su Lun didn’t give Kit the chance to ramble on, introducing, "These are my disciples, Kama and Albert."

Kama and Albert politely greeted this senior member of the Dawn organization.

After the pleasantries, Kit magically produced three tickets from his pocket and said, "These are first-class tickets. Sorry, Su Lun, I didn’t mean to not get you better accommodations. It’s just that the special-class tickets require a noble’s seal to register, and they attract too much attention."

"Thank you."

Su Lun didn’t care about such things and took the tickets in one go.

He didn’t bother mentioning his concerns and instead asked directly, "What’s the deal with the ’Giant Hermit Order’ on the ship?"

Kit, hearing the serious question, dropped his flippant demeanor, "Didn’t the leader say to keep a close watch on this church organization? Mr. Hei previously obtained top-secret intelligence that a bishop from that order is on board; currently, he’s the highest-known clergy member of that sect we’ve identified. I came personally to follow up. I’ve observed the person and confirmed that he’s connected with people in rooms V3011, A2022, and B1066; about a dozen or so in total. They seem to be preparing some kind of secret proselytism activity..."

Frowning slightly, Su Lun asked, "Have those people exhibited any abnormalities?"

It wouldn’t be difficult to kill these followers of the outer gods, but that wouldn’t solve the problem.

"The existence of ’Dawn’ is to promote and glorify the civilization of Alchemy,"

Mr. Jing once said that she didn’t care who the Ruying Emperor was, but it absolutely couldn’t be a believer in the gods!

It’s now confirmed that the "Giant Hermit Society" has direct ties to the Ruying royal family. If we could follow the vine to find the high-ranking member within the royal family, then this matter could be considered fully resolved.

Kit shook his head, "Not at the moment. Those guys are very mysterious, with few slips, and they hardly ever meet in person. I have a feeling there might be a ’big fish’ behind this, so I’ve been careful not to startle the snake."

Su Lun nodded as he listened.

Kit might seem frivolous, but he’s actually quite reliable when it comes to getting things done.

Intuition told Su Lun there might be a problem with the ship, so he asked, "Is there anything special about this ship?"

Kit had clearly done his homework as he replied, "So far it seems no different from an ordinary cruise liner. This type of cruise ship sets out twice a month, at the beginning and in the middle... There are nearly five thousand people on board, mostly travelers, with a small number of nobles. Also, there is a group of students from the Ruying Royal Academy on board, who are on a normal ’ocean observation trip.’ In addition, there’s an exhibition by some mysterious collector of ’ancient artifacts’ on the ship, and in a few days there will be a charity dinner auction."

"Oh."

Su Lun pondered as he listened.

All the necessary information was there, but nothing stood out.

Thinking further, he asked, "Are there any special exhibits at the exhibition?"

Kit said, "Nothing too special, a mysterious collector exhibited his family’s collection, which included some precious antiques and a few cursed items. I’ve been there and didn’t see anything peculiar. The collector’s identity hasn’t been confirmed yet. I heard from Mrs. Marjorie that the collector is a plantation owner from the south. And just now, Mrs. Selas said it’s a depleted noble family of old stock..."

"..."

Su Lun thought he had been very thorough.

It was impressive to have gathered so much information during the sailing period.

Yet it seemed that his sources of information were those noble ladies?

Seeing the odd look in Su Lun’s eyes, Kit wiggled his eyebrows and chuckled, "You must know, for intelligence about high society, no intelligence organization can rival the small circles of the noble ladies."

Su Lun laughed awkwardly and shook his head slightly.

Kit continued, "I suspect there might be a problem with that mysterious collector. And, coincidentally, among the exhibits is one of the ’Twenty-Two Arcana Secret Vault Tarot Cards,’ the [Hanged Man Card]. It’s a very precious genuine item, and many people are coming to the charity auction specifically for it. I plan to use this as an excuse to steal it and see if I can lure out the collector..."

Tarot cards are very common in this world, usually popular among mysticism researchers and primarily used for divination.

Su Lun hadn’t heard of the "Twenty-Two Arcana Secret Vault Tarot Cards."

But the words [Hanged Man Card] piqued his interest, "Is there something special about that card?"

Kit was not just a Phantom Thief; he was also a collector himself, with a good eye for treasures.

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.

When it came to treasures, he spoke with the same passion as if he was looking at a stunningly beautiful woman, "That item has a big history behind it. It’s said to be a special set of tarot cards made by one of the five elders of the Rose Cross during the Dawn Era, totaling twenty-two cards. Each card hides a major secret. This isn’t rumor; many biographies of great adventurers from history have recorded instances of people obtaining the original cards and, by decrypting the cards’ encoding, finding great treasures. These are what later generations refer to as the ’Twenty-Two Arcana Secret Vault Tarot Cards.’ Of course, there are many fakes on the market, and currently among the great museums and private collectors, there are no less than eight thousand...’Twenty-Two Arcana Secret Vault Tarot Cards’"

Pausing, his eyes sparkled as he continued, "And the card exhibited this time is the [Cyclops’ Hanged Man Card], which is said to be related to the heritage of a supreme god from the ancient mythological civilization. I’ve seen it before, and while I can’t guarantee it’s an original, it’s definitely an artifact from the Dawn Era!"

Listening, Su Lun also became very interested.

In the cursed space of Cursed Valley, Su Lun had seen a complete stone sculpture left by the ancient giants, with a carving of the high deity who hung himself upside down next to the Spring of Wisdom to gain ’knowledge.’

Among the many legends about the [Hanged Man Card], Su Lun found this myth more credible.

He also speculated that it could be connected to the origin of the "All-knowing Eye" talent.

Others might not know what the "Five Elders of the Rose Cross" meant, seeing it as a distant legend, but Su Lun knew better and had personally witnessed the legacy they left!

Mr. Jing had once mentioned that the five stone sculptures in the underground chamber of the Storm Manor in the Dawn City Ruins were those five elders!

Su Lun’s "All-knowing Eye" and "Reaper" were legacies obtained from those five stone sculptures.

If the card truly was left by one of the five elders, wouldn’t that fit perfectly with the backstory of the "All-knowing Eye"?

Seeing Su Lun’s interest, Kit added, "The card is currently kept in a heavily guarded exhibition hall, with no chance of getting to it. But it will be put up for auction at the charity event in five days, and then we can try to get it out for you to see?"

Su Lun smiled, "No need. I’ll go have a look myself when the time comes."

With the All-knowing Eye, even if he couldn’t get his hands on it, just seeing it would suffice.

Just then, a shrill voice that could only belong to a noblewoman came from upstairs, "Hey, Jack, where are you?"

On hearing this, Kit tilted his head and looked outside, "Miss Roth, just a moment, I’ve encountered a friend."

Su Lun watched with twitching eyelids.

That pseudonym... quite saucy.

It figured he was an old hand at this.

Kit didn’t plan to stay long, turning to Su Lun and saying, "Alright, I must go look for clues now. Contact me through the communicator if you need anything."

"Hmm..."

Su Lun rolled his eyes as he listened.

Before leaving, Kit gave Su Lun and his companions one more glance at their attire and added a reminder, "Right, you’ll need to change your clothes. I can guarantee that if you walk around the upper deck dressed in those rustic clothes from the north of Luying, those arrogant Old Lington folks will look down on you. Especially if you’re attending the charity dinner..."

Su Lun had a strange look on his face as he listened.

It wasn’t that they would be scorned, they already were.

He looked at his clothing—a very ordinary combination of overcoat, suit, and boots. Since he had always been mingling in the northern seas, this style was fairly regular for him.

But now that he was heading to Old Lington, which was known as the forefront of fashion, a change was probably needed.

He looked up only to find that Kit had already disappeared.

...

Carrying three tickets, Su Lun quickly found cabin A2077 in first class.

As he passed by room A2022, he paid special attention to it.

The first-class cabins usually had some simple prohibitions, such as sound insulation and anti-surveillance measures.

But they couldn’t block Soul Perception.

Su Lun noticed there were four people inside the room, but he didn’t disturb them and simply took note of it.

Then he returned to his own cabin.

The first-class cabin wasn’t too big, but it was more than enough for the master and his two disciples.

There was a large bed with pristine white sheets, a private bathroom, and a window that offered a view of the sea—the setting was quite nice.

Just like before in the lab, Su Lun and his disciples went about their usual activities.

Later on, he visited the exhibition hall but didn’t find the "Hanged Man Card"; there was only a replica on display.

When he asked the staff, they said it was to guard against Phantom Thief Kit, and the original would only be displayed on the night of the auction.

So Su Lun let it be.

...

In the following days, Su Lun also took the Kama siblings on various casual strolls around the ship.

From first class to the lower decks where the commoners were quartered, they visited them all.

One reason was to get to know the customs and culture of various regions of Luying, and the other was to confirm how many "Giant’s Hermitage" members were actually on the ship.

Kit could only judge by experience and clues,

But Su Lun had a way to directly identify the believers.

From the information he had, he knew that inside the bodies of these foreign god worshippers, there would be those mysterious red parasitic worms!

Previously, when they were in the sea ruins, Su Lun had killed Baron Siegel and obtained a live sample of the parasite.

Dr. Banks studied it and, although he hadn’t fully understood the characteristics of the worm, he developed a fast-acting reactive agent.

When this agent was in the vicinity of the parasites, it would trigger an "allergy"-like special reaction.

Dr. Banks then diluted the concentration and came up with a more discreet "perfume."

Spraying the perfume on oneself, those foreign god worshippers would experience a mild sense of discomfort and develop sneezing within a certain range.

Su Lun tested this by sprinkling a little at the door of room A2022.

And indeed, the people who came out of that room showed the corresponding mild allergic reactions.

Using this method, Su Lun also identified several more believers on the ship.

However, they all seemed insignificant, merely minor characters.

It was not until that day that Su Lun discovered a major problem.

The professor leading the group from the Luying Royal Academy actually had an allergic reaction to the "perfume"!

And this was a piece of intelligence that the Dawn Organization currently had no idea about.

Mr. Hei and Kit merely believed that there was one high-ranking "Pope" level member aboard the ship, currently suspected to be the mysterious collector organizing the charity auction.

But it certainly wasn’t this rank-six professional professor!

It was then that Su Lun realized that the gathering of so many believers on the "Queen Rodrica," with such high ranks, could very well be brewing a significant conspiracy!