Chapter 400

"Ji Zi: "We deeply regret this story… but things aren't that simple, right?""

"Galahad nodded: "Hmph… Obviously, someone has inherited the name of the 【Clockmaker】 and continues to carry out anti‑family activities in secret to this day.""

"Is the Watchmaker an organization?" Xing questioned doubtfully.

"That's one way to understand it. However, only one person should have inherited the Watchmaker's title. Alas, after all these years, I still don't know who that person is—I don't even know whether it's a person… or Mikhail's ghost wandering in a dream."

"So you understand now? Why am I willing to tell you all this… because that girl's death must be related to the Watchmaker's legacy. And at the end of the thick fog…… we both can get the answers we want."

Speaking of which, Galahad suddenly received a message—something seemed to have happened over at the cinema. Before leaving, he gazed at the Watchmaker boy statue not far away and sighed: "How ironic—these stowaways barred from Pinokangni today, and those few Dreamchasers once hailed as pioneers before the Amber Age… what's the difference between them?"

——

The Funeral of Frieren

"Mr. Galahad actually knows the Watchmaker…… then he must have at least heard something about the Watchmaker's legacy, right? Could the so-called 'legacy' merely be the product of this generation's Watchmaker?"

Restalk was somewhat puzzled; hearing Galahad's tone, he seemed quite familiar with the previous Watchmaker. But since this generation's Watchmaker decided to let someone inherit his legacy, it means the title "Watchmaker" is preparing to exit the stage of Pinokangni, right?

There's a feeling like "a senior adventurer, on his deathbed, preparing to find someone to inherit his luxurious gear and martial skills."

Filien's gaze shifted from the canopy to the elf maiden not far away: "Lady Frieren, I think inheriting the Watchmaker's legacy isn't that simple… with so many forces vying for the legacy, it's essentially a selection process. I'm afraid what's inherited won't just be the legacy, but also some kind of curse… or memory."

"A curse?" Frieren blinked slightly.

Filien nodded: "Is Mikhail the first Watchmaker, or the most outstanding among the generations of Watchmakers? If it's passed down generation to generation, how can we ensure that no generation of Watchmaker will develop the idea of surrendering to the family? Won't they yield?"

So I believe that within the Watchmaker's legacy there must exist some kind of curse or memory—through these, each generation of Watchmaker can stay unwavering on the set path.

——

This trip actually verified many of Jizi's guesses; Jizi had Xing send Walter a text message, and after a brief progress report, Walter also gave several important conclusions.

First, he and Huangquan agreed that the family might be concealing extremely important information. Second, Huangquan is on their side of the Astral Express.

"……"

"Are your companions worried about you?"

Inside Morning Dew Manor, Huangquan gave Walter a doubtful look.

"It's just normal contact; they seem to have found something over there—let's go quickly and come back quickly."

The two proceeded forward; Huangquan only marveled at how smooth the trip was, hardly resembling a heavily guarded family stronghold. Walter also sensed something off—such a magnificent manor, yet there isn't even a butler. He suspected it was an empty post caused by a sudden incident.

Suddenly, Huangquan drew her sword slightly. In an instant, her aura became nearly imperceptible.

"【White】 (Breath Concealment)… I slightly suppressed my own aura, making me harder to notice. The Astral Express having family backing could still explain it, but my appearing here… is unreasonable."

"I see, quite an interesting skill."

The two arrived at the hall where Shajin had been before, and on the second floor they discovered two rows of footprints.

"Can Walter tell who the footprints belong to?"

"Hmm… the pattern style is unique and quite showy. Judging by the size, it should be men's." Walter analyzed seriously, "I guess… eighty percent it's that Interstellar Peace Company envoy, Mr. Shajin."

Huangquan pondered: "Shajin… what about the other one?"

"The two sets of footprints aren't one before the other; looking at how they're almost side by side, the companion probably isn't his subordinate…… the company is eager to reclaim Pinokangni. Their appearing here is, after all, expected."

——

Story Series

"Mr. Walter's observational skills are really sharp…… I feel he's very suited to be a detective."

On the roof of the cram school building, A liang liang mu li leaned on the railing, looking up at Mr. Walter's thoughtful pose: "In ordinary detective novels, his type is more suited to be the protagonist, Miss Jizi would be suited to be a detective assistant, and Huangquan would be suited to be the enforcer."

"Your words really belittle Walter." Meanwhile, Renye Ren sitting on the railing suddenly spoke: "Why can't a detective and an enforcer be the same person? Although there are many mysterious people on the train, if we rank them by how extraordinary they are, this Walter should certainly rank among the top."

A liang liang mu li walked up to the girl, shook a can of iced cola in front of her eyes: "Heh, I didn't expect you to still be quite good-looking."

"Not exactly something to brag about." Renye Ren snatched the can from his hand, pulled the tab with a "Pa!", she tilted her head and took a gulp; the carbonation bubbles exploded in her mouth with a "pop-pop" sound, "…his story probably has more bubbles than the cola itself—he's the kind of guy you can tell at a glance has experienced life‑or‑death big scenes."

"However, I now want to deduct another point from his rating."

"Huh? Why?"

"This Morning Dew Manor doesn't even have a person, let alone a ghost—anyone with common sense can see this place is a trap, right? Bringing Huangquan in here, is it because he didn't notice this, or does he simply not care?"

Renye Ren spread his hands: "No matter what, this is rather reckless—the kid called Xingqiri has eight hundred little schemes all over his body, all used to deal with others. However, I'm curious whether his Harmony ability could work on Huangquan and Walter; if he dares to use it…… then there'll be a good show to watch."

——

The two continued forward, discovering that many memes had been artificially placed in the manor to act as guards, and the manor's guards had all been reassigned.

They arrived at the innermost room; on the bookshelf, Walter found a letter from Zhigengniao.

The letter read: "Zhigengniao had long noticed the abnormality in her own voice and launched an investigation. According to the results, she realized one thing: Pinokangni's Harmony is not pure; a faint harsh noise mixed in interferes with the Harmony's singing."