Mechanical Alchemist

Chapter 86: Defector

Su'en had just come out of the basement and entered the living room when he immediately felt a strange gaze on him.

In the past, Su'en might not have been able to perceive that faint gaze. But now, with his perception ability enhanced by Bill, he could clearly determine that the person peeping at him was standing behind him at the bay window!

"There's someone in the house!"

Su'en's heart skipped a beat.

He acted decisively, and as soon as he sensed someone, he used one hand to grab the two puppet runes from his windbreaker and protect them by his side. His other hand was already gripping the handle of the black box, ready to swing it and create a spatial rift.

The fact that someone had broken in confirmed his previous speculation.

This house was a trap!

The hunter had come to inspect his prey!

If it was the former vice dean of the Black Tower Academy who had defected, Su'en knew that he only had one chance to make a move.

So he didn't even draw his gun, and as soon as he saw the person, he had to act before the other party could react. Even if it meant risking being killed in the process, he had to eliminate the person who had been secretly spying on him.

All these actions were decided in an instant. Su'en thought he had reacted quickly enough, but he didn't expect the other party's reaction to be even faster!

He was in the process of turning his body, trying to capture the intruder's position, and his hand holding the black box swung across. As long as he saw the person, the outcome would be decided in an instant.

But suddenly, something strange happened.

Su'en found that he couldn't move his body!

It wasn't because of mental control, but rather, the air around him seemed to have turned into a solid, imprisoning him and making it impossible for him to break free. "Control-type magic?"

At this moment, the intruder behind him also exclaimed in surprise, "You're actually alive?"

...

"A top-tier professional..."

Su'en murmured to himself as he listened to the voice coming from behind.

But in an instant, he relaxed.

The gap in strength was already something that couldn't be compensated for by desperate measures.

Moreover, even if he made an attacking move, he still didn't sense any "malice" from the person behind him. At least not for the time being.

And when the person spoke, he slowly walked to Su'en's front and first expressed his attitude, "Don't misunderstand, I have no ill intentions towards you. Restraining you is also for the sake of our safety."

Listening to these words, Su'en also knew that the other party had seen through his intentions and pretended to be confused, "Since you are a high-level professional and have trespassed into my residence, I'm afraid it's not appropriate."

The person in front of him was dressed in a black cloak that covered his face, making his features a black mist.

He said with a hint of praise, "You are indeed very vigilant. If it were someone else, even a high-level professional, you would probably have become a dead soul under their blade..."

Su'en narrowed his eyes slightly, neither confirming nor denying.

He felt that the other party had seen what was in his box, and he felt uneasy about it.

Thinking that even if he couldn't die today, he probably wouldn't be able to keep the Reaper's Scythe.

But it seemed that the cloaked person completely guessed his thoughts and said directly, "You have the Night Black Scythe of Supnos in your hand, right? Tsk tsk, I didn't expect it to fall into your hands. But rest assured, that kind of sealed object is a treasure to others, but it doesn't hold much attraction for me. There aren't many people who can force me to use that weapon, and when it comes to a life-or-death situation, it's useless."

Upon hearing these words, Su'en's eyes flashed with a hint of surprise.

But he immediately understood the hidden meaning in the cloaked person's words: not many people in Old Lingdun could force him to use this scythe!

To be able to say such words, this person must be very powerful.

Su'en felt that looking at this cloaked person gave him a deeper sense of unfathomability than looking at Chuck, the leader of the Umbrella Organization.

And thinking about the person who would be tracked by Colonel Bill from the "Umbrella Organization," he must not be simple.

However, since he wasn't here for wealth or to harm him, why did this cloaked person come here?

Oh... right!

For the cursed space!

...

Su'en didn't say much. He was the passive party and just listened silently. The other party would eventually reveal their purpose.

And at this moment, he never expected that the cloaked person would not mention his purpose, but instead casually asked, "Did you go to the black market before to find a master-level craftsman to forge a set of special implants?"

Upon hearing this, Su'en's gaze narrowed, "You've been following me?"

His first reaction was that he had been followed.

But as he quickly recalled in his mind, he couldn't figure out when he had exposed any flaws. He also couldn't understand the purpose of a high-level professional following him.

"No, you misunderstood. It's just my guess."

The cloaked person didn't beat around the bush and said in a casual tone, "I didn't follow you. It's just that I went to 'Rosen's Alchemy Shop' before, and the owner told me that someone wanted to customize a set of Dark Gold implants for the Eight-Armed Spider God Spear. I thought that there aren't many professionals who can use that set of implants, probably a puppeteer..."

Pausing for a moment, he looked at the two puppets that Su'en was holding and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes, "Your puppet manipulation skills are quite good. Just out of curiosity, I didn't expect it to be such a coincidence..."

Upon hearing this, Su'en also revealed a hint of realization and surprise, "Are you the 'master craftsman' mentioned by the shop owner?"

A first-tier professional who can use such complex implants as a puppeteer does indeed meet this condition.

It's just that he didn't expect such a coincidence, that the two of them would meet in this way.

But as Su'en thought about it, he also felt that this person wasn't lying.

"Master craftsmen" are few and far between in the inner city, and it's almost impossible for such important figures to appear in the black market of the outer city. But if it was the vice dean who had defected from the Black Tower Alchemy Academy, the logic also matched!"Master? I guess so..."

The cloaked figure spoke in a relaxed tone, having already lifted the restraining spell on Su'en. He asked, "Do you still need your equipment forged?"

"Of course."

Freed from the restraints, Su'en felt a lightness in his body and didn't make any rash movements. He even placed the black box he was holding on the ground.

The cloaked figure continued, "We can make a deal."

Su'en replied, "I'm all ears."

The newcomer showed no hostility and Su'en responded with enough courtesy.

This cloaked figure gave him a strange feeling. Every word and action was polite, and there was no sense of malice. He exuded the air of a true noble gentleman with refined manners.

In Su'en's eyes, someone who revealed no flaws like this person was either genuinely well-intentioned or extremely dangerous!

The cloaked figure said, "I can forge your equipment for free, but in exchange, I want to know how you came out of that 'cursed space' in the basement. Of course, if the value of the information exceeds my reward, I will pay you additional compensation to your satisfaction."

"Deal!"

As expected, Su'en readily agreed without hesitation.

He didn't think the other party would deceive him about the materials in order to say this. After all, while the Dark Gold Spider Emperor's leg was rare, it was only a first-tier material and had limited appeal to high-level professionals.

Moreover, the other party said it was a trade, and he had no right to refuse.

.......

"However, before the trade, I have a question."

After thinking for a moment, Su'en decided to take some initiative and asked, "I want to know why there is a 'cursed space' in this house. And why did you appear in my house?"

The cloaked figure was not surprised that Su'en asked this question and casually replied, "Are you sure you want to know?"

"???"

Hearing this, Su'en showed a puzzled expression.

I asked, so why wouldn't I want to know?

The cloaked figure explained, "What I mean is... some things are troublesome once you know them. So, do you want to invite trouble?"

Upon hearing this, Su'en frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "Can I choose to listen to the part of the information that won't cause trouble?"

Trouble?

He was well aware that he had already gotten himself into trouble when he discovered this cursed space.

If he didn't figure out this question, he felt it would be even more troublesome.

He needed some necessary information to judge his future choices.

"Hehe, interesting."

The cloaked figure chuckled lightly and began speaking directly, "Eight years ago, when a banker developed this property, there was a 'strange incident of missing personnel.' At that time, I happened to be in charge of handling this incident. After investigating, I discovered from ancient books that this was the site of a hospital from the previous era. I also learned some of the cursed characteristics of this space..."

At this point, he glanced at Su'en and said, "It's what you know, how to enter."

Su'en listened calmly upon hearing this.

The cloaked figure continued, "Later, many people who went in for investigation couldn't come out. This ruin was then classified as 'T-Sealed.' Of course, there are also some highly confidential plots involved, which I guess you wouldn't want to hear."

"Okay."

Su'en didn't ask about the hidden content, but instead listened quietly as he continued.

"As for why I came here... it's because this is a trap I set. I sensed someone entering, so I came to take a look."

The cloaked figure also had no intention of hiding anything and said frankly, "Something happened back then that made me aware that this cursed space involved a big secret. Although I destroyed that top-secret file and most of the people who knew about it died during exploration, there are still some traces that cannot be erased. Since someone is investigating me, I used those remaining clues to lead the investigators to the basement of this apartment."

Taking a breath, he continued, "I didn't do this to harm ordinary tenants, so I said I have no ill intentions towards you. After all, as you know, the way to trigger this cursed space is quite special."

Saying that, he looked at Su'en curiously and asked, "So, I'm also curious, how did you get involved?"

Su'en simply said, "I heard that a few people died in the house before, so I thought about it a bit more and got sucked in without thinking."

Indeed, this trap was not aimed at ordinary tenants. If he hadn't overthought it, he probably wouldn't have encountered any problems.

"Hehe, it's not something you can achieve just by thinking."

The cloaked figure shook his head and spoke with a hint of admiration in his tone, "You have a meticulous mind. From the moment you came out and decisively left the apartment, I knew that you didn't just stumble upon the cursed space by chance, but rather it was your ability. If you were a second-tier, perhaps I would be interested in sharing some more interesting secrets with you. But for now..."

Su'en felt that this person had revealed too much information to him, as if he wasn't afraid of others guessing his identity based on this information.

Su'en was just about to wonder why he would do this.

At this moment, the cloaked figure casually said, "Although I don't know how you found out, I feel like you have already guessed my identity."

"..."

Upon hearing this, a barely noticeable stern expression flashed across Su'en's face.

At this moment, he finally knew where the uneasiness in his heart came from.

Now he was certain that this guy had the ability to "read minds" or something similar!

Su'en tried his best to suppress his emotional fluctuations, avoiding being seen through, and simply explained, "I encountered 'Blind Detective' Bill in the cursed space."

There was no need for him to explain in detail. This cloaked figure would fill in the gaps himself and understand what had happened.The cloaked figure was not surprised, but rather curious. "He's not dead yet?"

Su'en: "No, he's already dead. But his soul hasn't dissipated yet."

Listening to this, the cloaked figure muttered to himself, "Just as it was recorded in the ancient texts."

At this point, he looked at Su'en and said, "Alright, I've told you what you wanted to know. You can tell me what you know..."

Su'en didn't hesitate. In front of such a powerful and wise person, playing tricks would only make him look like a clown.

"After I entered, I found myself in an ancient hospital, marked as the third floor. I encountered monsters... and later I discovered the 'terror objectification' rule of the space..."

He roughly recounted his experiences in the space, avoiding some sensitive details.

The cloaked figure listened patiently and carefully.

When he heard Su'en mention the rule of "terror objectification," he exclaimed in surprise and admiration, "You actually discovered this rule?! Tsk tsk, this is not just ordinary meticulous thinking. Could it be that your talent is [B-059-Thinker]?"

Su'en deliberately ignored the role of [All-Knowing Eye] in his narration, making it sound somewhat unbelievable.

But he felt that if he lied, this guy would definitely see through it, so he simply avoided the question and said, "I'm just more cautious..."

"Hehe."

The cloaked figure naturally didn't believe it, but he didn't care about this irrelevant question.

After a moment of contemplation, he asked, "Did you encounter a 'living corpse' with blue skin?"

Su'en knew that this guy was intentionally interrupting, just to remind him that he didn't know everything about this cursed space.

Su'en calmly replied, "Yes, I encountered it. That monster was very fast, and it easily killed Bill in the space. Because I had heard about a method to break this kind of space, in an emergency, I recited a name I happened to see, and then I came out..."

"On which floor of the hospital did you encounter the monster?"

"The second floor."

"Which room?"

"The fifth room on the left."

"What is the name of the dean?"

"Thermido M. Chekhov."

"..."

After asking a few questions, the cloaked figure fell into deep contemplation for a long time.

Although Su'en couldn't see his expression, he could sense that this guy was probably very satisfied with the information he provided.

........

For the first time, a living person came out of the "T-level" cursed space where no one had survived. The cloaked figure felt that the harvest far exceeded his expectations.

After a long contemplation, he took the initiative to speak, "I am very satisfied with your information. It even exceeds the value of the materials I helped you refine. So, according to our agreement, I can promise to give you some additional rewards."

Pausing for a moment, he asked Su'en, "What do you need? Money, materials, alchemical knowledge, anything is fine."

Su'en said, "I haven't thought of anything for now."

The current situation was not a good time to ask for rewards.

And no matter what reward he exchanged for, he felt that he would be at a loss. After all, this person was the top professional in Old Lingdun, a "Master Forger," a prominent figure that the people in the outer city couldn't even come into contact with.

If there was no hostility, just getting to know him would bring benefits that couldn't be compared to any material wealth.

The cloaked figure didn't hesitate either and straightforwardly said, "Then I owe you a favor. Let me know when you need it in the future. Give me your materials, and five days later, pick up the alchemical equipment at 'Rosen's Alchemy Shop.' If you decide what you want to exchange for the favor, you can leave a message at the shop as well."

"Alright."

The conversation between smart people saved a lot of unnecessary steps.

But Su'en was also curious. Did this guy really just ask a few questions without any other purpose?

And the process of the conversation was too casual. Wasn't he afraid that the information he obtained might be incorrect?

At this moment, as the cloaked figure was about to leave, he seemed to have guessed something.

He felt that since Su'en already knew his identity, there was no need to hide anything and directly stated the reason, saying, "My talent is [C-042-Mind Reader]. Although it's not a very strong combat talent, it's practical."

Hearing this, Su'en suddenly understood why he always felt like the other party already knew what he was going to say before he said it.

So, he really understood "mind reading."

But Su'en felt that the [Mind Reader] ability he knew wasn't that exaggerated, after all, it was just a C-level talent.

He vaguely guessed that this might involve a realm of high-level professionals that he was not familiar with...