Chapter 33: Friends

After briefly confirming the situation, Silas didn't linger there for too long. A little caution never hurt.

Walking back towards the city with Lupo, a possibility occurred to Silas.

"The two of them now are completely different from the two grimy individuals before. And people change as they grow older. A few days ago, I saw their wanted posters; they were still very young, childlike figures. The difference in appearance now is quite significant. But there's still roughly a thirty percent resemblance. If I can find a way to alter their appearance a bit more, they should be able to blend into normal life, right?"

Lost in thought, Silas, his feet now covered in white snow, arrived back home.

As soon as he entered, Silas first heard the voices of two women coming from the kitchen.

Then, after taking off his coat, he saw a young man, dressed in a well-fitting suit, his golden hair neatly combed, looking handsome. He was currently looking down at the books on mechanics on the bookshelf, a thoughtful expression on his face.

This young man was Silas's childhood playmate, practically a brother, Evan Mardon. He was a top student in the mechanical engineering department at Bayne University. Although they were in the same year, Evan had been recognized by his mentor after graduation and had stayed on at the university for further advanced studies, with a very promising future ahead of him.

After brushing the snow off Lupo, Silas changed his shoes, took off his coat, and walked in.

"What are you thinking about?" Silas asked.

Their relationship was already beyond the need for pleasantries; they greeted each other like family.

Evan, stroking his chin, said, "Current steam engines are too bulky. They have a lot of useless materials and structures. I'm wondering if they can be streamlined."

Silas, upon hearing this, leaned down to look at his blueprints in detail.

Evan then snapped back to reality. Looking at Silas, who seemed like a completely different person in terms of spirit and energy, he couldn't help but open his arms. "You're finally back to normal, my brother."

Silas returned the enthusiastic hug, his heart filled with warmth. "Thank you for your concern, Evan."

The two brothers sat down. Evan sighed. "A while ago, Betty told me you suddenly became a detective. It gave me quite a shock. Unfortunately, I was rather busy those few days and didn't have time to come see you. Then, you came to our school for an inspection. Seeing you in that Church robe at the time, I was truly astonished."

Silas grinned and asked, "Was I handsome then?"

Evan said truthfully, "Very handsome. When the teachers and students around me found out you were my good brother, they were all very envious. Even your former tutor didn't dare to recognize you at the time."

Silas smiled. "I was too busy back then. Otherwise, I really would have liked to go back and visit."

"It's alright. There will be plenty of time in the future," Evan said casually.

Then, Evan said with a gratified expression, "Seeing you living so well, I'm completely relieved."

Silas laughed heartily. "Don't worry, I'll definitely live better than you!"

"Hmph, that's impossible! I'm about to become a mechanical expert! I've recently started improving steam engines."

At the mention of steam engines, Silas asked curiously, "Do you have any ideas for improvement?"

Evan smiled wryly. "How could it be that easy? Steam engines have been around for over a thousand years and have been improved countless times. I've been researching for many days now and still have no clue."

Silas nodded and didn't press further.

Afterward, the two brothers chatted about each other's situations, sometimes reminiscing about their childhood, sometimes about their wild university days.

When there wasn't much left to say, Evan, who cherished his time, began his research again.

And Silas, making an excuse, took a short nap.

Returning to the dream world, Silas sat on the throne and quickly re-manifested the relevant mechanical knowledge he had just seen in his mind.

Instantly, like a supercomputer's analysis, the structural diagram of the steam engine was deconstructed in a flash.

Cylinder, condenser, piston, flywheel, crankshaft, internal levers, gears, and so on – incredibly detailed data formed a vast and very intuitive 3D stereoscopic image.

"Streamline. I need to streamline the structure," Silas thought, his brain beginning to operate at high speed.

Instantly, through a higher level of thought far exceeding human capability, the structure before him rapidly transformed and combined. The dimensions of the gears, the transmission mechanisms, the piston's mode of operation, and so on, all formed brand new schemes.

After these schemes evolved multiple times, this steam engine, which was previously the size of about three people, actually shrank to only half a person's size.

The structure was greatly optimized, but the material requirements also increased significantly.

Silas came back to his senses and looked at the record of this optimization process.

From initially reducing the crankshaft size and eliminating useless gear rotations, to finally adjusting the overall configuration and structural positions, it had undergone seven optimizations in total.

Obtaining such a result, Silas nodded with satisfaction. After recording all seven results, he exited the dream.

"These inventions appearing directly from me would be too conspicuous. But appearing from my brother, the mechanical genius, would be much more natural. The leap from the current state to the ultimate form of the seventh evolution is too great. I should subtly hint at it bit by bit."

With this in mind, Silas sat up and looked at his pocket watch. He had only slept for half an hour. It was now just lunchtime.

"The first optimization slightly reduced the volume and improved the steam engine's operating efficiency, thereby increasing power. The modification is small, but the effect is good. Such progress manifesting in Evan would be no problem."

"Silas, time to eat," said the kind and warm-hearted Ada.

Straightening his hair, Silas walked out and saw Evan holding a pencil, still frowning deeply.

Silas's eyes darted. He walked over and asked, "Still researching?"

"Yes, I just drew a few optimization sketches, but none of them work. Missing even one part causes other problems," Evan said, holding his pencil, his face a picture of frustration.

Silas casually bent down to look, a half-smile on his face. "This huge bearing is so clumsy. These few gears also look quite obstructive. If you remove these gears and change the structure a bit, it might just work."

His words sounded like the casual, off-the-cuff remarks of an outsider who knew nothing.

Evan naturally didn't take it seriously, thinking Silas was just joking around. He came over to eat.

Ada wiped her hands on her apron and sat down, looking at Evan with a smile. "Evan will definitely become an outstanding mechanical master in the future."

Beside her, the youthful and beautiful Betty said with a cheerful smile, "And Silas will definitely become an outstanding detective!"

Evan smiled. "You two ladies certainly know how to talk."

As soon as he finished speaking, Evan seemed to think of something.

"Reduce a few gears? How… Wait! Let me see. Reduce these few gears, and slightly enlarge the gear under that shaft… This seems like it could not only reduce unnecessary power consumption but also slightly reduce the volume. If I follow this line of thought, after reducing this, the distance to the crankshaft over there can be reduced, and its diameter also seems to have potential for optimization… Goddess above, this might actually work!"

Instantly, Evan became excited. He suddenly stood up, hugged Silas, and roared, "Silas, you're a genius!"

Then, he turned around, dropped to the ground on his stomach, picked up his pencil, and began to draw.

Silas's hint had worked.