Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box/Puzzles 126-138

Caution! This page contains all the hints and solutions for every puzzle from 126 to 138. Scroll carefully or you might spoil the answer of a puzzle for yourself. The solutions are hidden behind spoiler tags, so only take a peek if you're desperate.

Puzzle 126

 * Name: Slippery Crossings 1
 * Trigger: Check the lake
 * Location: Dark Forest 3
 * Chapter: 6
 * Picarats: 20

Description: The lake in front of the professor has frozen solid. The ice is thick enough to stand on but so slippery that any movement in any direction causes him to slide uncontrollably in that direction until he hits a wall. When stationary, you can change the professor's direction by tapping the arrows around him. Can you guide this professor through this slippery lake to the goal?


 * Hint 1: When you hit the first wall, head right!
 * Hint 2: After heading right as described in Hint One, you'll hit another wall. Don't try to head up to the goal from there.
 * Hint 3: In order to enter the goal, you must first stop in a position directly below it. There are two short paths lining the path that leads straight up to the goal. Take the professor on a course that takes him straight into the rightmost of those two walls.

Puzzle 127

 * Name: Slippery Crossings 2
 * Trigger: Check the block of ice
 * Location: Dark Forest 3
 * Chapter: 6
 * Picarats: 30

Description: The lake in front of the professor has frozen solid. The ice is thick enough to stand on but so slippery that any movement in any direction causes him to slide uncontrollably in that direction until he hits a wall. When stationary, you can change the professor's direction by tapping the arrows around him. Can you guide this professor through this slippery lake to the goal?


 * Hint 1: At the first wall you come to, head left.
 * Hint 2: Your next move should be to head up toward the top of the screen.
 * Hint 3: Don't get impatient while you're out there skating around. It may take you the equivalent of two laps around the lake to get where you need to be.

Puzzle 128

 * Name: Slippery Crossings 3
 * Trigger: Check the block of ice
 * Location: Dark Forest 3
 * Chapter: 6
 * Picarats: 40

Description: The lake in front of the professor has frozen solid. The ice is thick enough to stand on but so slippery that any movement in any direction causes him to slide uncontrollably in that direction until he hits a wall. When stationary, you can change the professor's direction by tapping the arrows around him. Can you guide this professor through this slippery lake to the goal?


 * Hint 1: Hang a right at the first wall you bump into.
 * Hint 2: The number of walls might make this puzzle seem daunting, but think of it this way: the greater the number of barriers in your path, the more options you have to work with. Always think ahead of your current position on the ice to narrow down the possibilities.
 * Hint 3: In order to enter the goal, you must first stop in a position directly below it. But considering the complicated nature of the course, you might have more luck starting from the goal and working your way backward. Do that, and you'll soon see that you need to position the professor three spaces below the goal in order to reach it!

Puzzle 129

 * Name: The Slobbish Mole (US) / The Messy Mole (UK)
 * Trigger: Revealed after solving Photo 008
 * Location: Granny R's
 * Chapter: 4
 * Picarats: 40

Description: On the edge of a forest lives a particularly messy mole. His hole is so clogged with trash that eventually he has to tidy up. However, being lazy, he decides to clean his place while doing the least work possible. In order to pick up all the trash in his burrow without passing through any one tunnel twice, which of the holes, A through G, should the mole start cleaning from? While moving through any tunnel twice is forbidden, he can pass through any junction between tunnels as often as he wants.


 * Hint 1: Use the Memo function to trace out potential courses the mole could follow.
 * Hint 2: Do you see the little T intersection just above hole F? That's where the mole will end up when he's picked up the very last piece of trash. Find a course that lets him conclude his cleaning at that location.
 * Hint 3: Search for a hole that leads to an odd number of separate routes.

Puzzle 130

 * Name: The Strange Painting
 * Trigger: Check the painting on the back wall
 * Location: Guest Room
 * Chapter: 7
 * Picarats: 30

Description: The couple in this piece seem to be dancing high up in the air, floating impossibly near the chandelier. But as it turns out, when viewed properly, there's nothing strange at all about the picture. If you look closely enough, one peculiar area of the painting hints at the reason the whole picture seems so odd. Find that peculiar area and circle it to learn the truth.


 * Hint 1: Many things about the painting are a little off, but what one little detail seems the most unusual to you?
 * Hint 2: Thoroughly inspect the couple in the center of the picture. The answer is there somewhere.
 * Hint 3: The couple seems to be dancing in midair, so naturally you must be curious about what they're standing on. Look down at their feet. There's something strange going on where those feet meet the ground... Do you see it?

Puzzle 131

 * Name: How to Escape?
 * Trigger: Automatically triggered after solving Puzzle 130
 * Location: Storage Room
 * Chapter: 7
 * Picarats: 40

Description: A man sits bound by a long length of rope among several posts. While he has no hope of untying his bonds, he can still move his legs. Were he to stand up and run away, his long trail of rope looks like it might catch on at least one of the posts. He'll need to use his legs to pull up any posts that prevent him from running away before he can dash off. Mark any posts that prevent the man from running away.


 * Hint 1: Your best bet here is just to look at how the rope is wrapped around the poles. Try using the Memo function to trace out the path the rope takes around things.
 * Hint 2: The man only needs to remove a single post in order to escape.
 * Hint 3: The two strands of rope coming off the front of the man's cocoon form a big loop. Think about which posts are located inside the loop and which are outside the loop. All the posts on the left half of the picture seem as if they can probably stay where they are.

Puzzle 132

 * Name: Sharing Paintings
 * Trigger: Check the painting
 * Location: Great Room
 * Chapter: 7
 * Picarats: 40

Description: Two brothers have inherited their parents' five-piece art collection. According to the will, the older brother will get a set of paintings worth twice what the younger brother gets. In order to ascertain the value of the paintings, the brothers called in an appraiser, who valued each painting as shown below. For his services, the appraiser was promised the one painting left over after the brothers divided the art according to their parents' wishes. Assuming that individual paintings can't be divided, which one does the appraiser get?


 * Hint 1: The appraiser doesn't seem as if he's exactly up-and-up. He might very well be trying to appraise things in a way that works to his advantage.
 * Hint 2: None of the paintings the elder brother gets are worth more than any single painting the brother receives.
 * Hint 3: The older brother inherits three paintings, and the younger brother inherits one painting.

Puzzle 133

 * Name: Grab the Key
 * Trigger: Inspect the door
 * Location: Storage Room
 * Chapter: 7
 * Picarats: 60

Description: The key to the door is sitting behind a number of blocks. Slide the key out toward the professor's hand so the two can make their escape!


 * Hint 1: Before you start moving things around, focus on what you need to accomplish first. Start by finding a way to get the yellow block at the bottom into the hole currently occupied by the key.
 * Hint 2: If you feel that you're stuck, you might find it easier to just start over. At the beginning, move the yellow block into the slot near the professor's hand. Next, take the square block on the right and move it to the left. After that, you need to find some way of moving that yellow block into the upper-right area of the puzzle.
 * Hint 3: Once you've completed everything in Hint Two, you should be able to swap the key for that yellow block. Once you've put that yellow block in the slot the key was in, just shift all the other blocks and the key in one direction until the key is positioned at the bottom by the slot.

Puzzle 134

 * Name: Steam Power
 * Trigger: Try to enter the Machine Room
 * Location: Machine Room
 * Chapter: 7
 * Picarats: 40

Description: Which valves do you need to open to send steam from the boiler into 2, but not 1 or 3? All valves start in the closed position. Answer using the solution that requires opening the fewest number of valves. Tap a valve to open or close it.


 * Hint 1: Portions of the pipes connected to 2 also head to 1 and 3. Make sure you don't open any valves that let steam reach these other areas.
 * Hint 2: In the solution, the steam is sent from the middle of the three pipes coming out of the boiler.
 * Hint 3: The solution to this puzzle requires that you open three valves. At the first fork in the pipe, head upward.

Puzzle 135

 * Name: The Magic Lock
 * Trigger: Check the small entrance
 * Location: Secret Room
 * Chapter: 7
 * Picarats: 50

Description: It seems that the lock here is some sort of magic square. In order to solve it, position the remaining numbers so that each strong of four vertical, horizontal, and diagonal numbers adds up to the same total. Solve the magic square to open the door!


 * Hint 1: You're out to make each horizontal, vertical, and diagonal line of four numbers equal the same number, so first you need to find that number. The total is there for you to find, so just examine the square until you see it.
 * Hint 2: One diagonal string of numbers appears to be in place already. The numbers within it add up to 18.
 * Hint 3: Now that you know each string of numbers needs to add up to 18, all you need to do is fill in the blank spaces with the correct tiles. As you start filling in spaces on the square, you'll be left with fewer and fewer squares to work with. lay down a line, make sure it totals 18, and then keep on working with what you've got. You'll make your way to the solution sooner or later.

Puzzle 136

 * Name: The Hidden Door
 * Trigger: Talk to Nigel
 * Location: Dining Room
 * Chapter: 7
 * Picarats: 40

Description: "Begin from the doors etched in the decor. "A path will appear, strong and quite clear, "Made of stars that flare, each within its own square." These words are said to point the way to the hidden door. Select the hidden door.


 * Hint 1: "Begin from the doors etched in the decor." The doors in question are located in the lower-right portion of the picture. But what exactly do you begin doing from here?
 * Hint 2: "A path will appear, strong and quite clear, "Made of stars that flare, each within its own square." To simplify this statement, the stars on the floor that are completely enclosed in individual squares will guide you to the hidden door.
 * Hint 3: If you highlight all of the tiles that neatly enclose a star, they will form a large arrow in the floor. The tile that arrow points to is the location of the hidden door.

Puzzle 137

 * Name: One True Sword
 * Trigger: Talk to Katia
 * Location: Great Room
 * Chapter: 7
 * Picarats: 50

Description: "A true warrior always keeps his blade in hand." These are Anton's last words to Professor Layton before the start of their duel. Can you find the one real sword among Anton's collection? Circle your selection to draw your weapon of choice!


 * Hint 1: Can you picture the professor using a curved sword? It doesn't really seem to fit his style, does it?
 * Hint 2: An intricately decorated sword is too ornate to be of much practical use.
 * Hint 3: No sword on the wall could belong to a true warrior. After all, a blade on the wall can't be considered "in hand." Study the picture. Does anyone in the picture have a sword in hand? ...Perhaps one of those suits of armor knows the answer.

Puzzle 138

 * Name: The Elysian Box
 * Trigger: Solve Puzzle 137
 * Location: Great Room
 * Chapter: 7
 * Picarats: 60

Description: "The sun rises when you and I meet, and when the wind blows, you will know my heart." These words are the key to opening the Elysian Box. It's up to you to find a way to open the box and solve the final puzzle of our story.


 * Hint 1: "When you and I meet..." The two figures set into the box are facing away from each other. Perhaps there's some way to turn them around.
 * Hint 2: "The sun rises..." The sun here is located very low one the box. Once those two figures face each other, you should be able to raise it high into the sky.
 * Hint 3: "And when the wind blows..." As you've probably seen, when the sun is raised high, a small hole appears. It seems the next things you need to do is get a breeze to pass through that opening. Don't bother using your stylus for this one. Instead, use your own breath to summon up a gust strong enough to make the sun shake.