Where you fall is where you must stand back up.
This was Lynch's unwavering philosophy across both of his lives.
Thus, instead of being disheartened by being used, Lynch felt more motivated than ever, as if he had recaptured the feeling of struggling to survive when he first transmigrated.
At this moment, he and Miss Valente were hiding in a patch of shadow outside White Bird Port, watching the bustling docks under the night sky.
He had already successfully retreated from the shipwreck and reunited with Miss Valente.
The group of Deep Ones was reasonable enough and did not make things difficult for Lynch. Of course, this was also because Lynch had promised to do his utmost to help them retrieve the gem in the shortest time possible, which served as compensation for the trouble he had caused them.
Lynch and Miss Valente had also sent the Yellow Apostle back to the Black Cat Theater. He had mainly wanted to settle scores with the Deep Ones who came ashore to annoy him, but since this group of Deep Ones hadn't gone ashore or bothered him, and the two sides had already had a successful skirmish, Manager West left the coast quite reasonably.
Lynch and Miss Valente, however, remained. Lynch had discovered something unexpected yet logical, which cleared up some of his doubts and sparked a bizarre idea.
“What are you looking at?” Seeing Lynch staring at the port for a long time, Miss Valente asked softly beside him. “Is there something special in there?”
“I'm confirming an idea of mine. Perhaps we can retrieve the gem faster than we thought.”
Lynch's eyes remained fixed on the harbor docks as he explained without turning his head, “To put those Deep Ones at ease earlier, I intentionally exaggerated some things. In truth, even if we've deduced that Prince William and Mayor Howard are the masterminds, it's useless. We can't accuse them because of this, let alone reclaim the gem through normal channels.”
“It seems you understand this logic as well,” Miss Valente smiled and nodded. “They have plenty of reasons to search for the gem. Forget about doing it in secret; even if they publicly put out a bounty for it, it would be entirely reasonable. We have no grounds to accuse them. Unless we use the gem's connection to a manifestation grade mystery relic as our reason.”
Lynch shook his head. “But that's just a legend, and one handed down from thousands of years ago. Right now, we can't even be sure if that mirror exists. Using that legend as a reason to accuse a mayor would be nothing short of a joke.”
“I'm relieved that you understand this,” Miss Valente said, looking visibly relaxed. “I thought you were considering how to charge right through their front doors.”
“That would be too foolish. No sane person would do that,” Lynch laughed. “So our only option is to steal the gem back. But we don't even know where they'll keep it. We wouldn't even know where to begin stealing.”
Miss Valente smiled bitterly. “If we investigate slowly, we might discover their target.”
“I had planned on doing that too, but just now, I had a bold idea,” Lynch sneered, narrowing his eyes. “I've always held a grudge. However they used schemes to steal the item, I plan to use schemes to get it back.”
Miss Valente's eyes widened with curiosity, and she stared intently at Lynch, waiting for his explanation.
“First, we can confirm one thing: the one who stole the item is definitely not a living being, but a heteromorph. Most likely, it's another Deep One.”
The so-called Dagon was the heteromorph composed of gray silt and human heads, a vassal of the Lord of R'lyeh. It was incredibly powerful, supposedly strong enough to contend with a rank eight or even rank nine Soul Severer.
“Why?” Miss Valente asked. “Is it because only Deep Ones could lurk near the shipwreck for a long time, discovering our movements immediately, and then taking the opportunity to strike before us?”
“That's only part of the reason, but not the main one. The key is that Alice and the others hid the gem inside Dagon's nest, which was the safest place they could find,” Lynch explained. “Just now, I specifically asked Alice. Even if Dagon leaves its nest, it will leave behind a portion of its body to act on instinct. Any living being that enters its body will be attacked automatically. Unless... the one entering is a heteromorph, especially one that also enjoys the favor of the Lord of R'lyeh—in other words, a Deep One.”
“That explains it,” Miss Valente followed up. “So, what does this mean?”
“It means that after the thief got their hands on the gem, they couldn't possibly deliver it directly to Howard, and it would even be difficult to hand it over directly to his ordinary subordinates. After all, if ordinary people see those heteromorphs, going completely mad like those reporters in my dream earlier would be the normal reaction.”
Miss Valente was taken aback, then nodded repeatedly. “That indeed makes sense. Although there's a chance to resist the corruption of filth every time, when it comes to delivering something this important, Lord Howard probably wouldn't dare gamble on the odds. If he wants to get his hands on the gem as quickly as possible, the middleman is very likely a Soul Severer. However, this kind of collusion with heteromorphs certainly cannot be publicized, so the contact person must be a trusted subordinate. A Soul Severer who deeply enjoys his trust... Unfortunately, I'm not very familiar with Rhine City's politicians, otherwise I might be able to guess who it is.”
“It doesn't matter. Ever since the two inspectors from the Hall of Order invited me to Princess Chloe's banquet, there has been one thing that struck me as very odd.”
Lynch licked his lips and smiled darkly, saying, “I previously recommended that the Rangers get involved in the investigation, but the two inspectors said the Rangers also admitted they had no ideas, which is why they invited me to join the investigation.”
“Is there a problem with that?”
“I've had a huge conflict with those Rangers before, especially their leader, Walker. To steal credit, he's repeatedly disrupted our investigations, even going so far as to carry away and hide all the items. Even if someone like him really had no ideas, there's no way he would let me participate in the investigation—unless he knew the full inside story of the matter and knew that drawing me into the investigation was itself a trap to screw me over. Otherwise, they would have stepped out to disrupt things long ago.”
“So you think the Rangers are Howard's trusted confidants?”
“The Rangers are already under city hall. It's only natural for them to be the mayor's confidants. And look over there—that is what I just saw.”
Lynch pointed toward the docks, where a black carriage was parked. Miss Valente pulled out her monocular, took a look, and said in surprise, “It actually has the Rangers' emblem.”
“Actually, I saw this carriage first, and only then did I connect all the dots. The Rangers aren't responsible for routine patrols, and the docks aren't exactly a place of entertainment. There must be a reason why their carriage is parked here so late. Combined with what happened tonight, I suspect they are here to oversee the thief's progress, or perhaps they are simply waiting to receive the gem.”
Miss Valente caught her breath. After pondering for a moment, she nodded thoughtfully. “So you want to start with the Rangers? What do you plan to do?”
“I once read a story about a monkey who wanted to borrow a fan, but the fan's owner refused. So, he used some tricks to swindle the fan away. In the end, the fan owner's husband chased after him, transformed into the monkey's friend, and swindled the fan back.”
Lynch winked playfully at Miss Valente and beckoned her with his finger, saying, “Lend me Karina's Exquisite Makeup. Commander Walker of the Rangers is about to show some care for his subordinates by taking over the night shift for them.”
“Oh, that works too?”
Miss Valente covered her mouth with her folding fan, her eyes widening in surprise as she stared at Lynch, as if trying to see exactly how his brain was wired.
“Who knows if it works without trying?”
Rate on N.U.
