“Ultimately, they obtained a wooden box and will be leaving Rhine City very soon, their next destination unknown.”
On the shore under the night sky, Manager West of the Black Cat Theater stood beside Lynch and Miss Valente, the three of them gazing together at the pitch-black surface of the sea.
The lighthouse at the dock flashed bright lights in the night. Out on the distant sea, a giant steamship blew its siren, spewing black smoke and white mist that merged into the sky.
Amidst the crashing of the waves, Lynch had already told Manager West everything he had investigated tonight, only concealing the truth that it was the Flaming Red Lips.
Beside them, Miss Valente shot him an inquiring look, as if worrying whether this was really okay.
Lynch merely returned a reassuring look, signaling her not to worry.
Don't worry, not only will he agree to our demands, but he'll also say thank you.
“Can't you investigate further?” While the two were exchanging looks, West had already processed Lynch's findings, a hint of disappointment appearing on his pale, handsome face. “The contents of the box must be the key, right?”
“Absolutely not,” Lynch said resolutely, as if he truly had no interest in it. “Do you know what continuing the investigation means? It means forcing us to charge into the deep ones' hiding place, search their nest while surrounded by dozens or hundreds of those monsters, and find an unremarkable little wooden box. Do you think two rank two soul manifestation soul severers like us can do that? We have no interest in trading our lives for information, so the commission is canceled. We will absolutely not take pointless risks.”
West frowned and said, “I thought the owner of that moonlight from earlier wouldn't care about danger of this level.”
“This isn't a matter of whether we're afraid or whether we care. We simply lack the strength. Besides, this isn't our business; we have no obligation to take such risks. If you're interested, you can go look for it yourself.”
West shook his head and sighed. “By the ancient R'lyeh Protocol, I cannot barge into the deep ones' territory. Otherwise, I would have wiped them out long ago.”
That made things even easier.
Lynch forced down the corners of his mouth to keep from smiling. After a moment of hesitation, he said with a sigh of resignation, “Fine. If you really want me to continue the investigation, it's not entirely out of the question. But you can't just sit back and wait for results like before. You have to pitch in.”
“Really? Then thank you very much.” Manager West didn't notice anything amiss and seemed relieved. “What do you need me to do?”
Listening from the side, Miss Valente suddenly covered her mouth with her folding fan and nodded repeatedly. For some reason, her shoulders shook as she nodded. Perhaps the sea breeze was too cold.
Perhaps she had never witnessed the miracle of a powerful thigh actively offering itself to be leaned on.
Lynch smiled and said casually, “First, I need you to help draw away their main force and buy as much time as possible to ease the pressure on my infiltration. I assume this doesn't violate the R'lyeh Protocol you mentioned earlier?”
Manager West frowned and pondered for a moment before nodding. “Very well. As long as I do not invade their nest, it will not count as a violation of the protocol.”
“Second, their nest is at the bottom of the sea, but we are humans. That is an insurmountable barrier for us.”
“Hiss, that is indeed a major problem. Let me think about it. Tell me the third one first.”
“Finally, the third point. To compensate us for the psychological trauma of facing such danger, the reward must be paid in advance. We want to know the information regarding the Flaming Red Lips first.”
“That's easy. The Flaming Red Lips was discovered in a tribe in the New Continent. It has been in Princess Chloe's hands for two years now. Since the indigenous people of the tribe were all silenced, very few know the properties of this gem. Most people, including the Salter royal family, merely treat it as a very beautiful gem. That's why they allowed Princess Chloe to bring it to Rhine City.”
“Two years?” Lynch frowned, finding this timeframe very familiar. The anomalies in the entire Norin-Rhine Railway project seemed to have started exactly two years ago. Could there be a connection?
“Yes, at least two years. However, she only started heavily publicizing that the gem was in her possession in the past few months, even showcasing it at several balls as if terrified that people wouldn't know. I haven't seen the gem myself, but it is said to be truly magnificent. Even First Prince William of the Rose family was tempted. He wanted to borrow it for his twentieth birthday banquet, using it to receive Emperor Rudolph II's investiture and become the Crown Prince of Lande. That is why Chloe brought the item to Rhine City, and no one suspected a thing.”
“So you're saying the whole world treats the Flaming Red Lips as an ordinary gem with some legends attached to it. But what is it actually? What is its true nature?”
“A gem.”
“Heh.”
“The legend that the secret of the mystery relic is hidden within the Flaming Red Lips is simply because people have confused the real gem with the fake one. The genuine Flaming Red Lips is just an ordinary gem, while the fake one is the one that actually holds the secret to that mystery relic.”
“Then what is the fake one?”
The corner of West's mouth curled into a mocking smile. “A duplicate.”
“Hm?” Lynch suddenly felt the hairs on his neck stand on end.
“Duplicates created by the Gate of Falsehood and Reality do not last forever. Generally, they exist for one to two hundred years, and at most no more than a thousand. Only the fake Flaming Red Lips is an exception, having survived from the Second Age to this day for reasons unknown. Since that mystery relic has not appeared since the end of the Third Age, the items it duplicated have vanished one after another. Now, this is likely the only duplicate left in the entire world.”
West explained:
“Because it is a duplicate, its existence originates from that mirror. Thus, a connection exists between them. By following this connection, one can find the mirror, though I do not know the specific method.”
So that was how it was.
Lynch and Miss Valente exchanged a look, realizing that their previous worries were not unfounded.
So she had staged the theft because she didn't want to lend the fake gem to Prince William? When Prince William wanted to borrow it, was it purely to use the treasure, or did he have other motives?
“This is all the inside information I know regarding the Flaming Red Lips. I heard that you, Mr. Detective, were commissioned to find that duplicate. It seems the rumors were true. In that case, I wish you luck. Such items tend to naturally attract danger. Trying to find it is often extremely difficult and may cost you your life.”
Indeed. That was exactly why he had come looking for a powerful thigh to lean on, wasn't it?
Lynch smiled meaningfully. “Then I won't hide it either. I've discovered that the deep ones' temporary nest might be hidden inside a shipwreck—specifically, the cargo ship belonging to the Morale & Son firm, which they sank themselves.”
“Then that must be it. They love to scuttle cargo ships, slaughter all the sailors, and then live inside the shipwrecks.” West pondered for a moment, then pulled out a chess-piece-sized statue and handed it to Lynch. “I will find a way to draw their attention for you, and you will infiltrate their nest to investigate the target. If you encounter a fatal threat, crush this object. It should allow you to survive safely.”
It was a wooden statue, carved very abstractly, but for some reason, Lynch could faintly make out a bizarre humanoid figure wearing a robe, with twisted tentacles growing from beneath its jaw, its back, and its right hand. Looking at it for even a couple of seconds made him feel extremely unsettled. Lynch dared not look further and quickly stuffed the statue into his pocket.
A good item. He would gladly accept it, but how on earth was he supposed to get in?
“Since you are willing to help the King in Yellow trample the vermin of R'lyeh, the King in Yellow will not mistreat his collaborator.”
As he spoke, West reached his hand out toward Lynch. At this moment, Lynch finally saw clearly that what emerged from beneath the yellow robe were actually several tentacles, slowly wrapping around Lynch and Miss Valente's bodies.
Though tense, the two suppressed their urge to resist, allowing the tentacles to wrap around their necks.
“Thank you for your help. In the name of the King in Yellow, I bestow upon you a small gift.”
“Call of the Water.”
Rate on N.U.
