From Norin

So, this world has a wilderness after all.

Though it sounds foolish, this was truly Lynch's inner sentiment.

Not only since his transmigration, but even the body's original owner had almost never left Rhine. The furthest he had ever gone was during an archaeology internship course in middle education, where he accompanied classmates to investigate the Fourth Age ancient architectural ruins on the city outskirts.

It felt much like a primary school spring field trip to an ancient royal garden back home.

Thus, this was his first time leaving the city.

Leaving Rhine from the northern suburbs, one encountered a vast expanse of rolling hills and barley fields, stretching as far as the eye could see. Continuing north led to the famous Carlos Mountain Range. To the northeast lay Bester Mountain, while the northwest featured the main Carlos range, stretching for over a thousand kilometers.

A long caravan was currently traveling along winding country paths, making its way through the undulating Carlos hills.

The countryside experience was indeed novel for Lynch. If he were not maintaining the image of a Swelling Daughter, he might have been jumping around in excitement. As it stood, pressured by the situation, he could only look around with reserved grace.

Unlike the heavy, solemn carriages found in the city, the caravan consisted of covered wagons suited for wilderness travel. The cabins were spacious, making them well suited for carrying both passengers and cargo.

At least the seven members of the external group could squeeze into one carriage.

The cover had actually been removed, offering a wider field of vision. Under the glow of the setting sun, the surroundings were an endless expanse of green fields. From time to time, farmers returning late passed by on their carts, tipping their hats to the caravan. From more distant villages, cooking smoke rose lazily, accompanied by the serene sounds of chickens and dogs.

The carriages behind held over thirty strong laborers and a large amount of supplies—workers for the Norin-Rhine Railway project. Indeed, it was all paid for by the engineering budget, which deepened Lynch's understanding of why the Mayor had so much money.

It had the perfect atmosphere for the start of a journey. Karl Jones, full of energy and wearing a wide-brimmed hat and sturdy work clothes, stood at the front of the carriage, singing loudly into the sunset. Lynch found the song quite pleasant, though the melody was unfamiliar and did not seem to have spread in Rhine; it was likely pop music from Norin.

Dr. Jenna sat not far to his side, resting her chin on her hand while watching the man's courtship-like performance. A meaningful smile played on her lips, and she hummed along intermittently. A black notebook lay spread open on her lap, and she occasionally scribbled a few lines in it by the light of the sunset and a lantern.

Lynch sat beside Dr. Jenna. Through their interaction over the past two days, while he maintained his reserved and mysterious demeanor, he had gotten along quite harmoniously with the six of them. Especially with Dr. Jenna—perhaps because they were both women, and she wasn't muddled or frantic like Judy—she was quite friendly toward Lynch, often chatting with him or whispering criticisms about their teammate, Big-Nosed Jack Adams. Being seated right next to each other during the journey made chatting even more convenient.

On Lynch's other side, Judy was curled up in the corner without a word, her gaze as vacant as a doll. It was hard to imagine another will lying dormant within her soul. On the bench opposite, the cautious Rooney and the bearded Jack Adams were each holding a tin flask, drinking from time to time, while the swindler Salin remained his usual silent self, huddled at the back of the carriage playing with a deck of cards, showing no intention of chatting.

For a moment, with the evening breeze brushing against their faces and the fragrant air, the atmosphere was surprisingly harmonious and pleasant. It didn't look like a dangerous secret mission at all, nor like a group of people harboring their own ulterior motives.

No, it did.

Dr. Jenna beside him gave a soft "eh," then lowered her head to focus on the black notebook on her lap. Her quiet sound went unnoticed by the others amidst the singing, but Lynch heard it and instinctively glanced over.

However, Dr. Jenna's angle was clever, just enough to prevent Lynch from seeing the content of the notebook. He could only vaguely sense that a few lines of text had been added, but he couldn't make them out unless he stretched his neck to look.

《Rick's Carbon Paper》

A mystery relic for real-time communication over long distances.

Did her backing faction receive news?

However, Lynch immediately noticed that Dr. Jenna was staring at the text with a look of confusion. She then scribbled a few lines quickly, seemingly casually. A moment later, her brows furrowed slightly, and after a brief hesitation, she took out a sheet of paper and transcribed a string of text onto it.

"Everyone, since we still have at least two hours, we have nothing better to do. How about we try to crack a riddle?"

Dr. Jenna held up the note she had just transcribed:

"This is a set of code I encountered inadvertently in the past. I've never been able to crack it. Why don't we all help me think about it while we're on the road?"

What a convincing act. If I hadn't seen the whole thing, I would have actually believed her.

Lynch was a bit puzzled by this, but after a moment of analysis, it had to be a message from her backing faction, requesting her to make the note public. She clearly didn't understand what their objective was, but she complied nonetheless.

What kind of code is this, to send it the moment the team departs? This is as if they're afraid their own people won't be exposed.

If this were a spy thriller, you all wouldn't survive past the opening theme.

Who exactly is this code meant for? I'd like to see which idiot is so unlucky. Hell, woman, couldn't you just transcribe six copies and give one to everyone, instead of only making one to tease our curiosity?

Yet, even while being repeatedly whipped by his own curiosity, Lynch could only maintain his persona. He cast a faint glance at the note, watching as it was snatched up by the active Karl Jones.

"What is this?" Karl scratched his head through his hat. "This kind of code couldn't possibly be cracked normally, could it?"

"Let me see." The professional rare-book broker Rooney took the note, glanced at it, and shook his head. "Yeah, this thing can't be cracked without a codebook. Doctor, surely you wouldn't make such a low-level mistake?"

As he spoke, he passed the note along.

"No, it must be something that doesn't need a codebook to decipher. I just haven't found the method yet."

Dr. Jenna maintained a deadpan expression, showing no sign that she was just as clueless herself. She signaled for the men to transcribe it, and she transcribed two more copies, handing one to Lynch before he could strangle her in his mind.

Let me see what this thing is...

???

The moment he saw the note, Lynch felt his scalp tingle.

This cipher looked very familiar. It was likely the same one Maya and Donnie used for their secret communications.

Maya, of course, couldn't be involved, but Officer Natalie knew about it from when they cracked it back then. So, are the two of them using this method to send me a message?

So, the unlucky idiot who wouldn't survive past the opening theme is actually me?

No, no, that's not important. The important thing is what happened?

Lynch's mind raced, gradually simulating possible scenarios.

In other words, they are working hard outside, but since they are out of range and the telepathic conch cannot be used, they established contact with Dr. Jenna's backing—presumably the Archaeological Association—through some channel. And they believe the Archaeological Association is relatively reliable, so they are using this method to send me information through their channel?

In other words, is Dr. Jenna trustworthy?

Lynch turned his gaze to the doctor, calculating whether he should find an opportunity to have an in-depth conversation with her, but the moment the thought surfaced, he felt a cold shiver.

No, she is the least reliable of all.

If she were reliable, they would never have used such a troublesome method to deliver the message. Even if they had to use a code, they could have just handed it directly to me. The fact that it's like this clearly shows that the people on the other side didn't reveal my identity to Dr. Jenna, which means even they don't consider Jenna—one of their own—to be absolutely trustworthy. That makes it even more important that I don't fully believe her.

But what does it say? What message is Natalie trying to send? I didn't bring those two books with me; even if I know it's a message from them, I can't interpret it without being noticed by the others.

What should I do?

"It looks like a cipher book type of code no matter how you look at it." While Lynch was calculating, the silent Salin finally spoke up. He took the note, looked at it, and set it aside casually. "I don't think it's worth the effort to crack without a secret key."

Jack stroked his beard and looked thoughtfully at Judy, who was sitting next to Lynch. "Judy, you have the best memory and have quite a few secret key books stored in your mind. Do you have any ideas?"

Judy shook her head blankly, which disappointed the others, and they each went back to studying their own notes. Lynch followed their lead to avoid appearing unusual, but he began to think.

Should I trust her a little more?

After all, there is the connection through the Blazing Lady, and she knows my true identity. Perhaps I can make further contact.

After a moment of hesitation, Lynch made up his mind. He nudged Judy with his arm and whispered in the softest voice possible, "I need to see her."

The lady behind him showed no reaction, but simply pressed against him again, half her body sticking to his back, her hand even resting on him. The next moment, a flash of fire appeared before Lynch's eyes, and he appeared in that space filled with flames once more.

A contact hidden in the cracks of time, a contact that couldn't be seen by those outside.

The voice of the real Judy rang out in the flames: "I can't keep this up for long. Speak quickly. Is this your information?"

"Yes." Lynch gritted his teeth and decided to place his bet, no longer hiding anything. "Geography of Rhine City and History of the Fifth Age of Lande. Can you help me crack them?"

"Which edition?"

"Huh?" Lynch was stunned. I don't know either.

"Forget it, I'll try every edition. There are only six in total, so it won't be too taxing on my brain."

The casual reply made Lynch's eyes pop out. Girl, are you from Versailles?

However, Judy was clearly not bluffing. The flames leaped and churned, and then Judy's voice rang out again.

"Be careful."

"Among them, there is someone—at least one—who comes from..."

"Norin, William."

The words sent a chill through Lynch's body. He realized he had guessed correctly. The traitor he needed to find wasn't just someone with ulterior motives; it was about who, other than Salin, was truly standing on William's side. That person must be directing the entire ceremony and would be the greatest enemy on this trip.

His spirit suddenly returned to his body. The other five people outside remained as they were.

Who could it be?