Rhine City Investigator

“I don’t like it here, I really don’t want to go in.”

Officer Natalie stopped, leaning against a tree by the street, her expression grim as she looked at an inconspicuous small courtyard not far away.

This was an old courtyard at the border of the Crown District and the gray fog zone. A sign for the Rhine City Investigator hung on the courtyard wall.

From afar, one could smell the scent of ink mixed with a strong coal smoke odor. Under gushing steam, the enormous mechanical noise from the workshop was deafening, and bundles of newspapers were constantly pushed out.

“Completely understandable. No public official likes the media.” Lynch shrugged, silently adding to himself, It’s the same in any era.

“These newspaper people always scrutinize the details of our actions, as if we’re the thugs, constantly ready to blow any small matter out of proportion. No matter the case, once they get involved, it becomes incredibly troublesome.”

The officer sullenly kicked a small stone, sending it straight into the picket fence gate with a sharp crack.

However, this seemed to startle something. Disordered footsteps echoed in the courtyard, and four men quickly ran out the door, rushing straight towards Natalie and Lynch.

Lynch frowned slightly, his hand already reaching inside his formal wear, but Officer Natalie pressed it down.

Then, a group of people brushed past them without a glance, shouting loudly, “Quick, quick! Green Wheat District, Mole Street, a bleeding incident!”

“The land purchase order met resistance, two farm households refused to sell their land, and the blue uniforms resorted to violence! That’s how we’ll write it in a bit. Hurry, hurry, where’s the carriage?”

The chaotic frenzy of the crowd ceased as a carriage arrived from behind. Lynch raised a hand to wave away the dust in front of him, shrugging as he said, “It’s certainly annoying, but having them supervise might not be the best idea, yet it’s not a bad one either.”

“Hmph.” Officer Natalie grumbled, “It’s no use trying to convince me. Their attitude towards us is like seeing an enemy. They’ll never honestly answer our questions. I think going directly to ask is a complete waste of time. Didn’t you also think we needed another approach before?”

“But the situation has changed. Now that we’ve confirmed Donnie Narton is a reporter here, we’re investigating the murder of their employee. We have very strong grounds, and they wouldn’t dare obstruct our investigation at this point.”

The officer bit her lower lip, pondering, “But do we really need to investigate their cause of death right now?”

Lynch smiled, not even pulling out his notebook, and quickly recited from memory: “On May 11th, Maya and Donnie went missing. On May 13th, a female reporter, possibly Maya, had Martha deliver a bag of photos with strong mysterious filth to Donnie. On May 15th, Donnie died while seeking help at Bessie’s Prop Shop. I have reason to suspect that Donnie died because of that bag of photos. And since they went missing on the 11th and these photos first appeared on the 13th, there’s also reason to suspect that their disappearance is related to these photos.”

The officer nodded, “Makes sense.”

“Every action leaves clues. Even yesterday’s mystery relic could be traced using Madam Bessie’s special method, let alone these photos.” Lynch whispered, “They connected with those photos two days after their disappearance. The timeline is very tight, so it’s highly likely that what they were doing before they went missing is related to this, and those activities might have left clues at their workplace.”

“But this only investigates their deaths; it might not be related to the Square Massacre or the Bester Tunnel case, right?”

“On May 14th, I heard a newsboy shouting about the Bester Tunnel case. Normally, the newspaper should have been printed on the 13th. Given the timeliness of a daily paper like this, articles shouldn’t be held back for too long. It’s highly probable they submitted their article on the 11th and then disappeared. So, their last assignment before they went missing…”

The officer’s eyes lit up, and she lowered her voice, “Investigating the tunnel incident, then writing the article. So that’s it… you actually managed to connect these!”

“I learned it from some strange place; it’s just simple association and deduction, at most offering a possibility.” Lynch shook his head, “There’s no solid evidence. Perhaps these are all just coincidences in time.”

“Lynch, I told you before, don’t think I’m just talking casually.” The officer stared at Lynch, speaking seriously, “In the mystery world, causality is twisted by the power of the Dreamlands. Every seemingly coincidental event might be linked by distorted causality. If anyone intends to believe in coincidence, then please prepare their funeral in advance.”

Lynch remembered hearing Officer Natalie make similar remarks two days ago, but without a personal experience, he had simply forgotten.

“I understand. Don’t worry, I’ve already stepped into this world, and I’ll remember it firmly this time.”

The officer gazed into Lynch’s eyes, confirming he wasn’t being perfunctory, before showing a satisfied smile: “Besides, evidence doesn’t just fall from the gods; you have to find it yourself. Hmph, let’s go in. We’ll make them hand over the evidence.”

With that, she pushed open the newspaper office’s picket fence gate and walked straight towards the four-story building deep within the courtyard.

“Make way, make way! The Flying Whale has lost contact, forty-eight crew members are missing, suspected of encountering an abnormal storm!”

“Madam Lanna and Mr. Billy appeared together on Golden Beach, their behavior intimate, suspected of revealing their relationship.”

“A minor earthquake occurred in the Carlos Mountain Range; no casualties have been reported yet.”

As soon as they entered the building’s lobby, they saw several groups of people running past them, shouting, heading towards the roaring printing workshop on the other side.

Looking around, everyone in the lobby was moving at a trot. The hurried footsteps and the clatter of typewriters blended together, filling the lobby with a sense of urgency.

Fortunately, the young girl at the front desk didn’t run. As soon as Officer Natalie showed her badge, the girl, without even asking their purpose, led them to the first-floor reception room and poured them black tea. Not long after, she ushered a bald, middle-aged man in a gray cloak into the reception room.

The middle-aged man’s expression was full of doubt. He reluctantly shook hands with them and, without even sitting down, asked while standing, “I am Donald, the editor-in-chief of the Investigator newspaper. Are you two officers looking for me?”

“Donnie Narton was your employee, wasn’t he?” The officer gestured with her eyes for Lynch to take the lead. Lynch nodded and asked, “I don’t know if you’ve received the news, but he unfortunately met with an accident yesterday and passed away. We now suspect his death is related to an important case and need to search his workplace. We hope you’ll cooperate, take us there, and answer some questions.”

Lynch spoke politely, but Editor-in-Chief Donald’s confusion deepened:

“Donnie was indeed our employee, and taking you there is no problem, but… aren’t your colleagues already searching? They’re still upstairs. Why are you coming again?”

“Hmm?”