Finding Objects

The cave was not visible from the outside and was located in the middle of the rocky hill, opposite the entrance from the sea, covered by vegetation.

Ash sneaked out of the cave and peeked through the gaps in the plants.

Those pyramids were located under the rock hill. There were five pyramids, the largest in the middle, and the smaller ones at each corner of the largest pyramid. There were palm trees and tropical bushes in between.

Around the entrance of the pyramid, there were many people hanging around. Trucks and jeeps were parked near the entrance.

The people were talking to each other in a language that Ash didn't understand. But he was sure that it was one of the languages ​​in the world where he came from. 

Maybe Spanish? France? He wasn't sure.

The men were dressed in green military uniforms. Some wore red berets.

Some held long-barreled automatic weapons or were seen wearing gun holsters.

'Just like in the movies about bad guys smuggling illegal goods,' Ash thought with a slight grin.

He lowered his binoculars and retreated into the cave.

'I don't need to face them. They must be one of the player groups.'

"Game Map," he mumbled.

After the screen appeared, he looked for the locations of the Quests that he had to finish.

'Hmm...Kulam Cave is still much further north. The Oriental Hotel is closer than when I saw it from the sea,' he thought, 'I'd better go straight to that Hotel.'

He closed the Game Map screen and sneaked out of the cave.

He took a small path on the side of the hill, with plants and vines covering it.

Not long after, he reached the edge of the hill. These tropical plants were getting thicker. He walked through the plants with difficulty.

Suddenly he heard the sound of a vehicle roaring from his left side when he was about to cross a small road. Ash immediately ducked down and hid among the wide leaves.

A Jeep carrying three passengers in green military uniforms passed him.

'I must be careful not to walk too close to the road,' he thought then crossed the road as fast as he could.

After Ash ate his lunch at the tree's branch, he continued his journey.

After about two hours of walking, he finally arrived at the Oriental Hotel.

The hotel consisted of two floors and was not very big. The walls of the hotel were damaged here and there, with tropical plants spreading and filling around the building. It wouldn't be visible at a glance if it was a building in that place.

Ash approached the hotel carefully.

'Seems safe enough,' he thought.

He entered the hotel through the open window and hid behind the sofa closest to the window. He watched the inside of the hotel from his hiding place.

The interior was decorated in Victorian style. Sofa and chairs made of dusty velvet wood, tables, carpets whose color was too dusty to determine, an antique reception desk, and several paintings hanging on the walls.

Ash came out of hiding and carefully investigated each of the rooms.

The rooms were dusty, with large wooden beds with roofs, tables, and chairs matching those in reception and large carpets. Dirty curtains covered the large bedroom windows.

The kitchen and storage room were dusty. The pots still hang on the kitchen wall. Several damaged sacks of flour and potatoes are still stored in the warehouse.

'There's no one. Luckily,'

With a slight feeling of relief, Ash entered the last room he had not checked, the office room of the hotel. It is located at the end next to the reception.

He was immediately stunned to see the office which was completely dustless. Papers were still scattered across the large mahogany desk.

The computer, pen, and ink were neatly located. There was no dust on the wooden shelves containing papers. A large mural hung behind the chair and a sack tied with a rope was propped in the corner of the room.

In stark contrast to all the other rooms.

Without further ado, Ash tried to look for The Supreme Magus' grimoire.

He opened the work desk drawers, explored the wooden shelves, and opened the cupboards. But the grimoire was not found.

He sat on a chair and thought, 'This is a Finding Object game. Looks like I have to solve a puzzle before getting the grimoire.'

He opened the desk drawer again and took out a hairpin and a small bolt.

He placed the two items on the work table.

'Maybe I should just collect the things that look out of place?' he asked inwardly.

He then approached the small table under the window and took a coin and a broken penknife from the table.

Then put all the items on the work table.

Ash couldn't figure out the puzzle. He sat back and fiddled with the broken knife in his hands.

He looked at the bolt and suddenly realized, the bolt was probably the bolt from a broken blade.

He tried it, and it fit!

But then he couldn't figure out what to do anymore.

"Argh. In the original Hidden Object game, if there is no item or place to go, you cannot click the place or the item. But here I can take all things and not sure which right item and which are not," he muttered in frustration and sat back in the chair.

"Or I'm not talented at playing with games like this..."

Suddenly there was a thud on the second floor.

Ash gasped but quickly slipped out of the office and hid behind the sofa in the reception room.

Then there was the sound of soft footsteps and they began to descend the stairs.

Ash peeked from behind the sofa, and he saw a woman, no, a young girl to be precise, dressed all in black coming down the stairs.

'A girl?' he whispered.

After the girl arrived at the first floor, she looked around for a moment and then started to move in the direction of the office.

Ash stood up and settled behind the girl.

After she was close, he covered her mouth and held one of her hands behind her back.

The girl screamed and struggled.

"Shhh. Don't scream," he whispered in her ear.

The girl nodded slowly.

Ash released his grip and let go of the girl. Then he drew his sword and pointed the tip towards the girl's neck.

The girl looked at the tip of the sword which was only ten inches from her neck, not daring to move. Her body could be seen shaking slightly.

Ash could see the girl clearly now. She had red hair cut to her shoulders and freckles on her face. Her eyes were green, and her lips were full pink.

"Who are you?" Ash asked, "What is your profession?"

The girl immediately answered, her voice tinged with fear, "M-my name is Maya. My profession is Theft."