NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 4: 4
Chapter 16 HunterTitle of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 2516 words Update time: 2025-05-01 14:14:50
Gu Yi, who accepted Caroline's identity, sat in a chair and rested for a while.
After her head was no longer so dizzy and her eyes were no longer so sore, she continued to look at the notebook in front of her.
The notebook is not too thick, but the page that has been opened is already in the middle of the entire book, which means that a lot of things have been recorded before.
Caroline rolled the pages open and flipped forward. The pages of the notebook were a circle larger than her palm, but each page was not completely filled. Basically, she wrote a lot of messy drafts while recording some information, and also wrote down some sudden ideas in the notebook.
"Caroline used to have an active mind, which is similar to me..."
Caroline smiled and began to decipher the useful information in the drafts and records.
"It's not a good idea to hire a private detective directly. It should be packaged layer by layer. The gangs in the bars in the East District are the only reliable ones."
Below this line of words, there are a few names written casually. They might be the people who traded information or contacted Caroline in the East District tavern.
"The disguise for traveling needs to be improved a little bit. Wouldn't it be better to use night clothes?"
Next to it, Caroline drew a big question mark on the word "night clothes".
"You can't let others know yet. It's safest to act on your own."
My dear sister, if you don't have enough strength, it's very dangerous to act on your own...
Caroline thought, turning a few more pages. Her eyes quickly scanned the paper until she saw an interesting line of information.
"Hunter is very good. I need to adapt to the improvement in my body. The extraordinary notes left by my family can help me digest the potion quickly. Let's wait for two months and see how it goes. There is no rush to prepare the next stage of potions now."
This passage contained so much information that Caroline's heart beat faster.
Potions... the means by which people in this world master extraordinary powers.
So Caroline has already drunk the potion? But I don't seem to feel it obviously.
No, maybe I have some feelings.
After seeing this record, Caroline recalled the first night of her time travel. She ran all the way back to her home in Cherwood District and did not seem to feel too tired.
The distance from the alleyway that Caroline crossed to her home in Cherwood was about 5 kilometers. She said she jogged all the way back, and the slippery ground that day meant that the 5 kilometers would not have been easy. But after returning home, Caroline just took a few breaths and did not suffer from severe physical loss.
Recalling these details, Caroline quickly turned a few pages of her notes, and soon she saw a strange symbol surrounded by a circle in the center of a page.
Those symbols were different from the Rune letters used for recording. They were more like words composed of keys of different shapes. In the partial memory inherited by Caroline, these words were called Hermetic, a mysterious language used for sacrifice and prayer.
During her education at Backlund University, Caroline took the elective course on the use of this language, which enabled her to understand those key-like symbols.
But she still couldn't understand some of the words. It seemed that Caroline didn't complete the elective course very well.
But it doesn't matter. Caroline remembered that there should be a translation dictionary of the Hermetic language in the attic. It seemed to be placed right at...
She picked up the first two books stacked together on the right side of the desk, and saw a translation dictionary of the Hermetic language in the place of the third book.
"Without search engines, mobile phones or computers, even text translation had to be done in the most primitive way."
Caroline smiled and shook her head, then quickly pulled out a dictionary, opened it in front of her, and began to translate it step by step according to the Hermetic language on the notes.
With a basic knowledge of Hermetic language, she only needed to translate the proper nouns. About 5 minutes later, Caroline breathed a sigh of relief, looked at the records in the box on the notebook paper, and whispered to herself:
"Hunter's potion formula..."
"Main ingredients: 20 ml of red-haired hound blood, 15 grams of red-haired hound brain gray matter..."
"Supplementary materials: 80 ml of red wine, 10 drops of red chestnut flower essential oil, 5 grams of poplar leaf powder, 10 grams of basil..."
This is the so-called magic potion...
Caroline closed the dictionary thoughtfully and put it aside.
Why does it feel like I'm cooking something, even basil and red wine are used...
Hmm, blood and brain, I see, this is making Maoxuewang.
Caroline was so bored that she thought of a ridiculous joke while stroking the "potion formula" record in her notebook.
Judging from the records, Caroline should have undoubtedly prepared the potion according to this recipe and used it, which means that she should have become a Beyonder.
Writing down potion recipes in Hermetic is this to keep it secret, to prevent the recipes from being leaked after the notes are discovered, or is it an established rule in the extraordinary world?
Well, these things are harmless. What I need to know most now is whether I am an extraordinary person.
Judging from the message Caroline left behind, she said "Hunter is fine", which should mean that she felt a significant change in herself after becoming a Beyonder.
But after adapting to Caroline's body, perhaps because of the memories and habits of her previous life as a male, she did not feel any different from ordinary people.
Caroline turned to the next page of the potion recipe, which seemed to record some "experiences" after becoming a Beyonder.
"My physical fitness has been greatly improved. My strength, speed, reaction, and body coordination are far beyond those of normal humans. Now I can easily lift the dining table with one hand! I have also mastered the fighting skills my father taught me. If he were still alive and we were to have fighting training again, I believe I would not be at a disadvantage!"
In the past, I could lift the dining table without any extraordinary strength... Caroline looks so happy, she is still just a little girl.
Even though she thought so, Caroline still knew the difference, especially the value of the so-called "one-handed" lift.
It seems that extraordinary strength can indeed bring significant improvements to the body, there is no doubt about that.
So, what about me now?
Caroline thought about it, then stood up from the chair, pinched the lower edges of both sides of the desk with both hands, and began to exert force slowly.
The whole desk began to tremble slowly, and the ink in the ink bottle was swaying constantly. Soon, the legs of the desk were slightly off the ground, but Caroline immediately put the desk down and loosened her hands, feeling a little soreness in her arm muscles.
There is indeed an improvement, but not much, not to the extent stated in the records.
Why is that? Do extraordinary powers fade over time, like the half-life of radioactivity?
Or is it... because Caroline has already died once, and during the time when I traveled through time and space to be reborn in her body, some of the extraordinary power in my body leaked out, so my current power is not complete?
This was the most likely inference Caroline could make at the moment. She did not know much about the extraordinary world, and could only guess about the power of extraordinary people based on her simple knowledge.
Since part of the extraordinary power she originally possessed has disappeared, does this mean that she has to drink the potion again to regain her power?
Caroline paced in the middle of the attic, thinking about the feasibility of doing so. The light of the gas lamp flickered, stretching Caroline's shadow very long.
"Although I don't know exactly how it works, drinking the potion again is indeed a safer option for safety reasons. After all, this is the only way for me to gain strength right now."
"If I want to survive in this world, if I want Albert to prove his ability, if I want to find a way to travel back to Earth, conventional thinking will not work, so I will inevitably have to embark on the path of the extraordinary world."
"It's decided. I have to try to mix the 'Hunter' potion again as soon as possible!"
In the end, Caroline still made the decision,Chapter 17 Dinner and Ice CreamTitle of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 3113 words Update time: 2025-05-01 14:15:11
After determining the next stage's goals, Caroline was no longer in a hurry to continue studying the contents of the notes.
She was now very tired. First, she took two long carriage trips back and forth in the morning and at noon, then she had lost energy maintaining the "Void Cube", and then she had just studied and analyzed the information in the notes. Caroline felt that she was not so tired during the review near the final week. At least she could still take time to buy a cup of coffee or have a dessert.
No matter what I do, I have to combine work and rest. There is no need for me to be so anxious. As long as I regain my extraordinary power, everything will be fine.
As for proving herself to Albert to avoid the possibility of that damn marriage... Ha! As a college student on modern Earth, and someone who knows a little bit about the Internet, there are naturally many ways to show off one's abilities in this technologically underdeveloped world.
Caroline rubbed her neck, walked slowly to the desk, put the "Silver Key" back into her pocket, closed the open notebook, then turned off all the lights in the attic and went back to the first floor along the stairs.
Caroline was about to go to the kitchen to get some bread and egg tarts she had bought that morning, feeling her stomach rumbling. She heard the clock in the front hall chime. She stopped, turned around and looked into the front hall, only to find that it was already four in the afternoon.
"The ribbon-cutting ceremony for the ironclad ship wasted too much time. The beautiful day is about to end, and I haven't even had lunch!"
Caroline complained dissatisfiedly. She had originally planned to have some afternoon tea to fill her hunger, but now, she could prepare dinner directly.
"The food reserves at home are still low. I can't eat bread even at night..."
Well, I still have to go out and buy some ingredients to make a full meal.
So Caroline went into the front hall and took the money left over from buying bread in the morning from the coffee table. It was 6 pounds 2 soli 2 pence in total, which should be more than enough to buy food.
Then, she went to the kitchen and confirmed what seasonings and ingredients were there. Since she was going out to buy things, it would be best to buy them all at once.
"Salt, black pepper, thyme, cinnamon... these are really traditional European seasonings. I didn't see any other spices. It seems that Miss Caroline doesn't know how to cook."
"One bottle of red wine and one bottle of white wine... Well, the Hunter's potion recipe seems to require red wine, so I don't have to go out and buy it."
"Sauces... Oh! Thank God they invented vinegar! Whoever invented vinegar was an absolute genius!"
Although ingredients were still scarce, at least the basic seasonings at home were enough for Caroline to show off her skills.
After going over the things she wanted to buy in her mind, Caroline took a piece of sliced white bread and the two remaining egg tarts, and walked casually to the door to change her shoes, preparing to go to the vegetable market and slowly decide what to eat in the evening.
After leaving the house, Caroline went straight to the small market in Cherwood district.
Just like the "Bread Street" where she went to buy bread in the morning, in the Kingdom of Loen, every community in the city basically has an area dedicated to the concentration of basic shops as a trading market.
That was where Caroline wanted to go, just a street corner away from the "Bread Street" where she had been in the morning.
After about fifteen minutes of walking, Caroline finished her bread and egg tarts and arrived at the trading market.
As she approached here, she could clearly feel that the flow of people on the road had increased. It seemed that the people of Backlund had the habit of preparing dinner at this time. Although Caroline still had the remnants of modern Earth's habits, she seemed to have been assimilated a little.
The trading market in the Cherwood District was not very big, and could not be compared with the wide variety of goods in the Backlund Meat Trading Market in the Hillston District, but it was enough to make a simple home-cooked meal.
Caroline pretended to want to buy something, ran to a stall to take a few looks, and then seemed to suddenly think of something and left to go somewhere else... After wandering around the market for a while, she finally decided to do as the locals do and make a simple cream stewed chicken in the evening.
After some intense bargaining, which made the vendors in the market look at Caroline with strange eyes, she finally bought all the ingredients for the evening:
4 contracts of 1.5 pounds of chicken legs, 1 liter of milk, 1 bag of flour, 1 0.5-pound piece of butter, onions, enoki mushrooms, baby carrots and other necessary ingredients, all of which would have cost close to 23 pence, but Caroline managed to bargain it down to only 21 pence, or 1 soli and 9 pence.
"It's really hard to bargain for things like ingredients that have market prices... But it didn't cost much anyway, so I'll just use this as a practice for future bargaining."
Although Caroline is not short of money, bargaining is a life attitude. If she doesn't do it, she always feels like she is missing something.
After buying the ingredients needed for dinner, Caroline slowly walked out of the crowd holding the big bag of things in a paper bag, preparing to go home along "Bread Street".
Just like in the morning, the aroma of baking wheat always surrounded "Bread Street", which Caroline thought was much better than any floral scent.
"Huh? Is that ice cream?"
Caroline was walking and looking at the street scene when she suddenly found a small shop on the side of the road. There was only a window facing the street and no door. The transparent glass displayed the sweet things in iron buckets inside the shop without reservation.
This immediately piqued Caroline's interest. It was an unexpected surprise to find ice cream in this world. It must be said that even in different worlds, humans as creatures are really full of similarities in some aspects.
Caroline hugged the paper bag tightly and walked briskly to the ice cream shop. She curiously looked at the buckets of ice cream displayed behind the window.
"Miss, would you like some ice cream?"
The owner of the ice cream shop was a rather young man, wearing light-colored clothing that matched the element of "ice cream" very well. He had a novel and fashionable feel and did not look like a staid and conservative Loen person.
Paying attention to the shopkeeper's accent, Caroline asked tentatively:
"Are you from Intis?"
The shop owner seemed to have anticipated this situation, or perhaps he had experienced it many times. He smiled and nodded, said "yes" in Intis, and then answered in Loenese:
"I have been in Loen for a year. In Intis, this ice cream with a unique flavor is very popular among people of all ages. A beautiful lady like you will definitely like the vanilla flavor here! It can not only satisfy your taste buds and soul, but also make your skin whiter and smoother!"
I've never heard that eating ice cream can beautify your skin... Caroline thought, still smiling, and asked:
"Is it really that magical?"
The shop owner patted his chest confidently and said:
"Of course, this is the recipe left by Emperor Roselle! Miss, you should also know that everything Emperor Roselle makes is good stuff!"
"Emperor Roselle is truly almighty..."
Every delicacy must have a celebrity anecdote that comes out of nowhere. The celebrities in those stories on modern Earth are various emperors, and here it is most likely Mr. Russell.
Caroline didn't really care about the origin of food, but she was a little curious about what flavor this ice cream from Intis would be...
"Hello, young man, would you like some ice cream?"
Suddenly, Caroline saw the shop owner bending down and looking towards her side.
She turned her head and saw a little boy with a dirty face, chubby face, about ten years old, lying on the glass window next to her, his pair of ink-black eyes staring straight at the ice cream in the window.
Judging from the way he was standing, there seemed to be something wrong with his left leg, and there was some white dust on his clothes for some reason. He looked a bit like a naughty kid.
Caroline looked at the boy carefully and found that when he heard the owner's question, an obvious expression of desire for ice cream appeared on his face.
With a disabled leg, a dirty body, and no parents around, is he an orphan? Or is it because his family is poor that he has to work as a laborer at an early age?
There is no clear law to protect minors in this world, and child labor is common here.
The new party has a long way to go in reforming...
Thinking about this, Caroline leaned over and asked the boy gently:
"Little boy, do you want some ice cream?"
After hearing Caroline's words, the boy turned around, looked at Caroline with his big eyes, and nodded.
"Then brother...sister will treat you to a meal, how about that?"
The boy's eyes lit up visibly, and he cast a hopeful look at Caroline.
Maybe it was the sense of accomplishment from doing good deeds, but Caroline felt inexplicably happy. She turned to the shop owner and asked:
"How much is a scoop of ice cream?"
"You are such a beautiful and kind lady... One scoop of ice cream is 10p, but today I can make it cheaper, 9p per scoop."
9 pence? This is cheaper than the ice cream in many restaurants... Caroline thought, and responded with the same greeting:
"Please don't say that. You are also a considerate and kind gentleman."
"Then please come to me..."
"I want 3 scoops of ice cream!"
Suddenly, Caroline felt her skirt being pulled. She looked down and saw the little boy looking at her expectantly.
Hey kid, are you taking things a little too far?
Caroline twitched her lips, looked up at the shop owner who was smiling helplessly, and held up three fingers, saying:
"Three scoops of ice cream, please..."Chapter 18 DivinationTitle of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 3069 words Update time: 2025-05-01 14:15:33
"Thank you for your patronage~"
The shopkeeper handed the change to Caroline through the window with a smile. Caroline folded the change and put it neatly back into her pocket. Turning around, she saw the boy enjoying a small cup of three-color ice cream.
Judging from his unusually contented expression, he seemed to really like ice cream.
Caroline stood aside holding the paper bag, watching the boy enjoying his ice cream quietly as if she had found a moment of leisure. When he had almost finished the three scoops of ice cream, she bent down and asked the boy:
"Okay little guy, stop hanging around outside after eating your ice cream. Where is your guardian? Do you need me to take you back?"
The boy raised his head and saw some melted ice cream residue on the corner of his mouth. He wiped it off with his sleeve without caring, which made Caroline frown.
"I can go back by myself. My parents don't like me causing trouble for others."
"Hmm? So you have parents?"
Caroline blurted out subconsciously, and after seeing the boy's strange expression, she realized what she had said and quickly waved her hands and said sorry.
But after thinking about it, she still felt that it was a bit abnormal for a boy under ten to walk alone on the road, so she continued to ask:
"But since your family is here, why did you come out by yourself?"
The boy lowered his head, looked at the empty ice cream cup in his hand, and muttered softly:
"My parents don't let me eat ice cream, so I have to run out to the ice cream shop to satisfy my craving..."
Is that how it is...Brother Xiaohai, you really dare to think and do.
Caroline's cheek twitched, and in order to get some advantage, she stretched out her free right hand and touched the boy's head.
"Now that you've had your ice cream, it's getting late, so you should hurry home, or your parents will be worried!"
The boy didn't answer. He tilted his head back and ate all the remaining ice cream in the cup. Then he returned the cup to the shop owner who was leaning against the window watching the fun.
Wiping his mouth, he looked at Caroline and said:
"Thanks for the ice cream."
Caroline was about to say something polite when she noticed the boy's hand reaching into his clothes and rummaging around for a while, then he took out a stack of cards and handed it to her.
"Please draw one. This is a tarot card."
Caroline looked at the cards the boy handed to her with confusion. The backs of the cards had already shown signs of fading, and there were also faint signs of curling around the cards, proving that this deck of tarot cards had been used many times by the boy.
This was even more abnormal. In Caroline's eyes, the boy's small hands couldn't even hold the cards well. Did he know how to do tarot divination? Was he a born charlatan?
"You know tarot cards?"
Caroline asked curiously.
"Just treat it as a game."
After eating the ice cream, the boy seemed to be in a better mood and grinned at Caroline.
It seems to be just children's play...
Caroline nodded obediently, saying "okay, okay" repeatedly like coaxing a child.
"So our little fortune teller, what should I do?"
"Just pick any card from the deck. Don't worry about anything."
The boy passed the deck of cards upwards, and Caroline thought for a moment, moved a random number of cards away, and then drew the first one at the bottom.
Turning the card over, Caroline saw a man and a woman facing each other. Between them, a strange creature with its wings spread was flying, and in their hands, each held a golden wine glass.
This is the second card of the Tarot Minor Arcana Cup suit, the "Two of Cups", and it is in upright position.
The boy looked at the cards in Caroline's hand and immediately said to her with a smile:
"Sister, you may meet a good friend worth entrusting your life to in the near future."
What does it mean to be worthy of entrusting one's life to... Can you please not say such weird things...
I thought I could predict something, but this is just a joke...
Caroline was speechless, but she didn't want to show it. It's always bad to undermine a child's self-confidence.
So she responded casually with a smile and returned the Tarot cards to the boy.
"See you next time."
After putting away the Tarot cards, the boy said this and then turned and ran to the north of Bread Street, and soon disappeared among the crowd.
Next time? Are you planning to get another free ice cream from me... I look like a philanthropist?
Caroline held her forehead and shook her head. It was then that she suddenly remembered that she didn't even seem to know the boy's name.
"hehe."
The shop owner who had been watching the fun chuckled and said to Caroline earnestly:
"Miss, sometimes being too enthusiastic won't do you any good. In our Intis, there are many little bastards who use sympathy to cheat for food. If you have the chance, you can go to Intis and experience it yourself. I believe you will definitely gain a lot."
"It's not that serious, it's just a little money..."
What the shop owner said actually made a lot of sense, but Caroline was too concerned about her reputation and tried to deceive herself by saying that she was a good person.
But within three seconds, she became angrier and angrier. The reason was that she bought three scoops of ice cream for the boy, but she didn't get any!
"Give me three scoops of ice cream too!"
Caroline took a few deep breaths and then spoke loudly to the shop owner.
...
Ten minutes later, Caroline arrived home with the ingredients and a scoop of ice cream. It was already five o'clock in the afternoon. It was dark outside early, so she had to turn on the lights to provide herself with lighting as soon as she got home.
After the previous incident, Caroline had missed the best time to prepare dinner. She had to act quickly so as not to delay her dinner until after six o'clock.
Caroline carried the paper bag of ingredients into the kitchen and placed it on the table. She rolled up her sleeves and began to arrange the ingredients in order.
She first washed the two side dishes, shiitake mushrooms and radishes, and because onions could be processed directly by peeling off the outermost layer, she did not spend time washing them.
After washing off the dirt and stains on the surface of the vegetables, Caroline took the kitchen knife from the knife rack, cut the shiitake mushrooms into quarter-sized pieces and the radish into finger-thick pieces, placed them in a basin and soaked them in clean water, and then began to process the chicken legs.
Caroline's cream stewed chicken requires boneless chicken thighs, but since the market in Cherwood is not so particular, she has to do the deboning process herself.
Fortunately, although Caroline's family did not have much food in stock, they had all the tools needed for cooking, such as a small knife specifically for boning.
After taking some time to separate the chicken leg bones from the meat, Caroline washed the blood off the meat with clean water, put it on a plate, sprinkled it with salt and pepper for a simple marinade. During this fifteen minutes, she took the stew pot out of the cupboard, cleaned it, wiped off the water stains, then cut the remaining onions and garlic into small pieces and put them in another bowl. In this way, all the preparatory work was completed.
After the marinating time was over, Caroline wiped the moisture off the chicken legs, then lit the stove and started heating the pot.
After the temperature of the pan rises slightly, add olive oil and butter and heat them, then put the chicken legs into the pan with the skin facing down and start frying.
Wait until both sides of the chicken legs are golden brown and then take them out without changing the pan. Add onions and garlic and use the remaining oil to fry until soft and fragrant. Then add the chopped shiitake mushrooms, radishes, a bunch of rosemary and a little more. After the vegetables are fried until cooked, you can pour about 200 ml of white wine into the pan and simmer them.
After about three minutes, put the chicken legs back into the pot, sprinkle some pepper on them, cover the pot and continue cooking over medium-low heat for about ten minutes. Then pour in an equal amount of milk and a handful of flour as white wine. After about seven or eight minutes, when the soup in the pot turns into a meat-colored and sticky texture, turn off the heat. At this time, sprinkle some parsley or basil on it for garnish and it can be served.
Caroline wasn't so particular, so she simply wrapped a towel around the handle and carried the pot to the dining room table.
I took out my pocket watch and saw that the time was 5:47. The sky outside the window had basically become dark, and only the warm light in the room illuminated the curling white steam on the dining table.
"It looks delicious. Luckily, I have tried cooking European home cooking before."
Caroline looked at the steaming and fragrant cream-braised chicken in the pot with satisfaction, went back to the kitchen, got a plate and a knife and fork, cut a few pieces of bread, and then started to enjoy her dinner.
She took a piece of chicken leg out of the pot and put it on a plate. She then cut off a small piece of meat with a knife and fork, blew on it a few times, and then Caroline carefully put the chicken leg into her mouth.
Mm~ It has a rich milky flavor, full of flavor, and the meat is tender. It's a pity that I'm the only one who can enjoy this delicacy.
Caroline closed her eyes and felt the aftertaste in her mouth. The corners of her mouth curled up involuntarily. The fatigue of the day was finally compensated at this moment.
She had wanted to pair it with some leftover white wine from cooking, but as Caroline herself didn't seem to be able to drink very well, she gave up on this further beauty in order to prevent herself from getting boozed.
"Chicken stew with cream is a French dish. In this world, it is Intis's home-cooked dish. Haha, it turns out that no matter which plane it is, the food in England is still so poor."
Pick up a piece of white bread, dip it in a little soup, let the juice thickened with flour hang on the bread slice, and then take a bite. The staple food and the side dishes form the most perfect match in the mouth, the meat flavor and the aroma of the seasoning add a richer taste to the bread, and every chew is an irresistible temptation given by the food.
Needless to say, this was the fruit of Caroline's labor that she deserved. She stopped talking and began to enjoy her main meal of the day.Chapter 19 Night StudyTitle of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 3360 words Update time: 2025-05-01 14:15:53
The enjoyment of dinner is short but unforgettable, not only because the end of dinner represents the exhaustion of delicious food, but also because the end of dinner symbolizes the beginning of another labor.
Washing pots and dishes! This inevitable task for humans after learning to cook was now placed in front of Caroline. What was waiting for her was a sticky stew pot, several plates with side dishes, and used silver knives and forks.
Caroline enjoys cooking delicious food, but she never enjoys washing dishes.
But there was no other way. To enjoy the beauty of something, one had to bear the corresponding price. Caroline was alone, so even if she was reluctant, she had to wash the dishes.
"The light bulbs on the signboard dimly light up in the night... The backpack from the past is left in a foreign land... So I decided to leave this place~ Woo!"
"When you finished eating, I was still washing dishes! The empty plate of the stewed chicken was all sticky!"
"There's your leftover dinner in the kitchen sink. Honey, can you come wash the dishes~"
After washing the pots and dishes and putting them back in the cupboard while humming a casually composed song, Caroline finally felt relieved to have finished her work. She looked at the time and it was already half past six after finishing dinner.
After turning off the lights in the kitchen and dining room, she poured herself a glass of water, slowly walked up the stairs to the attic, and turned on the attic light with a "click".
The only window in the attic is always kept closed, so even though it is dark outside, the light in the attic feels no different from daytime.
Caroline walked to the desk, pulled out a chair and sat down, opening the notebook again. However, she did not rush to look through the previous information, but took out the "Silver Key", held it in her hand and silently recited the name of Yog-Sothoth, summoning the "Void Cube".
Then, she thought about it and immediately unfolded the "Void Cube".
After entering the inner space, Caroline picked up the latest "report" and began to read it.
After the first two tests, she has been able to confirm that the "Void Cube" will automatically collect real-time information to form the latest "report".
The method of collecting information is unknown.
It is also unclear whether the parties whose information is being collected will know...
But putting aside these unknowns, the "Void Cube" still plays an extremely important role for Caroline. Through "reporting", she can learn information that she has not noticed during the day, and can also learn intelligence beyond her ability. This can help her grasp the specific situation of this world more quickly, and at the same time help her find a way out of the series of effects after Caroline's original body was killed.
Caroline held the thin "report" in her hand. It was so light that it seemed like it would break and disappear with a little force.
The first three "reports" did not contain any information worthy of attention. They were just some interesting anecdotes that happened in Backlund City.
The scope of the "report" seemed to be limited to the city of Backlund. Could it be that the "Void Cube"'s ability to collect information could only cover one city?
Or is it because my ability at the moment is not enough...
Caroline suddenly remembered that when she deployed the "Void Cube" for the second time in the afternoon, she received a "report" about the departure of the ironclad ship, but the location of the Pritz Harbor military base was clearly beyond the city limits of Backlund.
Obviously, the range of information collected by the "Void Cube" seems to change with the area where Caroline is. Wherever Caroline is, the information it collects is there.
It seems that if I want to know information about other places, I either have to go to that place in person for a day and wait until the "Void Cube" collects all the information before coming back, or I have to see if the abilities of the "Void Cube" will be upgraded along with me after I take the potion and get "upgraded".
Caroline thought, her eyes scanning the newly picked up "report" in her hand.
"He has committed so many crimes! Who will uphold justice in the East District?"
This "report" talks about several gangs in the East District that have been acting dishonest recently, especially the leader of a small gang who, relying on his large numbers, frequently collects protection fees from vendors and residents in nearby blocks, and even makes huge profits by lending high-interest loans to those in financial difficulties.
"It is urgent to eliminate gangsters and evil!"
This is the comment written under "Report".
The East District was indeed the most chaotic area in Backlund, but it was precisely because of chaos that more opportunities were born. Intelligence trafficking, private bodyguards, and even extraordinary transactions were basically inseparable from the complex environment of the East District.
As the saying goes, heroes emerge in troubled times, and perhaps the situation in the East District is the best side proof of this. However, it seems that there is no "hero" in the East District who can take on the responsibility.
"Caroline bought the potion materials in the East District. Although I have forgotten where I bought them, you can go to those pubs and maybe you will get something."
No matter what, Caroline had to go to the East End more often. She had originally planned to go there tonight to check out the situation, but after seeing this "report", she immediately changed her mind.
"I'd better go there during the day tomorrow... I have lost most of my extraordinary power now. If I encounter one or two criminals, it's okay. But if I encounter a group of villains with weapons, I will have no ability to resist at all."
"After I buy the ingredients for the potion and mix it, maybe I can walk around the East District safely..."
But this is not necessarily true. Don't forget that the original Caroline was brutally murdered in the East District after drinking the "Hunter" potion.
"Caroline might have been killed because she provoked the wrong person. This may have nothing to do with the East District, but safety is the most important thing."
It's better not to go to the East District at night. Wouldn't it be better to stay at home safely and have a good sleep?
After reading a few more "reports", Caroline, who did not see any more useful information, felt that her spirit was a little tired, so she ended the development before over-consumption and recalled the "Void Cube".
Putting the "Silver Key" back into her pocket, Caroline turned her attention to her notebook and continued her research during the day.
After knowing the formula of the "Hunter" potion, what Caroline needs most now is to figure out how and where she purchased the ingredients for the potion before.
The extraordinary people in each region have their own small circle, unknown to outsiders, and the transactions of various extraordinary items and materials are carried out within these circles.
Because being extraordinary is still a secret to ordinary people, only those extraordinary people within the government and the church can be recognized. Other than that, all those extraordinary people who become extraordinary people by preparing their own potions are not recognized and are commonly known as "wild extraordinary people."
It is said that the church's Extraordinary Team will search for "wild Extraordinary People" from time to time. Once caught, they will be imprisoned in the basement of the church to which they belong, awaiting trial.
Caroline didn't have a deep understanding of these things. She only knew that the extraordinary team of the Church of the Goddess of Evernight was called "Nightwatchers", the one of the Church of the Lord of Storms was called "Mandated Punishers", and the one of the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery was called "Mechanical Heart".
Not only do you have to avoid criminals with bad intentions, but you also have to be careful not to be discovered by official Beyonders... No wonder there is a saying in my memory: "Beyonders are rats trying to survive in the cracks."
Caroline looked through her notes for a while and identified a few taverns where she might find a circle of wild extraordinary people. She memorized them in her mind and planned to go there the next day.
Among them, Caroline still had sufficient impression of several taverns, but there were a few that she had no memory of at all. It was not known whether it was because she did not receive this part of the memory, or because Caroline had never been to these places and simply marked them.
"Huh... I'm dizzy after reading this. It would be great if I could have an AI to help me organize the information."
Caroline rubbed her eyes, and her tired brain couldn't help but feel sleepy.
She checked her pocket watch. The time was about seven-fifty in the evening, close to eight, but still very early.
"It's still too early to go to bed... Go downstairs and wake up, then come back to the attic to see if there is any other information."
There are still many books in the attic that Caroline has not read. She thinks that the original owner must have piled these books here because they must be helpful in studying the extraordinary or investigating the truth of the Williams' death. Maybe she can find something useful from them.
This frantic search for information reminded Caroline of the time when she spent time in the library looking for references for her thesis. Perhaps this was the reason why she felt sleepy as if in response to stress.
"Haha... I'm tired, let's go downstairs and get a glass of water."
Caroline yawned, picked up the empty cup of water, walked down the stairs to the second floor with a staggering step, and then walked back to the first floor.
Walking into the kitchen, Caroline found that there was no water in the kettle, so she sighed helplessly and got busy again. She turned on the stove, filled the kettle with water, and prepared to boil a pot of water.
The people of Loen Kingdom were used to drinking tap water directly from the tap, but Caroline really didn't have this habit. She felt that the water that went through the pipes was not an importable liquid at all.
The flame of the stove was slightly burning, and the strange smell of burning gas and flames passing through the iron kettle drifted into Caroline's nose, making her already confused mind even more dazed.
"Go wait outside..."
Caroline rubbed her eyes and slowly walked out of the kitchen. But somehow, no matter where she went, she felt the environment was very depressing, and the low-pressure air in the room made her upset.
Standing at the stairs and looking around, Caroline felt for the first time how narrow the interior of this expensive townhouse was. The gas lamps overhead flickered slightly, casting a strange luster on the floor, wallpaper, and stair railings.
Caroline felt as if something was pressing down on her chest, and as if a bag was put on her head. She felt chest tightness, shortness of breath, and difficulty breathing.
Suddenly, Caroline had an idea. She really wanted to breathe some fresh air outside.
So Caroline walked slowly towards the door, reached out her hand to grab the door handle, and turned it gently.
The cool night breeze immediately leaked in from the crack in the door, stimulating Caroline to shiver all over. It was this shiver that instantly cleared her hazy consciousness.
What am I doing?
When Caroline came to her senses, she saw the door of the house had been opened. However, outside the door was not the riverside street facing the Tussock River, but a winding and dilapidated path that was barely illuminated by a low kerosene lamp.
On both sides of the road, there are old and crooked wooden houses. All kinds of domestic garbage are piled up in the open space in front of the houses. Dirty water flows out from there and gathers into a stinky ditch on the side of the road, emitting an extremely unpleasant smell.
This scene is clearly something that only happens in the East District!Chapter 20 DreamTitle of the Book: Mystery: Fire and the Fool's Path Author's name: December's Stranding Chapter word count: 3262 words Update time: 2025-05-01 14:16:14
Is this the East District? Why did I end up in the East District after I opened the door?
Caroline looked at the scene that shouldn't be in front of her in astonishment. When she looked down, she found that her clothes had also changed.
The light green walking skirt turned into a brown hunter's suit, with a pair of black gloves on her hands and a hard object in the hidden pocket on her waist. Judging from the shape, it might be a dagger or something like that. Even the silk indoor shoes on her feet turned into a pair of leather boots.
Dressed like this... Caroline immediately recalled that this was the outfit she had worn on the night she traveled through time! This outfit had clearly been thrown away by her. Even if it hadn't been thrown away, it was already so damaged that it couldn't be worn again. Why was it now on her body? !
The strange phenomenon before her stimulated Caroline's thinking. For some reason, the sleepiness she had felt before was swept away at this moment. She was now more awake than ever before, and her brain was working rapidly, analyzing the current situation for her.
Is it a dream? Am I dreaming?
Caroline made such a judgment just like when she first traveled through time, but compared to the first time she opened her eyes during the travel through time, the current situation was even more "unscientific."
In other words, what kind of illusion is this? Am I caught in an illusion without knowing it? Am I being attacked? Is it a Beyonder?
When did the other party take action? What was the reason? Did the murderer find out that Caroline was still alive and come to finish the job?
No, if it was just to eradicate the root of the problem, there was no need for the other party to create such a strange scene. According to the style of the murder scene that day, the murderer prefers direct execution-style murders. Such roundabout behavior is not his style.
In other words, was it someone else who dragged me into this weird situation...
Caroline made a quick judgment. She thought that she couldn't disturb the person who was casting the spell in secret. The other party might not know that she had woken up. She could take advantage of this and see what the other party wanted to do.
Caroline swallowed but didn't feel any saliva flowing into her throat. She tried her best to make it look like she was still immersed in the trance and slowly raised her legs and walked out of her "home".
The moment she left home, Caroline noticed that the light behind her had disappeared, but she didn't dare to look back. She simply guessed that the "home" in the illusion had disappeared along with the door. In other words, she had now completely entered the East District and there was no turning back.
There were neither stars nor moon in the pitch-black night sky, presenting a total darkness. A dim halo of light trembled in the air. Humid water vapor floated in the environment, condensing into water droplets on the walls of houses on the street and on the shoulders of the road, dripping down to the ground.
A damp, cold air rushed towards Caroline, which was darker and colder than the East End she remembered crossing that night.
That night, she could at least hear some noises from living beings. Even though they were not pleasant to hear, they at least meant that there were still living people nearby.
But now, she could only feel the endless silence approaching her, as if it was going to trap her in this eternal, lightless night.
Suddenly, Caroline heard an unclear voice, whose gender could not be determined, coming into her ears from time to time.
"Think back to what you did the night before. This is where you have been. Repeat what you have done and walked through..."
The sound was extremely distant, as if it came from outside, and also as if it resonated within Caroline's heart, spreading irresistibly in her mind like water, making her want to listen to it involuntarily... like hypnosis!
Caroline, who remained awake, immediately became alert.
What I did the night before...could it be the night I traveled through time?
This guy was hypnotizing me secretly, and he really didn't know that I was awake.
He wanted me to walk the path I took that night again according to my memory... Well, it seems that he is not the same person as the murderer, but wants to know what happened to Caroline that night... Hiss, could he be Albert's man? Did he notice something unusual in my behavior?
Caroline suppressed her inner panic and ran along the path in the East District, imitating her original appearance on the night she was murdered.
Although her memory of the time of the murder had been shattered, Caroline's memory still retained her original body's actions before entering the alley. She was sneaking along the familiar path, bending over as if she was tracking someone, pausing every few steps, and then speeding up to run forward.
Caroline's breathing seemed a little disordered because she was suppressing her inner tension. She also felt that the movements of her hands and feet had become very uncoordinated. But perhaps it was this uneasy look that was more in line with the reality. The caster who was observing in secret was completely deceived by Caroline's performance.
His disguised voice sounded in Caroline's ears again:
"Think back to what happened that night. Did you enter an alley? What happened in that alley..."
As expected, the other party used illusion to deceive me, which means he already knew the situation in the alley!
However, Caroline did not expect that the crime scene would not be discovered. Such a horrific and bloody scene would be discovered immediately during the day and reported to the police.
What Caroline wanted to know now was how the other party knew that she had entered that alley.
As the caster finished speaking, the scene in front of Caroline changed slightly again.
The general scene has not changed, she is still in the East District, but the location has changed a little.
Caroline's eyes swept across the front, and the familiar scene immediately reminded her that this was the road outside the alley.
The scene where the original body was killed is right in front...
Caroline exhaled slightly and continued to track the direction towards the alley.
She only remembered that her original self was following someone that night, but she had no idea who she was following or why.
But if she didn't know, how could the person who was casting the spell in the dark know?
The purpose of his spell on myself was to get information from me about that night, so how did he do it?
First he pulled her into this illusion, then he used hypnosis to guide her thoughts in secret, so that she could recall that night... In other words, he was forcing his own memory to reappear! This illusion was made up of her memory!
"If I can stay awake in the illusion, does that mean I can let him see the images I want him to see..."
Caroline immediately grasped this key point, and at this time, she just came to the entrance of the alley.
So she immediately tried to imagine the picture she had compiled in her mind. After practicing in the process of controlling the "Void Cube", Caroline's thinking ability has become strong enough. It didn't take too long for a rough picture to appear in her mind.
She sketched her imagination over and over again, making it deep and clear enough, and gradually began to reflect the illusion.
With continuous efforts, Caroline achieved her goal.
In the alley ahead, a figure suddenly appeared and flashed by, and then went into the alley.
Caroline was delighted, and she appeared a little more excited, as if she had finally found what she was looking for.
She stopped outside the alley, listened for a while, and after making sure there was no sound, she turned and ran into the alley.
However, there was no one in the alley that could be seen to the end at a glance.
Just when Caroline was "confused", a dark shadow suddenly appeared behind her.
"What are you looking for?"
The black shadow uttered something very unclear, and the sound was like a broken bellows, extremely hoarse and unpleasant.
Caroline, who was trapped in the alley, turned around quickly. Just as she was about to draw the dagger from her waist, she saw the latter rushing towards her.
A few cold lights flashed by, and nothing could be seen clearly. Caroline was hit hard several times in the darkness, leaving wounds on her limbs, and blood splattered all over the alley.
Just when Caroline seemed about to collapse, she took out an unknown object from her clothes and threw it directly at the dark shadow blocking the entrance of the alley.
The black shadow quickly dodged, but the thing disintegrated and exploded in mid-air, instantly dispersing a large cloud of smoke and fog that completely covered the alley.
The shadow lost its target in an instant, and Caroline took the opportunity to quickly hide in the smoke and dust, escaped from the alley in the dark, and fled along the street towards the bright road regardless of anything.
The light was just ahead. The streetlights that symbolized safety and the scent of the Tussock River were within reach. As long as Caroline ran forward, she would be able to escape from danger.
Then at this moment, Caroline slipped, lost her balance, and fell to the ground -
"Boom!"
Caroline's body suddenly trembled and her knees slammed hard into the bottom of the desk.
She raised her head from her arms and opened her tired and heavy eyes. Before her was the bright gas light and the notes spread out on the table.
Sweat wet the back of Caroline's neck, strands of hair stuck to her forehead, and there even seemed to be warm steam coming out of her red face.
Caroline blinked occasionally and turned her head to look around, as if to confirm whether she was really still in the attic.
After a moment, she looked back at the table, seeing a large mark of sweat left there, and murmured softly:
"Was that... a dream?"
She seemed to have fallen asleep on the desk without knowing when, and everything from going downstairs to boil water to encountering those strange things were all her dreams.
However, Caroline's memory was not lost, and she still clearly remembered everything that had just happened. From entering the so-called "illusion", to discovering the abnormality, to her deliberately weaving a false "memory", everything was still intact in her mind.
Those things did happen in the dream, but they were not fake, but were created intentionally by humans!
She was indeed attacked by someone!
"In other words, the illusion just now was actually my dream?"
"The person who hypnotized me secretly was manipulating my thoughts through dreams..."
Is he a Beyonder? Is that his Beyonder ability?
Caroline was lost in thought, looking forward to the left, while slowly opening her clenched left hand.
In her left palm, the exquisitely carved "Silver Spoon" was emitting a cool white light.