A Comprehensive Network: An Endless Adventure Begins as a Wanderer

There's one more thing to do at the camp.

Cheng Yi walked back to the hall, past the goblin tents and campfire ashes, and headed to the other side of the cave—where there was a fork in the road he hadn't taken before.

His Observation Haki told him that at the end of that fork in the road, there were several faint auras, almost gone. They weren't living people, but corpses that had recently died.

Cheng Yi walked along the fork in the road for about fifty meters, and a slightly open space appeared in front of him.

Two carriages were parked here. The carriages were in a dilapidated state; the wooden planks of the carriages were broken, the wheels were crooked, and the horses were gone—they might have been killed and eaten by goblins, or they might have run away. Goods were scattered around the two carriages; grain was strewn all over the ground, iron ingots were rolled everywhere, and salt bags were cut open, with white salt grains scattered on the muddy ground, mixed with dark red bloodstains.

Six bodies lay on the ground.

Cheng Yi approached and crouched down to examine them. The five men, dressed in leather armor as guards, had multiple wounds on their bodies—knife wounds, hammer wounds, and bite marks from wild animals.

The corpses were already somewhat decomposed, and a pungent stench filled the air. Cheng Yi covered his nose with the corner of his clothes and, suppressing his nausea, searched their pockets.

The first corpse had nothing on it.

Several silver coins and a dagger were found on the second corpse.

The third corpse—just as Cheng Yi's hand touched its collar, the corpse's arm suddenly twitched. Cheng Yi abruptly pulled his hand back, his heart racing, but the corpse didn't move further; it was merely an illusion caused by rigor mortis and muscle contractions.

He took a deep breath and continued searching.

The third corpse had nothing on it.

The fourth corpse was wearing a robe; it wasn't a guard, but rather the "mage apprentice" mentioned in the letter. His robe had scorch marks, and a fist-sized hole in his chest, its edges charred black, as if pierced by some kind of magical attack. Cheng Yi rummaged through his pockets and pulled a roll of parchment from the inside of the robe.

Unfolding it, it was a letter. The handwriting was neat, and the wording was refined, just like the letter from Earl Hawke.

To my dear apprentice:

The land deed was placed in a hidden compartment in the second carriage.

Please ensure the items are delivered safely.

In the event of an attack, prioritize destroying letters and recipes, followed by land deeds.

—Wade Hawke

Cheng Yi carefully put the letter away, then searched the apprentice's body for a while, finally pulling out a flat lead box from the inside of his belt. The box was sealed tightly, and Cheng Yi had to use some effort to pry it open. Inside was a parchment identical to the one in Kram's treasure chest.

The formula for "Happy Water".

Cheng Yi closed the lead box and put it into his backpack. The fifth and sixth corpses were empty.

He stood up, walked to the second carriage, squatted down, and used a throwing knife to pry open a bottom panel, revealing a hidden compartment underneath—it was empty.

The land deed has already been taken by Kram.

Cheng Yi put the wooden board back on and stood up.

All the clues are there.

Cheng Yi walked back to the cave hall, sat down against a stone pillar, took out water and the last Black Widow salad from his backpack, ate slowly, and sorted out his thoughts.

Earl Hawke bought the Happy Water workshop. Not wanting to expose himself, he commissioned an unsuspecting caravan to transport the land deeds and the recipe. However, Hawke's rival—codenamed or abbreviated "G"—learned of this and hired the Klamm clan to ambush the caravan, intending to steal the land deeds and expose Hawke's crimes.

Upon learning the news, Hawke himself wrote to Kram, asking Kram to "retrieve" the land deed and hand it over to him.

But Kram didn't give it to anyone. The land deed and one recipe were hidden in a treasure chest, while the other recipe was on a mage apprentice, which Cheng Yi found.

Cheng Yi now has three things: the land deed, the recipe, and a letter of authorization written in Count Hawke's own handwriting. There's also the employment letter written by "G"—although he doesn't know who "G" is, this letter proves one thing: someone wants to get rid of Count Hawke, and is willing to resort to murder and intercepting caravans.

Cheng Yi leaned against the stone pillar and stared at the darkness above the cave for a long time.

He should hand over this evidence. The deeds, the recipe, the letter of commission—everything points to Earl Hawke. Give it to the earldom's officials, and Earl Hawke will be hanged. Mission accomplished, reward in hand, he doesn't need to take any more risks.

But what about that "G"?

Cheng Yi picked up the letter with its crooked handwriting again. He didn't know who "G" was—it could be another nobleman, an official from a certain city, or the original owner of the Happy Water Workshop.

If he handed over the evidence, Earl Hawke would die, but "G" would be fine. The letter, bearing only "G's" signature, had no official validity. No one knew who "G" was, and no one could prove the letter was related to that rival.

Cheng Yi put the letter down, stood up, and walked out of the cave.

The night wind rustled through the reeds. The stream shimmered with silvery light under the moonlight, and the reeds on both banks swayed this way and that in the wind.

Cheng Yi stood at the cave entrance and took a deep breath of the cool night air.

He remembered the twelve 1s he rolled on the dice during a role-playing game. It was just a game. The team was wiped out, everyone laughed it off, and they'd try again next time. The penalty for death was restarting the game, losing several hours of time, and a drink he'd bought for the DM.

But this isn't a game. Cheng Yi had read explanations from experts on forums that special dungeons and story dungeons cannot be reloaded because they are all part of the real multiverse.

Those six corpses weren't NPCs; they were living, breathing people. They had names, families, and unfulfilled wishes. Their heads were smashed by Kram's mace, their chests pierced by goblin spears, and they died in agony and terror.

Earl Hawke was also implicated. Cheng Yi didn't know how many people his "pleasure potion" had ruined, but he could guess.

Cheng Yi turned and walked back into the cave, took out the land deed from his backpack, unfolded it, and read it again. Then came the letters and the recipes. He neatly stacked all the evidence on the ground, took out the Hand of Glory from his backpack, inserted a candle, and lit it.

The faint light spread in the darkness, illuminating only a meter-wide area around him.

Cheng Yi sat cross-legged on the ground, staring at the evidence for a long time.

He was pondering a question. Why would Earl Hawke entrust the formula to a mage apprentice? Shouldn't something so important be kept safe by him personally?

Unless he has more than one copy.

Cheng Yi picked up the lead box he had taken from the mage apprentice, opened it, and took out the recipe. He then picked up the recipe from the Kram treasure chest and compared them. The two recipes were identical. However, the paper in the Kram treasure chest was older than the apprentice's, with some wear on the edges, as if it had been repeatedly read. The apprentice's recipe, on the other hand, was brand new, with fresh ink, indicating it had been written no more than a month ago.

Cheng Yi vaguely understood.

Earl Hawke still possessed the formula. Not just one, but likely many. He sold the formula to different people, allowing them to produce the "enjoyment potion" themselves, and then took a cut. The land deeds were merely proof of ownership for the workshops; the formula was the real money-making machine.

Even if Cheng Yi hands over the land deed and the formula, as long as Earl Hawke still has the formula, he can build a new workshop, buy a new piece of land, and continue producing the "Happy Water".

This inference may be far-fetched, but so what?

Cheng Yi had already decided to kill him.

At that moment, the notification sound from the integrated network quietly rang out.

You have completed the first part of the story mission: The Mystery of the Carriage.

You have completed the second part of the story quest: Camp Krum.

[Story Quest Part 3: Choice, Now Open]