Mystery: When the Lost Homelanders Meet the Lost Homeland Call

The night is already deep.

Lynn and Old Neil walked down an empty street.

Old Neil, dressed in his black robe and carrying a cloth bag filled with materials for the ceremony, walked half a step behind Lynn, cautiously observing his surroundings.

The first stronghold was the three-story building on the east side.

Under Lynn's cover, Old Neil set up a simple ritual array in a dark alley fifty meters from the stronghold. The array's purpose was to reduce the chances of ordinary people discovering the fire.

"Alright," Old Neil said in a low voice.

Lynn raised his hand, and a cluster of eerie green flames rose from his fingertips. He flicked the flames gently, and they flew silently fifty meters away, landing on the wall of the second floor of the small building.

The flames did not emit light; they lay quietly hidden in the shadows, as if asleep.

"Next," Lynn said.

The second stronghold, the third stronghold, the fourth stronghold… They moved through the night, through narrow alleys, and past rows of low houses. Old Neil set up a miniature ritual circle near each stronghold, and Lynn, guided by the circle, sent a spark of fire into the stronghold.

The entire process was completely silent.

Inside those hideouts, some gang members were still drinking and playing cards, some were already fast asleep, some were tallying up the day's stolen money, and some were yelling at the girls forced into prostitution. But no one noticed that a pair of eyes were watching them from the shadows.

When they reached the seventh outpost, Old Neil suddenly stopped.

"What's wrong?" Lynn asked.

"Sir," Old Neil hesitated for a moment, "what do you intend to do with the people in these outposts?"

Lynn glanced at him.

"What are you trying to say?"

Old Neil took a deep breath, seemingly choosing his words carefully: "I mean... these people, though they've committed heinous crimes, are still human. If we kill them all... wouldn't that...?"

Old Neil was certainly not an indecisive man, but a gang like this would inevitably have some members who weren't guilty of capital offenses. The real important thing was that this was also a test of Lynn.

  

Is Lynn truly upholding justice?

Would Lynn consider the principle of not letting a guilty person go unpunished, nor harming the innocent?

"Who said we were going to kill them?" Lynn interrupted him.

Old Neil was stunned.

"But you said you didn't intend to let them go..."

“Not letting them go and not killing them are two different things.” Lynn continued walking, his voice carried on the night wind. “I’ve said it before, only trial can pay for evil. But who should judge them? A magistrate?”

Lynn smiled, but there was no warmth in his smile. "That sheriff's cousin is a gang leader. When has the law ever tried him? When has the law ever investigated those councilors who have business dealings with the Hammer Gang?"

Old Neil nodded. He had lived in Tingen for decades and knew the rules of this world all too well. The rich and powerful could trample on the law with impunity, while the poor and humble would be sent to jail even for stealing a loaf of bread.

This is "law".

"So you're going to judge them yourself?" Old Neil asked.

"No. I want the people of the dock area to judge them themselves. Those who have been oppressed, exploited, and had their lives ruined by them are the true judges."

Lynn said, "Expose the crimes of the Hammer Gang, present all the evidence, and give every victim the opportunity to tell their story. Then let them decide who should be locked up, who should be exiled, and who..."

He paused.

"Who deserves to die?"

Old Neil's body trembled slightly, and then his years of accumulated experience made him think of a question:

"Do you think... those people will deliver a fair trial? They might kill innocent people out of hatred, or let the real culprits go because of fear..."

"So I'll be there," Lynn said. "I'm not trying to get them to retaliate, that's too easy and would inevitably turn into violence. I'm trying to get them to stand up for themselves."

"It is important to let evil be judged by the people, even if I am now leading that judgment."

The eighth stronghold, the ninth stronghold, the tenth stronghold...

By the time the seventeenth spark was placed, it was already 2 a.m.

After completing the last ceremony, old Neil leaned against the wall to rest.

"Exercising late at night is still too unfriendly to the elderly," Old Neil said with an apologetic smile.

Lynn patted him on the shoulder, then turned and left: "Go home and rest. Leave the rest to me."

"Sir," old Neil called out to him, "is there anything I can do to help you with?"

Lynn stopped and looked back at him.

"You've been a great help," he said. "Now it's my turn. You wait here, and when I'm done, I'll come back and treat you to coffee."

He paused, then added, "The kind with sugar in it."

Old Neil paused for a moment, then laughed.

There was an indescribable ease in that smile, as if a stone that had been weighing on one's heart for many years had finally been removed.

Before Lynn completely disappeared, he heard Lynn's voice again, very soft and calm:

"The money will be used to pay off the debt."

"Sin must be paid for with blood."