Slowly but surely Xuě Lù searched the region.

Every path he followed till the end, but after days of searching he still hadn't come any closer to finding the house of Lǔ Bān.

The nights spent in the village with his tombstone didn't give him any more information either. It had either been too long ago for people to still talk about it without being prompted, or they hadn't known anything about it to begin with.

Xuě Lù was getting desperate. It wouldn't do that Láng Wényì would arrive before he even found the workroom.

As following the easily accessible places proved futile, Xuě Lù ventured further into the woods.

He had found the house he had lived in, though now only a ruin remained. But behind it the woods started and you could still see the remains of a once well used path leading somewhere.

It would be his best chance of finding something he hadn't come across yet. Apart from the fact he had personally known Lǔ Bān who had not been a resident of the village. Which meant he had to live somewhere else. Somewhere only Xuě Lù came.

A path behind his old home which no one seemed to use, should be the most logical conclusion.

It became clear very fast why no one seemed to use it, as it was overgrown with all kinds of greenery. A human could only walk on it, if they burnt the road ahead to clear the path.

Unfortunately the trees also proved to be a problem for Xuě Lù.

He could walk through houses, but the force of nature was too strong for him. And the tools others could use to clear the way were impossible for him to wield.

He was stuck. Unable to move forwards. Unwilling to stay.

-

The notebook was his next, and last, hint.

Xuě Lù was sitting in the remains of his once home with the notebook on the ground in front of him.

It had taken some time for him to find a way to read it, but now with the help of a stick he was able to turn its pages.

The first few pages with designs he had already read, so he now only glossed over them. He did the same with the next chapters with wrinkled handwriting in a language he could not understand.

Only the last three pages were written in a language Xuě Lù could understand.

Three pages full of frantic writing about a ring that could destroy everything known and unknown.

Three pages wherein the writer got more and more anxious about his employer who would make sure he stayed silent.

Three pages filled with descriptions of an enemy Xuě Lù could no longer remember.

The last sentence was once again written in the language that was used for the majority of the notebook. But this time Xuě Lù read and understood the words written down.

Kremm iï sunomi magowe, mata kezwketlr burlon anunb eë sun.

Remember me old friend, and see the truth that was standing right in front of you.

They were for him.

Before he could stop himself he reached out for the notebook and touched the words that sang for his soul.

The world around him faded away and he with it.

-

Áo Rùn woke up with a jolt.

The peace outside his humble abode was disrupted.

Someone had irreversibly changed the future and everything it encompassed.

-

"Eight down, one more to go."

Láng Wēnyì wiped their blade clean with the clothes of the vampire that was just laid to rest.

They had tracked down all the missing pieces during the years after the war. Now the time had come to use that knowledge and collect them.

One piece had been in their possession since the war had ended, the other nine had been given, or taken, by leaders of every group depending on their strength and political willingness to be slaughtered.

If all the pieces were brought together they could stop it. With help from the notebook, it would be possible.

With certain regret did Láng Wēnyì think back to the letter they received months before the war started.

He is out of control, he wants revenge for what you did.

And like a fool they followed the lead and found a specific truth. At least they had watched the surroundings to find out if there was a middle man.

They wrongfully found nothing.

In the hope to prevent him from finishing what he started, Láng Wēnyì had stepped in and stopped him.

How wrong they could have been in thinking he could be stopped.

It was already finished and delivered.

How it had fallen into mortal hands was a mystery still unsolved.

Breaking it in pieces hadn't solved the problem as Láng Wēnyì could have told her. It had merely changed the problem.

-

December 15, 2022  

[grammar check]