"Jorgen, this is really awkward to say. My close combat assessment score is A. But I don't even know how he hit me. If you want to catch that bastard, brute force won't work. Bringing the guards from Southshore is useless, these amateurs will only make things worse. Do you know how to use a gun?"
"According to your description, even if I can aim at him, I will only have one chance to pull the trigger. Not to mention I am not a member of the Damoro Mountain Patrol. To be honest, I don't plan to fight him one-on-one. I have a helper."
"Helper?"
"In terms of combat effectiveness, I should say I am his helper. It seems time to tell you."
That morning, Jorgen came to Elin's ward and told Dean and Jalo's story.
"Oh. So there are so many inside stories...how interesting. I didn't expect you, Dean and Dalia to be...tut tut tut."
"Did you get the point wrong? And you don't seem surprised, which disappoints me. This whole incident can be said to be the biggest secret of Military Intelligence Section 7. You are the third person to know."
"I have been in this world longer than you, Jorgen. Since I learned that even Sir Hackman would commit suicide, nothing can surprise me anymore."
"Such a pessimistic way of speaking is not like you."
"Being carved like wood by that bastard with two knives and having to endure the nurses here like devils in hell, am I not optimistic enough?"
"Say whatever you like."
"There's one thing I don't understand."
"What is it?"
Why do you tell me the truth? Aren't you afraid I will reveal these things to the old man?"
"What's the use of revealing it to him, are you going to get a reward? The main reason is," Jorgen said, "Dean and I may not be able to come back alive. If we two fail, Dalia will die too. Someone must remember these truths."
"Oh, so you're shifting your burden onto me? Well, go die cleanly, leave me to go back to Stormwind City, the old man must have a whole set of special treatment ready for me."
"So pray that we can come back alive. After spending so long figuring out the truth, I don't want my work to just disappear." Of course, I believe you can keep these secrets." If Dean and I don't come back, these "legacies" are yours to deal with."
Jorgen walked to the door and was called back by Elin.
"I heard about Shelley."
"...Hennessy that blabbermouth."
"I didn't mean to pry, just that Hennessy kept mumbling 'Shelley's in danger, what should I do' and so on in front of me yesterday, so I just...asked a little."
Jorgen frowned. At first, he and Hennessy had hoped Shelley's sudden disappearance had nothing to do with the killer, but eventually a green fluff found in Shelley's bedroom proved everything. Throughout Southshore, this fluff only existed in the carpet of the mayor's office. From killing Dulm, kidnapping Dalia, killing the mayor, to kidnapping Shelley, Jalo was always one step ahead of Jorgen.
"Well, now you know. Although I don't have any special relationship with her, in principle, as soon as she got involved in this, I should have given up the investigation."
"Principles are for handling official business. Now you and Dean are dealing with personal issues. So, go ahead and do your hero thing, save the two beauties, and bring that dog back to apologize to me. And thank you for saving my life."
For Jorgen, Shelley was the last person who should have been involved in this. She was just an ordinary person. She had no concept of Military Intelligence Section 7's methods. But she was important to Jorgen, and unfortunately only this point was discovered by Jalo. Jalo dealt with him in the same way he dealt with Dean.
After that chaotic night, Jorgen and Elin found the captain in charge of the wounded soldiers and learned that this fool had been sulking in his own tent all day, almost completely unaware of what his men were doing. He couldn't even produce a complete roster of his men. No one knew when Jalo had infiltrated the troops, nor did anyone ask his name, but according to one soldier, "his words were very persuasive, we all believed him and were willing to do as he said."
"You know what I think?" Hennessy said to Jorgen. "He's not just a killer, he's a genius leader. Damn it! What should we do? Where do we find him?"
First-class killing skills and persuasive power, this guy would be perfectly suited to succeed the old man, Jorgen thought.
Dean said, "Although he left no real clues, I can roughly guess where he is. Since he left a message for me, it will be in that place..."
"Wait, there are still many things I don't understand," Hennessy interrupted Dean and said to Jorgen, "Jorgen, you still haven't told me who this black-clad, hat-wearing man is, or who the murderer is. I can understand why the murderer captured Shelley, because you're against him...How did Dalia get captured? And this man suddenly appeared, and you said he's on our side. My understanding of this case is still stuck at the 'anonymous letter' level, and now I'm completely confused.
"The two of us will go find the murderer, don't worry about it anymore. This is beyond your jurisdiction." Jorgen said.
"Maybe I can provide you with some manpower..."
"Not needed."
Hennessy took a step forward and grabbed Jorgen by the collar.
"Beyond my jurisdiction? Don't need my participation? My own sister has been kidnapped, Jorgen. To be honest, I no longer care if you can catch that bastard. I just want Shelley to come back. Now the mayor is dead, the whole Southshore is a mess, and I won't be able to sleep well for the next month. I can't bear bad news about Shelley..."
"Doing this is to protect you." Jorgen said. "But I can't explain the reasons to you, because it involves the internal affairs of Military Intelligence Section 7, and any outsider involved would be foolish. Do your own thing and wait for us to bring Shelley back. That's your only choice."
Jorgen was not exaggerating. His and Dean's plan was to kill Jalo directly and cut off any possibility of secrets being spread. Simply put, they wanted to keep it from the old man. Once Hennessy's men were involved, the possibility of keeping secrets would be slim to none; and when the old man's claws came out, Hennessy would not escape blame. Furthermore, Hennessy could not currently provide enough manpower. When Jalo broke into the prison and killed Dulm under the cover of the wounded soldiers, he released many prisoners.
Hennessy was just a diligent man working for his hometown. Even without this incident, he was busy every day. Although lacking some "professionalism", Jorgen actually admired him. He couldn't bear to see despair invade the life of this honest good man. Looking into Hennessy's eyes, he could feel Hennessy trying hard to conceal his intense anger and anxiety. Once mixed, the chemical reaction produced by these two emotions would be enough to drive a grown man mad.
"Do you love her?" Hennessy's voice trembled. "She's been kidnapped. Why don't I see any anxiety on your face?"
Jorgen did not speak. Anxiety cannot drive me to get things done properly.
"Forget it, don't answer that stupid question. I don't want to hear it. I hate that you got Shelley involved, and hate that I can only place my hopes on you now. Bring her back, Jorgen, I can only believe you can do it. If you fail, never show up in front of me again, or I'll kill you."
Kill me? No. You are too kind. You don't belong in our world.
"I will remember your words." Jorgen said.
"Also, I don't know if you still need this information," Hennessy said. "The autopsy reports of Fordahl and Ryan are out. Poisons that can numb the body were found on their wounds. These poisons take effect immediately upon entering the bloodstream. And they were not killed with one cut, but two cuts. That is, the murderer cut their necks in the same place twice. This is a deranged bastard. You two be careful."
"Very good, this information is very useful. Now, we have to leave."
Jorgen and Dean left at dawn. They sharpened their weapons and brought some rations. When they mounted their horses, dawn was breaking. They knew the horses wouldn't last long, as they would soon enter the mountains.
"So," Jorgen said to Dean, "do we have a specific destination?"
"No exact place name, but I will not forget that mountain gorge. That's where I last saw Jalo and took off his right hand. Since he wants to avenge me but did not directly attack me in Southshore, he must have chosen the place where the grudge was settled. Dalia will be there too."
"Did you say anything to Mardias?"
Dean shook his head. "Nothing."
"You should have talked to him. Not revealing your identity, just casual conversation."
"I always feel...the timing is not right, I can't open my mouth. Although I don't even know what the right time is. Let's focus on the task at hand."
Both of them tacitly understood that maybe from now on Dean and Mardias would never meet again, and not just because they might die. Even if they succeeded in killing Jalo and rescuing Dalia, it would be the start of a new round of trouble. Dean didn't know how to confess all this to Dalia.
But none of that mattered so much.
"So, let's get going." Jorgen said. On his first day of training at Military Intelligence Section 7, he had been told that "work must be separated from personal feelings", but at this moment the only thing on his mind was one person.