"Determining the direction the other party fled to isn't a simple task, nor is it entirely devoid of leads," Liang En remarked as he gestured towards the road they had just come from, not far away.
"The Soviet forces were stationed along that road during those years, continuously firing towards this side. So, our war correspondent, even if truly disoriented, would still choose to run in the opposite direction as much as possible."
"However, the issue is that the retreat route was thoroughly searched by five or six search teams before. I find it hard to believe that what the group of seventy or eighty people couldn't find would be found by just the two of us."
Observing Liang En walking towards the north after completing reconnaissance of the first location, Piers offered his opinion.
"Of course, I'm aware of that. Therefore, the next place we're heading to isn't the route the group has searched multiple times, but another location," Liang En responded, waving his hand to signal Piers to follow.
Fifteen minutes later, the two arrived at a hilly area. Obviously, the Finnish troops had observed their retreat direction before attacking the Soviet forces, leading to their retreat from this region.
According to the information from before, once they entered this hilly area, the Soviet artillery and machine guns couldn't reach them, giving them the opportunity to count their numbers. It was during this time that they realized they had accidentally lost the journalist.
"Which means, if the other party did get lost, it happened within this few hundred meters' distance," Piers pondered, wearing a puzzled expression as he recalled the path he had just walked.
"Indeed, the path seems easy now that we're walking it," Liang En said, comparing a map on his phone with the surroundings. "But it's a different story when you're getting shot at and shelled during the night."
"According to the accounts of the soldiers who eventually returned to the base, at the beginning, the journalist was still following them. However, he fell behind due to exhaustion and eventually went missing."
After briefly checking the map stored on his phone, Liang En wore an understanding expression. "So, the options the other party had weren't many, and I've discovered a place the previous searchers overlooked."
"The previous group of guys overlooked a place?" Piers widened his eyes upon hearing this. "In such a small area, I can't imagine any place being overlooked."
"No, there is indeed a place," Liang En affirmed, walking with Piers to a small mound nearby that was about two to three meters high. He then pointed towards a marshland on the east side of the road they had just come from. "They forgot to explore over there."
"I remember they did explore it," Piers furrowed his brow, then took his phone from his pocket and flipped through a few images. "Look, here are their explorations of the marshland."
"According to the records, they used rubber boats and metal detectors to search this roughly two-acre-sized marshland. However, they didn't find anything."
"He didn't fall into this marshland, of course. He ran through it to the other side," Liang En revealed the solution at this point.
"It might be because the influence of that count is limited to Western Europe, or perhaps the other party simply doesn't trust Russians. That's why all the search personnel they gathered were people like us, coming from Western Europe."
"Due to certain stereotypes about Russians and the local tradition of earth excavation, they tend to choose times with relatively warm climate when conducting searches in this area."
"Exactly!" After hearing Liang En's explanation, Piers looked puzzled. "After all, once winter comes, the ground here becomes completely frozen. So, the treasure hunters in this area hardly operate during the winter."
"That's why those people didn't realize that the marsh on that side would freeze even harder than stone during winter. Thus, that war correspondent from back then could have easily escaped across the frozen water surface," Liang En sighed in exasperation.
"Right, the war broke out during the winter season. The marsh should have been frozen at that time," prompted by Liang En's insight, Piers also caught on.
This could be considered a mental blind spot. Compared to Russian or American treasure seekers skilled in outdoor excavation, those active in Europe, especially Western Europe, were not well-suited for such wilderness work.
Their work areas were often densely populated, making them better at finding treasures in dusty attics, warehouses, or even backyard auctions.
Unfortunately, the treasure hunters the count had recruited earlier were all of this urban type, which is why they hadn't considered the winter condition of the marsh when seeing it during summer.
Soon, Liang En and Piers bypassed the marsh and reached its other side. They then began searching towards the east, starting from the marsh's eastern bank.
After about half an hour of sweeping search, Piers was the first to find something using his metal detector.
"What have you found?" Startled by Piers' exclamation over the walkie-talkie, Liang En hurriedly ran to his location and asked loudly.
"A pen cap." Piers opened his hand, revealing the item he had been holding. "A silver-gilded pen cap. This isn't something that should be found in the woods."
"You're right." Gazing at the cleaned precious metal pen cap, Liang En nodded earnestly. Regardless of the era, only a small portion of people could use precious metals as daily items.
What's more important is that the list given to Liang En by the steward before they came included details about the belongings their elder relative carried when he went missing, and among them was a gold pen.
"Yes, it should be this item." After comparing it with a photo, Liang En confirmed that the pen cap indeed matched the pen their missing friend had carried.
Considering the remoteness of this area and the rarity of that type of pen, this pen cap could be regarded as conclusive evidence left by the missing journalist.
In accordance with the instructions given by the steward earlier, this item was practically enough to fulfill the mission. However, for Liang En, this wasn't just an ordinary relic; it could also help him find his ultimate goal.
With this in mind, he used a "Detection (R)" card on the pen cap. Soon, a location appeared in his mind.
"Actually in Viipuri!" Seeing the final marked location on the mental map, Liang En furrowed his brows. This situation was completely different from what he had imagined.
Because, according to reasonable deduction, after that young man, Duke Dulis, got lost, he had a low probability of being killed by the Soviet forces at the time or being captured and executed. A high probability suggested he would have died in the chaos of the battlefield.
However, the problem was that the target Liang En had found using his special ability didn't match either of these speculations. This was because, until the end of that war, Viipuri remained under Finnish control.