**April 1942**
**Tønsberg, Norway**
Huge boring machines rumbled through this small town, with a population of less than [number], which depended on whaling for a living. The stone-paved paths were easily crushed under the machines' weight.
The roar of the machines echoed throughout the town.
A man ran desperately into the church, pointing outside in panic and said, "They're here!"
"It's been here before; let them come. That thing will never be found," the old man replied sternly. Suddenly, the whole church began to tremble violently, as if it would collapse at any moment.
Sure enough, a stone wall was knocked down directly, and the man couldn't escape in time and was crushed under the rubble.
Light penetrated through the smoke, revealing the scene. The old man staggered to the side of the man, who had been hit on the head by a stone. Without immediate medical attention, it would be a disaster.
The boring machine retreated, allowing more light to enter the church. The old man looked up at the large hole in despair.
A tall man and a little girl stood together, their faces obscured by the backlight.
Before he could speak, several groups of soldiers filed in, and the girl walked beside him with an indifferent expression.
"Medical soldiers!"
The medical soldiers rushed over, puzzled by the little officer's intact condition.
"Ahem, cough, I'm fine. You can treat his wound," Rhine said, coughing due to the dust. She waved her right hand in front of her nose with her left hand and pointed at the man on the ground. Surprised, the medical soldier obeyed the command and skillfully treated the man's wound.
Basic bandaging was done quickly, and further surgery was deemed unnecessary. Whether he survived or not was left to chance.
"Report, not found!"
Schmidt approached the old man expressionlessly and said condescendingly, "It took me a long time to find this place, so I must commend you."
Glancing at the man who had been bandaged, Schmidt gestured for someone to help the old man up. He then adjusted the old man's clothes and forced a smile to appear less intimidating.
"I think you're a visionary. We're alike in that way."
"No, we're not alike at all," the old man replied, stepping back and looking agitated but quickly regaining his composure. Schmidt wasn't angered.
"Yes, but you and I both see science where others see superstition."
Suddenly, the old man's expression turned fierce. He glared at Schmidt as if he were going to slice him into pieces and said, "The thing you're looking for doesn't exist, so don't waste your efforts."
"Then why did you go through so much effort to hide it?" Schmidt stepped closer, staring intensely without waiting for an answer. "This thing shouldn't be hidden, but I believe it's very close."
"I can't help you."
The old man closed his eyes to avoid looking at Schmidt. Schmidt, feeling a bit anxious, noticed a gleam in the old man's eyes, realizing the item he had been searching for might be nearby. He addressed the old man again.
"But you might be able to help your village. There must be friends, relatives... perhaps even children. I assume you don't want to see them suffer."
This threat couldn't be ignored, yet the old man hesitated. Schmidt, seeing this, signaled his adjutant, who immediately led a team to arrest him.
"Wait a minute, I know where it is," Rhine said, stepping forward to Schmidt. "I know where the Tesseract is."
"Good," Schmidt said, signaling the adjutant to stop.
Rhine walked to Schmidt, then turned to the arched door frame on the side wall, which depicted a large tree.
"This tree is Yggdrasil from Norse mythology. Its roots extend into Hel, Jötunheim, and Asgard."
"Yggdrasil means 'terrifying,' and it's another name for Odin. The word 'drasill' refers to a horse, making it Odin's horse..."
Approaching the arch, Rhine gently touched the carving and rubbed the dust off her fingers with a strange expression.
"Odin once hung himself on this tree and stabbed himself with his spear, Gungnir, to discover runic writing. He called this action 'the least,' which is how the World Tree got its name."
As she explained, Rhine reached out and pressed a hidden button on the Yggdrasil carving. The button was stiff from disuse, and Rhine struggled to press it.
"Can you press it for me?" Rhine asked a nearby soldier. As he pressed the button, a stone box popped out with a light sound.
Struggling a bit, Rhine handed the stone box to Schmidt. Excitedly, Schmidt opened the box. A dazzling blue light burst forth, revealing a perfect blue cube inside. Even Rhine, standing beside him, was captivated by its brilliance.
"Such a treasure, and the Führer is still searching for scraps in the desert," Schmidt remarked.
After sighing, Schmidt smiled at Rhine and said, "I can fulfill any request you have, as long as it's within my power."
"Thank you. Just don't take me out early in the morning."
Rhine wasn't very interested in this promise. As the chief technology officer of Hydra, it was unlikely that he wouldn't provide what she wanted, so this seemed like a meaningless gesture.
"This request is not acceptable. You can choose another."
"That's all I have."
"Okay." Schmidt closed the lid and shrugged, then ordered the adjutant, "Give the order to fire and clear this village."
The old man suddenly shouted angrily, "Fool, you can't control that kind of power. You'll go to hell!"
"I've seen hell."
The man's calm expression momentarily stunned the old man, until he saw Schmidt draw a pistol from his waist.
"Don't."
Grabbing Schmidt's wrist, Rhine looked at him in disbelief and said, "You've already got the cube. Why are you still doing this?"
"No reason, just because I want to."
At this, Rhine fell silent. Despite her knowledge of Schmidt from films and TV shows, she had developed a good impression of him based on her experiences in this world. Schmidt had been discovered and brought into Hydra from school. Within the department, he had never shown any regret for his actions. Most requests were not merely met but handled with great effort.
It seemed that Schmidt's "kindness" to her was purely driven by self-interest. He allowed her to make various demands only because she provided significant benefits to him, not because he was genuinely a good person.
Unlike Schmidt, Rhine's past was significantly better. Both were orphans who had faced their own suffering, but Rhine's experiences were far less harsh. Schmidt's mother had died during childbirth, and his father had tried to drown him. When that failed, he was sent to an orphanage. As he grew up, he escaped the orphanage, living a life of crime, violence, and imprisonment for a decade, which shaped his harsh personality.
In contrast, Rhine was not from this world. She grew up in a stable society, and her worldview was already well established. Her mental resilience was much stronger due to her background and the support of the Red Alert system, which allowed her to showcase extraordinary talents from a young age and escape much of the suffering.
"You just asked me for a favor. I requested that the people of this village be spared."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course."
"Well, since it's your request... let's pack up and head back."
After giving the exact orders, Schmidt nodded to Rhine and left. Rhine, in turn, breathed a sigh of relief and winked at the old man as she departed, signaling him not to worry.
The old man managed a faint smile at her. Today had been a mix of misfortune and fortune for him. It was unfortunate what happened, but with the Rubik's Cube now taken, there would be no more disputes here. The fact that no one else was injured except the man hit by the stone was perhaps the best outcome for him.
After leaving the church and getting into the car, Rhine's tense demeanor relaxed. It was past two in the morning, and she leaned back in the car seat, wrapped in her coat, and soon fell asleep.
Schmidt, sitting beside her, glanced at Rhine, who was sleeping with her head resting against the seat. He signaled to his adjutant and spoke quietly in his ear, his expression unchanged.
"Eliminate everyone, leave no one behind."
"Yes, but you didn't promise Chief Rhine..."
The adjutant's question was cut short by Schmidt's fierce gaze, causing his words to shift from questioning to a simple confirmation.
"Understood."
Gunfire soon echoed from the village, and Rhine, still asleep in the car, smiled as if she was content and satisfied with what had just happened.