After reading the marks printed on the paper, Pacheco turned around and said to Barton next to him:

“What happens next will be quite complicated and I will seek help from the police.

"And you can return to the foundation and await further inquiries."

Barton, who was staring at the paper, was not disappointed when he heard this. Instead, he felt relieved and nodded quickly.

"OK."

After reading the written traces left by Vernal, Barton's intuition told him that things would be very dangerous.

As an ordinary person, avoiding danger is an instinctive choice.

Of course, this was also because Vernal was just an ordinary friend of his, and it was not worth it for him to take a huge risk to get involved in this matter.

After responding, Barton immediately turned around, walked between the hotel owner and the waiter, and came to the street.

This time, he did not choose public transportation, but got on a hired carriage.

Patton's trip was for a special matter which was quite urgent, and he had the testimony of the deputy director of the "Compliance Department", so the expenses in this regard could be reimbursed.

Spending the foundation's money and spending your own salary are two completely different feelings.

On the way, Barton looked at the scenery outside the window and couldn't help but think about Vernal's current state:

“Is he still alive?

“The room smelled so strong of blood…

"I hope he is still alive, may God bless him.

“If he were still alive, where would he be now?

"Where……

“Will it?

"this!"

As his thoughts raced, Barton suddenly thought of a possibility and hurriedly told the driver to change the route and go to his neighborhood.

Not long after, he returned home.

"What happened?" Patton's wife came up to him, looking surprised.

There is still a long time before lunch, not to mention getting off work.

Patton did not take off his hat or coat, nor did he answer any questions. He asked directly:

"Has Vernal been here?"

"He came to visit you a quarter of an hour ago. I asked him to wait in the study and sent Wells to the foundation to find you." Barton's wife answered truthfully.

Wells was their family's butler, and it was obvious that a quarter of an hour was not enough for him to reach the Loen Antiquities Collection and Protection Foundation.

This is what surprised Patton's wife the most.

"Yes." Barton nodded heavily, hurried through the living room, went up to the second floor, and entered the study.

Inside the study, the windows were wide open, the curtains were fluttering, and there was no one there.

"Vernal?" Patton called out, but no one responded.

He jumped out of the window and left... Barton frowned and looked around carefully, and found that the order of several books on his bookshelf was messed up.

It was a series of history books, divided into upper, middle and lower volumes.

Patton's habit was to arrange them from right to left, but now they are arranged from left to right.

He took a silent breath, walked over quickly, and pulled out the three books.

After a careful inspection, Patton discovered that a page in the middle volume was folded.

He quickly turned to the page and unfolded the corner.

Scribbled in pencil were the following words:

"The survivors of the Fourth Epoch are worshiping evil gods."

Hiss... Barton was panicked and terrified, and suddenly stuffed the book in his hand back.

Without much thought, he rushed out of the study and ran towards the stairs, ready to find Pacheco, the deputy director of the "Compliance Department", to tell him his discovery and ask him to call the police to protect his family.

After leaving the house, Barton slowed down and considered a very important question:

Where to find Pacheco?

The Clough Hotel, Ston Police Headquarters, or the Foundation?

After a brief thought, Barton decided to return to the foundation and find another "Compliance Department" employee.

Just at this moment, a horse-drawn carriage stopped at his door and Pacheco Dawn got out.

"We noticed that Vernal came to your house again." The deputy director of the "Compliance Department" explained quickly.

Barton breathed a sigh of relief and answered without hesitation:

“Yes, but he’s gone.

"However, he did leave some clues."

After that, Barton led Pacheco into his home, came to the study, and handed the book to him.

Pacheco glanced at it and then gently slid his finger across the surface of the text.

Then he took out the pencil he had used earlier and wrote on the side of Vernal's message:

"Call the police!"

After doing all this, Pacheco stuffed the book back into its original place.

However, he did not push the books completely in.

In this way, the entire row of books has an outward bulge.

"Okay, let's go back to the foundation, have lunch, and then wait for good news from the police." Pacheco clapped his hands.

Patton didn't quite understand why the senior lawyer did this, but he didn't ask why.

He really didn't want to get involved in this matter any further, he felt that he couldn't bear it at all.

Patton immediately made up an excuse to explain to his wife, then followed Pacheco back to the foundation and began his daily work.

It was tea time, and he had just finished appraising an ancient book when he heard a knock on the door.

"I have a clue. I need to go to your house." Pacheco said, standing by the door with a gray scarf wrapped around his neck.

"A clue?" Barton stood up in surprise.

Pacheco didn't give a direct answer, but spread his hands in an invitation gesture.

Patton couldn't refuse and went back home with the other party.

"Vernal is here again!" His wife obviously sensed something was wrong and came to the door in fear.

"It's okay, just some minor problems." Barton maintained his manly image and comforted his wife.

After arriving in the study, he and Pacheco discovered that Vernal had escaped early again.

"Damn it, can't he just wait a moment?" Patton couldn't help but complain.

"It's okay." Pacheco walked to the front of the bookshelf and pulled out the book.

Apparently Vernal had read his recommendations, for the book was completely stuffed into the shelves.

"I think I know where Vernal is." Pacheco said with a smile, half closing his eyes.

Barton was stunned:

"How do you know?"

Pacheco opened his eyes and replied with a smile:

"He accepted my bribe, no, gift, no, the most accurate description would be advice.

"Of course, he may not adopt it."

After saying this, the deputy director of the "Compliance Department" walked past Barton and walked out of the study.

Barton followed him subconsciously, leaving his home area and turning into a nearby street.

At the end of that street, there was a house that collapsed due to a fire.

"The reconstruction hasn't even started yet." Patton whispered.

Pacheco put on his white gloves again and his expression became a little more serious.

He passed through the relatively intact main door and entered the half-collapsed hall.

Pieces of charred wood fell to the ground, blocking the lower half of a figure.

The figure was wearing a brown jacket and had a red nose. He looked very strong. It was the archaeologist Vernal.

Barton exhaled secretly and asked anxiously:

"Why didn't you call the police?"

"They monitor the police station." Vernal replied without changing his expression.

Patton blurted out:

"Why don't you leave Ston and call the police in another city?"

"They monitor the steam train station," Vernal responded in the same tone.

Barton thought about it and frowned:

"You have many ways to leave Stoun. They can't blockade a city."

Hearing this question, Vernal's expression gradually became lively, and he said in a slightly vague tone:

"I feel the will of that great being..."