The two of them started looking around for any potential places where the kidnappers had hidden messages for them. The sky was not yet light. Therefore, even though they had turned on their flashlights, it was still difficult for them to see their surroundings clearly.
Jenqyih stopped looking. He looked around the place. "This place is immense. It'll take time to go through everything. What if by sunrise, we still can't find our next clue?"
"Don't stop looking. Every second counts."
"What do you think if we ask the driver to help us? Need more people to do this."
"No. He has to stay alert in the car. After all, the kidnappers only allowed two people to deliver the ransom."
"What if it turns out we're looking on the wrong side?" It occurred to Jenqyih that perhaps they should have looked elsewhere. If they were wrong, they would have to make a three-kilometer detour to get to the other side.
Hearing Jenqyih's words, Yihshyong stopped his search. He walked over to Jenqyih. His brow furrowed.
"This is the letter you found in the shoe earlier. Pay attention. Maybe there are things that I have missed." Yihshyong handed the paper to Jenqyih.
After receiving the paper, Jenqyih approached a bench on the edge of the lake. He sat down and began to read. He read several paragraphs written on the paper several times. But like Yihshyong, he found no additional clues.
At that time, Yihshyong was already sitting next to Jenqyih. The two of them then looked at the other side of the lake.
"Indeed, the kidnappers mentioned specifically which side they meant. So we are not wrong. But still, this place is too wide. We need more people," said Jenqyih.
"Maybe that's why the kidnappers told us to come together. Imagine if I had to come alone."
"Let's think about it again. Did the two people we met have other clues aside from the shoe problem?" Jenqyih tried to remember the behavior and words of the drunkard and the motorcyclist who picked up the man he admitted as his uncle. But he still couldn't deduce anything from the fragments of memory in his mind.
"The motorcyclist didn't take off his helmet at all. Could that be a clue?" Yihshyong's question was more like a rhetorical question.
"Maybe that meant something. But also maybe he was just in a hurry. If he stayed too long, they'd be afraid the police would surround them."
"So you think they already know we disobeyed them in deceiving the police?"
Jenqyih took a deep breath. "They're not stupid. I think this is all they have calculated. So they do have to be careful."
"There's no way the kidnappers haven't left a clue. We just haven't realized it yet."
"What makes us think that this place is the middle of this lake?"
"Of course, that's because there is a monument as a marker," replied Yihshyong.
Simultaneously, they both looked at each other. Then quickly, they stood up and ran towards the monument that became the marker. There, they examined the object, which was made of very dark granite, carefully. Jenqyih tried to find cracks in the stone surface where the kidnappers might have inserted paper or cloth containing their next clue.
The two of them started looking around for any potential places where the kidnappers had hidden messages for them. The sky was not yet light. Therefore, even though they had turned on their flashlights, it was still difficult for them to see their surroundings clearly.
Jenqyih stopped looking. He looked around the place. "This place is immense. It'll take time to go through everything. What if by sunrise, we still can't find our next clue?"
"Don't stop looking. Every second counts."
"What do you think if we ask the driver to help us? Need more people to do this."
"No. He has to stay alert in the car. After all, the kidnappers only allowed two people to deliver the ransom."
"What if it turns out we're looking on the wrong side?" It occurred to Jenqyih that perhaps they should have looked elsewhere. If they were wrong, they would have to make a three-kilometer detour to get to the other side.
Hearing Jenqyih's words, Yihshyong stopped his search. He walked over to Jenqyih. His brow furrowed.
"This is the letter you found in the shoe earlier. Pay attention. Maybe there are things that I have missed." Yihshyong handed the paper to Jenqyih.
After receiving the paper, Jenqyih approached a bench on the edge of the lake. He sat down and began to read. He read several paragraphs written on the paper several times. But like Yihshyong, he found no additional clues.
At that time, Yihshyong was already sitting next to Jenqyih. The two of them then looked at the other side of the lake.
"Indeed, the kidnappers mentioned specifically which side they meant. So we are not wrong. But still, this place is too wide. We need more people," said Jenqyih.
"Maybe that's why the kidnappers told us to come together. Imagine if I had to come alone."
"Let's think about it again. Did the two people we met have other clues aside from the shoe problem?" Jenqyih tried to remember the behavior and words of the drunkard and the motorcyclist who picked up the man he admitted as his uncle. But he still couldn't deduce anything from the fragments of memory in his mind.
"The motorcyclist didn't take off his helmet at all. Could that be a clue?" Yihshyong's question was more like a rhetorical question.
"Maybe that meant something. But also maybe he was just in a hurry. If he stayed too long, they'd be afraid the police would surround them."
"So you think they already know we disobeyed them in deceiving the police?"
Jenqyih took a deep breath. "They're not stupid. I think this is all they have calculated. So they do have to be careful."
"There's no way the kidnappers haven't left a clue. We just haven't realized it yet."
"What makes us think that this place is the middle of this lake?"
"Of course, that's because there is a monument as a marker," replied Yihshyong.
Simultaneously, they both looked at each other. Then quickly, they stood up and ran towards the monument that became the marker. There, they examined the object, which was made of very dark granite, carefully. Jenqyih tried to find cracks in the stone surface where the kidnappers might have inserted paper or cloth containing their next clue.
