Uncle

Jim was stunned, at one point thinking he was seeing things.

How could fire appear in someone's palm?

If you gave him a fish, could he just fry it directly?

Had he been driving for too long, causing his vision to blur?

Jim rubbed his eyes hard and looked at the rearview mirror again.

He saw that the light inside the car had returned to dimness. Sean was still in the center, surrounded by a pile of tent frames as he had been a few minutes ago, sleeping with a shotgun in his arms. He seemed to hear Jim calling him, or perhaps he was woken by the not-so-gentle braking. He frowned slightly, opened his eyes, looking sleepy, with a hint of displeasure from having his pleasant dream disturbed and the bewilderment of just waking up.

"We're here?" he asked.

Jim: "?"

Was that just his hallucination?

Sean was only waking up now?

"No, something's wrong!"

Looking at Sean's dazed expression, Jim couldn't find any trace of performance on his face. Yet, the more it was like this, the more he felt something was amiss. His intuition told him that the lack of flaws was the biggest flaw.

This time, it was Sean's turn to ask: "What's wrong?"

"You're not a typist!" Jim stared at Sean and said.

Before their team set out, everyone had chatted in their group about their professions. Sean had claimed to be an ordinary typist who, tired of the monotonous life of a wage earner day in and day out, had taken leave to go on an outdoor adventure to find some excitement.

Except for Gennardo, the professional guide, everyone else was going to the Black Berry Rainforest for basically the same reason.

But Sean was clearly lying.

He wasn't a typist—at least not an ordinary one.

What kind of typist could conjure flames from their palm out of thin air?

"Is that so?" Sean replied noncommittally, also lifting his eyelids to stare at Jim, asking, "Then what am I?"

If someone more perceptive were here, they would have already noticed an unusual scent in the air.

It was killing intent.

But Jim was completely oblivious, perhaps too focused. His attention was entirely on Sean himself, scrutinizing him with sharp, eagle-like eyes that twinkled with insight. Finally, he reached a conclusion and spoke with great confidence—

"I know! Your true identity!"

"Oh?"

"You're actually a magician, aren't you?"

Sean: "..."

A magician! What a brilliant idea!

Right, right, right!

The taut string in his heart suddenly relaxed, and at the same time, he gained a new understanding of his teammate, Jim.

Jim must be a good person.

Sean had just made a mistake; he was too impulsive and shouldn't have tried to use magic in the car. The main thing was that he hadn't expected a simple dream, just drinking some cactus juice and eating a cactus leaf, could actually grant him magic.

And Jim had seen it.

He had no choice but to play along, acting and testing Jim.

If the situation turned bad, he would strike first.

The magic he had gained wasn't much, less than one laksh, not enough to cast a True Formula, but he could condense basic elemental energy. As long as he was fast enough, killing someone would be easy. For example, attaching flames to his hands and choking the opponent. No human neck could withstand such high temperatures. It would only take a second to smell roasted meat.

This was the worst-case scenario.

After all, Conina was in the car.

Gennardo and the others were outside. Killing Jim inexplicably would have severe consequences that wouldn't be easy to handle.

Fortunately, Jim hadn't thought in that direction—or rather, this was the reaction a normal person should have. When encountering something unscientific, they would first think of magic tricks and sleight of hand, not sorcery.

This angle was good.

He had indeed been a typist, but since Jim said he wasn't, then he wasn't.

From now on, he was a magician.

"You figured it out, huh? Looks like I still need to practice my acting." Sean put on a look of annoyance and dejection, saying earnestly, "You know, adapting the performance to the situation is an indispensable part of a magic show. If the audience starts thinking logically, the performance effect will be greatly diminished."

Jim, having received a positive confirmation, burst into laughter: "It's not your fault. Honestly, your performance just now was already excellent, comparable to my friend who practiced for two and a half years... However, I used to be a woman, and my intuition is very accurate, so you couldn't fool me."

Sean: "?"

"Woman?"

"Mhm... What are you guys talking about? What magician?" Conina in the passenger seat seemed to sense Sean's call of "woman" and woke up, rubbing her eyes and groaning as she stretched. When she noticed the dim light in the car, she became more alert and looked out the window blankly: "It's already dark? Have we arrived?"

Jim nodded, put on his hat, opened the car door, and said, "Let's get out first."

Conina pressed: "So, what magician?"

"Sean," Jim replied with a smile, "he's not actually a typist, he's a magician."

Conina: "Huh?"

A magician?

Didn't this guy write novels?

Did he secretly have a side hustle she didn't know about?

I heard magicians have good sleight of hand, so wouldn't that make things more interesting?

Conina's beautiful eyes sparkled. She found that this little man always surprised her. At first, she thought Sean was just good-looking. Then, one time when Sean opened the door for her wearing a bathrobe with the buttons undone, she realized Sean had a great body too. As she got to know him better, she discovered he was exceptionally talented, and now he even had a side profession. This was truly...

If only she didn't have a husband.

Sean couldn't be bothered with her.

Meanwhile, the young couple who had gotten out of the car joined the conversation.

"Magic isn't good enough," Johnson chuckled. "You should learn magic, then trick them into thinking it's magic, and I guarantee no one will be able to figure it out... Right, my dear?"

Jenny: "Yes, indeed."

Sean: "?"

Are you two serious?

This simple, seemingly joking remark made Sean wary.

He didn't know if he was being too sensitive, but everyone looked like an informant sent by Quill.

Wilson chimed in, deliberately saying, "You really think anyone can learn magic? It takes talent."

"As if you can," Conina scoffed, sneering. "Why don't you show us a performance?"

"...I can't."

Conina looked disgusted. "If you can't, then shut up."

Wilson was full of resentment. Why did Conina always defend Sean? Was it just because he was a bit better looking?

Gennardo took out several bottles of mineral water from the trunk and distributed them to everyone, interjecting, "We have two options now."

"One, we go to a nearby town to rest for the night and enter the Black Berry Rainforest tomorrow morning."

"Two, we go in tonight. We can catch some wild game, have a barbecue, and camp on the outskirts of the rainforest."

It was currently eight in the evening, and they were at a fork in the road, with the Black Berry Rainforest three kilometers away.

The bright moon hanging in the night sky cast a faint glow. Standing on the roof of the car and looking forward, they could already see the majestic, sprawling shadows and outlines of the primeval forest.

"Hold on a moment, ladies and gentlemen, you don't think I'm joking, do you?" Johnson asked everyone.

Gennardo looked confused. "What joke?"

Johnson: "Mages!"

Sean glanced at him calmly.

Johnson continued, "Didn't we talk about it in the group a few days ago? Deep in the Black Berry Rainforest, there's a mysterious forest with strange and dreamlike scenery, completely different from the outside world, where many incredible things happen. Like elves with pointed ears, unicorns that glow white like snow, and birds with wings..."

"Wait a minute, aren't birds supposed to have wings?" Wilson usually didn't pay much attention to the group chat, only appearing when Conina spoke. He generally just skimmed other messages, too lazy to read them carefully. As an old member and group administrator of the club, he was actually quite aloof most of the time.

Sean's small group chat hadn't discussed these things. Clearly, Johnson was referring to the main group.

"He missed a number. Those birds have three pairs of wings," Jenny added.

"Isn't this obviously a gimmick the club uses to fool new members and pique their curiosity, so they'll go on trips with the group?" Wilson looked at the young couple strangely.

Despite looking young and being university students, these two had actually been on several outdoor adventures and had been members of the club for quite some time. They were actually falling for such a small trick?

He also claimed his toaster automatically made toast, but no one had come to his house for an adventure because of it?

"I didn't believe it at first, just like you. But my uncle told me that this forest really exists. Maybe it's not as exaggerated as the group chat says, but it's definitely beyond the scope of science."

"It's said that there's also a spring in the forest blessed by the gods. It's the key to opening a mysterious door. As long as you find it and drink from it, you'll be able to see the magnificent and colorful true appearance of this world."

Johnson said with a serious expression, seeming to believe his uncle very much.

Conina, leaning against the car, was silent for a moment before speaking, "Excuse me, but was your uncle on drugs at the time?"

Johnson: "?"

Conina spread her hands. "Based on your description, it sounds a lot like some kind of hallucinogenic psychotropic drug."

"How is that possible?" Johnson retorted indignantly. "If he were a drug addict, would I believe him?"

"Then what does he do that makes you trust him so much?" Conina asked.

"He works for capital," Johnson said. "You're all older than Jenny and me, so you should know better than us that 80% of the world's wealth is controlled by capital, and secrets are the same. To some extent, they can even manipulate governments."

"So, do you know who the biggest capital in Holkodo—and even the entire West拉克尔 State—is?"

"The Floris Family."

Johnson raised his chin proudly. "My uncle works for the Floris Family, so of course I believe him."

"That's why I suggest we enter the forest tonight."

"Let's find the spring as soon as possible and lift the veil of mystery from this world!"