They stayed at the hotel for the next few days. Rented four rooms because Zevryn didn't like sharing rooms with others. It was getting late, so they decided to take a break.
Anne entered her room, flung herself onto the minimalist bed, and closed her eyes. Some of the facts she got today were, Zevryn was out of town, Ralf was spending the night on campus, and whether to trust Marcus or not.
Instantly Anne was reminded of the piece of paper she had brought from the postbox. This paper looked new. Anne read and tried to understand the meaning of the writing.
"Antonym of Earth's revolution." Anne spelled.
"Shit. What does it mean?"
It should be known that Anne never liked anything about space, so she didn't know what earth's revolution meant.
The banging on the door from outside snapped Anne out of her reverie. She opened the door to see who was coming. Zevryn here. The man handed Anne a tray of dinner.
"Hey, I have something to ask."
"Shoot."
"What is an earth's revolution?"
"The rotation of the earth around the sun. It's counterclockwise."
Seeing the confusion on Anne's face, Zevryn explained it once more.
"If the earth's rotation is the rotation of the planet on its axis, then the earth's revolution itself is the event where the planet earth rotates around the sun. Like a globe, if you rotate it to find a country, you can call it earth's rotation."
Zevryn moved around Anne, "My current movement can be called an earth's revolution. You stand here as a substitute object for the sun that I rotate from west to east."
Judging by the look on Anne's face, Zevryn assumed that she had understood his explanation.
"Thank you, Zev. Don't forget to eat well."
"Will do."
Anne closed the door to her hotel room. She was beginning to understand the meaning of the earth's revolution. And now all she had to do was figure out what it meant. Antonym of earth's revolution? Was it earth's evolution? Or should she not look for the suspect? Or should she turn back to the 2022 century?
Let Anne sink into her thoughts now. Guessing which is the right answer. Because Zevryn's explanation is a sign of the opposite.
***
H-4 before incident.
Marcus commanded his friends to gather in the hotel lobby to divide the next task. This time Marcus decided to divide the tasks separately from each of his friends.
"Ralf is observing Carlisle's yard. If Carlisle has left the house, please give a signal so that Zev can enter his house and Anne to follow him again. Zev will find clues while inside the house. Anne, find something strange around you. And I will meet some of the people Carlisle met today."
After saying that sentence, they all headed straight to their respective positions. Zevryn rented a car with Ralf to make it easier to observe Carlisle's house. While from across the street, Anne was waiting while eating one of the street foods. Marcus was still silent in the hotel room, waiting for the signal from Anne while monitoring the CCTV from the glasses she was wearing.
With the duo who couldn't be calm, Ralf and Zevryn were in the car observing the surroundings of Carlisle's house. No, more specifically, only Zevryn was it. Ralf was busy eating his sandwich.
"Can you stop eating and focus on what's in front of you?"
Ralf looked at Zevryn, "All I have in front of me is a sandwich, and I've been focusing on that for a while."
"Just tell me if you want a sandwich too."
"Why don't you get a green tea? You think I like matcha?" Zevryn said.
"What's the difference between the two green drinks? They're both made from grass."
Zevryn grabbed the caramel frappe and finished it in one gulp.
"HEY! HOW RUDE OF YOU TO DRINK IT RIGHT AWAY!" Zevryn covered his ears due to Ralf's shouting.
"Noisy, stupid. Lower your voice, or I'll leave you here."
Ralf didn't accept, "This guy caught me off guard. Look up, you–"
Zevryn covered Ralf's mouth with a sandwich to prevent him from saying anything because Carlisle was already out of his house. The man looked like he was getting ready to go somewhere while carrying a big bag.
"Are you staying here or coming inside with me?" Zevryn asked.
"With you."
"Whatever."
Then Zevryn pressed a few numbers to open the door. They both immediately went inside. Anne said if they want to find out, go to Carlisle's private room on the top floor. There were several antediluvian bookshelves and a table. Ralf approached the table, seeing a picture frame of little Anne. And also, Marcus.
So, Anne and Marcus had been close since childhood? Why did they cover up that fact and act as if they met in middle school? Ralf took a picture of the frame using his cell phone, then turned to the drawer under the desk. He found nothing but paper, a map, and a gun. If taking all three would be easy to catch out, Zevryn took the map and Ralf photographed that paper.
Across the street, Anne was busy eating street food, enjoying the cold air, and eating any food and drinks. While waiting, Anne's pair of eyes caught a familiar male figure at the end of the road.
The girl approached as if she wanted to buy street food there without looking at the man.
"Roseanne?" He called out in half surprise.
Anne turned her head. They were equally surprised.
"How did you get here?"
"What are you doing here too?" Anne asked the same question.
"I had some urgent business."
The man continued his statement, "I saw Carlisle earlier. Did you come with him?" Anne nodded.
"I think he came alone. Well, I'll be going then, Ann."
After her friend left, Anne realized two things. Her friend shouldn't have been surprised she was here and should have known who she was with. Or maybe, they shouldn't have met each other.
***
To be continue.
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The Obfuscate
FantasíaTime machine. Interesting within different kind of philosophy. What would you do if you were found the time machine? Nothing, because you were shocked first. Anyways, have you ever heard of someone who enter a time machine? It is not real, right? Bu...
