The Return of the Cannon Fodder Trillion Heiress - Chapter 514

Chapter 514: Chapter 514 Solving A Little Riddle
After thinking it through, Hera decided not to follow the footprint immediately.

Instead, she took a careful second look around, making sure she hadn’t overlooked any clues.

This time, she examined her surroundings even more meticulously—not only scanning the ground but also inspecting the bushes and nearby foliage.

Despite her thorough search, she found nothing else that could lead her to Rafael and Minerva.

…

[XOXO: Don’t you think she looks like a pro spy or something? It’s like a scene straight out of a movie! She really seems to know what she’s doing.]

[AuntieNextDoor: Exactly! I’ve been thinking the same thing, but I was just so absorbed watching her every move. I even learned something new—those grasses she used? I looked them up, and apparently, they’re great for warding off mosquitoes and snakes!]

[HeraIsMySister: Ow ow ow! I also looked up why she’s using that stick to hit the bushes and grass in front of her. Turns out she’s driving away any hidden snakes to avoid accidentally stepping on them and getting bitten. My sister is really so smart…]

[PasserbyGod: Exactly! Don’t forget how well she did on that Variety Show—it’s obvious she’s spent time in the forest and picked up some survival skills. Everything she’s doing here is just smart preparation to keep herself safe.]

[HeraIsLove: That makes so much sense. I’m actually learning a lot from watching her, and beyond that, every one of her actions feels so cool and calculated. If I didn’t know better, I’d think I was watching a real thriller action.]

[DreamOn: Guys, let’s focus. This is serious—someone’s life is at stake. We should be paying attention.]

[HeraIsMySister: You’re right…]

[XOXO: …]

…

After a thorough search, Hera still found nothing.

She looked up at the sky, noting the sun’s position—it had already passed its peak, meaning afternoon was slipping into evening.

If she delayed any longer, night would fall soon, putting her at a disadvantage since she hadn’t brought any supplies in her earlier rush.

‘Seriously, who’s rescuing who now?’ Hera muttered, scratching her head in frustration as she looked up.

Just then, something on a branch caught her eye—a faint glimmer reflecting the sunlight.

She squinted, trying to make it out, but the angle kept her from seeing clearly.

Intrigued, Hera stepped closer to the tree’s base, examining its bark to see if it would be possible to climb up and get a closer look.

‘Looks doable to me,’ she murmured, eyeing the tree’s sturdy branches.

With that, she began her climb, moving carefully and deliberately.

Each step was precise—she couldn’t afford a slip-up now.

The last thing she wanted was to get injured and become a burden instead of helping.

After a while, she reached the branch and found the source of the sparkle—a man’s watch, carefully wedged into a small crevice in the tree.

It was hidden just enough to avoid drawing attention but still visible if someone happened to look closely.

Without a pocket, Hera tucked the watch into her cleavage to keep it secure as she climbed down.

Holding it in her mouth was too risky—one slip, and she might chip a tooth or drop the watch entirely.

This way, it stayed safe, and besides, with no one around, she didn’t worry much about appearances.

‘Yeah, better keep it here, safe and sound,’ Hera muttered to herself, unzipping her suit just enough to slip the watch inside.

…

[ILikeSexyLadies: Is that the infamous “woman’s pocket”? If you know what I mean… ]

[ILikeSexyLadies: d(ಠﭛಠ)b]

[OffaLoofah: Pfft! Didn’t see that one coming! (๑˃́ꇴ˂̀)]

[ISeeYou: I wish I were that watch… (⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)⁄]

[AuntieNextDoor: I’m a girl, but I think I’m having a nosebleed right now… Ugh, what a deadly move. ]

[HeraIsMySister: But, what’s a watch doing up there? Hmmm… ╮(•˘︿ ˘•)╭]

[XOXO: Maybe it got caught when someone climbed up there? ]

[Dreaming: Maybe it was a ranger’s watch? ]

[Watchamadoing: @Dreaming I don’t think so. That watch looks expensive. I’m pretty sure it’s an Omega brand, and the top models go for hundreds of thousands. That watch Hera grabbed definitely wasn’t cheap. ]

…

Once she made her way down the tree, she retrieved it and examined it carefully.

‘I can’t say for sure if it’s Rafael’s, but finding it here— tucked into a tree— doesn’t seem like a coincidence. Someone went through a lot of trouble to hide it there. Who else but Rafael would do that?’

She stared at the watch, noting that the hands had stopped, frozen at 9:50.

‘Hmm, this could very well be a clue Rafael left for anyone looking for him,’ Hera muttered, her right index finger tapping her chin as she examined the watch.

‘It might have been a gamble on his part, but the fact that it’s still here means either no one has come to look for him yet—or they haven’t seen this.’

‘If I remember correctly, a wristwatch can be used to tell direction… Hmm,’ Hera murmured, her eyes narrowing as she studied the time on the watch.

Suddenly, a flicker of realization sparked in her mind. ‘Wait… Maybe this 9:50 is a set of coordinates!’

‘But wait, a 9:50 coordinate might not even exist,’ Hera muttered, furrowing her brow.

‘Besides, the watch has already stopped, so it’s not like it could point to a specific location. What I remember about using a watch for direction is that it helps you find south, based on where the sun is. So, this isn’t going to work for finding a location.’

‘Hmm, I get it now!’ Hera exclaimed as she rolled up her sleeves.

There, on her wrist, was her own classy, expensive watch.

She glanced up at the sky and spotted the sun’s position.

Carefully, she shifted her stance, aligning her body so that the hour hand of her watch pointed directly toward the sun, as she’d read before.

This, she knew, should indicate south. Once she was sure, she turned her attention back to the men’s watch in her hand.

‘Hmm, I think this really is a coordinate, but instead of longitude and latitude, I might need to graph it on a map,’ Hera muttered to herself.

She quickly pulled out her phone, opened the map, and zoomed out from her current location.

Taking a screenshot, she began to use a photo editor to draw lines based on the numbers from the watch.

But after a few moments of analyzing the result, Hera scratched her head in frustration—nothing seemed to align.

She paused, then looked back at the watch, placing Rafael’s watch on top of hers. She blinked. Something clicked.

‘I guess it makes more sense if Rafael used the watch to indicate the direction he took, not coordinates,’ Hera thought aloud.

‘South is easy to identify when you’re in a forest, so anyone would just follow it.’ She adjusted the position of the watch in her hand.

‘So, if south is that way, then I can align Rafael’s watch with its 12 o’clock facing south. The 9:50 position— that’s the range of his direction!’

The direction she determined from the watch was the complete opposite of where the footprint led.

Hera paused, caught in a dilemma.

Should she trust the footprint and follow her instincts, or stick with the direction the watch suggested?

Hera clenched her jaw, making a swift decision. She bolted off in the opposite direction, determined to test her theory.