Chapter 33: Fortunes Change in the Blink of an Eye

Having spent about ten minutes in the church, the "Butcher" rose silently and headed out, with Lynn following closely behind as usual. Pausing briefly at the church door, Lynn noticed that the people leaving seemed somewhat uplifted, although not entirely transformed, from the gloom that had shrouded them earlier. Reloading their weapons, Lynn glanced ahead absentmindedly. This glance might not have been as significant as meeting a soulmate, but to Lynn, it still held considerable sway over his life.

Across the street from the church sat a bookstore, positioned seemingly in juxtaposition to religion and science.

Confirming it was indeed a bookstore due to its open doors and shelves filled with books, along with a bespectacled old man with a white goatee sitting at the entrance engrossed in a thick tome, Lynn called out to the "Butcher," pointing to the bookstore and then to his wrist, extending all five fingers on his right hand, indicating he would return in five minutes.

Whether interpreted as five minutes exactly or five minutes to six o'clock, the "Butcher" showed no surprise at his subordinate's action, merely nodding slightly before heading back to where their comrades had gathered earlier.

The bookstore hinted at dictionaries, perhaps even a crash course in German. With these thoughts in mind, Lynn almost jogged to the bookstore's entrance. Seeing the bespectacled old man paying him no heed, he entered without delay. Despite the imminent threat of the enemy's advance, the bookstore remained stocked with a variety of books, though it remained uncertain whether they would escape the ravages of war.

Relying on his limited knowledge of English phrases, Lynn attempted to locate the section housing dictionaries. However, he soon realized this tactic was ineffective, given the potential differences in categorization practices between bookstores of different countries, and the German text on the shelves and books was no easier to decipher than the language spoken by the Germans outside. He then attempted to find a collection of thick-skinned books, but many ordinary books were bound in hard covers. At his wit's end, a weathered voice sounded from the entrance.

Turning around, unsurprisingly, it was the bespectacled old man addressing him. Although his speech was not rapid, Lynn still couldn't comprehend a word. Unsure of how to express "dictionary," he struggled to convey his needs, attempting to piece together English words: "english－geman－book!"

While the old man's reaction was not unexpected, he cautiously regarded Lynn as if he were a monster—or perhaps a spy.

Seeing this, Lynn quickly retrieved his soldier's ID from his pocket, tapping his chest and saying, ""Danish people"! "Danish people"!"

""Danish people"?"

The old man's eyes shifted to a curious expression as he gingerly took Lynn's ID, glancing at the photo before repeating Lynn's earlier broken English: "english－geman－book?"

Lynn nodded eagerly.

Returning the ID to Lynn, the old man then made his way to a shelf in the northeast corner—his shaky movements making Lynn wish he could assist, but the narrow aisles between the shelves allowed only enough space for two people to pass side by side. Once there, the old man promptly retrieved a small yellow-covered book from the top shelf, hesitated briefly, then moved to another corner to fetch a slightly thinner book from the bottom shelf. Returning to Lynn with both books, he said "good luck" before returning to his own reading at the entrance.

Curious and hopeful, Lynn picked up the small book. Its simple cover bore four lines of text, with the top two lines unfamiliar to him, while the bottom two lines immediately accelerated his heart rate:

english－geman

geman－english

Thank the heavens, the earth, the gods of the East and West, and the almighty creator—this was the "artifact" Lynn had longed for!

What a remarkable English-German and German-English pocket dictionary! Hidden in the farthest corner of the bookstore and contrary to Lynn's expectations, if it weren't for the old man's assistance, Lynn would have likely had to search the entire store to find it.

Turning to the other book, only "geman" was recognizable to Lynn; the rest of the words might as well have been in a foreign language. In the past, this situation would have left him helpless, but now armed with the "artifact," Lynn immediately began using it, flipping through the pocket dictionary to find corresponding English explanations: "German Daily Conversations."

Having suffered the frustration of language barriers on the battlefield, Lynn was nearly overcome with happiness. With these two extraordinary tools in hand, shouldn't the road ahead be smooth sailing?

As he left the bookstore with the two invaluable books, Lynn could now say "thank you" to the old man in German. In his era, many people chose to wander alone in foreign lands for various reasons, and for them, cultural differences and racial discrimination were secondary—the language barrier was often the first obstacle they faced, leaving many with nostalgic memories of their early days. Now, Lynn found himself in a similar situation, where the world around him seemed filled with voices but remained as monotonous as black and white to him.

Approaching the "Butcher" and their comrades, Lynn never felt they were particularly friendly, though he couldn't yet communicate fluently with them—that was only a matter of time!

"It's almost six o'clock!"

The "Butcher" glanced at his watch—unbeknownst to Lynn, they had been in the bookstore for over a minute. Lynn, engrossed in his dictionary, had just finished learning the first lesson in "German Daily Conversations": time. Understanding the other's words felt to Lynn like regaining his hearing after being deaf, as if the world were finally embracing him for the first time, filling him with an indescribable joy.

The "Butcher" seemed oblivious to any change in their comrades as he silently made his way to the blacksmith's shop, his expression seeming somewhat more relaxed than before entering the church. Following closely behind the "Butcher," Lynn thought to himself: it seemed that not all Germans during World War II fought solely under the influence of their leader and fascism; religious beliefs still provided significant spiritual support for many.

They soon arrived at the blacksmith's shop, where the "Butcher" addressed the old blacksmith, who didn't pause in his work but shouted something that Lynn couldn't understand. Following that, a young soldier in a German 36 field uniform emerged, handing a shotgun to the "Butcher." This young soldier, looking barely seventeen or eighteen, had a handsome face and a shy demeanor—a prime example of a "foreign cutie" in Lynn's era, sure to attract attention from older women on the streets of China.

Unfortunately, on the battlefield, guns showed no favoritism toward handsome or ugly men, treating them all equally. In team combat, it was safer to choose rugged, manly types like the "Butcher." Lost in these wandering thoughts, Lynn found himself handed the shotgun by the "Butcher." In that moment, Lynn did something that even he found puzzling: after receiving the gun and inspecting it, he casually pulled the trigger with his thumb and then, without a second thought, pulled the trigger again with his index finger.

Bang!

The sharp, deafening shot startled Lynn and everyone around him. Lynn, suddenly brought back to reality, was astonished by his own recklessness—thankfully, the barrel wasn't aimed at anyone, or the situation could have been much worse!

Before "The Butcher" could react, another voice, a baritone, suddenly roared from a different direction. Lynn turned his head in confusion, noticing the wisps of smoke still emanating from the shotgun's barrel.