“Are you sure this is where we are supposed to be?”

To seek the treasure you desire
Embark on a quest none will admire
‘Neath the grounds of a sycamore
At the end of Rue de Fleurs

Rima folds the well-worn piece of paper with the poem and stuff it back into the pocket of her jacket. She must have read it a hundred times. “I’m sure. This is the only street that is always sprinkled with fallen flowers. Can’t be anywhere else.”

“Remind me why we are doing this again?” Yellup whined.

“Because! You promised you’d go on adventures with me, and this is it.”

The pair walked down the street that was lit intermittently by the street lamps. It had rained earlier, and they could smell the damp in the air.

“Look! I think we’re finally here.” Rima said excitedly. “This must be the tree in the poem.”

They approached it cautiously, though there were no sign of any obstacles in sight. Somewhere on the horizon, an owl hooted.

“Why couldn’t your father have left you something more cheery? Like, a lifetime worth of ice-creams or money, like any normal parent would?!”

“My father isn’t an eccentric explorer for nothing…Shhh!”

Rima thought she heard a noise, but it was just the leaves rustling in the wind. “Right, start digging then.”

Yellup brought out the tools grudgingly from their backpacks, picked a spot behind the tree randomly and started digging. “This had better be worth it.”

After a while, Rima’s spade made a thunk. Wordlessly, both of them threw their spades on the grass and knelt down. Rima swept the soil off of what looked like a heavy metal box. Then she realised it was a trapdoor…and it has a digital lock.

Next to the lock, there was a laminated note:

Yellup poked at the screen of the digital lock. The screen came to life with a small beep, and displayed all the letters of the alphabet.

“What’s that?” Yellup whispered.

But Rima’s head had already started working.