I Reincarnated into a Single-celled Organism! - Chapter 232

The membrane had only been a few cells thick and was bonded with a protein called a cadherin. When talking about the connections between two cells, particularly in a multicellular organism, one could come up with many different types of junctions that held two cells together. There were anchoring junctions, which were mostly there to provide stability and support. There were tight junctions, which were there to create a selectively permeable barrier, and there were gap junctions, which allowed the transport of molecules. Of course, one could also point out signal-relaying junctions, like what one would see in the nervous system.

When creating a camouflage skin, one might think that I would depend on the tight junctions that are needed. However, for camouflage to typically work, there also needs to be a rapid movement of both communicative molecules and proper chemicals. Thus, the cocoon I created was an assortment of anchoring junctions to maintain stability and gap functions to send signals rapidly. Besides being exceptionally weak and leaving me immobile, the other setback is that it was composed of specialized cells. These cells would not survive without the support of a system to provide nutrition, so from the moment I used these cells, they’d only last about ten minutes or so.

They were already dying by the time the guards closed their doors, and as they died, the barrier shifted from the colors of the walls to a dull grey. Perhaps, with more experimentation, I’d be able to create self-sufficient cells, more akin to fungi, which would have a much greater retention time. However, for now, this was the best I could do.

After the guards left, I waited for another minute, just in case. However, the treasury door had closed, and the locks had reset. Without another key delivered by the head of the family, no one would be able to reopen that door. In short, we had probably passed the point of danger. Tiffany grew impatient and finally pushed away from me. I let her go, and her body immediately tore through the cocoon as she took several steps back. With a single command, the entire cocoon broke apart, and the cells dissipated like dust.

She wiped her mouth and then glared at me. “Give me a reason I shouldn’t kill you!”

“I saved your life?” I responded.

“Is that what you call ‘saving’? I have never felt so defiled in my life!” she growled.

“We weren’t caught, were we?” I shrugged, stepping out from the corner.

I activated another sense that I had still only been experimenting with. I had the ability to sense heat, but now that I was mimicking human senses, I needed to adapt the other senses to apply to humans. That meant I couldn’t instantly activate night vision like the Predator. I was still working on perfecting both, how the eyes collected that information, and how my brain translated it. Still, after a few moments, my eyes went green for a moment. Tiffany looked like she wanted to say more, but when she noticed my eyes change color, her expression instead became curious.

“Two guards are watching the front of the treasury now.” I sighed, sensing two heat signatures on the other side of the door. “We’re not going to be able to leave that way easily.”

They were likely on high alert. If we opened the door, they would have already called out for help before we could deal with them. The treasury door was far too large and cumbersome to create a surprise attack.

“It’s worse than you think.” She huffed, putting her hands on her hips. “I would have told you earlier, but you didn’t give me a chance. My key only allowed one entrance. Now that we are locked in here, I cannot unlock the door to leave. Even if we wait a few nights to escape, it will be impossible.

I glanced over at her. “How does the key work?”

“Don’t tell me you’re thinking you can crack it!” She let out a laugh.

“Just humor me.”

She rolled her eyes. “Fine, it works like this. The treasury door is locked with an energy signature. The Blanche Family Head has the ability to provide that key. He doesn’t hand out an iron key. Rather, this is a one-time use energy token. It opens the gate once, and then the energy dissipates after.”

“How did you get one of these?” I asked cautiously.

“I’m explaining!” she responded sharply. “Alright, there are actually several keys at play here. The first is the secret key. This is a key that the Blanche Family Head has. Both the gate and the owner possess this key. It’s pretty much the skeleton key to access the gate, and has a constant connection with the gate.”

“Alright, I think I’m following so far.”

“When the Blanche Family Head makes a key, he’s actually making a pair. The public key is the one he hands people. Anyone can see this key and potentially use it. However, every time he makes a public key, a private key is also created. The private mark is the head’s inner energy signature, known only to him. If he uses his private mark to conjure a token, the gate recognizes the public mark and can verify that it’s genuine. That’s asymmetric encryption.”

“So, when the head creates a one-time key for someone…” I said slowly, “he’s signing a message?”

“Exactly. He’s signing permission into existence: ‘Allow passage into treasury, valid once, nonce 7239.’ He uses his secret key — his personal energy signature — to produce that public key. The gate holds the clan’s private key and verifies the seal. If the verification succeeds, the gate opens.”

“So, it doesn’t matter who is holding the key, merely that they’re holding it.”

“Correct,” she responded, and then turned pink. “There are some situations where someone will be handed a key and end up not using it. For the right money, they will be willing to sell it for some extra coin.”

“They’ll betray their household?”

“Even if you possess a key, breaking into a house is hardly so simple. They’re banking on you never succeeding and them never getting caught. Besides, the keys can also be refreshed and changed at any time. Even if you bought a key, it could have expired by the time you use it.”

“I see…”

She was right, it was far worse than I hoped. It wasn’t that the key had just lost power or no longer existed. The lock that allowed the key to work no longer existed either. This was truly a tricky predicament.

“Did you mean what you said?” Tiffany suddenly asked, causing me to blink and glance back at her.

“The technique… you’re really not related to the Frankford family.”

I snorted. “I’m not.”

“And… this technique.” She touched her pocket where a rolled-up piece of parchment was sitting. “Was given by the Stride family?”

“It was.” I shrugged, turning to look for ways to escape.

“Why do you want it?” she asked cautiously.

“Stealing powerful techniques is my thing. Have you not figured that out? I thought it was your thing too.”

She blushed as I looked back at her. “I’m just doing whatever is best for the Stride family.”

“Why don’t you ask them what they want you to do?” I asked while checking the walls for any cracks I could slip through.

“Tch.” Her expression turned bitter. “If my family had their way, I’d just shut up, sit in a corner, and marry the lord they ask me to marry. Jordan is our family’s future. I just do what I’m told.”

I paused for a moment. “Are you telling me your relationship with Timothy Boran isn’t pure?”

It was her time to let out an unladylike snort. “I’m being forced to marry him so my parents can get ties into the castle. Other houses try to suck up to Abigail Capala, but the Capala family is fractured and too busy fighting themselves to be able to be of use to other families. By marrying into the Boran family, we will rise to the top of Stormberg.”

“What about love?” I asked.

“Love?” she sneered. “Love doesn’t exist for paragons. I’m nothing but a tool. We all are.”

“That… might be for the best,” I muttered quietly.

I naturally couldn’t help but think of my own family. My mom had married a guy for love, and he turned out to be an abusive asshole. Then, my sister was willing to turn on her for the same man because she loved him. I died for someone else’s so-called love. Love was bullshit. I noticed Tiffany watching me carefully. I raised an eyebrow.

“Do you have a way out?” she asked.

“I have three,” I responded, causing her eyes to widen.

“Really?”

“Only one of them brings you with me.” I gave her a look.

“You…” She looked slightly alarmed, and I had to admit she was somewhat cute when she looked flustered.

“Don’t worry… my method will work,” I told her, “but, it’s going to get messy.”