The Archangel of Death - Chapter 92
92: Investigation 92: Investigation Chapter 92 “So you are here to know more about my son, Your Highness?” Rickston Rodor, the head of the Rodor household asked me while a servant maid poured us tea.
“Yes.
I have been assigned this case personally by the first elder on behalf of the church’s pope himself.
I don’t know the complete details but I am tasked with the duty to find out who the real criminal is.
Whether it is your son or someone else, I have to find the criminal in this case.
Whether it is your son or not, I don’t really care.” I explained myself in quite a detail so that he didn’t have many questions to ask to find faults with my explanation.
“The first elder must trust you a lot then.” He remarked which pointed to my history with Alicia.
Even though the case was dropped by Alicia herself, it didn’t mean that people would forget about it.
On the contrary, everyone thinks that Alicia withdrew the charges out of the kindness of her heart.
Everyone firmly believes that what Adrian did was true.
“That you would have to ask him yourself.” I simply gave an answer that would also give a calculative mind speculation that the first elder gave me an impossible case to berate my reputation.
“I see.” He simply replied while there was no change in his expression to define his inner thoughts.
“Then what do you want to know?” Rickston asked next.
“What kind of a person is your son?” I asked.
“He is a kind-hearted person.
Someone who would never do this.
This is why I so firmly oppose the charges against him.” He replied which was expected.
I mean, he wouldn’t tell me his son’s minus points now, would he?
“Then can you tell me what sort of company he had?” I asked next “My son is not as outgoing as others.
Something happened to him in childhood that caused him to cut himself off from others.” He replied.
“So he’s a loner?” I compiled his explanation to which he awkwardly nodded and replied, “Yes.
He is.” “So he has no close friends?” I asked.
“No.
None.” He replied.
“Not even you?” I asked next.
“Not even me.
In fact, I have to say that he hates me.” He replied to my inquiry.
“Why?” I asked.
“That would be because of what happened to his mother when he was young?” He replied.
“What happened to his mother?” I asked.
“I would rather not talk about this.” He replied with a sad look on his face.
Though I wasn’t sympathetic at all.
“You can either tell me or you can tell it in a court, in front of thousands of people.
Your choice.” I said which seemed to have hit a nerve as a brief irritated expression appeared on his face.
It was so brief that if even I wasn’t paying attention, I would have missed it.
But I’m sure he would know that.
“I still cannot tell you about it.” He replied keeping his sad façade up.
I sighed and countered, “If you do not tell me, it could be detrimental to your son.
I hope you know that.” “My family’s history has no bearing on this case.” He replied.
“Your son could have been through a traumatic experience that might have caused him to commit those crimes,” I argued.
“My son isn’t a criminal!” He yelled while standing up with anger flashing in his eyes.
He realized his mistake soon after and sat back down while apologizing.
“My apologies but it is not easy for me to bear so many things.
First the incident of my wife and now my son is being wrongly accused of something he didn’t do.
It is all just unfair.” His sad face and tone were back again.
[You’re not buying this, are you?] ‘What makes you think I am stupid?’ His earlier outburst of anger was nothing but a show.
This person before me had a calculative mind.
Since earlier, he had been observing all of my actions.
How I sit, how I move, and even how I talk.
Everything is being noted.
“Can I ask you something?” He asked when I didn’t reply.
He was not only trying to change the topic, but he also wanted to know something for real.
“Yes.” I permitted and he asked, “Why do you keep asking if my son has acquaintances?” And there it was.
His calculativeness.
Anyone else would have missed this small detail thinking that it was normal to ask about this but this man asked this key question with a very simple intention.
He wanted to know this question’s relation to the case.
“Due to my investigation, it appears that it was a two-man job.
It means there are multiple murderers.
Not only one.” I still chose to reply because I wanted to observe his expression but there was nothing.
Not even a flash of anything.
This man was good at what he was doing.
He wasn’t just a Duke for squat.
He was a real deal.
“I see.
Then you must know that it couldn’t have been my son.
Like I said, he doesn’t have such close friends.” He replied.
He doesn’t have friends that would go this far for him.
But the probability of a hired help cannot be avoided.
However, I doubt that someone hired would do something with such passion.
They would just get it over with.
Those girls were murdered with passion.
It is definitely someone who is close to Jack.
“Although you said that it is insensitive, but could you tell me something?” I asked once he was done.
He frowned but nodded nonetheless.
“After your wife’s death, did you remarry?” I asked.
He hesitated to reply but eventually replied, anyway, “I did.
It is one of the reasons my son doesn’t confide in me much.” “I see.
Is your wife back at the empire?” I asked next.
“Yes.” He simply replied while scrutinizing me to get my motive behind this question of mine but if he thought I was going to give him even the slightest clue, then he had another thing coming.
“Very well.
I will seek you again if there is something I need.” I said before getting up and turning to leave.
As per the decorum, Rickston should have walked me out but considering I am not his support, there was a fat chance of him even treating me to tea let alone treating me like a guest.
The only reason he did this was because his son was involved and he needed to keep himself in my good books.
===== This whole case doesn’t make sense.
Why would organ traffickers leave eyes behind?
Why would the victims have different colored hair sewn in their heads?
Why were the eyes green?
Why was Rickston hiding the information about his first deceased wife?
Who was the accomplice in this case along with Jack?
So many questions yet no answer to any of them.
My gut was telling me that if I could obtain an answer to even one of them, I would have this whole case solved.
I wouldn’t usually be invested in something like this.
However, this case is now important to me for two reasons.
One was how those girls died and the second was this.
[The will of the dead] [Someone has been targeting girls with blonde hair and green eyes.
Since such a combination is rare, the murderers are creating such conditions by using horrible methods.
Task: Find the murderers and punish them Reward: ???
Failure: None] So far I had only ever received three quests.
One related to Rose’s father, Gallard.
And the other two were related to Asmara.
All of these quests were forcibly involving me with the main storyline.
However, their difference was different.
The quest to Rose’s father and reconciling my engagement with Asmara had harsh punishment while the second brief quest with Asmara had no punishment.
So did this one which would mean that this wasn’t important enough to trigger a harsh punishment but it was also important enough for a quest to trigger.
Anyway, what I want to say is that this quest would have no detrimental effect on me but it would bear rewards good enough to satisfy me if I put up with it.
Now back to the case.
If I wasn’t sure that there were multiple criminals involved, then the quest description made me sure of that.
Considering that, I only need to solve the simple mystery of motive and this case would solve itself before midnight.
Today was Saturday.
It took me the entire Friday evening to question the members of the victim’s families and to also thoroughly examine the bodies.
I intended to solve this case by today because I wanted to focus on my training as well.
By now the slimes would have gotten to the point that I could easily level up to level 190 or even more.
Right now leveling up was important.
I wanted to do it before the third test.
I wanted to reach level 249 before that but not higher than that because then it would make me an A rank which would not allow me entry to that artifact.
Anyway, this was all for the future.
Right now I wanted to see what this quest reward would be.
Heading straight to the Lux villa, I immediately put in a request to be put in contact with the first elder.
I could have chosen the rest of the old men but among all the old men, the first elder is the only one with a strong sense of justice.
Even still, I had to wait almost three hours during which I practiced my skills before my request was granted and the first elder and I were connected through a crystal.
“Speak.” He curtly spoke.
I had no problem with getting straight to the point so I said, “I want to meet the wife of Duke Rodor.
Personally.” I added the condition because I wanted to observe her as well.
If she is the second wife, then she has a complex for being second even if she doesn’t know it.
I will target that which would get me all the information I need regarding the first wife of Duke Rodor.
I doubt I would need it though.
Maybe she will tell me everything anyway.
“Why?” He asked once again in a curt tone.
I took some time to explain the case in detail and didn’t miss anything.
Upon hearing the details, he said, “She will be arriving at your villa in an hour.” As expected, the first elder was the correct person to contact.
He wouldn’t seek entertainment like the two brothers or follow protocol like the stuck-up guard knight when a situation such as this was involved.
I once again got back to practicing my skills.
There were none of the girls here right now as all of them were busy with their own practice.
Rose was busy converting her mana to lightning while Alicia was doing the same only in light attribute.
As for Laura, she was still going through her breakthrough.
A few minutes before an hour was up, the head butler came to me and informed me, “Your Highness, the teleportation circle has been activated.” I nodded and headed straight for the reception room designated for the teleportation circle where I surprisingly found the divine-ranked first elder himself accompanying a deep black-haired woman.
“It’s a surprise, I will say it out loud,” I said without greeting the first elder.
“Humph.
I don’t care for anything else.
Solve this case and if somehow the citizens of the empire are involved, I will personally deliver punishment right there and then.” He replied with a harrumph that totally didn’t suit him.
But there was something strange in his reply.
“Were you not aware of this case?
After all, the empire agreed to neutrality.” I asked.
“We did not issue any neutrality agreement.
If I knew of this case in the first place, it wouldn’t have gotten to this point.” He spoke with considerable anger behind his words.
The crown prince it seems.
He must not have wanted to lose his supporters and I guessed correctly from the looks of it as the first elder mumbled, “I will be sure to talk to Orion about this.
Throwing his weight around when he doesn’t have any, that brat seems to have forgotten his limits.” One thing was sure, I had gained a very strong supporter in this case and now that even he was involved, this case was as good as solved.
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