A loud knocking on the door jolted Unas awake from his reverie. He sat bolt upright in bed, his heart pounding. "Who is it?"
"It's me!" A familiar female voice rang out from outside the door.
Unas breathed a sigh of relief, put on his clothes, and opened the door. The silver-haired prosecutor appeared outside looking anxious.
"By the Holy Light, it's so good to see you're alright!" Whitemane's furrowed brows immediately relaxed upon seeing Unas open the door.
She went to the Inquisition early in the morning, hoping to take Unas out while the High Inquisitor, Celia, was at home resting, but she immediately heard the news of Todd's death and the riot on the Fifth Floor the dungeon.
Although the riot had been suppressed, dozens of prisoners were missing, including Unas and the Dark Priest, so she hurriedly ran to Gordon's hut to check on them.
Unas felt a warmth in his heart upon hearing her words; Whitemane still cared about him after all. He ushered her into the house, closed the door, and smiled, "What could possibly be wrong with me?"
"If something happens to you, my Resurrection, which I've finally gotten a bit started with, will be ruined halfway through." The silver-haired prosecutor forced himself to find a reason, unwilling to admit that he cared about Unas.
Unas was slightly disappointed by her words and turned to the important matter. "What's the situation at the Inquisition? Have they caught Todd's killer and the escaped convict?"
"It's complete chaos. Todd's secret passage has been found, but only a few prisoners who were lost and wandering around inside have been caught. When Attorney General Isillien learned of this, he was furious and immediately ordered the alarm bells to be rung and the entire city to be placed under martial law, vowing to capture all the escaped prisoners."
The old man was naturally anxious. He might not care how many prisoners Todd died or how many escaped, but Natasha's disappearance made him very wary. Being targeted by a Shadow Priest with a deep-seated grudge was no joke.
"What exactly happened after I left last night? I heard that Todd died in the Anti-Magic Room, and that's where the riot started. How did you escape? And what about that shadow priest?" A series of questions came out of Whitemane's mouth.
Unas didn't intend to tell her the truth. The silver-haired prosecutor was out of control, and he didn't know what the consequences would be if he spoke. So he made up a story, half true and half false. "After you left, Todd came and released me. It was our agreement."
Whitemane nodded to indicate that he remembered, Unas continued his fabrication, "For some reason, he suddenly went mad and opened all the cells in the Anti-Magic Room one by one. Several prisoners who might have had a grudge against him ran out, killed him, and stole all his keys. That's how the riot began."
"Things happened so fast and so bizarrely that I didn't even have time to react. I stayed in the Anti-Magic Room until the very end, when I saw a dark figure carrying that Dark Priest out. So I quietly followed them back to Todd's room and found that the entrance to the secret passage had been opened. I thought it was my chance to escape, so I went down into the tunnel. Luckily, I found the exit back to the surface. I had just gotten back here and lay down when you came knocking on the door."
After hearing his story, the silver-haired prosecutor frowned slightly. "I glanced at the preliminary statements of the prisoners in the Anti-Magic Room when I arrived. Todd's condition does match your description. He seems to be under some kind of spell. According to you, the person who rescued the Dark Priest is a prime suspect."
"That's what I think too. Maybe it was one of her accomplices who planned this prison break," Unas said, feigning ignorance.
Whitemane didn't doubt his words, but advised, "There will definitely be a city-wide manhunt for the fugitive today. You stay in this room and don't go out. The Inquisition is very busy right now, and I have to go back."
After seeing Whitemane out, Unas was exhausted. This woman was so busy, she wouldn't go to the tomb to check things out for no reason. He wasn't worried about being exposed, and even if she was, it wouldn't be a big deal. Under the circumstances, Natasha's riot was inevitable, and cooperating with her to escape that dangerous place as soon as possible was the best option.
He slept until noon when he was woken up by a knock on the door. When he opened it, he found several soldiers who had been ordered to search the Military District. Gordon's hut was completely empty and there was nothing to search. Unas dismissed the soldiers with a few casual words.
After eating something casually and having nothing else to do, he took Todd's safe out of his bag and spent a long time using Firekiss to finally pry open the lock. There wasn't much inside, just a few small black cloth bags and a thin booklet.
Unas opened a small cloth bag, Unas was immediately captivated. A dozen or so finger-sized, rhomboid rubies shone brilliantly. He quickly opened the other three small bags, and the sapphires, cat's-eye stones, and diamonds reflected light, instantly illuminating the small house in a kaleidoscope of colors.
In Lordaeron, where the kingdom was destroyed and the people were ruined, luxury goods were the least valuable. A bag of gems might not be worth as much as a sword or a set of heavy armor. But elsewhere in Azeroth, they were still very valuable. Unas had never seen real gems before, and he couldn't help but play with them for a while.
He picked up the booklet again and flipped through it. He was shocked to find that it was Todd's ledger of illegal prisoner trafficking, with every transaction clearly recorded.
The last entry clearly states: Date: Year X Month X Day, Trader Sally Whitemane, Goods Natasha Kings (Death Sentence), Received: Two Thousand Gold Coins.
This is definitely incriminating material. It records nearly a hundred transactions. Unas, the newcomer, is unfamiliar with the names on it, but if it were handed to someone familiar with the Monastery, they would definitely recognize most of the traders. If it were exposed, it would be a huge scandal.
Whitemane said the Inquisition's preliminary investigation this morning found dozens of missing prisoners, suggesting that most of them had already been sold by Todd, and that very few actually managed to escape last night.
Unas looked up two more times and another familiar name popped up: Date: Year X Month X Day, Trader Holiya Teu, Goods Jack Sanders (Life Imprisonment), Income: 300 Gold Coins + One Gnomes.
Holiya Teu is the former garrison Warden of the Venomspider Gorge who recently died in battle. Unas had planned to resurrect him, but failed because he had been dead for too long. It's unexpected that this seemingly kind young man would be involved in such illegal business.
One of the Gnomes was undoubtedly Emily, the Gnomes auntie Unas rescued. To put it another way, the story seems to be like this: Holiya, in order to rescue Jack Sanders, who was sentenced to life imprisonment, managed to raise only three hundred dollars, which was far from enough for the price Todd was asking for. With nowhere else to turn, he found out about Todd's special hobby, so he kidnapped a Gnomes to increase his offer.
I don't know what his relationship is with Jack Sanders, but it's worth him taking such a big risk.
Baron Tyrosus has always advocated racial equality. As the Argent Dawn's Warden stationed in Venomspider Gorge to protect the rights of other races, Holiya's act of kidnapping a Gnomes is a blatant slap in the face to Tyrosus.
Of course, these are all just Unas's speculations. It is unknown whether Holiya's death is related to this matter. If not, it can only be said that karma is cyclical and retribution is inevitable.
The One-Eyed Baron had done Unas a great favor, Unas naturally wouldn't condone this behavior. He took out a dagger, cut off the two transaction records between Whitemane and Holiya, and burned them.
Scrolling back further, I found another familiar name— the Erigor Nicholas brothers. This Kael'thas probably spent three thousand Gold Coins about six months ago to buy a prisoner sentenced to five years. Compared to other transaction records, it was clear that Todd had ripped him off.
He was really rich and capricious. Unas cut off the booklet and destroyed it. After looking through it several times to make sure he didn't recognize anyone, he put the booklet away.
It seems that Todd's prisoner trafficking was a semi-open secret among the higher-ups, yet no one was willing to touch him. Firstly, he provided convenience for everyone, and secondly, as more and more people traded with him, everyone became his accomplices, making him increasingly safe.
Unas didn't intend to use this incriminating material to blackmail anyone, after all, he was of low status and his own background wasn't clean, but it was good to keep it just in case, you never know when you might need it.
He rubbed his slightly dizzy head. He had been receiving too much negative energy these past few days, which was affecting his mood. He decided to stop thinking about anything and let go of the storms outside. Improving his own strength was the most important thing.
Sitting cross-legged on the bed and starting a tedious Meditation is far less exciting and fun than leveling up in a game, but little by little, it's a good way to pass the time.