At this moment, beside Miss Amy stood a noble girl of fourteen or fifteen. Her delicate face was filled with anxiety as she tried to pull Amy back. Meanwhile, the boy was tightly pinned between two noble guards, completely losing any chance to break free and slip away.
"Good afternoon, Miss Amy. What is this about...?" Sean asked Amy with a smile, his gaze sweeping across the crowd around them. Sean believed that a noblewoman like Amy had no need to falsely accuse a commoner, yet the situation had clearly reached a stalemate. Perhaps the boy had accomplices who had taken the purse away, leaving Amy hesitant to order her guards to arrest him outright.
"Ah... Brother Sean... Good afternoon. You came at just the right time..." Amy said happily when she turned and saw Sean, then noticed the soldiers following him. She immediately pointed at the boy. "Brother Sean, he's a thief. I saw him reach out and steal someone's purse..." As she spoke, a trace of grievance entered her voice, and she finished through gritted teeth.
After hearing Amy's words, Sean smiled. "I see. Leave the rest to me." He waved for Thor and the others to take over the task of preventing the boy from escaping, then examined the boy before him with an icy gaze.
"My lord, I didn't steal anything, I really didn't..." Under Sean's cold stare, sweat gradually beaded on the boy's forehead.
"Oh... how interesting. By your logic, are you saying this honorable young lady is falsely accusing you?" Sean looked at the boy with amusement. As expected, Sean's words immediately brought a terrified expression to the boy's face. In this world, for a commoner to question a noble's integrity was no different from suicide. Sean sneered again. "Are you questioning this noble lady's honesty? Do you know what kind of punishment such behavior will bring?"
The boy's face turned deathly pale, and he trembled as though he wanted to explain himself. Sean merely waved to the soldiers and ordered them to arrest him immediately. He then ordered Thor to take the soldiers and escort the boy to Linshui City Prison. The crowd of onlookers had no choice but to gradually disperse, and order returned to normal.
Sean had handled the matter so simply and forcefully for two reasons. First, it upheld the authority of the nobility, which would earn praise rather than trouble in this world. Second, it dispersed the ever-growing crowd and prevented an accident such as a crush or trampling.
"Miss Amy, did you see the victim?" Sean asked Amy with a smile. It was merely a routine question.
Amy rapidly shook her little head from side to side. After a long while, she looked disappointedly at the girl beside her. When she saw the girl shake her head as well, she said dejectedly, "They're gone. The person is gone... Brother Sean, what should we do... How about I go to the Garrison with you and explain everything..."
"It's fine, Amy. By the way, is this young lady your older sister?" Sean asked with a smile, changing the subject.
"Ah, I forgot. This is my sister Eve." Amy introduced her to Sean, then turned to Eve. "Sister, this is Brother Sean." After speaking, Amy seemed to remember something and added quietly, "We met this morning."
"Good afternoon, Miss Eve. I'm Sean Winchester. It is an honor to meet you..." Sean introduced himself and gave a nobleman's bow. Afterward, he pointed to his two friends. "This is my cousin Jim Horton, and my classmate Ben Tels."
"Good afternoon, three honorable gentlemen. I am Eve Weir," Eve said after giving Sean and the other two a lady's curtsy.
Jim and Ben immediately stepped forward and gave noblemen's bows to Miss Amy and Miss Eve as well. Before long, the young men and women, all close in age, began chatting warmly. More than half an hour later, Sean had no choice but to bid them farewell. "I'm very sorry to interrupt everyone's lively conversation, but I truly have matters that must be dealt with. Please forgive me for having to take my leave."
After hearing Sean's words, the newly acquainted friends could not help showing regret. Sean had to apologize repeatedly and emphasize that it was his duty, while suggesting that they spend time together on another day.
After smoothly leaving the square, Sean first returned to the guard post. After briefly mentioning the matter of dealing with the boy to Sergeant Donnie and ordering him to take over the watch, he mounted his horse and headed for the prison in the western district, near South City.
By then, Thor had already taken the boy to the Detention Room within the prison and conducted a thorough body search. Aside from the clothes he wore, the boy possessed only a few copper coins and an exceptionally sharp little blade that glinted with cold light.
When Sean entered the Detention Room, Thor was sternly questioning the boy about his identity and background. The moment he noticed Sean's arrival, he stood and greeted him. "Young master, you're here." Sean nodded with a smile and gestured for him to sit.
Sean walked past Thor and sat on the other side of the interrogation table. He looked coldly at the boy, whose hands were suspended above him, and asked Thor, "Have you figured out his identity?" As he spoke, his fingers began tapping rhythmically on the table before him.
"Young master, this kid is called Phil. He's sixteen this year. He lives in the slums of the South District. His parents are dead, and his only remaining family is an older sister named Alice, who is two years older than him," Thor reported immediately. Then, seeing Sean's slightly hesitant expression, he added, "Young master, one of the prison guards knows this kid..."
"Oh... Is that all he had on him?" Sean nodded in satisfaction after hearing Thor's report. He picked up the little blade from the table, then pointed at the other items as he asked.
"Yes, young master. That was all he had on him..." Thor nodded and answered with certainty.
Sean toyed with the sharp blade. He knew it was meant to be gripped between the fingers, used to cut the strings fastening purses or slash open pockets. Of course, under special circumstances, it could also become a weapon for murder.
He shifted his attention to the boy. The boy's hands were bound by iron chains hanging from the roof beam, leaving him half-suspended so that only the tips of his toes could barely touch the ground. This posture forced the restrained person to keep standing on tiptoe and was exceptionally uncomfortable. Sean knew it was not Thor's handiwork. Sometimes, discomfort tested a person's will more effectively than pain.
In Sean's previous life, police in his country were generally forbidden from using torture to extract confessions. Therefore, when habitual thieves were interrogated, they would often deny everything in every possible way. Some even eagerly waited for the interrogating officer to lose patience and strike them, so they could pretend to be dead or ill and escape punishment. Sean had once seen an interrogation method disguised as physical training, such as stretching ligaments or holding a horse stance. After such "training" continued for a certain amount of time, it became extremely uncomfortable. And then... everyone understood what came next.
Sean waited quietly for a while. Only when he saw sweat covering the boy's forehead did he ask without the slightest personal emotion, "Phil, have you thought it through?"
"M-My lord, I really didn't... steal anything. There wasn't anything... on me..." Phil said painfully, forcing the words out.
"Nothing? Oh, you mean we didn't find the purse on you?" Sean looked at Phil with an amused expression. Then, staring at the blade in his hand, he muttered to himself, "Maybe you swallowed the purse... Should we cut you open and take a look?"
As Phil widened his eyes and stared at Sean and the blade in his hand in terror, Sean seemed to come back to himself. Smiling, he raised the blade and suggested, "Or would you like to try swallowing this blade instead..."
"My lord, please spare me. I really am not a thief..." Phil immediately shook his head frantically after hearing Sean's suggestion.
Sean rose and walked over to Phil. He pressed the blade against Phil's neck, his icy gaze boring into Phil's gray eyes, which were filled with terror. One minute, two minutes... Under Phil's terrified gaze, Sean returned to the interrogation table and sat down.
Originally, Sean had intended to use the opportunity to pressure Phil and break through his mental defenses. However, when he touched Phil's body, he instinctively extended his perception and suddenly saw Phil's attribute values. Phil's attributes: Strength: 1.392 Constitution: 1.413 Agility: 1.489.
Sean was stunned for a moment in surprise, but this completely changed his original plans.
Under Thor's puzzled gaze, Sean immediately summoned a prison guard. The guards of Linshui City Prison were generally soldiers from the Garrison who had been wounded or retired. The prison was jointly led and managed by the Lord's Mansion and the Garrison.
Before long, a middle-aged prison guard heard Sean's summons and pushed open the door to enter the Detention Room. Naturally, two other guards waited outside as a precaution against possible resistance from the prisoner.
The middle-aged guard immediately smiled when he saw Sean. "Officer, what are your orders?"
"Keep this man locked up here for now. I'll come interrogate him again in a few days..." Sean instructed the guard, pointing at the suspended boy. After thinking for a moment, he added sternly, "Don't let him have it too easy... Understand?"
"Yes... yes... yes, of course. I will follow your orders, my lord," the middle-aged guard replied with a fawning smile.
Sean gave a soft grunt and stood to leave. When he reached the door, he thought better of it and pointed at the boy as he warned the guard, "Also, in a few days, I want to see him intact." Sean deliberately emphasized the word "intact." Sure enough, once he saw the guard nodding repeatedly with an expression of understanding and answering, "Yes," Sean smiled and left the Detention Room.
Sean had given that specific instruction because he knew that in a place like a prison, arranging an accident for a prisoner was far too easy. He only intended for Phil to suffer a little in prison, not to lose an arm or a leg and affect Sean's plans.
Although Thor was somewhat puzzled, he had always followed Sean's lead. He simply followed behind Sean and left the prison with him.
Phil's attributes had indeed surprised Sean. Inside the Barracks, he had inspected the attributes of nearly every soldier he had encountered. The average attributes of most soldiers were only around 1.2. The lower-ranking officers who had trained in the military Knight Secret Method barely reached an average of 1.4, while even exceptional individuals like Sergeant Donnie only averaged around 1.5.
A sixteen-year-old boy with no signs of training had an average attribute value exceeding 1.4. Sean could not help turning to look at Torr following behind him, then continued onward after seeing Torr's puzzled expression. Sean could only feel fortunate that his luck was truly excellent.
Before you continue