You Are Here to Arrest Me?

"Yes, hello... I'm Inspector Trainee Hai Na. I made an appointment yesterday, and I'm here to investigate the attack on Mr. Iver Moriarty."

A young woman in a blue-and-white uniform, apparently around twenty years old, stood nervously and helplessly before the gate of a manor, clutching her peaked cap.

Her chestnut-brown curly hair was tied into a ponytail behind her, and she had a high nose bridge. Her lake-blue eyes were filled with the panic of someone who had messed something up.

"...I-I'm sorry. The district Bureau of Supervision had an emergency inspector meeting... Another warehouse explosion occurred in the White Queen District yesterday. Traces of fire elementals were detected at the scene, and a Demon Scholar was suspected to be involved—I think it may have been the wanted criminal who attacked Mr. Iver the day before yesterday!"

As Hai Na spoke, her voice grew quieter and quieter. "S-so..."

"—So you took it upon yourself to attend an inspector meeting that you were not actually required to attend, and arrived... two hours and twenty-three minutes late?"

A stern, aged voice rang out from the other side of the iron gate. It had a peculiar, drawn-out intonation—the distinctive elven accent of the people from the royal capital.

The old man clicked shut the jeweled pocket watch in his hand, drew it back to his chest, and stared sternly at Hai Na.

Standing opposite Hai Na was a tall, thin elderly elf dressed in a butler's uniform.

The wrinkles on his face resembled tree bark, while his dark-green pupils were closer to a wolf's eyes than to lake water.

The old elf appeared to be nearly two meters tall. With his hands behind his back, he looked like the ghostly shadow of a dead tree beneath the moonlight. His straight, pine-like back remained motionless, radiating tremendous pressure.

Although Hai Na was technically still a Trainee Inspector who had yet to graduate, she had passed her graduation assessment early and could receive the Queen's badge of office at any time as a provisional inspector. She only still wore the trainee insignia because the griffin assigned to her was still on its way.

By rights, she should not have been so afraid of a butler.

But the old man before her was different.

Because this aged elven butler was her instructor.

Although he had followed an ancient agreement and served the Moriarty Family for many years as a butler since the founding of the nation... he had also once been the Chief Inspector, stepping down eighty years ago.

"—I thought you would arrive even later, Miss Hai Na."

With both hands behind his back, the old butler spoke in that elven accent that always struck Hai Na as somewhat arrogant. "Young Master Iver was attacked by a Demon Scholar the day before yesterday and remained unconscious until last night. But when he heard that the Bureau of Supervision would be coming to ask him some questions, he voluntarily gave up going to Glass Stair Sanatorium and cooperated fully. He merely took some medicine, then dragged his weakened body to the fireplace and waited for you for two hours. I have also waited for you at the gate for two hours.

"It is almost dark now. If you were to be any later, you might as well arrive tomorrow. And since you have already arrived tomorrow, I suppose one week of recuperation would not matter either. According to the Bureau of Supervision's rules, any case for which an appointment order has been signed must receive a result within a week of being filed. With Miss Hai Na's excellent character, which allowed her to graduate early, I am sure you will have no trouble finding that Demon Scholar.

"Since you have already arrested the criminal and brought them to justice, why trouble my poor Young Master Iver? You should go back. I will explain things to Mr. Kent."

Kent was the director of the White Queen Division Bureau of Supervision. Even after Hai Na became a full inspector, Kent would still be three ranks above her.

If the old butler's tone had not been so sarcastic, she would have turned and run immediately, leaving this troublesome matter to her superiors. The problem was that she was actually still a fourth-year student.

Although she could be said to wield tremendous influence at school, she had not graduated yet.

She lacked the social experience to determine whether the old man was seriously making such a suggestion or merely mocking her. But her instincts told her that if the old man had not truly intended to do this and she foolishly ran away, she would really be in trouble.

"...I'm truly sorry."

Thus, Hai Na could only lower her head and apologize first. "I'll apologize to Mr. Iver as well."

Regardless, she had made an appointment and then arrived so late without informing anyone beforehand... She was indeed in the wrong.

She looked at the iron gate separating her from the old man, and her thoughts began to drift unconsciously again.

The black wrought-iron gate was decorated only with understated thorn patterns... It did not look like the residence of a prestigious family.

In fact, Professor Moriarty—the adoptive father of Iver Moriarty, the person involved in this incident—was indeed a low-key, steady, wise, and learned good man. Professor Moriarty had also been Hai Na's university teacher, responsible for astrology, astronomy, and Advanced Mathematics.

He had inherited the Moriarty Merchant Guild and owned three museums. He had even funded the construction of the only planetarium in the White Queen District. Despite being so wealthy, he quietly devoted himself to scholarship at the university. He had also funded many orphanages and adopted many orphans, making him a remarkable and benevolent great man.

Her captain had specifically warned her before she came that the Moriarty Family was not merely wealthy, but also a Founding Family served by elves. Although the family head, Mr. James, had a gentle personality, she still needed to be extremely careful.

According to the rules, once any direct participant in a demonic incident was out of danger, they had to be placed in Precept Locks and escorted immediately to the local Bureau of Supervision, where a Law Master would conduct a mental examination. Only after their innocence was confirmed would they be sent back to a hospital or sanatorium.

This was because the identities of the ritual master, ritual participants, ritual mentor, and sacrifice in a demonic ritual could not be distinguished simply by determining whether the victim was injured.

Since the sacrifice had survived, the ritual had most likely failed. Although a sacrificed victim would not necessarily die, they would usually be killed to silence them. Therefore, when there were wounded people rather than corpses, the injured person was not necessarily the sacrifice. There was also a considerable possibility that they were connected to the ritual.

Yet this rule had somehow become ineffective now.

Director Kent had acted like a blind man, completely ignoring the clue right in front of him. Only after the old butler had contacted Director Kent and arranged today's meeting did he seem to have "suddenly remembered" the matter. And when she came, the Bureau of Supervision had not even assigned her an accompanying Law Mage. They had merely sent a Trainee Inspector without a griffin, armor, or sword to come alone.

Such blatant favoritism...

Hai Na felt that even if this matter really were related to Iver, she probably would not be able to take him away.

But precisely because of the scale of the arrangements, she instead felt... that perhaps the incident really was related to him.

...That must be nice.

He was merely a commoner orphan who had been adopted. He had only been lucky enough to catch the professor's eye and be taken in. Yet now he had become a great figure whom the Bureau of Supervision could not touch...

Standing at the gate, Hai Na stared blankly ahead and thought sourly.

But at that moment, the iron gate suddenly began to open slowly.

She raised her head in astonishment and saw that although the old man's expression remained emotionless, he somehow seemed much less angry.

The old elf glanced at her silently, then slowly walked back with his hands behind his back.

Hai Na stood stunned for a moment before realizing that he was telling her to follow.

She hurriedly put on the cap she had been holding against her chest and quickly followed him. But after taking only a few steps, she remembered that she needed to turn around and close the gate. When she did so, however, she saw the manor gate closing by itself.

Not only that, bright runes began to glow on the inner side of the ordinary-looking iron gate.

The sunlight slanted, and the evening breeze died down. Hai Na vaguely felt as if something invisible had enveloped the area, changing the atmosphere of the manor.

"I was not trying to give you trouble either, Miss Hai Na."

Although the old elf was walking ahead of her, his voice, much gentler now, rang precisely beside her ear. "But when you make an appointment with someone, you must honor it. If you agree to meet at a certain time, you must meet at that exact moment—not early, and not late. Yes, perhaps the consequences of breaking the rules at school are not so severe. But there are also no Griffin Knights patrolling the streets at school, no Law Mages accompanied by armed knights conducting regular audits of every company's tax records—and no inspectors like you who can directly arrest suspicious individuals.

"Everyone in this country values 'rules.' The Bureau of Supervision, the Law Court, and the Arbitration Hall protect not only Her Majesty the Queen's will, but also the many rules established by Parliament.

"I will forgive you this time, and I will not tell Mr. Kent about your mistake. I will say that you arrived on time, but after learning about the matter, stayed for two cups of tea and indulged in some pastries.

"But that is because Young Master Iver is kindhearted. When you were an hour late, I had already decided to call the Bureau of Supervision. Young Master Iver stopped me. He said that people should always be given a chance... No matter what reason there was, you had to meet first before deciding anything."

The old elf spoke slowly as he walked. Only after a long while did he reach the entrance of the manor.

In the next moment, his voice lowered slightly, yet it still rang clearly in Hai Na's ear. "Although Avalon has no so-called 'nobility' like other nations, the descendants of the Founding Families are equally noble. Without the sacrifices of those twenty founders, everyone would have died—even the Queen must respect their descendants.

"I felt your sincere apology, so I have provisionally forgiven you for breaking your promise. But you might want to think carefully about whether you offended someone or stood in someone's way... As I said, this was an inspector meeting that did not require your attendance."

Hearing this, Hai Na suddenly froze.

The old man, who had reached the entrance, turned around elegantly and bowed slightly to Hai Na. "Please follow me, Miss Hai Na. The young master has been waiting for quite some time."

Only then did he put on the butler's mask and welcome his guest.

His earlier attitude had been more like that of an instructor facing a disappointing student.

With her mind in utter confusion, Hai Na followed the old elf toward the sitting room.

The sensation of the soft carpet beneath her feet startled her. She raised her head, intending to ask whether she needed to remove her shoes, but the old elf's calm composure left her uncertain. Thus, she could only follow behind him uneasily, feeling the sudden warmth of the winter fire.

Only then did she realize that she had made an old man stand at the gate in the winter evening and wait for two hours.

Filled with guilt and shame, she did not know how to speak.

Even her suspicions of Iver had somehow been strangely diluted by this remorse.

And so, she met the somewhat wild and dissolute Iver Moriarty.

He was sitting in a wheelchair, a blanket draped over his legs.

His pale, frail face was completely bloodless, while his appearance—seventeen or eighteen at most—was handsome in a way entirely different from Professor Moriarty.

He wore a pure-white fleece dressing gown and looked as if he had just come out after taking a bath. His smooth platinum-blond hair reflected the warm glow of the fire. He was quietly and intently reading a book before the flames, his exquisite features carrying a gentle air... that made her think of poets and the fire rising in her family's hearth.

The beautiful scene looked like a painting. Hai Na instinctively widened her eyes.

But at that moment, the young man seemed to hear something and deftly turned around together with his wheelchair.

Only then did Hai Na notice that he was sitting in a wheelchair.

...Was this the price of being attacked by a Demon Scholar? At some point, she had instinctively discarded the possibility that "the Demon Scholar was Iver."

The young man looked over, his deep-blue eyes like the sea.

"Madam Hai Na."

His clear, refined voice carried an air of nobility, its magnificence matching his appearance.

Compared to his frail face, his voice was more energetic, and it was also very polite. "It is a pleasure to meet you. Hello.

"—Are you here to arrest me?"