Sir Rayne

After finishing the meal, the one who came to collect payment was none other than Young John, the missing tavern owner's son.

Young John was a mere thirteen-year-old boy, his face looking somewhat haggard; it seemed his father's disappearance had hit him hard.

"Sir, that'll be 176 Copper Pennies total."

Copper Pennies weren't currency issued by the Northern Wizard Alliance; they were coins minted within the Blizzard Kingdom, a smaller denomination than the Kingdom Silver Coin. One Kingdom Silver Coin could be exchanged for roughly 100 Copper Pennies.

Link handed him two Kingdom Silver Coins. "Keep the change."

John bowed respectfully and said, "Thank you, sir."

Link produced a badge—an investigator's identity emblem—and continued, "I'm the investigator handling your father's disappearance. I'd like to ask you a few things."

John was slightly startled, his demeanor growing even more respectful. "Please, go ahead."

"Your father seems to have owed a lot of money recently. Do you know what he did before he vanished that led to all this debt?" Link asked.

"I'm not sure about that either. But in the time before he disappeared, my father was pretty anxious. He just said the tavern business had been bad lately—the East Street Tavern opened up and stole a lot of our customers. If the creditors hadn't shown up at our door, I wouldn't have known he owed so much money outside."

John looked around the room with a worried expression.

"A few tables here are actually my father's creditors. They said they'd only give us a month's grace. If we can't pay back what he owes in a month, they'll take this tavern as collateral..."

What he left unsaid was that even handing over the tavern probably wouldn't be enough to clear his father's debts.

Link stroked his chin. "John, what about your mother? I remember she used to help out at the tavern a few years back."

John said dejectedly, "Three years ago, my mother divorced my father. Last year, she married Sir Rayne and became Lady Rayne."

Matthew raised an eyebrow. This Sir Rayne was also one of John's father's creditors. The story seemed to be taking a strange turn.

"Oh? Did you know Sir Rayne was one of your father's creditors?"

John's face changed color, and he shook his head. "I didn't know. After my father disappeared, I went to see my mother, but she never mentioned it to me."

Anna asked, "Was there any conflict between your father and Sir Rayne?"

John's expression darkened. "When my mother and Sir Rayne had their wedding, my father made a scene there. After that, I never heard of them having any contact."

Link had some ideas forming. He nodded and said, "If you remember any relevant information, you can contact the Security Station. We'll be going now."

After the three left the tavern, Matthew asked, "Should we investigate Sir Rayne first?"

Link nodded. "Actually, that new tavern on East Street is an investment by Sir Rayne."

Anna said, "That means Sir Rayne has a strong motive. Maybe he set a trap to make Old John rack up huge debts and seize his tavern."

Sir Rayne lived in a residence on East Street. He wasn't a wizard, so he hadn't inherited much of his father's property.

Sir Rayne's father was Old Baron Whyte, the one who had gifted Whitestone Manor to Lady Alsha. After his father's death, the barony was inherited by his older brother, Jack Whyte, who was a wizard.

Matthew and the other two met Sir Rayne and John's mother at Sir Rayne's residence.

After exchanging greetings, Link got straight to the point. "Sir Rayne, I hear you lent Old John a large sum of money before he disappeared."

Sir Rayne had a head of rather rare purple hair. Word was that one of their ancestors, a wizard, had attempted to alter their bloodline through a Magic Creatures bloodline fusion experiment, hoping to give all future descendants Wizard Qualification. But the Whyte family still produced descendants like Rayne without Wizard Qualification—the experiment had only succeeded in permanently changing the hair color of their offspring.

Sir Rayne said flatly, "Yes. He borrowed a sum from me and then vanished."

As Sir Rayne spoke, Lady Rayne shot him a guilty glance.

Lady Rayne looked to be only in her twenties, with a lovely face that showed no sign of being the mother of a teenage boy. Word had it she used to be a waitress at the West Street Tavern, and there was nearly a twenty-year age gap between her and Old John.

Link pressed on. "Do you know what he used the money for?"

"Probably to pay off debts." Sir Rayne's face twisted with contempt. "I heard he got hooked on gambling."

Link's expression shifted. "Do you know the people who got Old John into gambling? They're said to frequent the East Street Tavern."

"You suspecting me?" Sir Rayne curled his lip, looking displeased.

"It wasn't me!

They just like drinking at the East Street Tavern. That bunch are all members of the Mining Brotherhood.

That's what Old John told me when he borrowed the money.

Old John is a complete waste!

Back in the day, he'd get drunk every night and beat his wife and kid. Trina only made up her mind to divorce him after he broke her arm while drunk.

And now he's picked up gambling. If it weren't for feeling sorry for Young John, I wouldn't have lent him a single Copper Penny!"

Fortunately, this was a world with magic, where healing methods were far more advanced than in the Middle Ages. Sir Rayne had also been a regular at the West Street Tavern back then. After Trina's divorce, he started pursuing her, but the divorced Trina had grown afraid of marriage. It took two years before his sincerity won her over.

"The Mining Brotherhood?" Link fell into thought. The Mining Brotherhood was a cross-regional underground syndicate, with influence in all areas that had mines.

Nothing more came out of the questioning, so Matthew and the others took their leave.

Matthew asked, "What Sir Rayne said might not be true. Shouldn't we bring him back to the Security Station for a 'confirmation'?"

Link understood what Matthew meant. He said:

"Sir Rayne may not be a wizard, but he's a noble with a knighthood.

The Wizard Regulations don't allow detaining a noble without evidence."

"These non-wizard nobles are actually descendants of noble wizards within one or two generations."

Link planned to first find the Mining Brotherhood members.

Late night, Sir Rayne's residence.

The window of the Third Floor Master Bedroom suddenly opened, letting in a stream of cold air from outside.

An invisible barrier enveloped the room.

Sir Rayne was sleeping soundly but was jolted awake by a chill. In his drowsiness, he noticed the window in the room seemed to be open.

Bleary-eyed, Sir Rayne glanced at his wife beside the pillow and pulled the blanket up over her.

He got up to close the window, muttering, "The wind is so strong tonight?"

"Ah--!" Trina had woken up at some unknown time, letting out a terrified scream.

Sir Rayne shuddered violently, whipping his head around to see a black shadow suddenly behind him. He said in panic, "Who!?"

"Good evening, Sir Rayne." Matthew said gently. "No need to be afraid. I'm just here to confirm something."

"Your Excellency Investigator!" Sir Rayne recognized the visitor and exclaimed, "I answered everything truthfully at noon!"

Matthew's wand pressed against Sir Rayne's forehead.

Legilimency!