Interrogation (Second Update)

"The backlash from the Sealed Artifact had limited his mobility. Less than a day had passed, so he couldn't have gone far. And according to the Scene Replay I just performed, he didn't take the subway—he left the station directly!"

"Those who suffer backlash from Sealed Artifacts of the 'Devil' sequence usually develop an intense craving for human souls filled with desire. They use them as sacrifices to the Devil in order to calm the backlash."

"So, Abner, here's the question: where nearby do you think people's desires are strongest, and where would they be easiest to kill?"

Detective Isengard led the way ahead while explaining his analysis to Abner and Xio beside him, then asked the question with interest.

"The strongest desires... Could he be at a nearby brothel or in the residence of some noble or wealthy merchant?" Abner asked after thinking it over.

Isengard was instantly speechless. Was his student putting customers of prostitutes and nobles on the same level? He could only offer a hint. "Human desire isn't limited to that sort of thing... Besides, this is Cherwood Borough. There are no brothels here... And nobles' and wealthy merchants' residences may have bodyguards. Killing rashly without investigating first would easily end in failure."

Abner nodded thoughtfully. After all, he was a Transmigrator. His understanding of this world and this city was still rather superficial, so it was only natural for him to make incorrect guesses due to his lack of experience.

At that moment, Xio cut in directly. "A bar! Cherwood Borough may not have brothels, but many women desperate for money go to high-end bars to find targets! Men looking for women naturally go there as well... On top of that, bars definitely have underground casinos and all kinds of entertainment. That's where the largest concentration of people driven by desire would be!"

"That's right, little girl, you're absolutely correct! There are four bars in all of Cherwood Borough. One is far from here, so we can rule it out. Two others are particularly upscale, requiring introductions to enter, and they're not far from Saint Wind Cathedral. Members of the Mandated Punishers Squad might be inside relaxing and having fun, so those can be ruled out too. The last is Blue Spirit Bar, three blocks away, and the traces I found point there as well!" Isengard nodded approvingly.

In a corner of Blue Spirit Bar, two groups of five or six drunkards faced each other with bottles in hand. At first, they merely cursed at one another, but the insults rapidly grew uglier. Then came shoving and jostling, and a full-blown brawl seemed ready to erupt. Yet in an unnoticed shadow beside them, a figure quietly emerged. With a cruel smile, he raised the Three-Edged Stinger in his hand, intending to take advantage of the chaos to create a bloody incident and drive the situation completely out of control.

He succeeded. The sudden bloodshed made both sides, already on edge, completely lose their heads. They grabbed whatever weapons were at hand and attacked one another, making the scene even more chaotic!

The figure appeared from time to time along the edges of the crowd, and each appearance took another life.

After all those dozen or so people had fallen into pools of blood, he cautiously emerged from a shadow outside the bar. As he wiped the blood from the Three-Edged Stinger, the assassin suddenly sensed that something was wrong. Such a huge conflict had failed to draw the bar's security, and he had only realized such an obvious flaw now!

The moment that thought crossed his mind, he decisively tried to slip into the shadows and flee far away.

Unfortunately, his attempt at Shadow Sneak failed! At the same time, he seemed to hear a command formed in Ancient Hermes by his ear: Shadow Sneak is prohibited here.

"Judge"! "Nightmare"! Those two words surfaced in his mind, filling him with terror. How could he possibly deserve the combined attention of a Sequence 6 and a Sequence 7?

Before he could finish that thought, a pleasant floral scent drifted into his nostrils. He inwardly cried out in alarm, but before he could react, he completely lost consciousness.

Only then did an illusory curtain seem to shatter. The people who had supposedly died in the brawl raised their glasses again and resumed drinking competitions, with the whole place as lively as ever, as if the bloody fight had been nothing but a dream.

"It really was a dream! A combination of Nightmare, Judge, and Apothecary abilities took down a Beyonder who was at least Sequence 8 without a sound. And that was with these abilities being far weaker than their originals..."

As Abner and Xio secretly transferred the captive into a secluded alley nearby, both were awestruck by Detective Isengard's methods.

Meanwhile, Isengard removed the ring from his hand and introduced it to them with a smile. "This is one of my Beyonder items. Its former designation was '2-081.' It came from a Sequence 6 Reader who suffered Loss of Control. It allows me to identify, see clearly, remember, and simulate every Beyonder Ability I've encountered. The stronger the Beyonder Ability being faced, the greater the chance of failure. Of course, even if it succeeds, there will definitely be a significant gap from the original."

Abner had known about this item for a long time, so he did not think much of it. Still, he secretly wondered whether, since the ring had been formed from a Beyonder's Beyonder Characteristic, he might truly be able to use the Pure White Eye to analyze a Potion formula from it. It seemed he would need to observe it more carefully when studying at his teacher's house.

Xio, however, asked in confusion, "'2-081'?" Since she was not an official Beyonder, she naturally did not understand the meaning of the designation.

"Many magical items have rather obvious hidden dangers and can cause a certain degree of harm. Therefore, the churches of the seven orthodox Gods collect and seal them, calling them Sealed Artifacts and distinguishing them with numerical designations."

"After lengthy disputes and exchanges, the Seven Gods Church formed a unified naming system, using '0,' '1,' '2,' and '3' to indicate different danger levels. Among them, Class 0 is the most dangerous. They are said to be terrifying items capable of destroying nations or even the world."

"The churches of the seven orthodox Gods notify one another about Class 0 and Class 1 Sealed Artifacts, informing each other of what they possess. Therefore, Class 0 and Class 1 designations are never duplicated. Class 2 and Class 3 are numbered separately, so different churches may have the same designation."

Isengard gave a brief explanation. During this time, the three of them dragged the attacker to the corner of a deep alley. The great detective crouched down and lifted a manhole cover from the ground, revealing a pitch-black hole beneath it.

"This is one of the Safe Houses I dug. Go down without worry. There's no danger."

Xio and Abner exchanged looks, drew deep breaths, and jumped down. Isengard, meanwhile, descended step by step using the ladder along the side of the hole, then casually pulled the cover back into place.

Only after lighting a candle did Abner discover that this was not truly a sewer well, but a cave roughly twenty square meters in size and four meters deep. There was also a door on the eastern side of the cave, though he had no idea where it led.

"That leads to the real sewers nearby! If we get trapped, that side is our emergency exit." Noticing Abner's gaze, Isengard offered an explanation before clapping his hands. "All right. While the effects of that sedative haven't worn off, let's interrogate this attacker. I previously learned a Telepathist ability, which should make him tell the truth."

Neither Abner nor Xio objected. They also wanted to know whether there was another mastermind behind this man.

"My name is Turner. I'm a Sequence 8 Instigator, affiliated with an organization called the Gnosis Society. My superior is a Witch named Lina. I've always communicated with her alone and have never met any other members of the organization."

"More than half a year ago, the organization gave me a mission through Lina: sell people to several human traffickers without alerting the churches... So I used the false identity Sick, joined a loan shark gang, and planned to digest my Potion while completing the mission. Thus, I instigated the gang leader Rosen to create loan contracts filled with traps. Then I used my Beyonder Ability to convince borrowers to blindly accept the contracts, causing many families to be ruined before abducting and selling their relatives to complete the mission."

"A month ago, because my performance was good, Lina suddenly appeared and rewarded me with a Beyonder weapon, the Three-Edged Stinger. I asked when she would give me the Sequence 7 Potion formula, but she meaningfully told me that my resolve was still insufficient. Then she left."

"As for that badge, I found it while confiscating a debtor's property. It's a powerful item capable of cursing Beyonders through emotions! Unfortunately, it was damaged when the curse backlashed earlier. I don't know if it can be repaired."

"Also, I later confiscated another strange badge. It looked ordinary and had no apparent function, but the writing on it made me think it might be a token from some organization..."

As Turner spoke with vacant eyes, Isengard frowned. He searched Turner's pockets and, sure enough, found another badge.

"Is this it?"

"Yes!"

The three then focused their attention on the badge. It was only the size of an eyeball. Symbols representing Fate and Concealment were engraved on its front, while a ring of compact, tiny Ancient Hermes inscription covered the back:

"Those who hold this may join."

Abner still could not read Ancient Hermes, but Xio beside him immediately read out its meaning.

"Perhaps it's a clue to some treasure!" Isengard suddenly became interested. As a Detective, he loved solving mysteries.

Abner, however, shook his head. This badge had been introduced in the original novel. He had not recognized it at first, but upon hearing the meaning of the inscription, he immediately remembered and said to Xio and Isengard:

"This is proof of membership in the Fate Hiddens Gathering. It is also a communication device and a tracking device."

"Fate Hiddens... What is that?" Isengard looked at his student in confusion, while Xio also turned her gaze toward him.

"It was a secret organization established by several Marauder families during the middle to late Fourth Epoch. Most of its members were connected to the Marauder sequence." Abner did not intend to say much, offering only a brief explanation.

"Abner, you know quite a lot about the secrets of the Fourth Epoch!" Isengard remarked with mild amazement, but did not press further.

I actually know quite a bit about the Third Epoch too. I'm just afraid I'd immediately be finished if I said it. Abner mocked himself inwardly before continuing to question Turner.

"How often do you contact Lina? Does she know that you were cursing Xio?"

Two updates—please vote and bookmark.

(End of Chapter)