2000 pounds? That's enough to drive all the bounty Hunter and private Detective in Backlund crazy! It's not like " Admiral Hurricane " Qilangos, who's always at sea with a ton of men he can practically touch...
Hmm, a pirate with combat power comparable to Sequence 5 is worth 10,000 gold pounds, so Sequence 6 criminal should reasonably be priced at 3,000 or 4,000 pounds... Could it be that the Nighthawks Mandated Punishers judged that murderer to be Sequence 7 " Serial Killer," rather than a near-powerful individual about to advance to Sequence 5? Therefore, 2,000 pounds is quite an overpayment...
It's quite possible that " The Sun " said the ritual was extremely ancient, perhaps rarely seen since the Cataclysm, and that none of the major churches or the military have similar records... There's a problem here: the Church of the Goddess, the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery, and the royal Augustus Family could be said to have risen during the Cataclysm and are unaware of their past, while the Church of Storms has always insisted on being one of the oldest... Could it be that their claim to being the oldest still dates back to after the Devil retreated into the Abyss?
Upon hearing Isengard Stanton's words, Klein's first thought was to assess the bounty amount, and then his mind wandered, connecting it to many other things.
"What's your opinion?" Isengard asked, noticing that Sherlock Moriarty seemed a little distracted.
"My opinion? "Klein hesitated for a moment.
A normal private Detective would definitely agree, partly because of the generous reward, and partly because the other party is a famous Detective. Establishing a friendship with Isengard would bring great benefits within the industry.
The problem is that Klein isn't a typical private Detective, and he's worried about running into the Nighthawks in charge of the case while investigating clues.
Although I now have a beard, wear glasses, and have changed my hairstyle, the Nighthawks have only met me a few times certainly wouldn't recognize me. But what if I encounter Ms. Daly? Refusing wouldn't be right either; it would seem strange and arouse suspicion... Besides, I also hope to catch that Devil as soon as possible, otherwise, who knows how many more innocent girls will be harmed... Klein considered for a few seconds, then smiled slightly and said:
"I recently took on a very complicated case, so I'm afraid I won't have much free time."
Before Isengard Stanton could speak, he added:
"I can participate in discussions, help look through documents, and analyze clues, but I probably won't do any actual investigations."
"I'll do another Divination later. If there really is a problem, then we'll keep our mouths shut during the discussion and just be passive Spectator..." As he spoke, Klein quickly formed a coherent idea.
Isengard, holding the black cane, pondered for a moment and said:
"No problem."
"This time I've gathered over a dozen Detective, enough manpower for the investigation. What I admire most about you is your exceptional reasoning and analytical skills. Even without as many resources as I do, you managed to contact the East Balam Dock and the Dockworkers' Union."
"If we catch the Criminal and collect the bounty, I will distribute the rewards fairly according to everyone's contribution. Trust me, I still have some credibility in this line of work."
"Okay, it's a pleasure to work with you." Klein extended his right hand and shook hands with him, feeling the dryness and warmth of Isengard's palm.
For a gentleman in his forties or fifties to maintain such a feeling in the late autumn of Backlund is quite remarkable, which makes Klein even more suspicious that Isengard is an Beyonder.
"It's a pleasure working with you." Isengard nodded with a smile.
At this moment, Klein realized he had been somewhat impolite and quickly put on a smile, saying:
"Sorry, I forgot to invite you in. Shall we have some coffee and tea and have a good chat?"
"No need to be polite. I've arranged for the Detective to come to my house at nine o'clock this morning to discuss the case. My assistant is waiting for them there." Isengard took out a silver pocket watch with intricate carvings and a mechanical aesthetic, turned it on, glanced at it, and said, "We need to go meet them now. Is that alright?"
"No problem, I'll go to the restroom, change my clothes, and then I'll leave." At this moment, Klein suddenly rediscovered the feeling he had when he was Nighthawks —fighting crime, maintaining order, and protecting the people.
Inside the washroom, Klein went above the Gray Fog and obtained a bearable answer through Divination. He then quickly returned to the real world, put on his coat and hat, grabbed his cane, and followed Isengard into a taxi, where they sat on either side of each other.
Isengard glanced at him, and asked as if deep in thought:
"I'm curious, how did you discover that the murder of Shermane was related to the East Balam Dock and the Dockworkers' Association?"
I didn't notice... It was a misunderstanding... Klein seriously considered how to weave Lies.
He smiled and answered rather vaguely:
"The main point was to first determine that Shermane's death was due to a copycat crime. This was confirmed with the help of reporter Mike Joseph. Based on Shermane's route back to ' Golden Rose ' and other clues, I made my own guesses and then pretended to be a reporter to investigate."
Isengard nodded slightly, not wasting any more time on the topic, and instead gave a detailed account of the serial murders, which was more comprehensive than what was described in the newspapers, especially the latest one.
Time flew by amidst the discussions and exchanges, and the carriage arrived at a somewhat old building in the Hillston Borough.
The house wasn't very well lit; even though there wasn't much fog in Backlund today, it still seemed rather gloomy Isengard Stanton led Klein through the fairly spacious living room and into the sitting room, where the fireplace was already lit.
Klein looked around and saw fifteen or sixteen Detective, filling every available seat in the living room.
" Sherlock?" a surprised voice rang out, seemingly quite familiar with Klein.
Who? Klein looked over in slight surprise and found that Detective Stuart, whom he had parted ways with just yesterday, was here.
He looked more closely and recognized Detective Kaslana, who had previously been responsible for protecting Adol, and her assistant Lydia.
"What a coincidence." Klein smiled and approached Stuart.
Stuart squeezed to the side, making room for half of his bottom, and patted the seat, saying:
"Maybe it's not a coincidence. I read in a magazine before that there's a phenomenon in psychology called synchronicity—it seems like what you think about will happen. Haha, just kidding."
At this point, Isengard introduced the Detective present:
"This is Mr. Sherlock Moriarty, an excellent Detective."
With his endorsement, Kaslana and the others looked at Klein with significantly more trust, believing that he was indeed an excellent private Detective.
After Klein nodded in response, he sat down next to Stuart and casually asked:
"Is your commission over?"
"Yes, Adol's condition has improved, and those bad friends seem to have run into trouble too, no longer posing a threat to him, so we're unemployed," Stuart chuckled. "I was planning to take a few days off, but then Mr. Stanton summoned me, so I came to check it out. Actually, it's for the best. I really dislike cases that are a bit eerie or scary—I mean, the kind that's scary like ghost stories. I much prefer taking on murder cases!"
After his assistant poured everyone a cup of coffee or black tea and distributed the materials, Isengard sat down in his armchair, took out his pipe, and slowly stroked it, saying:
"I imagine you're all familiar with this recent serial murder case. What are your thoughts? Share them so we can discuss them."
Stuart, with his thin face and sparse beard, raised his hand and spoke first:
"I just looked through the files and discovered that the police didn't even start their investigation by identifying the deceased."
"I don't think the Criminal could recognize the victim as a former prostitute just by looking at her. He must have had contact with them. That's a crucial clue, and the police missed it! God, it's unbelievable!"
"I probably recognized that Criminal by sight..." Klein muttered to himself.
Most of the private Detective echoed Stuart's questions, except for Kaslana, Isengard, and two or three others who remained silent.
"This is a very important direction, Stuart. Ask a few friends to help you investigate carefully." Once the discussion had subsided, Isengard calmly offered his assessment.
For the rest of the time, the Detective expressed their opinions, sometimes arguing and refuting loudly, sometimes standing up and pacing to sort out their thoughts. Klein listened quietly the whole time without offering any comments.
As the exchange drew to a close, he suddenly raised his hand and said:
"I want information on all the unsolved serial murders in Backlund, and indeed the entire kingdom, from the last twenty years."
The room fell silent for a few seconds, and most of the private Detective were momentarily unable to understand Klein's intentions and thoughts.
Isengard brought the pipe to his nose, took a drag, and carefully began to speak:
"Do you believe the murderer is not a first-time offender?"
"You suspect he has committed similar crimes before, even if the methods were different?"
It wasn't doubt, it was almost certain... Klein answered in his mind.
This is his reasoning based on the information provided by the " The Sun ":
Since the killer was "striving" to advance from Sequence 6 to Sequence 5, what did he do during the Sequence 7 " Serial Killer " phase?
If he hasn't committed similar crimes, he'll have a hard time digesting the Potion. Even with time, there's a significant chance he'll lose control when progressing from Sequence 7 to Sequence 6, and Beyonder on the " Abyss " pathway are high-risk patients in this regard.
Therefore, Klein concluded that regardless of whether the other party understood " Acting Method," he must have committed serial murders for various reasons during Sequence 7.
In this way, it won't take the other party a few years to digest the Sequence 7 Potion. Even with Sequence 6, a twenty-year timeframe is a reasonable limit. This is because if the person is too old, regardless of whether the Potion has been digested, advancement will be quite dangerous. As the ritual progresses, the person will become increasingly insane, leaving obvious clues.
At this stage, the murderer is calm and collected, possesses the ability to interfere with Divination and tracking, and has almost no loopholes in his actions. However, he may not have been so inexperienced in his early days!
He was probably not that cautious when he committed his first serial murder!
This is the best clue we can follow up on!
Many thoughts flashed through his mind, and Klein nodded in response:
"That Criminal's modus operandi didn't seem like that of a novice."
"I have reason to believe he's done something similar before!"
"By combining the past and the present, we are more likely to grasp the crux of the problem."
Upon hearing his answer, the Detective whispered among themselves, and after a brief silence, Isengard exclaimed in genuine admiration:
"Great idea!"