West Borough, 6 Edward Street.
Ikanser Bernard adjusted his black top hat, pointed to the house door behind the fountain, and said to Klein, Isengard, and Kaslana:
"We reverse-engineered the various channels through which the information and data were leaked, and combined this with the sketched profile, as well as other assistance from the Magic Mirror, we have preliminarily identified a suspect."
When you mentioned the Magic Mirror, you clearly paused for a moment, and I wonder what price you paid to get the answer you wanted... Klein noticed the problem with Ikanser's tone and felt a strange sense of sympathy for him.
"The owner of this house?" Kaslana asked almost with certainty.
Isengard Stanton looked around, as if deep in thought, and said:
"You chose to notify us directly because you found other corroborating evidence?"
"Yes, the portrait of the house's owner proves something; oh, he never had his picture taken," Ikanser answered frankly. "Also, the locals have seen a large black dog in the neighborhood many times."
"This basically proves that the target is indeed that ' Apostle of Desire.'" At this point, Isengard suddenly chuckled, "Sorry, we were too hasty, and you didn't even have a chance to introduce the suspect."
As Ikanser walked around the fountain and toward the front door of the house, he spoke quickly:
The owner of this house is Patrick Jason, a major shareholder in a small bank. According to his neighbors, he is a cheerful, warm, and optimistic middle-aged man who has never married but is believed to have had several mistresses.
"At his social class, he was severely understaffed. Every time he held a dinner party or ball, he had to hire a batch of temporary waiters from the ' Metropolis Help Domestic Servants Association.' His explanation for this was that he had sleep problems and too many servants would disrupt the peace and quiet he needed."
"It's clear he has many secrets to hide, so he doesn't dare hire too many servants," Isengard said half-jokingly.
Klein, who hadn't hired a single servant, said somewhat guiltily:
"Perhaps it's simply because his financial situation isn't as good as everyone thinks."
"Yes, that's a factor we can't rule out." Isengard stepped onto the stairs and arrived at the main entrance.
Ikanser glanced at Klein, then said as if suddenly realizing something:
"You don't hire servants, only having the landlord's maid do temporary cleaning twice a week, is that to cover up your secret that you are Beyonder?"
Of all my secrets, this is the smallest... Klein said with a forced wry smile:
"Yes."
As he spoke, Ikanser reached out and pushed open the front door, and an indescribable stench wafted out.
"The smell of decay..." Isengard made the judgment instantly.
Ikanser called over a member of the " Machinery Hivemind " squad:
" Carlson, what did you find?"
The Beyonder named Carlson, wearing thick-lensed glasses, said with a complex expression:
We found many bodies here.
"In the cement of the basement, in the thick walls, in the overgrown garden, lie corpses, the earliest of which may date back more than a decade, and the latest of which are those servants who were still alive just a few days ago."
"Some of them are nothing but bones, others are only slightly decomposed. Deacon, this place is like a human slaughterhouse!"
As he spoke, members of " Machinery Hivemind " and carefully selected police officers carried out one corpse after another.
Some of the corpses were completely dismembered, with tongues, fingers, stomachs, eyes, and other parts scattered haphazardly together; others were just piles of bones.
"It seems many missing persons cases in Backlund will be solved because of this," Isengard said with a sigh, pinching his nose.
Klein saw a piece of intestine that was almost dragging on the ground, sighed, and turned to examine the situation in various parts of the house.
Carlson, a member of " Machinery Hivemind," muttered two more words:
Jason pays his servants very well and gives them plenty of vacation time, which makes the servants of the surrounding residents very envious... Jason's cook even promised his child that he would come home this week to take him to the circus...
"What Devil..." Kaslana murmured, slightly moved.
Klein looked around, composed himself, and asked solemnly:
Why is the house so simply furnished?
"As a banker, even if he owns a small bank, Jason should have valuable porcelain, exquisite oil paintings, luxurious wall clocks, and various items made of fine silk. Why don't I see any of these here? Hmm, the wood he uses for his furniture is quite good."
Carlson glanced at Ikanser, and only after receiving a nod of agreement did he speak:
"It is clear that Jason had been planning this revenge for a long time, selling off valuable but inconspicuous items in the room one by one, and even agreeing to Bavant Bank's acquisition of his own property."
"After killing the servant, he sped up the process of obtaining cash, selling oil paintings and other items, seemingly well aware that he would be found and not harboring any illusions."
"Before the operation, all he had left here was the house, the furniture, and an identity; the large amounts of cash, precious metals, and jewelry had been moved to who-knows-where."
After hearing Carlson's description, several adjectives suddenly popped into Klein's mind:
Calm, rational, and crazy!
"A true Devil," Isengard remarked, then reasoned, "He's very clear-headed and calm, but also possesses a strong tendency towards madness and a penchant for adventure, which aligns with his characteristics in the previous two operations."
"So, we must be wary of his adventures?" Klein keenly grasped the key point in Detective Stanton's words.
"Yes." Isengard nodded solemnly.
Next, the Detective searched the house and found a lot of evidence that proved Patrick Jason was involved in something, including the portrait hanging in the living room.
The man pictured above has high cheekbones, Blue Eyes with a grayish tinge, ordinary features, and neatly combed hair; he has no distinguishing features whatsoever.
Just then, Ikanser entered and said to Klein and the others:
"We found some items in a secret room that confirmed Patrick Jason had attempted to summon a more powerful Devil, but for some reason failed. The items also confirmed his identity; he is a member of the Belial Devil family, and his real name should be Jason Beria."
The Beria Family? Klein nodded, unsurprised.
"In the ancient Quaternary period, the human forces that worshipped Devil formed a loose alliance called the ' Blood Worship Cult.' This organization was highly divided, with the three major Devil families of North, Andariel, and Belial standing in a tripartite balance. Their ancestors had all received gifts from the Abyss, and they worshipped an evil god called the ' Dark Side of the Universe,' believing Him to be the ruler of the Abyss and the destroyer who would inevitably erode and corrupt the entire real world and the vast universe." Isengard explained a few words to the wild Beyonder Klein and Kaslana.
Ikanser shook his head and added:
"In a highly divided organization, if there is no eventual split, fusion and unification are inevitable trends. Various circumstances and rumors suggest that the Belial and Andariel Family have been gradually declining since at least a thousand years ago, and in recent decades they have become vassals of the North Family. Well, the Beria Family's symbol is a combination of a pentagram and an abstract symbol of ram's horns."
Regardless, the Belial family remains a deeply rooted and exceptionally ancient one. No wonder Jason was able to raise an extra Devil Dog. Well, that's one reason. Another reason is that he runs a bank, even if it's not a big one... In the Second Era, the ancient god corresponding to the " Dark Side of the Universe " is the Devil Monarch Farbauti. Is there any connection between the two? Klein sighed and wondered.
After repeated searches, the three Detective and the members of " Machinery Hivemind " could only confirm that Patrick Jason was the " Apostle of Desire," but they were unable to locate his current position.
Klein, under the pretext of needing someone's help, took a handkerchief that Jason had used in the Devil- summoning ritual, intending to use it for Divination above the Gray Fog — Jason handled those things he was used to very well.
Not long after, Ikanser found them and said with a serious expression:
" The Nighthawks is bringing that Sealed Artifact; let's leave now."
"Okay," Isengard and Kaslana replied simultaneously.
As for Klein, he had already wholeheartedly agreed in his heart.
After leaving Jason's rather large villa, Klein looked back and his expression gradually became serious.
He said with a hint of doubt:
I think something's wrong.
"What's the problem?" Kaslana asked quickly.
Klein said carefully, "Selling the bank, the property, and many valuables in advance shows that Jason was prepared to give up his current identity and life. If it were just to avenge the Devil Dog, the motive wouldn't support such behavior."
"Perhaps he and that Devil Dog have a very deep bond? Sherlock, you probably don't think so, but I have indeed met people who treat their pets like family members," Kaslana said disapprovingly.
Isengard, standing beside him, solemnly said:
No, Sherlock is right.
" Kaslana, do you know what the ancient name for Sequence 8 of the ' Devil ' pathway was?"
Kaslana looked thoughtful; she seemed to have heard of it before but couldn't recall it immediately.
Just then, Klein answered for her in a deep voice:
" Cold-blooded."
"Cold-blooded..." Kaslana chewed on the name, and suddenly understood why the two great Detective Moriarty and Stanton, had said those things earlier.
Seeing her reaction, Klein pointed in another direction and said:
"We split up and started with our own channels."
After receiving affirmative answers from Isengard and Kaslana, he left in a hurry, but did not rush to find Emlyn White in the Bridge South Borough.
He needed to go to the Hissack Police Station first to retrieve his £50 bail.
He has been proven to be without fault, with testimonies from Isengard Stanton and the official Beyonder.