Waver took off his soiled white gloves and stood up, saying to Lord Valualeta:
"To be safe, I'd like to confirm sothing with you."
"What is it? If I can answer, I'll certainly tell you," the old woman replied with a gentle and sincere attitude.
"I heard there was a recent underground auction?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"The star item of the auction was a legendary treasure."
"Oh, you've heard about that too? I almost forgot you and your professor both participated in that Eastern ritual, so it's natural you'd be interested."
Waver ignored the old woman's aningful glance and continued asking:
"Is this treasure the rumored item? Do you know who the final winner was?"
"If it's just this level of information, I don't mind telling you. The treasure is indeed the rumored item, and my presence here is not unrelated to this matter."
"Please enlighten ."
Waver's eyes lit up. He had only wanted to confirm sothing but unexpectedly got a pleasant surprise.
"That treasure is special. It's top-tier whether as a cursed object or as a catalyst for that ritual. So many magus ca after hearing about it, and the auction price was driven very high. In the end, only two people were left competing."
"One was the master of this place, Byron Valueleta Iselma, and the other was Atrum Galliasta."
Hearing the last na, Shinji's lips unconsciously curled into a strange smile.
Atrum Galliasta, a magus of Middle Eastern origin. People who knew him had one first impression: rich, very rich, extrely rich. He would buy whatever he fancied. Compared to him, the Edelfelt family that Luvia belonged to didn't even deserve to be called nouveau riche. Atrum was the true nouveau riche, owning dozens of oil fields, a super-rich man who didn't even know how much money he had.
Even Waver, who already held a high position, evaluated him this way.
"They're not even in the sa league. Although Iselma has a long history, they surely can't be a match for Galliasta in terms of money. Normally, Lord Byron should have lost, but since you're here because of this matter, does it an Lord Byron achieved the final victory?"
"That's exactly the question. I think the sa as you. Although magus often has assets from questionable sources and hides them through various ans, making it difficult to investigate, I can still guess the bottom line of Iselma. Moreover, Galliasta has a bad reputation, and given Lord Byron's personality, he wouldn't likely conflict with Galliasta over a treasure unless there was an unavoidable reason to obtain it."
Perhaps to remove her suspicion, Lord Valualeta was being quite forthcoming.
"Regarding the reason they couldn't back down, I can only think of the Golden Princess and Silver Princess. As a result, the completion level of this generation's Golden Princess is unusually high. At this rate, it wouldn't be surprising if she connects anyti. Honestly, I thought it would take a few more generations to achieve such results. Now that this has happened, hehe, there must be sothing hidden in between—you seed to have so clues earlier?"
"I do have so leads," Waver nodded, "but I still need so evidence. There are three elents to solving a case: whodunit, howdunit, and whydunit. The first two aren't very significant for magus, but the last one is an exception. If we can't clarify this, the matter isn't over."
"I see. It seems my decision to choose you as the detective wasn't wrong. I like you more and more. You must seriously consider my invitation."
Seeing that Lord Valualeta was still trying to recruit him even now, Waver couldn't help but smile bitterly:
"Is this the ti to talk about that?"
"Seeking the truth is seeking the truth, and the invitation is the invitation. Besides, no matter how this incident concludes, it won't affect much."
This was the true source of Lord Valualeta's confidence. As the head of one of the three long-standing noble families and one of the most influential Lords of the Clock Tower, such an existence couldn't be brought down by a small matter like this.
"Moreover, if you're willing to join, I wouldn't even flinch at the loss of five Iselmas."
The old woman's smile grew deeper, while Waver's expression beca more pained:
"You're overestimating . Anyway, let's understand this incident first. The cri scene investigation is over, the next step is to find last night's Golden Princess. Levi, go and invite Miss Aozaki, I need her assistance."
"Yes, Professor."
Glancing discreetly at Lord Valualeta, Shinji turned and walked towards the door.
At this mont, two familiar figures burst in, shouting.
"Professor, Professor, sothing terrible has happened!"
"We've discovered intruders, how should we deal with them?"
The one shouting was Flat, while the one excitedly calling out was Svin.
Hearing their report, Waver and Lord Valualeta looked at each other in surprise.
"Intruders? At this ti?"
"Where are they, and how many?"
"In the forest over there."
Flat pointed out the window.
"The number is about, um, twenty, no, more than thirty."
The young man's detection ability was as impressive as his infiltration skills. If he said there were that many, Waver would not doubt it.
"So many?"
Suddenly, the sun disappeared.
It was clouded.
Black clouds drifted over from the west, covering Iselma's land in an instant. The unnatural speed and scale would soon engulf the Twin Towers, Iselma's landmark building.
Low thunder rumbled in the clouds, and thick lightning bolts struck out, hitting the forest and leaving shocking marks on the ground, as well as an unpleasant burnt sll in the air.
"Is the goal to eliminate the land's protection of the Iselma family? But using weather magecraft at dusk has been the rule since ancient tis. It's only morning now, who could it be—"
If the land is damaged, the flow of magical energy would naturally beco more difficult than usual. Under a magus' managent, defensive magecraft would be applied to the land, and nullifying it first would be the rule for attackers.
Waver walked to the window, thoughtfully gazing at the dark clouds in the sky. The old woman standing beside him spoke with a deeper tone.
"I think I know who it is. Failed at the auction, so they want to rob instead? I don't dislike this quick and direct approach. But for them to choose to attack at this ti—should we say it's reckless? Or overconfident?"
Hearing Lord Valualeta's comnt, Waver also guessed the intruders' identity—Atrum Galliasta.
There were two main points in his reputation: a rich nouveau riche, and having a bad reputation.
His wealth has been explained, while his bad reputation is related to his domineering style. "What I want, I must get. If I can't buy it, I'll fight for it. If I can't win, I'll use the money to hire people to keep fighting until you submit!"
This lightning storm was Atrum Galliasta's greeting and ultimatum to Iselma.
Hand over the item now, or I'll beat you up.
PS: Atrum Galliasta was dea's forr master before she killed him in Fate/Stay Night.
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