After the al, Alaric was inford that a ssenger from the palace was waiting for him at the main hall.
Before heading to the main hall, he sent Butch and Einar a look. "You two find Nivis as soon as possible."
"Yes, Lord Venerable." The two responded in unison and left with haste.
…
In the main hall, a middle-aged man wearing an inspector's uniform was seated on the sofa, waiting with a bored look.
Behind him stood two younger inspectors who seed to be his assistants.
They were in the middle of a conversation when they heard footsteps coming from the stairs.
They turned their heads and saw a young man with long silver hair dressed in a white and blue suit, looking incredibly sharp and handso.
Behind him followed a group of intimidating warriors who eyed them fiercely.
The three inspectors nervously stood up and bowed to the young man.
"Greetings, Your Highness! I apologize if we may have disturbed you. I am Jaymund Felton, a Senior Inspector of the City Inspection Departnt." The senior inspector said with an apologetic smile.
Veronica had a different departnt responsible for investigating various issues within the empire. They mostly handle local disputes and murder cases.
Astania also had a similar departnt, but compared to the organized system of Veronica, Astania's inspection departnt fell short.
Alaric smiled and waved his hand. "It's alright. Have a seat."
He motioned at them.
The inspectors took their seats. They were restless because they rarely interacted with bigshots like him.
"Just relax and tell what you ca here for." Alaric chuckled when he saw the look on their faces.
Jaymund Felton smiled in embarrassnt. He cleared his throat before he replied. "We received an order from the palace to cooperate with the imperial guards in investigating the murder of Astania's bishop."
At this point, his expression beca serious as he continued.
"To tell you the truth, we already have clues on this case, but all the evidence that our inspectors found at the scene suddenly disappeared."
Alaric frowned at his words. "How could you lose sothing so important?"
Sensing his displeasure, Jaymund imdiately explained. "Your Highness, this matter involves the heretic cult and it's clear that they have people in our departnt."
Alaric crossed his arms, his eyes looking cold. "If your inspection departnt is this rotten, how can I trust you guys? What if you are also part of the heretic cult?"
One of the junior inspectors looked annoyed at his remarks, but he was afraid to say anything. The other one couldn't even look Alaric in the eye and just hung his head low in silence.
Jaymund Felton sighed helplessly. "I understand your frustration, but I promise you that we are here to help."
He stared deeply at Alaric and said in a stern voice. "The inspection departnt might have so rotten apples, but there are still good people there. Please give us the chance to help you."
He stood up and bowed deeply.
The two junior inspectors also rose to their feet and bowed to him.
Looking at the three inspectors, Alaric's eyes eased up. "Alright. Since you ca here with good intentions, I will trust you. However…"
"You must report to imdiately once you discover sothing."
"I understand, Your Highness. We will do our best!" Jaymund nodded. He then took sothing out of his inner pocket. It was a piece of paper placed inside an envelope.
"This is all that we know about the heretic cult. It might be of help to Your Highness."
Alaric sent a signal to Scilla who was the closest to the inspectors.
Understanding his intentions, Scilla took the envelope from the senior inspector and handed it to Alaric.
He opened the envelope and read the docunt. Written on the paper was a list of people, including their basic information.
There were also specific locations of various establishnts which were believed to be the hideouts of the heretic cult.
Alaric skimd through the list of nas, but he didn't find Samantha's na on it.
"Are the nas here proven to be mbers of the cult or are they just suspects?" He asked as he handed the docunt to Scilla.
Jaymund Felton shook his head. "The ones who are proven to be mbers of the cult are highlighted. The others are still under investigation."
The mbers of the heretic cult were like slippery eels. They were difficult to catch. Even the veteran inspectors of the inspection departnt couldn't track their whereabouts.
"Are you saying that we might find sothing if we capture these people?" Alaric furrowed his eyebrows.
"That's right. The ones on the list are high-ranking mbers of the cult. If we capture them, we might find useful information." The senior inspector replied.
Alaric rubbed his chin.
He only brought ten people with him and most of them weren't skilled in tracking and investigations. Even if he were to help the inspection departnt in searching for the people on the na list, they wouldn't be able to provide much assistance.
"I will help you, but I will need manpower. Can you give that?" Alaric asked with a calm smile.
The senior inspector took a deep breath as he pondered for a mont.
He could sense everyone's eyes on him and the pressure almost made him feel suffocated.
"Your Highness, most of our inspectors are just normal people. They don't have the power to fight against knights and beast soul warriors." Jaymund was worried about his subordinates' safety.
He was afraid that they might have to clash with the mbers of the cult in the middle of the investigation.
Hearing his concern, Alaric reassured him. "You don't have to worry about that. I only need eyes. We will handle the fighting."
Jaymund deliberated carefully before he nodded. "Alright. I hope you will be true to your words, Your Highness."
Alaric smiled at him. "The imperial guards will assist us so most of the fighting will be handled by them. Your people will only help with the investigation."
Jaymund could only helplessly shake his head. If it weren't for the pressure from the imperial guards and the higher-ups of the inspection departnt, he wouldn't have accepted this difficult task.
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