Mermaid Road, Blue Fish Inn.
Since the bloody case, coupled with the fact that it's not peak holiday season, the inn was deserted.
The only thing that comforted the owner was that three Inspectors, who were said to be investigating the bloody case, were staying at his inn, and they even used the room where the bloody case occurred.
You see, usually, a room like this would remain unoccupied for a long time, possibly even closed off for an extended period, affecting the occupancy rate of surrounding rooms and even the entire floor.
At this moment, in Room 204, where the bloody case happened, Lewis and the two others sat around a table, on which lay many items.
There were files, documents, the diary found in Ain's farmhouse, and a parchment filled with spells.
Inspector Lewis, with his prominent forehead wrinkles, adjusted his black-rimmed glasses, picked up the parchment, and said, "This was personally delivered by the Bishop of St. Witt's Church today. It's said that a child brought it to the Church a few nights ago. I suspect this is the spell mentioned in the diary, given to Paris, to pray for power from an evil god."
Putting an orange-yellow candy into her mouth, Martha, with her vibrant red hair, mused, "A child couldn't possibly obtain something like this. Someone must have given it to him and told him to take it to the Church. Didn't the Church try to find that child?"
Lewis took out his notebook from his pocket, opened it, and found the corresponding content: "I asked the same question. The Church's answer was that they did look, but the person who interacted with the child at the time was an ordinary priest, and it was at night. Due to lighting and other factors, he couldn't remember the child's appearance very clearly."
The Young Miss with long, wavy red hair quietly said to her colleague beside her, "It seems that priest is also a 'Nightmare,' otherwise, why would he have a bad memory like the Captain's?"
Lewis continued as if he hadn't heard Martha, "Furthermore, there are many such children in Enki Town, and even more on Kingston Road, so the Church found it difficult to locate that child again and ascertain who asked him to deliver such a thing."
Jeffrey, holding several promotional flyers for discounted goods, said, "I remember the Baron's son went to Paris's basement, and the diary also mentioned that the culprit was only one room away from that Young Master."
"If that's the case, could it be this Young Master who took the parchment and then sent it to the Church?"
Martha immediately took over the topic: "But don't forget, it was this Young Master who reported the case, which led the police to discover Paris's problem. If Lex took the parchment, why wouldn't he give it to the police or the Church, but instead choose to go through such a roundabout way?"
Putting down his notebook, Lewis picked up a cup of black tea but didn't drink it: "Assuming the person who took the parchment was indeed Lex, he must have done so to conceal certain secrets."
"For example, he can read Hermes; for example, he is a Beyonder. To conceal these secrets, he couldn't use his identity as Lex to do this."
After speaking, the square-faced Inspector took a small sip of black tea.
Jeffrey, whose skin was as pale as if he hadn't seen the sun for a long time, finally put down the flyers in his hand: "But Captain, didn't you visit him in a dream and confirm that he isn't a Beyonder?"
Lewis hadn't responded yet when Martha stood up and said, "If he were also a Beyonder, he could perfectly well not show any abnormalities in a dream. If he also used some magical items, it would be even easier to achieve."
Lewis, looking up, gently rubbed the lines on his forehead and said, "I think so too, and that Young Master said he was lucky to have repelled the monster called 'Goro.'"
"But that thing was a 'tool' created by the aura of a god. No matter how lucky an ordinary person is, it wouldn't be that easy to repel it."
Martha quickly looked at her neatly combed Captain: "You mean, he's suspicious?"
Lewis flipped through his notebook again: "According to the information provided by Kaosi, this Young Master's reputation in the Town wasn't very good before."
"But ever since he returned from a long trip, he underwent a change. On a side note, he was one of the survivors of the Clover. Do you still remember that case?"
Jeffrey nodded gravely: "I remember. It has been confirmed that the Clover tragedy was caused by an 'Instigator.'"
"Yes, in such a tragic event, Lex not only fortunately survived. Moreover, after returning, he began to make changes."
Lewis looked out the window and said, "Of course, many people reflect on their lives and make changes after experiencing major upheavals."
"However, having just experienced a tragedy caused by supernatural factors, and now being involved in another supernatural event, this is too much of a coincidence."
"The probability of experiencing two supernatural events consecutively within a year is very low, unless he was already part of this circle."
Martha nodded slightly: "I see. No wonder you, Captain, are suspicious of him."
Lewis then smiled and said, "He might be a Beyonder, or he might not be. Even if he is, judging by his act of giving the parchment to the Church, at least he is not one of those followers who worship evil gods."
Martha pouted and said, "Captain, you always look at things on the bright side."
Lewis smiled faintly: "Because I'm willing to believe in all beautiful things. Only then does our effort have meaning, doesn't it?"
"However."
He added, "I won't pin supernatural events on hope, so when reinforcements arrive tomorrow, they will bring something else."
"I will conduct a second review of Lex, even if he is a Beyonder with a righteous heart, but once a Beyonder loses control, it will cause disaster and cannot be left unchecked."
"Next, let's talk business..."
Just then, there was a knock on the door. Martha opened it, and outside was a sergeant, who said breathlessly, "Something's happened, officers, you might need to take a look."
Baron's Mansion.
Lex was in the bathtub.
Returning from White Beach, he quietly returned to his room with the skill of a Hunter, without alarming his personal valet. He filled a tub with warm water and soaked in it to relieve the tension from the previous battle on the ship.
Looking at the ceiling, Lex quietly said, "Some of the potion residue has been digested again. Playacting really works."
He recalled the process of Playacting as a 'Hunter' during this period, sorting it out and summarizing it.
"The most superficial Playacting should be, as Mr. Leon said, a Hunter needs to have patience, needs to actively gather information about the prey, and be familiar with the prey's habits."
"A Hunter is not a warrior, so he must know how to use traps to put the prey in a difficult situation, and then deliver a fatal blow."
"I have indeed been doing this, and in this process, I have been moved and am already able to Playact as a Hunter on a deeper level."
"Tonight's battle on the ship is a perfect example."
"A deeper level of Playacting for a Hunter should be..."