Chapter 855: Chapter 688, Not a Single Trace Left Chapter 855: Chapter 688, Not a Single Trace Left The Steward's status in the local area was not low.
Before confirming that they couldn't return, would these ordinary guards dare to guard and steal for themselves,
putting the room's valuable items into their own pockets?
Wu Heng felt this claim didn't hold water.
The other Association members behind him were also staring straight at the other party.
Waiting for a reasonable answer.
The guard captain's face looked somewhat ugly, having not expected that returning to deliver money would get him targeted.
After hesitating for a while, he finally replied, “Your honors, there has been a misunderstanding, a real misunderstanding.”
“What kind of misunderstanding, let me hear it,” Wu Heng still looked at him.
The captain immediately said, “These things weren't taken by us, but rather, when there was chaos in the city, someone took advantage of the situation to enter and take them. Because it involved the local Steward, we retrieved some of the items, it's just… some of the people below were dishonest and split some off.”
He cautiously looked up before continuing, “Learning that the higher-ups from headquarters were coming to investigate, we feared it would bring about trouble, so we arranged for people to recall these valuables and bring them to you, sirs.”
The brows of Wu Heng and the others furrowed.
They had not expected him to come up with such an excuse.
Meaning, the items weren't taken by them, but retrieved loot, a portion of which was held back and split among themselves.
With people from the Association's headquarters coming to investigate, they felt uneasy, so they took the initiative to give it back.
“Once taken, if not returned, we would have had no knowledge,” Wu Heng said.
“Your honor, the City Lord's Mansion had issued an order not to stir up conflict with the Association. The money, once split, wasn't much for each person, and we feared it would cause trouble,” the captain continued, seemingly laying bare all the small team's matters.
Distributing spoils of war was a common occurrence across all ages.
When an Association's squad handled an issue, items seized could be split directly within the squad, and only important or special items would be handed over.
“Is everything that was distributed here?” Wu Heng asked next.
“Some couldn't be found, so we calculated the difference in value for you, and ask for your forgiveness, sirs.”
Hmph~!
The veteran mage, Dean Gianvito, snorted coldly.
The other Association members also looked displeased.
The people before them were either of high level or had substantial backing; none would care about such a small sum of money.
Yet, the items that couldn't be retrieved could very well be of great significance to the entire case.
Wu Heng also sized up the other party and didn't intend to inquire any more about the matter there.
He directly said, “Please accompany us back, Captain, so the situation can be explained clearly.”
“Ah? Your honor, I'm not clear on the remaining matters and probably won't be of much help,” the captain's complexion changed.
“Don't worry, it's just a simple inquiry,” Wu Heng glanced at the others behind him.
A few members of the Association's squad stepped forward and approached the captain.
The Guard Team behind the captain also began to grow restless, even preparing for combat.
“Don't move, don't move; I'll go back with you,” said the captain before turning to his subordinates, “I'm making a trip to the Association, take this matter back with you.”
Seeing that the other party was being cooperative, Wu Heng nodded, “It's good if you cooperate.”
In dealing with living beings, Wu Heng had limited options.
The only “Sincere Clay Doll” was obtained privately by killing an Association Inspector, and definitely couldn't be used here.
Not having a way didn't mean that others in the Association lacked one.
Among the accompanying members, a 15-level Priest possessed the ability to “Detect Lies.”
According to what Xi Ligui told him before leaving, this ability couldn't be detected by just anyone.
But the captain before them clearly seemed to be only around level seven or eight.
Discerning his words wasn't actually a huge problem.
After confirming that there were no clues on this end, they arranged for two Association members to stay temporarily, while the rest headed toward the opposite Association building.
Having just reached the gate, the Short person 'Ketan' who was sent to the city hall also returned.
“Hand him over to the Elder, and explain the situation while you're at it,” Wu Heng said.
The squad members took the guard captain into the Association.
Wu Heng then approached the returning 'Ketan' and asked, “How did it go?”
“Nothing found, none of the three names are listed with property or information,” the Short person replied straightforwardly.
Wu Heng's brow furrowed; the situation was proving to be more difficult than imagined.
No leads in either direction.
The veteran mage Dean Gianvito asked, “What do we do next?”
Wu Heng said, “Call out the local Vice-executive.”
One member went inside and soon returned with the local Vice-executive following.
“Your excellencies.”
“You've all said that many people have died in the city, where were the bodies buried?” Wu Heng asked.
“Burned, thick black smoke rose for several days in a row, the smell of burning corpses hung over the entire city,” the local Vice-executive said.
“All those bodies, all of them were burned?”
The Vice-executive pondered for a moment and said, “Some bodies of local residents with families were probably buried in the cemetery over there.”
“Take us to see it, also, prepare a carriage for Dean Gianvito,” Wu Heng said.
“Yes.” The Vice-executive nodded and started making preparations.
Before long, carriages and horses were brought over.
The veteran mage and Investigator rode in the carriage, while the others rode on horseback, following the local Vice-executive out of the city.
At the city gate.
The guards only asked a few simple questions before letting them through.
This was a complete reversal of the attitude they had encountered near the port in the morning.
Wu Heng and his party did not linger and went straight to the cemetery outside the city.
A glance revealed mounds of graves densely packed together.
Wu Heng took several masks out of the Space Ring and distributed them to the others, then ordered the Skeleton, “Dig up the graves, start from the front.”
The Skeleton swung its shovel, digging out all the bodies inside.
As each coffin lid was opened, the rich stench of carrion instantly spread.
Many instinctively stepped back, distancing themselves.
Wu Heng cast “Communicate with the dead” on a corpse, which sat up, its head turning as the eyeballs fell to the ground.
“How did you die?”
The corpse answered hoarsely, “Two groups fought, and they killed me.”
“Do you know anything about the Association's Steward?”
“I don't know.”
“During the civil strife in the city, was there any information you considered special?”
The corpse was silent for a while, then said, “The City Lord's Mansion claimed there were reinforcements, who would help defend the city…”
In the Association, Steward's Office.
Elder Tapani sat behind the desk, flipping through some previous documents.
Thud, thud, thud!
There was a knock on the door, and two 15th level professionals from the team walked in.
The Priest said, “Elder, the man was taken away by people from the City Lord's Mansion, we didn't get anything out of him.”
“Was everything he said true?” Tapani frowned.
“With his level, he couldn't lie in front of me. The group privately divided some things among themselves. We came here this time, and the City Lord's Mansion didn't want to get into a conflict with us, so they sent the items back,” the Priest replied.
“Did the Investigator record everything?”
“Recorded.”
During their conversation, there was another knock at the door.
Wu Heng, Gianvito, and others all walked in.
Tapani's eyes brightened, “What have you discovered?”
“We checked the Steward's residence and went out to the cemetery to interrogate the bodies, but so far, we haven't found anything,” Wu Heng asked in return, “What about that captain?”
“The Priest said, “He told the truth, and they divided the things privately.”
At this, everyone fell into silence.
The fact that the Association's people entered the city could not be concealed.
Therefore, Wu Heng and the others immediately began their investigation.
But after going around once, they hadn't found a single clue.
“Seems we're off to a bad start,” the Elder muttered, then said, “Wu Heng, what's your next step?”
“First is to collect information from other Secret Speakers, and if necessary, we can publicly offer a reward for information,” Wu Heng stated directly.
An association was unlikely to have only one Secret Speaker.
Perhaps other Secret Speakers could bring some valid news.
Publicly offering a reward for information was a last resort, and of course, it could damage the association's image.
“Could it be that an accident occurred, rather than a deliberate crime?” someone suggested.
Wu Heng didn't respond immediately but instead found a place to sit.
After pondering for a while, he said, “I'm thinking about a problem.”
“What problem?”
“There are no bodies, no place of death to be found, the houses were looted, and the Secret Speaker who went out to send the message died on the road, as if disappearing without a trace, leaving no sign behind.”
If you find any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report