The Warden of The Witches
Chapter 230

Chapter 230:

Serial Murders "This isn't a serial murder case, is it?

And related to blood-kin... doesn't that mean..." Aiden realized something. "

Correct. The two individuals arrested earlier have already been listed as suspects. Although one disappearance occurred after their arrest, since they belong to the same group, it's possible they committed the crimes separately as a team," Rebecca explained. "Of the two captured Viscounts, one was also active in the Red-light district, while the other hunted in several blocks of the Upper District. In the previous murder and body dumping case, the body appeared on the outskirts, but police investigation revealed that wasn't the primary crime scene; the deceased had been working in the Red-light district the night before. As for the two reported disappearances, one missing person is also a woman from the Red-light district, and the other is a resident of the Upper District, last seen in the exact area where the other Viscount was active." "Each person's area of activity matches a case..."

Aiden mused. Three vampires from the Blood Moon Cult: two hunting in the Red-light district, one hunting in the Upper District. Two victims were women from the Red-light district, and the remaining one disappeared in the Upper District... Was this Blood Moon Cult just killing people for sport across Silver City? "Both arrested individuals strongly deny involvement but cannot provide alibis.

Furthermore, it's a fact that they attacked living humans. So, for now, we can only detain them at the Bureau pending further evidence," Rebecca elaborated. "Of course, they'd deny it even if they were the killers. They're already fugitives, and blood-kin besides. Add heinous murder charges to that, and the death penalty is practically guaranteed." Aiden shook his head, then thought of Kyle, who had just been led away. "Well then, have you questioned Kyle previously?"

Normally, when a blood-kin-related case occurred, the Inquisition would certainly question any resident or registered visiting blood-kin. "We sent someone to question him. He has an alibi for the estimated time of the murder; he was on a long-distance train arriving in Silver City. He even showed us his ticket, and we questioned the staff on that train. They all remember him." Aiden nodded. Staff might not remember every passenger, but if a blood-kin presented a Non-human Personnel Management Permit to board, it would be almost impossible to forget.

"However, simply having an alibi himself doesn't absolutely prove he's unrelated to the events," Rebecca added. "Both Viscounts we captured mentioned that a blood-kin of higher lineage status than them was continuously supervising their actions." "You suspect that person is Kyle?" Aiden asked. "We're just considering the possibility. After all, high-ranking blood-kin aren't that common," Rebecca replied. "And he happened to arrive in Silver City recently." Aiden considered it. Kyle claimed to belong to the Progenitor Faction, opposed to the Death God Faction's Blood Moon Cult, and had come under orders to obstruct the Death God Faction's activities, while also visiting his sister

—but this was all just his side of the story. Kyle possessed credentials issued by the Netherlands and had been vetted by the Inquisition, so his identity likely wasn't fabricated. When Aiden mentioned him to Ophelia, her reaction hadn't revealed any contradictions either. Judging by Kyle's painstaking efforts to meet Ophelia, the part about visiting his sister was probably true. But the preceding claims could only be viewed with skepticism. If he was actually a member of the Blood Moon Cult, using a hidden identity to control other perpetrators while presenting a public persona to capture them and thereby clear his own name... it wasn't entirely impossible.

 "Speaking of which, I was actually planning to visit your workplace tomorrow," Rebecca suddenly remembered something. "Hmm?" "Over the past two days, we've had Kyle under light surveillance. We saw him wandering around the Red-light district and an antique-selling street in the Lower District. He also visited the slaughterhouse on the outskirts twice. Besides that, the surveillance team reported he went to Rose Iron Prison and dropped a letter into the mailbox at the entrance

—just yesterday." Aiden pondered this. Going to the slaughterhouse was likely to obtain blood for consumption

—most registered blood-kin usually consumed processed blood products, but some with more particular tastes preferred to buy fresh blood directly. Visiting the Red-light district was probably to investigate Noaferatu's whereabouts, which matched his own account.

As for the antique street, it might be a personal interest; many blood-kin, due to their long lifespans or the influence of their internal culture, had aesthetic tastes lagging behind contemporary humans, preferring antiques and old goods for decoration and daily use. And then, dropping a letter at Rose Iron Prison was for... Aiden's expression suddenly stiffened. He remembered

—yesterday, that guy had mailed him lewd pictures as a bribe. The crucial part was Rebecca mentioning this now... "Could you tell us what exactly he sent you?" Rebecca asked the very question Aiden had anticipated. "Er..." Aiden faltered for a moment. "He wrote me a letter, requesting an opportunity for him and Ophelia to meet. I refused."

"But, the surveillance team said..." Rebecca hesitated slightly, "...that he stuffed a thick stack of envelopes in there.

" Why are these surveillance agents so sharp-eyed? Aiden thought inwardly. Though, thinking about it, sharp eyes were part of the job description for surveillance work. Truthfully, revealing it wouldn't be a huge deal. Just lewd pictures, who hadn't seen them? If the Director or another male supervising Inquisitor had asked, Aiden probably would have explained smoothly. But discussing it with a female former colleague felt somewhat awkward. The key point was those photos... he had actually kept them. "Could it be... he sent you money?" Rebecca asked, not without concern. "Senior, please don't lose your head and go down the wrong path."

 "How could I? It wasn't money." Aiden gestured for Rebecca to relax. "Actually, it was just some... er, photos with a certain collection value. They don't constitute bribery." He figured he probably couldn't hide this anyway; Kyle was likely being asked the same question right now. "Could it be... landscape photos?" Rebecca blinked. "You could say that." Aiden could only maintain an awkward but polite smile.

"If necessary, I can bring those photos to the Director for confirmation at some point." In this era, with railways rapidly expanding across the continent and portable cameras having just become widely available, travel photography was quite fashionable. Landscape photos were a social trend. And speaking of landscapes, those photos certainly depicted some "fine scenery." This time, Aiden learned a lesson: one shouldn't casually accept gifts from others, not even...

 just lewd pictures.

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