Chapter 1 Are You Here to Arrest Me?

"Yes, hello... I am Inspector Haina who made an appointment yesterday... I am here to investigate the attack on Mr. Aiwas Moriarty."

A young girl in a blue and white uniform, who looked to be about 20 years old, was standing nervously and at a loss in front of the gate of a manor, holding her wide-brimmed hat.

Her brown curly hair was tied into a ponytail behind her, and her nose was high. Her lake blue eyes were full of panic as if she had messed up something.

"... Sorry, the District Inspectorate has an emergency inspection meeting... There was another warehouse explosion in the White Queen District yesterday. Traces of fire spirit were detected at the scene, and it is suspected that a demonologist was involved - I think it might be the wanted criminal who attacked Mr. Aiwas the day before yesterday!"

Haina said, her voice getting smaller and smaller: "So, so..."

"-So you took the initiative to participate in this inspection meeting that you were not actually required to attend, and were late... two hours and twenty-three minutes?"

The old man's serious and old voice sounded across the iron gate. It was a long, special tone, the elven accent unique to the people of the capital.

He closed the gemstone-encrusted pocket watch in his hand with a click, put it back in front of his chest, and stared at Haena seriously.

Standing opposite Haena was a tall, thin old elf wearing a butler's uniform.

The wrinkles on his face reminded people of tree bark, and his dark green pupils were closer to wolves than lake water.

The old elf looked nearly two meters tall, and his hands behind his back were like a ghostly shadow of a dead tree in the moonlight at night. The upright, motionless back, like a pine tree, was full of strong oppression at the moment.

Although Haena was actually a trainee inspector who had not yet graduated, she had passed the graduation assessment with full marks and was a formal inspector who could be awarded by the queen at any time. Now she was wearing the trainee badge only because the griffin assigned to her was still on the way to deployment.

Logically, she should not be so afraid of a butler.

But the old man in front of her was different.

Because this old elf butler was her instructor.

Although he followed the ancient agreement and served the Moriarty family as a butler since the founding of the country, he was also the chief inspector who resigned eighty years ago.

"—— I thought you would be later, Miss Haina."

The old butler put his hands behind his back and said in the elf voice that always gave Haina a sense of arrogance: "Master Aiwas was attacked by a demon scholar the day before yesterday and was in a coma until last night. But when he heard that the Supervisory Bureau was going to ask some questions, he cooperated and took the initiative to give up going to the Glass Steps Sanatorium. He just took some medicine and dragged his weak body to wait for you by the stove for two hours, and I also waited for you at the door for two hours.

"It's almost dark now. If you are late, you might as well be late tomorrow; since it's already late tomorrow, I don't think I'm in a hurry to rest for a week. According to the rules of the Supervisory Bureau, for cases with signed commissions, a result must be given one week after the case is filed. With Miss Haina's good cultivation of graduating with full marks, she will surely be able to find the demon scholar smoothly.

"Since the criminal has been arrested, why do you want to embarrass my poor Master Aiwas? You might as well go back. I will explain to Mr. Kent."

Kent is the director of the White Queen District Supervisory Bureau. Even if Haina is promoted, Kent is still three levels higher than her.

If the old housekeeper's tone is not so sarcastic, she will run away immediately and throw this trouble to her superiors. But the problem is that she is actually still a senior student.

Although she can be said to be able to call the wind and rain in school, she has not graduated after all.

She does not have enough social experience to distinguish whether the old man is making such a suggestion seriously or just mocking herself. But her intuition tells her that if the old man did not intend to do this, she would be foolish to run away, and she might really be in trouble.

"...I'm really sorry."

So Haina could only bow her head and apologize: "I will also apologize to Mr. Aiwass."

Anyway, she had already made an appointment in advance, but she was late for so long without telling him in advance... She was indeed wrong first.

She looked at the iron gate that blocked her and the old man, and her thoughts began to drift subconsciously again.

On the black hollow iron gate, there were only low-key thorn patterns...It didn't look like a famous family.

In fact, Professor Moriarty, the adoptive father of Aiwass Moriarty, the person involved in this incident, can indeed be called a low-key, steady, wise and knowledgeable good man. Professor Moriarty was Haina's teacher in college, and his subjects were astrology, astronomy and advanced mathematics.

He inherited the Moriarty Chamber of Commerce, and owned three museums. Even the only planetarium in White Queens was funded by him. He is so rich, but he just studies quietly in college. He even funded many orphanages and adopted many orphans. He can be called an amazing and kind-hearted person.

When she came, the captain also specifically reminded her that the Moriarty family is not only rich, but also a founding family with elves serving. Although the head of the family, Mr. James, has a gentle personality, you still have to be more careful.

According to the rules, any direct participant related to the demon incident must be escorted to the local inspection bureau with a discipline lock as soon as possible after being out of danger, and undergo a mental examination by the chief lawyer. Only after being confirmed innocent will they be sent back to the hospital or sanatorium.

This is because the identities of the ritual host, ritual participants, ritual instructors and sacrifices in demonic rituals cannot be simply distinguished by the identity of the victim "injured or not".

Since the sacrifices can survive, it means that the ritual has generally failed - although the sacrifices may not necessarily die, they are usually killed to silence them. Therefore, when an injured person appears instead of the deceased, the injured person may not be a sacrifice, but may also be a person related to the ritual.

But this rule is now invalid.

Director Kent was like a blind man, completely ignoring this clue that was at his fingertips. It was the old butler who took the initiative to contact Director Kent and made an appointment for today's meeting, and he seemed to "suddenly remember" this matter. And when she came, the Supervisory Bureau didn't even match her with an accompanying lawyer. They only asked her to come alone as a trainee inspector without a gryphon, armor, or sword.

Such an obvious cover-up...

Haina felt that even if this matter was really related to Aiwass, she might not be able to take him away.

But because of such a big battle, she felt that maybe this matter was really related to the other party - if she was innocent enough, why wouldn't she be willing to accept the examination of the lawyer?

……so good.

He was obviously just an adopted civilian orphan. Just because of good luck, he was valued and adopted by the professor. Now he has become a big shot that cannot be touched by the Supervision Bureau...

Haina, who was standing at the door, was in a daze, thinking a little sourly.

But at this moment, the iron door suddenly opened slowly.

She raised her head in astonishment and saw the old man's face, which was still expressionless, but somehow felt less angry.

The old elf glanced at her silently, and then walked back slowly with his hands behind his back.

Haina was stunned for a while before she realized that she was asking herself to keep up.

So she hurriedly put on the hat in her arms and followed him quickly. But after taking a few steps, I remembered to turn back and close the door. But when she turned around, she saw the door of the manor closing on its own.

Not only that, there were even bright runes lighting up from the inside of the ordinary iron door.

The sun is skewed and the evening breeze stops. Haina felt vaguely as if something invisible was shrouding the area, changing the atmosphere of the manor.

"I don't want to cause trouble for you, Miss Haina."

The old elf was obviously walking in front of him, but the old man's much gentler voice accurately sounded in his ears: "But you must abide by what you have agreed with others. We will meet at any time at the agreed time, no need to In advance, don't delay. Yes, the consequences for breaking the rules in school may not be that serious, but there are also no gryphon knights patrolling the streets or laws with armed knights regularly reviewing the tax accounts of each company. Mage - There is no supervisor like you who can arrest suspicious persons directly.

“Everyone in this country values ​​‘rules.’ What the Inspectorate, the Law Courts, and the Arbitration Chamber guard are not only Her Majesty’s will, but also the many rules established by Parliament.

"I will forgive you this time, and I will not tell Mr. Kent of your mistake - I will say that you arrived on time, but stayed for two cups of tea and some snacks after you learned what happened.

"But this is because Master Aiwass is kind-hearted. When you were an hour late, I had already decided to call the Supervision Bureau. It was Master Aiwass who stopped me. He said, always give people a chance... No matter what reason you are looking for, you have to meet in person first.”

The old elf spoke slowly and walked for a long time before reaching the door of the manor.

The next moment, his voice was a little lower, but it still sounded clearly in Haina's ears: "Although Avalon does not have the so-called 'nobles' of other countries, the descendants of the founders are equally noble. Without those twenty founders For the sacrifice of the founder, everyone will die - even the queen must respect the descendants of the founder of the country.

"I feel your sincere apology, so I temporarily forgive you for missing the appointment. But you might as well think carefully about whether you have offended anyone or blocked anyone's way... As I said, this is a There is an oversight meeting that does not require your attendance.”

Hearing this, Haina was suddenly stunned.

At this time, the old man who walked to the door turned around gracefully and bowed slightly to Haina: "Please follow me, Miss Haina. The young master has been waiting for a long time."

At this time, he put on the mask of a butler to greet the guests.

His previous attitude was more like an instructor facing an unsatisfactory student.

Haina, whose brain was in confusion, followed the old elf to the living room.

The touch of the soft carpet under her feet startled her, and she raised her head to ask if she needed to take off her shoes - but the old elf's calm attitude made her unsure. So I could only follow behind with trepidation, feeling the sudden warmth of the fire in the winter season.

Only then did she realize that she had made an old man stand at the door waiting for two hours on a winter evening.

With guilt and shame, she didn't know how to open her mouth.

Even the suspicion of Aiwass was diluted in this confession.

So, she met Aiwas Moriarty, who had a somewhat unruly reputation.

He was currently sitting in a wheelchair with a blanket covering his legs.

His pale, frail face was bloodless, and he looked like he was only seventeen or eighteen years old. He had a beauty that was completely different from Professor Moriarty.

He was wearing pure white fluffy pajamas, and looked like he had just come out of the shower. His smooth platinum hair reflected the warm light of the fire. He was reading quietly and attentively facing the fire, and his delicate face had a gentle intention... It reminded her of a poet and the fire rising in the fireplace at home.

That beautiful picture looked like a painting. Haina subconsciously opened her eyes.

But at this moment, the boy heard something and turned around nimbly while pushing the wheelchair.

And at this moment, Haina noticed that he was sitting in a wheelchair.

...Is this the price of being attacked by a demon scholar?

I don't know when she started, but she instinctively abandoned the possibility that "the demon scholar is Aiwas".

The boy looked over, his deep blue pupils were like the sea.

"Ms. Haina."

It was a clear voice that gave people a sense of dignity, and a gorgeous voice that matched her appearance.

Compared to his frail face, his voice was more energetic and polite: "Hello, nice to meet you."

"--Excuse me, are you here to arrest me?"