"What are you implying, Katherine?" It wasn't hard to tell where the conversation was going.
"I think it's obvious." said Theodore with murderous eyes.
"To take out Lady Agatha, the killer must have been at least mid level 3." explained his wife. "And, to know Burst Nova, he must be a part of this family."
Theodore began glaring at each person one by one. As if on cue, everyone else started looking left and right as well.
"This is troubling news…" said Magnolia. "Sir. Theodore, are sure there aren't any other possibilities? Like one of our servants perhaps?"
Theodore sent a look which made her go silent. A servant that knew both Burst Nova and Lady Agatha's formation techniques? The only way that could happen was if someone taught him/her on purpose. And of course, this once again implied the betrayal of someone high up.
"Well, there are other factors to consider as well" said Katherine. "Some commoners saw the culprit run away with Lady Agatha's body. Why? Either she was someone close to him or maybe she isn't dead after all."
"Which also brings us to the same conclusion." growled Theodore. "If Agatha was in cahoots with the culprit, then that person is likely someone sitting at this table. If her techniques were stolen before she was killed, then who else could have done it but you lot?"
The more words came out of the family head's mouth, the angrier he seemed to become. After reaching a new record of 3 consecutive sentences, steam could be seen forming above his head.
"Nonsense!" Cristian slammed the table and stood up. "We've served this family loyally for over 20 years. Even if you are the head, you can't just accuse us like this."
He gestured towards his wife, and they tried to leave.
- Snap! -
As soon as Theodore snapped his fingers over 6 masked guards entered the room. Every single one of them was a peak rank 3 mage.
"Well…" Theodore slowly got up while leaving a dent in the table. ��Since you're in such a hurry Cristian, I guess I'll start with you."
A thick layer of mana covered the family head's palm. Hundreds of thoughts ran through his brother in law's mind, but in the end, he just stood there frozen. They couldn't escape from this situation no matter what they did.
"Theodore, please… Have mercy." Seeing how things had taken a turn for the worst, Cristian's wife, Stephanie, began pleading for their lives. "Katherine… sister, please tell him to stop." She knew what was coming.
Unfortunately, her little sister avoided her gaze. By now, Theodore had already reached Cristian and placed a hand on his head.
"Anything you'd like to confess?" he asked coldly. Since his brother in law was unresponsive, Theodore began the process.
'Open up.'
The spell he used was common knowledge amongst the nobility. By forcefully inserting his mana into the man's head, he created an artificial bridge through which he could extract information.
Some people called it "mind invasion" or "the interrogation technique." However, "mind crusher" was becoming more and more popular. This was because not even someone of Theodore's caliber could forcefully pry open a person's brain without some serious risks.
- Crash -
As expected, after about a minute of sporadic convulsions, Cristian's eyes lost their color and he fell unconscious.
"NO!!..." His wife cried in anguish, but soon, all expression left her face too.
Theodore worked fast. Nolan and Magnolia were immobilized by the guards, and they got their turn immediately after.
"So?" asked Katherine after the deed was done.
"Nothing." grumbled Theodore. "It's not them."
"We f**king told you!" shouted Nolan while shaking his wife. Fortunately, she and Katherine's sister eventually recovered.
'3 out of 4 survived.' concluded Theodore. 'I'm getting better.'
Normally, the survival rate of the mind crusher technique was around 40%. As such, in all of Last Heaven, Theodore could probably be considered the foremost expert at it.
While he was patting himself on the back, Nolan and Magnolia were shedding tears of relief while hugging each other. Stephanie on the other hand was mourning her husband. After a while, Katherine got up from the table and walked over.
"Cheer up dear sister." she said with an emotionless smile. "I'll find you someone better."