"Where is he?" Joen muttered to himself beneath his breath, now caught up in the middle of Atara amongst the common folk - the Divine Constabulary were well-paid, and thus, his uniform made him a clear target for money-hungry merchants looking to make a killing. His stride was purposeful and measured, expertly manoeuvring his way through the condensed crowds.
Egos had been missing most of the morning - he had already missed their daily check-in with Ayshe, and there was no doubt in Joen's mind that the lackadaisical squadron leader was in for the lecture of a lifetime later in the week. Either way, the situation was precarious. Whilst it was not uncommon for Joen's colleague to go missing in action without a moment's notice, it was rare that he would ever miss a check-in with their division leader. He may have been lax in his duties, but Egos was attentive when it came to making it appear like he was a hard worker in an official circumstance. As far as the paperwork was concerned, the drunkard went above and beyond at work.
Joen had already exhausted himself searching for his missing workmate. He concluded that it was not up to him to ensure that a grown man shows up for work. Knowing Egos, Joen made the assumption that he was either doing something that he deemed more important than his job or that he had simply had enough of working the daily grind and finally taken up the mantle of being a full-time alcoholic.
It was time to stop searching and continue with his regular duties; Ayshe had already reprimanded the squadron leader earlier in the week for his poor allocation of resources and time management. The Maidknight casually slipped a hand into his pocket, digging around for a few seconds before humming in satisfaction as he pulled out a palm-sized notebook. It was difficult to focus on reading in the middle of downtown's mighty bustling, but as he squinted his eyes he realised that he had some minor questioning to do revolving around a missing person.
"Ugh, it's always the same thing with these people. They go out drinking, or they leave work late, and then they just 'disappear'. It's like this city is cursed or something." Joen's habit of mumbling to himself got the better of him once again as he traversed the cobbled road. When he was in amongst the civilians of Atara, the Maidknight couldn't help but feel small - like a tadpole in the middle of an ocean.
The city churned on with its day, chewing up and spitting out its inhabitants with no care for their wellbeing - despite his status as the coveted Maidknight, Joen couldn't help but feel the same. It was draining. Each day was the same: another minor incident after another minor incident- whilst he was pledged to protect the people of his city, it felt as though nothing he was doing really made any difference. It was at times like these, upon reflecting on his own uselessness, that he found himself increasingly jealous of those who served in field squadrons; they were hailed as soldiers who fought gloriously in battle, as selfless champions of democracy and protection who kept the Xia empire's way of living strong and prosperous. It came with its danger, of course, but he was arrested by the thought of valour and adoration - true adoration. Being a hero to the people, instead of just a knight with a few crime stoppages to boast about and some minor tourney winnings as proof of his knack for swordsmanship.
With his Destination in sight, Joen had to stop wallowing in his own self-pity. If there was one thing that the Ataran lower class hated, it was when the privileged few who had been granted Blessings acted human or lamented their situation. It was almost as if they had a sixth sense for when one of the Blessed Few was feeling down on themselves - Joen had been on the receiving end of this many times, and he knew it was always harder to get people to talk if they thought you were nothing more than a mopey bag of wind. With that in mind, he took out his notebook to double-check whether he was at the right address.
"Eighteen Lowerby Street. Are you the door I'm looking for?" Speaking to himself once again, Joen leaned in close, squinting his eyes to read the engraving on the front of the wooden door ahead of him. Just as he was about to confirm that he was at the right place, the door swung open. Jumping back on his feet, the Maidknight distanced himself from the door, one hand instinctively gripping the hilt of his sword at the sudden movement.
In the doorway now stood a man, burly in size, yet not entirely as intimidating as his militant gaze was attempting to make him seem. The Maidknight felt himself relax slightly - his hand slipped away from the hilt of his weapon before he spoke.
"Mr Mie, right? I'm here on the orders of the Divine Constabulary. Can I come in and ask you a few questions with regard to an ongoing investigation? Your cooperation would be greatly appreciated."
"Huh? Whaddya want with me?"
"Oh, just... questioning, as I said. It won't take too long Mr Mie."
"I don't take kindly ta bein' disturbed in the middle o' my day, y'know? And cut that 'Mr Mie' shit out. Ya call me by my name: Yahm."
Despite his confrontational tone, the man in the doorway stepped aside, gesturing for the Maidknight to come in - it had been a while since Joen had entered a regular civilian home for questioning, but it seemed as though Yahm wasn't going to be particularly compliant with the idea of coming back to the Divine Constabulary's main office for interrogation.
When he stepped inside, the sight that greeted him was one of abject poverty. There was little light in the room - the small windows at either end of the living room were not allowing the sun much entry. Each piece of furniture had seen its fair share of usage - wooden items showed signs of heavy rotting at their corners whilst the stone floor was marked with stains of various colours. Joen decided it was best not to pry into the origin of such marks. As Yahm pulled out a chair opposite himself, the Maidknight sunk into it casually.
"I'm here to question you as to what you know about Lue Whou, who has recently been reported as missing by one of her friends. They gave us a number of names of people close to them and we've been doing the rounds of questioning for the last couple of days - I was wondering if there was anything that you might know about her which could help me to gain a better idea of where she might have gone? It could be nothing, of course, but it's better to be safe than sorry, as they say."
"Lou, huh? Nice girl, a little quiet. Used ta see her all the time around Thee Sekiel's place. Somethin' about that bar just pulls ya in, ye know? But I wasn't close ta her or anythin'. We just drank here 'n' there."
"Thee Sekiel's place, right? So that's..." Joen stuck his tongue out slightly as he concentrated on penning down the name in his notepad, before pausing for a moment. Wasn't that one of the bars that Egos liked to go to? He thought that Sekiel's Hollow really must have attracted an odd clientele over the years, and then returned to his conversation with Yahm. "And when did you last see her?"
"Oh, a few days ago, ye know. She used ta come in a couple o' hours after me an' the other workhouse boys got off the clock. Only place in this damn city where booze is cheap."
"Okay, thank you for your time. That should be it - I don't want to take up too much of your day. Be aware that I may return in the coming few days for any follow-up questions we might have. Take care, and make sure to speak to an officer if anything important comes to mind."
Yahm seemed relieved that there were no more questions - Joen jotted this fact down in his notepad before exiting the house, waving back to the civilian as he did so. Next stop: Sekiel's Hollow.