Sirius didn't bother to answer his question, and Kegan added, "You seem to be forgetting that the angels are trying to take away our lands."
"Without any power or special abilities? Absurd! I thought you were smarter." He mocked.
Now it was the lord's turn to glare at Duke Sirius, while the latter held a relaxed expression.
"Enough of your bickering." Hurley ordered. Turning to look at Kegan, he said, "As much as the punishment would have been the same, I prefer you don't treat the council's matters too personally."
He continued, but this time talking to Sirius, "You might not be aware, but an order has been given for angels to be arrested because of their plans to cause chaos in our land."
That is what everyone has been made to believe; only those who really wanted to know the truth knew that the accusation was just a conspiracy against angels. There was no idea where it started from or how it would end.
Staying down in the land and their unwillingness to give out their precious blood were the roots of this bloodshed. The greed for power and authority was eating up every creature.
"If there is nothing more to look into, the meeting is closed."
At the same time, in another place, in the town of Branchwood, the town's local coachmen were being questioned. So far, only one man was giving them a lead, and it was none other than the coachman who had carried Piper and Belle.
"Where did you say they stopped?" questioned Councilman Louis.
"Lasburgh."
"Do you still remember which house they entered?" His eyes watched the coachman intently, with a hint of impatience in his voice.
"No, they stepped out of the carriage just before any house came into sight."
"Smart move." Muttered Louis before turning to his men, "Lasburgh."
On reaching Lasburgh, Louis and his men went to the town's magistrate.
"We will need your assistance to find someone in this town—a criminal." He emphasised.
Taking the magistrate will make it easier to find their culprits, as he will know most people in the town. Nobody will surely allow an outsider to search their house without a clear reason.
"I am sorry to disappoint you, as you can already see... I'm busy." The magistrate stated this while fiddling with some papers in his hands.
CLANK.
The magistrate heard something hit his desk, and he raised his head away from the papers to see. It was a small cloth bag, and inside it, gold coins were peeking out.
The magistrate's eyes went wide with the money in front of him. He looked up at Louis, now interested in what he wanted to say.
"What is it that you want my help with?" the magistrate asked while dragging the bag to himself.
Councilman Louis internally smiles at his victory. 'Money always does the trick.'
"Go with us to every house in this town. There's information that two criminals had come to stay low here."
The magistrate hummed before calling on his assistant to take his place while he helped Louis.
They started their search, moving from one house to another.
And they soon came to Zack's house. A knock was placed on the door, but they received no reply. After a moment, they knocked on the door again, and this time they heard footsteps from the other side of the door.
Zachariah opened the door a second later. His eyes fell on the two men in front, one of whom he recalled as the magistrate, but he had no idea who the other was.
Not to forget the three grumpy men that stood behind them with a not-so-happy face.
"Good-day gentlemen, how can I help you?" Zachariah asked with a polite smile.
"Good-day to you too, Zachariah." The magistrate was the one who answered. "We would like to conduct a search on your home, just like we have been doing to every other person."
"Is anything the problem?" Zachariah frowned, faking a worried look on his face. His eyes moved to look at the other man, who seemed to be really impatient.
"Someone is harboring a criminal, and we are trying to find whoever it is so we can protect every other townfolk." The magistrate answered confidently. "Can we come in?"
"Of course." Zack opened his door wide, stepping away for them to enter.
"Search every room." Zack heard Louis order his men before also going to search.
"It is a lovely house you have here." Complimented the magistrate, who was left alone with Zachariah.
"Thank you," he said, turning to look at the magistrate. "I hope they find the criminal. The townsfolk of Lasburgh will be very pleased." He said this with utmost sincerity.
At the same time, they heard the voice of Louis calling for Zack, and he hurried up the flight of stairs to find the councilman standing in front of the illusion room.
"Why is this room locked? I would like to see what is inside. Open it." Louis ordered.
"It's just an empty room; since I'm not using it, I decided to lock it." Zack explained before going to fetch the keys.
He returned and went straight to the door to open it. The councilman stepped into the spacious, empty room, staring at every nook and cranny to see if someone was hiding there.
In that same room, Piper sat with Belle, hugging the little girl from her side. "It is going to be okay." Piper whispered to Belle.
"Why did you say you weren't using this room again?" Questioned Louis.
Zachariah couldn't make up a quick reply as he saw the councilman walk to exactly where Piper and Belle sat. 'Can he see them?' now worried for his sister and niece.
"M-m, I am keeping it specially for my first child." Zachariah looked at Louis' face, and saw the man smile, which didn't sit well with him.
He saw the councilman raise his hand as if he was going to touch Belle, and Zack gulped down his saliva, still trying to have a little hope that the councilman had not seen them.
Piper shut her eyes tightly so she would not make a hasty move that would cost her life and Belle's while hugging the little girl tightly.
Her heart raced, and Louis' hand didn't stop but moved closer to Belle.
Zack took one step towards the councilman but paused when he heard him say,
"A few cobwebs sticking around." Louis turned to Zack, showing him the cobwebs. He walked towards the door, where Zack stood, surprised and yet relieved. "Until you have that child, it could make a perfect study room." Patting on Zack's shoulder before leaving.