The waters in Holmfirth City originated from the Lyal mountain range that bordered the Northwest, Northeast, and Southwest sides of the Canis Empire. It flows from the north of the city to the south-eastern and southern parts, which are the economic districts and institutes of higher education.
In the southeast, where the center of education is located, several bookstores can be easily found. They sell a variety of books, both related to academics. Some are placed on shelves, and some are displayed in the window to attract shoppers like the two people who were observing the titles from outside the transparent mirror without any desire to enter.
"Amran, how long are you going to look at those books? The sun is above us now." Lily had had enough of this guy; he said was going to help investigate Doctor Halbert's case, but in the end, he was just busy wandering around and looking at the city.
"No, I was just thinking the title of this novel is too much." It was a story with a navy blue hardcover with a silver-colored title written in Old Canis. "Little Vampire Wants to Be the Sun; from the title alone, it makes one pity."
"Forget about that book, and let's look for clues," Lily warned before her patience was completely exhausted, although, in her small heart, she was also curious about the books in this shop.
As if not caring what Lily was talking about, Amran said "You stay here, I'll go inside to purchase this book." He entered the shop, leaving the girl by herself.
Soon he returned with a blue-bound book in his hand "It's midday; do you want to have lunch first, or shall we go investigate?" He asked, tapping the book on his shoulder. "I'm finished with my tasks, so we can depart now." He noticed Lily's clearly annoyed expression.
"We should have investigated earlier, but you just wasted your time looking around the city." Lily gave a terse sentence to express her emotions.
"Don't worry, I have my methods." Amran guided them out of the bookstore, his eyes flicking to the sun beaming over the city."It looks like it's about time; did you bring the things left behind by Doctor Halbert?"
"Of course I brought it; it will be useful in the search later." Amran smiled and was a little interested in what the girl said, making him want to test her knowledge a little.
"It's interesting how you did it." Lily, who had been walking on the man's right side, suddenly stopped feeling like someone was underestimating her ability.
"Hired a private detective?" And a laugh came out of Amran's mouth, making the girl quite annoyed. "Then what is the master of martial arts?" She mocked the person in front of her.
The laughter disappeared and was replaced with a smile. "Hiring a private detective would increase household expenses. I'm not sure if it's a noble trait of yours, but using resources in that manner isn't very efficient."
"Did Zauq never teach you about mysticism?" The girl just shook her head lightly, making Amran think of a truly innocent girl.
"Then I'll show you the wonders of the mystical world." They walked into a deserted alley where there was no one, where Amran pulled out a blank sheet of paper, and then he pulled out three packets containing salt, mercury, and sulfur. He bent down and placed them under them. "Can you give me the items that Doctor Halbert left behind?" Lily, who had been silent and observing what Amran was doing, finally took something from her brown sling bag.
It was just a letter written by Doctor Halbert, who had just arrived this morning at their residence. "What are you going to do with this?" she hesitated to give it to Amran. She had originally planned to give the paper to his master later. But this object was needed for the investigation, and they had nothing else besides the letter; sneaking into the victim's residence would take time, and the person in front of them had already taken up all the time they had.
"You'll know when you see it." Amran received the letter and placed it on blank paper as an offering. The three pieces of paper containing the material were placed in a row as the smelting material. After that, he took out a dagger and pierced his index finger. Then he prayed in an ancient language: "Symbol of doom, He who is and is not, pray to him who is unknown." It was then that Amran spread his hands to form tendrils of fire, his low tone saying, in a word, Lily knew only too well, "Azoth."
It was then that all the images of the past were seen in the brief flames. Doctor Halbert's fight for his life: "Let's go; we have a message to take." Amran adjusted his clothes and left the place. The expression on his face that was so cold was drawn with the thought of Doctor Halbert's incident.
They walked down different alleys and past several buildings. When they were back on the main road at the border of the institute, they both booked a train heading back to the economic district.
When they reached the center of the city, Amran gave them five khos, one khos being worth one apple. It was a form of currency used in the Canis Empire.
After leaving the train, Amran led the way to the northern area on the east side of the Lyal River, where several factories were built as the main working area, while the residential area was on the west side of the river. They passed several operating factories and stopped at one of the abandoned warehouses.
Amran entered the room, and as his foot entered the old building, his boot stepped on a gold-colored thunderbolt. His gaze scanned his surroundings, and he found several scratches on the wall. He then stepped further into the building. And there he found several battle scars.
His feelings started to become anxious as if something far away was watching him. A feeling so similar to her first time looking at something related to divinity.
He then breathed in to seek calmness in his soul. When he had reached a stable mental state, he looked down, touched the ground, and closed his eyes. "I prayed to God Almighty." It was then that the ground in that place began to fire violently and began to burn everything that was there. Not long after, there was a rumbling sound like a landslide, and from there, a building could be seen under the ground that had been covered very well.