(Knock, Knock)
"Yes"
"Hello, I am Inspector Haina here to investigate the attack on Mr. Awas Moriarty."
A young girl wearing blue and white uniform who looked about twenty years old was standing nervously and at a loss in front of the gate of a manor, holding her big-brimmed hat.
Her brown curly hair was tied into a ponytail behind her back, and her nose was high. The lake blue eyes were full of panic that something had happened.
"... Um, I'm sorry, the Divisional Supervision Bureau has an impromptu supervision meeting... There was another warehouse explosion incident in the White Queen District yesterday. Traces of flame essence were detected on the scene, and demonologists were suspected to be involved - The wanted criminal who attacked Mr. Aiwass!"
Haina said, her voice getting smaller and smaller: "So, so..."
-So you took it upon yourself to participate in that incident that was not actually required of you. Supervisory meeting, and late... by two hours and twenty-three minutes?"
The old man's serious and old voice sounded from the other side of the iron gate. It was a special long-drawn tone, the elf accent unique to the people of the royal capital.
He closed the pocket watch set with gems in his hand with a click, placing it back to his chest, and stared at Haina seriously.
Standing opposite Haina was a thin and tall elderly elf wearing a butler's uniform.
The skin wrinkles on his face are reminiscent of tree bark, and the dark green pupils are closer to a wolf than a lake.
The old elf seemed to be nearly two meters tall, and his posture with his hands behind his back was like the ghostly shadow of a dead tree reflected in the moonlight at night. His back that was as straight as a pine and motionless was filled with powerful pressure at this moment.
Although Haina is a trainee supervisor who has not yet graduated, she is still a quasi-formal supervisor who has passed the graduation examination in advance and can receive the Queen's award at any time. Now she wears a trainee badge just because the griffons assigned to her are still on the way to deployment.
Logically speaking, she shouldn't be so afraid of a housekeeper.
But the old man in front of me was different.
Because this old elf butler is her instructor.
Although he followed the ancient agreement and served the Moriarty family as a steward for a long time since the founding of the country... but at the same time, he was the Grand Inspector General who resigned eighty years ago.
"——I thought you would never come, Miss Haina."
The old housekeeper put his hands behind his back and said in the elf accent that always gave Haina a sense of arrogance: "Master Aiwas was injured by a demonologist leaving him in a coma until he woke up last night. But when he heard that the Supervisory Bureau was coming to ask some questions, he cooperated and voluntarily gave up going to the glass-step sanatorium. He just took some medicine and dragged his weak body by the stove. He been waiting for you for two hours, and I've been waiting for you at the door for two hours.
"It's almost dark now. If you're still a little late, you might as well just be late for tomorrow; Don't rush this week's rest time. According to the rules of the Supervisory Bureau, for cases where a letter of appointment has been signed, the results will be given within one week of filing. With Miss Haina's good education being allowed to graduate early, she must be able to successfully find the demonologist.
"Since the criminals have been arrested and brought to justice, why do you want to embarrass Young Master Aiwass? Why don't you please go back and I will explain to Mr. Kent." Kent is the
director of the White Queen Division Inspection Bureau. Even if Haina becomes a full-time player, Kent will still be three levels above her.
If the old housekeeper's tone hadn't been so sinister, she would have run away immediately and left this troublesome matter to her superiors. But the problem is, she is actually still a senior student.
Although she can be said to be the most powerful person in school, she has not graduated yet.
She did not have enough social experience to judge whether the old man was seriously making such a suggestion or was just mocking her. But her intuition told her that if the old man had not planned to do this, she would have just run away stupidly, and afraid that she would be in trouble.
"...I'm really sorry."
So Haina could only lower her head and apologize: "I will also apologize to Mr. Aiwass."
In any case, she had made an appointment for the meeting in advance, but she was late without telling them in advance. For so long... she was indeed at fault.
She looked at the iron gate that separated her from the old man, and her thoughts began to wander subconsciously again.
The large black hollow iron door was only decorated with 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, calm, intelligent and knowledgeable good man. Professor Moriarty was also Haina's teacher at university, and was responsible for the subjects of astrology, astronomy and advanced mathematics.
He inherited the Moriarty Chamber of Commerce and owned three museums to his name. He even funded the construction of the only planetarium in White Queen. Although he is so rich, he just quietly studies in the university. He even funded many orphanages and adopted many orphans. He can be called an amazing and kind-hearted man.
When she arrived, the captain had specifically told her that the Moriarty family was not only rich but also a founding family with elves serving them. Although the owner of the house, Mr. James, has a gentle personality, he still needs to be careful.
According to the rules, any direct participant related to the demonic incident must be sent to the local Supervisory Bureau with a command chain as soon as possible after being out of danger, and undergo a mental examination by the chief lawyer. Only after the innocence is confirmed will they be sent back to the hospital or nursing home.
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...
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... maybe this matter really had something to do with the other party.
...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 stood at the door 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 he was asking her to keep up.
So she hurriedly put on the hat in her arms and followed him quickly. But after taking a few steps, Haina 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 wind stops. Haina vaguely felt as if something invisible shrouded 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 the things we agreed with others, You have to comply. We meet at the appointed time, no need to advance or postpone it. Yes, the consequences for breaking the rules in school may not be that serious, but there are also no lions patrolling the streets in school. There are no eagle knights, no lawyers with armed knights who regularly review the tax accounts of each company - there are no inspectors like you who can arrest suspicious persons directly.
"Everyone in this country values 'rules'. The Supervisory Bureau, Law Courts, and Arbitration Chambers guard not only Her Majesty the Queen'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. I had already decided to call the Inspectorate when you were an hour late. It was Master Aiwas who stopped me. He said, always give people a chance... No matter what reason you want to find, 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 doesn't have the so-called ' Nobles', but the descendants of the founders are equally noble. Without the sacrifices of the twenty founders, everyone would have died - even the queen must respect the descendants of the founders.
"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 This is a supervisory meeting that does not require your participation."
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 butler's masks to greet 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 wait at the door 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 bizarrely 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.
The 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. The soft platinum hair reflected the warm light of the fire. He was reading a book quietly and intently in front of the fire, and his delicate face had a gentle intention... which reminded her of poets and the fire rising in the fireplace at home.
That beautiful picture looks like a painting. Haina opened her eyes subconsciously.
But at this moment, the boy heard something and turned around nimbly while pushing the wheelchair.
Only then did Haina notice the wheelchair sitting under him.
...Is this the price of being attacked by a demonologist?
At some point, she instinctively rejected the possibility that the demonologist was Aiwass.
The young man looked over, his dark blue pupils like the sea.
"Ms. Haina."
It was a clear voice that gave people a sense of dignity, and it was a gorgeous voice that matched his appearance.
Compared to his frail face, his voice was more energetic and polite: "Hello, first time we met."
" - Are you here to arrest me? "