Aiwass didn't even wait for authorization from the Supervisory Bureau before he knew that he would inevitably be involved in the investigation.
If all went well, he could also investigate independently—without being closely monitored by Inspector Hayna, he could directly participate in the investigation under the identity of "Supervision Bureau Assistant."
On the one hand, it was the face of his foster father; on the other hand, the Supervisory Bureau, bound by the superior's rules, was very welcoming of help from outsiders—since Mr. Sherlock started, now running his own office, being employed by the Supervisory Bureau, consulting "Detectives" have even become a profession.
If the investigation went poorly, it would be due to the incompetence of the hired detective, at least sparing them from harsh internal accountability; if everything went smoothly, then it would be because the guidance proposed by the Supervisory Bureau was correct, at the very least it would count as a merit, ensuring a fair share of the benefits.
Although Hayna was a genuine inspector, Aiwass knew the Supervisory Bureau even better than she did.
The reason Aiwass was so actively involved in the investigation was that he had his own reasons.
—Those were revenge and silencing.
The two versions of the story that Aiwass had told that inspector from the Supervisory Bureau before were actually false. Or rather, they weren't entirely true.
He was indeed a participant in the ritual and indeed knew those two Demon Scholars.
But he was also indeed a sacrificial offering in the ritual.
Because those two Demon Scholars were actually Aiwass's "pen pals."
From a young age, Aiwass has been very interested in knowledge related to taboos. The more the Avalon Kingdom prohibited mystical skills, the more excited he became in studying them.
For example, the ritual magic from the [Transcendence] Path, as well as the Preservation Arts from the [Dusk] Path.
The former is the foundational ability of Demon Scholars, and one of the careers that extends from the latter is Necromancer. Just from the name, it's not anything good.
This kind of forbidden knowledge, there were only a small part of overviews in his foster father's study. Privately hoarding forbidden books could be a serious crime that leads to imprisonment, even in the Knight Family. But after reading the overview, the young Aiwass became even more itching for more.
He feverishly purchased some ritual materials, and without any grasp of transcendent knowledge or mystical skills, relied entirely on conjecture and imagination to try to conduct rituals.
This was bound to fail, of course.
The core secret of this world is "knowledge."
The nine mystical skills corresponding to the nine Paths, all require corresponding knowledge to master—conversely, as long as one has mastered the corresponding knowledge, even if their personal strength is weak, they can obtain transcendent strength far beyond their actual abilities. Each piece of forbidden knowledge is almost the foundation of an entire school of thought. Under such circumstances, it is impossible to buy reliable "skill books" from the market.
On his sixteenth birthday, a secret society of Demon Scholars, "Noble Red," suddenly contacted Aiwass.
Aiwass was initially very cautious. But the other party sent him several hand-copied manuscripts of forbidden books along with the letter, all about demon knowledge and Demon Rituals.
Although they were all small-scale rituals that weren't much different from tricks—such as causing sores, healing minor wounds, making someone drowsy, or making people a bit more unlucky. They seemed not very useful, but they were all genuine transcendent rituals!
After Aiwass tried them one by one, he became very excited. Thus, he became pen pals with the other party and often exchanged demonology knowledge, and the other party also considered themselves a friend of Aiwass. They often chatted about emotional life and daily trivial matters.
At first, Aiwass was still somewhat cautious.
But then, two years quietly passed by.
Aiwass thought that if the other party wanted to deceive him, they would have likely already done so. The value of the secret knowledge they had given him was already quite high—although Aiwass, who had never been to the black market, was unclear on how much this knowledge would really sell for, even if not high quality, the quantity was already considerable.
—What kind of scammer would operate for so long and invest so much just to trick one person?
It didn't make sense nor was it rational. It also did not conform to the principle of maximum benefit.
So, Aiwass gradually let down his guard and truly regarded this pen pal as a friend whom he had never met but with whom he had a great rapport.
A few days ago, the other party claimed that they had something to do in the Royal Capital and wanted to meet Aiwass.
Aiwass believed them without hesitation, without any defenses.
—This was the lie he told the inspector. Because "Aiwass" was not kidnapped, but had actively approached them.
They were a man and a woman both dressed in red robes and shaved bald. The man looked to be in his forties or fifties, and the woman was in her twenties. In addition to their roles as mentors and apprentices, they were also lovers.
He warmly invited his "two friends" for a meal, afterward the middle-aged man suggested that he could let Aiwass witness, even personally participate in a real Demon summoning ritual—Aiwass agreed excitedly.
But after he busied himself setting up the ritual for over an hour, he suddenly realized something as he looked at the ritual platform.
Doesn't summoning a Demon require some expensive materials?
And it was then that he belatedly realized that by setting up the ritual platform himself, he had just precisely become a "willing sacrificial offering." At the same time, as a student of the Royal College of Law Theological Seminary, before graduation, Aiwass could become a Priest.
Although he had not truly embarked on the Path of the Transcendent, he had already taken the first step towards [Dedication].