The Royal Gendarmerie is located at the western end of Amadeus Street in the Royal Capital. In one corner of such a vast facility, Randolph Ulster was flipping through thick materials. It was bound with black string and had turned yellow in many places since it was several decades old. The characters written on the cover are ăDaegallus, the Fowl of the Dawnă. Itâs also a case that Randolph has been chasing for many years.
As he read through the materials, the sliding door opened with a loud bang. The one who showed his face was a handsome young man who looked terribly grumpy. He is Kyle Hughes, the deputy chief of Ulsterâs investigative team.
[âââthat bastard Gyner, heâs useless as shit.]
Kyle muttered in a freezing low voice as he dropped a pile of papers in front of Randolph. The marble table top screams at the unexpected weight. Randolph slowly looked up.
[Whatâs the deal with that useless prickâŚ! Does he have maggots in his brain or somethingâŚ!?]
Kyle, with unkempt hair and dark circles under his bloodshot eyes, seemed to have forgotten about his usual flirtatiousness and is scratching his head in anger with a fiendish look.
[You know I have been chasing that arms smuggler from Melvana, right?! I havenât slept for three days in a row now because that idiot tried to book it across the border! And you know we have a bad relationship with the border guards. I had to chase him all night because he attempted to run on horseback! Of course, I managed to arrest him in the end, though I had to unload a few shots up his ass! And when I finally dragged my ass back here afterwardâââthat shithead Gyner bragged about his achievement to me. Even though I was dead tired, I had to listen to him. When I looked into it, apparently the slaves that were being auctioned are from the ethnic minority in SolditaâŚ! So I started looking through the records, to see if this slave trader is the same one from another case. I went through all the troublesome procedures and tried to meet him, but he ended up dying from poisoning in prisonâŚ! ]
[Die from poisoning?]
Randolph instantly asked back, to which Kyle violently pulled out a chair and sat down. Still feeling annoyed.
[Thatâs right. Suspects from places south from here tend to off themselves after we catch them. So we usually keep them restrained at all times. But that useless idiot, he treated the guy like a common thief. Iâve had enough, that I ended up reporting it to Colonel Barth. That bastard got suspended right on the spot!âââand so thatâs why I come to you with mountains of paperwork.]
Checking out the tall pile of investigation materials, he could hear the other officers working nearby muttering [Just what the hell is he thinking, that demonâŚ!] [ImpossibleâŚ! We canât handle anymore workâŚ!] as their tears started flooding. But, Randolph accepted it anyway.
[What poison was used?]
[The alchemical lab is looking into it. But judging from the condition the guyâs body was in, itâs probably some kind of neurotoxin.]
[âŚthe amount must be quite small since it slipped through the physical examination. Yet it still deadly with such a low dose.]
It shouldnât be an inferior product, but getting such high purity poison would be impossible even in black market.
[âââdid-you-check-for-a-sun-tattoo?]
[Of course. I even checked his butthole, but nada. Honestly, having to check there make me feel like my eyes are rotting. I wanna go toăFolkvangr Brothelăto be healed by Miriamâs huge tits, but yâknow, moneyâs tight. Ah, well, sorry, I was just kidding. Itâs just a joke, so stop looking at me with that deadpan face.]
Randolph didnât really understand why, but Kyle covered his own face with both hands. But, he nodded solemnly anyway.
[Then, does it have anything to do with theăDae Gallus, the Fowl of Dawnă, or is it just a discarded piece that doesnât know the circumstances? âŚ.itâs the latter.]
Neurotoxin-is-their favorite modus operandi.
[âââThere was no evidence that Jackalâs Paradise was used at the evening party, was there?]
[At least as far as I read the materials. It seems that there was no such event, and there was no one who used it regularly⌠But, you know how it is with Gyner.]
Kyle scratched his head. George Gyner is the eldest son of the Marquis. Although he has the rank of Captain, he was a picture-perfect example of an aristocratic boy, so he has only been in charge of petty crimes.
[Then, what about Deborah Dalkian?]
[As if that old hag would confess to anything]
Kyle let out a wry smile. âââDeborah. Duchess Deborah Dalkian. Despite her name always coming up during investigations of various organized crime, she always got away due to the lack of evidence.
[Besides, it was Deborah who leaked the information about the banquet to Gyner. That there is something suspicious about the foreign troupe that would perform exotic dance that nightâââ or something like that. That bastard Gyner, not only did he not question Deborah at all, he actually thanked her for âhelping the investigationâ. That fucking prick thanked her, of all people! Iâm gonna die of embarrassment if I have to admit that I work in the same building as that stupid idiot! Besides, itâs strange that she actually came to look for help from us in the Gendarmerie instead of her own husband.]
Deborahâs husband, Simon Dalkian, is an inspector from the Armyâs Finance Department. He is also being hailed as the next Minister of Finance. With the help of such a husband, she should have been able to deal with the matter secretly without causing trouble.
[However, she went out of her way to make-it-seems-like she got arrested like everyone else in the banquet. Words will definitely come out. And her reputation will certainly be damaged. But either it doesnât matter for her, orâââ]
Randolph narrowed his eyes slightly.
[âââshe wanted to cause ruckus from the beginning.]
Was it on purpose? Then weâll need to re-examine the incident at the Montrose mansion. Randolph let his thoughts flow.
Kyle, who seemed to have calmed down somewhat, opened his mouth. Apparently reminded of something.
[I heard she was there too.]
[Who?]
[Con, stance, Grail. There was the stuff with Grand Meryl-Anne, and she was also at the party Theresa Jenning last attended before she died. What should we do? It may not be much of a lead, but isnât it time for us to ask her if she wants to have a chat with us?]
[Thereâs no need to.]
Randolph flatly denied while briefly reviewing the investigation materials. He heard Kyle went [âŚ.Eh?], but without raising his head, he replied,
[I have already done so].
Kyle sounded quite surprisedâââ
[âŚ.w, wait, so you already did? You? Even though youâre such a merciless person when interrogating criminals or suspects, you can actually act gentlemanly when it comes to a person of interest, huh?]
Kyle was so confused he leaned out of his chair.
[Yes. if I remember correctly, you were still in the middle of chasing that arms smuggler from Melvana at the borderâââ]
At the time, Kyle was busy chasing after the fleeing merchant of death. So thereâs no way he had time to talk about personal matters.
[And I got engaged.]
A strange silence fell.
[Ha?]
Kyle Hughes is frivolous and short-tempered, but not stupid. It should have been easy to derive the answer from the current flow of conversation.
[âŚ..To who!?]
âââthe loud voice was probably due to his disbelief overwhelming his mind.
Randolph finally looked up, and he stated the fact as if it were nothing.
[Of course, to Constance Grail.]
=====
Constance Grail was quite popular today as well. Connie, who was poring over the mountain of envelopes Marta had delivered to her, blinked her eyes when she spotted a clear black border among them. The seal was unfamiliar, but the sealing wax is also black. Usually that kind of sealing wax is used for an obituary invitation.
Inside was a piece of paper with a black border. The writings on the paper was written by similarly darker than starless night, black ink:
ăThe star of Grand Meryl=Anne is hereby summoned for inquest.ă
[âŚ.what is this? A summon letter?]
Her voice hoarse at the intimidating words. To be honest, she had too much in her mind already.
ăâââThat is Dalkianâs crestă
She could hear Scarlet muttering in disgust. âââDalkia?
Connieâs expression was so tense, causing Scarlet to exhale in exasperation.
ăLook carefully. There is no official stamp from the Ministry of Justice anywhere on the letter. In other words, it has no legal power whatsoever. Just a game.ă
Hearing those flat toned explanations, Connie was relieved.
ăThe crest in the sealing wax is the Dalkianâs which usually meansâââAh, you donât know? Itâs Deborahâs family crest. Good grief, she must have had too much free time now that she is getting old, isnât she?ă
Deborah. Connie tilted her head for a moment, then remembered. She was the organizer of ăEarl John Doeâs Soireeă, that black butterfly woman?
ăLook, even you must know that a lady who has granted her husband an heir or two often invites famous figures to their little gathering, yes? Simply put, it is a way for them to kill time. To normal people, it is a harmless distractionâââă
Then, Scarlet narrowed her eyes in displeasure.
ăBut for those who scorn orthodoxy, they turn it into a huntă
[A hunt�]
ăOf course, itâs not a hunt where you carry a hunting rifle and shoot hare or other wild beast. Itâs something uglierâââthey would find someone as a sacrifice, ripping their limbs off, and playing with them vulgarly until theyâre satisfied. Deborah Dalkianâs hunt was notorious for taking on the guise of Inquest. But in reality, it is just a showâŚâŚto think sheâs still doing this without hesitation, what a silly old crone.ă
Her tone was contemptuous.
ăSo many people were killed. But, no one knows what happened at that meeting. No one speaks of anything. Apparently, the participants were made to swear that they would never reveal anything that happened there. Itâs just a joke, but thatâs why it was given a nickname by those who would whisper of their existence.ă
Scarletâs amethyst eyes glared at the black-framed letter paper that now reeked of death somehow.
ăâââthe Silent Ladiesâ Party, or so they sayă