"It seems Mr. Wolff did undergo an anomaly during last week's blood moon night! After all, that hole in the ceiling doesn't look like something a human could have made…"
Thinking this, Ebner tried to use his ability to extract auras, but in the end, he only found some residual traces from the police, nothing about Mr. Wolff.
It shouldn't have dissipated so completely in less than a week… Was it cleaned up by someone?
His thoughts swirling, he activated his "Pure White Eye," using the even more powerful "Aura Extraction" ability of his "cheat" to search the cell again. Finally, he extracted a trace of Mr. Wolff's aura from around the edge of the broken hole.
Then, he immediately began "Scene Recall."
Soon, a middle-aged gentleman with striking features, a graceful demeanor, and only a slightly receding hairline appeared before Ebner.
He had been reading a magazine by candlelight in the room, but just then, the moonlight outside the cell suddenly intensified, as if stained with fresh blood. Mr. Wolff then clutched his head in pain, his teeth immediately became sharp, his skin rapidly turned pale, then rotten and oozing pus, and bat-like fleshy wings grew from his back…
In just a few seconds, Mr. Wolff transformed into a small "sun," a disgusting, pus-oozing vampire that Mr. Moon often described after joining the Tarot Club.
Once the transformation was complete, he seemed unable to bear the pain and the craving for blood any longer. He immediately smashed through the cell's roof and flew into the air.
The scene ended there.
He really is a vampire… So, it seems he's likely a follower of the Primordial Moon as well, and it's highly probable he has ties to the Witch King Ms. Helene is looking for… perhaps even a blessed one converted by her.
Then, there might be residual aura from that Witch King, Miss Silvia, in Mr. Wolff's residence! If there truly is, this matter becomes much simpler…
Ebner felt a surge of excitement. His original plan was to rely on the investigated clues and, after his "prophecy" ability recovered tomorrow, perform another "diviner" operation to determine the location of the green-roofed house he had seen earlier.
If all else failed, he could "Teleport" back to Backlund or the Golden Dream to ask Xio or Edwina for help in summoning Arrodes and asking the fawning mirror for the answer. This was the source of his confidence when he had spoken with Ms. Helene.
Now that he had a clue, it might not be so troublesome after all… While he thought this, a hint of regret appeared on Ebner's face, as he had quite looked forward to Xio or Edwina "answering questions" again.
Just as Ebner was about to leave, voices suddenly drifted from a distance, growing closer. He immediately stopped, hiding in a corner of the cell using "Evans's Concealment Barrier."
Soon, the cell door opened, and five police officers entered from outside.
Among the five, one was a prison guard holding keys, whose attitude towards the others was quite fawning. Next to him was a probationary inspector, only in his twenties, whose back was ramrod straight and whose attitude towards the three behind him was neither humble nor arrogant.
Walking at the very back were two men and one woman, none appearing over thirty, dressed in inspector uniforms, with the "Seventh Special Operations Team" badge pinned to their chests.
Ebner, who was familiar with the official Intis church organizations, knew that the so-called Seventh Special Operations Team of the Trier police department actually represented a "Machinery Hivemind" squad.
It seems Mr. Wolff is a follower of the God of Steam and Machinery… That makes sense; as a vampire, even his feigned faith wouldn't be in the Sun…
As Ebner pondered, he watched the female member of the "Machinery Hivemind" squad use some kind of witchcraft, attempting to extract Mr. Wolff's aura.
But this place had clearly been deliberately cleaned, and even Ebner, with his Pure White Eye, only found a tiny trace at the broken hole, so the Witch Miss naturally returned empty-handed.
Seeing his teammate shake her head helplessly, the leader of the "Machinery Hivemind" squad, a man with short brown hair, frowned and asked, "Who else came here before us?"
The prison guard glanced at the young inspector beside him, and seeing no reaction, he carefully replied, "Only Inspector Russell brought people to investigate."
"Why wasn't such an obvious Beyonder incident reported in time?" another man with a full beard couldn't help but demand. "Our 'Special Operations Team' only found out about the change here from the newspapers! Also, where is Russell? Doesn't he know the importance of a case like this? This is dereliction of duty! Do you know that in our jurisdiction alone, at least ten people have been drained of their blood and died in the past two days?"
Seeing them insult his master and idol, the upright young man couldn't help but argue, "Inspector Russell's wife was assassinated by thugs on the train, so he took leave to handle the aftermath… Besides, the inspector judged at the time that the house was blown open by explosives and didn't involve Beyonder elements…"
"Heh, I heard about that too… If you ask me, he brought it on himself. That escaped convict's life was already on track, but he just had to interfere, ruining the man's home and family…" The bearded man clearly disliked Russell's style and scoffed.
"Hmph! The inspector was upholding 'justice'! And the facts prove that guy was a cruel murderer!" The probationary inspector snorted.
The bearded man was about to say more but was stopped by the short-haired man leading the team. "Pierre, we're here to investigate the case, not to argue."
"Captain, I feel sorry for Bishop Therese… She had clearly guided that person onto a path of goodness, and he had found happiness through effort and diligence… Everything was so perfect… but it was ruined by Russell's so-called 'justice'!" The bearded man said indignantly.
"So, he really did steal the church's golden lever back then? Heh, I knew Bishop Therese was helping him cover it up! The bishop is too kind; she doesn't know that evil people are always evil and can never turn good!" The young probationary inspector was clearly deeply influenced by the "upright" Russell and had fully adopted his ideology.
Ultimately, both sides parted unhappily, with the young probationary inspector leaving directly, leaving only the three Beyonders to continue investigating the cell.
After dispatching the prison guard as well, the captain frowned and said, "Inspector Russell might have some issues."
"What?" The most surprised was the bearded Pierre. Although he disliked Russell's methods, deep down he actually admired his adherence to "the law."
"This judgment was made by His Highness Bonova a few days ago, when he happened to hear about Russell's deeds… He said that Russell was replicating a story Roselle had told. Coupled with the fact that the aura in this cell was cleaned up very thoroughly, and the reporting time was delayed… I have reason to suspect he tampered with this case," the captain calmly stated.
"Then why not just arrest him directly?" The bearded Pierre instinctively asked.
The captain glanced at his teammate, too lazy to reply.
The "Witch" lady beside them smiled bitterly and shook her head. "There are many problematic people in Trier, even in every major family! But without conclusive evidence strong enough for a death sentence, we can't just arrest people… This is an unspoken agreement between the Church and the various Beyonder families. Although Russell's background isn't strong, the 'reputation' bestowed upon him also provides very strong protection."
Upon hearing this, Pierre immediately deflated. He pouted and casually asked, "How would a big shot like His Highness Bonova notice the affairs of a mere inspector?"
The captain was silent for a moment before saying, "Regarding that, I heard a rumor… It's said that His Highness Bonova's recent interest in Inspector Russell's matter is just incidental; what he truly wants to understand is that detective from Loen, Ebner Brain!"
Ebner, hidden in the corner, felt his eyelid twitch when he heard this. He immediately activated his "Mechanical Mind," which allowed him to stabilize "Evans's Concealment Barrier" and prevent his shock from being transmitted.
Bonova is Old Huang's angel son, right? Why is he paying attention to me for no reason?