Chapter 317 Ask a few more questions
Ikanser Bernard's expression changed from serious to doubtful and finally to relaxed, and he breathed a sigh of relief as if he had escaped death.
After a moment, he hesitantly extended his right hand to the silver mirror "Arrodes", stroked its surface three times, and activated the seal again.
"Respected Arrodes, my next question is, what is the true purpose of that 'Apostle of Desire'?"
Normally, after using this seal, he would either have to answer questions out of shame that made it difficult for him to raise his head in front of his colleagues, or suffer severe punishment. It was rare for him to remain mentally and physically healthy under the questioning of "Arrodes".
But for some reason, today, although Arrodes's question was a bit sharp, it was not difficult to answer. So he decided to ask another question and try to identify the identity of the "Apostle of Desire" through other clues.
The surrounding environment dimmed again, and swaying water light appeared on the surface of the silver mirror, and then condensed into a series of short pictures.
Just like before, a figure, covered in black slime with only blue eyes visible, looked down from above. Below them were police officers surrounding the corpse of a giant black dog.
In the archives with the lights off and only a little light coming in from the window, a furtive figure is rummaging through the densely packed bookshelves;
In a windowless attic, the "Apostle of Desire" was sitting quietly on a chair with his eyes closed, his body covered in sticky black liquid.
"That's my attic. He was hiding so close to me just now!"
Isengard Stanton said with a hint of surprise. He raised his head and looked through the ceiling towards the attic.
He thought that the Apostle of Desire who detonated the Seed of Fear was probably lurking nearby, ready to strike at any time, but he didn't expect that the other party was in his own home and might even stay there for a long time!
Ikanser gave a wink, and the two "Mechanical Hearts" walked towards the stairs. They wanted to confirm the situation in the attic and collect all available clues for tracking down the "Apostle of Desire" later.
The captain himself looked at the silver mirror "Arrodes" with a determined expression, as if he was facing the Sequence 5 Beyonder in the mirror.
The other two mechanical hearts that remained in the room also stopped pretending to collect clues and pick up the bodies of their dead assistants, and looked at Ikanser quietly, as if expecting something.
The Sealed Object's rhetorical question quickly appeared on the mirror: "There is someone whose identity is unknown, but who is doing things that benefit the people. Will you try to arrest him?"
"Won't!"
As if worried about the replacement of Arrodes, Ikanser shouted out his answer the moment the line of text was displayed.
"That's correct."
The question in the mirror distorted and shrank to form these words, and then disappeared completely, returning to an ordinary mirror.
The direction of these two questions couldn't be clearer. Everyone present turned their gaze to Angel, who sat on the sofa next to her. Ever since the battle ended and the official Beyonder entered the room, Angel had been blushing and lowering her head, seemingly a little shy. It was hard to imagine that she had just fought a demonized Sequence 5 "Apostle of Desire," nearly injuring him.
"Ahem—" Ikanser coughed softly, drawing everyone's attention. He then said, "Through Arrodes's answer just now, we've already obtained some clues, including the general appearance of this 'Apostle of Desire' and the places he's been. These actions will leave traces, and there may be witnesses. We will use other means to track him down, and I believe we can solve this incident soon."
"So what should we do next?"
It was Isengard who asked the question again. It was obvious that this was not the first time he had dealt with this Mechanical Heart, and his tone and attitude were somewhat casual.
"I suggest that you stay here until he is arrested or killed. Our members will be secretly monitoring and protecting him, and the injured Apostle of Desire is unlikely to fall into the trap again. This building will be safe.
"Other detectives and their families are also under our protection. In fact, I said from the beginning that centralized protection is more efficient, but they have been uncooperative..."
Ikanser said with a slight smile.
"After today's commotion, I'm sure they won't object to your arrangements anymore."
Kaslana, curled up on the sofa in the corner, replied. She was still a little depressed and spoke softly, without the confidence she had when she roared to stop the detectives' crazy behavior.
"Yes, I hope this case can be concluded as soon as possible."
The captain picked up the silver mirror on the coffee table, stood up from the sofa, and reunited with the team members who went to the attic to search but returned empty-handed, and left.
Before leaving, he glanced at Angel, who still had his head down, opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he didn't say anything.
————
As the sound of footsteps faded, the living room, which had been bustling just moments before, grew quiet. Lydia, a young, red-haired assistant, returned from the corridor and came to her employer, Kaslana, bandaging her wrist wound. The brief but intense battle had left this girl, who had heard of supernatural powers but never fully understood them, with a look of confusion and nervousness on her face.
Kaslana beside her was of no help in the battle, and even attacked her teammates under the influence of the Seed of Fear. Although in hindsight, it seemed that Isengard's heavy damage was partly due to some kind of enemy baiting, she still couldn't forgive herself. She sat listlessly on the sofa, holding the pistol she had picked up, wondering what she was thinking.
Isengard Stanton removed the jeweled ring, his previously stern expression falling. His shoulders slumped as he gazed at the corner of the room where his assistant had just died, his face filled with desolation. The Mechanical Hearts had helped collect the body of the only victim of this incident, leaving only the old detective's regret.
"It was my mistake. I wore the ring for too long and made a mistake that I shouldn't have made. I left my assistant here... He was looking forward to returning to Lenburg to attend the mass ceremony in the New Year, but he didn't expect..."
He sighed and looked at Sherlock Moriarty, who had helped him block a blow during the battle, and Erin Watson, who was the absolute main force and restricted almost all attacks of the "Apostle of Desire". He sat back on the sofa by the fireplace, bent down to light the fire, and said in a low voice:
"Let's talk about what's next."
————
On a crowded and busy street, in a carriage with the police system's "Crown and Swords" logo, Ikanser was watching several of his men discussing the details of the case in a low voice.
He was also feeling a little down, but not because of the casualties among ordinary people in this operation. He had been a "Mechanical Heart" for over fifteen years and a deacon for three years. He had experienced countless similar incidents, and the casualties among ordinary people would frustrate him, but would not distract him from the mission.
It was something else that puzzled him.
The abnormality of Sealed Artifact 2-111 "Arrodes," the strangely behaving witch—yes, the moment he entered that living room, he knew that the other party must be a Beyonder of the "Assassin" Path, a person of a fairly high sequence, or perhaps a "witch," and the "Apostle of Desire" who had fled to an unknown destination...
Looking at his teammates beside him, he decided to take advantage of Arrods's abnormality today to continue asking a few questions.
After stopping everyone from talking, Ikanser placed the silver mirror on his knees, rubbed his hands nervously, and then stroked the mirror, activating the seal.
If it weren't for Arrodes's special limitations, he wouldn't have wanted to use it in front of so many people. Previously, when he was searching for wild Beyonders who had been fighting at the West Balam docks, Arrodes's problems had already made him lose face in front of his teammates. Now, vulgar jokes about him were circulating throughout Backlund's "Mechanical Heart" team.
"Respected Arrodes, my question is about the true identity of that witch, Irene Watson."
Ikanser's hesitant question echoed in the quiet carriage.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com