The Other Side
Prosecutor Yi honestly had no words anymore, he was beginning to question his own skills as an upholder of the law, he had once been invited by the crown itself to serve as a royal prosecutor for the court, he was amongst the youngest to ever receive the title of prosecutor in the first place, not only was he born with an ability especially suited for finding criminals, he was a sharp investigator even without it and had already caught a killer capable of evading his eyes that could behold fragments of the past before.
Yet, he was helpless now, he did not mind much if others lost faith in his capabilities because of this, what really bothered him was that such a vile creature was allowed to roam free and commit so many foul acts without retribution.
Today was the tenth crime scene that he arrived upon in Oie, overall, the killer was not very active despite their great capabilities, but the brutality had been ramping up out of control, they didn't just kill, they tortured and tormented their victims in many ways, but the sorts of victims that were targeted and what would be done to them fluctuated greatly from murder to murder, so it was hard to truly get an idea of the point of it all.
It was like the killer was just enjoying himself and doing whatever came to mind, like they didn't have a compulsion to kill, but simply did so when they wanted to, and how they wanted to… The victims seemed like they were not targeted deliberately, they were just unlucky people who encountered this butcher at the wrong place or at the wrong time, or even who were simply unlucky enough to have their home randomly picked.
Overall, the only overarching theme amongst these acts of slaughter was the letters and messages left behind that taunted the guards of the city and Yi himself.
Though today's message was rather simplistic, but all the more infuriating.
It was written on a random piece of wood which had seemingly been taken from a roof or carriage, small in size, it could fit inside someone's hand comfortably, it had been tied and hung to the cadaver of the victim, whomst had met a fate so terrible, that the prosecutor could only wonder how it had been possible to achieve without anyone taking notice.
The guard patrols had been tight in the city for a long time now, yet, evidence clearly showed that the killing and preparation of the scene had been done here, in the middle of town, where a statue of the very first lord of Oie was erected, this sculpture had not been defaced, the victim had simply been hoisted up using the piece of wood a nearby shop used to hang the sign indicating the name of their business.
Hung by the feet, the person could hardly be recognised, as the victim had been skinned, their flesh lying in a disgusting pile just below, from the looks of things, they had been thoroughly silenced before the act had taken place, which seemed to imply that they had been skinned alive.
Tongue cut, teeth pulled out, jaw dislocated, and vocal cords crushed.
The piece of wood upon their chest read as follows :
"I am disappointed, Mister Prosecutor, this shall be my last piece of art, farewell"
And that's it, the killer had grown bored, seemingly because the 'opposition' was not skilled enough to catch them.
The guards of Oie were certainly going to be viewed as lesser compared to those of the other satellite cities due to this incident, at least for the few years to come, which will surely impact the chances for them to be hired as royal guards too.
Yi could only sigh as he activated his ability again, not expecting anything, but somehow, there was a faint residue that looked promising, it was so minuscule and inconsequential, he could not help but frown, instantly understanding that the killer had somehow gotten an understanding of how his ability functioned, following the lead took him to a small back alley like many other, it was where shops that specialised items for 'adults' tended to go, as they were not allowed to be at the forefront, that would give a bad image to the city, but since they did provide good business, they were still allowed to exist, merely hidden in the shadows.
Inside an old crate which had seemingly been left in a corner for several years, it was where the remnants he could perceive took him, and inside, carefully placed down, was a lock of white hair.
'...Jingyi's hair? How…?'
The prosecutor had many thoughts, but he did not have the occasion to think too deeply about it, for he soon got word from Li, who told him that Edrick had invited them both to his residence, the reason did not need to be specified, the noble scion had already stated that he would invite them over once Jingyi's maid training was formally done.
Neither of them had ever gone there, so they were quite surprised by the looks and sheer size of the place.
"Rich people really are a different breed, huh?" Li muttered to himself, personally hailing from the common folks, he found the room attributed to him as a core disciple to be too vast to be fully used by him, so he was unable to wrap his head around what such a huge place could be useful for.
Honestly, he would probably not feel right living in such a big house.
Yi was not so starstruck, his job had taken him to manors and the likes before, but he did wonder just how much Anoteros had had the place enlarged and renovated, the residence should have been comparable to those they saw upon entering the area reserved for special disciples, but Edrick's dwarfed them all.
"By the way, Li… I hear that you are going to venture into the world by yourself soon?" asked the prosecutor.
"Indeed, I'll be going right after that, in fact, I was only putting it off until I could see Jingyi" admitted the core disciple.
"I see… I'll also go on a journey myself, I want- No, I need to find a way to further enhance the ability I was born with" Yi frowned as they both arrived right before the heavy front door.
Li reached out to knock, but Yi just silently pointed to a bell right by the side of the door and rung it, it emitted a rather melodious sound that carried far, and soon enough, their ears picked up on soft footsteps approaching the door from the other side despite its thickness, both were rather accomplished cultivators after all.
"Mister Li, and Prosecutor Yi? Come on in" they were not greeted by Anoteros himself but by his second wife.
Li had no particular reaction and simply offered his greetings, and whilst Yi did the same, he could not help but think.
'If I hadn't investigated a bit, I wouldn't even know that I am speaking to another man…' he was knowledgeable, but never had he known that foppoofs were so convincing, now he understood better why some used the words to insult one another.
"Lord Edrick will arrive in just a little while, he has some business to take care of- I'll show you to a room where you can wait until then" Linmin smiled brightly as he led the way.
They were taken to a room with what looked like a big mirror attached to the wall, and facing it were two seats that had been prepared for them to sit in.
Soon enough, Linmin left them in here with some cold beverages and left.
The two men looked at one another and casually drank their glasses.
"Why did this room have a plaque calling it the Viewing Room?"
"No idea…"
And then, the other side lit up.