CHAPTER 412: Questioning Suspects

The next day we were ready to continue our investigation but it took until midday before we were allowed to interview some of the mages responsible for maintaining the sewer runes. Kaito left the assassin goblins at the academy but I had all of my friends and tier three with me. To Skadi and Cassie's disappointment I was not wearing a maid uniform today.

We met Brian in his office where he seemed to be drowning in paperwork, judging by the state of his desk.

"Hello Koyuki and… I see you brought friends." He said.

"Yes, this is Cassie Ashburn and this is Skadi Helgurd." I introduced them.

"Greetings." Skadi and Cassie said.

"Greetings, so I have been authorised to give you a list with the mages we contract. There are two of them here in the room next door waiting for you. However, we do contract adventurers on occasion and there are three more regulars who aren't here today." He said.

"Is any of them a woman with red hair and a large chest?" Rose asked.

Brian looked at her. "A large chest?"

"Yes, that's how she was described to us." I confirmed.

Brian looked around our group and his gaze settled on Kaito. "Could be, eh Renata. She isn't here today. You should ask the two mages, Johnson and Herbert, who are waiting in the next room."

"Thank you for your help." I said.

"Is there any information on who might have accessed Koyuki's schedule?" Kaito asked.

"Look, it's not like we magically seal our records, or doors. There was no sign of a forced entry but a skilled mage could have looked at them." Brian said. "Our building isn't that secure, it's not even guarded at night."

"Really?" I asked. "I thought that schedule was more of a secret?"

"Sure, technically it is. It's all locked away with limited access but that doesn't mean it's guarded against a determined infiltrator. We wouldn't want criminals to know when and where we patrol the sewers, but honestly it's not like anyone tries to sabotage those runes to hurt people, normally. There is no reason to target our mages, or students form the academy, so the only reason anyone wants the schedule is to ensure they aren't running into a patrol. The really important part is the fresh water, now that stuff is properly guarded. We can't have anyone sneaking a plague in there, or something." Brian replied.

"I see, thank you for clarifying." Kaito said.

We left Brian's office and went to the room where Johnson and Herbert were waiting. The two mages were sipping some coffee as they sat at a large table, designed for meetings. They didn't wear any robes, just simple pants and a shirt.

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"Ah, you must be Koyuki. I am Herbert." The older one said. His hair had already some grey in it but his full beard was still black.

"Hi, I am Johnson." The younger man said. He was clean shaven, had blond hair and wasn't much older than we were.

"Greetings, I am Koyuki."

"Helena Frost."

"Cassie Ashburn."

"Skadi Helgurd."

My friends introduced themselves, then I gestured towards my undead. "These are my undead."

"Undead? Uh, they look pretty alive, except the headless one." Johnson said.

"Meow!"

Johnson looked down and saw Nyx, who stared at him.

"Ok, the skeleton looks undead too." He said.

"This is Nyx." I introduced her.

"Meow!" Nyx said, while nodding.

"She seems rather lively for a skeleton." Johnson said.

"Is she a tier three?" Herbert asked.

"Oh, those are the intelligent ones! I did have some basics about necromancy at school." Johnson said.

"Where did you study?" Helena asked.

"Ah, I didn't make it to one of the three major academies, it was a small school in Salpenta. They focused mostly on water and wind to teach mages how to help with sailing. I have a water affinity but I am not great with boats, I get seasick, so I ended up here." Johnson explained, then he frowned. "Aren't these a lot of undead for a student?"

"Yes." I confirmed. "Anyway, we were hoping to ask some questions since I got hit by a sabotaged rune yesterday."

Herbert grimaced. "I heard, I looked into it myself this morning. It's troubling that anyone would dare to sabotage our runes! They used some blood to mimic an authorised mage and then placed a lightning rune on top. It converted the mana you put in into an attack and struck you with your own power. Devious."

"Do you know whose blood it was?" Cassie asked.

Herbert shook his head. "No."

It occurred to me that Herbert was a suspect so that he had been tasked with looking into the sabotage was a bit troublesome. He could have hidden some evidence, although his reason for the blood sounded plausible.

"Herbert, would you mind if Rose or Hatsumi would come a bit closer? They are good at tracking scents and it would be good if they can get a sniff of everyone who is authorised to handle those runes." I said.

Herbert chuckled. "I don't mind some young women getting closer."

"How can they track scents? What type of magic is this?" Johnson asked.

Hatsumi gave him a smile. "We are vampires."

Johnson's eyes widened, then he blushed. "Uh, so… Uh, how does it feel to get bitten?"

"What?" I asked.

"Hey, I, uh, I am just curious." Johnson asked.

Herbert shook his head. "The youth today…"

While Rose got closer to Herbert, Hatsumi took Johnson's hand, brought it towards her nose, and her eyes glowed with rage. "It's him."

"What?" Johnson asked, acting confused.

"His blood was on those runes." Hatsumi stated.

"Now, now, let's all calm down!" Herbert said. "There is surely a reasonable explanation for this."

"I haven't done anything, I swear!" Johnson said. "I, I did get a bit drunk two days ago with Renata and I don't remember everything. She, she finally accepted an invitation to have some drinks! Originally I was scheduled for a patrol but I had some free time because of you!"

"Renata? The mage who also works here? She was seen near the sewers." I said.

"Renata is a contractor, yes, but she isn't authorised to change the runes, she just provides power, like you do." Herbert said.

"Did she take some of your blood?" Cassie asked Johnson.

"What? No, Renata would never… I mean, I was drunk…" Johnson said.

"Where can we find this Renata?" Hatsumi asked.

Herbert grimaced. "I am not sure, Brian might have her address somewhere. We might have to call the guards. Johnson, you really screwed up this time."

"Damn…" Johnson said, looking genuinely distressed.

For now it seemed that he had been careless and not malevolent but the guard would have to find out if it was an act or not. Hopefully this Renata hadn't fled the city.