One day, when the sun shone brightly, a large number of knights filled the town of Iveleth. Everywhere, there was at least one knight, and it seemed that security in the town had been tightened. Even beyond the town, in all the surrounding areas, there were no fewer than five knights stationed. Places like the Moon Ruins, the Western Dungeon, and the Southern Dungeon were all guarded.
Suddenly, a large group of knights started running, gripping their swords. They were moving from the Alis Guild northward to the Miracles Guild. All the knights in town were headed there, seemingly chasing someone. That person was like a shadow, moving at incredible speed, and their destination also appeared to be the northern part of town—specifically, the Miracles Guild.
"Catch him!" one of the knights shouted as he closed in on the fleeing figure.
The figure managed to advance past the Miracles Guild, but it seemed the knights were no longer following them. Instead, they were chasing another man—a warrior clad in massive green armor with brown hair. The knights surrounded him before he could enter the guild. He appeared shocked, unable to comprehend what was happening, so he instinctively grabbed his greatsword and stood ready.
"Are you Ralce? The second strongest adventurer in the town?" one of the knights asked.
"Yeah?" Ralce muttered.
"By order of our commander, Vinnel, you must come with us," the knight declared.
"What? Why?!" Ralce shouted.
"Ask yourself why you were running away from us."
"Running away?! I was just doing my morning workout! Every morning, I leave my house in the south of the town and run to the guild in the north. I wasn't running away!" the armored man explained.
"We don't care. We need you to come with us, or we'll be forced to use force."
"A short while before you started running, someone was murdered behind the merchant Borlfon's palace, right between it and the Moon Goddess' Temple. One of our knights saw you sprinting at an incredible speed just after that."
"So, by pure coincidence, I just happen to be a suspect in a murder case that occurred while I was running to the guild? And because someone spotted me running, you all started chasing me? Fuck you! I have proof! Ask anyone at the Alis Guild—I passed by them. I didn't even go near the center of the town!"
"We know everything. This is just a quick investigation. We're still interrogating everyone who was near the crime scene. So don't be an obstacle—come with us now."
At that moment, Ralce lost hope and realized he had become entangled in this mess—or rather, this crime. Resigned, he stepped away from the guild, surrounded by the knights. But who was this crazy Dark Eye that dared to commit a murder in a town swarming with knights? It seemed things were about to explode in Iveleth... No, they had already exploded.
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"So, Sir Avilat? It looks like the Dark Eye isn't Etomi Sleva after all. Then who could it be?" Vinnel asked seriously, staring at the guild master with his single eye.
"Who said it wasn't her? She's been walking around town freely!" Avilat responded.
"Alright... bring her in," Vinnel whispered.
The door to the room opened, and a demi-human wearing simple villager clothes entered. It was Etomi. She stepped inside and stood before Vinnel, who was seated on the couch directly across from Avilat. The knight in heavy armor grinned widely before saying: "Unfortunately, for the past week, Etomi hasn't left her house."
"What?! Then who committed this murder just now?!" Avilat exclaimed.
"Don't jump to conclusions. Let me explain. A week ago, after Etomi agreed to cooperate with us and allowed us to keep her within the town, she came to me and told me something very straightforward. She suspects you. She believed that the Dark Eye was working for you and that you would order them to commit a crime within the town. Since the Dark Eye usually only kills outside, this would serve as a clever message, making it seem like Etomi was the murderer..."
"So she decided to stay in her house and be placed under strict guard. At the exact moment the crime occurred this morning, Etomi was inside her home. So, at this point, in my opinion, you, Sir Avilat, are the prime suspect," Vinnel declared with confidence.
"What?! That's nowhere near enough to put me on a suspect list!" Avilat shouted angrily.
"For me, it's more than enough. Alright, answer me this—why did the Dark Eye commit a murder inside the town in the same week that Etomi was locked up? This was information that only I, you, my knights guarding her house, and, of course, Etomi herself knew. So why did the Dark Eye do this?"
"The matter is simple. Just spying on Etomi's house or noticing that she hasn't been seen for a week makes it clear that the Dark Eye was watching her until he realized she hadn't appeared for a week. That's why the crime happened on the day Etomi was about to be released," Avilat said confidently.
"This puts you in another problem, Guild Master, because you're speaking as if the Dark Eye knew that Etomi would be released today. And if he did, you're the only person who could have told him. Avilat, I'll send a message to the capital, and your trial will begin in three days," Vinnel declared as he rose from the sofa, leaving the old man in shock.
"Alright, thanks for everything and for the tea. I'll now begin investigating this last crime, so prepare yourself for three days from now," the one-eyed knight finished his last sentence before leaving the room.
"Is this what you wanted?! After all the great treatment I gave you, my guild's strongest adventurer betrays me, and you tell one of the capital's knights that you suspect me?!" Avilat shouted, holding his head with both hands.
"Why does this only happen to good people? If I were evil, none of this would have happened. You'd all be afraid of me… but I'm weak, and throwing accusations at me is easy," Avilat added, seemingly on the verge of tears.
Etomi simply stared at him coldly before also leaving the room, saying: "I was the strongest adventurer, and accusations were thrown at me. All I did was throw them at you instead. I suppose you can clear your name easily if you really have nothing to do with this… Good luck, Grandpa Avilat."
With that, Etomi also left the room, leaving the old man alone, sobbing. He was crying hard, his tears streaming down. Then, he started hitting his head with both hands, muttering:
"Damn you all, may the goddess curse you!"
Under the bright sunlight, Vinnel and a few knights approached a guarded house in the town. One of the guards opened the door, and Vinnel stepped inside with his heavy, clanking armor, his serious footsteps echoing through the place. The house was like any other in this town, located near Fiona's tavern in the southeast.
As Vinnel entered, several knights inside stood and saluted their commander. Among them were a few civilians and adventurers, including Ralce, who sat on the ground, visibly angry. Once Vinnel was inside, a knight dressed in fine clothing approached him and reported:
"These are the individuals who were spotted near the crime scene. Some are witnesses, and one is a suspect."
"A suspect?! This town keeps getting more and more interesting. Alright, let's see… Bring forward those who were near the crime scene first," the one-eyed knight ordered.
Three individuals stepped forward—two dressed as common villagers and one adventurer. Vinnel glared at them fiercely, as if he were about to devour them. Then, he stepped back, slumped into a chair like a drunkard, and suddenly drew his terrifying silver sword.
"When I say 'Come here' to any of you, that means I'll cut off your head. Now, let's begin the interrogation."
The three immediately burst into tears, panic-stricken, begging Vinnel for mercy, claiming they had nothing to do with this. But before their cries could go any further, the sharp-eyed knight interrupted them coldly:
"Alright, you, the blonde one. What were you doing there?"
"I... I... My friend and I were on our way home after finishing our morning prayers..."
"Yes... Yes... Y-You can ask the priestess Mylenna!!" the second villager quickly added.
"It seems my simple request was ignored. I asked the blonde one, yet two people answered... What's going on here?" Vinnel muttered as he pointed his sword at the second one.
Then he immediately fell to his knees, crying and begging for mercy. Vinnel sheathed his sword and asked again: "You, the blonde one. You claim you were with this man at the temple, correct?"
"Yes... Yes... I swear by the Moon Goddess!" the blonde guy shouted.
"Write all of this down... You, take note of everything. Write their names and their responses under them," Vinnel instructed, pointing at one of the knights.
"In my entire life, no one has ever dared to mock me. But today, the Dark Eye decided to commit a crime while I was in this town investigating. This is the first and greatest insult I've ever received," Vinnel muttered.
"Alright, you. Were you with him at the temple?"
"Yes, yes!!"
"Write that down… Now, we have one person left, the adventurer. You seem to be an archer. What were you doing there?"
"I was on my usual route from the tavern to Miracles Guild," the adventurer answered nervously.
"Alright, which tavern do you live in?" Vinnel asked.
"It's the Cloud Tavern, the one nearby."
Vinnel continued interrogating the three while one of the knights documented everything. Once the questioning was over, he ordered them to step aside and called in the next group—the witnesses. There were only two: an elderly demi-human dressed as a villager and a human priestess.
"So, what do you testify to? Old man, speak first."
"I saw him running away. The incident happened between two houses behind Borlfon's palace. The houses were close together, with a narrow alley between them. One of Miracles' adventurers passed through that alley, and the Dark Eye seized the opportunity to kill him in the darkness. I saw it... I saw him running away from that alley," the old man testified.
"Describe his appearance. And you, write down everything he says," Vinnel instructed.
"He was somewhat short, wearing black leather armor that covered his entire body, but I didn't see his face."
"Did he have animal ears?"
"No, I didn't see any. He seemed to be human."
"Alright, now you speak," Vinnel said, pointing at the girl.
"The same thing happened to me, but I was able to see his face."
"Really?! Why didn't you say that from the start?!" Vinnel exclaimed excitedly, jumping up from his seat.
"Commander, you told them to speak only when ordered," one of the knights reminded him.
"Oh… right. Okay, continue."
"But he was wearing a mask… a black mask. He was like a shadow; I couldn't even see the color of his skin."
"Damn it!" Vinnel suddenly shouted, slumping back into his chair.
"Alright then, now finally, the suspect."
The witnesses stepped back, and soon, the sound of Ralce's footsteps and the creaking of his heavy armor echoed. He stepped forward from the room he had been kept in, his expression filled with anger. His gaze was locked onto Vinnel, who sat in front of him. For a moment, as Ralce approached and stood before him, their expressions changed—as if they had just seen something unbelievable.
"Uncle?!" Ralce suddenly shouted.
"Ralcy?!" Vinnel shouted back at the same time.
"My goddess, what are you doing here?!" Ralce asked, still in shock.
"After your father died on the battlefield, I was promoted to commander. So, it seems you've chosen to become an adventurer. What a coincidence!"
"My goddess, so you're the one in charge of all this! Tell your fucking knights that I'm innocent of this crime," Ralce said.
"No, no, not at all. I'll still investigate you. But before that, let me talk to my nephew, whom I haven't seen in five years."
"So, what have you been up to since Taljen died?" Vinnel asked with a faint smile.
"Before he went to fight the demons, he told me that he might die and ordered me to prepare myself to become the head of the family, to take care of my siblings and mother. So, I became an adventurer, and now I send most of my earnings to my family in Ethelas. That's how I've been living for the past five years," Ralce answered.
"Impressive. Five years—the same amount of time it took me to rise to commander. So, what about you? After five years as an adventurer, did you reach Gold or Ruby rank?" Vinnel asked his nephew.
"Pfft, are you underestimating me? I'm the second strongest adventurer in this town. I reached Emerald rank in less than two months. And when I say I became an adventurer five years ago, I don't mean I was registered with a guild. No, I only joined the Miracles Guild a year ago, and now I'm Emerald rank."
"What?! That's incredible! Only one year?!" Vinnel exclaimed loudly.
"So, our great bloodline won't die out after all. You're the only young man in our family, so that makes me happy… but how did that demi-human girl surpass you?" Vinnel said, staring at Ralce with a smirk.
"Ugh, Etomi, that fucking girl… Don't worry, I'll surpass her in two months or so."
After that, silence fell between them. No one spoke. Then, Vinnel unsheathed his sword, lowering his gaze to the ground, avoiding eye contact with his nephew. His expression turned terrifying, as if he were in the middle of a battle. The most frightening thing was that, just moments ago, he had been smiling. This change in demeanor could only mean one thing—the time for jokes was over.
"Ralce, are you the Dark Eye?"