As a warm light filled the palm of her hand, the badge in Liyami’s hand was activated. Kolin had probably received the message by now and was on his way.
Putting the badge away, Liyami turned her gaze back to Eleanor. Eleanor had also turned her head back, her emotions seeming to have stabilized.
Seeing this, Liyami wanted to ask just how valuable this badge was to make Eleanor so tense.
But this time, Eleanor simply closed her mouth, as if unwilling to say another word. Seeing her reaction, Liyami gave up on asking, deciding to ask Kolin about it later when she had the chance.
Just as she thought this, Kolin suddenly opened the door and rushed in with a flash of movement. Fortunately, Liyami and the others were sitting in a spot clearly visible from the entrance, otherwise Kolin’s Temple Sword would have nearly been swung.
Seeing that Liyami and the others seemed fine, Kolin swiftly sheathed his sword and returned to his usual demeanor. This entire series of actions happened in an instant. Even Liyami, an assassin, couldn’t clearly see Kolin’s movements. She only sensed he had taken a stance ready to attack, but in the blink of an eye, he was back to normal. Liyami could only describe the feeling as an illusion.
After confirming everyone was alright, Kolin spoke. “So, why did you use the badge to call me here?”
As soon as Kolin finished speaking, Liyami and Eleanor simultaneously looked at Lavinia, who lowered her head in shame.
Seeing this, Kolin roughly understood what had happened—Lavinia had probably caused trouble again. He sighed, waved his hand, and asked helplessly, “So, what exactly is it?”
Under the pressure from everyone, Lavinia quickly told Kolin everything from beginning to end. Fortunately, after hearing it all, Kolin didn’t frown or show displeasure. On the contrary, he seemed quite unsurprised, as if he had already anticipated this.
“I already guessed Lavinia would likely do something like this. That’s why, after arriving on the island, I requested an investigation permit from the local Special Incident Handling Squad. You can investigate with confidence.”
Kolin’s words surprised everyone, especially Lavinia. They hadn’t expected him to have thought of this already. Of course, Lavinia was thinking, ‘Is my evaluation in Kolin’s mind really that low? Do I even have a chance of winning?’
“Alright.” Ignoring the stunned Lavinia, Kolin decided to gather their respective information first. “What have you all found out?”
Hearing this, Liyami and the other two exchanged awkward glances, then all shook their heads, indicating they hadn’t found any valuable information.
Seeing this, Kolin simply gave a light nod and began sharing the intelligence he had gathered.
“Simply put, based on the investigation by the local Special Incident Handling Squad, the culprit behind this missing persons incident is most likely a member of the Demon Race, and an executive-level one at that.”
“How did they determine that?” Eleanor asked with a frown. While it was true that a large portion of high-risk incidents within the Kingdom were related to the Demon Race, it wasn’t always them. Moreover, after so many years of purges, demons had become scarce within the Kingdom and were unlikely to casually engage in such suicidal activities. So, Eleanor’s skepticism was reasonable.
“It was judged based on the magical traces left behind at the disappearance sites. That said, not every site had residual traces. At first, there were no clues at all. It was only as more people went missing that these sites with leftover traces gradually appeared. I suppose the culprit grew careless after committing multiple crimes and not being found? Of course, that’s not the only basis for the judgment; there’s other evidence. For example…”
Kolin briefly explained the analysis made by the local squad. After listening, Eleanor nodded lightly, acknowledging that the deduction was reasonable.
“A Demon Executive? Like that Alec from before?” Lavinia suddenly asked.
Mentioning that demon executive stirred a wave of disgust in Liyami’s heart. While she already had a poor impression of the Demon Race, her impression of that particular individual was exceptionally bad. After all, it was because of him that Liyami had ended up like this. How could she not despise him?
Fortunately, Alec was dead, and there probably wouldn’t be another demon with similar thoughts and interests… right?
A sudden wave of worry rose in Liyami’s heart. Luckily, Kolin’s next words put her at ease.
“Of course not. While both are Demon Executives, this one is no pushover like Alec, who was promoted to executive late in the Human-Demon War due to personnel shortages. This one likely became an executive during the early stages of the war, or even earlier. A demon who has survived this long is bound to be very troublesome.”
Kolin paused before continuing. “From the local squad’s investigation and analysis report, the culprit’s level is most likely between 65 and 70. The local squad members are only around Level 60, so confronting this Demon Executive would be quite difficult for them. So, while it was Lavinia’s unintentional action, it has indeed helped them a great deal.”
Hearing this, Lavinia rubbed her head somewhat sheepishly.
“However, we cannot let our guard down because of this. A demon who has survived this long must have numerous formidable methods. Everyone must be careful during the investigation.”
After Kolin finished speaking, everyone became more serious. It seemed this incident was indeed not simple. A demon who became an executive during the early stages of the Human-Demon War and survived to the present day, even if their level wasn’t exceptionally high, would absolutely possess powerful means.
While this wasn’t the first time their squad had faced a Demon Executive, they still needed to proceed with caution. After all, the principle of ‘capsizing in a ditch’ applied in any situation.
“A Demon Executive… we’ve dealt with several of those, right? Though most were pushovers promoted late in the war. No need to be so tense! I’ve taken down quite a few powerful executives in the past. This shouldn’t be a big problem either!”
Lavinia used her past experience to lighten the atmosphere in the room, easing the tension that had just gripped everyone.
Watching Lavinia boast about her past, Liyami remembered that she was a legendary figure who had fought alongside the Hero, a hero in her own right.
Although Lavinia’s fame wasn’t great—she hadn’t participated in the final battle and hadn’t traveled with the Hero for very long, so many commoners didn’t even know she existed—her strength was genuine. After all, she was someone who had fought alongside the Hero.
Liyami shifted her gaze from Lavinia to Kolin.
And we have Kolin, the strongest Holy Knight of this era. This should probably be resolved easily, right?