Chapter 50

The rumor of the ritual's success was probably spread mostly by the female magician herself.

'Troimelai' might be capable of performing small miracles, or perhaps it's staged to look that way.

Then, Luke uses the witnesses he has met to spread the rumor.

After a while, someone who needs to perform the ritual multiple times is drawn to the rumor of 'Troimelai.' Yes, someone with a serious illness like Nesta Oder's mother.

The general consensus was that such a person, desperate for help, was being extorted for money.

"Good job investigating so thoroughly in less than half a day."

"The case of 'Troimelai' has been a topic of discussion among us for a while now."

When I expressed my admiration, Luke looked a bit embarrassed.

By "us," Luke meant the other members of the Information Division, I assume.

There must be other comrades who provide information about the town's rumors.

"We need to get rid of anyone who uses magic items for mischief as soon as possible. If we investigate, the Magic Guild will lend a hand."

Lava said with a smile, though her eyes weren't smiling at all.

Lava and her team are working diligently to develop magic items to enrich people's lives.

What the female magician is doing is directly opposing their efforts. It's only natural that they are angry.

An angry beauty is quite intimidating.

The next day.

We decided to investigate the 'Troimelai' case seriously.

First, we informed the Guild Chief of the dangers of 'Troimelai.'

Unlike the time with the magic cave, this time we were taken seriously.

While waiting for a response from the palace, we decided to do what we could.

I asked Luke to bring Nesta Oder to the guild.

"Please help me! Please help me!"

Nesta bowed her head and begged for help the moment she met us.

What did Luke say to bring her here? We can't help Nesta's mother.

"... My mother, my mother died. Even though we borrowed money to perform the ritual, she didn't survive."

Seeing Nesta's tragic expression, I realized how foolish I had been.

It was too late.

No, it wasn't even clear if she could have been saved.

Despite knowing this, a sense of guilt swirled in my chest.

"I know it's hard, but can you tell us the details?"

Nesta bit her lip and began to recount the events.

What the female magician was doing was mostly as everyone had imagined.

While taking care of her mother, a peddler came and sold her 'Troimelai.'

Since 'Troimelai' wasn't too expensive, Nesta bought it with some doubt.

The next day, a man claiming to be an intermediary came and demanded the necessary items for the ritual.

Using her meager savings, Nesta prepared the items as requested and waited. The female magician came, touched 'Troimelai,' and performed the ritual.

After the ritual, Nesta's mother felt better for a few days but didn't fully recover.

The intermediary came again and demanded money. The ritual was performed, but she still didn't fully recover.

Despite this, Nesta sold the store's goods and her clothes to repeat the ritual, hoping to ease her mother's suffering even for a short time.

Finally, she even borrowed money using the store as collateral, but her mother passed away.

Nesta said with a dark expression.

"If you say I was the one who was deceived, maybe that's true. I know miracles can't happen so easily. But I can't just give up."

"Are you saying you want revenge?"

Luke asked in a low voice.

Nesta shook her head weakly.

"My mother died of illness. I took care of my father, and I knew she couldn't be cured. But I don't want to lose the store they left behind...!"

Nesta is now at risk of losing the store she used as collateral for the loan.

If that happens, she will have nothing left. She cried as she said this.

The moneylender who lent her money, using the store as collateral, seemed to be in cahoots with the female magician.

To help Nesta and prevent further victims, we need to catch the female magician quickly.

Lava, Eugene, and Renge all looked grim.

I probably had a similar expression.

Luke was discussing something with Quincy in a low voice.

We were called by the Chief just as we finished listening to Nesta and were about to discuss what to do next.

We asked Nesta to wait in another room and hurried to the Chief's office.

"A response has come from the palace."

Three days later, a mage and royal guards from the capital will be dispatched.

I thought this was a good sign. But my hopes were quickly dashed.

"They are coming to take the female magician, so you need to gather evidence and bring her to the guild."

The Chief said this with a sigh.

Lava was laughing, her shoulders shaking.

"Hehehe, that's the same as saying we have to deal with it ourselves."

"And they want to take all the credit."

Quincy glared at the Chief with a vicious smile.

"Both of you, the Chief isn't to blame, so don't make such faces."

The Chief looked relieved and turned to me.

"Spending three days preparing, coming to the guild with royal guards, and leaving the evidence gathering and arrest to us isn't the Chief's fault, right?"

I spoke to the two of them in a gentle tone.

The Chief turned away from me.

"Yes, that's right. That's it."

"Damn, I'll complain to Yuse later."

What's wrong? Eugene and Renge are trembling in the back.

Immediately, a strategy meeting began to discuss how to capture the female magician and her accomplices.

I think the palace is acting quickly.

This is also an opportunity for the guild and the Magic Guild to work together and achieve results.

We can't ignore the palace's orders.

Let's make the best of the situation.

Conveniently, the front desk will be closed three days from now.

"Lava, Renge, please analyze 'Troimelai.'"

"Understood."

Despite being busy with skill data organization, Lava nodded without hesitation.

"What should I do?"

"Luke will give you information, and I want you to recover 'Troimelai.' Can you do that?"

"Understood!"

There might be fakes among the items seized by the Magic Guild.

More physical evidence is better.

I smiled at Renge's enthusiastic response.

"Eugene, can you go with Luke and buy 'Troimelai' from the peddler?"

"Me?"

Eugene seemed surprised to hear his name.

"First, Luke will pretend to be sick and act as a decoy."

"Leave it to me, leave it to me!"

"Trying to deceive a fraudster, huh?"

Quincy smiled slyly.

That's exactly right.

Eugene will pretend to take care of Luke while making contact with the peddler.

"Eugene, you're a certified appraiser, right? In front of the peddler, say that I have the appraiser skill, but this item is a fake."

"A certified appraiser..."

Eugene's cheeks turned red.

It's good to be flustered, but this is important.

If the female magician's side hears a bad rumor, they might try to make contact.

The best scenario would be for an intermediary to come and lure out the female magician, but that might not happen.

I wish I could go myself.

When I said this, Luke strongly opposed it.

"Noah, you're a celebrity now! Please stay and wait at the guild!"

I'm not sure if "celebrity" is the right word, but if my name or face is known to the female magician's side, they won't approach someone who can see through skills and stats.

I understand that much.

"I thought I should go and see for myself. It's not guaranteed that an intermediary will come. ... For example, if we're attacked."

"You know it's dangerous!"

"So, Luke is also in danger, right?"

When I said this, the room suddenly went silent.

Did I say something wrong?

Unable to bear the awkward atmosphere, I continued more talkatively than usual.

"Eugene has the danger detection skill. I don't want either Eugene or Luke to be in danger. But if the other side makes contact, I want to catch them for sure."

And then expose them in broad daylight.

Thinking about what might happen to the two of them makes my stomach heavy.

However, this is also a race against time.

For example, if we can't catch the female magician, and a mage comes with a large number of royal guards to the guild and starts a crackdown on 'Troimelai,' what will happen?

If I were the criminal, I would leave the capital and start the same thing in another city. Changing the name and method would make it difficult to uncover the situation.

If the female magician's side realizes we are investigating and disappears from the capital, it would be a serious problem.

With Eugene's danger detection skill, we have a better chance of taking the initiative.

And I believe that skill will protect Eugene and Luke.

"I'll do it! I'll definitely lure them out!"

"Eugene... Yes, you can do it."

Eugene said forcefully.

His hand was trembling slightly, but I pretended not to notice.

"We'll get the Investigation Division to help. With the support of veterans, you'll be more at ease, right?"

To prevent the accomplices from escaping, we'll use a human wave tactic to block all escape routes.

"Luke has brought Nesta Oder."

Luke brought Nesta, who had been waiting in another room.

He will also act as a decoy to lure the moneylender while we catch the female magician.

When we explained the situation, Nesta agreed to cooperate, knowing the risks.

"We'll send someone else from the Information Division. The moneylender's boss might not be the female magician."

They plan to catch the underlings who come to collect the money and interrogate them thoroughly.

Since Luke said this, Nesta's part will be handled by the Information Division.

"Well, let's start the operation."

We all moved to fulfill our respective roles.