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nMiraj was confused. For some reason, even he found the woman attractive. And it was strange because, in his eyes, all humans were ugly, except his beloved Maxy, Big Mum, and old caretaker.

n‘What is happening to me? What happened to Felix?’ Miraj wondered and was alarmed. He didn’t know what, but something was wrong.

nSo he jumped onto Felix’s naked torso and looked at his face. He moved his paws before Felix’s eyes and saw no reaction. ‘Is he sleeping?’

n“Perhaps you wish to feel some warmth first?”

nMiraj looked down and noticed the woman was about to drop Felix’s pants. ‘I should wake him up.’

nPa!

nHe slapped his mighty chubby paw on Felix’s face. But it did nothing to wake him up. So, left with no choice, he moved near the ear and blew into it.

n‘Ah! His skin became weird.’

nBut, noticing the silence even then, he decided to bite the boy straight up. ‘Hmph, you deserve this for being a bad boy.’

nChomp!

nHe nibbled on the ear until blood came out. His big white fangs were sharp and easily dug into the boneless flesh.

n“Aaargh! What?” Felix bellowed. “Get away from me, you wench!”

n‘Yes!’

nMiraj quickly jumped away as soon as Felix’s shout resounded, and he backed away from the naked Duchess on her knees.

n“Ugh… how did you wake up? Spoiled my plan.”

nWoosh!

nShe jumped to her feet and inched close to Felix before moving the back of her hand near her mouth.

nPop!

nA diamond ring’s top opened up, and she blew on it, spreading some fine dust on Felix’s face. In an instant, he fell back with a thud, unconscious.

n“How did he wake up? It’s impossible to fight my charm scents. Ugh… I should move.”

nShe talked to herself while working hard to put clothes back on Felix and then pushed him onto the bed, tucking him with a blanket as if nothing had ever happened. Then, she wore her negligee and rushed out of the room.

nMiraj was left there watching everything in shock. ‘Woah! Is her breath so stinky that Felix fell asleep again? Oh wait, it was that power?… I better not sniff it.’

nSo, he decided to sleep right where he was, in the corner of the room, on top of a hanging flowerpot with no flowers.

n‘I wonder if Maxy is missing me… hmm…’ He slowly drifted into sleep.

n…

nKnock Knock!

nThe following day, Sylvester barged into Felix’s room after receiving no response for a while.

n“Felix! Are you alive?”

n“Maxyyy!”

nBam! ．

nMiraj jumped on Sylvester from the flowerpot, giving a fluffy jumpscare as Miraj fell on Sylvester’s head. “It’s no fun sleeping alone. It was cold.”

nSylvester chuckled and caressed him to tidy up the fur. “It was just a few hours, Chonky. You should learn to spend time away from me sometimes.”

n“Never!” Being clingy as always, Miraj sat down on his shoulder, tightly holding his place with claws. “We’re hoes for life.”

n“You mean bros for life. But who taught you that word?”

n“Horny Felix did. He tries to sing like you but ends up saying strange words that I like. Ah! Maxy! Felix got his willy eaten by that black hair lady! She came in and made him a statue and got naked herself, and…”

nMiraj told everything about Felix from the start to the end. It was all jumbled up coming from Miraj’s mouth. But Sylvester had become a master of understanding him by now, so he put everything together in one go.

n‘S-She tried to force herself on him?’

nHe walked over to Felix and threw water on him. “Wake up, horndog. You nearly got your head chopped last night, it seems.”

n“Umm… what? Wha?”

nPa!

nSylvester slapped Felix’s butt and made him get up. “Stand up, boy. Do you have any idea what happened to you last night in this room?”

n“Fff… Fuck off, Max! Let me sleep! My head feels like exploding.”

n“Of course it does. You got molested yesterday—nearly raped!” Sylvester dropped the bomb.

nAs expected, Felix jumped up and patted his back. “I-I don’t feel any pain. What in the god’s name are you saying?”

n‘So that powder also made him forget what happened? It’s some sort of nerve agent?’

n“Sit down and listen to me carefully. Last night, Lady Artemis came to your room in a thin negligee. She tried to seduce you using some hypnotising scent and then nearly took your little friend as hers. But you woke up in time, yet failed to react as she used another dust to make you fall asleep and forget everything.”

n“What?!” Felix stood up in shock. “But why would she? I’m a nobody, while her husband is the Crown **ing Prince! Rich and powerful, more than me.”

nSylvester couldn’t tell him that he had heard her say it. So he acted like he was guessing. “To likely use you against me, or bring you under her thumb and use you as a pawn in the church since one day you will certainly hold a high office. I had a feeling she was up to no good from the moment I saw her, but this incident proved it all true.”

nBam!

nFelix stomped his foot on the ground. “That wench! What she did was an act of heresy. How could… Wait… if all that happened inside the room, then how do you know all this? Were you hiding somewhere?”

nSylvester knew this question was going to come one day or another. But he was not going to reveal Miraj to him yet. The man was too much of a loudmouth, and there was no telling when his tongue would slip. However, he was thinking of revealing it to Sir Dolorem first, as the man quite literally wishes to sacrifice himself so Sylvester could sit on the throne.

n“I have otherworldly help, my brother. It would be best if you never question or speak of it again, for it’s something too divine for even my understanding. All we need to know is that something is wrong in this castle. That woman has a past, and we must find out what it is.”

nHe looked around and got Felix’s armour. “Get dressed. I do not wish to waste time inside this castle. How far that woman can go, we don’t know, and right now, we’re inside enemy turf.”

nFelix quickly started getting dressed, albeit groaning with a headache. “Get the rest, especially Isabella. She’s… dumb, more than me.”

n“Hah, self-realisations? I like it. But, I’m afraid you will need to do that too, as I am headed to meet the Duke in his Solar. I need to talk to him about the murder mystery and see if he can help. Also, send the word to Crusaders to stay on high alert.” He ordered while leaving.

nFelix silently readied himself up alone. “Damn it. I wish I at least remembered it… she must have a nice body.”

n…

nSylvester took the man-powered elevator, run by slaves, to reach the top of the Duke’s tower, where the man’s office was.

nAs he arrived, he noticed even more extravagance. From gold and silver, things were now diamond and gold only. So much wealth was placed in a single place, but the shocking part was that this was not the treasury.

nBut he remained focused. ‘Strange, I haven’t seen a prima yet.’

nHe knocked on the door and entered after hearing the man from inside. “Good morning, your grace.”

nSylvester found the Duke, Duchess, and Isabella all inside, talking and eating something cheerfully.

n“Good morning, Sylvester.” Isabella chirped.

n“Morning, my lord.” The Duchess also spoke.

nSylvester nodded in reply and addressed the man directly. “It’s better if we talk in private, your grace. This matter relates to you directly, and it’s official church business, for I am working on behalf of the Inquisitor High Lord.”

nThe Duke seriously looked at Isabella. “Bella, can you go out and wait for a little while? I will show you the surrounding gardens after this. And Lord Bard, my wife is my Prima, so she must stay.”

n‘As I suspected—this woman holds too much power for being a nobody. Is he under her control too?’

n“Fair enough.” He agreed and waited for the door to close behind Isabella.

nThen the Duchess stood up and poured Sylvester a glass of water. But he didn’t drink, as nothing could be trusted with the woman. “Duke Daemon Gracia, do you know about the recent killings of noble ladies—specifically, Count Jartel and Raftel’s wives and Baron Redman’s daughter? And their subsequent mutilation of chests?”

n“I am aware,” Duke replied.

nSylvester continued. “Then you should also know that a man named Sir Kenworth is behind this mess, working for someone else. He tried to kill and silence an Inquisitor close to me and the Inquisitor High Lord right inside Green City. Now that’s a grave crime—and under the radar is your elder brother, implicating your family. So, if you have anything that can prove your innocence or help us catch Sir Kenworth, it will be appreciated.”

n“I have nothing that can help you, nor should you expect anything from me.” Duke suddenly took a hostile position.

nBut, what angered Sylvester was the scent of lies. ‘This bastard… he knows something or is hiding something.’

n“Remember, your Grace. My words are Inquisitor High Lord’s words. So please be honest, and help us in the investigation.” Sylvester repeated.

nThe Duke looked into his wife’s eyes for a split second before speaking, “Sir Dolorem, is it? The man attacked in Green City? I feel sad, trust me. But I do not know anything to help you, Lord Bard.”

n‘Why did he turn calm again all of a sudden? She did something?’ He was confused about the woman as he felt no scent of death anymore.

nThe Duke continued. “But you must understand that if my brother falls, it’s my rise. If he is pushed off the throne, then I, the rightful and logical heir, can take it. So, please do not meddle in Kindom’s internal politics nor hope to gain help from me to save him.”

n“You are obliged to support the Inqu–”

nThe Duke cut Sylvester off in the middle and stared at him with intelligent eyes. “Must I remind you of Articles 12 and 12B of Holy Law? The church cannot meddle in the kingdom’s internal politics unless it harms the church. I see no harm being done to the church—so be it you, Lord Inquisitor, or the Holy Father himself, you can not interfere.”

nSylvester was also well-versed in laws. “Then should I remind you of Article 12F?”

n“I know,” Duke responded. “I am obliged to help you in your quest to solve the murders. That is why you can remain in my lands freely, investigate whatever and where you want, but you shall get no help to apprehend or investigate from me, for that is like dropping an axe on my own foot.”

n‘I’m more inclined to believe he’s behind it now. But even if he is… why cut breasts? That makes no sense.’

nOf course, he could not simply arrest or interrogate a Crown Prince even if he held the Inquisitor High Lord’s authority. To attack ruling families of Kingdoms was a messy business that even the Pope had to be careful about.

n“Lord Bard, it was nice meeting you,” the Duchess tried dismissing him, keeping the same kind and charming smile.

nAt that moment, Sylvester felt it once more. ‘Ah… death again… from my demise, what does she have to gain?’

n“I will forward your words to the Lord Inquisitor and others. Again, thank you for your warm welcome, your grace. The lights, the beauty, and the scents in the castle were amazing.” Sylvester eyed the Duchess strangely before turning around to leave.

nShe clearly got the message.

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