Ke-style law enforcement officers

Chapter 151 It's him again.

The shady corner was formed by two separate buildings, where unwanted junk was piled up, including broken wooden crates and rotten chairs, while the ground was covered with black puddles that smelled of decay.

Apart from that, no trace of any trackers was found.

"Looks like you're in pretty bad shape." Milo shrugged.

Old Theon remained in the same gun-holding posture, facing the street corner, without saying a word.

"Let's go, stop dawdling."

Milo suspected that the old man's brain had been damaged by alcohol, and it was even possible that the cigarettes he smoked contained some kind of hallucinogenic tobacco.

Old Theon stood facing the shadows on the street corner for nearly two minutes before finally reluctantly putting away his flintlock musket, lighting a cigarette with a serious expression, and putting it in his mouth.

Milo thought old Theon's behavior was paranoid, but the man didn't seem to intend to offer any explanation, only muttering something under his breath:
"It's always safer to be alert when traveling late at night."

Milo remained noncommittal. After confirming that there were no so-called stalkers, the inexplicable sense of crisis in his heart gradually subsided.

He loosened his tie a little, allowing himself to breathe more comfortably into the damp night air of Nanwei City, and said to old Theon:

"Let's get down to business. What exactly happened in that case back then?"

"We'll talk about it when we get there."

Old Theon turned around and began to lead the way.

……

As is well known, there are many ancient buildings in Nanwei City.

Most of these structurally sound buildings underwent some degree of renovation and expansion to serve as office spaces for government departments, such as the Chengnan Law Enforcement Office.

However, many of the main structures have suffered irreparable fractures and have been temporarily shelved.

The former site of the Great Library is such a place.

This place was a sanctuary for scholars in the entire city of Nanwei in the last century. It was built with royal funds and has a history of nearly a hundred years. However, people later discovered that many of the main beams inside the building had developed cracks. The renovation project was terminated halfway through. After careful investigation, the architectural scholars finally issued a critical condition notice for the building.

So the Great Library was relocated.

However, the original building has not been demolished for a long time, supposedly because the building itself still has a certain historical significance. What exactly that significance is not important to ordinary people. People only know that it is a dilapidated building that may collapse at any time, and they just avoid getting close to it on weekdays.

The government has fenced off the abandoned site of the former library and left it there.

……

"The Gus Society people say that their original base was here."

Milo and old Theon easily climbed over the fence and entered the abandoned building.

It's easy to see that the current library at Nanwei Academy was built in imitation of this old library. The overall architectural style and framework are very similar, featuring a high-ceilinged atrium and a large interior space. Now, however, it's deserted, filled only with dust and rotting bookshelves.

"The mission was actually quite simple. The operation was scheduled for nighttime. The law enforcement officers tracked Ethan Field to this place, supposedly because core members of the Gus Society were going to hold some kind of ceremony in the library's top attic. But the goal of the operation was not to capture Ethan; all we needed to do was find that torn manuscript page inside the library."

Old Theon stood directly below the central courtyard, pointing to the staircases in the passageways on either side.

"The original plan was to split into groups and simultaneously flank upwards from several stairwells, in order to ensure that the students from the Gus Association could not destroy the torn pages in a crisis."

"Those were the seven men who carried out the mission; no other departments were involved." Old Theon lit a small kerosene lamp with a cigarette and held it in his hand, speaking in a low voice:
“Until the next morning, no one returned to the law enforcement station to report on the mission. I led a team to the scene to check, and found only a room full of unconscious students in the attic.”

"Can't they really provide any valuable information at all?" Even though he had already heard Nero say it once, Milo still found this very strange.

“No.” Old Theon shook his head: “The law enforcement agency even contacted the hospital to test and assess the mental state of these people. They were all fine, they just couldn’t remember anything. Everyone… just happened to faint at the crucial moment.”

“So the missing people include seven law enforcement officers from our department, Ethan Field, and Maggie Green.” Milo sorted out his thoughts and asked, “Among the students found at the scene, was there one named Joey Smith?”

“There is no such person.” Old Theon carried his kerosene lamp upstairs.

They arrived at the top floor attic where the incident occurred.

"The death certificate of the girl named Maggie was forged by law enforcement to give her family an explanation. As for Ethan Field, no family information could be found, and no one came to law enforcement to inquire about him after he disappeared, so the matter was dropped."

Old Theon placed the kerosene lamp on the wooden candlestick on the inner wall of the attic, then walked to the very center of the attic.

The attic floor was also made of wood. Because it had been in disrepair for many years, every step you took on the floor produced a series of strange creaking sounds, making it feel like it might collapse at any moment.

“You said you wanted to find Maggie’s body, but I can only tell you the chances are slim.” Old Theon stood in the center of the dark attic, pointing to the floor. “We mobilized almost everyone we had, searching half the city. We considered the fastest speeds of carriages and cars, and made all sorts of hypothetical murders and body transports, investigating and verifying them one by one, but all to no avail…”

“I’ve seen the case file.” Milo nodded. “There was no blood at the scene, no signs of a struggle, and the residents in the surrounding buildings didn’t hear any strange noises at night. The person just… disappeared without a trace.”

“I’ve investigated every possibility I could think of.” Old Theon rubbed his face with his rough hands.

For the first time, Milo saw an expression of "helplessness" on this seasoned veteran's face.

"Actually, by the end, I had given up hope. I just wanted to find their bodies, or even their belongings, and bring them back for burial. That would be enough."

Old Theon kept rambling on.

“I wanted Nero to find out what exactly happened with the manuscript from the client who commissioned this operation. Nero did as I asked, but his request was rejected by the higher-ups, so in the end I had no choice but to approach the church officials…”

"Is it Dillash again?"

Milo slowly frowned.

The most crucial element in this sealed-off case is the Fenich Manuscript. The fact that the Church has learned of the existence of fragments of this evil text's translation is not a good thing.

After all, Milo still doesn't understand the exact relationship between the Ravens, the Monsis School, the Church, and the Solomon Gang.

(End of this chapter)