Do you have a problem with necromancers?

Chapter 49 The Inquisition
The Southern District serial murders, which led to the removal of the previous commander of the Imperial Capital Garrison, forced Rein to place them on a very high priority.

Otherwise, even if the emperor has forgotten about this matter, it is hard to guarantee that Her Majesty the Empress's political enemies will remind the emperor at the right moment and take the opportunity to bring down Rein as well.

After receiving the letter of appointment from the Queen, Renn was branded as part of the Queen's camp, which naturally earned him the hatred and hostility of the Queen's political enemies.

As for the Fahre family... the nobles of the capital city obviously didn't care; they were just nouveau riche from the countryside.

Upon arriving at the house where the murder occurred, two guards from the capital city stood at the door, while the area was surrounded by layers of onlookers. All the citizens discussing the case wore anxious and worried expressions.

As Ryan stepped onto the stairs, Magus quickly stepped forward and eagerly opened the door for him.

Suddenly, Ryan turned around abruptly and said to the onlookers who were watching him:

"In the imperial capital, bathed in the glory of the royal family, such a heinous serial murder case cannot be tolerated. I will solve this case within two weeks!"

After saying that, he went into the house without looking back.

The onlookers were stunned for a moment, then suddenly erupted in uproar.

Upon entering the house, Ryan glanced at the surrounding furnishings for a moment before heading straight to the room where the murder had occurred, saying:
"Magnus! Seal off the room entrance and don't let anyone in!"

"As you command!" Magus immediately stood at attention and instinctively shouted, "Loyalty! Honesty!"

Then I saw Ellina silently follow me into the room.

The guards of the capital city tacitly ignored the high elf lady beside the commander, only whispering amongst themselves:

"Resolve the case within two weeks?"

"The new administration couldn't solve this in a month, and this guy can fix it in two weeks?"

"Keep bragging. We'll just grab a scapegoat, announce that he's the murderer, and close the case."

"What if new victims emerge?"

"Just say it's a new case..."

"Enough!" Magus interrupted the murmurs and shouted angrily, "How dare you criticize the Commander's foresight?"

"If there's any more gossip, go back to the barracks and swear an oath of loyalty to me a hundred times!"

The guards of the capital immediately fell silent, stood proudly, and continued to stand guard. After all, Magus's "swearing of loyalty" was something that had to be shouted out with all his might to be counted; after a hundred times, his throat would be hoarse.

Ryan slowly walked into the bedroom and saw the deceased lying half-reclined by the fireplace, his scalp also peeled open from the left side, revealing the blood-soaked skull underneath.

Centered on the corpse, a circular magic circle was drawn with blood, and there were also obscure and mysterious runes on it.

He could tell at a glance that it was not a "necromancer's ritual" but a sorcery that used the slaughter of the innocent to please the demons of purgatory.

Ellina followed her in, her gaze quickly sweeping across the room before finally settling on the corpse, and she began to deduce its nature.

The cause of death is obvious: throat slit.

The left windowsill in the bedroom had dust, while the right windowsill did not. Considering that there was also dust above the fireplace, it can be assumed that the homeowner did not like to clean frequently. The absence of dust on the right windowsill is likely due to the perpetrator climbing in through the window and sweeping away the footprints on the dust after committing the crime.

In other words, the deceased was probably standing on the right side of the room, facing the tapestry on the wall, when the assailant climbed in through the window, attacked her from behind, slit her throat, and then moved her to her current location, where she died in agony.

There were obvious washing marks on the tapestry, likely from bloodstains splattered there when the victim was murdered. But why would the murderer deliberately move the body? Did they not want us to know the crime scene was in front of the tapestry?

Or perhaps the ritual array around the corpse had to be drawn in a specific location, which is why the corpse was specifically moved there?
No, there's still too little evidence at the scene. Perhaps we should investigate the route the killer took by going out along the right-hand window sill; we might find more clues along the way.

Ellina hesitated, wondering whether to tell Raine about her analysis. Although she didn't want to deal with an inherently evil necromancer, there was an even more wicked serial killer in the capital right now, and it seemed like it would be good to let these two villains kill each other.

Just as she hesitated, she saw Ryan snap his fingers and chuckle as he said:
"Innocent soul who died with its throat slit, temporarily return to your body and reveal information about the murderer to me!"

Then, the corpse that had been lying on the ground suddenly began to writhe violently. Ellina stared blankly at all of this, suddenly feeling that her previous reasoning process was a joke.

The deceased, whose spirit had returned, clutched their throat in anguish, uttering a sound as if they were about to die:
"Help, help me..."

Renn knelt down beside her and said:
"You are dead. Tell me the killer's characteristics, and I will avenge you."

The deceased gasped for breath for a moment and said:
"Bald..."

“Make a note of this,” Renn instructed Ellina. “Anything else?”

“A red… robe…”

Do you have any memories of your appearance? For example, your facial features?

"Eyes... long and narrow, like..." The ghost shuddered in pain, "...like a hawk..."

"What about the nose and mouth?"

"He has... a small mustache, two... thin lips..." The ghost's voice grew weaker and weaker, "So cold... I'm in so much pain... Please, please..."

Raine snapped his fingers again, releasing the soul from its bondage and allowing it to return to the River Styx.

Ellina watched silently.

She also longed for her soul to be released and return to the sweet slumber where she would not be tormented by the sins of her past life, but this inherently evil necromancer continued to enslave her.

Perhaps, those villains who serve as lackeys for slavery will eventually become slaves themselves; this is the punishment the gods have bestowed upon me…

Ignoring Ellina's self-reflection, Raine simply looked again at the magic circle surrounding the corpse, carefully examining the specific details.

There are over seventy different sects of heretics in this world, and the demons they worship and the rituals they use vary greatly. For example, the "Dribbitch Cult," which previously wreaked havoc on the Nightmare Legion, specializes in various hellish arts of dream travel and emotion extraction, making them completely different from other sects.

In addition, the empire has a tradition of cracking down on heretics every year, which makes many mages unwilling to delve into the academic field of hellish sorcery, lest they one day make due contributions to the political achievements of the imperial bureaucracy.

Fortunately, Raine himself was a necromancer on par with heretics, so he was not afraid of the witchers of the Imperial Inquisition. He had also thoroughly explored the ocean of forbidden knowledge in the past.

After comparing these hellish cryptic texts with his vast knowledge for a moment, he quickly came to a conclusion:
Brofferist sect.

The great demon Bropher, who is in charge of "torture," "abuse," and "domination," belongs to a relatively obscure sect among pagans. As far as I can remember, only butchers, jailers, executioners, dark elves, and some nobles with rather perverse tastes would join this sect...

As Ryan was lost in his thoughts, he suddenly heard a stern rebuke from outside:

"Don't go in! Who are you people!"

Almost simultaneously, the sound of clashing swords rang out, mixed with the muffled groans of pain from the guards of the capital.

Ellina quickly picked up her spear, but before she could even step out of the room, the door was pushed open from the outside.

Several men in black robes and high collars walked in. Leading them was a burly judge with a buzz cut and a scar over his right eye. He asked coldly:
"Commander of the Imperial Capital Garrison, Rein Fahre?"

"Who are you?" Renn asked back.

“Imperial Inquisition,” the judge said coldly. “This place is under our control. Get out with your hounds.”

“Really? I don’t believe it.” Raine raised an eyebrow, a suspicious look on his face. “Openly attacking the Imperial Guard, you seem more like suspects in this case.”

The judge sighed deeply and waved his hand:
"Take it."

Without Rein giving any orders, Ellina had already stepped forward with her gun.

(End of this chapter)