Koyuki, the Necromancing Foxkin

CHAPTER 332: Questions and Theories

"Um, we were attacked." I stated the obvious. Since it was not quite the explanation Valeria was looking for I described the incident in more detail afterwards.

"Where is Cillian?" Valeria asked, after listening to my full explanation.

I looked around. "That is a good question. Last I saw him he mentioned bringing Archibald to the city guard."

"That is what he did." Kaito added. "He left alone and he has not returned since then, as far as I know."

"The attackers smelled like death, they certainly killed someone before they came here. Perhaps they killed Cillian? They knew about the Archibald incident." Garm said.

"They could have been watching and used the opportunity." Bridget suggested.

"That would mean they had a different plan originally, saw an opportunity and acted on it. But why did their clothes smell like death? The uniforms did not have any obvious stains, I doubt they took them from dead guards." Hatsumi said.

"The barracks have spare uniforms. They could have gotten them from the laundry, for example." Bridget pointed out. "If they were discovered while stealing them they would have needed to kill the guards."

"We should question the captives. They owe me an undead." Leo stated with a murderous gaze. "That assassin came for me first, they were hunting necromancers. I want those captives shipped to my fathers interrogators."

"The city will handle this investigation." Bridget stated.

"We will see about that!" Leo stated. His undead wolves now stood protectively near him. I had not seen them during the battle, so he either forgot to command them or I did not notice their contribution. Leo himself looked a bit rattled, he did come rather close to being stabbed. He also seemed rather envious when he watched my undead, especially Hatsumi.

"Lady Valeria, we will ensure that the authorities are notified and we will keep the party safe. If you wish you can go back inside and enjoy yourself. Do not let this unfortunate incident ruin your celebration." Kaito stated.

"He has a point, have fun Valeria! We got this!" I tried to encourage her.

"Ok… Tell me if there is any news. I am going to trust you." She replied.

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Bridget followed Valeria inside while Leo lingered and glared a bit longer, then he rejoined the party as well. Meanwhile Hatsumi fetched a coat for Skadi to cover up her destroyed dress.

"I have sent two of Valeria's guards and Frank to fetch the city guard." Kaito reported.

"Good." I replied, while my gaze swept over the destruction. I hope nobody would charge us for the destroyed fence.

"You know, Archibald could have been in on it." Helena said as she stepped beside me.

"I doubt that he is smart enough to plot an attack like that. And he should not have the funds." Skadi said.

"He could have been used by them. He has been manipulated before, by the fake Eva." Cassie pointed out.

"Cillian could be in on it too, assuming he was not attacked on the way." Helena mused.

"Maybe, or maybe he is just not that competent. Leaving his post as lead guard is rather unprofessional." I said.

"Perhaps he is being influenced by Archibald's family?" Kaito suggested.

"A spy!" Skadi stated. "Nobles do that all the time. Maybe he is a plant from Archibald's family?"

"Or he is just incompetent." I said.

"I like the spy theory." Cassie added.

Skadi looked at her girlfriend and noticed a slight shiver, so she pulled Cassie closer and covered both of them with her coat. I wondered why Cassie did not simply use more of her fire magic, then it dawned on me. It was deliberate! And kind of sweet, seeing both of them under one coat. Maybe I should do something romantic with Helena.

"Do I have something on my face?" Helena asked, after she noticed I was staring at her. "I was not close enough for any blood to…"

"No, no. You look fine, I was lost in thought." I said.

"Oh, I have read about that!" Garm's left head said. "Fighting gets the blood pumping and some humanoids seek companionship afterwards." The right head concluded.

My face burned from embarrassment. "What? No! That is not…"

Helena grinned.

"We have to discuss the attack! We need to focus on that!" I said.

"I could try to follow their scent, however I am not sure if this will lead us anywhere. If they killed someone nearby I could likely find the spot." Garm suggested.

"We still have to defend the party, and we have to wait for the city guard." Hatsumi stated.

"Yes, I believe splitting up is not a good idea." Kaito agreed. "We should wait for the guards and let them take our captives into custody. With so many nobles being involved we might have to thread carefully."

"They were probably from Ilestria, right?" I wondered.

"The light mage would fit." Helena agreed.

"Could be the thieves guild." Skadi reminded us. "They have a grudge and they certainly have a few light mages."

"Even the Brotherhood is a possibility, although you would think they would send undead. But they could have hired a group to throw us off." Cassie said.

"We could just melt the ice around that mage and question her." Skadi suggested while pointing at the icicle.

"Doing so without harming her does take a bit of time and it might be best if we let the authorities handle her. We cannot act on any information and if we extract it in private it might not hold up in court. I do not believe the city guard is compromised in general so I would trust them on this." Kaito suggested.

"They did not tell us anything in Neth." Skadi pointed out.

"True, however we were not there for long. And we have better connections to the authorities here, we have helped with the raid on the thieves guild, after all. Another reason to let them handle it and show our trust." Kaito said.

I nodded. "Let's wait, the city guard should be here soon."