Chapter 44 Suspicious Fire Case
Jingyao Castle, the capital of the Aldo Kingdom, is still shrouded in a tense and solemn atmosphere.
Although it has been some time since the Royal Party's army regained the capital, the level of martial law has not been reduced at all. There are one sentry every five steps and one post every ten steps in the streets and alleys. Soldiers who often patrol often suddenly stop them. He looked at the suspicious person and then asked him about the situation of his eighteenth generation ancestors in detail.
In the past, the noisy pubs were very deserted. Customers came in and bought drinks and then left, coming and going in a hurry. Occasionally, a few people sat down to drink, and they just chatted about their parents' affairs. There was no usual situation where they would talk freely and give advice when they were drunk.
One or two carriages sped towards the palace. In the carriage sat a tall, thin man with a mustache. This man was none other than Count Merlin, who was in charge of the kingdom's intelligence system.
At this time, Earl Merlin was closing his eyes to rest. It seemed calm to outsiders, but in fact, he was extremely depressed in his heart.
On the night when the princess led the army to regain the royal capital, a large fire broke out in the granary of the royal capital, and the large amount of grain and grass stored there was almost entirely burned. This fire caused serious consequences and directly disrupted the plan of the royal party's army to go south to counter the rebellion.
Fire prevention has always been a top priority in the daily management of granaries, and the measures are very strict. Even if there is a fire, it is impossible to let almost all the warehouses burn.
Obviously, this is a provocation, this is a serious provocation. The traitor Giles is clearly trying to slap the royal party in the face - you think you have won, I still have many tricks to deal with you, right here You can't imagine it right under your noses, right?
You can imagine how angry Her Royal Highness Princess Catherine is. At the emergency meeting after the fire, the princess was so excited that she drew her sword and cut off the table in front of her with one sword, vowing to fight Giles forever.
As the head of intelligence, Earl Merlin was naturally ordered to investigate the truth of the fire, but the more he investigated, the more confusing it became. He combed through the information currently available in his mind over and over again, thinking about how to report the case to His Majesty the King and His Royal Highness the Princess.
The current king of Aldo, Rodney XVI, finally got rid of the entanglement of the illness. After being taken back to the royal capital by his daughter, his body gradually recovered and he is now able to manage the government.
Earl Merlin entered the palace after being carefully searched by the royal guards. In extraordinary times, even core members of the royal party like him were no exception.
He hurried to the door of Rodney XVI's study. The attendant informed him of his arrival, and His Majesty the King immediately allowed the earl to enter.
After Earl Merlin entered the study, he found that Her Royal Highness Princess Catherine was already in the study.
"Mr. Merlin, how is the investigation of the granary fire case going?" His Majesty the King waved his hand to stop Earl Merlin from saluting, and hurriedly went straight to the topic. Rodney XVI, who was nearly forty years old, was usually a kind-faced monarch. However, due to working day and night on state affairs, he, who was not very old for the aristocratic class, already had a trace of white hair on his temples. At this time, the king looked sad, with obvious worry lingering between his brows.
"Your Majesty, your minister is incompetent, and there has been no substantial breakthrough in the case."
Although I was saddened to hear such bad news after His Majesty had just recovered from a serious illness, after repeated entanglements, I silently Earl Lin finally chose to report truthfully.
Princess Catherine, who was standing next to the king, asked: "But we encountered difficulties."
"Yes, Your Highness. Please allow me to state a few things." Earl Merlin took out a Roll up the parchment and start reporting on the information currently available.
"According to the sentry on duty, the fire broke out after Fowler Butt, the warehouse supervisor, entered. When Fowler Butt entered, another soldier offered to go in to help him with lighting, and also followed him in. At other times, No one else has gone in."
"So the prisoner is between these two people?"
The count nodded: "Let's talk about this soldier first. According to the information, he has a clean background and has served under Viscount Klein for more than three years. People who are familiar with him have a good impression of him. Even Klein knows this person and does not believe that he is a spy. In the memories of these people I don’t remember any suspicious behavior by this soldier. You know, the military camp is relatively more closed than other places, and it is almost impossible to hide it from everyone.”
Katherine said: “So the prisoner is. The possibility of this soldier is low. What about Bart?"
The Earl continued: "The warehouse manager is indeed very suspicious. You should know this manager."
Catherine replied: "Yes, in my impression, this person is very talented and conscientious in his work. During his tenure as a supervisor, there has never been any theft or corruption in the warehouse."
"We asked After asking everyone in his network, colleagues, friends, superiors and subordinates did not say anything unusual. This person is usually very loyal to the royal family, and during the Hals rebellion, he was made trouble by the rebels. "
“So, does he have any relatives?” The princess noticed that something was missing from the identities listed by Earl Merlin. Earl Merlin nodded again, "Your Highness is wise. According to Fowler Bart's wife, this supervisor is a bit unusual."
"What's so unusual? ”
"Director Bart is not suspicious in all other aspects. Because of his identity, he meets many grain merchants from various places every day. It is difficult to identify any suspicious persons among them. But his biggest suspicion is his recent mental problem."
Catherine was slightly stunned: "Are you not saying that Director Bart is actually a psychopath, so it is reasonable to suddenly go crazy and burn down the warehouse?"
Earl Merlin hurriedly replied: "I'm not That means, Your Highness. Director Bart's spirit had been normal before this, and his family had no relevant medical history. The suspicious situation began nearly two months before the fire."
"That's Jia. The period before and after the rebellion started?"
"Yes, Your Highness. According to Mrs. Bart, her husband suddenly started to suffer from insomnia during that time, and could not sleep all night long. After a painful and exhausting day, Director Bart finally started talking in his sleep, but Mrs. Bart swore that she was sleeping with her husband. I have never heard my husband talk in his sleep since we were in the same bed.”
Catherine was curious: "What did Bart say?"
Rodney XVI, who had been sitting behind the desk and listening quietly, also sat up straight, waiting for Earl Merlin's answer.
Earl Merlin looked down at the information and replied: "Most of them are vague gibberings. I have recorded a few here that Mrs. Bart can hear clearly."
He held them with both hands. The scroll was placed on the king's desk. After the king and the princess finished reading it, they saw the following sentence recorded on it:
"Who are you? Stop following me?"
"Where am I? Why can't I get out?"
"I don't want to listen to your nonsense, get out of my head."
"I've done everything you asked, Everything is put away so no one can find it. Please leave."
"I won't do this!"
"Please let me go! Please let me go! "
…
“Master, Master, I will continue to listen to your holy teachings, do not abandon me.”
“Your servant will die to complete the mission, my supreme master!”
Earl Merlin added on the side: "The words in the last two weeks are particularly suspicious. The last sentence was the last sleep talk that Mrs. Bart heard. Although she suffered from insomnia for a period of time, the supervisor still retained the early morning speech. As a habit of going to bed, Mrs. Bart was worried about her husband and stayed awake. Shortly after her husband said that, he woke up and said he wanted to go for a walk to get some fresh air, and then... there was a fire in the warehouse. "
Catherine and Rodney XVI looked at each other, and both saw the question in each other's eyes: "What is this?"
Looking at the puzzled king and princess, Earl Merlin, who was also confused himself, suddenly came up with a strange idea: Is Director Bart possessed by some magic or witchcraft?
He quickly shook his head and drove this idea out of his mind, which even he thought was ridiculous.
(End of this chapter)