Chapter 127. Meeting of Pillar’s
Leo sat across from Duke Alric, his red eyes narrowing, a storm growing inside as he took in the shocking news. His casual yawn stopped, voice sharp with disbelief. "What do you mean Sir Serion’s dead? He’s one of the strongest in the damn kingdom, and you’re telling me someone killed him?"
Slowly, Alric put his glasses down and rubbed his temple as if he were trying to relieve a headache. "Someone killed Sir Serion," he said in a low, gruff voice filled with grief and rage. He slid a letter with a broken wax seal bearing the royal crest of the kingdom across the desk.
Leo grasped the letter with a tightened jaw and a burning sense of frustration. After looking over the paper, he saw that Serion Helcrast, the most intelligent investigator in the kingdom, had disappeared two days prior and had been discovered at the outskirts of an unnamed town with a deep cut across his throat and bruises all over his body.
He tossed the letter back, frowning hard, voice rough with annoyance. "One day," he muttered, leaning back, running a hand through his messy red hair. "Can’t I get one damn day to rest without the world falling apart?"
He leaned forward, elbows on his knees, red eyes locking onto Alric’s. "What do you think, Father? Who could’ve done this?"
Alric’s face darkened, he opened a drawer, pulling out a sealed envelope with Serion’s neat, unmistakable writing, addressed to Duke Alric Caulem. "What else?" he said. "Serion died chasing the Black Sheep in the academy."
He handed the envelope to Leo, moving carefully, like passing something dangerous. "I wanted you to have a few days to recover after... everything," Alric added, tone hesitant, a father’s worry clashing with a lord’s duty. "But we have no choice now."
Leo read the letter with a furrowed brow. It was all Serion: a vague update on his work, sardonic greetings to a friend, and no specifics.
"This is nothing," Leo said, looking up and throwing the letter back with a bewildered tone. "Just his typical bullshit."