The sun had set and snow started coming down, intermittently sent to a frenzy by sudden gales of wind.

I had waited for the suspicious foreigner to come out from the royal grounds and tailed him from a distance.

With these commoner robes and a magical disguise to change my face, I was free to pursue him.

There were too many strange things about this person.

Walks like a golem. Despite the heavy winter clothing, I could see he was all stiff, moving like a dwarven mechanism. Military background?

No awareness of his surroundings. I wondered if my efforts to remain conspicuous weren’t being wasted. Someone with military experience would be less lax about his surroundings when the sun goes down. Perhaps an official or someone without direct combat duties? Or simply got rusty.

Unless… he was merely pretending not to pay attention. But he didn’t have enough power to extend his senses effectively…

The man walked inside a commoner’s restaurant. The sign said Pizza Heaven.

My stomach growled, reminding me I hadn’t had the chance to eat a proper meal for a while.

I sighed, checked my disguise, and entered as well. Pizza Heaven, I think I had heard about this place being mentioned as one of the two serving the best pizzas. I wondered how far from Lord Radenrouge’s original recipe they were.

My brother had tasted pizza while attending one of Radenrouge’s banquets and invited me to try some. It wasn’t much later that commoners began replicating the formula. But nothing beats the quality and rich flavor of the original.

I scanned the crowd and was disappointed in seeing that my target wasn’t among them.

Where did he go? Had he noticed I had been following him? Had his alleged lack of awareness been a front to lower my guard?

“Good evening, sir. Would you like to take a seat?” A pretty maid asked after noticing me.

No matter, I know where he sleeps. Besides, he could still be inside somewhere. My stomach growled again.

“Yes, please,” I said, and she guided me to an empty seat. Then she came back to bring a clean set of tablecloths and tableware. A rare thing amongst the lower-class restaurants.

“What would you like to order?” She asked cheerily, presenting me with the available dishes. I picked a pepperoni pizza.

While I waited, I paid attention to the staff movements, they moved back and forth the hallway to the kitchens and through a door, but there was also another door they avoided. Had my target escaped from a secondary exit?

“Here’s your pepperoni pizza, sir.” The girl set down the plate, and I thanked her.

I took a bite and savored the flavor. It was surprisingly good. One of the best imitations, I’d say. Or maybe even a little better?

I could find no fault in the crust, nor the cheese, or the toppings. A pleasant surprise.

While I was eating, I noticed a woman dressed like a cook walking inside the unopened door. And then I spied him… Allen was in there.

I froze.

Ellin was there as well, and her two adventurer friends plus a few other unfamiliar faces.

SUSPICION LEVELS CRITICAL. All my uncle senses started blaring in a mad frenzy.

How dares this unapproved foreigner dine at the same table as my niece?! What’s happening there?!

I felt a wetness in my right hand and noticed I had strangled the mug to death. I scowled at the broken remains.

And now it came back to me, in our too-short exchange, my little Ellin had mentioned she had added a magician and someone else to her party. Could it be? Allen Smith and the drunken dwarf?!

The maid noticed the broken mug and rushed over. “I’m very sorry, the mug must have been damaged! I’ll bring you another!”

“Thank you,” I said, then I added. “If I may ask, is that a private dining room over there?” I pointed to the door.

“Oh, that’s a restricted area! Only the owner, the head chef, and their friends are allowed inside,” She leaned over to whisper. “I think they have spelled the door because every time I try touching the pommel, I feel gripped by unfathomable fear! I wish I could see what they cook inside. The smells are amazing…”

She said, casting a glance that way. Her hand fiddling with her dress.

“I see…” I said, my mind ablaze with worry for my lovely little niece.

Worry not, Ellin. Your uncle shall protect you from the dangers of the world.

Eventually, my niece and the others left the building, passing me by without recognizing me. All thanks to the magical disguise.

The dwarf, however, stopped for a moment and sniffed around with a frowning brow. I tensed up, worried about being discovered, but then he shook his head and walked away.

Accursed dwarven noses! I’ll need to remember to conceal my smell next time.

My target was still inside the room, discussing something with the female cook.

I had to wait a little more, but eventually, he left alone. Which was convenient since I wanted to trade words. Alone.

I stalked him carefully. He must have been headed back to the inn, but for some reason, he was avoiding all the shortcuts, taking the long way.

Again I wondered if he hadn’t noticed me.

More, I had started getting the impression that I wasn’t alone in tailing the foreigner, although I couldn’t spot anyone. Weird.

We passed across a quiet and empty street. Then, suddenly, someone rushed out from a narrow back-alley, grabbed my target, and tossed him towards the shadows.

“What the—!” My target yelled.

My heart started beating fast. Something was happening!

I dropped my disguise and instead focused on avoiding detection. I rushed silently toward the corner to see what was happening.

“I’ve been looking for you…” The unknown man said.

That voice! The culprit’s voice! I quickly activated an empty Witness and started recording my experience in real-time.

A wave of fear washed over me, dampened by the magical ring I was given. Spiritual interference.

“It didn’t work? Who are you, and what do you want from me?” Allen Smith demanded.

“I knew I could sssmell the touch of the Great One in you,” The culprit said in a guarded tone, “You mussst be one I mussst recruit.”

I KNEW IT! Allen Smith was a sleeper agent! I made sure everything was being recorded inside the Witness. You’re done for, Allen Smith.

“‘One of us’? Who the hell are you?!”

“A ssservant of ExFeras,” The voice revealed. “I saw you coming out from the castle walls. Well done in gaining access.”

A servant of the demonic God ExFeras?!

He was sibilating the ‘s’ like a demon would… Had he been raised by Demons?

I peeked over the corner. I could see the culprit’s back. He was not wearing the gray cape, but I was sure. The voice was definitely the one from the recorded memory.

Allen must have been a sleeper agent. He must have employed a mindweaver to block out his memories and fool everyone, waiting to be contac—

“Fak! No. Tell your damn god to leave me de fak alone!” Allen yelled. “I want nothing to do with him or any of his servants!”

“What?!” The saboteur said with disbelief.

What?! My thoughts echoed.

“Does your shit-eating god thinks he can recruit me after having sent his fakin henchmen to kill my godam friends?!”

Openly insulting a god? Was the man brazen or insane?

“After having spiritually peesd on my spirit body so that every other god is now wary of me?”

There were some foreign words I didn’t understand, but Allen Smith appeared genuinely unhappy about the demonic god’s interest.

This conversation was not going in the direction I had expected.

“But… You obviously carry the favor of the Great One,” The culprit insisted. “Join force with usss, great rewardsss await thossse who aid our caussse!”

“Take your rewards and shove them up Feras’ arse. Him and his demon army of jobbers.” Allen said, launching himself forward to punch the man.

Unfortunately, the culprit evaded with astounding speed and sucker-punched Allen to the stomach, who was flung against the wall and struggled to regain his breath as he stood back up.

“No one ssspeaks ill of the Great One! The only reassson you ssstill breathe isss becausse He dessires for you to join him.” He said, taking out a blade from under his coat. “I’ll assk once more… Will you join uss?”

“… Ba-barely… felt it, beech,” Allen said in defiance.

“You don’t understand, human,” The demon supporter warned in a threatening tone. “Willing or not, you are coming with me.”

I had to intervene… but what if he was going to cast his mind control spell? Was the ring protection enough? Was his blade spelled?

In the few breaths I considered my course of action, some sort of blurry movement entered my peripheral vision.

And then the culprit spun backward, sending a flying dagger away.

“Ssshit!” He said, jumping back and avoiding another two blades that hit the ground and wall.

Who? Where? I gazed around, trying to find out the new attacker. I noticed the blur moving again.

A concealment spell! I switched to mana sight.

The concealed figure jumped down from the rooftops and started chasing after the demon supporter.

Illusory magic and spiritual interference? Probably an enchantment on the armor. I wondered. An ally?

“Thisss isss not over,” Yelled the culprit before engaging in combat with the new attacker. They were both jumping against the walls back and forth, exchanging magical and physical attacks.

“Huh…” Allen Smith looked like he had no idea of what was happening.

I moved on from behind the corner and ran past Allen, uncaring if he recognized me or not.

I had the true culprit, or at least one of the culprits, within my grasps. I couldn’t risk letting him get away.

I was not as agile as the two I was pursuing, and the snow reduced my visibility, but it wasn’t hard to track them by ear.

The chase continued across a couple of alleys and rooftops. Eventually, their movements slowed down, and I caught up with them again just as they jumped over another rooftop. Blood traces. At least one of them was hurt.

The agility, the concealment spells… Could this person be a Shadow? I realized. I had never seen one in person. All I knew was that they were lethal and adept at remaining unnoticed, just like shadows.

I climbed the wall aiding myself with magic and saw them just as I emerged above, right across another rooftop in front of me.

The culprit was now limping due to a leg wound. The concealed figure was moving forward to strike.

Then the demon supporter did something unexpected. Instead of blocking or evading, he grinned and moved his bare neck toward the Shadow’s blade path.

“Wait!” I cried too late. I couldn’t interrogate a dead person!

The culprit’s head was sliced almost clean off but remained attached by an inch of flesh.

Blood spurted out against white snow and roof tiles as the body hit the roof tiles.

I cursed under my breath.

The Shadow knelt down and grunted, his cloaking spells deactivating. After a moment of catching up his breath, he started loading the corpse over his shoulders.

“Wait! I’m an Inspector!” I shouted, “I demand to inspect that body!”

The Shadow stood back up, the body on his shoulder, then turned his head to look at me for just a moment before jumping away.

“Wait!” My complaint fell to deaf ears. “Damn it!”

Why was everyone working so hard to make my job harder?! I gritted my teeth in anger as I watched my prize being snatched away.

And then I saw it, the head breaking free mid-jump. The sudden violence of the movements tore apart what flesh kept it attached to the rest of the body. I heard a faint thud as it rolled down the rooftop into an open street. The Shadow continued without noticing. Yes!

I didn’t waste a breath. I jumped down, Slowing down my descent with the application of a telekinetic force, and ran across the alleys until I found the severed head.

There was no time to waste. I had to inspect the mana residuals on this head and the locations where the culprit had fought the Shadow.

I would later lodge a formal request to requisition the culprit’s body for further inspection.

The Shadow’s appearance must not have been coincidental. Had they been on the culprit’s tracks? Or had this particular Shadow been here for another reason… like keeping an eye on Allen Smith? If the latter, I knew who to ask.

I smiled at the snowy sky.

An Inspector never leaves a stone unturned.

There was nothing more exciting than unraveling a mystery.

And the leads were finally unfolding before me.