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2:32 p.m.
Interrogation Meeting Room, Temple of Priests building, She'kel Village.
Ka-cha!
The door opened, and it was Ronan, accompanied by two people: a White Cloak Priestess in her late 20s with long black hair and a Councilor in her early 30s, also with black hair, wearing a yellow-colored scholarly robe with gold accents.
Ronan gestured his hand over to the vacant three-person sofa at the bottom.
"Please take a seat over there."
The Priestess and the Councilor nodded and then headed over to the lounging area. When they finally reached the lounging area, they both nodded once again before sitting down.
"Thank you for answering our summons and coming here. I am Brother Inquisitor Wind, this is Sister Inquisitor Monad and this is Lord Councilor Pablo. May we ask you to introduce yourself?" Wind said.
"I am Sister Lesirei D. Amabilis from the Luxen Chapter Temple and I work at the Public Temple of Priest Building at Luxen City as part of the people in charge of conducting Awakening Ceremonies. And before I retired from the Holy Crusade and got married last year, I used to be part of the Exploratory Division and reached the rank of High Lieutenant," the Priestess said.
"I am Councilor Lavena D. Reilly from the Luxen Kingdom. I will be representing Priestess Lesirei D. Amabilis as her Defense Councilor," the Councilor said.
"Do you know the reason why you were called here?" Wind asked.
Lesirei nodded.
"It concerns Brother Emmanuel, who is currently involved in some True Death murder case."
Wind nodded as well.
"That's correct. Can you tell me your dating history with Brother Emmanuel?"
Lesirei thought about it for a moment.
"I first met Brother Emmanuel when I was 18 at Basic Training, but it was only at the Training Course of the Exploratory Division that we started becoming friends. After we completed our Holy Crusade Contract at the La Spada Air and Exploratory Division Headquarters, he asked me if he could write to me and I said yes.
"It took at least a year of us exchanging letters as friends when he finally confessed his feelings for me, and then a couple of months of courtship when I finally accepted his feelings. However, after more than a year of being in a relationship but not engaged, I discovered that he had been entertaining several women, so I ended my relationship with him.
"We remained friends after that, but just friends. After all, we're both in the same Division and we're bound to bump into each other at the La Spada Air and Exploratory Division Headquarters."
"You mentioned that you're currently married?" Wind asked.
Lesirei nodded.
"Yes, Brother Cillian and I got married last year."
"May I ask where Brother Cillian is from?"
"Brother Cillian is from the same Chapter Temple as me. However, he's part of the Infantry Division, just like his father -- well, his father is already retired, but his younger brother, Brother Carr, is with him at the Infantry Division. I believe they're currently assigned at the Southwestern Front Infantry Barracks? My husband is a High Lieutenant, while his younger brother is a High Sergeant. And oh, our cousin, Sister Xena, is also there with them. She's also a High Lieutenant."
To be specific, Lesirei and Lavena were sisters and Xena was their cousin. Also, given that Priests families tend to marry among themselves, in a way, Lesirei, Lavena and Xena were also related to Carr and his family, but they were more like distant relatives or just enough not to commit incest.
"Are you familiar with Sister Bithiah S. Ancilla?"
Lesirei nodded.
"Yes, I've met her several times at the La Spada Air and Exploratory Division Headquarters back when I was still active in the Holy Crusade. However, we've never shared a Field Mission together."
"How about Brother Jeremiah P. Hortus?"
A moment of hesitation appeared on Lesirei's face.
"To be honest, I've only learned to know him through this case. But maybe if I were to see his face, I would recognize him. I've always been bad with names."
"I understand," Wind said and nodded. "If I were to ask you to describe Brother Emmanuel and Sister Bithiah, how would you describe them? I'm not talking about appearance."
Lesirei thought about it for a moment.
"Brother Emmanuel is a sweet and capable person that you can depend on. However, when it comes to the matters of the heart, unfortunately, the same can't be said.
"Meanwhile, for Sister Bithiah, I think she's also a capable person. The thing was, I was never close friends with her. I mean, what I'm trying to say, the La Spada Air and Exploratory Division Headquarters can be a very small place -- I heard that it's similar to the Sea Division? Because of that, news can travel so fast around there, so I try to avoid the 'popular people' and not attract that much attention. And from what I've heard from some of the Sisters at the headquarters back when I was still active at the Holy Crusade, Sister Bithiah can be a bit standoffish to some people."
***
3:16 p.m.
Ka-cha!
The door opened and it was Ronan, accompanied by a female Crusader in her late 20s with slick, short black hair.
Ronan gestured his hand over to the vacant three-person sofa at the bottom.
"Please take a seat over there."
The Crusader simply nodded with a smile and then casually walked towards the lounging area as if she had all the time in the world. When she finally reached Wind, Vivian and Pablo, she sat down, leaned back as she folded her arms, and then crossed her legs.
"Thank you for answering our summons and coming here. I am Brother Inquisitor Wind, this is Sister Inquisitor Monad and this is Lord Councilor Pablo. May we ask you to introduce yourself?" Wind said.
The Crusader placed her right arm on the three-person sofa's headrest.
"I am Sister High Lieutenant Karla of the Orion Chapter Temple and Sea Division."
"Are you aware of the reason why you were summoned here?"
"I have an idea, but I prefer you tell me. I could be wrong, you know."
"You're familiar with Brother Emmanuel and we believe that you could provide us with some information about him."
Karla raised an eyebrow.
"What kind of information exactly?"
"You are currently in a relationship with him, right?"
"Why? Did he force himself on someone?"
"No, that's not it. We would like to ask you how is your relationship with him."
"Sexually?"
"Overall. How is he treating you, what good or bad things does he do to you or for you."
"Are you asking what techniques he uses in bed? My, my, I had no idea Inquisitors are interested in such topics," she said and then chuckled.
Wind didn't say anything and simply stared at her.
"What? Are you one of those people who's intimidated by a woman who's open about her sexuality?"
"Sister High Lieutenant, please act accordingly. This interview involves the death of a Sister."
Karla threw her head back as she gasped dramatically.
"Why didn't you say that earlier…?" she said and then sat properly. "The truth is, Brother Emmanuel and I are just casual lovers -- I sleep with whoever I want and he sleeps with other women, at least I believe he only sleeps with women. However, I don't mind if men are also open to men."
Wind, Vivian and Pablo looked at her with a deadpan expression.
"Did I tell you I like the rebellious type?"
Dead silence.
"But what I really like is breaking those rebellious types."
Still dead silence.
Karla leaned back as she folded her legs.
"There's nothing really I could say.
"What are the good things he does for me? He's a good listener, he does sexual things to me that I enjoy, he's not needy or gets jealous.
"And for what bad things he does to me? I hate how he chews his food or how he's more formal than me. Makes me want to strangle him. I hate how he snores. I hate it that he doesn't come to me immediately whenever I call him."
Wind nodded.
"I see. Thank you for sha--"
"I also hate it that he doesn't want to transfer to the Sea Division. I mean, let's face it, Holy Crusade Points is Holy Crusade Points, whichever Division you get them.
"In fact, isn't that the only reason why most of us are participating in the Holy Crusade? To collect Holy Crusade Points so that we could get better jobs under our Temple's Grade Job system?"
"But don't you agree that each Division has its own skill of expertise?" Wind asked.
Karla scoffed.
"That's also what he said. However, does it really make any difference when most jobs are done by the non-Priest staff?"
"I would like to continue talking about this topic for another time. But for now, let's just focus on the case."
"Just out of curiosity, if Brother Emmanuel gets convicted of whatever crime he's accused of, would he be stripped off his Class?"
"May I ask why are you asking such a question?"
A playful smile spread across Karla's cheeks.
"If he gets stripped off as a Priest, I was hoping he would also be disowned by his family and no one would want to associate with him. When that happens," she said and placed her hand on her chest in a dramatic fashion. "As a Priestess from the Orion Kingdom who swore to welcome and take care of the old, weak and helpless, I would mercifully hire him as one of my staff in my mansion."
Wind, Vivian and Pablo stared at her with a deadpan expression once again.
"What would be his position?" she said and placed her hand down. "That, I'm still deciding~"
"I see," Wind said and then checked his notes.
"So?"
Wind raised his head.
"What?"
"So what's the answer?"
"It's still too early to answer."
"Why?"
"The investigation is far from over."
Karla rolled her eyes and then turned to Vivian and Pablo.
"What about you two?"
Pablo glanced at Vivian. And when he noticed that Vivian wasn't reacting, he returned his attention to Karla.
"As the Lord Councilor of this interview process, it would be unethical of me to think of such a question, let alone answer it. So forgive me."
Karla turned to Vivian.
"And you, Sister Inquisitor?"
"I share the same sentiment of Brother Inquisitor Wind."
Karla rolled her eyes again.
"Such a bore…! I knew I shouldn't have come here…!" she said and then shrugged. "Well, you people are Inquisitors for a reason. Too serious."
***
4:05 p.m.
Ka-cha!
The door opened and it was Ronan accompanied by a tall and slender Crusader in her late 20s with long gray hair tied into a ponytail.
Ronan gestured his hand over to the vacant three-person sofa at the bottom.
"Please take a seat over there."
The Crusade saluted.
"Yes, Brother High Lieutenant!" she said and then headed towards the lounging area.
When she reached the lounging area, she saluted once again.
"Brother Inquisitor! Sister Inquisitor! Lord Councilor! I am Sister High Lieutenant Yvonne of the Infantry Division! I have come here to answer your summons!" she said with a Verglasian accent.
Wind nodded.
"Thank you, Sister High Lieutenant," he said and then gestured towards the vacant three-person sofa with his hand. "Please take a seat."
"Thank you, Brother Inquisitor," Yvonne said and then sat down.
Wind cleared his throat.
"I would like to thank you once again for answering our summons and coming here. I am Brother Inquisitor Wind, this is Sister Inquisitor Monad and this is Lord Councilor Pablo. And since you've already introduced yourself, may I ask if you know why you were summoned here?"
Yvonne nodded.
"Yes, it's about Brother Emmanuel and I'm willing to provide any information to the best of my abilities!"
"Thank you, Sister High Lieutenant," Wind said and nodded. "How long do you know Brother Emmanuel?"
"Before I participated in the Holy Crusade at the age of 17, I was already exchanging letters with him!"
Wind held out his hand.
"Forgive me for interrupting, Sister High Lieutenant. I understand that you're part of the Infantry Division and your Field Missions can be very stressful. However, please understand that you're currently in a civilian environment. So if you don't mind, there's no need to be so formal."
Yvonne gave a slight bow.
"Forgive me, Brother Inquisitor Wind, I didn't mean to! I just--!" she said and then corrected herself. "It's just that, it's been a while since I've taken a break from the Holy Crusade."
Wind gave a slight bow.
"Thank you for your service, Sister High Lieutenant."
Yvonne nodded.
"Thank you for your service as well, Brother Inquisitor."
She turned to Vivian.
"Thank you for your service, Sister Inquisitor Mandy."
Vivian made no reaction.
Yvonne then turned to Pablo.
"Thank you for helping, Lord Councilor Puerto."
"It's a pleasure," Pablo said and nodded as he struggled to keep a straight face.
And as for Wind, since Vivian and Pablo chose to react the way they did, he decided to ignore it.
"You were talking about how long you've known Brother Emmanuel?"
Yvonne nodded.
"Yes, Brother Inquisitor Wind.
"Before I even joined the Holy Crusade at the age of 17, I was already exchanging letters with Brother Emmanuel.
"I used to be a very slow learner when I was a kid. So one of the things that my parents made me do to improve my vocabulary skills with the Zonian language, and my reading and writing skills with the Verglasian and the Zonian language was to exchange letters with people. Brother Emmanuel was one of those people I exchanged letters with.
"And when I finally signed up for the Holy Crusade and was at Basic Training, that's when he and I finally met."
Wind nodded.
"I see. If you don't mind me asking, how old are you now?"
"I'm 27."
"So back when you and Brother Emmanuel met at Basic Training, you were 17 and he was 18?"
Yvonne nodded.
"Yes, Brother Inquisitor Wine."
Pablo almost let out a chuckle, but managed to summon all of his strength and ancestors to help him keep a straight face. He then lowered his head.
"I'm very sorry. I swear to the Elemental Gods I didn't mean to. Please accept my sincerest apologies, Priestess High Lieutenant Yvonne."
Yvonne looked at him and shook her head.
"I don't mind. My family and friends used to tease me -- there are times they still tease me -- that most of my thinking skills went to my fighting skills."
Truth be told, Yvonne had 3 Magic Art Affinities -- Light, Ice and Earth, and all of them were True. On top of that, although she was from a Low-Tier Noble Priest Family in the Verglas Kingdom, her Physical and Magic Force was actually 240 points or beyond Spirit Steel, which was 3 Grades higher compared to the average Physical and Magic Force of a Priest/Priestess with 3 True Magic Art Affinities.
And given that her Physical and Magic Force were already beyond Spirit Steel or 210 points, her name was already added DG International Laws' list.
Furthermore, once she becomes a Gold Cloak, she could retire and become a Gray Cloak.
"Thank you, you're very kind," Pablo said and gave an elegant bow.
Yvonne nodded.
"No problem," she said and then returned her attention to Wind.
"When did you and Brother Emmanuel start seeing each other as a couple?"
"I really don't know."
A confused expression flashed across Wind's face behind his full-mask.
"What? Come again?"
Yvonne let out a sigh. However, it didn't seem like it came from annoyance. Instead, it came from something else.
"If you asked him, he would tell you that he has been seeing me as his lover since the day he saw me.
"And then if you ask me, I think it was when I was 25 years old when I finally realized that we were in a relationship."
Her cheeks turned red.
"The truth is, I've never been good with romance. I tried to read a book or ask my family and friends about romance but I always get sleepy reading or listening to it."
All of a sudden, the temperature of the room dropped and the coldness was coming from Wind.
"Forgive me for asking this, but I have no choice. Did Brother Emmanuel ever taken advantage of you?"
Yvonne's brows knitted together.
"In what way?"
"Did he try to kiss you, touch you or something?"
"He tried to kiss me once and I accidentally punched him that he was knocked out cold."
The temperature in the room returned to normal and Wind let out a sigh of relief.
Even Pablo also let out a sigh of relief.
Yvonne immediately raised her hands and started waving.
"But it didn't happen during the Holy Crusade…! It was during a Coming of Age Ceremony of my cousin…! I promise…! I swear to the God of Light…! You can check the records of the Branch Chapter Temple in Svart Town…! It happened 2 years ago…!"
Wind and Pablo nodded.
"I understand, Sister High Lieutenant."
"Yes, yes…"
"Um… Aside from Brother Emmanuel trying to kiss you. Were there other incidents? It could be good or bad. There are no right or wrong answers here, sister."
Yvonne thought about it for a moment.
"A few months after he tried to kiss me, he asked me if he could kiss me."
There was an air of anticipation in the air which was coming from Wind and Pablo.
"I told him no. No, I mean, I told him: If he wants to hold my hands, he and I should be engaged. And if wants to kiss me, she should marry me."
"And what happened next?" Pablo asked.
Wind looked at Pablo for a moment but quickly returned his focus toto Yvonne.
"He told me he'll ask his parents first. And that was it."
"Sister High Lieutenant, are you familiar with Sister Ava?" Wind asked.
Yvonne nodded.
"Yes, she was his first fiancée."
"Do you know when their engagement was announced and when it ended?"
Yvonne nodded again.
"I can't remember the month, but it lasted between 3016-3019."
"That didn't bother you when he tried to kiss you?"
"Like I said earlier, I'm not good with romance. I tried to read about it or ask my friends about it, but I get sleepy. But one thing I've noticed from my family and friends, most of them seem to be writing letters, talking and touching with other people. Also, Brother Emmanuel told me that his engagement with Sister Ava was simply something arranged by their parents."
Wind nodded.
"I see. What about Sister Kiera?"
"She's his current fiancée, right? I think it was announced a few months after he was no longer engaged with Sister Ava...? I'm not sure."
"Are you and Brother Emmanuel still in a relationship?"
"No," she responded immediately.
"When did it stop?"
"He stopped sending me letters and visiting me since 3020."
"So it's not confirmed?"
Yvonne's brows knitted together.
"Isn't that the way how relationships work? If you don't write to them or visit them, that means the relationship is over?"
Pablo looked at Wind and then shrugged.
"She does have a point."
Wind spared him a glance for a brief moment before returning his attention to Yvonne.
"Do you want it to be over?"
She shrugged.
"Now that I've grown and learned more things, I prefer a man who isn't a liar and is very strong. Brother Emmanuel is none of those things."
Wind cleared his throat and then checked his notes for a moment before returning his attention to Yvonne.
"Are you familiar with Sister Bithiah?"
"What Division is she from?"
"Exploratory Division."
Yvonne scratched the side of her head.
"I don't know that many people from that Division. But if she were from the Infantry and the Air Division, I know a lot of people there."
"What about Brother Jeremiah? He's from the Infantry Division."
"What's his last name, age and rank?"
"His last name is Hortus, middle name is Pygro, he's 25 years old, and his Officer Rank is Lieutenant."
"What's his hair color?"
"Black."
"He sounds familiar. Can you tell me something else about him? I'm usually very good with names."
Wind shook his head.
"It's fine, we can move on."
"Okay."
"I know we've talked about so many things and you've also shared so many things. For that, we're all grateful for. However, I have to ask this question to really narrow it down. But before that," he said and turned to Vivian. "Sister Inquisitor, do you have any questions for Sister High Lieutenant Yvonne?"
"None."
Wind nodded.
"Okay," he said and then turned back to Yvonne. "Sister High Lieutenant, if I were to ask you to describe Brother Emmanuel, how would you describe him? And please take note: I'm not talking about his appearance, I'm talking about him as a person. Also, there are no right or wrong answers, all answers are acceptable."
***
4:46 p.m.
Ka-cha!
The door opened and it was Ronan. He went towards the lounging area and then saluted.
"Brother Inquisitor, I just received word from Sister Lieutenant Zola that the next person to be interviewed, Sister Karoline, has left. And her reason was that she refused to be in the same place with her older sister, Sister Yvonne."
Wind nodded.
"I see. Thank you, Brother High Lieutenant."
"There's more. She also said that if you want to interview her, you have to interview her at the Orion Main Chapter Temple. That is all."
Wind nodded again.
"I see. Thank you," he said and then turned to Vivian and Pablo. "I guess that's it for this afternoon. "Tonight will be Brother Kadmiel, Sister Leah and Brother Emmanuel. Let's take a break for a moment before we decide if we will interview them here or go to their home to interview them there."
Vivian and Pablo nodded.
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Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
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