Ke-style law enforcement officers

Chapter 36 Nero's Students

Milo went home and slept soundly until noon the next day.

After resting, the headache symptoms were relieved a lot, but if I jumped around in place, I would still feel a stinging sensation in my head.

This feeling is similar to the symptoms Milo experienced when he first started being tormented by nightmares.

"I should get used to it after a while."

Milo muttered to himself.

Just consider this some kind of aftereffect.

He listened to the Red Witch's stories last night as mere tales; he had no time to investigate the nightmares, the voyeurs, or the calamities.

With the Sherman family being such a huge problem right now, he needs to think of a good solution.

……

"Brother, someone outside is calling you."

Little Finn bounced in from outside the door.

Milo glanced outside and saw Rebecca.

She beckoned to Milo and said, "Come with me, someone wants to see you."

"See me?" Milo could roughly guess who wanted to see him, but he stopped in his tracks after stepping out of the house.

Rebecca knew what Milo was worried about and calmly reminded him, "Don't worry about your family's safety."

Milo followed Rebecca's gaze.

The vendors on both sides of the street, as well as the new neighbors who moved in next door, all appeared overnight, and there were several unfamiliar faces here.

Although these people dressed similarly to ordinary people, they walked steadily, and each of them had calluses on the palms of their hands.

"So you're giving me this much face?"

Milo's brow furrowed.

These unfamiliar faces were undoubtedly arranged by Rebecca.

“It’s not entirely about saving face for you.” Rebecca shook her head: “What Harrison did was like slapping the law enforcement agency in the face, and I want to find some leverage to slap that back.”

“I understand.” Milo shrugged.

"Then where are we going?"

"Suburban cemetery".

……

...

Led by Rebecca, Milo arrived at the cemetery on the northern outskirts of the city.

Unlike ordinary cemeteries where graves are scattered haphazardly across the hillsides, this place has been transformed into a neat public cemetery, with each tombstone arranged in a uniform manner. It is said that the price of a burial plot here can be equivalent to the annual expenses of an average family.

Milo didn't quite understand why they chose to meet in a place like this.

Rebecca walked ahead on the stone-paved path, while a middle-aged man with a cane stood not far ahead beside a tombstone.

It was law enforcement inspector Nero.

……

"I heard you've gotten yourself into quite a mess."

Nero had a cigar in his mouth and a faint smile on his lips.

He didn't look directly at Milo or Rebecca when he said this, implying that they had both gotten into trouble.

Milo nearly killed the Sherman family's young master, while Rebecca broke the rules and attacked the aristocracy; in a way, both of them got into trouble.

However, Nero did not intend to punish him; he was more likely to make fun of him.

“It was indeed a disaster.” Milo didn’t try to explain. Even if what happened last night happened again, he wouldn’t let Cirion off the hook.

“What I’m more curious about is how you got involved with that kid Dillasho,” Nero said, scraping the grass between the cracks in the bluestone slabs with his cane.

"Luckily we had some connections, otherwise our whole family would still be in jail right now," Milo said with a forced smile.

"You're being sarcastic towards me." Nero glanced at Milo indifferently.

How could he not understand what Milo meant?

Yesterday, various factions gathered at the Enforcement Bureau—the Oversight Committee, Enforcers, nobles, and the Church—and all forces were secretly vying for power. However, Nero, as the Enforcement Inspector, did not show up at all, nor did he convey any instructions to his subordinates.

From Milo's perspective, this guy was just faking his death.

Of course, he didn't think he was important enough for Nero to take the risk and provide protection, but he felt that Rebecca's behavior was much more pleasing in comparison.

“The inspector has his own plans,” Rebecca reminded Milo not to speak carelessly.

"In truth, in a power struggle, the outcome on the surface is completely unimportant." Nero's expression remained calm as he chewed on his cigar, his eyes slightly narrowed.

“Even if Harrison did successfully take over the case yesterday and took away all the fabricated evidence, he would only receive a notification the next day that the case is pending and the appeal process will drag on until the end of the month, until the law enforcement assessment is over.” Milo frowned slightly.

He roughly understood what Nero meant.

"There's absolutely no need to argue about who's better on the spot," Nero continued.

"There are too many people who can get involved in the case. That old bastard Harrison can't make a decision by himself. The solution to this matter is too simple. Just keep dragging it out until the law enforcement assessment is over and your name appears on the list of serving law enforcement officers. Then those few pieces of evidence in his hands will naturally become worthless."

Nero began to explain in detail.

What he said was not only for Milo's ears, but also a way of conveying his own feelings to Rebecca.

"The reason the Sherman family dared to do this is because there is a huge class gap between the Valrocan and Sherman surnames. Nobles and commoners, you know what I mean? In this situation, anyone who jumps out to take your side will not gain anything. Of course, people from the church like Dillashau are another matter. What I'm saying is that if you were a law enforcement officer, this whole thing would not have happened at all."

……

“I understand.” Milo nodded sincerely.

Ultimately, Cillian and Harrison's arrogance stemmed from class differences.

For them, ordinary people are easy to manipulate, but if the target is a law enforcement officer, then they have to think twice.

Nero made a very straightforward point.

Although it sounds harsh, everyone knows in their hearts that this is the normal reality of life.

……

"It doesn't matter how much Harrison flaunts his power. Once he's had his fun, the law enforcement system will remember him, and plenty of people will deal with him later. He's just a clown." Nero took a puff of his cigar, exhaled a thick cloud of smoke, and turned his gaze back to Milo.
"Whether you want revenge or whatever, that's a matter for later. What I want to tell you is that for the next few days, until the law enforcement assessment is over, you should stay at home obediently. Only when you truly grasp the power of a law enforcement officer will you have a choice."

"..." Milo seemed thoughtful.

Nero has already been quite blunt.

Milo fully understood what Nero was trying to say, but what he couldn't quite understand was why Nero was telling him all this, just to recruit him into the ranks of law enforcement officers?
"Guess why I chose this place as our meeting location."

Nero noticed the doubt in Milo's mind.

In fact, on the night of the carriage murder, he gave Milo a spot for the assessment on a whim, feeling that the kid had some skills. After all, Rebecca was seriously injured that night, but Milo brought her and Daisy back to the law enforcement office together.

However, it wasn't until after Robben was killed that Nero repeatedly reviewed the reports submitted by Rebecca and realized that his spur-of-the-moment decision hadn't been a mistake.

“I haven’t encountered any criminal investigation talent in many years. Even Rebecca doesn’t qualify. The last person with a brain like yours is now lying in this grave.”

When Nero said this, a clear sense of loneliness and regret appeared on his face.

Milo glanced at the name on the tombstone without making a sound—Karl Barnes.

I don't know him, and I've never heard of him.

However, the tombstone bears both the church's golden tree totem and the judicial sickle totem of the law enforcement system, indicating that Karl was a law enforcement officer and a believer in the church during his lifetime.

Looking at the start and end dates engraved on the tombstone, Karl was only 25 years old and passed away just last year.

So young, no wonder Nero looked so regretful.

"He wasn't a college graduate, and he didn't specialize in any criminal law subjects. When I first met him, he wasn't even as good as you, the city guard. At that time, he was just a handyman in the old city library."

Nero recalled.

Milo wondered to himself: Librarians are all incredibly powerful figures, so why are they not as good as the city guards?

"But he mastered the required subjects for law enforcement officers better than anyone else through self-study. Not only that, I put him in the law enforcement officer training camp for only half a year, and his professional skills and combat ability had already reached the level of the top law enforcement officers at that time. Before he officially joined the force, he solved a number of complex major cases. He is simply a born law enforcement talent. I have lived for decades and have never seen such a person."

When talking about Karl's story, Nero would always unconsciously show a proud expression on his face.

For Carl, Nero was a mentor and teacher.

Milo's brow twitched slightly.

If this Karl is truly as miraculous as Nero described, then he is indeed a rare genius.

Because Milo knew very well how he solved cases. Although he had some cleverness to his advantage, the most important and crucial factor was the crime scene footage he saw in the so-called "nightmare" phase. He was cheating, but Carl wasn't.

Moreover, Milo had already experienced firsthand how difficult the self-study assessment subjects were; those things couldn't be memorized in ten days or half a month at all. But Carl, who was also a latecomer to the field, managed to do it.

……

“If nothing unexpected happens, he should be in charge of the South City Enforcement Office now,” Nero sighed.

Milo glanced at Rebecca and noticed that this fiercely competitive woman didn't show the slightest hint of displeasure after hearing those words.

Clearly, she must have had contact with this Karl.

But that was all; Milo couldn't read any other emotion in Rebecca's eyes.

……

"Uh, so... how did he die?"

Milo still hasn't figured out what Nero's purpose was in telling him all this.

After all, he had no connection with this young genius law enforcement officer.

(End of this chapter)