The red moon returns

Chapter 401 The True Murderer Appears
"Why are you back again? Didn't you just go out for a few minutes?"

Inside the south gate of Norflan, four soldiers were sitting in the shade, fishing. When they looked up, they saw the four people returning the same way. They immediately showed an impatient expression, sat there and lazily scolded:

"You'd better tell me what you're doing going back and forth like this, or you can go through other city gates. You're not allowed to enter here."

However, the next moment, the four of them suddenly jumped up and stood straight respectfully.

Because Lynch took out Knight Terry's badge, which was a token given to them by the knight to facilitate their actions.

The guards were surprised to find that after just a few minutes of walking around, the four men already had some extra things in their hands: a strange sword, a strange stick with a handle, and an exquisite folding fan.

These people's positions are unclear now, so Lynch doesn't dare to be careless and asks Miss Diana to take out everyone's weapons.

According to his judgment, there was no need to worry about being different from others at this time. The identities of the four people in this city were already established. As long as they did not commit crimes in the streets, some insignificant special performances, such as the sudden appearance of some strange props, would not cause Knight Terry and others to question too much even if they were confused.

Seeing the soldiers' reactions to the badge, Lynch felt more at ease. This instinctive behavior meant that they were obedient to their superiors, and such people generally would not betray.

That's safer.

Lynch thought for a moment and whispered something in Miss Diana's ear. The Earl smiled faintly, then walked gracefully to the four guards and whispered, "Have you been guarding here these days?"

The eldest daughter of the Earl's family had the temperament of a superior engraved in her instincts. Even her posture and tone carried the oppressive power of a superior. Although the soldiers could not understand, they were completely overwhelmed by the aura of this great figure. They stood there trembling. After listening to Judy's translation, the leading leather-armored soldier immediately replied:
"Yes, we rotate every seven days. We are on guard during the day these days, and we only return to the fortress after the city gates are closed at night."

"When will the city gates close?"

"The shadows of the trees are cast on the wall." The soldier pointed to a few small trees nearby. Lynch estimated that it was around six o'clock in the afternoon.

Miss Diana continued to ask, "Was it closed at the same time yesterday?"

The four of them looked frozen and their eyes were vague, and they were obviously reluctant to answer.

It seems something happened here yesterday.

Lin Qi was delighted, knowing that he might have found another clue this time. With two approaches, the possibility of solving the dilemma was greatly increased. He suppressed his nervousness, used his ability to control the volume of his voice to send it into Miss Diana's ears, and quickly told her his thoughts.

Miss Diana thought about it, nodded confidently, and then smiled gracefully at the four people. She took out four silver beads and held them in her palm, and put Terry's badge in her other hand. Her smile carried a condescending pressure:
"I want to know who came into my house yesterday, or find out what happened to you yesterday. Tell me. This money is yours, and this is our common secret. I will keep it secret for you."

This is several months' income.

The four guards' breathing quickened as they looked at Yinzhu, especially the leather-armored soldier who rubbed his hands and licked his lips. He discussed with the three auxiliary soldiers for a few words, and then, seeing that there was no one around, he smiled flatteringly and whispered, "We actually closed the city gates too late last night. The red moon had already risen for a while before we closed the city gates."

Lynch nodded secretly, that was around eight o'clock in the evening.

Miss Diana shook the silver bead in her palm: "Why postpone it? Is someone going to be late?"

Faced with several months of military pay, the leather-armored soldier immediately made the right choice, "It's because we came back late yesterday, and we closed the city gate after we got back." Several people looked at each other, all a little surprised. Could it be that we thought too much, and the four of them were actually fine? They were off duty yesterday, so they didn't see Leonard enter the city from the south gate?

wrong.

Lynch realized it immediately. How did Leonard know that they would leave their posts? Wasn't he worried about being seen by the guards at the South Gate? Wouldn't they take the initiative to escort him to the fortress? Then he wouldn't be able to go home and hide the weapon. Therefore, he probably knew that the guards would definitely leave their posts and chose the South Gate.

At Lynch's secret instruction, Miss Diana made a disappointed expression: "-So you didn't stand guard here yesterday? In other words, you didn't know who came in?"

"I've told you the truth, you can't go back on your word." The leather-armored soldier stared at the silver beads in Miss Diana's hand.

"Don't worry, I have no intention of going back on my word. I'm just curious. Aren't you afraid of being punished if Knight Terry finds out about your leaving your post without permission?"

"Miss, the South Gate is very safe. We occasionally take the opportunity to do our own things. As long as no one reports it, the commander won't mind." The soldier said nonchalantly, "And we didn't leave our post without permission yesterday. We went to help Mr. Rocky. The commander also knew about this. He accepted Mr. Rocky's invitation and let him choose his own people. So even if the commander knew we didn't stand guard, he wouldn't punish us."

"Who is Mr. Rocky?" Miss Diana's eyes became sharp. She handed over the silver beads in her hand and asked in a deep voice, "He can borrow the city lord's soldiers and negotiate directly with the city lord's knights. His status must be not low."

"Him? He is the steward of the City Lord's Mansion."

Having said that, the soldier took the silver beads handed over by Miss Diana with a smile on his face, and celebrated excitedly with the three auxiliary soldiers, without noticing that the four strange inquirers had left the city gate at some point.

When they left, everyone looked gloomy.

Especially Lynch, he never expected to get such an answer.

The person who ‘just happened’ to shift the guards at the city gate so that Leonard could quietly enter the city and hide the murder weapon was actually the city lord’s butler. Could it be that this butler was the culprit who instigated Leonard’s actions?

If the butler is really the instigator, does it mean that the city lord, who has not shown up all day, is the mastermind behind everything?
What was he trying to do? He caused trouble in his own city and ended up ruining himself.

Lynch really couldn't understand why he would do this, but if he was really the one who led it, then everything would make sense.

He was the one who decided who to ask for help, so he was able to select two experimental subjects.

He didn't want what was happening here to be known to the capital, so after sending out two people, he instructed Leonard to attack Kemet.

Leonard was supposed to follow his orders, so he attacked Kemet.

He has the greatest influence in the entire city, so he was able to prepare this human tragedy without anyone knowing.

The more they analyzed, the more frightened they became. If their guess was true, and the city lord was indeed the planner of the ceremony, then what roles did Knight Terry and Dr. Swain play?
Is their performance today real or just acting?

Walking in the bustling city, the four people felt a chill in their hearts.

(End of this chapter)