My dear witch, please turn evil according to the script!

Chapter 105 Using someone else's name to intimidate you really works
Cuban seemed a little surprised, but still said, "I don't know what you want to know, but please sit down. I will answer anything I know."

Cuban naturally greeted this brilliant student who had solved a major problem for Blackthorn Territory with a smile.

Whether out of gratitude or due to ability.

Cuban gestured for Roland to sit on the sofa, then turned and poured him a cup of tea, handing it to him.

"Thank you."

"Of course. Alright, bright student, what would you like to ask?"

Roland didn't drink the tea, but just glanced out the window: "This level of snowfall is rare in Blackthorn Territory, isn't it?"

"This is more than rare... I've never seen such heavy snow before."

Cuban shook his head: "Fortunately, the snow is heavier, so there will be fewer pests next year, and the harvest may improve somewhat."

"Governor Cole did mention that he had someone look into it and that the heavy snow was caused by some magical turbulence that you resolved during the storm."

"Not only was the sudden heavy snowfall disrupted, but even communication magic was rendered unusable."

"There's no way to ask nearby towns for help."

"But the governor said everything would be over in three days, and told us not to panic, to stay home and rest for two days, and to just make sure to clear the snow off the roof."

"The city has enough grain, firewood, and coal for heating. The only concern is that the snow might keep falling and bury or crush the houses."

Roland nodded, then asked, "Then, President Kuban, has anything unusual happened in Blackthorn Territory recently—no, in the last few decades?"

“No, there really isn’t,” Cuban answered decisively. “There’s never any big news here.”

"If I had to say, someone saw the legendary mage, Ms. Flam, visit Blackthorn Territory about ten years ago."

"President Kuban, how many factions exist in the city? Which ones are the strongest, the ones with the most people and money? Of course, excluding the Holy See and the Continental History Society."

Roland's question startled Cuban, who for a moment began to doubt Roland's reasons for asking such questions.

But he soon stopped doubting it.

Because Roland quickly added a sentence.

"Have you heard of the Hatter?"

"If you know the answer, then answer the question without hesitation. Don't ask why, don't be curious about why, understand?"

Cuban silently swallowed.

The name of the hatter may be unfamiliar to ordinary people.

But at Cuban's level, how could he not have heard of it?
Executioners and secret agents directly under the military.

Mysterious, powerful, and elusive.

The terrifying legends surrounding them are enough to fill a long novel.

He now understood why Roland was able to resolve the Blackthorn Territory's troubles so quickly.

Having already imagined at least 100,000 words of political intrigue, Chairman Cuban quickly became truly open and honest.

"If we remove the Holy See and the Continental History Society, then the only real power in the city is the Governor's Mansion."

"Viscount Paxson and Governor Cole have always had a good relationship, and with their cooperation, there is no second voice in the entire Blackthorn Territory."

"The previously loosely organized factions now all obey the Governor's Office."

"Even within our branch, several experienced adventurer teams have had considerable contact with the Governor's Mansion."

Roland continued, "Are there any wealthy people in Blackthorn Territory? I mean, the kind of people who are extremely wealthy."

"Although I don't understand exactly how rich you mean by 'extremely rich,' there are no such wealthy households in Blackthorn Territory."

Kuban laughed as he spoke: "There are very few merchants in Blackthorn Territory. Even those who are merchants are just people sent by various merchant guilds to Blackthorn Territory to facilitate the acquisition of magical beast materials."

"In the end, we're just working for someone else."

"The locals of Blackthorn Territory are either farmers, hunters, or members of the Society and the Holy See."

"There really aren't any rich people here."

"If I had to pick a rich person, it would be His Excellency the Viscount and the Governor."

Roland breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this.

Well, there's really no need to ask any questions; we can eliminate the suspicious targets using the process of elimination.

However, the veracity of the intelligence still needs to be verified.

Even after ruling out all possibilities, whether the intelligence is true or false is no longer very important.

Based on the conditions Cherlinina mentioned, the suspects really could only be narrowed down to the Viscount and the Governor.

In particular, this commission and ransom were initiated by these two people.

This makes it hard not to overthink things.

"One last question, Chairman Cuban."

Roland stood up and looked down at Cuban, who was still sitting on the sofa, and asked, "Are there any places in the city that the Viscount or the Governor has ordered to be strictly off-limits, or places that are strictly controlled?"

……

Just as Roland began to extract information, Cellina, who had found a secluded corner to hide, also began to observe the movements near the Adventurers' Guild.

She'd done this kind of surveillance work many times before, so she was quite adept at it.

To her surprise, she didn't notice much of anything unusual.

They didn't even find any of the demon race's reconnaissance familiars.

"strangeness……"

Cellina observed carefully, but still found nothing.

Everything on the streets was normal. Or rather, with such heavy snow, there were practically no people on the streets.

Aside from the clergy in the Holy See Church and scholars from the Continental Historical Society, who would choose to go out on the streets at this time to help the homeless and take them back to their churches or society buildings to shelter from the snow.

The small town seemed so quiet at this moment.

"Could it be... that they're all inside the association?"

Cellina became a little worried and quickly changed her position.

This is a good spot to see the president's office window.

Meanwhile, Roland and Cuban were sitting on the sofa, chatting and laughing.

Roland's attempts to elicit information were clearly progressing very smoothly.

To be honest, if it weren't for the obviously man-made heavy snow and the failure of the communication magic, Cellina might have really thought that she was just being too nervous.

She frowned and searched as much as possible for anything unusual, and then she actually discovered an unusual change.

Magic flows.

As a demon, Cherinina is more sensitive to magic than Roland.

The flow of the Great Source Magic within the main city seems somewhat unusual.

Cellina turned her gaze to the viscount's mansion built high up in the main city.

She had inquired about Viscount Paxson.

Surprisingly, in a society where most nobles were not very human, the other party actually received the majority of praise from the people of Blackthorn Territory.

Whether it was paying out of his own pocket to buy food for disaster victims during famine years, or vigorously developing the hunting industry and economy of Blackthorn Territory.

This viscount was quite diligent.

After all, after Salah III consolidated power, the nobles were theoretically no longer responsible for their own territories.

Regardless of the tax situation in this territory, he could only receive a fixed amount of tax from the national treasury.

He could have easily indulged in a life of pleasure and debauchery, yet he was so concerned about local development and the lives of the people.

He really doesn't seem like a nobleman of a territory.

The same goes for Governor Cole. Although he wasn't so good that the people couldn't forget him, in the eyes of the people of Blackthorn Territory, he was a diligent and conscientious governor.

During their thirty years in office, the rampant bandits were almost completely eradicated, and the beast tides that used to break out every few years also disappeared.

Blackthorn Territory, a small and obscure territory within the Empire, has surprisingly shown some signs of prosperity.

Even among adventurers, this place is already a well-known hunting paradise.

Many adventurers come here to hunt monsters to recover their losses when they are short of money.

Blackthorn Territory also has a complete distribution network.

Animal hides, animal meat, and various parts of magical beasts—these basics go without saying.

Materials that can be used to make alchemical potions have dedicated sales channels.

Just deliver the goods, and I'll settle the payment for you on the spot.

Judging solely from their actions, Cellina had to admit that they were two good officials and nobles who fulfilled their duties in their positions.

In this world, he can even be considered a rare good person.

But the more it is like this, the stranger it becomes.

In particular, Cellina noticed the unusual magical fluctuations emanating from the Viscount's mansion.

At this moment, Cellina finally realized that something was wrong.

On the exterior wall of the Adventurers' Guild building, there was a spot where the light was distorted.

There's something there!
Cellina quickly came to an answer.

But she didn't act immediately; she just stared at the spot where the light was distorted.

Under Cellina's meticulous observation, a tail was faintly visible in that strange location.

Chameleon Familiar.

Cellina quickly recognized this familiar, which was quite popular among demons for reconnaissance.

Immediately afterwards, Cellina threw a pebble, which accurately hit the gecko clinging to the wall, severing the scout familiar in two.

At this moment, Roland, who had already stood up, turned and left Cuban's office, then walked out of the Adventurers' Guild.

A minute later, the two began talking in a deserted alley.

"We've asked around. The only people in the city who meet the conditions you described for creating familiars are the governor and the viscount."

"Based on the conditions you mentioned, it's very likely that the governor and viscount here are all demons."

“I just asked Cuban for a few positions that the Duke and Governor usually guarded with utmost vigilance.”

"Basically, only a very small number of people with passes are allowed to enter and exit. In most cases, no one may enter without the accompaniment of a viscount or governor."

"One area is the fur warehouse, used to store the hides of those magical beasts."

"One is a warehouse for precious materials, used to properly store magical beast materials that can be used to make alchemical potions."

"The last location, the city garrison's armory."

"These all sound like reasonable defensive positions."

"But if the demons want to put something there, these three places are the most suitable."

"Because no matter how much regulation is strengthened, it will seem reasonable to outsiders."

(End of this chapter)