Hell has invaded, but my Hextech is invincible!

Chapter 93 The King in Yellow

Chapter 93 The King in Yellow (2/4)

As dawn broke, Anred returned in a hurry, followed by a familiar-looking middle-aged man.

Hex looked up and saw that the man, with a fawning expression, was none other than Martin, the bald police officer who had visited him yesterday.

"You're Martin from the Third Precinct's homicide unit, right?" Hex asked.

Martin quickly bowed and nodded: "It is indeed I, Young Master Adrià."

"You have a great memory."

Anred's expression was grave: "I have thoroughly investigated the matter."

"The chef who poisoned you died in an alley not long after leaving the villa; he was clearly murdered to cover his tracks."

"I rushed to his home to investigate, only to find that his entire family had been murdered."

"The site has been cleaned up completely."

"Very professional."

Hex frowned slightly; it seemed this was not a spur-of-the-moment assassination, but a pre-planned scheme.

He bribed the chef to poison the woman, then immediately silenced him, and subsequently blew up the entire villa. His actions were ruthless and outrageous.

In other words, it wasn't the two policemen who brought him; they had planned to take action against him long ago, and the two policemen just happened to come to visit him.

"Which idiots in the Adriatic family did it?" Hex asked.

Anred shook his head: "It wasn't them."

Hextech's eyes turned cold: "You plan to protect these relatives of yours?"

"No," Andrei explained.

"When I found them yesterday, they were indeed plotting something in secret."

"But they just want to create trouble to ruin your reputation and steal your seminary spot."

"I brought them before my father for questioning, and they all swore in public that they had never participated in the murder or assassination."

"Even when the Adriatic family is fighting amongst themselves, they never kill each other; it's a rule ingrained in their very bones."

"At most, they only wanted to ruin your reputation; they never thought of using despicable methods like poisoning or bombing to kill you."

As he spoke, he took out a bullet and handed it to Hex.

"This bullet was found in the chef's house, and it is engraved with intricate patterns and a long cross mark."

"These are not bullets from ordinary army standard firearms, but standard ammunition used only by the church's exclusive armed forces."

"The Church?" Hex was puzzled. How did this involve the Church again?

"That explosion was also very strange," Andrei continued.

"The person who did it was clearly unfamiliar with gunpowder ratios and demolition techniques. The explosion only overturned the southwest corner of the villa, and the entire building was eventually destroyed by the spread of the fire. It was completely unlike the work of military professionals."

"On my way back, I ran into Detective Martin, who was guarding outside the ruins."

Anred took a deep breath, his voice heavy: "He told me that you've inadvertently become involved in a serial murder case that Carls was investigating before his death."

Hextech sized up Martin again. He had originally asked Anred to investigate Martin, Rust, and the journalist Klein, but now the people had delivered themselves to his doorstep.

Martin immediately put on a fawning smile and began to explain, "Young Master Adelia, two years ago, a series of murders occurred in District 3. For three consecutive months, five girls were brutally slaughtered."

"The deceased was stripped naked, with strange runes carved on his back, and a deer antler mask was placed on his head, making the scene resemble a cult ritual."

"Initially, the police determined that it was the work of cult members, but after cooperating with the church's investigation, the church classified it as the work of the Advent cult."

"This case was closed hastily."

"My partner Rust and I both felt something was wrong. The methods were not typical of a cult, so we secretly investigated further."

"We gradually discovered that this type of missing persons murder in Newcastle has a long history."

"It first appeared in the Fifth District, which was a slum. There were only patrol teams, not a professional police station."

"It is estimated that at least one hundred children and women have gone missing within a year."

"However, this case was overshadowed by the chaotic state of affairs at the grassroots level."

"Three years ago, the problem spread to the fourth district, and it was similarly hastily closed as a case of cult activity, with no one taking it seriously."

"Two years ago, it even spread to the third district."

Hex said, "The killer is getting bolder and bolder."

"He's selecting targets that are more valuable and more challenging."

"Yes," Martin nodded quickly.

"We are certain that this was not the work of a few scattered cult members."

"There is a serial killer operating in Newcastle's upper circles."

"After a long investigation, we finally found a clue: the force behind it calls itself the King in Yellow."

The King in Yellow?

Hextech thought the name was a bit Cthulhu-esque; surely it couldn't be that there was some Cthulhu influence behind it.

Martin continued, "But every time we get to a key point, an invisible force comes along and cuts off the next lead."

Martin paused, a bitter look on his face: "On January 13th of this year, a similar case occurred in District Two."

"The only daughter of a wealthy merchant was murdered at night, her limbs were cut off, she was made to wear a deer antler mask, and her head was hung under the bridge."

"We are just detectives from the Third District, and we don't have the authority to interfere in cases from the Second District."

"But Lars was stubborn and couldn't let go of the truth. He insisted on investigating in private, which is why we met young master Karl Adrià."

He said with a wry smile, "Young Master Karl is a good man."

"After learning that we were investigating a series of murders, he volunteered to join the investigation."

"He used his connections to help, and the case made progress quickly."

"We have finally discovered that the King in Yellow was not a single killer, but a special association composed of powerful figures from Newcastle's upper class."

"The members are all powerful and influential people."

"This is also why the investigation was obstructed and the case was forcibly suppressed."

"Even when the murders spread to the second district, and the victim was the daughter of a wealthy businessman, the case was eventually dropped quietly."

Hearing this, Hextech had a pretty good idea of what kind of incident this was.

Martin looked ashamed: "I was already afraid at that time."

"Last has no ties, but I have parents, a wife, and two young daughters. I dare not risk destroying my family by continuing the investigation."

"But Rust and young master Karls never gave up."

"They firmly believe that once they obtain complete evidence and make it public, the Bishop of Newcastle will not stand idly by."

"If the bishop deliberately protects him, Karls will personally take the evidence to the London Church Federation Tribunal."

"I filed a formal complaint with the presiding judge."

A deep sadness and anger welled up on Anred's face: "So, Karls' death wasn't due to a werewolf attack at all, but rather he was caught up in this series of murders and silenced!"

Martin nodded helplessly: "Later I received news that young master Karls went to Moremod Village to investigate, and then news spread that he was attacked by werewolves and unfortunately died."

"They've made their move."

Unable to contain his anger any longer, Anred slammed his fist on the table and growled through gritted teeth.

"Who is it?!"

Rothschild Tuttle slammed his fist on the table and said coldly.

The Crusaders, who would normally command the bows of low-ranking nobles on the street, were now kneeling before Rothschild like humble serfs, trembling in fear.

"We've found a clue; the intruder is likely a thief."

"Nonsense!" Rothschild waved his hand sharply, sweeping all the precious porcelain on the table to the ground.

A crisp cracking sound suddenly rang out.

"I want to know exactly who it is!"

At this moment, a man who looked like a butler spoke in a deep voice.

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"Young Master Tuttle, based on the evidence at the scene, the infiltrator is a detective from the Third District Police Station named Rust."

Upon hearing this name, Rothschild looked completely bewildered. "Who is this nobody?"

"How could an ordinary detective from District 3 bypass the manor's layers of security and infiltrate the Tuttle family's residence?"

"Are the manor's crusaders and security personnel all useless?"

No one dared to speak.

The butler continued to report aloud.

"Young master, this Rust is the person I warned you about before."

"He has been working with others to investigate the missing persons cases privately."

Upon hearing this, Rothschild's expression changed drastically: "So it was them."

"Although the cases are all closed," the butler said in a flat tone.

"But there are always people who don't believe the conclusion and insist on digging deep to find the truth."

Rothschild snorted coldly, his eyes filled with hostility.

"Why wasn't this potential hazard addressed directly before?"

The Crusaders all looked at each other, none daring to raise their heads.

"You previously ordered that we should ignore these ordinary mortals," the butler said.

"We did not initiate any cleanup."

Rothschild's brow was furrowed deeply.

He vaguely remembered this incident.

That day, he was drunk and indulging in pleasure, recklessly abusing his authority. Indeed, someone reported that outsiders were secretly investigating old cases.

He didn't take it to heart at the time and casually put it aside.

The butler added at the opportune moment: "It was this group of people investigating old cases who led Karl Edelya astray."

"Oh."

Rothschild slammed his hand on the table, and after his extreme anger subsided, a twisted and complex emotion welled up on his face.

"That idiot Karl."

Rothschild was once Karls' senior classmate and had high hopes for the talented and hardworking junior.

He even helped Carls when he was competing for a place at Oxford Theology.

But it was Karls who insisted on investigating this taboo old case.

He also used his friendship with me to secretly collect and preserve evidence.

Left with no other choice, he had to eliminate Kars to prevent future troubles.

"According to our informant," the butler continued, "last night, Rust and another officer from District 3 made a special trip to visit the illegitimate son of the Adriatic family."

"The timing was just before we made our move against him."

A strange smile slowly spread across Rothschild's face as he raised his hand to stroke his small mustache.

"I see, that makes sense now."

"It's Hex Edria."

"The Adriatic family had long sensed that something was amiss."

"So they deliberately put Hextech in the open to attract our attention."

"Our attention is completely focused on this illegitimate child."

"The manor's defenses have been compromised."

"It was during this lull that the unassuming ordinary detective sneaked in."

Rothschild tapped his fingertips lightly on the table, lost in thought.

"Should we continue with Hextech and Adriana?" the butler suggested.

Rothschild shook his head, rejecting the idea. "No need."