The night grew in silence.

The chaotic day in Silver Oak City did not end with the fall of night, but the chaos on the surface condensed into a suffocating depression, diving beneath the surface of the water, enveloping people's hearts, tearing at the nerves that were tied together.

The abrupt end of the festive atmosphere suddenly cooled down, and it looked a little inexplicably ironic. Some young children looked through the crack in the door and watched curiously at the horses galloping through the streets, and the knights who were all in slaughter. Later, they were hurriedly picked up by adults and hid in a safe place such as a bedroom or kitchen.

No one knew what had happened to His Majesty, and most of the people who watched the ceremony saw a sudden mess on the steps in front of the cathedral and their beloved King falling backwards. Then there were the guards who dispersed the crowd, and the royal decree that the whole city was under martial law.

All kinds of speculation and rumors precipitated and fermented in the city, and with the thicker and thicker night, a layer of lingering haze grew.

Icethorn Lane in the lower city is still the inn of the aristocratic mansion, or the richly decorated rooms. The man in the chair ushered in a guest who was not a friend.

The other party is very young, and his angular face reveals a vigorous beauty. With his well-dressed clothes and proper manners, coupled with his well-maintained fair skin, it is conceivable that his life is superior enough. The most amazing thing is that there are two completely incompatible emotions in his eyes, one is humility and the other is condescending arrogance.

The young man propped his fingers to his face and looked at the room with disdain, with a cold eye and a mocking nouveau riche feeling. "I really didn't expect that there would be such a hotel in the capital, and what I didn't expect was that you would live here. ”

"I've never treated myself badly," the man subconsciously turned the ring on his right hand, and his voice was thick and pleasant, "I want it, did you bring it?"

"Of course. The young man replied, taking out an unusually neatly folded piece of paper from the placket. The paper seemed very old, washed away by the passage of time, and yellowed slightly.

Seeing the piece of paper in the other party's hand, the man who had always maintained his composure and composure sat up straight, his eyes full of eagerness and eagerness, as if this was what he had dreamed of.

The young man smiled and handed the piece of paper to the man. "Can you guarantee that nothing goes wrong? The master doesn't want a critically ill ......."

"Your king?" the man stopped as he tried to open the paper, his gaze suddenly faded from enthusiasm and became cold, "he will surely die." After examining it carefully, he handed the piece of paper to the tall, thin man standing behind him, wrapped in a cloak.

"I hope it is as you say," the young man nodded, not the slightest hint of guilt for being suspected of treason, "you should be glad that my master is generous enough, and if it were me, the king would not die, and you would not be paid." ”

The man smiled, but somewhat carelessly, and he didn't seem to be in the mood to continue the topic.

The other party's attitude slightly caused the young man a little unpleasant, but he didn't show it, after all, the purpose of the trip had been achieved. So, he pulled the cuffs of his tight jacket. "But don't worry, I'll say more nice things in front of my master, after all, you didn't let me meet you in the stinking sewers, or in the cheap taverns. He said with a graceful smile, even the corners of his grin were measured, "Alright, I should go too, happy cooperation, gentlemen." ”

The man laughed even harder, and his whole face flushed.

The young man felt the contempt of the other party, his tone turned cold, and he asked angrily, "What do you ......mean?"

Before he could finish speaking, the man suddenly stopped smiling, and his shrewd face was full of contempt and cruelty. His right hand shook in front of the young man, a cold white arc of light flashed between the two, and when he returned to the arm of the chair, a sharp ring knife hung from his fingertips, and a drop of bewitching red hung from the blade.

The young man tried to speak, but found a warm liquid squirting out of his neck and splashing onto the delicate snow-white collar flower on his chest.

His eyes widened, as if he couldn't believe what was happening in front of him. With his hands pressed hard to his throats, he staggered to his feet and scrambled to his feet, bringing the eagle feather pens, ink, and even a few books on the table to the floor. Finally, he took a few steps backwards and fell weakly.

Still smiling, the man casually took out a handkerchief from his pocket, wiped the blood from the ring knife for a long time, and threw it on the table. "Didn't your master tell you that your life is included in the reward?" he muttered to himself, standing up, "go, get out of here, this city sucks me." ”

"Yes!" said the tall and thin man, bowing down, then took a dark green stone from under his cloak, threw it into the fireplace, and walked out of the room with the man.

Neither of them gave a second glance at the young man lying in a pool of blood. On the floor, he stared at the roof with hollow pupils, and his limbs let out a dying spasm, reflected in a bright red, which looked a little funny.

Two figures appeared on the street, and after a moment's pause, they walked in one direction and disappeared at the end of Icethorn Alley.

It wasn't long before a blinding glare flashed from the windows on the second floor of the hotel, and then a loud tearing sound accompanied by flames and flying sawdust poured down on the deserted street. The dark green flames flickered away like demons with fangs and claws, lighting up the dark night sky of Oak City.

After that, the cries of adults for help and the cries of children rang out in the night.

......

Death only ends the journey of life, but it cannot dispel the dawn that peels off the mist.

When the morning sun returned to the city, Sirian was in front of him a crumbling scorched earth. The unextinguished flames stirred up puffs of choking smoke in the ruins, as if to remind onlookers of the heart-wrenching tragedy that had taken place here.

The mansion of Chief Medical Officer Lord Gussey burned down completely, and the surviving family members and servants stood in the corner, hugging each other, sobbing quietly. For them, it is not only the warm home that they have lost, but also the owner of the house. Because until now, Sirian had not seen the slightest hope that the old medical officer would survive.

There were several other houses that were also affected by the fire, but their owners did not dare to show their faces silently, and they all flew in to cause trouble. Because these ordinary nobles saw the imperial prime minister, who was attracted by this fire, and the commander of the garrison. With the appearance of these two big men who stood at the pinnacle of power in the kingdom, it is enough to show that the fire is no longer a simple fire.

In connection with the rumors that are secretly surging in the capital, well, unless someone has lived enough, they will never want to be touched by even the slightest misfortune like this.

Of course, there are exceptions to this. The sheriff of the capital stood behind the imperial prime minister with a pale face, and the lingering gloom on his face seemed to be about to squeeze out the water. In fact, he had already made a plan, and when the matter passed, he would immediately resign from the position of sheriff. "Whoever wants this position can take it, I've had enough......" This was the truest thought in his heart.

On the contrary, Cillian, who had not slept all night, was unusually awake at this time. If ordinary people can only collapse in the end under continuous high pressure or blows, then Duke Junhe, who has been on the battlefield for a long time and even fallen into the land of life and death, will only burst out with amazing calmness and sharpness at critical moments.

Cyrian didn't believe that the fire was a coincidence, and if Gussey was dead, then what caused him to die was the crux of the matter. It's just that this reason is not straightforward, but you need to find and discover it yourself.

Cillian's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of hurried horses' hooves, and he looked back to see a slightly tired Tandra leaping out of the saddle. "How's going on over there in Icethorn Lane? old man. ”

"Not to mention, the second floor of an inn has been blown into the air! there are even fragments of corpses mixed in among the scattered fragments......" Tandra shook his head in disgust, "can you believe it? My lad found a head on the roof opposite...... Poor guy. ”

Sirian listened, frowning. "Is this, the work of the alchemist?" he said with some suspicion, "as usual, they should be strictly under the control of Saint-Slan, right?"

"What's stranger is more than that...... "Tandra cautiously lowered his voice, "and someone else saw the green flames. ”

"Green?!" Cyrian's voice revealed disbelief in shock, "You mean green?"

"That's right," Tandra nodded, "if those witnesses are not mistaken. ”

"Green is the ......flame of the devil," said Cyrian, "and the whole thing is getting more and more complicated." ”

"God knows, let's wait until Daruk has dealt with the aftermath over there. Tandra looked at the ruins behind Sirian. Shortly after he arrived at Sirian in front of the burning chief medical officer's mansion, he heard an explosion from the lower city, and immediately rushed over with his lieutenant commander, Daruk. "What's going on here? The fire has been extinguished? Where's old Gussey? Is he still alive?"

A barrage of questions made Sirian smile wryly. "It's been a busy night, and it's just been extinguished, as for Lord Gesai......"

Before he could finish speaking, a guard came running from the ruins and reported to them, "My lord, Master Gesai has found it, but ......"

"Take us there. Tandra and Sirian looked at each other and interrupted.

Shortly after navigating through the rubble, they found the Chief Medic's body resting on a white sheet under a broken wall. His death was horrific, his flesh was charred black, his limbs twisted and shrunk together, his hideous head stretched out into the sky, grinning as if he was silently screaming something.

"This should be Master Gesai......" Cilian said as he frowned, looking at the rings on the corpse's hands and fingers.

Tandra clenched his fists, his body trembling slightly. "Damn it! The murderer should go to hell! Let the fire of hell scorch his vile filthy soul forever!"

Sirian sighed softly and crouched down to take a closer look. Soon, he found a dagger on Gesai's back with the handle burned. "A blow in the back and then an arson?" he muttered to himself.

Tandra also crouched down. "The dagger wasn't even pulled out?" he said, "and the murderer's methods are not very professional, so it seems ......"

Cyrian suddenly looked up at the guards and asked, "Are the victims the only ones Lord Gesse? are all the survivors here?Were there any visitors before Lord Gesai was killed?"

The guard was stunned for a moment, but quickly replied: "There are no visitors, only the body of Master Gesai has been found so far, the survivors have been protected, only the whereabouts of Master Gesai's butler are unknown." ”

"Portrait at once, this butler is wanted. Tandra ordered.

"Yes, sir!" the guard bowed and retreated.

"It's better to find the corpse directly," said Cilian, "and the chess pieces arranged next to someone else like this will be killed immediately after use, and there is no chance of survival." ”

"Give it a try, there are times when little people have big lives. Tandra said with emotion.

Sirian continued to scrutinize, and this time, another strange spot caught his eye. "There are two daggers on the corpse, one is the murderer's, and the other is in the hands of Master Gesai himself, did he resist after being attacked?"

"For his age, the effect of resistance is minimal, and a blow in the back is enough to kill. Tandra said as he slowly pulled the doctor's clenched left hand away, and in the palm of his hand, he found a piece of burnt flesh. "What is this?"

Attracted by Tandra's discovery, Sirian looked at the piece of flesh in thought, then at the dagger on the corpse's right hand, and suddenly, his eyes were fixed on a spot on the corpse, as if he had thought of something. "It's! it'......" his voice trembled, as if he couldn't fully express his thoughts.

Tandra looked at his old friend suspiciously, and he followed Cyrian's gaze to see the corpse's face. There, Gesse's features were pressed together in pain, his grinning mouth revealing his bare gums. "It's! his ...... Lips?"

When an old man received a fatal blow from the back, the murderer ignited a fire on him, and then after the other party fled the scene in a hurry, he struggled to take out the dagger, and instead of calling for help, he resolutely cut off the whole piece of his lower lip and held it in his hand.

"What does he want to tell us?" said Cillian, holding back tears from his eyes, for he saw in the noblest soul of the old healer.

"What did he find, he tried to tell us, but he caught the attention of the butler next to him, and he was killed......" Tandra whispered, clutching the scorched earth under his feet in his hands, "What did he want to show us?"

"Show us?......" Sirian was stunned, "the ...... of the dead Lips?"

"The corpse of the Assassin!" the two of them exclaimed in unison.

In an instant, the two figures rushed out of the ruins quickly, turning over and leaving in the dust in a stunned gaze.

Gesai's mansion in the upper part of the city is a little distance from the garrison barracks, but due to martial law throughout the city, there are few crowds on the streets of the capital.

It didn't take long for Sirian and Tandra to reach the location of the garrison barracks located next to the city gates. In the distance, they saw the last thing they wanted—four guards loading the bodies of two Assassins onto the wagon.

"Stop!" Cyrian roared, jumping straight from his horse that had rushed to the front, drawing his sword and slashing at the carriage parked in front of the barracks. Bursting golden light rushed out from the sword's body, rolling up a manic force that instantly shattered the carriage, and the power of order radiating from Cirian's body shimmered dazzlingly in the morning sun.

Tandra also rushed over, his face cold. "Guards!" he roared, "Arrest these four men!"

"Yes!" replied the guards who had been driven out of the barracks at the sound of the voice, and although they did not know exactly what was going on, obedience was an instinct that had been etched into their blood.

The strangest thing was that the four guards who were carrying the bodies did not even know why they were being detained, and they struggled with puzzled faces before being pressed to the ground. "Your Excellency, Lord Tandra, why are you arresting us?"

"Why?!" Tandra was utterly furious, as if he saw the dignity of the desecrated Kingdom Guards, "You ask me why! Tell me! Who told you to remove the body!"

One of the guards looked up at his commander. "You gave us the order to take the body out of the city and bury it......"

"I?!" Tandra's eyes widened, as if he had heard the most ridiculous answer, "You said I would let you destroy the corpses?!" he drew the long sword at his waist, "It's not terrible to do evil! It's terrible that even if you do evil, you don't dare to face your ugly soul before judgment!"

Sirian had already thought of what the grumpy old friend would do next, and the execution on the spot would be the only fate for the guards. But before he could stop him, the four guards spoke even more depressing words. "In the name of the Lord God, it was your herald, Lord Loeb, who just asked us to dispose of the body. ”

"That guy isn't on ......duty today," Tandra had barely said half of his sentence when he suddenly understood something, and looked back at Sirian, who closed his eyes and shook his head slowly.

"Where's Loeb?" asked Sirian.

The guards standing next to each other looked at each other. "Your Excellency, Loeb just said he was out of town. ”

Sirian listened, and pressed the palm of Tandra's hand holding the sword. "Put it down, if nothing else, you've just saved four young lives," he paused and continued, "Guards, it's not clean either......

Tandra slowly lowered the long sword, his expression a little lonely, as if he had put down not only the sword in his hand, but also his confidence in his boys. "Escort them down, no one is allowed to approach them except me and the Prime Minister, anyone!" his voice was a little low, mixed with a little weakness.

Sirian patted Tandra on the shoulder, he could fully understand the state of mind of a commander at this time, and what the other party needed at this time was not comfort, but temporary peace.

Sirian turned and crouched down beside the Assassin's corpse, gently flipping the lower lip of one of them with his hand. Suddenly, Duke Junhe's face changed, as if he saw the most dangerous thing in the world unfold in front of him without warning, and a chill ran in his tenacious heart.

Immediately afterward, Sirian reached for another corpse, hoping that it was nothing more than an accidental coincidence. But, as he himself said, there are no coincidences in the conspiracy.

The Assassin's lower lip was tattooed with a black totem depicting a bird holding a bell. Sirian's voice was low, as if he didn't want to say the name that had been around on the continent for a long time: the grinning raven.

......

Digression in this chapter: It's another year of the Dragon Boat Festival, I wish you all a happy holiday.