Death, Devotion, Dissonance Chapter 123
Advertisement
What happened after Evin's confession was much different than his imagination of being thrown into a jail and getting questioned.
The guard struggled to make sense of the situation, but he contacted his superior, which had Evin bring him to the place of murder.
Evin calmly explained the situation to them, which revealed the fact that Evin was a mage. The fact shocked and put fear into the two, but they didn't seem to consider Evin a threat, as he confessed to his crimes personally. It also seemed to make things easier for them in a way, as they then swiftly brought Evin to the Citizens Bureau. Before that point, Evin hadn't known about a specialized sector in the Bureau created for dealing with criminal mages, but the day's events enlightened him somewhat.
Evin recited his explanation to a stern-looking man there, who asked for the two guards for confirmation time to time.
Naturally, the most confusing part of the story was Evin's vision of the golem. Obviously, the inspector relentlessly questioned Evin on this point. Evin had to share his story of fighting a golem a month ago and losing his leg in the fight. This prompted the inspector to call in someone from the Academy, which thankfully, wasn't someone Evin knew. The newcomer, of course, attested to Evin's story, also bringing up some documents that described Evin's fight with the other students and some of the golems.
Eventually, the inspector came to the scene of murder himself. The man didn't even bother to restrain Evin in any way even after hearing Evin's battle capabilities, which meant that he was either very confident or very stupid. The previous conversation made Evin tilt towards the former.
On the site of murder, the inspector used some magical powder, which seemed capable of revealing what World energies were used inside an area. Different Worlds had different colors to them, this powder could reveal traces of them to the naked eye.
Advertisement
For the most part, the scene seemed to match Evin's testimony. But a comment from the inspector made Evin want to sigh out loud, though of course, he was careful not to actually do it.
"There's mostly Ivelisi's energy in this room, but on the body of the victim, there's a trace of Lochra's energy. They're barely noticeable because of the ice that the boy used to encase the body in, but they're definitely there."
This was proof that the Voice was responsible for Evin's murder of his father. It must've used illusions to make his father look like the Type 12 in his eyes.
The inspector continued. "Did you use illusion magic on your father?"
"No."
"Then what about its traces on his body?"
"I don't know."
"Why did you encase your father in ice?"
"It just felt like the proper thing to do."
"…"
It felt like Evin was answering the questions to the best of his abilities. Maybe even too well. He was sure that others from his age would be either bawling their eye out or staring at blank space, too shocked to speak.
The inspector seemed to think similarly and after having everyone else leave, began to change the nature of his questions.
"What was your relationship with your father like?"
"Bad. He was abusive till I was 10. Didn't want me to become a mage even after he learned I had a mana-core… with the help of a teacher in the Academy named Leanne, I managed to escape his grasp and become a mage. I haven't met him for five months. Until today."
"Where's your mother?"
"Don't know. I think she left us when I was young."
These were exceedingly personal questions: how his father abused him, how the atmosphere in the house was like, whether or not anyone tried to help Evin… questions continuing to grow more and more complex thanks to the details that Evin provided. He, of course, mentioned the Voice a few times here and there, but didn't make it seem like something important.
Advertisement
He didn't want to hide this fact, as the man could easily learn about it from the neighbors and maybe even Baker's group. It would make it seem like the Voice that Evin deliberately hid away from the inspector had some kind of role in it all.
At the end of it all, the inspector sighed and looked through the notebook he was writing on for the past hour or so.
"Some details of the story might be wrong," Evin added at the end. "So please be careful."
"What?" the inspector sounded annoyed, startled, even.
Evin would probably act the same if he wrote all those stuff and heard that it might be false information.
"Ah, it's just something I heard somewhere. That people tend to misremember things a lot. Of course, it wouldn't seem that way to them, so it looks like they're lying. But they're just saying they themselves believe what they think the truth is."
The words made the inspector think for a bit, but inevitably, a frown appeared on the man's face. Such a concept would be nightmarish for someone who was a detective. People could be telling lies thinking it was the truth?
"That's something I'd rather not know. Who did you even hear it from, anyway?"
"I'm afraid it's something the Voice had told me at some point."
The man wore another annoyed frown on his face, making it extremely difficult for Evin to not smile. The inspector read his notes, though there was an air of skepticism around him now.
Finally, the man stood up and ordered Evin to follow. They went back to the Citizens Bureau.
"Your case will be treated as an accident," the inspector said, writing the same words on a piece of paper.
"Really?"
"Yes. Although it's a rather brutal incident, I can only make that conclusion."
"What about me seeing a golem in place of my father?"
"That was most likely the work of the grass he burnt beneath you - flyweed. It's a cheap, but effective drug that's becoming more popular among the lowlifes. It makes you see things and some even say it has the ability to cleanse one's souls. It's bullshit, so don't think of trying it. Anyway, its smoke must've made you seen that illusion instead of your father when you woke up."
"But I should've felt off even after the fact, right?"
"Perhaps, but I could tell that not much of the grass managed to burn, so you wouldn't be so high."
"And that trace of Lochra energy?" Evin didn't know why he was asking so much questions.
"No idea. But I've learned to ignore some clues in cases like these. Most of them tend to be dead ends and even if they're not, they're rarely useful. Now take this paper and show it to the receptionist outside. He'll send you to someone who will help you through the funeral."
"That's all?" Evin was baffled. Wasn't there supposed to be a trial or something? Didn't these things take weeks to conclude?
"Boy," the inspector suddenly said, his tone turning deadly serious. "Do you want punishment?"
"I…" Evin wanted to say no, but perhaps that was what he needed.
"I knew it," the man sighed. "Do you know what's the punishment for a mage who kills a non-mage?"
"I don't know. The Academy only told us to never hurt anyone ever… that's all."
Not supervised, at least.
"Well, I'll tell you. The punishment for a mage murdering a non-mage is taking an Oath of Restraint in the name of the kingdom."
"An Oath of Restraint?"
Advertisement
- In Serial33 Chapters
Dimensional Originator
Adam is having a terrible time. To start the day off he died in a car accident. And that isn't even the most painful thing that happened to him. That would be merging with a strange crystal. After that he ended up stuck in an endless black void. He does eventually get rescued. But quickly realizes his soul has been put in the body of a fallen noble and his fate is to be little more than a breeding slave for the cultivation clan that purchased him. To top it all off his new body had been bedridden for weeks and he can barely get out of bed. Not everything is terrible though. The crystal he merged with is called a dimensional originator. Using life and death energy he can create miniature universes. Given enough energy and time he could even create an entire universe. For a moment Adam thought things were looking up. Too bad the author finds things going horribly wrong far more entertaining. Warning: If this fiction was a movie I'd rate it as somewhere between PG-13 and R for violence, gore, and nudity.
8 241 - In Serial14 Chapters
Chronicles of Soma: Rise of a King
When I woke up, I was dragged into a grassland. Uwaaaaa! Where is this place? Why am I here? Where is my comfy bed? This is my tale, a tale of man's struggle to rise, in a new world with endless possibilities, and with an AI as a companion.
8 108 - In Serial24 Chapters
Inkway to Albreton
There was a prince in Jasmine's bedroom. THIS IS A FIRST DRAFT. IT'S RAW, UNREVISED, AND UNEDITED.
8 91 - In Serial40 Chapters
Black Meridian
Here's a fact about humans: They are intelligent, versatile creatures with a tendency for murder and vice. Zeta, a swordsman from a villa at the summit of Greenwich Mountain, has heard many stories about the "Sigma World," the colloquial term for any and all things superpowered in the world. He's also heard of the many tragedies, as well as the many wonders humankind has created in its history, even if he has yet to see it in person. Following the philosophy of his teacher, Gin Kagan, Zeta intends to become a "Servant of Humanity," in an endeavor to protect mankind from its gravest threats, from power-hungry sigma-users, but most importantly, from itself. He's going to need a lot of allies to pull that off, even if he doesn't understand that just yet. This story is originally published at www.sigmacentral.wordpress.com. Verification that I am the author of this story can be found here. Please leave feedback in either the comments or a review. I'd like to improve as much as possible before I get too deep into this story.
8 209 - In Serial17 Chapters
The Legend of Fanaura : Journey
Finding out the truth about her reason to be a Fanaura, made her rage. But to whom she pointed the anger to? When the Goddess that had made her become a Fanaura has disappeared along with all her Zanjs. She must bring the Goddesses back, not just for the sake of the world but also for her own benefit. With that goal in mind, she decided to go on a JOURNEY to save the world. Even if that's mean she has to do it with a group of people from her past. Her past friends, her past foe, and once her worst nightmare. ---- This is the second book of The legend of Fanaura. If you haven't read the first book, please read it first ^^ so you won't be confused. Thank you.
8 205 - In Serial4 Chapters
Secret Jordan Phillips
Heyyy guys this story is just for fun!! I hope you enjoy
8 107

