As the sun began to set, I found myself sprinting at full speed through the bustling streets of Londia city. My ultimate destination was none other than the Londia Police Station.
Having returned to Alban Prison, I discovered an astonishing fact in the files.
It turned out that the man who accompanied Marian was none other than a former prisoner named Ben Crunch.
This same Crunch had been apprehended on suspicion of theft, specifically breaking into the Paige Wine Barrel Workshop.
That very shop happened to be where Labos had previously worked.
During the theft, Crunch was seen by a child in the shop, which led to his arrest.
However, he consistently denied the allegations.
The police thoroughly searched Crunch’s house, but they couldn’t find the stolen goods.
Since the witness was a child, Crunch never confessed even under police interrogation (torture), and in the end, he was released.
Incidentally, the entry point during the crime was the back door.
It seems that the back door, which is usually securely locked, happened to be left unlocked that day.
But if Labos, being a craftsman at the workshop, was an accomplice, it wouldn’t be difficult for him to leave the back door unlocked, would it?
The police should have investigated Crunch’s connections, but they couldn’t find any link to Labos.
However, now that I think about it, the two of them must have gotten acquainted through Marian.
The sun had completely set, but Inspector Walter Jaguar, who had arrested Crunch, was still lingering in the police station.
He was in his early thirties, tall, and exuding an air of tenacity. His slanted eyes conveyed both severity and intellect, giving off the impression of a sharp and astute individual.
“Well, Inspector, what do you think? I find it hard to believe that this is merely a coincidence,” I said.
“Hmm, we won’t know for sure until we investigate further, but it’s likely that they are connected somehow. Let’s start by searching the room of the woman named Marian. There might still be stolen goods there.” Inspector Jaguar replied.
“I agree, that sounds like a good plan.”
“Would you accompany us as well, Mr. Wolf? I’d like to ask for your guidance,” Inspector Jaguar asked.
“Certainly. Let’s go together,” I replied.
Accompanied by three of his subordinates, Inspector Jaguar promptly made his way to Marian’s residence.
It appeared that Marian was still at the restaurant, as her room was unoccupied.
“Let’s get started,” Inspector Jaguar commanded.
Upon the brief command of Inspector Jaguar, the investigators swiftly began turning the room upside down, conducting what is commonly known as a thorough search.
******************
“Mr. Wolf, Marian, and Crunch might return. Let’s hide somewhere and keep an eye on them,” Inspector Jaguar instructed.
It seemed I had to be present as well, considering I was familiar with Marian’s face.
Despite being a prison officer rather than a police officer… well, here I was.
Engaging in such activities wouldn’t earn me a raise or a reward. Nevertheless, I considered it a commitment I had undertaken and decided to cooperate.
Emerging from the darkness, two men flanked Marian and Crunch, leaving them stunned, their knees weak with astonishment.
Inspector Jaguar’s subordinates had already discovered a large sum of 800,000 gills and a gold ring in Marian’s room.
The inside of the ring was engraved with the initials of the owner of Paige Workshop and his wife, leaving no doubt that these were stolen items. There was no longer any doubt that Crunch was indeed the thief.
“Ben Crunch, you are under arrest on suspicion of theft,” Inspector Jaguar declared with a calm yet commanding voice.
“Damn it!”
Crunch drew a knife from his waist and unexpectedly lunged towards me.
Why was he coming at me?
Well, he didn’t seem stronger than Inspector Jaguar, at least…
“Mr. Wolf, don’t kill him!”
Inspector Jaguar called out to me as I unsheathed my sword, but I couldn’t afford to let my guard down.
“Please don’t say unreasonable things…”
Crunch was a man well-acquainted with brawls. He must have lived in the underworld, I presumed.
He displayed a level of knife skills that indicated he was no amateur.
However, he was just a street thug who hadn’t honed his physique. By focusing on defense and waiting for the opportunity to strike, he quickly grew breathless and exposed an opening.
Focusing on his overextended attack that threw off his balance, I stepped in and delivered a blow to the side of his face with the hilt of my sword, promptly subduing him.
“Are you alright? It seems like you’re injured,”
After apprehending Marian, who was trying to escape, Inspector Jaguar asked me.
My sleeve was shallowly cut, and blood was seeping out.
Having to sew not only my socks but also my shirt made my mood sink even further.
I hadn’t even bought a needle and thread yet, which was more troubling.
“It’s just a scratch. The real problem is the ruined shirt.” I finally answered him.
“That’s unfortunate. We’ll make it up for you later. But for now, we need to hurry to Alban Prison.”
“To Alban Prison?”
“Yes, because I want to interrogate the man named Labos as well.”
Inspector Jaguar was as energetic as he appeared.
Having discovered the incriminating evidence, Crunch gave in and confessed to the crime without hesitation.
As expected, it was Labos who had unlocked the back door of the workshop, and Marian, Crunch’s lover, had been keeping the stolen goods all along.
Incidentally, it was true that Labos had been Marian’s customer once, and he had been involved in the crime through that connection.
I called Labos over to the prison cell’s iron bars and spoke to him directly.
“So, Marian wasn’t your mistress or anything, huh?”
“Yeah, I wrote that letter, threatening to expose our crime if she didn’t come for a visit.”
Labos, who knew that his sentence would be significantly extended, slumped his shoulders with a sense of powerlessness.
“But why would you take such a risky move? You were caught for pickpocketing, and the sentence would have been just six months. However, with a theft of over 800,000 gils, you could face the death penalty.”
I couldn’t help but confront Labos with the question that had been bothering me.
“Well, I needed money, you see. The other day, my wife came to visit me. I heard that our kid was sick at the time. I’ve never really acted like a parent before… So I thought if I could get a substantial amount of money from Marian, I could buy medicine for him…”
“How much were you planning to receive?”
“50,000 gils. That was supposed to be my share…”
It was frustrating.
I felt utterly frustrated.
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