Eric was really tired of people taking off and running when he started to mention the murder in the Temple District. They responded in a puzzled yet friendly manner to his question until that topic was raised. People seemed all too keen to help out a person who wore a bracelet like the one Samuel had given him. He’d expected to have to bribe, charm, or threaten to get answers, but people almost tripped over themselves to tell him what he wanted to know, except any topic on the murder.

He watched two men dressed as farmers bolt down an alley and out of sight, and let out a long sigh of exasperation. Turning to see if anyone else was nearby, two other people, who had clearly overheard, caught his eye. But the second he started to move towards them, they tugged their cloaks more tightly around themselves and scurried away. He sighed again. The public didn’t seem to realize that the victim had been a god, but they were clearly uneasy.

He kicked a nearby rock in temper, then made his way back to the main road. People in and around the Temple District seemed especially skittish tonight, he thought. Perhaps he’d take another pass through the Market District. It had been a few hours, so there were new customers perusing goods. He might even be able to snag the attention of an unoccupied merchant. When you dealt with people all day, you tended to pick up the kind of obscure information he was after.

The crystal that M had given him was still in his pocket, where he’d stuffed it at once. He hadn’t drawn the item out just yet, because he wanted to see if he could accomplish the task without help first. He also disliked the idea of being in M’s debt, whether monetary or otherwise. If he could accomplish his task without using the item, then he’d return it to M, and refute the debt.

“Excuse me, sir. Are you looking for information about that murder? My friend told me I should come and find you.”

The voice, as surprising as it was, still rang painfully familiar to his ears. Before he’d even registered who the stranger was, he was turning in place and drawing his two swords, ready to strike. Fast as he was, the person who had addressed him was a bit faster, jumping out of his range and pulling out a weapon of his own. A crossbow. It was Rajlen Korin. But he didn’t level the weapon or make any attempt to fire. In fact, once he’d recognized Eric’s features, he scowled and put it back on his belt.

“You?” He asked, his voice full of doubt and suspicion. “You’re part of the royal task force tracking down Hammerbrewer’s murderer?”

“What’s it to you?” Eric asked, not bothering to hide the hatred in his voice. Unlike Korin, he kept his weapons up and ready. “I don’t have to explain myself to you. Tell me what you know.”

“Really now,” Korin said, his face shifting into a cocky smirk. “Is that how you get people to tell you what you want to know? I must say, your ineptitude is astonishing.”

Eric took a full step forward, trying not to be cowed by the fact that Korin made no move to retreat. He didn’t even seem worried. “I have a job to do. If you can help me do that, then speak. I don’t have time for anything else.”

Korin shook his head slowly, that infuriating grin still in place. “Sheesh, Eric. You could lighten up a bit. I’m only willing to give information because Father told me to.”

“Matthias wants to help my investigation?” Eric asked, thrown by this revelation. He narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “Why?”

“Because it’s a loss to everyone when a good deity is killed,” Korin said dryly. “Obviously. So. Do you want to hear what I have to say, or are you going to threaten me all night?”

He glanced pointedly at Eric’s drawn weapons, acknowledging their presence for the first time. Eric stared at him coldly for several seconds, then decided, in the interest of the job, to comply. The swords made a soft whisper as he slammed them back into their sheaths. Then he adjusted the dark grey cloak he wore to conceal them once more and raised his eyebrows expectantly. “There. Not that it’ll make much of a difference. You might be better than me, but if you move funny, I’ll attack.”

He expected his reply to amuse or irritate Korin, but the man merely nodded and pushed his pale hair out of his face. He actually folded his arms to bring them further from his weapon, as if wary of provoking him. Eric frowned. This polite, wary sort of act didn’t tally at all with what he knew of the Rajlen family. He wasn’t normally the type to make assumptions, but personal experience was the best teacher. In that regard, he should be viewing Korin as a mortal foe.

“Right,” Korin started. “I know two things. Rather, there are two things that Father wishes your team to know.”

Eric nodded, not fazed at all by the choice of words. “So you know more than you’re about to tell me. Matthias’ kindness just isn’t limitless.”

Korin nodded as well. “Indeed. First, one of the adventurers who was taken is a prospective apprentice. That is to say that Father was planning on recruiting him into our family.”

“That poor soul,” Eric said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Does he know this?”

Korin nodded again. “Father is always honest and has already let him know of our interest. But there is something else about him. He already has our crest.”

Korin unfolded his arms then and pulled his robe aside, revealing a dark tattoo there. It was a staff, Eric noticed. Rather, it was a royal scepter, clutched in a fist. The fist was snapping it in two, an obvious message. The Rajlen family opposed authority. Or perhaps they opposed corrupt authority. Either way, he thought with a shrug. He nodded after a short while, sure that he could recognize the mark if he ever saw it again.

“This crest is enchanted,” Korin continued, adjusting his tunic. “It lets us know where every member of the family is and tracks their condition. Even if we die, we can still be located.”

“I see,” Eric said. It made sense to know where your compatriots were at all times. “So if you know where the adventurers are because of this, then why haven’t you gone and rescued your ally-to-be?”

“Because to do so would break a Divine Law,” Korin replied at once. “We may be brave, but there are certain figures we do our best to avoid angering.”

Divine Laws, Eric knew, were rules imposed and enforced by the strongest of the gods. They were laws that superseded even Royal Decrees, and only the foolhardy would bother breaking them and drawing the ire of whatever deity issued the law. Not every god had a law, but those who did enforced them with vicious force.

“Which Divine Law is stopping you?”

“Shigeru Tokugawa’s law against harming innocents or fighting on his holy ground.”

“I see. So you’re saying that there are innocents protecting them and the murderer?”

“No,” Korin said, his eyes burning, his voice bitter. “They are hiding within Shigeru’s temple.”

“That can’t be,” Eric said, frowning slightly. “I was told that the culprit escaped via the west gate. There were actual witnesses and injured soldiers there.”

“They doubled back at some point,” Korin interrupted him. “I don’t know when or how they did without being noticed, but their intent is obvious. He has some way of controlling his captives, to keep them in place without attacking them.”

“And if you try to remove them by force, you’ll provoke Shigeru’s followers,” Eric said. “They would attempt to arrest you. If you resisted, then Shigeru himself would mark you as a criminal to be hunted.”

“Yes,” Korin said, clearly pleased that Eric had finally grasped his point. “We could kill anyone who comes after us, of course, but that would only make the matter worse. What’s more, our family actually has good standing with Shigeru. But you’re an outsider.”

“What does the fact that I’m not Ahyan have to do with anything?” Eric asked, glancing around to make sure nobody was close enough to eavesdrop. The side road they were on was quite occupied, however. “I’ll still be just as screwed if I break a Divine Law.”

“True,” Korin agreed. “But while I don’t care about that, you miss my point. The Royal Family has a lot of pull. Not to mention, the Queen has a personal friendship with Shigeru. She can appeal to him to expel the criminal and his captives so that they will be in the open, and free to attack.”

“I’ll take that into consideration,” Eric said. “Have they been in the temple since the incident?”

Korin nodded for a third time. “They’re there still now. Dage is, at least.”

“Dage,” Eric muttered. The name sounded vaguely familiar, though he couldn’t place it. “Alright. I still don’t trust you, but thank you for the information. Please send me a message if they move from the temple.”

Korin nodded, then turned and walked away. He faded into the shadows of the alley within a few feet, clearly a more advanced version of the Hide skill he’d taught Eric. He suddenly remembered that he’d forgotten the skill was originally his. The thought made him feel unclean, learning from a known murderer, but he pushed the thought aside. It was a useful skill, and he was determined to keep it.

“Right,” he muttered, speaking quietly to himself. “I should bring this to Queen Elena. Or I could visit the temple first, and see if I can’t identify them myself.”

In the end, he chose the second course of action. Whoever had murdered the god, the chances of them recognizing him were nonexistent, so he should be safe for one visit, as long as he didn’t do anything suspicious. And, he realized, he had the perfect excuse. Shigeru himself had invited Eric to visit, to receive a boon. Quite apart from wanting to know more about the God of War, a boon from him could prove useful.

He turned sharply on his heel and started walking back to the Temple District, his mind made up. He would speak with Shigeru, or at least pray to him, and receive his boon. While he did that, he would covertly examine the other people in the Temple, and see if he couldn’t identify his target. With any luck, he could get a good description, and the Royal Family could put the matter to rest by tomorrow night. They were clearly eager to avenge Dovir Hammerbrewer’s death, and he smiled as he thought of how they’d reward him if he single-handedly found the murderer.

A flash of reflected light, the flame of a nearby lantern reflected on metal. It was the smallest movement, but it snagged his attention immediately. Thinking that Korin had returned to attack him after all, he dove forward instinctually. He was just in time, as a small blade whistled through the air above him. It thudded into a wooden beam on the exterior of a house, but another was already on the way. Eric had his longer blade free by then, and smacked the throwing knife aside.

“Who’s there?” He called, his voice hard. “Drop any weapon you’re holding and come out peacefully.”

No voice came out in reply to his call, but he hadn’t expected one. There was a long silence, then a faint sound on the rooftop above him. He jumped back again as a dark cloaked figure hit the pavements in front of him, dodging their attack by a hair. He gaped as he glanced up at the roof. They’d dropped nearly thirty feet to attack him, yet didn’t seem fazed at all by the impact. They were clearly no amateur. 

“Well now,” Eric said, drawing his second blade. “Your timing in attacking me is clearly no coincidence. I have some questions for you.”