It looks like a robbery motivated by resentment, but people around the victim say he wasn’t that kind of person. 

To see it as a simple random impulse robbery, he wasn’t the right target to steal money from, and they even cleaned up the scene thoroughly after leaving the fallen victim. 

The fact that they cleaned the scene made it hard to assume it was the work of a lunatic. Especially considering they chose a time and place with no people.

Alex crossed her arms, narrowed her eyes, and gave Ed instructions.

“First, dig deeper around the victim. Focus on whether there’s really no motive for m*rder. And expand the range around Luivino Street for more inquiries. Even if there are no witnesses, there might be people who heard sounds or saw someone suspicious.”

“Understood.”

Alex waited until Ed’s hand movements stopped writing something in the report, then looked him straight in the eye and spoke.

“But this isn’t what I wanted, you know? This is just a complicated robbery case.”

Under the commander’s pressure to bring out something more, Ed fell silent.

“Ed. Not the obvious stuff—tell me about things you think are ambiguous.”

Ed flipped through several pages of the report, rapidly scanning with his eyes. Internally, he couldn’t get a handle on what to say.

‘You report clear and certain things, how do you report ambiguous and strange things? I can’t just talk about unclear matters and consult about what you think, Commander…’

She was too difficult a superior to satisfy. He had no idea how Vice Commander Ian managed to stick by her side all those years. He seriously wondered if he should get some secret technique passed down.

While rummaging through the report, his hand stopped near the end. There definitely was something like what the commander mentioned.

“…A mercenary company called ‘Odel’ entered the capital. They went through proper procedures, and all members’ identities are confirmed.”

Alex’s eyebrow rose. Mercenary companies entering the capital wasn’t special. If they followed procedures and individual identities were confirmed, it was even less noteworthy.

“And?”

Ed unconsciously swallowed once. People who didn’t know her simply admired her brilliantly shining beautiful face and reputation, but Ed was dying right now. 

To his eyes with a cute face but harsh speech habits and sensitivity, Alexandria Raymer was an apex predator. 

Whether the commander or Vice Commander Ian, the watching mouse’s heart always churned. Separate from respecting them.

“Besides Odel, mercenary companies called Radicum, Homan, Pisaret, and Haranel also entered.”

Alex frowned. This was noteworthy.

“Five mercenary companies?”

“Yes. All procedurally fine. Identities confirmed too.”

The lords of each manor could do as they pleased, hiring mercenaries to cultivate land or whatever on their own territories. But the empire’s center, the capital, was different. 

There wasn’t even work in Imperial Capital Logia that needed enough hands to use mercenaries, and even if there was, it required the Emperor’s approval. Only the Emperor could exercise influence in the capital.

“Combined, it’s 150 people.”

Ed added. 150 was too many. Alex looked at Ian and asked.

“If it’s work needing 150 people, wouldn’t it be about monster subjugation? Was there a subjugation plan?”

“No plan came from the imperial palace.”

At Ian’s answer, Alex crossed her arms and tilted her head back. A low throat rumble of “Mmm” was heard.

In treacherous mountains even beasts could barely reach lived giant creatures of unknown identity. When their numbers increased, they came down to cities where people lived, so they had to be periodically subjugated. 

Mainly the lords of those regions handled it by calling mercenaries themselves, but when going large-scale, the imperial palace directly led. Then the Imperial Knight Order unconditionally went out as the subjugation team vanguard, and mercenaries were occasionally included.

At this point in time, they knew nothing about any monster subjugation plan that would bring mercenaries into Logia on a large scale. At least it meant the mercenary companies didn’t enter Logia for that reason.

She immediately straightened her head and looked at Ed’s black eyes.

“Who’s the client?”

“Undisclosed.”

“The mission?”

“That’s also undisclosed.”

“All five mercenary companies?”

“Yes.”

Tsk. Alex clicked her tongue. This was why mercenary companies were troublesome. Mercenary companies often performed missions undisclosed at the client’s request. 

Nobles were reluctant to have their names exposed since using mercenary companies amounted to admitting their own knight orders’ insufficiency and incompetence.

Since most were undisclosed, for the Knight Order to request cooperation citing capital security, they had to send official documents through the mercenary guild. 

Even this couldn’t be forced if the client refused. If problems arose later, the client bore full responsibility, but the procedures were annoying for detecting danger in advance.

“Where are the lodgings? How long are they staying?”

“The registered places are Shaper, Pke, Herot, Dorot, and Basona inns. They’re small inns so they rented them all entirely, and the stay periods vary from two weeks to two months.”

“When did they enter Logia?”

“Odel three days ago, Radicum and Homan two days ago, Pisaret and Haranel entered yesterday.”

Five mercenary companies entered within the last three days and would stay up to two months. 

Two months was too long. What would 150 mercenaries do in the capital for two months? Her furrowed brow showed no signs of smoothing.

“Send an official document to the guild and monitor them. Make sure they don’t notice they’re being watched.”

“Yes. Understood.”

“Good work. Go rest.”

Ed bowed and struck his left chest once. The moment he quickly left the commander’s office, Alex sighed.

“This initiation is really going all out.”

“Don’t know yet. Could be needless worry.”

Ian’s blue eyes were deep as always. His calm voice without inflection was peaceful. It had the power to stabilize a rampaging beast. Perhaps he was the one holding the leash of the ferocious lion.

Breaking through Alex’s thoughts, Ian added his own.

“The key is whether they’ll cooperate after we send the official document.”

“Obviously they won’t.”

“Then we’ll have to openly surveil them. They know well that 150 isn’t a small number. There are plenty of justifications.”

As expected, annoying. Except for a few top mercenary companies, mercenary companies were closer to “fixers” than mercenaries. Perhaps because their work was rough, the people were generally rough too. 

150 mercenaries wandering around Logia’s downtown would definitely make people quite uncomfortable. 

In fact, among those causing minor problems in Logia, mercenaries held a considerable share. So as Knight Commander, Alex had no choice but to worry about them. It definitely wasn’t welcome.

“Refusing cooperation would actually be better for us.”

“There are many ways if you look.”

Meaning don’t worry too much. Alex grinned.

“Let’s go. It’s too late today.”

When Alex stood up, Ian followed. They left the commander’s office, locked the door firmly, and exited the main building. It was frighteningly quiet. Alex stretched fully and moved her steps toward the quarters with familiarity.

The Aiden Empire Knight Order facilities consisted of the main building, quarters, and training grounds within the imperial palace. The main building stood in front of the spacious training grounds surrounded by trees and quite high walls. 

It had a scale befitting its reputation, with the commander and vice commanders’ offices, aide knights’ offices, lecture halls, indoor training grounds, medical office, and even dormitories.

Walking from the main building along the training ground boundary, a small quarters building was visible through the dense trees. The two-story building where the commander and First Vice Commander stayed and lived wasn’t very large. 

However, it lacked nothing in honoring the empire’s finest swords. 

The distance between dormitory and quarters was the Emperor’s consideration, worried the knights couldn’t breathe, and thanks to that, loyalty pierced the sky. Not a single person in the Knight Order loitered near the quarters.

The first floor of the modest quarters housed two vice commanders, the second floor housed the commander. Normally Jake should also use a first-floor room, but as a married man, he commuted from his mansion outside the palace. Ian used the first floor, Alex used the second.

“Alex.”

At the voice calling her, golden eyes turned back. The face she had to look up at for a while was dark, so his expression and gaze weren’t clearly visible. He called her but didn’t speak for a while. Alex couldn’t stand it and asked.

“What.”

“Over there.”

Alex turned back following his voice and chin gesture.

Beyond the imperial palace’s high walls, far away, red heat was soaring. Though it was the dead of night when it shouldn’t be bright, it dyed the surrounding sky yellow.

Alex’s eyes clearly showed disbelief.

“Is there a fire right now?”