Inside the Black Castle, in the interrogation room.
Atbolde Rudolph remained silent, his face furrowed like tree bark, heavy with solemnity.
Next to him, Lillian Rudolph looked at the grinning Rice across from her, her brows almost knitting together, and said coldly with anger in her voice, "These so-called 'evidence' you have are all forged!"
"Oh—" Rice chuckled, glancing at the two of them, and countered, "So, the two of you still refuse to admit it?"
Lillian kept her face stern and didn't respond, just watched Rice with a cold gaze.
She knew that saying more would do no good.
"Is this how the Black Castle's inspectors gather evidence?" Atbolde asked in a deep voice.
"Do you doubt the authenticity of the evidence?" Rice asked with a smile.
Seeing Lillian and Atbolde maintain their silence, he slowly stood up.
"Unfortunately, the evidence is irrefutable. We found these items through searches in several dwellings, and all the inspectors present can testify to that—right?"
He looked over at another official, Ralph, then at the inspectors behind him.
As his eyes swept over them, everyone nodded in unanimous agreement.
Rice's face bore an even greater smile of pleasure as he turned back to Lillian and Atbolde, and continued, "Thus, even if you do not admit it, you cannot change this fact. I am only informing you according to the regulations."
After finishing, he turned his head and gestured with his eyes toward Mo'er among the inspectors behind him.
Mo'er immediately got the hint, stepped forward, and presented a brown piece of parchment with both hands.
"Come, take a look at this investigative report. If there are any other objections, feel free to present them."
Rice took the parchment from Mo'er with a squint and handed it over to Atbolde with one hand.
"However, if it's still about questioning the authenticity of the discovered evidence, there's no need to mention it again," he added.
The brown parchment quietly hovered in the air, and Rice, not showing any signs of fatigue, maintained his outstretched hand.
His eyes gleamed with mirth as he looked at Lillian and Atbolde, as if he was certain they would obediently take the parchment and admit their guilt.
There was no breeze in the room, and the brown parchment naturally curled upon itself.
Lillian looked at it, her face growing even colder. This was not an investigative report, but a death sentence.
She clenched her fist slightly, but the usual surging feeling was absent—due to the magic-suppressing environment, her Magic Power was now as stagnant as dead water.
She had thought that after a significant increase in her bloodline strength in the Elf Secret Vault, having reached the peak of a First Rank Wizard, and finding the Ancient Life Tree Dew as a treatment for her grandfather...
The return to Neustadt City should have been straightforward, but she had not expected to find herself in such dire straits, facing one peril after another.
A sense of powerlessness crawled over her heart, and Lillian's fists tightened, her fingertips nearly piercing her palms.
Facing the Pureblood Family, she was still too weak.
In fact, if it hadn't been for her junior, Colin, they would probably have been buried on a cold snowy night a few days ago...
At this thought, an inexplicable sense of anticipation rose in Lillian's heart.
"If the two of you continue to refuse to read it, then that will be taken as a willful abandonment of this..." Rice looked at Lillian's clenched fist and her pale face, delightfully urging.
However, he had not yet finished speaking.
A snap echoed as the door to the interrogation room was suddenly pushed open.
A Witch, clad in a dark-black Wizard Robe with golden patterns, entered the room.
Rice swiftly turned around, but his original indignation faded upon seeing the Witch's face and the three Golden Feather insignia on her chest; he quickly bowed with respect, greeting her,
"Madam Nancy."
Witch Nancy didn't respond. She moved slightly to reveal Colin standing behind her.
The golden-haired young man was dressed in a simple standard Wizard Robe, but his posture was upright and his features handsome, exuding an aura that was no less formidable than that of the Third Rank Wizards nearby!
Lillian's lovely golden-green eyes widened slightly, and Atbolde was also momentarily stunned, a smile showing on his face.
This student had already brought him many surprises.
"Tutor, senior sister,"
Colin smiled, greeting Lillian and Atbolde, then turned his head respectfully to the Witch beside him,
"Madam Nancy, thank you for your trouble."
"Mhm," Nancy replied with a gentle smile.
Then she turned to Rice, who looked baffled, and her expression suddenly turned serious as she ordered in a cold voice,
"By order of the School—the deaths of Yasi Hidosh and Marjorie Alist shall no longer be investigated as of this moment. The matter has been concluded.Now, immediately release Atbolde Rudolph and Lillian Rudolph!"
"No longer under investigation..." Rice was inwardly startled, but he didn't show any signs on his face; his eyes were only slightly narrowed.
Mo'er, in the rank of the inspectors behind him, frowned. He couldn't understand why Colin would appear here.
Everything had been going according to the Family's plan... yet at this time, everything changed.
Yet, Ralph, standing next to them, promptly nodded in agreement, "Understood, Madam Nancy."
By the rules of the Black Castle, he was not a member of the Hidosh Family.
Though the Faction he backed was in good standing with the Hidosh Family, Nancy was one of their superiors among the inspectors. Obeying her now could not be mistaken, and even the Hidosh Family could find no fault.
Therefore, he nodded without hesitating.
Seeing his reaction, Rice paused for a moment, his thoughts spinning rapidly, then he also smiled and nodded, turning briskly to open the door to the temporary cell.