Francis and Gilbert smoked one of the most expensive and finest cigars in town. They were alone in the room. Arthur and Mathew went upstairs to talk about the suit that he would wear for the wedding whilst Alfred went to check on what was going on with the doorbell. Francis puffed out some smoke. The business man enjoyed the smoke came from the cigar and how it took shapes in the air of the dining room. They conflated* with the air which made Francis smile. Gilbert watched Francis gently. He sat up, tilting his head. He was curious what Francis saw in the smoke. The man found the whole cigar smoking habit stupid because even flavoured cigars tasted too disgusting. However, his parents had persisted him to smoke just for the image. Gilbert was also very curious with who was at the door. With enough courage, he turned to Francis.

"Who do you think it is?" he asked.

Francis sighed.

"I believe it is someone who delivers all the food to the butler. But it's worrying me that it is taking Alfred this long to sort it out. Maybe I should have-"

"I think Alfred will be alright. I'm sure he's not a child anymore so he can handle it." interrupted Gilbert, comforting Francis and defending Alfred. Francis nodded.

"I guess. Oh, there was something that I wanted to tell you before the others came." said Francis, taking another puff. He blew out before smiling. "So, I think I found a way to get onto the Honour's List..."

" Oh, I say, that is brilliant." said Gilbert, happy for him.

It was a real Honour to enter the list. That means you were worthy to carry a title such as 'Lord'. You had the right to enter court and judge people's crimes and decide whether they deserved what punishments. People that were chosen were usually not good people.

"I think so too. I thought that maybe it will finally manage to just get your mother happy for you marrying into my family."

Gilbert blushed. "God, please do forgive my family if that's-"

"It doesn't matter." Francis said, shushing Gilbert." I know how she feels so I would rather to impress her than fool myself. Besides, the judges say that they are unsure and that they will decide next week. So, I just must behave good. And so, does the family."

Gilbert looked down, feeling flustered. "Well, I hope you do get on the Honour's List. Maybe mother will think about who she judges next time."

Suddenly, Alfred came in. He looked slightly pale for some reason. Quickly after the loyal butler came in quietly but he looked almost fearing. But then the reason was answered when a very tall man in a heavy looking coat entered. He had piercing blue eyes with blond hair gelled back to perfection. He was very tall and looked neat. And his whole presence was just making everyone nervous. Francis stood up, looking confused at Alfred. Alfred looked at him.

"He's a police officer, Father. He's come to ask some questions..."he said quietly.

The police officer looked at the two gentlemen." Good evening." he said, formally." Are you Mr. Bonnefoy?" he asked.

Francis nodded.

"Yes, that is me, officer. Would you like to sit down and have a drink? I could get our butler to light you a cigar." he said.

"No thank you sir." he said, still looking at him." I'm still on duty."

"Ah, I see. At least let the butler take your stuff and hang them." said Francis. He looked at Kiku." Take care of it, would you?" he asked.

Kiku quickly nodded. He went to the police officer. The officer reluctantly let go of his coat and gave it to Kiku. Kiku gently thanked him and slightly bowed before leaving. The butler still shook from the amount of powerful aura the inspector gave out. He rubbed his head, going to the kitchen just to clean and to take his mind off this officer.

The officer looked at Francis." I like to introduce myself as Inspector Ludwig."

"Aw, no wonder you looked unfamiliar. Are you new to the police force?" asked Francis.

"Yes, just assigned from Germany." he said.

"Ah, that's interesting." said Alfred." Do you miss your home?" he inquired.

The Inspector was silent before nodding very gently.

"Yes. Very." was all he said.

"Not being too rude..." asked Gilbert." May I ask what an Inspector comes to the house?"

Ludwig turned around slowly, facing Gilbert. "I was sent here to ask you questions about a young man who has committed suicide."

"Oh my gosh." said Alfred, shocked. Gilbert was shocked, too.

"That is... very terrible." said Francis, looking at Inspector Ludwig." How did he...?"he asked.

Inspector Ludwig looked at him." He took some strong disinfectant and drank it all. He died in agony on the way to the hospital." he said softly. Francis gently shook at the mere thought of it." That is very terrible to hear." he said.

"I was hoping to talk with the family of Bonnefoy." he said, looking at Francis. Francis nodded.

"Yes, well, I have already introduced myself. This is my son, Alfred Bonnefoy." he said. The Inspector turned to Alfred. Alfred nervously smiled.

"Pleasure to meet you." he replied

"Umm, Alfred could you get your mother and brother?" asked Francis.

Alfred nodded. "Yeah, sure." he said, turning around. To be honest with himself, he felt glad that he could leave the room. To be in the same room as that mysterious inspector was suffocating. He wondered what on earth that inspector was coming to this house. There's no way one of the family could be a part of the boy's suicide, right? Alfred started going upstairs.

Francis and Gilbert stayed with the Inspector. It was very awkward and silent. Francis coughed and cleared his throat before looking at the inspector." I wish the whole thing could wait in the morning. The whole happy atmosphere of the evening is ruined now."

"I see. That is very unfortunate. But a man has died. So, I guess these matters are more important. Without being intrusive, may I ask what the occasion is?" he asked, sounding slightly rude.

Francis tried to ignore that, not wanting to go against the officer." We were celebrating my second son's engagement to the lucky man behind you - Gilbert Beilshmidt." he quickly said. The Inspector looked shocked, turning around to Gilbert.

"You have engaged to the youngest son?" he asked, sounding slightly amused. Gilbert nodded, smiling.

"Yes. The little thing was so happy when I proposed." he said, slightly proud. The proud feeling in his chest was smashed when he saw the slight smirk on the Inspector's face.

"Then I would actually prefer for you to stay." he said.

Francis and Gilbert were shocked.

"Umm. alright." said Gilbert, slightly confused. Francis gritted his teeth.

"Inspector, I don't think Gilbert deserves to answer some tiring police questions after such a good evening with my son...perhaps he could-"

"Sir, I was ordered to get as much information tonight." said the Inspector firmly." Maybe Gilbert knows something about the case that I would like to very much talk about tonight. "

Francis was even more shocked. What was wrong with this man's behaviour? Why was he so firm and rude to them?

"A-alright." was all Francis said. Gilbert started to feel nervous.

Another minute passed before Alfred came in, gulping down and smiling." Do forgive me for being slow. Mother was just helping Mathew with something." he explained. Arthur entered the room, curious to see what was happening. He was shocked at the tall man standing in the dining room. Arthur went to him.

"Are you the inspector my son is worrying about?" he asked. Alfred blushed.

"Mother, I'm not worry-"

"Apparently so." said the Inspector. Arthur nodded. "I'm Mr. Arthur Bonnefoy. I'm Francis' husband." he formally introduced himself.

The Inspector nodded." Your family owns a business?" he asked. Arthur shook his head." I'm afraid not anymore. After I got married, my father sold his business for him and my mother to use the whole money for retirement."

"Ah, I see." he said. Arthur nodded. Mathew came in." I'm here! Sorry for being late! I was getting rid of the final bit of my suit - for the wedding -"he said, looking at Gilbert. He smiled, softly blushing. Gilbert blushed back. The Inspector just watched them.

"You must be very excited."

"Yes. I get to be with the man I love."

"The suit is pretty to your liking?" he asked, with a hint of sinister in his voice. Mathew gently shook.

"U-um...Yes?" he said, unsure even of his own answer.

The Inspector gently smirked.

"I hope you will enjoy the wedding." he said.

Mathew nodded, moving towards Gilbert. The way the Inspector said those words had for some reason such a double meaning. It almost scared him greatly. Gilbert felt his nervousness and gently shook his hand. He squeezed it to make it more comfortable for the boy. Mathew relaxed slightly, before blushing softly. The Inspector watched it, almost with hatred. Arthur was getting annoyed.

"So, what does the police want?" he asked.

The Inspector looked at Arthur." A young man has committed suicide by drinking strong disinfectant."

Arthur blinked, shocked. Mathew gasped, covering his mouth.

"T-That's terrible." he said, already feeling sad and uncomfortable.

"Yes. And when I went to see him in the evening, it was even worse to look at." he said, gently looking down.

"May I ask why the police would involve us with such a boy?" asked Arthur, looking at him suspiciously. The Inspector looked back at him.

"You see, he kept some sort of diary and it had some names written in it. So, I decided to follow the diary dates." he said.

"Ah, so you think there is a culprit who forced him to drink the disinfectant?" asked Francis.

Inspector Ludwig shook his head." No. I was just curious to see what events happened to force him to drive into killing himself. Then I will determine whether there was a culprit." he explained.

"Oh, so almost like a puzzle set?" suggested Alfred." You must find certain parts of a clue to then roll the dice and get to the next clue. Right?"

The Inspector shrugged.

"It could be put into that sort of context."

"And so, where does the first puzzle piece start?" asked Francis, getting annoyed how long it was taking. The Inspector turned towards Francis.

"The diary extract started about three years ago. With him first moving into the nearby town. And managing to secure a paying job at a factory. And even getting himself some new friends. It was going well until suddenly taxes started to rise. People were losing food and even their homes. He wrote on how scared he was that he was going to end up the same way as some of the people. It happened to one of his friends, causing him to be shocked and even more feared, and so he moved all the way over to this town. He quit his job at that old job and decided to start his life here, going to one of the local factories." he explained.

Everyone was a little confused. Yes, the Inspector was just telling them a sort of extract from his diary, but they seriously couldn't understand how they were related to this.

"Of course, it says how hard he worked at the factory and how he tried his very best every day. But of course, the taxes started swallowing this town, so he tried to work even harder."

Gilbert shook his head." So, he struggled with money. But how does this involve any of us?" he asked.

The Inspector looked at them." It doesn't include any of you." he said, turning to Francis." The first clue begins with you."

Francis was shocked." Me?"

"Yes. He said something about starting at your company. So Mr. Bonnefoy, can you tell me what he was like?" he asked.

"Hold on! I can't remember any employers from 3 years ago! Sure, I know some trouble makers that went past the lines, but I don't even know this boy's identity!" he defended himself.

The Inspector watched him closely." His name was Feliciano Vargas."

The whole family was quiet. The Inspector almost gleamed at Francis, looking as if the German man enjoyed all the attention going towards him. Everyone became nervous. They watched Francis stare at the Inspector. Francis moved his hair out of the way. He smiled, a big smirk coming across his face.

conflate - to blend out (conflated - blended out)