Seryu stopped before an iron door, making Near and Liver stop behind her as well. "We keep the bodies of the deceased untill they get sent to their funeral or..." her face became grim. "You get the idea."
Behind her, Near nodded. Although she couldn't see it. He got a pretty clear idea by what she meant.
He didn't know why, but he was actually curious as to what they did with the bodies.
Of course there were people who couldn't pay a funeral. They could bury it themselves, if that that was legal. However, some could be left.
The white-haired boy didn't see much poverty. But he guessed that he didn't see that because he wasn't at the true poor side of the Empire. Such a powerful kingdom was bound to have its own fair share of poverty.
And there are the people who have no one else. Such a thought was scary. Having no one else to carry the memories of your existence. It's sad, but it did happen. But enough with the dark thoughts, he couldn't mess this mission up. Or he would probably be the one forgotten.
There was something that still bugged him. His reaction when he sees the body. He had good control over his emotions, he knew that. But that was something he couldn't predict. Like he said, only way to find out is to see for himself. That's the way to get his true answer.
Near took a deep breath to brace himself, just in case, before he heard the click of the door. Seryu didn't enter, he guessed he was on his own for this.
The white-haired boy slowly entered the room. It was surprisingly empty, besides something on the ground with a white sheet messily draped on it.
The smell immediately hit him. The scent of dried blood. He wondered...how many deceased were in this room? Maybe it would be better not to think about that...
Didn't anyone clean this place? He could understand why someone wouldn't come even near the room when death was basically reeking off it. But still...they could just hire someone who would do it in those circumstances. That wouldn't be cheap though. Maybe they're just greedy or simply don't care about it. Harsh, but it could be possible.
He reached out for it. Obviously, it was the body based off of the bloody spots on the once pure white sheet.
His hand moved the sheet to reveal the victim's head.
Her skin was pale, but not too pale. It complimented her black hair. Her eyes were closed with blood seeping through the eyelids. This picture was strange. He wanted to check it, but stopped himself. He didn't want to do things like that, for now.
As he moved the sheet further, something became clear, the victim didn't wear any clothes. She was completely naked.
A sudden rush of adrenaline hit him as his brain processed what was before him. He already knew why the woman was naked, seeing the body to clarify his thought wasn't needed.
Near had enough of the sudden adrenaline rush. So he quickly pulled the sheet off of the body.
He now had a clear view of the victim. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to take it all in at once. Maybe he should have been more patient with pulling the sheet.
And now he had no doubt, she was raped. Long lines of dry, red liquid came from her womanhood.
One of the strange things was the large purple mark on her neck. There was also one on her inner thigh and breast.
He deduced that that was a hickey. Some referred to it as a 'love bite.' But in this case, love was totally not the right word. Some even used it as a way to mark what is theirs. Or specifically, their significant other.
He learned this from some books about biology and some novels that had quite some erotic paragraphs. Because of them, he learned some information that might prove itself useful in this case. And yes, those books were about sex. Or if you want in to describe in another way, the sexual organs.
No one really cared to stop him from reading such things. And for the record, he didn't read those for the sake of pleasuring himself. He was and still is young, he figured the hormones didn't start kicking in yet.
He was actually curious about it. Although that resulted in him knowing more about the sexual organs than some grown men and women. Near didn't care how embarrassing or sexual what he read was. It only made him more knowledgeable in a situation like this.
Anyway, he just needed to satisfy his curiosity at that time. That goal was quite innocent in itself. So if someone ever asks how he knew, he wouldn't make a big deal about it.
But there was one strange thing with the hickeys. Normally they would just be red marks, lingering on one's body. However, these were purple. Giving these love bites was pleasuring, but it turning purple must mean this person bit really hard.
This person was probably someone that has never done anything like this before, someone inexperienced, maybe someone young. They probably tried experimenting around, but didn't get satisfied with the outcome. That would probably explain why her womanhood looked far worse than anything else. That indicates this person knew the basics of sex.
But the strangest thing had yet to come. On the left side of her chest was a bullet hole. He hesitated, but forced himself to look.
Through the grotesque sight of her flesh, muscle and blood, something shiny caught his eye.
A bullet.
The bullet itself wasn't the strange thing. The report he recieved earlier didn't say anything about a bullet. Ogre also said they examined the body thoroughly. They're supposed to have experience, no way they would've missed this.
This was really weird. A possible conclusion about Ogre came to mind, but he needed more evidence than this. That man already caught his suspicions.
But why would someone even use a gun? Its noise was far too loud and would alert somebody. However, they could possibly be at a place where nobody could hear them. Then they wouldn't have to worry about that.
A forest, perhaps? That was a possibilty. Nobody would notice, especially not at night. But still, doing something like this in the middle of a forest, wouldn't be too comfy.
Maybe it was some bandit? They would be lurking around forests, traveling to find some poor village to raid. That idea was quickly debunked though as a bandit wouldn't even have the luxury of a gun.
And that lead to another thought coming to mind, a mansion. He had read some stories about rich men and women. They had everything with their money. And yet, they didn't have a partner in life.
Of course the guards they hired had to keep quiet about it. Otherwise, they would be fired. And everyone had to do what they could to feed themselves and their families.
As he repeated all of that in his mind, the second outcome made the most sense, to him atleast. While not all people were insane and would go to such lengths, some must be present.
Take for example, a country. Every country has its good people and bad people. You could say where there is good, there is bad.
Something still bothered him. Why would this person use a gun to finish her off? If they lacked the strength, it was most likely they had aged quite some bit.
Near shook his head, he was making so many conclusions with such little evidence. First, he had to gather every detail. Then it would be time to research everything he gathered.
This person needed to fill their sexual desires, that was obvious. The biggest outcome was that this person was male, since women lacked a certain body part that men had. But he still kept it in his mind to look out for females. You never know what the truth might be like. For all he knew, somebody could be framed.
And this was it, he was done here. He had gathered everything he could from this place. There was no way he could determine the culprit by only looking at the body, he already expected that.
And Esdeath nor Liver should expect that from him. Not that he thought they had such a simple mindset. He was young and had very little to no experience with this kind of stuff. The white-haired boy only read novels and books about detectives and their various cases. And that was about it.
"How was it?" Liver asked. Near was too occupied in his mind to notice the concern written all over Liver's face.
"I can't determine the culprit with only this. But I've got some information that could end up being useful."
"No, I didn't mean that." He hesitated, "it's about the body you just saw. How are you feeling?"
Near blinked out of surprise. He didn't think about that. Honestly, when he first heard of this case and the supposed rape victim, he felt fear. Even though it was only present when they talked about it.
He didn't even think of what was before him, but what he had to do. He was so caught up in finding clues that the actual horror before him didn't even cross his mind. He couldn't decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing. But at the moment, it definitely worked in his favor.
"I guess I'm fine," he muttered simply.
Liver nodded, "I see. I will take your word for it. What do you want to do now."
Near put his his hand under his chin in thought. "Hmm. Seryu I want to ask this suspect some questions. After that I want you to gather all the recent reports that involve rape."
Seryu saluted as if she was taking orders from a superior officer. "Understood! I will bring you to him and then I will look into it! I will help bring this scum to justice!"
"But hold on," she blinked in confusion. "Why would you need the recent reports?"
"That will all become clear, but not now." He answered. Telling his reasons wouldn't really sit well with Ogre's subordinate.
He wasn't gonna lie. He wanted to keep everything from everyone, so his grand reveal would be more impressive. In some circumstances that decision would be really stupid. He wouldn't be too foolish about it. The white-haired boy just wanted to show everyone what he was capable of. Maybe then they wouldn't look so down on him like Ogre did.
But Seryu's question wasn't that important, anyway. He was suspicious of Ogre at the moment ans the brown-haired girl was his subordinate. Near got the impression she was a bit too naive for his liking. He would eventually run out of time, and convincing her wasn't his top priority right now.
"Liver," Near spoke. "This might take a while and I don't need you for this. Could you wait around here for me?"
He nodded to the boy without any questions. He trusted him and his judgement. The older man primarily came to protect him from anything harmful. But since this suspect was behind bars, he wouldn't have to worry about his safety. And arguing with him would probably be pointless.
As Seryu led Near to his destination, Liver decided to wait in the main hall. He made himself comfortable in a chair. The poor old man was in for a boring ride. He had to wait for hours, if only he knew that...
Back with Near and Seryu
When they reached the cell door where the suspect was imprisoned in, Near noticed how dimly lit it actually was. The torches on the walls didn't provide that much light. This place looked more like a dungeon than a prison.
"I'll go now. I know he's behind bars but you should still be careful," she ran off with a small wave.
The white-haired boy watched as Seryu's body disappeared in the darkness. After that he neared the cell door. The man inside was looking at the ground, Near could make out the black hair identical to the victim. When he looked up, his eyes immediately caught his attention. Bright blue eyes were staring back at him with sadness, as if nothing interested him anymore. He wondered if the victim had the same fascinating feature.
"Who are you?" He asked. He sounded genuinely depressed, but how could he be blamed? He just lost his sister and was accused of doing it.
Somehow he felt it in his gut. The sadness in his tone and eyes, it was real. He was innocent. For some reason he got the impression he was looking straight at his past self.
He shook his head. Even if his gut feeling was right, he still had to gather evidence.
"I'm here to prove your innocence. For that, I need your full cooperation. I will ask you some questions and I want you to tell me every little detail."
Break
Liver couldn't believe it. How long had he been waiting? It felt like days! Maybe he felt that way because he was so bored!
An officer was kind enough to give him a cup of tea. 1 cup of tea quickly escaleted to 5. His stomach growled, luckily no one paid him any attention. It would be embarassing if they heard this.
Much to his relief, he caught sight of Near coming his way. "We're leaving," he said out of nowhere.
"What about the case?"
"I'm still not sure. I have someone in mind, but it just doesn't feel right."
For some reason, Near didn't even sound disappointed. Liver knew the younger boy practically never showed any emotion, but he still expected some sign of displeasure. The former General decided to comfort him, even though he showed nothing close to sadness or anything at all.
"Don't let yourself down because of one failure. This is your first time and I'm sure Lady Esdeath wouldn't mind giving you another chance," he reassured him.
"Do I have to solve it in one day?"
Liver thought that actually through. Esdeath didn't mention anything like that. "I don't think you have to."
"Good, atleast I don't have to worry about that." He muttered under his breath.
The rest of their walk was in silence. Liver assumed he was pondering over the case and didn't want to bug his younger companion by asking questions. He was just worried for him. Was this whole investigating thing even a good idea? For the first time in his life he doubted Esdeath's choice. The horrors he had seen today weren't meant for a child...
As they were walking through the palace halls, Nyau suddenly came running up to them.
"So, how did it go?" He sounded excited. You'd think he would never pay any mind to the things that involved Near. But maybe he was just curious.
"Not yet," Near's answer was vague. It left Nyau confused and annoyed.
"What do you mean not yet?!" He yelled as Liver left the 2 boys to make dinner. He wasn't too worried they would get into a fight. There were many guards around the palace and he knew Near wouldn't get into a fight he would lose. But honestly, he was starving.
"I'm just not done yet. Why do you care about it, anyway?" Near responded.
Before Nyau could say anything, someone behind them grabbed his white-haired companion and put him in a choke hold.
"Hey Near! How did you do! I bet you already caught the sucker!" Daidara said as he playfully ruffled his hair.
"Oh about that," he started emotionlessly. "Would you mind letting go of me first?"
The bulky man did as he was told and released his much smaller companion.
"I'm not done with it. But I think I only need until tomorrow morning."
"Tomorrow morning?" Nyau muttered. "That must mean you have al the information you need. Can't you figure it out now?" His question went unnoticed because of Daidara showering Near with complements about how he was smart enough to catch any criminal. Atleast he thought that. Near heard him loud and clear, but didn't answer on purpose.
"Hey, are you two even listening to me?!"
Daidara blinked, "oh hey Nyau. Didn't know you were here too?"
His comment somehow made Nyau even more pissed. "Well, hello to you!"
"I almosy forgot!" He grabbed both Near and Nyau. "Liver's cooking, again! We have to get out of here before it's too late!"
"Oh my god! RUN FASTER!" Nyau yelled.
"Is Liver's cooking that bad?" The white-haired boy asked and they simultanously nodded. "I think I can help him with that."
"REALLY!" Again, at the same time. It was almost scary how they spoke in unison when the topic was Liver's cooking.
Daidara quickly put them down, "of course my little buddy knows what to do!"
"Hopefully," he mumbled as he started walking. Luckily they hadn't heard him. If they did, the dou probably would have done it in their pants.
"Hey Near, do you even know where the kitchen is?" Daidara asked.
"No," he answered truthfully as he looked over his shoulder at the bulky man. "Please lead the way."
"Honestly Near, you don't know how much I appreciate the extra hands." Liver said as they were finishing the last steps of the meal they were preparing. Near suggested making soup as it was something not too complicated. He convinced Liver atleast that that was the reason they were making something so simple.
"Consider it returning my favour. I'm really grateful to you for buying that toy robot. I'll go get Nyau and Daidara, they will be the first ones to taste it."
Liver would probably suggest letting Esdeath taste it first, but he didn't think that would be the best idea. As a result, he quickly ran off to find the two.
As he passed the dining hall, he noticed both of them sitting there with ecstasy. They really expected that Liver's cooking would taste much better when he helped him out. They trusted Near so much, huh? He could get used to this.
"Liver's waiting in the kitchen. We finished-" he couldn't even end his sentence before they sped past him.
When he reached the kitchen once again, Daidara was laying on the ground.
"Daidara!" Nyau screamed out. He grabbed a spoon to taste, but immediately spit it out afterwards.
He pointed accusingly at the white-haired boy.
"The hell, Near?!"
He scratchend the back of his neck, "I never said I could cook."
"I swear one day I'm going to kill you! Look at what you've done! Daidara swallowed it! He can't be saved anymore! And why in the hell would soup even taste sweet?!"
"Hmm," he placed a hand under his chin. "About that, I think I mistook sugar for salt at some point."
"YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!"
"No, I'm dead serious."
"WHICH IDIOT WOULD TRUST YOU WITH SOLVING A CASE!"
"Apparently General Esdeath. But I don't see you saying that to her, though."
"..."
Near got him, once again.
"I'm sorry Liver," Near apologized. "But I promise you, one day I will help you to make the best dish ever. I'll put more reasearch into cooking until then."
Liver shook his head, "it's fine. I enjoyed making it and I'll look forward to that day."
Liver smiled kindly at him, "but that pink apron really suits you. You should keep it on."
Near looked down at himself. It was surprising Nyau hadn't made fun of this. It was just pink with the words 'kiss the cook' in black bold letters. "Gee, that explains why I didn't get the white one."
He received a small chuckle from Liver for his comment. He still took the apron off, much to the former General's disappointment.
"Do any of you know where Lady Esdeath is?" Liver asked. "I have to report the things that happened today."
"Oh yeah," Daidara weakly raised his hand. "Lady Esdeath had some business to take care of. She said to report to her when she returned."
"I see," he mumbled. "Then let's get some dinner. It's a bit late, but some restaurants should still be open." As he finished, his stomach growled loudly.
"Wow and I thought I had a big appetite," Daidara commented from under him.
He got a kick in return, which made him silent. Luckily for him it wasn't too hard.
"I think I'll go to bed," Near said. "It was a long day."
"But if I recall correctly, you too, didn't eat anything." Liver stated.
"I'm kind of used to it," the white-haired boy simply left with a wave. Not even allowing anybody to say something about his comment.
Something didn't feel right with Nyau, so he decided to follow after him.
"Hey, your room is the other way. Where are you going?"
Near glanced over his shoulder at him, "why would you care?" He wasn't even going to bother to come up with lies. He didn't even care if Nyau found out about his true destination. Making him silent about the topic was enough.
"What do you mean why would I care?! Do I have to care to get an answer?!"
Near thought about it, "I suppose you don't have to."
"..."
"..."
"Come on! Tell me already!"
Near sighed, "fine. It can't be helped."
He turned around, fully facing the blonde. "I'm going somewhere for the case."
"And? Why aren't you taking Liver with you?"
"It's not some place we could enter freely. And I'm acting on a hunch."
"Just take Liver with you!"
"No," his hair covered his eyes and his tone became more serious. "I don't want to cause Liver or Esdeath any trouble. I don't want to be a nuisance, anymore. I want to show that I can stand on my own two feet. People already look down on me because of my age. I don't want to disappoint the people who gave me a chance. That's all I have to say." With that he turned around and started walking away.
Nyau was at a lot of words. Near was a nuisance? He of all people? If you think about it, that was most likely the reason why he wanted to go on his own. But who was he a nuisance to?
But the other thing that he said bothered him. People looked down on him. From what he had seen, the other members of the Three Beasts treated him as an equal. Esdeath had no problems with him, either. He didn't know if he had met someone like that on his mission. But could he be one of those people?
Nyau swallowed back the lump in his throat. He actually felt guilty and the blonde didn't believe he was going to do this.
"Hey, Liver. I'll pass too! I'm not really hungry right now!"
A/N: Sorry that this chapter took so freaking long! I was going through writer's block, but now I'm back on track. Near's first case was the main reason for the lack of updates as I had some difficulty to actually think of one. But now I know what to do. I also got some PMs and reviews regarding my lack of updates and that's completely fine. You can always ask if you have questions.