October 17, 1885

"BREAKING NEWS: 30th Body Discovered

The victim was discovered by a mailman this past Monday. The man, like other previous victims, died of heart attack. What is strange, however, is that the most of the victims were in great health. Those who did have some kind of disability did not suffer any life threatening medical conditions. Examiners, however, have not found any traces of drugs that might cause heart attack.

What is stranger is that nearly half of them have been reported missing for few days and have been found in abandoned buildings. According to those who are close to the victims, they did not have reason to isolate themselves that long. The other half of the victims were hunters and farmers that lived in the forests or outskirts of villages. Strangely, many of the families had multiple children, yet their bodies were nowhere to be found. Scotland Yard speculates children have been kidnapped for unknown reason and probably won't be found alive.

Villagers who lived nearby the victims claimed that there was a strange group of folks, asking if there was anyone who preferred to live in a remote area. Witnesses asserted that these strange people wore black cloaks and slit-eyed masks; some were reported to have tattoos of a skull with a snake coming out of its mouth. Villagers also noted that these people talked in a weird dialect, using words they have not heard of. The cult has been seen by residents not only once, but in several occasions few days before the bodies were found.…"

"Well, that's interesting," said Vincent as he read the Queen's letter and newspaper article. "I'll start investigating as soon as possible."

"Please do. Her Majesty is worried sick," replied Grey, "that there's a possible serial killer on the loose. She suspects that it's the work of a new drug."

"Tell Her Majesty that I will not fail her as the faithful Watchdog of the Underworld and get rid of all her worries at all cost."

Next morning, Vincent was in no rush to get dressed to meet with his informants. After all, he was confident that this case was nothing out of ordinary, that it was just the work of undetectable drug developed by a cult. Just as he finished dressing, Ciel burst into the room with eagerness.

"Dad!" he yelled, flailing his arms around. "I heard you're going out. Take me with you! I haven't been outside in a while!"

"Sorry, Ciel, but I have some business to take care of. I heard your asthma acted up again, and you've been sick lately. I promise, I'll take you to the fair for your birthday. You, me, and your mother."

Tanaka came into the room and said, "Master, the carriage is ready."

"Alright. I'll buy you some lemon-honey cough drops for you and your mother on the way home too. I'll play with you as soon as I get back, ok?"

Ciel pouted and complained a little, but he seemed to be satisfied. Ciel waved from the door as Vincent got on the carriage.

About half an hour later, he finally reached Undertaker's funeral parlor. Since Undertaker took care of most of the underworld deaths, he was by far the most invaluable informant. When Vincent entered the eerie place, Undertaker was nowhere to be found as usual. Just as he started looking through Undertaker's collection of coffins, he heard a familiar laugh.

"Well, well, well. Look who we have here. Doing another one of those Queen's dirty work? Or are you interested in sleeping in one of my custom-made coffins? There's one that might fit you. I can give you a discount if you'd like." Undertaker asked as he slowly rose from his coffin, his makeshift bed. He made his way to his counter while taking his time. Then he started giggling to himself and made wild gestures with his hands as if something amused him.

Vincent pointedly ignored the comments and kept examining the coffins. He took his time and moved on to variety of other decorations that were displayed in the shop. When he was done, he walked toward the counter and said, "I'll pass, but thank you for the offer anyway. Maybe next time. I need some leads to my case like you guessed."

"Oh? What might that be?"

"There were incidents where unusual amounts of people died of heart attacks, and these bizarre people with cloaks and tattoos –"

"Yes, yes. THAT case. The one that's even terrifying those of the Underworld. I hope I get a good laugh for this."

"As usual," replied Vincent. "Go on."

"You might have already guessed that this group and deaths are related, and there might be some mysterious drug involved, correct? You're right about the relation between the cult and reported deaths, but it's not a work of some drug. I heard there has been a number of gangs that challenged this group, and all except for one ended up dead. Of course, the media won't report something like this since it'll cause even more panic. Normally, drugs leave traces such as internal bleeding. These folks had no signs of drugs whatsoever other than what they habitually take. This lone survivor… I'm not sure why he was left to live, but he doesn't have that much time left anyway. He's not sane." Undertaker paused as he emphasized the words by sweeping his hands.

Vincent leaned in as he waited for more.

"Hehehe. I asked him few questions, but it was too much for him. He kept muttering something about green light, weird sticks, and torture. All else was gibberish. Then he went nuts and thought I was one of those guys. I really wonder what they did to him."

Vincent put his hand on his chin and started pacing, lost in thought. Undertaker studied Vincent as he chuckled to himself. Vincent finally stopped pacing and turned to face Undertaker. "Any leads that might help us track them down?"

"There's a rumor that there were writings on the walls of the buildings where victims were found. There are few variations, but majority of them include 'We, the Death Eaters, shall conquer Britain once and for all.' Befitting name for such a group, even if the rumors are just lies."

"Death Eaters, huh?"

Undertaker strode toward Vincent and tapped his shoulder with his long fingers and whispered, "You know what's interesting, Earl? They seem to be after influential figures as well, not just commoners. You can't be too careful." Giggling to himself, Undertaker glided back to his counter.

Vincent squinted his eyes at Undertaker as he studied the informant. After a minute, he sat down on a nearby coffin to process the information, tapping his knees. "Thanks for the warning. Is that all?" he probed.

"Yes. Now, for the payment…"