Free Web NovelChapter 22: The Artefact Dealer
Viva looked at Percy with a fire burning in her eyes, and Percy hummed calmly. Viva was a very dedicated officer, but she was also very strongheaded, and now that she knew there was someone out there causing the death of so many people and making others go to jail for it, she was obviously not going to stop till she found the truth! Percy hadn’t planned to get involved any more than he already had, but Percy couldn’t turn Viva away when she was asking for his help so desperately.
Percy let out a calm sigh before he turned and began walking towards the shelves while speaking.
"Come along. I think we have what you’re looking for."
Viva quickly gathered her documents and followed behind Percy! The two of them moved past a few students who greeted them respectfully, and Percy waved at them calmly before he led Viva up the stairs towards the third floor of the library. Up here, there were sections filled with maps and atlases, and Percy went to grab one of the recent maps before taking Viva through a door and into a study room. The room had multiple circular tables arranged randomly, and there were students sitting at a few tables and reading silently. Some of the students looked up in surprise when Percy entered, but Percy waved at them to tell them not to worry before he went to an empty table and spread the map out.
"This is the most recent map of Hendrix we have. It’s four years old, but it should cover what you want. Did you say it was at the Western Verati Canyon?"
Viva nodded while looking down at the map, and Percy pointed to the right spot on the map and traced his hand along the edge of the canyon.
"This part of the canyon is blocked by the glass rock that formed from Verati’s attack, so you won’t be able to enter through there. If you want to go inside, then you need to follow this path here. It’s the shallowest part of the canyon, and Verati used it to climb out of the canyon after his fight."
Viva looked up at Percy in surprise when she heard all this, and she looked at the map again while wondering how Percy knew that information. The map didn’t show any of that, so the only way he could’ve known this was if he did a lot of personal research into Verati! Was Percy some sort of Verati fanboy or something? Viva shook her head and decided not to concern herself with that, and she pointed to another part of the canyon.
"I heard someone say that there was something here before the canyon was created. Some sort of old building. Do you know if that’s true?"
Percy scrunched up his face in thought, and he tried to remember if there had been any building during that fight before he said.
"I don’t think there was anything important over there. It might’ve just been some abandoned houses."
"Then what about the cave that formed on the side of the canyon. Was that also from the battle?"
Percy blinked in surprise when he heard that, and he asked Viva what the hell she was talking about. There shouldn’t be any cave in the canyon. Viva frowned and said:
"A colleague living in Hendrix said there was a cave somewhere on the eastern wall of the canyon. It’s always been there."
Percy shook his head.
"No, there’s no cave. I remember perfectly well; Verati’s attack cut straight through this area here and carved a V-shaped canyon about two miles long. After that, there was an aftershock that created the glass sand on the northern side. That was where the fight ended. If there is a cave in the canyon now, then it was created sometime after the battle ended."
Viva’s eyes widened, and she looked up at Percy to ask if he was sure, but Percy had a look of absolute certainty on his face, and Viva realized that he completely believed in what he was talking about! And the more Viva thought about it, the more it made sense. Verati was hailed as the strongest mage the world has ever seen! If Verati unleashed an attack of this level, then it would definitely be enough to end the fight!
But if there was a cave there, then that would mean that someone or something had dug into the canyon recently.
’Were they looking for the artefact?’
Viva frowned as this thought crossed her mind! The only reason she could think of for someone to dig into a canyon was if they were searching for something precious!
"You know I heard an excavation group passed through Hendrix a few years ago. I think it was led by a man named Jacques."
Percy suddenly spoke up curiously, and Viva immediately leaned forward!
"Wait! Where did you hear that name!?"
Viva was stunned to hear that name from Percy, and Percy raised a brow at her sudden exclamation! Percy told Viva to calm down since there were students reading, and Viva realised that Percy didn’t even know who he was talking about! Viva spoke up quickly:
"Jacques is the head of the largest chain of auction houses in the kingdom. He trades artefacts and precious stones, and there’s a branch in every city! He’s currently in Aquinas for an auction taking place next week. You heard he was in Hendrix?"
Percy hummed.
"Yeah, that was back when I was travelling around about two years ago. I was in Hendrix for a few weeks, and I heard Jacques hired an adventurer group to help him look for something. I don’t know where they went to, but if that hole was made around that time, then it’s possible that they excavated the canyon."
This is huge! Viva ran her hand into her hair, and she could feel her head growing hotter as she tried to understand what was going on here! Jacques was a human, and Viva didn’t think he was the sort of person to kill so many people! Jacques was one of the most famous men in the kingdom, and he had enough wealth to last him for generations! Why would a man like that commit a crime like this!? freewebnovёl.ƈom
"I need to take this to the chief. Thanks a lot for the help, Percival. I’ll let you know how the investigation goes later!"
Viva grabbed the map and her folder from the table, and she quickly ran out of the room while waving at Percy. Percy watched Viva go with a curious look on his face, and Rita glided into the room a few seconds later.
"Hey, baby. I just saw that grumpy kitty leaving. Did you help her with something?"
Rita walked to the side and put a box of books away, and Percy nodded as he explained what he and Viva had been doing. Rita listened attentively to everything before she put a hand on her cheek and spoke curiously.
"The Western Canyon? Isn’t that the canyon you created during your fight with Beelzebub?"
Percy nodded calmly at that question. Beelzebub was one of the most annoying demihumans Verati fought during the war ten years ago. He was a dragon-human hybrid who possessed an extremely high affinity for the Black Fire magic element, and Beelzebub had taken the city of Hendrix under his control during the demihuman war. Verati had to intervene, and they had a massive battle on the outskirts of Hendrix. But just like all of Verati’s other enemies, Verati managed to kill Beelzebub without much effort!
