One Sneeze Destroys A Magical Civilization

Chapter 70 Investigation from the Temple

As the flames triggered by the magic continued to spread to the surroundings, the whole house was soon enveloped by the soaring flames.

Alarmed by the fire, some nearby residents woke up from their sleep and tried to put out the fire with buckets.

But unfortunately, it was too late.

They could only do their best to dig fire ditches to prevent the flames from igniting other houses around them.

Looking at the panicked crowd on the street not far away, Zuo Si, who was standing in the darkness, immediately asked without looking back: "Have all the valuable commodities and goods from Curry in the underground warehouse been shipped out?"

"Don't worry! It was shipped out before the fire spread. Most of them are relatively valuable spices, silk and sugar. According to my estimation, the value is between 48,000 and 60,000 gold coins. If it is shipped to Amn Or Baldur's Gate further north can earn at least four times the profit. Further north, Waterdeep City and Neverwinter City may even reach eight times the profit."

As expected of a shrewd businessman, Bernard could tell the value of the goods stored in Curry in Muk's warehouse at a glance.

The most important thing is that these short-sought goods come for nothing, and you don't need to spend money to purchase them, and you need to worry about price fluctuations caused by large-scale purchases.

At the same time, witnessing a secret pirate stronghold entrenched with a large number of armed personnel was easily removed by Zuo Si, which greatly increased his confidence in reaching Askatla safely.

"That's right! I'll leave these goods to you to handle." Zuo Si gave the businessman a look of approval.

Little did he know, he was crazily complaining in his heart at the moment, so a large pile of goods was only worth 50,000 to 60,000 gold coins in the end?

It's not as valuable as those "trade strips" and magic items that are packed into the dimension bag.

No wonder some people say that the world in the eyes of spellcasters and the world in the eyes of ordinary people are completely different.

In the eyes of most people, the "huge" wealth that is enough to live comfortably for a lifetime may be just a few light and weightless high-level spell scrolls for spellcasters, especially high-level spellcasters. A magic item, materials for making a golem or construct, or the consumption of several experiments.

Bernard hurriedly saluted with one hand on his chest: "Thank you for your trust. I will make a list of these goods later for easy reference at any time."

"You two, I must remind you that in about ten minutes, the city guards should arrive.

If they found a large number of charred and desecrated corpses in the house, they would definitely commission the temple to investigate.

When the time comes, once those nosy paladins come, they will inevitably conduct interrogation and search around. "

A thief wearing leather armor and covered in a gray cloak couldn't help but interjected.

As the person Epke had drawn from the guild to help keep an eye on him, the last thing he wanted to meet was a paladin.

Because these hard-headed guys are naturally hostile to crime and all people and organizations related to crime.

"Let's go. I've been busy for most of the night, and it's time to go back and rest."

After all, Zuo Si glanced at Yelinia who was hiding in her shadow, and those guys who were transformed into shadow creatures by her, and disappeared at the end of the intricate streets of Calimport in a short while.

...

About two hours later, when the fire was completely extinguished, two paladins wearing the holy emblem of Irmat, the god of suffering, finally appeared near the ruins.

They first learned about the situation with the soldiers.

Then one of the older men, about forty years old, immediately inspected the severity of the burning of the main body of the building, and then squatted down to look at the remains that had been burned beyond recognition.

After several minutes, he said with a solemn expression: "There are traces of negative energy! Although it has become very pale after being burned by the fire, this corpse has definitely been desecrated."

"Desecration? You mean... undead creatures, necromancers, and demons from the lower planes are involved?"

Another young woman who looked to be in her early twenties widened her eyes in surprise.

An experienced elder paladin leading an inexperienced young paladin is a common practice in many temples of the Good God and paladin groups.

Because young paladins perform tasks alone, it is easy to make some irreparable mistakes due to their impulsive personality.

Or they were calculated by the evil camp, and eventually fell into degeneration due to various reasons and temptations.

But if it is accompanied by an experienced senior, the situation will be much better.

Through precept and deed, young paladins will quickly grow into strong shields that protect the innocent and the weak.

"I don't know! But I think this matter deserves further investigation.

First of all, what we have to do is to find out the background and origin of this chamber of commerce.

Second, we need to pay attention to the market.

Especially in the black market that specializes in buying goods of unknown origin, is there anyone selling stolen goods in large quantities. "

The elder paladin quickly made his own judgment.

Because he had already learned from the guards that the house had been almost stripped of all valuables.

Especially the warehouse in the basement was cleaner than a mouse had licked it.

This also means that the attacker is very likely to seek money.

"Understood! I'll go around and find out about this chamber of commerce."

The young female paladin seemed eager to express herself, and without saying a word, she began knocking on doors from door to door, and took the trouble to ask those merchants, buddies, servants, and slaves for clues.

It has to be said that, as a representative of lawful good, she has shown considerable restraint.

Even if he saw the existence of slaves that completely violated the teachings, he did not immediately draw his sword to cut people, or ask the slave owner to release the slaves.

Just the opposite!

She only maintained a minimum of sympathy and compassion.

After all, this is Calimport, the place where the slave trade flourished the most.

Moreover, besides kindness, paladins also have the attribute of law.

Law-abiding means that the existing order cannot be easily disrupted, and local laws and regulations must be abided by.

A paladin cannot do anything illegal unless the law is hopelessly bad.

This naturally includes forcing slave owners to surrender their "property" - slaves.

After an hour and a half of investigation, the young lady paladin quickly ran back to the elder paladin and said excitedly, "Agor! I found some unusual clues."

"Oh? What is it?"

The elder paladin known as Agor raised his head.

"It's the number of armed men.

According to figures obtained from several neighbors, there were more than sixty armed men stationed at the house.

There are even spellcasters for hire.

Maintaining this quantity and quality of armed personnel all year round obviously requires a lot of money.

This is the exact opposite of the practice of most businessmen looking for profit and saving costs as much as possible. "

Miss Paladin spoke out the suspicious things she found in one breath.

Agor immediately showed a gratified smile when he heard it, and praised softly: "Very beautiful investigation and inference.

He really deserves to be the chief apprentice who can complete the basic training with the first place.

Looks like we're going to have to talk to the merchants that this chamber does business with next and see if they know anything. "

"Now?"

Miss Paladin raised her head and glanced at the starry night sky.

"No, of course not now, at least after dawn.

Remember, Arline, be patient no matter what comes your way.

Don't let your impulses rule your mind, or the consequences could be dire. "Agor warned solemnly.

In this way, the two paladins who were invited to investigate the arson case got some clues, and soon returned to the temple to report.

(end of this chapter)