Chapter 109: Buried

  With a new goal burning in their minds and the weight of the gold-filled sack heavy in Raito’s hands, the group made their way back to the palace. The sun had fully set, casting long, encroaching shadows across the stone floors as they approached the throne room.

  Inside, the atmosphere was grim. The vast hall felt emptier than usual, the high ceilings amplifying the hushed tones of the two figures standing near the central table. Tanvir was pacing, his heavy boots clicking rhythmically, while Zhu Lihua stood like a statue, her arms crossed, staring at a map of the city.

  "Mother," Yukari called out, the tap of her crutch announcing their arrival. She hobbled forward, her face set with determination.

  Zhu turned, her expression softening slightly. "Linlin. What do you need?" Her eyes flicked to the burlap sack Raito was dragging. "And what is that?"

  "Actually, it's not just you," Yukari said, stopping to catch her breath. She looked past her stepmother. "We also need help from Sir Tanvir."

  "Me?" Tanvir stopped pacing, his thick eyebrows raising in surprise. He looked at the ragtag group of amateur detectives. "What could you possibly need from me that you haven't already ignored today?"

  "Sir Tanvir," Malik stepped forward, clutching his handbook to his chest. "How did your own investigation go? The remaining four scholars?"

  Tanvir let out a snort of frustration, running a hand over his bald head. "Dead end," he growled. "Complete waste of time."

  He ticked off the points on his thick fingers. "The remaining four scholars have solid alibis for after the night of the fire. Not only that, they have zero connection to Volnear. I grilled them. They have no idea what an 'elemental battery' even looks like. They thought I was talking about cooking supplies."

  He sighed, his shoulders slumping. "It sucks. We have nothing on them."

  "But that's not the worst part," Tanvir continued, his voice dropping. "What's worse is that they are all terrified. They were begging us to let them leave Kah-Kamun. Packing their bags while we were talking."

  "Scared?" Samira asked, tilting her head. "Scared of what? The fire?"

  "No," Tanvir said grimly. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. "This."

  He smoothed it out on the table. The words were written in bold, jagged strokes.

  Now that Adou is dead, you are next.

  The group's eyes widened. The threat was blunt, brutal, and terrifyingly direct.

  "Who sent this?" Malik whispered, leaning in to read the text.

  "No idea," Tanvir admitted. "But this exact note was sent to all four remaining scholars at the same time, slipped under their doors while I was questioning the first one."

  He slammed his fist into his palm. "I already told the palace guards to tighten security. A three-man escort at all times for each of them. No one goes in or out without authorization."

  "But that's weird," Yukari said, frowning as she studied the note. "How could the note say 'you're next' when there are four possible targets? Why send this now, when security is at its highest alert? It's like... taunting the guards."

  "Beats me," Tanvir grumbled. "We were just hoping we could arrest the culprit as they are about to enact their plan. Catch them red-handed. Whatever that plan is."

  "No," Raito said suddenly. His voice was calm, cutting through the anxiety in the room.

  He wasn't looking at Tanvir or Zhu. He was staring intently at the threatening note on the table, his eyes narrowed.

  "There won't be any more victims," he stated.

  "What makes you say that?" Zhu asked, turning to him.

  "Yeah," Malik added, confused. "The content clearly says someone will be next. It's a promise."

  "It's not the content," Raito murmured, reaching out to trace the jagged lines of ink with a gloved finger. "It's the writing."

  He looked up, meeting the gaze of the group. "Does any of you find the handwriting on this note... familiar?"

  They all squinted, leaning closer to the table, trying to place the erratic, angry scrawl in their memories.

  "Now that you mention it," Yukari commented, her brow furrowing as she leaned on her crutch. "The slant of the letters... it does look familiar."

  "AHH!!"

  Samira yelped, startling everyone. She turned and sprinted toward the back of the room, dragging the heavy chalkboard Raito had used that morning. It scraped loudly against the stone floor.

  "Here! Here!" she shouted, pointing frantically at a piece of paper pinned near the bottom.

  The group moved closer. Samira was pointing to another note—the fake suicide note they had found in Mr. Tseh's apartment. The one that claimed Tseh killed himself out of guilt for starting the fire.

  "Good job, Ai-Ling!" Raito praised, his eyes lighting up.

  "Yes!" Samira beamed. "This handwriting... it matches the one we found in Mr. Tseh's room!"

  Raito moved closer, pulling the threatening note from the table and holding it up next to the suicide note on the board. He inspected them side-by-side, his eyes darting back and forth.

  "Just as I thought," he declared. "Not just the handwriting. The paper texture. The ink. It all matches."

  He turned to the group, his expression grim. "This threatening note was sent by the same person who killed Mr. Tseh. The Brain behind all of this."

  "Right," Tanvir said, scratching his beard. "That explains the note. But why do you think we won't have any more victims? How are you so sure of this?"

  He leaned down, bringing his face close to Raito's stomach level due to their height difference, his glare intense. "Explain yourself, boy."

  "The security is at its highest right now, correct?" Raito asked, unflinching.

  "Yes," Tanvir grunted. "Go on."

  "Most of the guards are assigned as the scholars' escorts," Raito continued, ticking points off on his fingers. "While the rest are patrolling the streets and around the scholars' abodes. The city is locked down."

  "Yes," Tanvir said, slightly irritated. "We covered this."

  "What about the royal family?" Raito asked sharply.

  Tanvir’s eyes widened. He clenched his fist so hard his knuckles cracked. "Don't tell me... they are trying to use this moment to assassinate the royal family? Using the lapse in security around the palace because we moved the guards to the scholars? How evil!"

  "Wrong," Raito said bluntly.

  "YOU!" Tanvir shouted, his face turning red.

  "They are trying to run away," Raito stated, his voice calm and certain. "It's a diversion within a diversion."

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  He began to pace again. "They already failed once to kill the Queen and Samira in the museum. But the damage has been done. One of Kah-Kamun's—no, Zarateph's—biggest historical archives is gone. The guards are mentally exhausted from having to keep watch 24/7. The scholars are paralyzed with fear, unable to work."

  He stopped, looking at the board. "The one person who knew about the traitor—Mr. Adou—has been silenced."

  He turned back to Tanvir. "The culprit is in a much better position right now compared to us. They don't need to continue and risk exposing themselves with another murder. All they need to do is just run away."

  Raito looked toward the doors of the palace. "And come back later with their real personnel. An army, perhaps. Or just vanish into the sands."

  Tanvir stared at him, the realization dawning on his face. The anger drained away, replaced by a cold dread.

  "Then what do you suggest, boy?" Tanvir asked, pointing a thick finger at Raito. "We still don't even know who the culprit is! And if what you said is correct, they would probably already be on a boat or something by now!"

  "No, they won't," Raito said, shaking his head slowly. "They are still here. Waiting."

  "Waiting for what, exactly?" Zhu asked, her eyes sharp.

  "To eliminate their alibi," Raito said, his voice dropping to a chilling whisper. "Their dead weight."

  "Stop speaking in riddles, boy!" Tanvir demanded, slamming his hand on the table again. "First you said there won't be any more victims, now you said they will eliminate someone! Which one is correct?!"

  "Sorry, I guess I misspoke," Raito admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. "There will be one more victim. The one that got dragged into this mess because the culprit tried to use her as an alibi. A camouflage."

  "Umm... Sir Raito?" Malik raised a trembling hand. "Are you still dead set on making Dr. Kadiem the culprit?"

  He adjusted his glasses, looking distressed. "Not only is he still in the infirmary, bandages all over his body because of the fire... but also he found love with Dr. Nezhat! He won't kill her! I am sure!" Malik shook his head fervently, unable to accept Raito's suspicion. "Love changes people!"

  "Yeah," Samira chimed in, stepping closer to Malik to support him. "He seems like a really nice guy. Can we let him go? Why do you keep thinking he is the culprit anyway?"

  "I am not thinking," Raito said, his eyes hardening. He placed a hand on the burlap sack at his feet. "I am sure he is the culprit. Especially after the letters we found."

  "What letters?" Tanvir asked, his brow furrowing. "Catch me up on what you brats found."

  Raito sighed. "Fine."

  He quickly caught Tanvir up on the group's discovery—the hollow wall in Mr. Tseh's apartment, the sack of gold, and the heartbreaking stack of letters from a son named Kaden.

  "WHAT?!" Tanvir roared, his face turning purple. "How could the guards miss this?! A giant sack of Cal? And these letters?!" He paced furiously. "And this little girl called Miri... why is there no archive of this?!"

  "Those are the remaining questions," Raito said calmly, waiting for Tanvir's outburst to subside. "If we can arrest the culprit, then we should have all our answers."

  He looked directly at Malik. "I just need to prove his real identity. I know he is Kaden."

  "But... but what if he isn't?" Malik stammered, trying to find a logical flaw. "Kaden is a half-Sacred, according to Ms. Nefer. Dr. Kadiem is Human! Sure, both might be experts on medicine, but that could just be a coincidence!"

  "Then why did he lie?" Raito countered, his voice sharp as a whip.

  "Lie?" Malik blinked.

  "About helping create a cure in Volnear," Raito said. "There was no plague there twenty years ago. We checked the records. He lied about his past to build credibility. Why would an innocent man do that?"

  "That's..." Malik opened his mouth, then closed it, speechless.

  "Don't let a small act of 'love' cloud your judgment on people, Malik," Raito said softly, dropping the titles and calling the scholar by his real name for the first time. The gravity in his voice was heavy, a stark departure from the detective persona. "We need to face the facts in front of us."

  Raito turned his gaze to the others, his eyes dark with the weight of the truth. "Kadiem lied. So we need to face him about that lie."

  He clenched his fists. "And sure, if he is indeed not Kaden... then I will admit I am wrong. I am not perfect, after all. But I need a chance to prove my deduction," Raito said, looking up at Tanvir and Zhu. "Just one. That's all I need."

  "What do you need, kid?" Zhu asked, crossing her arms, her curiosity piqued.

  "Remember the hair oil, Yukari?" Raito asked, turning to his wife.

  "Yeah," Yukari nodded, puzzled. "What of it?"

  "I believe Kaden—or Kadiem—is dyeing his hair," Raito explained, tapping his own messy black locks. "Kaden is a half-Sacred, known for his vibrant green hair. If he wants to pass as a human scholar, he has to hide that and all his other sacred identification, probably using the bandage."

  He looked at Tanvir. "And he is using that same hair oil—the one we found residue of on the window latch—to keep the dye intact and prevent it from fading in the desert heat."

  Raito’s expression hardened. "I need a chance to remove that dye from his head. To reveal the truth underneath."

  Tanvir stared at Raito for a long moment, then a slow, dangerous smirk spread across his face beneath his beard. He cracked his knuckles.

  "Then it's time for me to do my job," Tanvir rumbled.

  "What do you have in mind, Uncle Tanvir?" Samira asked, sensing the shift in the air.

  Tanvir gestured toward the door with a massive hand. "Just come," he said, his voice grim. "And let the adults do their job."

  Soon, they arrived back at the infirmary. The lights were low, the halls quiet. Tanvir wasted no time, grabbing a few patrolling guards from the corridor.

  "You lot. With me," Tanvir commanded. He turned to the group. "This time, please don't interrupt me."

  Raito, Yukari, and the others looked confused but nodded, stepping back to let the museum director take the lead.

  Tanvir marched up to Dr. Kadiem's room. He banged his fist on the wood.

  THUD. THUD.

  "Kadiem! Are you inside?!" Tanvir shouted, his voice shattering the hospital silence.

  "Yes?" A weak, muffled voice responded from behind the door. "How may I help you? And why this late at night?"

  Tanvir nodded at the guards. Without hesitation, they threw the door open and stormed into the room.

  "Wha... what is going on?!" Kadiem gasped, clutching his chest. He was sitting up in bed, looking frail. "What is with this commotion? Nezhat is sleeping in the other bed! Please!"

  He gestured frantically to the other side of the room, where Dr. Nezhat was indeed sleeping soundly, curled up under a blanket despite the noise.

  "Perfect," Tanvir growled.

  He pointed a thick finger at the sleeping Fox Sacred. "We are here to arrest Dr. Nezhat! We found evidence indicating that she is the main culprit of the museum fire!"

  "What?!" Kadiem’s eyes widened in horror. "No! Please! This has to be a mistake!"

  "Unfortunately, this is the truth," Tanvir said coldly. He gestured for the guards. "Take her away!"

  Two guards moved toward the sleeping woman.

  "And please, Dr. Kadiem," Tanvir continued, turning back to the man. "We need to do some inspection on you. We want to make sure she did not poison you."

  "Poison me?!" Kadiem shrieked, his voice cracking. "Are you insane?! Nezhat is a sweet woman! She would not do something like that!"

  "STOP!"

  Raito burst into the room, his cape swirling. "What are you doing?!" he shouted, playing his part. "We don't know if Dr. Nezhat is the culprit! This is against the code of justice!"

  "????" Samira and Malik, watching from the hallway, looked utterly confused.

  "Kid," Tanvir sneered, turning to Raito. "We found the notes and firestarter in her room! She is the culprit! Admit it!"

  Then, with a shared nod that happened almost too fast to see, Tanvir and Raito spoke in unison.

  "UNLESS..."

  Raito whipped a small glass vial from his jacket pocket.

  "Unless the culprit is YOU, Dr. Kadiem!" Raito shouted. "NO! KADEN! SON OF MR. TSEH!"

  He uncorked the vial and splashed the contents directly onto Kadiem's head.

  The liquid—a special, potent chemical dissolver Tanvir had swiped from the infirmary supplies—hissed as it hit Kadiem's hair. Raito and Tanvir, despite their usual disagreement has rehearsed this act without the knowledge of the others.

  "ARGH!" Kadiem cried out, clawing at his scalp.

  But it was too late. The black dye began to run, dripping down his face in inky rivulets. Beneath the fading black, vibrant, undeniable roots began to show.

  Green.

  Shocking, bright green hair was revealed under the dissolving dye. The truth, buried beneath layers of deception, was finally laid bare.

  Kadiem stopped struggling. He slowly lowered his hands, wiping the dye from his eyes. His posture changed. The frailty vanished. His shoulders squared, and he looked up with eyes that were suddenly hard and cold.

  "Since when?" he asked. His voice was deeper now, devoid of the scholarly tremor. He no longer needed his charade. "Since when did you suspect me?"

  "Honestly? Not long ago," Raito admitted, gripping Koenka’s hilt beneath his cape. "I even crossed you out as a possible suspect at first. Until I found out you lied about helping create a cure in Volnear."

  "So you found out," Kaden chuckled, a dry, humorless sound. "Yes. The 'twenty years ago' was just an arbitrary time I spurted out. My mistake. But I did not lie about making a cure in Volnear, kid. I did help someone create a cure. Just not then."

  "Why?!" Malik burst into the room, tears streaming down his face. "Why did you do it?! The fire! Endangering Samira! Even lying to Dr. Nezhat! Why did you do all of this?!"

  Kaden looked at the young scholar, his expression unreadable.

  "That..." Kaden said softly. "You will have to find out from my corpse."

  He threw his head back and screamed.

  "CLYDE!"

  CRASH!

  The window exploded inward in a shower of glass. A metal canister skittered across the floor, hissing violently.

  POOF.

  Thick, grey smoke filled the room in an instant, blinding everyone.

  "Guh!" Raito coughed, waving his hand.

  A blur of shadow moved through the smoke—massive, heavy, and fast. It grabbed Kaden from the bed.

  Then, a separate shout.

  "MALIK!"

  It was Samira. Her shriek was cut short, the sound getting tinier and more distant as if she were being carried away at incredible speed.

  "SAMIRA!" Malik shouted, stumbling blindly in the smoke, panic seizing his chest.

  "Princess!" Yukari called out from the doorway.

  "ENOUGH!"

  Zhu Lihua slammed her foot onto the floor.

  BOOM.

  A wave of intense, searing hot air burst from her, pushing the smoke away in a violent gust. The room cleared instantly.

  They rushed to the shattered window.

  On the horizon, silhouetted against the moon, a massive, robed figure was leaping across the rooftops with impossible agility. In one arm, he held Kaden. In the other, struggling and kicking, was Princess Samira.

  "I HATE IT WHEN THEY RUN!" Raito shouted, slamming his fist on the windowsill.

  "Not the time, kid!" Tanvir protested, already climbing onto the ledge.

  "MOVE!" Zhu shouted.

  Without hesitation, the War Empress launched herself through the window, diving into the night to give chase.