The tea smelled good, and it tasted good too. Damian was more than happy to have a treat like that while meeting the current leader of Lemoria.
Ingram was still clueless as to why an enchanter in ascension like Damian and his granddaughter were there, to begin with.
"Emma," Ingram said, staring at her thoughtfully, "What happened?"
The idea of something or someone hurting his granddaughter was too much for him. Damian could feel the pressure inside the room rise and the worries on Ingram's face.
"Relax, there's nothing to do with me, but we might be able to help the city as a whole," Emma said, moving her head to her servant, "Tell him about what you saw."
The servant was still scared. It was hard to put the words together when facing such high authority. Emma could see that, so she grabbed her hand for more comfort.
"I-I was returning to Lady Emma's mansion when I saw it! A man killing a group of people near the road, doing some evil stuff."
After hearing that, Ingram got up from his chair, anxious to learn the rest.
"I gave Lady Emma the facial features of said man, but I never saw him before in my life."
Ingram's gaze fell on Emma as he asked, "Darling, do you know the man she saw?"
Emma smiled, proud of herself, "Yes, I do. It's a man called Claridge. He is the murderer who has been terrorizing our city lately."
"Claridge? That bastard?" Ingram cursed.
"You know him?"
"Of course I do. He's linked to many criminal activities, yet I never got any proof to arrest him."
Damian was only hearing everything by the side, not uttering a word. He was the killer, so acting suspiciously about the situation could bring him trouble.
In no time, Ingram formed a task force with the most skilled people he knew, including himself! They got a permit to invade Claridge's residence, stating that a witness had seen him do illegal things.
It was not the first time Ingram did something like that to try to arrest Claridge, but there were never clues inside his mansion, so it led to nothing.
This time, though, things would be different. A group of people walked through the streets of Lemoria, and every citizen stared at them with curiosity.
"Isn't that Damian, a famous enchanter?" one citizen said.
"I think it is, but that's not the most important part! That older man is Ingram, our ruler!"
"What? This is the first time I am seeing him!"
The word about it spread quickly, but Ingram and his task force got into Claridge's house even quicker. They destroyed the front door, going inside the mansion without warning.
Claridge was there, and his body was shaking, "What is the meaning of this? You can't just enter my place!"
Emma's servant was among the many warriors Ingram brought with him, and her body could not move after seeing Claridge.
Ingram touched her shoulder and softly asked, "Is this the man you saw?"
She nodded. That was the only confirmation they needed. Everyone went on the search, trying to find any clues that would link Claridge to a murderer.
Claridge looked even more anxious once they arrived in his room.
"Ingram," one of the task force members said, "There's a hidden panel here."
Ingram was the first to enter, and what he saw was disgusting! There was a body there, presumably from one of his servants, with strange drawings around the corpse that fit the ones they found in the other murders.
"This corpse has no blood… It's truly Claridge!"
That was enough proof, but Ingram also found a book with dark magic written inside, blood magic, to be precise.
"Get him!" he yelled.
With that many people around and considering how powerful Ingram was, Claridge decided not to fight. It would not end well for him if he tried.
They scouted him back to the city's prison, and the word about the event spread fast! Everyone in the town knew the killer who was scaring the shit out of them was arrested!
Damian was happy that his plan worked, and saving his ass was not the only benefit. The people knew Damian somehow had a part in the arrest — they saw him there with Ingram — so his reputation grew even more, and more and more people wanted to buy weapons he enchanted.
"You're turning yourself into a legend, huh?" Frederic said while drinking a mug of ale.
They often meet to talk about businesses and also because the ale in Lemoria was excellent.
"Me? What about you with your fine potions. Everyone buys from you."
"Haha, I guess we are both doing well," Frederic said, and then his tone became more serious, "Damian, you know we are not safe here."
The city's mood had improved after they arrested the responsible for the recent murders. However, Damian and Frederic knew that a demon was still trying to destroy everything, and no one could get to Miller.
"I know, I know. But do you know how to get Miller?" Damian asked.
Frederic's face was not great. It was as if he was holding something that he eventually spat out.
"We both know you know some necromancy stuff. Can't you find a way to integrate into Miller's ranks?"
He disliked the idea of having Damian linked to that sort of thing, but anything for the greater good had to be considered in a time like that.
Damian himself had also thought about that, as it seemed to be the only option left for him.
"That's not a bad plan, but how can I approach him without making it obvious? Also, it is not like he's walking around lately. I don't even know where to find him or contact him."
Damian found Miller only inside the coliseum where the illegal fights happened. He was the person organizing it. But the coliseum was closed momentarily, and after Claridge's arrest, Damian was almost sure those rich people linked to illegal stuff would vanish for a while.
"I'll try to get some information. Also, it seems there's some new information about your friends!" Frederic said.
"W-What???"
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