Chapter 107

Alvin stood around for a short while, looking at wherever traces were available in the vicinity. But since this was a busy street, there were too many traces, and a large portion of them was destroyed in the explosion.

After a while, the police arrived on the scene.

"Everyone stay back. Do not contaminate the crime scene. And come here and give statements one by one" yelled the person in the lead.

Everyone stood back as the few people who were right next to this building were interviewed, along with the owner of the burnt shop, an old woman called Abigale.

"As the flowers would wilt in a few days in this hot summer, there are only limited stocks in my shop. Hence the loss I suffered in terms of lost goods was only around 30 or so pounds. But the damage to my building is still estimated to cost 50 to 100 pounds" said Abigale to the officer.

"Officer, my shop, which was a little further up this same street was also destroyed in a similar manner yesterday. I kept asking the police to investigate, but they said they have no relevant clues. And look, this crazy person or group has orchestrated another explosion in the same street. And my loss is over 1000 pounds. You must investigate and catch the culprits and compensate us" yelled Marvin excitedly from the side.

The other people who had shops and businesses in the surroundings also echoed Marvin's demand, asking for increased patrol and a detailed investigation into the two incidents.

Alvin figured that official Beyonders would be called to intervene soon. An isolated incident might not be something that would concern them, but two incidents in the same street would definitely attract their suspicions. And plus, Alvin now knew that there was a Beyonder involved in this incident. And judging by the scene now, which had no traces of Beyonders now just like the previous site, the previous incident was also probably because of a Beyonder who knew how to hide his tracks.

Alvin then watched the entire interaction of the people with the police and talked with Marvin on their next course of action.

He then turned to Xio and said, "It's highly likely that official Beyonders are going to investigate. So you can bow out of you want. But if you can, keep continuing to seek clues in the East Borough. You can keep the 20 pounds, and the reward mentioned earlier still applies.

Xio nodded, and left. Since she wasn't one of the first ones on the scene, the police did not stop her.

"Someone told me something like this took place outside your bar a few weeks ago," said one of the officers to Alvin, when it was his turn to give a statement.

"That case was solved. It was a few highlanders who picked a fight with a people carrying some gunpowder. The police took them all into custody back then, and I was compensated. You should access the records if you want more details" replied Alvin.

Wondering if anyone else saw the green flame that he saw when he first arrived other than him and Xio, he then continued in a little higher voice, "Officer, when I first got here, I think I saw what appeared to be green wisps of flames near the explosion site. I am unsure if it was my imagination, but I thought I should tell you"

While saying this, he subtly looked around, trying to see if anyone else reacted to his story of the green flame. No one seemed to react, except for a young girl whose eyes widened when he mentioned a green flame. She then seemed to hesitate, but seeing no one around her come forward, she withdrew and stayed silent.

The officer in front of him nodded dismissively as recorded the statement.

The lead officer then said, "Ladies and gentlemen, these are obviously the work of some horrible people with nefarious intentions. Rest assured, our branch will treat this matter as a priority and work to solve this as soon as possible"

Alvin then made some small talk with the people around, and then hurriedly left.

An hour later, Alvin was once again outside the Nighthawks office where he was in the morning. He could use the Door to a Familiar Place to teleport himself across Backlund easily, but he took the metro and then a carriage as he wasn't in a hurry. Plus, he wanted to hide the fact that he owned such an important mystical item.

Alvin went straight to Gordon's office and knocked on the door.

After getting permission, he walked in.

"I just started looking today. It may be a while before I find a suitable one for you" said Gordon.

"No, it's not about that captain. An explosion happened yesterday evening and just an hour ago in bear the Half Inch Bar. I thought it wasn't a Beyonder incident yesterday, but today, I am sure it was" said Alvin.

"Fill me in on the details" said Gordon.

Alvin narrated the entire sequence of events, right up to the green flame he saw in the sue of the explosion an hour ago.

"It may be a flame powered by spirit energy. Those who aren't Beyonders probably couldn't see it. Hmm, the area is under the jurisdiction of the Machinery Hiveminds. Do you know the faith of the two victims?" asked Gordon.

"Yes. They both are believers of the God of Steam and Machinery" replied Alvin.

"Alright. You should wait outside for a while. I will contact them via telegram. Maybe you will be required to describe the green flame to someone they send" replied Gordon.

Alvin walked outside, and sat down in the reception area. He noticed a copy of Stormwind Villa, and out of curiosity he started reading it.

Alvin was halfway through the book, when Gordon came to Alvin.

"What's the result?" asked Alvin.

"Well, the Machinery Hivemind are taking this matter very seriously. The uncle of Marvin and the son of Abigale who was targeted are members of the Machinery Hivemind. The identities of Machinery Hivemind, much like the Nighthawks are supposed to be a secret, but for some reason those two were specifically targeted. Hence, this case is a high priority. We both are visiting the Saint Heirländ Cathedral now" said Gordon.