Chapter 623: Public Prosecution
Leaving aside the uninteresting gang negotiations for now, as per the pre-arranged time, Wayne routinely arrived at the small square in the Dock Area before sunset to meet up with everyone.
As soon as Wayne met Merlin, he reported his findings from today's investigation: “There’s still nothing unusual found in the Ireland community, but O’Sullivan of the Ireland Violent Group is very likely problematic.
Although it’s still unclear what he’s trying to hide, he definitely knows some inside information about that Waterfront accident.”
What Wayne didn't say aloud was that despite the guy appearing very polite, during their actual interaction, he seemed to subtly exude an almost uncontrollable contempt.
There was a kind of superiority that seemed to come from having a cheat code, which couldn't stand up to scrutiny.
Upon hearing this, Merlin thought for a moment, then shook his head slightly, “We examined the spell formation that the Silent Sect follower detonated in the small wooden house.
From the signs, that formation was set up earlier than the Waterfront accident.
It’s unlikely that the cultist only arrived in Richmond on the night of the accident, unless he and his accomplices came in batches, with someone preparing in advance.”
Wayne chose to respect the other party's judgment and instead asked, “Do you have any new findings on your end?”
“We’ve roughly screened all the members of the Sailor Gang; there shouldn't be any Extraordinary Persons among them, and they seem unaware of the spell formation in the small wooden house—it was filled with some winery equipment, so it’s logical that they would abandon the place.
“The bodies that went missing in the Waterfront accident still haven't been found, but I’m going to temporarily ignore this lead.
Unlike voodoo and some undead cults, the Silent Sect isn't interested in bodies; they focus more on pollution, curses, and sacrificing life.
“Miss Inessa’s previously set traps caught some rats, and she is currently comparing them with the problematic rats from before to see if they are the same.”
As Merlin spoke, he handed over a map, “The most suspicious locations are all marked on it.
Unfortunately, the spell formation was destroyed, so we can’t yet determine the specific ritual they were planning.”
The map was unfolded, with many black circles on it, and several locations, in addition to the black circles, were also highlighted with red circles.
Wayne looked down for a moment, “Merlin, how long do you think the spell formation that was detonated last night would have taken to prepare?”
“If working non-stop, at least a full day.
Considering that their numbers shouldn’t be large, and the replenishment of Extraordinary power and the bringing in of spell supplies would take time, plus the need to avoid drawing attention, I believe the actual time required would be longer, possibly over a week.”
Wayne then raised his head again: “Then I still think there’s something wrong in the Ireland community.”
“What’s your reasoning?” Merlin heard Wayne’s persistence and leaned closer, scanning the map again.
“Although we also caught rats there, those rats were clearly not unusual, and not even worth a detailed comparison.”
“Circumferential hypothesis.”
Before Wayne could speak, Lina’s energetic voice came from behind them, “Wayne has his own set of crime-solving theories.
He believes criminals can be divided into ‘resident’ and ‘transient’ types.
If all crime scenes are enclosed within a large circle on a map, then resident criminals are highly likely to live within that circle, while transient criminals are more likely to live outside it.”
Lina finished speaking and, with experience, added, “I actually think Wayne’s hypothesis makes a lot of sense.
By the way, he also has a ‘throw far, bury near’ deduction, and the reasoning is consistent with this hypothesis.”
Merlin’s comprehension in this area was strong; he thought for a moment, then his gaze fell on Wayne’s face, “So you think they set up the spell formation far from their residence?
For outsiders, wouldn’t that be a bit too risky?”
“It’s just a hypothesis, after all.” Wayne shrugged, “As it stands, within the circle, I tend to suspect the Sailor Gang area is their ‘hunting ground,’ and outside the circle, the most suspicious place is the Ireland territory, perhaps their ‘residence.’
But this is just speculation; there’s no decisive evidence right now.”
Lina, who superficially looked like a lone wolf intelligence chief recently, listened and nodded repeatedly, seemingly very supportive of Wayne’s view,
But when she spoke, her meaning was almost the opposite:
“On this matter, I choose to cast my vote for Merlin.
Whatever their reasons for distinguishing between ‘hunting grounds’ and ‘residences,’ the more dangerous and important place is definitely the ‘hunting ground.’
The Dock Area is so large, and our manpower is limited, so we definitely need to focus on areas potentially affected by the ritual.”
Wayne felt she had a point, and after a brief thought, he nodded in agreement.
As per custom, everyone would wait for all to gather before making a collective report, then decide on tonight’s and tomorrow’s investigation tasks.
Those who returned earlier could rest a bit.
Since there was no longer any dispute on this matter, Merlin, after hearing the situation, temporarily left to continue giving ideological education to the gang members whose probation period had ended before releasing them.
The number of gang members newly arrested today for obstructing the investigation was clearly fewer than yesterday; the “execution spots” in the square looked more than half empty.
As soon as Merlin walked away, Lina leaned in closer, “I remember you found an Ireland community translator guide these past two days?
Where does he live?”
I knew it, Lina, you’re definitely up to something…
After Wayne told her the address of the guide named Serene, Lina immediately wanted to slip away: “These past few days, ‘Soften’ and his people won’t be secretly helping to investigate the plague anymore.
You guys be careful; you can directly ask those gang members for rumors.”
Wayne immediately grabbed her by the back of her collar, “No.
I’m only suspecting the Ireland side has a problem right now; are you just going to abandon the team?”
“The rear battlefield is also a battlefield, isn’t it?
If there’s suspicion, it needs to be resolved.”
Lina slapped Wayne’s hand away, “The Silent Sect advocates ‘sacrificing others’; self-detonation is an option only considered when there’s no other way out.
They definitely wouldn’t want to sacrifice themselves here; they should transfer quickly after the matter is over.
Good stuff will probably still be hidden in a safe house.
“Instead of letting the Church take it and destroy it, it’s better for me to contribute it to the Sage—don’t worry, I’ll leave the Extraordinary materials and valuable things for you all.
Things related to ‘Coatle’ are useless to you anyway, so those are mine.”
Wayne thought for a moment, “Inessa seems like she could be used to offset the Exorcist Association’s restrictions?”
“Not the same.
She leverages Coatle’s status and the Extraordinary power of the death domain; the Sage wants Coatle’s projected will or residual consciousness or something.
These two are conceptually not the same thing.”
Lina stopped halfway through slipping away and turned back, “Oh, by the way, Willie sent a message today.
Someone is putting pressure on the prosecutor to bring your lawsuit to court as soon as possible.
If things look bad, then I suggest you consider whether or not to run back to Kankakee State.”
Those people really aren’t going to stop, are they?
Wayne’s eyes shifted slightly, “How are the people in the Dock Area viewing last night’s explosion now?”
“How else would they view it? They’re saying you red armbands are abusing the City Hall’s authorization and disregarding the law.
The Cathedral has sealed off the news, so outsiders generally don’t know that hidden organizations and Extraordinary factors were involved.”
“Have someone send a message to Willie, to see if he can get the prosecutor to prioritize bringing a public prosecution against me on charges of abuse of power or using illegal weapons?
It would be best to also release some rumors and see if we can get people from the Sailor Gang to testify in court.”
“Oh… you want the witnesses from the Sailor Gang to all look like liars.
Spreading rumors might not be useful, but I can have ‘Soften’ and his people secretly offer a reward or bribe one or two; that should be more effective.
Anyway, most ordinary gang members don’t have much hope for promotion, so they might as well find an opportunity to make some money and run away as soon as possible.”
“Good idea.
Lina, you really are an excellent bad woman.”
“Mr. Wayne is too humble; I learned all this from you.”
