Chapter 21: The Ratman Murder Incident (Please keep reading!)

"Knock, knock, knock!"

In the early morning, just as the sky began to pale, a knocking sound came from outside the bedroom door.

Kana woke up in a daze. "Who is it?"

"Your Highness, it is I."

Alis's voice drifted in from outside the door.

So early?

Feeling a bit puzzled, he cleared his head and asked, "Is something the matter?"

"Your Highness, Black Knight has business with you."

Black? Did something happen?

Under normal circumstances, Black would only wait in the courtyard or the living room; their duty was to guard his safety.

"Wait a moment."

After a quick wash and getting dressed, Kana walked downstairs.

Seeing Kana descend, Black hurried toward him.

"Your Highness, has something happened?"

"Hmm?"

Kana didn't quite react. What could have happened that required him?

He truly couldn't think of anything. Perhaps only if something happened to Alis would he be needed, but Alis was standing right beside him.

Black quickly added, "A resident of the town has died, and her child has gone missing."

Kana became even more confused.

"A drunkard saw something last night—he said it looked like a small, dark creature, like a giant rat."

No wonder. He had just learned about the Razor-eared Ratmen from the Murlocs yesterday.

"Take me to see."

Following Black, they soon arrived at the edge of the town.

If the entrance to the town was at the gates, then this was the tail end—the area bordering the hills and the forest.

A crowd had gathered.

"I really saw it! Such a huge rat, it just zipped right past me!"

"You must have been seeing things from too much drink."

"I saw that dark shadow yesterday too; maybe it was a rat."

"Then you were drinking yesterday as well."

"I wasn't drinking!"

"Bullshit!"

"Maybe it was a thief. A few days ago, my eggs and vegetables were stolen."

"That's right, two pieces of meat were stolen from my house too."

"And my ring!"

"Wasn't your ring taken by your husband to be sold?"

"What?!"

"Uh... I was joking."

"He's dead meat!"

An angry, stout woman burst from the crowd.

Watching the woman, the accompanying knight, Kecha, said cheerfully, "Looks like someone is in for a bad time."

"Make way! Move aside! The Prince is here!"

Hearing this, the surrounding residents quickly cleared a path.

Kana walked through and entered the house directly.

As soon as he stepped inside, the scent of blood hit him; this body was extremely sensitive to the smell of blood.

He took a light sniff.

Kana suddenly asked, "Alis, smell this blood. What do you detect?"

"It's a woman, she died not long ago. There's also a hint of... a strange scent of blood mixed in."

"Very good. It seems you are about to activate your blood magic."

*Sniff, sniff!*

Hearing the sound of heavy sniffing nearby, both men turned their heads simultaneously.

They saw Black frowning and inhaling deeply at the air.

"What are you doing?" Kana asked, puzzled.

"Why can't I smell it?" Black frowned. "How do you do that? A new technique of the Royal Knights? Or some hidden trick you guys use?"

Alis rolled his eyes, while Kana felt somewhat helpless.

Ignoring him, the two continued straight inside.

Upon entering the inner room, which appeared to be the bedroom, a corpse lay slumped on the floor.

Joniel and several guards were standing there, along with a middle-aged man dressed as an herbalist.

Seeing Kana, the group immediately bowed.

"Your Highness."

Kana nodded and asked directly, "Tell me the specifics of the situation."

The old knight, Joniel, spoke in a low, solemn voice, "Morris, a poor mother. She was murdered by an unknown assailant. Her husband is still away fighting with the Count. They also had a poor child, a lovely little girl, who has also vanished."

It was clear that such an incident had made Joniel, the town mayor, extremely angry.

Kana looked at the corpse, crouched down slightly, and began a simple examination.

Seeing the crowd attempting to stop him, Kana raised a hand to halt them. "I won't faint just because I see blood."

After examining the body, standing up, and scanning the room, he easily deduced what had happened.

The entire scene had not been concealed at all; any normal person could have figured it out.

The only reason these people were stumped was because the killer appeared to be an animal.

"A Razor-eared Ratman. He originally intended to break in and steal things, but he saw the child. Greed made him want to steal the child as well, but unfortunately, he alerted the mother. A standing giant rat—anyone would be terrified, and this mother was no exception. So, her neck was bitten through, but while protecting her child, she managed to strike the rat hard with a fork. The rat was so startled that it grabbed the child and ran, even crashing through the window to escape."

The matter was not complex; it was that simple.

Joniel frowned and couldn't help but ask, "Your Highness, forgive my intrusion, but what is a Razor-eared Ratman?"

"An evil race, roughly half a human's height, looking like upright rats. We learned from the Murlocs yesterday that they have been here for some time, likely on the other side of the river. These Ratmen love to nest around civilized settlements; they do everything from raiding and theft to murder."

As he spoke, Kana gestured toward his thigh. "Children below this height are the preferred prey of these rats. They are insidious and cunning, preying on the weak, and children are the perfect target."

He then pointed to the window. "While they are insidious and evil, their courage is as small as a rat's. If one sets aside fear, any adult could easily take them down. A mere fork was enough to scare him out through that window."

He crouched down and removed the fork from the mother's hand.

"There is still rat blood on this. See these black, stiff hairs? That is their fur. Only Razor-eared Ratmen have black hair."

He turned to Alis and said, "That strange scent of blood you smelled is the foul blood of the Razor-eared Ratmen. Remember it."

Alis nodded solemnly.

"Then what should we do now, Your Highness?" Joniel asked.

"Our Murloc friends have already pointed out their lair. To a group of Ratmen, a child is a feast; they will need time to prepare. Therefore, we must go and kill those damn rats now—if you don't want your children to remain in constant danger."

Joniel frowned, then nodded decisively. "We follow your lead. Black, go call the guards over and have the fishermen prepare the boats."

Kana added, "And call a few hunters as well. I assume this town has some?"

"Of course, I'll go at once."

Black nodded and walked out.

Kana covered the mother's eyes. "Protect the remains of this heroic mother. When her child returns, let her see her mother's peaceful face."

"Those rats must pay the price. Let us use their blood to offer a sacrifice to this brave mother."

Kana's words invigorated those present.

Even Joniel couldn't help but fix his gaze on Kana, observing him intently.

"Yes, Your Highness!"