Who Is the Murderer

Luo Wei turned around and saw that the one explaining things to Evelyn was an acquaintance—Meizi, the elder vampire they had encountered during their nighttime exploration of the ancient castle.

"This kind of divine magic cannot be cast by ordinary monks or priests, as it involves what is called 'invoking the divine' and 'divine punishment.' Only high-ranking members of the Church can perform it. Moreover, our clan should be quite familiar with the divine art known as 'Judgment.'"

After Meizi finished speaking, many of the elder vampires wore grim expressions.

"The previous head of the family... died by this very divine art," the Duchess suddenly said.

The younger members of the clan looked surprised. Luo Wei hadn’t expected that General Abraham, who had followed the Emperor in campaigns across the land, would meet his end in such a way.

Meizi glanced at the younger members of the clan. "During the final large-scale battle in the war between the Empire and the Church, the Duke secretly infiltrated the depths of the Holy Mountain, seeking to uncover the secrets hidden by the Holy Light Church. But he provoked a fierce retaliation from the Church and perished under the divine art 'Judgment.'"

"If that's the case..." The Duchess’s voice dripped with resentment. "The Church killed Victor?"

Meizi nodded. "Someone saw that after Victor left the gathering, he received the Church delegation in the reception hall."

This statement also answered Evelyn’s earlier question. She immediately looked at Luo Wei, and both of them wore expressions of confusion.

Previously, the two had speculated that the Church’s secret envoy had traveled north in hopes of persuading the Duke to join their coalition against the Empire—essentially plotting a rebellion.

According to Tilis, they had already made contact before, or perhaps this time, their risky visit wasn’t to persuade but to finalize some kind of agreement—such as forging a secret pact or exchanging intelligence...

But now, the clues suggested something else entirely: the Church had killed the Duke, and their delegation was the most likely suspect...

"Unforgivable!" the Duchess spat in fury.

"We’ve already sealed off the banquet hall," one of the elder vampires said. "And before this, no one was allowed to leave Thornflower Castle. No one can escape."

"We’ll begin investigating the guests present," several elder vampires said before vanishing from the room.

Meizi gave the Duchess a glance, then looked at the younger vampires. "Guard the Duke’s body. Protect the family’s sacred relic. I’ll inspect the rest of the castle."

Laney and Lairs quickly agreed.

As soon as Meizi left, the gazes of the younger vampires all turned toward one spot—the ornate box containing the family’s sacred relic.

Evelyn smirked mockingly and continued whispering to Luo Wei.

The room fell silent for a moment before one of the remaining three elder vampires stepped forward—an old man who walked straight to where the Duke’s body lay.

Luo Wei noticed the old man silently examining the Duke’s corpse before sighing and exchanging hushed words with the other two elders.

"Don’t waste your effort. It’s useless. He won’t come back to life."

The old man said nothing more, only standing in silence as he stared at the Duke’s body.

...

The noise downstairs grew increasingly chaotic as Luo Wei and the other two returned to the banquet hall on the first floor.

The human guests were furious at the Vampire Clan’s demand to detain them, followed by searches and magical interrogations.

Tensions were escalating—many of the human guests had formidable guards, and Luo Wei sensed several powerful mages among them.

To avoid getting caught in the chaos, the three retreated to a corner.

Luo Wei gazed out through the enormous floor-to-ceiling windows, where faint magical glimmers danced. Despite it being July, snow was falling in the northern lands—lightly, but the sight of delicate snowflakes drifting over the towering mountains sent a bone-deep chill through him.

"Truly a 'locked-room mystery'..." Luo Wei muttered. "In the most literal sense..."

"What does 'locked-room mystery' mean?" Evelyn asked curiously.

"I know this one!" Helena raised her hand excitedly, eager to explain.

"Brother told me before—a locked-room mystery is a common trope in classic detective stories. It’s when a group of people are trapped in a confined space, like a mountain villa cut off by a snowstorm, unable to contact the outside world. Then, strange deaths start happening one after another, followed by fear and suspicion..."

"What’s 'classic detective'?" Evelyn interrupted.

"Uh..." Helena scratched her head awkwardly. "I don’t actually know that part..."

Luo Wei watched as a mage hovering mid-air lost his temper and muttered, "This isn’t a classic detective story. This is straight-up supernatural detective work..."

Then, with a teasing smile, he asked, "Well, my dear assistants, any thoughts on the Duke’s death?"

Helena shook her head.

Evelyn scanned the room, narrowing her eyes. "Whoever benefits the most has the greatest motive—and is the most likely killer."

Luo Wei nodded. "Right now, the Church is the prime suspect, given that the Duke was killed by high-level divine magic."

Evelyn frowned slightly. "But before this, they were secretly negotiating. Could it be that Father refused to join their side at the last moment, angering them into acting?"

"A crime of opportunity?" Luo Wei doubted it. "The Church delegation wouldn’t be able to escape, and it would expose the secret ties between Norsgul and the Abraham family."

"Besides that..." Evelyn glanced at the Duchess, who was being helped down, her face etched with sorrow.

"Her—or Laney and Lairs, representing the younger vampires—both have stakes in the succession."

Luo Wei nodded silently. After all, today was supposed to be the day the family heir was announced.

Evelyn then fixed her gaze on the vampires from the City of Cain, who had been largely overlooked. "They wanted the Abraham family to support the City of Cain and had long been dissatisfied with Father."

Finally, she swept her eyes over the human guests, lingering on the Emperor’s attendant. "Father had land and real power. Some might have thought he lived too long."

Helena rubbed her temples, overwhelmed. "So everyone had a reason to hate the Duke? Then who’s the real killer?"

Luo Wei surveyed the banquet hall once more, considering each of the suspects Evelyn had listed.

The Church, the Duchess, the heirs, the City of Cain vampires, the Emperor...

Then, softly, he said, "Actually, there’s one more you forgot to consider."

"Who?" Evelyn leaned in closer.

Luo Wei tilted his head slightly, glancing at the elder vampires patrolling the edges of the hall.

They had kept a low profile, never joining the feast, instead overseeing security from the outside.

But when the Duke died—none of them had an alibi.

Because, up until now, Luo Wei didn't even know how many elders of the Vampire Clan there were—they had been lurking in the shadows outside the venue, omnipresent.