She is not an investigator.

He wasn't even an adult, so getting a decent, well-paying job would be incredibly difficult for him.

"They are still investigating."

Old Boer rubbed the calluses on his hands and said with some concern.

"This place won't be closed for long either."

"But where should we go then?"

The young worker didn't say anything; he just looked at the boy who, despite clearly being unable to carry the load, was still working desperately.

Old Boer understood that they would always find a way to survive, but not the child, and not his sister either.

"Will those government employees really abandon us?"

Old Boer had his own family to take care of, and he wasn't all alone, so he couldn't go on the run.

But he's already quite old, and not all jobs are suitable for him anymore.

"Old Boer, are you religious?"

The young worker suddenly turned his head and asked with great interest.

Old Boer shook his head. He didn't have the time to go to church, nor the memory to recite those dogmas. After all, God couldn't provide him with food and shelter; he needed silver dollars, he needed money.

“You might want to give it a try. I have a friend who hasn’t been able to find a job since he lost his job. I thought he had starved to death, but he suddenly came to me a few days ago. He was in much better spirits than before and even gave me a gift.”

The man took out a pendant and waved it in front of Old Boer. Although he couldn't tell what material it was made of, it looked quite exquisite.

"He told me that after joining them, no one was afraid of hunger or disease anymore. They would travel north and eventually reach another country, a place that was better than this one, a place where everyone could eat their fill and stay warm."

Old Boer dismissed this with disdain; he had heard too many such claims, but most of them were just empty talk.

"I know you don't believe me, but you might as well try, otherwise you really will freeze to death this winter."

“What about my family? I can’t just abandon them and go join some damn church.”

“They welcome everyone, including your family, old man. There’s strength in numbers. I’ll join in too, and so will that young man.”

Old Boer fell silent, placing a piece of metal material in front of him, seemingly trying to conceal his absent-mindedness.

In the end, he sighed helplessly.

"...Let's talk about it when this place is completely closed."

……

Igris has already seen the factory.

The factory's exterior walls, weathered and worn by time, stood dilapidated. Towering chimneys constantly billowed thick black smoke, obscuring the azure sky and turning it into a gloomy haze.

The roar of machinery and the clamor of workers sounded particularly heavy in this suburban area that should have been quiet. The factory's operation not only generated noise but also caused visual and olfactory discomfort. Exhaust fumes and dust filled the air, making the entire area look gloomy and oppressive.

Igris didn't intend to get close, after all, her original intention was just to wander around the area, scout it out, see if there was any danger, and conduct some rather superficial investigations.

Olivia's job was to conduct a thorough investigation; her job was simply to eliminate the danger.

The factory's area is indeed not large, and its scale is relatively small, but its noise is exceptionally loud. Fortunately, no one else lives in this area, otherwise it would probably be the subject of numerous complaints.

Behind the factory was a grove of trees, which seemed to be quite large. Apart from that, there were no other places or buildings around that could directly obscure the view. If any knight were to launch an attack and then escape, its only route would undoubtedly be to rush into the forest.

Igris wandered around the woods but didn't see any suspicious footprints. They were probably washed away by the rain, but Igris didn't find anything.

She was tempted to go into the woods, but it might be bigger than she imagined, and finding her way out probably wouldn't be easy.

"Huh...?"

But just then, Igris noticed a strange mark.

It was an unremarkable tree, but there were some very obvious marks on its trunk.

It's not a vampire's mark, and vampires rarely appear in places like this.

Aside from vampires, there aren't many other creatures in Igris's memory who like to make marks.

Igris gently touched the marks on the tree trunk, feeling the depth of the engravings, and began to compare them with the marks in her memory.

In reality, apart from vampires who are almost brainless, other marks are very difficult to decipher and understand. So Igris was just guessing based on her experience.

And the result seems quite obvious.

"Strange thing..."

The marks are not deep, which means that they were either left in a hurry or that the way they were left was inconvenient and not a conventional carving method.

However, even without carving, it's not easy to leave this level of trace simply.

"Perhaps we can have the Special Investigations Division come and take a look."

Igris couldn't understand its true meaning.

But it's okay, we can leave this to the professionals.

The Gods' Fool - The Last Knight: Chapter Twelve, The Crimson Butcher

Igris looked into the woods, but ultimately decided to go in anyway.

Just like she said, she wasn't worried about encountering any danger; there probably weren't many guys who could actually catch and kill her right now.

The best way to deal with potential dangers is to take the risk yourself, but she doesn't have the talent of Momokawa, otherwise she would probably achieve twice the result with half the effort.

"Mirror Demon? Come out and have a chat with me."

Igris took the mirror out of her pocket and gently touched its surface with her thumb.

The next moment, another Igris appeared out of thin air and took her arm, hiding under the umbrella.

"It's still raining. Luckily you remembered to bring an umbrella today."

"...It's a bit crowded."

After all, it wasn't a very big umbrella and two people had to squeeze in, so Igris was a little uncomfortable.

"Then you can hold me."

"...Why aren't you the one holding me?"

The Mirror Demon blinked and then cooperated perfectly.

"Then I'll carry you."

"No thanks. It's not necessarily safe here, and I don't want to die so soon."

Igris's words made the Mirror Demon look around warily, even though Igris felt it was strange that her body was making such a move.

At least Igris wouldn't make such an exaggerated movement.

What's... here?

"A knight and his warhorse? The scene of an evil ritual? I don't know, or maybe there's nothing here at all."

But Igris still handed the umbrella to the Mirror Demon, and then she pulled out her pistol.

Go ahead and go. There's nothing here, but that doesn't stop Igris from being wary of it.

"What you're saying sounds like a fairy tale."

The Mirror Demon lazily slung the umbrella over his shoulder, exposing half of Igris's body to the rain.

"This sounds more like a horror story."

Igris snatched the umbrella from the Mirror Demon's hand and put it away neatly.

If we're going to get wet in the rain, we'll all get wet together.

"These trees don't even provide shelter from the rain."

The Mirror Demon, soaked by the rain, began to complain about the trees in the forest, because she knew that complaining about Igris was pointless.

"Do you want to check if they have any leaves?"

It's autumn now, and the trees in the forest are all bare, but this gives Igris plenty of space and light.

Although Igris doesn't need much light, it's good that there are no branches blocking the view.

"Why do I have to get soaked in the rain with you...!"

Before they had walked far, the Mirror Demon could no longer contain itself. It shook its almost completely soaked long hair and voiced its protest.

Igris didn't say anything, but couldn't help sneezing.

"Ha! You're sick!"

"Shut up."

Igris took a breath and wiped the rain off her face.

"I have a bad feeling."

"?"

Igris's expression turned serious. Although she still couldn't see anything, her intuition was constantly warning her something, even making her mind start to become confused and agitated.

Are you alright?

The Mirror Demon finally realized something was wrong and, somewhat worried, tried to help Igris up, but she stopped him.

"...Come back first."

"what?"

"I said come back!"

The Mirror Demon vanished from its spot in an instant, and the next moment, a silver-gleaming high-speed rail spear shot out and landed where the Mirror Demon had just been standing.

Iglesias's pupils constricted slightly, and she unconsciously raised her gun, but her breathing became more intense than ever before. The rain and the intense heat blurred much of her vision.

Under her gaze, a blood-red figure silently slipped through the bushes, slowly picked up the spear stuck in the ground, and looked at Igris.

Its body looks incredibly robust, but its face is blurry and indistinct; even a brief glance at it can make one dizzy.

An unprecedented sense of crisis suddenly cleared Igris's mind, and she turned to escape without hesitation. But almost at the same time, a whooshing sound rang out behind her. In desperation, she could only slam to the side, using the Joker's powerful coordination to change her trajectory and dodge the spear that pierced the air.

Without hesitation, Igris flipped over and pulled the trigger. With the sound of gears turning, the bullet from the pistol struck the blood-red figure instantly, but produced a strange metallic clanging sound.

Only now did Igris finally see clearly what it was.

Riding wings, seven sulfur wings, s??a〈n, 栮倭疚迩月?漪士?