I am the heroine's godfather!

"Speaking of which... I think I just saw Miss Elena arguing with someone in front of the White Jasmine Trading Company. Did something happen?"

"Well..."

"Of course, I'll pay for it."

"Hey, hey, you're too kind, it's just a small matter, there's no need for money."

Elena waved her hand and quickly accepted the silver coin Loran offered, saying, "But since you've put it that way, it wouldn't be right for me not to take it..."

Only after confirming that the silver coins were actually in her pocket did Elena pat her purse with satisfaction, completely ignoring Loran's ambiguous smile: "It's nothing major, I just took on a case—after all, a great detective like me is quite busy. The case might involve designing the White Jasmine Merchant Guild, so I thought I'd go in and investigate."

"I just didn't expect them to be so utterly unyielding..."

Elena slumped onto the table and sighed deeply, "It seems we have no choice but to try something else."

"That's it..."

Loran smiled and said, "Speaking of which, my lover and I..."

"puff!!!"

Estia couldn't help but spit out her coffee. Loran patted Estia's back, smiling more warmly than the most caring man in line behind a dog, and said, "Look, you accidentally choked."

"Ah, um, it was just an accident."

Estia quickly picked up where Loran left off. They had done this kind of thing many times when they were adventurers. A man and a woman pretending to be lovers would be the most plausible scenario.

On one occasion, after Loran and Messiah pretended to be a couple, in order to extricate themselves legitimately, they even arranged for Estia to be the one to catch them cheating.

Messiah is a third party, how could I have such a dream?

The reason for such a strong reaction this time is because Loran's opening was too aggressive, starting with zero frames, and Estia didn't have time to react.

Loran continued, "My partner and I are both fans of detective stories and have always wanted to experience what it's like to be a detective. I wonder if we could have the opportunity to be Detective Elena's assistant?"

"Hiss, well... you guys are laymen after all..."

"Of course, we won't be your assistants for nothing."

Lorraine replied sincerely, "To be honest, I am quite confident in my financial resources."

"I need assistants like you!"

Miss Elena immediately grasped Loran's hand—but less than three seconds later she realized that his wife was sitting next to her, so she awkwardly withdrew it.

"Well then, it's getting late, how about we find a place tomorrow to discuss this in more detail?"

"Okay! Then, let's meet at nine o'clock tomorrow morning in front of the Magna Carta sculpture in the center of the city."

"Ok."

After Elena left, Estia looked at Loran, her emerald eyes filled with confusion: "Do you really believe she's a great detective?"

"It's probably fake."

"then you?"

"But I have a feeling that she will lead us into some very deep stories."

"alright."

Estia sighed and continued, "What do we do next?"

"Hmm, let's go pay a visit to the church."

Loran looked at the white church located at the easternmost edge of the city: "As tourists and wealthy worshippers."

--------------

"Pure Son of Man, Messiah! May your merciful gaze forever watch over your people..."

After praying, Lorraine donated a gold coin to the church, and soon a well-dressed priest came over.

"The Seven Gods will approve of your generosity, sir."

"As believers, we should offer our piety."

Lorraine spoke with the priest: "Lately, my lover and I have been experiencing some disharmony in our lives, and I hope to receive guidance from God."

The priest glanced at Estella, initially stunned by her beauty, then noticing her pointed ears, and a deep sense of apprehension flashed in his eyes. However, he quickly concealed this, continuing with a kind smile, and comforted the couple: "God tells us that it's normal for couples to have disagreements, but arguing doesn't solve anything..."

After rambling on about useless things, Loran pretended to have an epiphany: "Thank you."

"this is necessary."

After leaving the church, Estia turned back and said, "Something's wrong with him."

"Yes, something's not right."

Loran laughed: "Perhaps I should write a letter to Cardinal Tickmia of the Kingdom of Avia, as her proxy."

"hehe."

Estia couldn't help but feel sorry for the cardinal—the position of acting in his capacity was almost equivalent to that of an imperial envoy. It was better not to write a letter; once he did, it meant the cardinal was in trouble.

Moreover, Loran was not just an ordinary imperial envoy; as the Messiah's sole representative, he was practically on par with the Messiah in the Church.

If he were truly the kind of cardinal who neglects his duties and enriches himself, he would probably be so afraid that he wouldn't be able to sleep at night.

But this had nothing to do with Estia; she hadn't done anything wrong and slept soundly.

but......

"Don't get me wrong, I'm just asking about a few things."

"Yes, yes, yes... so you think these two things are related?"

Estia asked, "A detective who looks strange and a priest who looks off—these two things seem unrelated, but since Loran is here, it means there's definitely more to it than meets the eye."

"Who knows."

Lorraine smiled. "It could be one thing, or it could be two things—or, of course, it could be nothing at all."

"What riddle?"

Chapter 159 Investigation!

At eight o'clock the next morning, Loran got up on time, washed up, and Estia was already waiting for him in the reception room.

Neither of them was dressed in fancy clothes today, but rather in very ordinary clothes, which were more suitable for movement. After all, they were to be the detective's assistants today, and they didn't intend to reveal their abilities, so running and jumping around was inevitable.

As for why not reveal your true strength... it's no fun playing games if you're cheating.

"Let's go, Estia, let's go find the detective."

"Ah."

Estia nodded. Although this was essentially Loran's sudden idea, Estia was actually quite interested.

Back when we were adventurers together, many of the interesting things that happened actually came from Messiah's sudden whims. For example, helping an old lady led to the discovery of a secret from eighty years ago, which resulted in killing the evil god's followers hiding behind it all. Another example was helping someone catch a cat and accidentally entering the Cat Kingdom, mediating a cat-dog war. Yet another example was catching someone having an affair, only to discover that the man wasn't actually looking for the mistress, but rather a demon spy...

Wait, it seems to be getting worse?

In short, although this detective doesn't seem special right now, what if there's some interesting story to tell?

No one can say for sure.

Estia prefers interesting stories.

At 8:50, the two arrived at the Magna Carta sculpture in the middle of the city square.

"Speaking of which, Estia, do you know what the Magna Carta is all about?"

Loran pointed to the sculpture and explained, "Two hundred years ago, the Kingdom of Avia suppressed merchants, and the royal family was arrogant, extravagant, and wicked, which triggered a rebellion. The seven marquises joined forces with merchants from all over the country to fight against the royal army and won. The two sides signed a treaty on a hillside to limit the king's power. As a reward for the merchants' help to the marquises, the treaty granted the merchants great convenience. That hillside is now the Charter Hill, and it is because of the Magna Carta that the Kingdom of Avia has become the commercial nation it is today."

“...I know.”

Estia said with some helplessness, "Two hundred years ago, I was already three hundred years old, and the Elf Forest is close to the Kingdom of Avia, so of course I know these things."

"...Ahem, in short! Although the charter limited the king's power and provided great convenience to merchants, leading to the rapid economic development of Avia, it also sowed the seeds of future problems."

"Ugh."

Estia sighed, knowing that once this guy started explaining, he wouldn't stop—just like Messiah back then.

Back when they were still adventuring, whenever they encountered famous historical sites, Messiah would always start with, "Speaking of which, do you know why this place is called xxx?" and then completely ignore Loran's comments like, "No, and I don't want to know either," and begin her explanation on her own.

Later on, Loran even got used to it...

Has Lorraine inherited this fine tradition? No, or rather, can it really be considered a fine tradition?

Estia was highly skeptical of this.

"That's right! You really know your stuff, buddy!"

A lively voice came from behind. Turning around, Elena arrived just as 8:59 was about to speak: "While the Magna Carta granted merchants a great deal of freedom, it also led to a lot of malicious competition among them!"

"Mmm! Miss Detective, you know a lot too!"

Loran nodded, thinking that the Industrial Revolution hadn't even begun yet—or rather, in this world with extraordinary beings, would an Industrial Revolution really happen?

Or perhaps it's a revolution in alchemy? After all, if anyone is most likely to create something like a train, it's alchemy. However, the alchemists currently show no intention of focusing their efforts in this direction, and it's hard to say whether that's a good thing or a bad thing.

"Alright, alright, enough chit-chat! Gentlemen, are you ready to begin today's investigation?"

Elena stood with her hands on her hips, full of confidence, and Loran clapped her hands in a show of respect.

"What exactly is the case?"

Estia asked a question at the right moment, and Elena realized that she didn't seem to have told Loran and the others about the case. She looked embarrassed and quickly explained, "Well, to be specific... there's a family in the slums who have a daughter named Emma who went missing a few days ago."

"After a hasty search, the police station said Emma was dead, but the family didn't believe it. After all, they couldn't find her alive or dead, so they came to me hoping I could investigate. After all, I'm the best detective in the city."

"So you believe it's related to the White Jasmine Trading Company?"

Loran asked, and Elena shook her head: "Not really, it's just that the victims often appear in this area, and the White Jasmine Merchant Guild is the most likely to have information. But I don't think it's likely that the White Jasmine Merchant Guild did it. After all, they are a large merchant guild, why would they do something like kidnapping people?"

Loran nodded in agreement, and Estia asked, "Where should we begin our investigation?"

Elena stroked her chin, pondered for a moment, and said, "Since we can't get into the White Jasmine Merchant Guild, let's visit the local people first... How about the three of us split up?"

"it is good."

Loran and Estia nodded, and Elena clapped her hands: "Then, let's begin!"

--------------

After Elena left, Estia found Loran and asked, "How much of it do you think we can trust?"

"Eight points."

"I think so too."

Estia nodded and said, "The case is probably real, but I can't say for sure about her identity."

"There's not much to guess about her identity. That detective's passport most likely doesn't belong to her, but to one of her elders, who is probably deceased now. Of course, she's not some great detective either; it's probably all made up."

"I think so."

"But none of that matters, since whether her identity is real or fake doesn't have much impact on the whole matter."

“That’s true… Alright, let’s begin the investigation, Mr. Watson.”

"You too, Miss Watson."

Loran had told the Sherlock Holmes story when he traveled with the group before, but it was a modified version based on the background of this world. Estia liked the story very much, but Messiah preferred the story of Romeo and Juliet.

Incidentally, Christine's favorite is Loran's otherworld version of the Dragon King series.

Estia and Loran split up to gather intelligence.

“Who? Oh, little Emma, ​​I know that child... She's so sensible, she delivers newspapers every day to help support her family.”

This is information from the coffee shop owner.

"Emma? I vaguely remember her... Isn't she that brown-haired girl? Come to think of it, it's been several days since I've seen her."

This is information from the bookstore owner.

"Emma? Oh! I know, she's delivering newspapers to the White Jasmine Chamber of Commerce! But I haven't seen her much these days."

This is information from the florist.

Chapter 160 Self-preservation is the first thought of most people

Soon, the intelligence gathering period ended, and Loran and his two companions reunited to begin compiling the information.

"Emma frequented this neighborhood before she went missing."