Mysterious, but Naruto

"The Akatsuki?"

Audrey discovered the key point in Louis's words.

Louis did not deny this: "Yes, our force will be called Dawn for the time being."

Of course, this is just a tentative name I've chosen; it might be called something like Cluster Overlord, Star Palace, Divine Tree Cultivation Research Association, Endless Devouring, etc. in the future.

Whether this will actually change in the future depends on other factors.

Louis said this mainly because he didn't want to seem too different. He didn't want the locals to think they were outsiders just because they heard his name.

However, Audrey thought the name sounded nice: "Dawn, daybreak, beginning, budding, it's a very nice name."

Recognized by the locals, Louis raised an eyebrow: "Really? Alright, let's not talk about that now. With your current chakra, you can only actively use the Illusionary Body Technique for about a minute. This time was just to let you get used to it. It's time to go back."

"yes!"

As the chakra was severed, Audrey's consciousness changed again, and the two perspectives were reunited, which made her feel somewhat uncomfortable.

However, she didn't have much time to prepare before the maid approached her again, and she had to start getting ready to change for the banquet.

There was no other way, because their family was going to attend Duke Fischer's banquet that evening. Like Earl Hall, Duke Fischer was involved in the kingdom's financial affairs and held shares in the seven major banks of Rune.

Audrey could not afford to be negligent towards such a noble family whose status was comparable to their own, as doing so would only make enemies for their family.

Moreover, in the meeting room just now, Audrey asked Louis a question: whether she could inform her family about her power and her own situation.

To this, Louis simply remarked that her father might be the Church of the Night's front man in the kingdom, and therefore he could only inform her in a limited way to ensure his own safety.

Audrey felt she should think carefully about how to talk to her family, how much to say, and whether her family was truly a front for the church.

She suddenly felt that her carefree and happy 17-year-old life had suddenly drifted away from her.

Although I used to complain that I found my life a bit boring and longed to experience the adventures in those stories.

But... isn't that what everyone thought? Why am I the only one who actually achieved it?

Louis returned to his house, ready to have a good chat with Hayes and Reed to see what had been happening in the West End lately and if there were any good businesses.

Although he was preparing to establish a force, that force would remain hidden behind the scenes and would not affect his public identity.

After all, he's here to enjoy life, not to hide in the sewers and be a sneaky schemer.

"Sir, if you ask me what's been going on lately, there really is one."

This incident wasn't even reported in the newspapers because of its negative impact, so it's unlikely that anyone who wasn't aware of it at the time would have found out.

Louis became interested when he heard his butler say this.

"Oh? Tell me more about it."

The butler thought for a moment and prepared a speech.

"This story begins about three months ago when two little boys were fishing on the banks of the Tasok River and they pulled a canvas bag out of the river."

When they pulled the bag out of the water, they thought they had found something good, but after opening it, they had nightmares for a whole week.

Simply because inside was a corpse chopped into several pieces, along with several large stones used to weigh down the body!

Although Louis could see the servants' actions despite his limited vision, he could hear several people behind him knocking things out of their hands.

"Rosa, Dina, you need to be more careful. Why are you so clumsy?"

"Sir, I am also aware of what Mr. Hayes is talking about; in fact, I'm practically a party to it."

Upon seeing that it was the housekeeper, Una Hughes, Louis's interest grew even stronger: "Oh? What's the matter?"

The housekeeper brought Louis a pot of lemon tea: "Although my family doesn't live in the West End, but in the South End of the Bridge, it's right next to the lower reaches of the Tasok River, and not far from where the two boys' bodies were found."

Louis was puzzled: "What's going on? Didn't Hayes say it was a case from the West End?"

The housekeeper continued, "Mr. Hayes is right, but that happened later. When the body was first discovered, the police searched the river for almost half a month before they could retrieve almost all of the body."

Louis noticed one of the words: "Almost?"

"Yes, that's because the corpse had no head or limbs."

This also greatly hindered the police's identification of the body.

Louis savored the bittersweet taste in his mouth: "But in the end, we confirmed the deceased's identity and that they were a resident of the West End, right?"

Hayes then took over the conversation: "Yes, sir, the other party is Lady Pura of Sir Fitz's family. Sir Fitz died three years ago when he was out in a carriage and was stabbed to death by three burly men with knives who rushed out."

It is said that he used to run a business selling inspiration drugs in secret and used some means to expand his business, thus offending many gangs.

Since Sir Fitz’s death, only Lady Pura has been in charge of the family business. Perhaps knowing that she is not good at managing these assets, she has mostly chosen to sell them.

In the past few years, Mrs. Pra was quite famous in the West End for her lavish spending and love of attending all kinds of parties.

However, at the end of December last year, Mrs. Pra went missing. The police searched for her, and it is said that a neighbor heard her shouting alone at home one night.

However, since Mrs. Pura herself also used inspiration drugs, this wasn't too uncommon, so the neighbors didn't pay much attention.

Louis nodded, having roughly learned what had happened.

Just when he thought this was a case of heinous crime committed by a pervert, the chief servant Reed hesitated before speaking.

"Sir, as you know, my previous records stated that I have an older brother who works at the police station."

I've heard him mention it when I drink with him in private.

He said that inside the police station, they believed this was not the first case, but rather connected to a case from four or five years ago.

This should be a serial murder case, because in that case, like this one, the victims were all women, and none of them had their heads or limbs.

However, unlike this case, the victim in the previous case was never identified, and was ultimately sealed as a mystery.

It was only after the appearance of the same body this time that the police initially connected the dots.

Louis put down his lemon tea: "If that's the case, the other party might have killed more than just these two people. After all, if the bodies in the river hadn't been fished out, who knows how long it would have taken for anyone to find out."

He then shook his head. "Forget it, there's no point in thinking about it so much. After all, we're not detectives, and solving cases isn't our forte. But..."

At this point, Louis noticed something: "The two victims mentioned earlier were both women, right?"

Hughes, you and your ladies better watch out.

Avoid going out at night unless absolutely necessary, and if you do go out, it's best to be in at least two people.

You should take note of this. I don't want my subordinates to be working for me today and then disappear tomorrow.

I can't control you when you go home, but while you're here, you should make arrangements so that you don't go out alone, whether you're shopping or doing anything else.

If this leads to a shortage of manpower, you can tell me, and I can hire more people. I have plenty of money.

You should also tell Yates this message at the same time, the same in the kitchen.

"Yes, sir, your kindness is like the stars shining in the sky."

This time, not only Una Hughes bowed to Louis, but Hayes and Reed did as well. They all felt that Louis was quite kind to his servants.

Louis waved his hand, indicating that it was nothing: "Alright, let's not talk about the case anymore, it's a bit scary to talk about it too much."

Hayes, you mentioned before that Sir Fitzgerald was in the business of inspiration drugs. Tell me more about it.

"Yes, sir, you should know about this inspiration agent. It originated from Fenneport and is usually consumed by mixing it with sherry or vermouth."

Because it makes people quick-witted and bursting with inspiration in a short period of time, it was initially used by writers, musicians, and painters.

Later, it was discovered that these substances could also be added to tea to refresh the mind and temporarily alleviate pain, so some manual laborers also used them.

At this point, Hayes actually sighed: "However, about six years ago, the kingdom issued an order to ban these inspiration agents, saying that using them was harmful to the body."

Excessive use can lead to mental disorders or other problems. Just before that, a sedative solution specifically for infants was launched on the market, which used this material.

The royal decree prohibits the private sale of inspiration potions, stipulating that they can only be used by doctors.

But as far as I know, this order was not actually carried out so thoroughly.

Putting aside other things, at least many pubs and restaurants in the East End and Factory District sell a cheap drink that's basically just watered-down inspiration serum.

Louis knew what it was as soon as he heard the beginning.

On second thought, this world is similar to Europe in many ways during the industrial age, so it's not surprising that hallucinogens or drugs are so prevalent.

After all, these things had been used extensively in Europe since the late 18th century and were regarded as a "panacea".

If before he time-traveled, he would almost always end up drinking hot water whenever he felt unwell, then in Europe at that time, he would almost always end up using a "panacea".

I would choose to use them for headaches, colds, staying up late, weakness, or even hunger.

Louis's expression immediately turned serious: "Does anyone here use these 'inspiration agents'?"

If so, they will all be dismissed. I can pay them a month's salary directly for this. Hayes, Hughes, and Reed, the three of you are in charge of this, understand?

Seeing Louis suddenly turn hostile, the three were a little confused, but naturally they had no room to refuse and all agreed directly.

Looking at the three still somewhat bewildered people in front of him, Louis softened his tone a bit: "Well, I've seen people who over-dilute this stuff before, and in the end, they didn't seem like human beings, but rather like devils."

Louis thought to himself, "I'm not entirely lying; after all, I've seen anti-drug propaganda videos, and the people in them really don't look human."

At this point, Louis felt that management shouldn't be all about the big stick: "Normally, I wouldn't interfere in other people's lives, but not in this matter."

While you are conducting the investigation, please also convey my message.

Whoever uses this kind of thing from now on, get out of my house immediately. I don't welcome them here.

Similarly, I will reward those who are willing to obey my orders.

Everyone is included, as long as they have worked for me for more than a year and do not use those things.

For each additional year, I will give him an extra 1 sul at the New Year; two years, two sul. If he can guarantee he won't touch it for ten years, I will give him 1 gold pound. I mean what I say, and it can be written into the contract.

Having said all that, Louis lost interest in continuing the conversation and got up to go back upstairs.

"I won't come down for dinner; just have it delivered to my bedroom."

After Louis returned upstairs, Hayes and the others gathered together again, discussed the matter, and then called over the cook, Mia Yates.

After learning what Louis meant, the cook didn't think much of it: "What the master said is not wrong, and it's not like he's dismissing his servants without cause."

We've all worked before. If we're laid off elsewhere, being given a week's salary as compensation is already considered a good thing. Most people are kicked out without even receiving a penny.

Moreover, don't forget, on a grander scale, the royal decree also prohibits the use of "inspiration agents."

Seeing the cook return to the kitchen, Louis withdrew his eye roll. He thought the cook was quite nice and a sensible person.

As for the remaining few, it wasn't that they were unwilling to obey Louis's orders, but rather that they had another consideration.

That is, for a newly arrived wealthy man like Louis, every move he makes is watched. If he suddenly and inexplicably dismisses a large number of servants, people will question him and suspect that there is something wrong with him.

But now, the cook's words served as a reminder to them that Louis hadn't dismissed his servants without reason; there was still the king's decree in place.