After listening, Callas furrowed his brows deeply and shook his head slowly. "Vice Captain Rei, such a punishment is really too heavy. They are all still young and have long lives ahead of them."
Rei folded his hands, leaned forward a little, and spoke calmly. "These days, things are getting less safe in the Court of Fontaine. The Gardes are planning a big operation to clear out black markets and go after gangs."
His words were thick with the threat.
Callas's expression instantly turned somewhat ugly. He took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "The Spina di Rosula maintains order in the darkness and has also helped the Gardes catch quite a few criminals."
"So what?" Rei picked up his coffee cup, took a light sip, and looked at him with indifference. "The Spina di Rosula is just like this coffee cup. If I'm not satisfied with it, I can replace it at any time."
Hearing this, a trace of annoyance flashed through Callas's eyes.
If not for the fact that he was suffering from a terminal illness and didn't have much time left, he would definitely teach this young man before him a good lesson.
He suppressed the anger in his heart and pleaded, "Vice Captain Rei, please forgive them this time. The Spina di Rosula will always be your friend!"
Rei did not continue to coerce him. "Since President Callas has put it that way, I will give you this face. However, I need you to handle a matter for me."
By now, Callas understood clearly. Rei's earlier threats were just to make the Spina di Rosula work for him.
He couldn't help but sigh to himself; this guy really knew what he was doing. With just a few words, he had trapped him, giving him no way to say no.
"Speak. What is it? As long as it is something the Spina di Rosula can accomplish, we will do our best."
Rei looked left and right, and after confirming that no one was eavesdropping, he whispered, "Help me find an outfit."
As he spoke, he took out the sketch of the clothes drawn by Chiori from his pocket.
Callas took the sketch. Upon looking closely, the worry on his face instantly deepened, and he said with a bitter expression, "Vice Captain Rei, you are driving the Spina di Rosula to a dead end!"
Rei was somewhat surprised. "President Callas, I didn't expect you to actually recognize this outfit."
Callas explained awkwardly, "I helped that kid make some connections before, introducing him to some... uh... female workers. You know the Spina di Rosula has always been short on money; we just have to find ways to keep money moving."
Rei felt a wave of speechlessness. The dignified President of the Spina di Rosula was actually doing this kind of work.
He took out a bank card and threw it onto the table in front of Callas. "There is still five hundred thousand Mora in there. After the matter is successful, this is your remuneration."
Callas's eyes instantly lit up. He couldn't wait to pocket the bank card and said readily, "Vice Captain Rei, leave this matter to me!"
Rei nodded with satisfaction, took a light sip of his coffee, and then asked seemingly casually, "President Callas, I heard your daughter Navia is about to come of age?"
In an instant, a chill surged around Callas, and intense killing intent washed over Rei's face.
Seeing this, Rei smiled calmly. "President Callas, you've misunderstood. I just think Navia is very suitable to join the Gardes."
The killing intent around Callas slowly dissipated, and he said solemnly, "No matter who it is, if anyone dares to have designs on Navia, I will definitely kill him! As for joining the Gardes... wait until you become the Captain of the Gardes before you speak such words!"
Rei shrugged indifferently and nodded in agreement. "Fine, have it your way."
Callas gave Rei a deep look, then turned and strode away.
Rei continued to leisurely enjoy his coffee and snacks.
After Old Luke came out of the detention center, he threw himself into the case investigation.
As a former top agent of the Marechaussee Phantom, he had a lot of experience solving cases, and he was much more skilled than Rei.
After just two or three days of looking into the case, Old Luke made a big discovery—Flora had booked opera tickets for the afternoon when the crime happened.
This finding pretty much ruled out the idea that Flora killed herself by jumping into the river.
But after that, the investigation did not find anything new.
With pressure coming from many directions, the people who knew something about Flora's case stayed silent and would not give any clues.
In addition, they faced obstruction from multiple directions.
Old Luke was suddenly sent to patrol outside the city, which made him so angry that he rushed to Captain Charles's office to argue.
And Rei himself was subjected to multiple inquiries by the disciplinary department, leaving him almost no time to conduct investigations.
Because of this, the case investigation got stuck.
One afternoon, carrying freshly bought small cakes, Rei arrived in front of Furina's suite door and raised his hand to press the doorbell.
Soon, the door slowly opened, and Furina appeared in the doorway.
Today, she was wearing a set of light blue loungewear. The style was simple and casual, making her look fresh and cute, like a lively girl next door, shedding her usual gorgeousness and ostentation.
Wife.
"Lady Furina, after not seeing you for a few days, you have become increasingly elegant and moving, just like the most beautiful cloud in the sky, the brightest star in the night sky. My admiration for you is like..."
As soon as Rei saw Furina, he unleashed a torrent of flattery.
A brilliant smile instantly blossomed on Furina's petite face, and she laughed smugly. "This Goddess is indeed as dazzling as you praise, hahaha~"
After saying that, she turned sideways to let him enter the suite.
Rei walked into the room and gently placed the small cakes in his hand onto the table.
Furina crossed her arms over her chest, deliberately striking a pose she thought was full of coolness, her tone unable to conceal her excitement. "Rei, after this Goddess's in-depth investigation, Flora's case has achieved a major breakthrough!"
Rei asked with interest, "Lady Furina, just what is this breakthrough progress?"
Furina raised her chin and said with a somewhat boastful tone, "Agent Euphonie of the Marechaussee Phantom and I discovered that on the afternoon of the crime, Flora was originally going to see the opera with a boy."
"Who is this boy?" Rei immediately pressed.
Furina gave the answer: "Malo, Flora's classmate."
Hearing this unfamiliar name, Rei's brows frowned unconsciously. "You think he is a suspect?"
Furina nodded. "Malo doesn't have a sufficient alibi, and quite a few teachers at the school have reported that his usual conduct is improper."
After hearing this, Rei roughly understood the opponent's strategy.
Although this move was simple, it was very practical.
Even if they couldn't successfully frame him, it would at least divert the vast majority of attention onto Malo.
Subsequently, Rei complimented Furina with a few more sentences and gave her the perfume he had previously blended at Emilie's place, then took his leave.
Just as he was about to step out of the main gate of the Palais Mermonia, several figures suddenly appeared, blocking his path.