After hearing everything I said, the mischievous smile that had been on Vyuk's face disappeared. He had become quite calm, because my words had given him information that completely shocked him.
He explained that until now the official reports from the Royal Knights and the Church only stated that some mysterious person was carrying out kidnappings in the capital, but no one had even suspected that the culprit was a woman.
Vyuk narrowed his eyes and asked me directly, "Jona, why hasn't this information reached the Royal Knights and the police? And how can you say with such certainty that it's a woman? What proof do you have that what you're saying is true?"
Hearing that, I knew I would have to rely on truth to prove my claim—but I also knew how much of the truth to reveal and how to present it. I told him that a few days ago, when Helena and I were conducting our investigation, we encountered that kidnapper. Then a fierce clash broke out between her and us, which didn't lead to any concrete result in the end, but during that fight we discovered that the kidnapper was a woman.
I gave Vyuk all the information because lying to him at this moment would have been suicidal, but I cleverly manipulated the truth. I completely hid Marlow's name from this information and also didn't mention that the fight had happened at the Blue Moon Bar. Because I didn't want Marlow to get into trouble, since he could be very useful to us in the future.
After listening to my entire explanation, Vyuk let out a breath of relief and thanked me for the information.
Then he said, "Alright, Jona, thank you for this information. As for that kidnapper woman, we'll handle her ourselves now. You don't need to worry anymore."
Continuing, he explained, "Actually, I came here for this very mission. I also received information that something suspicious might happen at the harbor today, which is why I was stationed here. Now that I'm here, you can relax. I'll handle everything here, and that kidnapper woman will soon be in my custody."
While Vyuk was telling me all this, suddenly a man in a police uniform walked quickly up behind him. He quietly stood beside Vyuk and leaned toward his ear, whispering some important information.
I noticed that even after hearing the officer's words, there was no major change in Vyuk's expression. He only tilted his gaze slightly toward the policeman and calmly said, "Oh! I see… so that's the matter."
Hearing that mysterious response from Vyuk's mouth, I sank into deep curiosity. Questions began swirling in my mind—what could that policeman have told him? I was just about to ask Vyuk to satisfy my curiosity when I noticed that a smile had returned to his face.
But this time his smile wasn't frightening or sinister like before. Instead, it carried a mixture of new hope and deep curiosity.
With that changed smile, Vyuk looked at me very casually and said,
"Jona, will you come with me to help with something important?"
Hearing this from him, Helena, the policeman, and I—all three of us were stunned. I couldn't understand what Vyuk wanted. Just moments ago the man who had advised me to stay away from dangerous matters was now suddenly inviting me to come along with him.
So without hiding my surprise, I asked directly, "Vyuk, what exactly do you mean? Where are you talking about taking me?"
Vyuk replied in a very casual tone, "Look Jona, I know what you're thinking. You're wondering why the man who just told you to stay away from all this is now asking you to come along, right? Actually, after thinking about you, I now feel I've been underestimating you. I think I should give you a chance to understand these situations up close."
Then he placed his hand on my shoulder and confidently added, "And as for things going wrong, you don't need to worry even a bit, because I'm the strongest one here. So stop worrying and come with me, so you can learn much more."
While his words left me uncertain, worry lines were clearly visible on the policeman's face. Nervously he said to Vyuk, "Sir! What are you saying? Look at them carefully—they belong to noble families. If anything happens to them, we can't even imagine what will happen to us! Sir, I absolutely disagree with this decision."
Before Vyuk could consider the officer's concerns, Helena, who was standing behind me, stepped forward and declared with authority, "Fine then, let's go! Where exactly are we heading?"
Her tone made it clear she had made up her mind. And once Helena St. Claire decides something, neither that ordinary policeman nor even Vyuk had the standing to refuse her. After a brief and pointless argument, we all started running behind Vyuk toward our destination.
While running, we noticed that the policeman managed to match our speed for a short while, but soon his stamina gave out. His pace slowed and we left him far behind. He stared at us in shock, unable to believe how anyone could run that fast for that long.
Panting, he shouted from behind, "Hey! Wait… wait for me!"
But none of us slowed down for him. We kept moving forward at lightning speed. Helena glanced at the lagging officer and said arrogantly, "Are people like this really recruited into the capital's police? Why are they so weak?"
Running alongside her, I replied, "That's not true. Even without being a Paragon, that officer almost kept up with us, which is impressive in itself. As for us, there's a world of difference between the limits of Paragons and ordinary humans. In fact, in our human form we're still much weaker than our true potential."
Helena heard me but didn't bother replying.
After this intense run, we finally stopped in front of a massive warehouse. Two policemen were already guarding the main entrance of that old, mysterious warehouse. The atmosphere there clearly showed we had reached the right place.
As soon as the guards saw Vyuk, they immediately approached him and began whispering something confidential.
Helena, Historia, and I stood a short distance away. All three of us sharpened our focus and tried to listen, but they were whispering so carefully that not a single word reached our ears. When we couldn't hear anything, my uneasiness increased. I began wondering what secret was being hidden from us. Could it be some major clue related to the kidnapper?
While I was lost in these thoughts, Vyuk finished talking to them and turned toward us. Without saying anything, he simply glanced at us briefly and gestured with his hand for us to follow him inside the warehouse.
As we stepped forward, both guards fixed their eyes on us. Hesitantly they asked Vyuk, "Sir, are these people with you?"
Without turning back, Vyuk calmly replied, "Yes, you could say that."
And then, step by step, we crossed the massive door and entered the warehouse. The two guards stayed at the entrance. Inside, the scene looked no less than a labyrinth. Countless wooden crates were stacked everywhere, all tightly sealed. Their rows were so tall they seemed eager to touch the ceiling.
Along the walls were large shelves neatly arranged with cardboard cartons. The structure of the place suggested that valuable goods were stored here.
Throughout the warehouse, electric bulbs were installed in several places. The yellow light they emitted flickered constantly. Though dim, that light gave off continuous heat, creating a suffocating warmth in the humid air. Between the yellow glow and long shadows, the place looked even more mysterious.
Soon after we entered and surveyed the surroundings, a policeman emerged from a dark corner of the warehouse and approached us. Seeing him, Vyuk asked directly, "Hey! Where is he?"
Hearing that question, my ears perked up. I wondered who he was talking about. But the officer simply said, "Sir, please follow me. I'll take you to him." Then he turned and began walking toward that same corner. Vyuk followed, and out of curiosity the three of us followed them as well.
Soon we reached a part of the warehouse where the light was extremely dim. Another policeman was already standing there. Right in front of them, cardboard boxes were piled in a messy heap. Strangely, there was movement within that pile.
We stopped two steps away from it for safety. Now there were six of us present—Vyuk, two policemen, and the three of us.
Suddenly the same strange movement occurred again inside the boxes, then silence fell. The sight made me uneasy, but there was no fear on Vyuk's face. He stepped forward steadily and with a single flick of his hand tossed the heavy boxes aside.
As soon as the boxes were cleared, the sight before us shocked us. A man was crouched there, looking badly injured and terrified. As the dim light fell on him, he widened his eyes at Vyuk and instantly covered his face with both hands, as if he were horribly afraid even of that faint light.
Vyuk immediately sensed the seriousness of the situation. Instead of questioning him, he extended his hand and gently touched the man's throat, as if sensing something.
"How did he end up like this?" Vyuk asked the policemen.
One of them replied calmly, "Sir, we don't know how he got into this condition. But he's a worker from the harbor. He must have come into this warehouse for some work, but when we found him, he was like this."
Vyuk removed his hand from the man's throat and turned to all of us, revealing something shocking. He said, "He's been poisoned."
"What? Poison?" all of us exclaimed together.
Vyuk continued calmly, "The good thing is the poison isn't lethal. But because of its effect, he's developed a strange kind of fear—of light and of his surroundings."
Then Vyuk ordered the policemen, "Take him to a doctor at the harbor and inform his family. There's no need to panic; with medicine he'll recover in two or three days. Just tell his family to take care of him until he's normal again."
Then his voice suddenly grew serious. He added, "But it's very important to find out who gave him this poison—and why."