My SSS-Rank Class Is Blood Monarch!-Chapter 341 - The World Of Eternal Torment (Part 10)

"What do you mean, Isla? Where did Arthur go then?" Emmy sat down in front of her friend and stared into her eyes with an apprehensive look. Her heart was starting to race, and she felt very off about the entire situation.

Isla moved her neck and looked down, her eyes still unfocused as if she had witnessed something nightmarish. But, she still sucked a deep breath and recounted everything that happened ever since she walked into the Divine Tower.

***

*An hour ago*

Isla stared at the written words as if the entire world was crumbling before her eyes. The only question rising in her head was… How? She wasn't hallucinating. She had made sure to wipe the words with her own hands, and the blood was still on them. There was not a single letter still visible in the message when she checked it a while ago.

Yet, by some kind of disastrous fate, the words came back on their own. It was simply something she could never expect.

The chief stepped forward and looked at the message closely, his eyes squinting as silence took over the entire room. It was the most tense Isla had felt in a very long time. But, with sheer will, she kept her expression completely calm and her aura stable not to rouse any more suspicion.

"Arthur… Killed us?" The chief muttered in disbelief. His eyes flashed with myriads of emotions before he looked up at his underling. "Who was the one closest to this message?"

"Deka, sir… Her finger also had traces of blood. She… She was most likely the one who wrote it."

"Deka…" The man muttered her name as he suddenly was hit with realization. He then stood up and looked at Isla.

"What is happening, chief?" The girl asked, trying to feign ignorance.

"Call back up… I want this entire ship circulated, and I want another team to explore the forest in the vicinity." He ordered.

"Yes, sir!"

"Also… Contact the guild… We have a potential suspect here." The man said.

After that, the mercenary ran away as fast as he could to execute all the orders given to him. Meanwhile, the chief ordered the other mercenaries to guard the place and not let anyone touch or ruin the evidence.

He then walked out of the room, followed by Isla. "Chief, what is going on? I need an explanation."

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"You read it, Miss Isla. That message…" He said as he faced the girl with a calm expression. "Something had happened on this ship that we still don't know anything about. That message is our biggest lead so far."

"Chief… Are you perhaps suspecting Arthur?" She asked with a frown. "There is clearly far too much mystery around everything to immediately throw suspicion around. That's a very dangerous move."

"I didn't throw any accusations, Miss Isla. At least not yet. The fact that this ship had been sailing through this particular river makes all possibilities very open for consideration. However…" The man lifted his finger. "Where is he? Sir Arthur, I mean."

"..." Isla found herself completely speechless for a second. "He could've been another victim, chief. As you said, this particular river is far too dangerous and unpredictable."

"What are you suggesting, Miss Isla?"

"We need to wait till Arthur appears. If you spread this information… I'm afraid things will grow out of proportion very, very quickly."

'Dammit, this is going the worst way possible. If I don't stop him from contacting the guild… Arthur will be wanted!'

"This is far beyond my control, Miss Isla. I'm but a humble worker taking care of the settlement for a few years before being replaced by another equally powerless individual. Such a situation is very serious, and the Guild must be included in the investigation to find the threat and erase it if possible."

"What will the guild do?" Isla asked.

"I… I honestly do not know. They have a very particular way of conducting investigations. But, what can I say is… Sir Arthur will be the main suspect."

"It's-"

"I know, Miss Isla. I have met Sir Arthur before. He doesn't seem like someone who would commit such a heinous crime. However, see it from the perspective of people who don't know him. We have found a message possibly written by the victim before their death that accuses him of the murder. How… How are we supposed to ignore that?"

The chief's words were very logical. The entire situation was filled with mysteries, but the evidence was there, and it was a very strong one at that. Unless they find another proof that denies the first one… Nobody can protect Arthur.

"..." Isla clenched her fists tightly as she felt all the frustration in the world well up in her heart. This was a horrendous situation, and she was wrecking her brain to find a way out of it.

'I need to find Arthur, or he will be completely accused of this murder.'

The chief saw the subtle disturbance in her expression and spoke. "I will try my best to discover everything that happened here. I do not wish to see Sir Arthur get accused when he didn't do anything wrong. I'm sorry, Miss Isla. I can't do much else."

Then, the man walked away to continue working on the scene. Isla stood there, completely lost, utterly shocked, and very disturbed. This was the most crucial moment of their entire journey in the Divine Realm by far.

If Arthur was to be accused of this murder… The entire capital will be flipped over its head. It was going to ruin all of his chances and plans in this city and this empire as a whole.

If that happened, then Arthur's progress was going to be heavily hindered, if not out right stolen. Being chased by the entire empire would completely destroy all the work he had done so far.

Isla couldn't let that happen. No, she must not let that happen.

***

"... N-No way…" Emmy held her mouth in shock.

"What the hell is this nonsense?! Arthur would never do that! There is something wrong! They must've planted that evidence to accuse him!"

"And why would they do that? They don't even know who Arthur is. If there is one thing off about this entire situation… It's his disappearance. Something must've happened that changed everything." Danny crossed his arms as he spoke.

"Where could he go? Isla can't contact him, and we can't see him on the map even when we try. How could that be possible?"

"Are there even places where the map function doesn't work?"

The group kept going back and forth between them, trying to figure out what happened. Meanwhile, Isla was staring into the distance, completely detached from reality. She wasn't listening to her friends, nor was she focused on one thing in particular or another.

'Arthur… Give me a sign… I know you're out there trying to do something… Just give me a sign and I will take care of the rest.' She mused.

Isla wasn't completely clueless about her next course of action. But, she was hesitant because any mistake when she has no communication with Arthur could create a misunderstanding, and that misunderstanding could destroy all his chances of coming out innocent.

It was a game of chess… Except Isla cannot see the opponent's pieces… Nor her pieces.

A//N: Thank you all for the gifts, golden tickets, and PS. Let's keep it up!