29: A not so hard evidence

"You, you killed Matilda?"

Gregor was in utter shock while he processed what Defolta truly meant in her bold declaration concerning the wanted Witch's fate.

"Yup, dead, her body hanging with her insides outside." Defolta was awfully chirpy when she answered despite the gruesome implications behind it.

"Young lady." Gregor recovered from his initial surprise and now eyed her with a look of unadulterated frown that befitted the sheer gravity of the situation that they were in, "Are you truly sure about that? Can you first describe this Witch for me?"

"Sure." Defolta agreed and begun depicting the Witch's physical features, from her ebony black hair, red, rosy lips, and a body that many men would kill just even for a single night with her. She also described Matilda's clothes, her robes that was black as night, sporting feather designs that resembled a raven.

Gregor nodded in acknowledgement at the description that was provided to him. It was indeed correct as per the reports and recent sightings of the wanted Witch. But Matilda proved to be elusive throughout the years and would constantly evade capture. Adding salt to the wound, the Witch would even torture and burn her hunters alive before mockingly making her escape, further demonstrating her power and depravity.

And now this lass over here, a lady with seemingly remarkable young age, managed what no hunters could ever achieve?

Who is this young lady, really?

Suspicions arising, Gregor continued his questioning and asked, "If what you say is true, then do you have any proof?"

***

"A proof, huh." Gregor saw Defolta's expression faltering at his question. She realized that she kind off fumbled now right here, "I'm not exactly sure if this counts as a proof. God fucking damn it, I should have taken her head."

Indeed, she was now frustrated at the fact that she had no concrete evidence to backed up her claim. Defolta felt stupid and went on with the moment when her own arrogance clouded her judgement and made her mouth spout some declaration that could never be taken back.

If Gregor suspected her of lying, even if she really was not, then their goes her chance of getting that pass, and even worse, perhaps even being imprisoned for telling a lie outright at a high-ranking officer of the Rangers, a military-like organization that's supposed to be backed by the powerhouse that was the Empire itself.

No use in crying over spilled milk, and Defolta needed to think of how she was going to get out safely of this predicament of hers.

Gregor was still eyeing him, awaiting eagerly for her answer. Every second counted, and each passing moment only served to make his suspicion grew even further, which would not help with the Magical Girl's circumstance.

Defolta attempted to stall for a bit with her next question, "May I know what counts as proof?"

"The head of the criminal preferably," Gregor responded which caused Defolta's back to slump gloomily.

"Yup, I'm so screwed." Defolta mustered her brain power and scrambled for whatever solution needed to curry the situation's favor in her side.

"But that's not necessarily the case in these modern times." Gregor smiled and proudly stated, much to Defolta's confusion, "Our esteemed Witches managed a breakthrough in research that would further help in identifying a criminal. Now, any body part should suffice, and we have a specialized Witch here in camp solely for such a purpose."

"A body part, huh." Defolta put in her thinking hat. A realization came running as if hitting her like a truck. Now with a renewed vigor, she put one of her hands behind.

"What are you doing?" Gregor instantly became alarmed, and his hand reached the dagger strapped on his waist in pure instinct, thinking that Defolta was up to no good.

"Relax, I'm not going to pull you a fast one or something like that." Defolta assured him, "Besides, I'm not that stupid to do so inside, literally in a camp filled with Rangers armed to the teeth, all by myself, and with a child with me, I might add. Let's see here, uh, here we go."

Gregor's uncertainty did not last long when Defolta presented him with a severed arm of all things and put it on the desk. It was the arm that she used in opening Matilda's lab dungeon through the bookshelf in the tent.

Defolta was so glad that she stored the arm inside the Inventory of her own accord, as part of an experiment to see if body parts were eligible for storage. Thank goodness that she forgot to discard the arm, which now turned into a blessing in disguise.

But now the commander was confused for another reason and asked, "How did you manage to pull that thing from out of nowhere?"

"One of my magic, the ability to store a limited number of things in my own pocket dimension." Defolta made her case, believing that magic was a good excuse to justify her own brand of weirdness, "In case you are wandering, I'm somewhat of a Witch myself, informally trained by my grandma."

"So, I have heard from Yolan." Gregor sounded impressed, "I've heard of Witches who can perform similar feats, but it's my first time seeing such magic in person."

"So, there are others, huh." Defolta was surprised by this information, "Good to know."

"Going back to topic," Gregor said in his authoritative voice, "I assume that this arm once belonged to the Witch, yes?"

"Positive." Defolta's confidence was back.

"Hmm, then I have to consult with our resident Witch about this matter." Gregor accepted the arm.

Just as Defolta thought that she was now cleared and can finally receive her pass, another question popped out from Gregor.

"Tell me, Miss Defolta, where did you find Matilda before you allegedly killed her."

"Allegedly?" Defolta did not like the sound of that, "You mean still do not believe me?"

"An arm may assist in identifying the culprit but hardly enough in determining if said culprit is dead or alive." Gregor explained to her, "For all I know, the Witch sacrificed her own arm and asked of you to deliver it to me, with the hopes of fooling me with the fake information of her death."

"Ugh, this is so troublesome. Now you are accusing me." Defolta groaned in annoyance, "Fine, I shall tell you. Here, let me mark her camp on the map. Her dead body is still around there, hanging in open space for everyone to bear witness."

After pulling out her map from the Inventory and pointing out the Bandit camp's location, Gregor nodded with approval, seemingly pleased with the information that he was provided.

"Excellent. If you are not lying, I'm sure you have nothing to worry about." Gregor smiled, "I'll have one of my scouts go and investigate the location. Let's see, if I remember correctly, then I believe that the Company of the Third Eagle Order led by the renowned Captain Meridia herself was also somewhere over there for her task. I'll have the scout seek their whereabouts as well to ask regarding your concern."

"Yeah, you do that." Defolta said, "So, what now?"

"Forgive me, but I'm afraid that you'll have to stay here, for two weeks, at least." Gregor stated like there was no room for argument, "Until we verify your information, then you must remain here in camp. As I mentioned earlier, if you are not lying, then you have nothing to worry about."

Defolta's demeanor instantly flipped negatively, and she did not like the idea of being detained inside a military camp, "Hold on a sec, you mean to imprison me!?"

"Of course, not. You are not a criminal by all means." Gregor looked scandalized by her statement, "Consider it like a witness protection program. You are here to be treated like a special guest, granted full privilege to roam around camp with free access to our food and drinks, and if you so desire, even participate in the drills or training, solely at your leisure."

Defolta contemplated about it for a moment. Is it alright for her and her companions to stay here inside the camp of a military?

Not that she was given the choice to refuse for that matter. Might as well make good use of it and now that she thought about it, the notion of a proper meal sounded rather enticing and she had every intention of taking full advantage of it.

Because, hey, who in their right mind would reject free food?

Not that they were in the hurry to go to Town. There was no sense of urgency and Defolta may as well take her time around in this world.

And if things take a shitty turn for whatever reason, Defolta was confident that she could escape this camp. There were many ways to incite chaos and distraction inside. The problem though however was June, and the girl may not keep up with Defolta in whatever escape plan that she proposed. Hopefully the Rangers would not use a child as a bargaining chip in her stay here. In Nekowa's case, the cat could literally turn invisible, so that's no problem in her side. Plus, the Insight of the Neko skill was an asset to determine any escape routes or gaps should the situation arise.

In the end, Defolta cooperated and agreed because, well, she felt that there really was no room for refusal. Saying no probably would spell more troubled than it was worth.

"Fantastic." Gregor was pleased by how understanding the lady was, "I shall inform the Rangers of your presence and situation. If there's nothing else, welcome to the Ranger Checkpoint Camp once more, Miss Defolta and June. I hope that you'll enjoy your stay here for the foreseeable future."