Chapter 27: Hugh, the Arbiter of Justice Noon, twelve o’clock.

Chapter 27: Hugh, the Arbiter of Justice Noon, twelve o'clock.

The charity house still hadn't found Professor Wayne. Dean Darn's face was gloomy, but he didn't stop Hastur and his companion from calling the police.

By now, almost all the residents of the dock area knew about Professor Wayne's disappearance, an undeniable fact.

After reporting to the police, Hastur and Instructor Folen quietly waited in place. They declined Dean Darn's invitation to lunch, citing their poor mood and lack of appetite.

Taking advantage of the charity house staff going out for lunch, Instructor Folen finally got the chance to be alone with Hastur.

He approached Hastur and whispered, "Can we find the teacher?"

"You have to believe in the power of law enforcement." Compared to the early morning when he first received the news, Hastur was much more relaxed.

From his observations of Dean Darn today, it was clear that the dean had no idea about the specifics of Professor Wayne's disappearance.

Otherwise, he certainly wouldn't have let Hastur and Instructor Folen leave the charity house, let alone report the matter to the police.

Now, Hastur had two guesses: one was that the whole incident was a solo act by Professor Wayne, and the other was that the professor had accidentally involved some extraordinary power, leading to his disappearance.

He was more inclined to believe the former, though he didn't rule out a connection to the bell sounds from last night.

"Did the teacher discuss something with you alone?" Instructor Folen finally voiced his biggest doubt.

"No, I had no idea about Professor Wayne's disappearance until you told me."

"Sigh." Instructor Folen let out a sigh, his face clouding with worry.

Hastur comforted him not to worry too much and led him out for a walk and some food.

Both had been busy with Professor Wayne's affairs since the morning and hadn't eaten anything yet. They had searched many places and were famished.

After wandering around the dock area for about ten minutes, they found a small restaurant not far away.

Hastur ordered a pan-seared veal steak with sausage and a bowl of mushroom soup, while Instructor Folen chose grilled fish, sausage, and a beer.

After finishing the steak and sausage, Hastur still felt a bit hungry, but he refrained from ordering more because of Instructor Folen's presence.

Sipping the mediocre mushroom soup spoon by spoon, he looked out of the restaurant.

After seven or eight minutes, the soup was still not finished, but Hastur caught sight of a petite figure.

She had messy, shoulder-length blonde hair, wore traditional knight's training attire, was quite short—barely over one and a half meters tall—with a bit of baby fat on her cheeks, delicate and soft features, and her eyes and brows not fully open, giving her a somewhat unripe appearance.

She looked a bit like Hugh.

Hastur carefully checked her height and finally confirmed it—the person outside was Hugh!   He didn't approach her for a chat. An untimely conversation would be very ungentlemanly.

After a while, the outside Hugh also walked into the restaurant and sat not far from Hastur.

Was she here waiting for someone, or did she come specifically to find him and Instructor Folen?   Could she have news of Professor Wayne?   Many thoughts surged in Hastur's mind, but he still chose not to initiate a conversation.

A little later, Hugh stood up and approached Hastur, whispering, "I'm very good at finding people. Do you want to hire me to try?"

Hastur's eyes brightened, and he said with a smile, "We are indeed looking for someone and currently have no leads. Can you really help us find him?"

"I can't guarantee it, but I think you need to hire a professional. Instead of trusting those police officers, you might as well trust my expertise."

"Miss, although you have a charm that makes people want to believe you, don't you think this is a bit abrupt?"

Hugh sat down elsewhere, pondered for a moment, and said, "To be honest, I'm interested in finding Professor Wayne, but that doesn't prevent you from paying me to help."

Hastur maintained a smile and said, "If your reasons are convincing, we can pay you to help."

In fact, even if Hugh hadn't approached him, Hastur was ready to find a reason to ask for her help.

After all, she was a future member of the Tarot Society, one of the little protagonists of this mysterious world; she should have good luck.

Using her luck to find Professor Wayne, things shouldn't get too bad.

"Professor Wayne is a scholar worthy of respect. His lecture yesterday taught me a lot. Such a person should not meet with misfortune."

Hugh had more to say, but even if Hastur and Instructor Folen didn't ask for her help, she would still actively look for Professor Wayne.

Not for anything else, she simply didn't want such a respectable elder to encounter misfortune.

Hastur nodded and said, "I believe your reasons. Now we can discuss the hiring fee."

"If you don't find the person, you only need to pay me 10 pounds. If I play a key role in finding Professor Wayne, then you will have to pay me a hiring fee of 50 pounds," Hugh proposed her terms.

50 pounds was a reasonable price for a professor.

"Okay, I trust your character and ability," Hastur didn't refuse the condition.

Hugh stood up, somewhat pleased, and said, "This will be the wisest decision you've made."

No, the decisions I make are always wise.

Hastur silently quipped to himself.

Instructor Folen looked puzzled and finally asked about the lady's background.

"Hugh Dearcher."

Hugh introduced herself, and her words were convincing enough to quickly dispel Instructor Folen's concerns.

After accepting the job, Hugh immediately got into the role, analyzed the situation for Hastur and Instructor Folen, and concluded that Professor Wayne was most likely still in the charity house.

This conclusion was consistent with Hastur's own guess.

Instructor Folen, somewhat skeptical, said, "The charity house has been searched more than once, but no one was found."

"That's why it's the most suitable hiding place."

"We should trust the judgment of professionals," Hastur added.

"Alright," Instructor Folen didn't say anything more.

"Let's go to the charity house now to look for him."

"No rush, let's wait until the police department gets involved."

Hastur stopped Hugh's action; he didn't want to find Professor Wayne just yet.

Everything should wait until the police department gets involved; otherwise, it would be awkward.

Hugh was clearly smart and understood the implication of Hastur's words.

This is distrust of the charity house!   Indeed, a living person couldn't just disappear before everyone's eyes; the charity house was indeed the most suspicious.

After one o'clock in the afternoon, six police officers arrived at Hastur's location. After a brief verification and explanation, the group headed to Sunrise Charity House together.

Hastur was somewhat reluctant about this decision; he didn't want to step into the charity house again, but as a noble concerned about his teacher's whereabouts, he couldn't leave at such a time.

With the police involved, Dean Darn gave the green light all the way, opening all the rooms of the charity house and gathering people to facilitate the police's questioning and search.

The six police officers split into three teams, two officers each. One team was responsible for questioning the charity house staff, one team searched every room under the guidance of several charity house workers, and the last team moved with Hastur and two others, accompanied by two charity house workers.

"Shouldn't there be something like a basement in the charity house?"

Hugh decisively voiced her opinion, not believing that a normal search would find Professor Wayne.

"We can't decide on this; we need to ask Dean Darn."

"I believe Dean Darn wouldn't miss any possible opportunity."

As soon as Hastur spoke, a worker hurried to ask Dean Darn.

Soon, the worker returned, accompanied by Dean Darn.

Hastur was resistant to this.

It was like having a BOSS following him before the fight even started.

Of course, Dean Darn might be innocent, but the likelihood was low.

Hugh

Hugh also frowned slightly, clearly not wanting to accompany Dean Darn either.

"Dean Darn, aren't you busy with other matters?" Instructor Folen asked, puzzled.

Dean Darn explained, "The basement has always been used for reflection by those with violent temperaments. Those people are difficult to handle, so it's better that I personally lead you in the search."

Hastur's internal alarm bells rang. Something about this explanation didn't sit right.

Hugh also realized that there might be unexpected developments and said with a smile, "There must be more than one basement here, right?"

"There are three in total. Two of the basements are connected by an iron door, and the other is directly beneath the bell tower."

"Then let's split up and search. It'll be faster that way."

Dean Darn nodded, "Alright, I'll go with you three, and Deputy Dean Bard and the others will go with two officers."

With eight people present, dividing into two groups of four seemed reasonable.

"Alright, then we'll trouble you, Dean Darn."

Hugh nodded in agreement, confident in her abilities. Dean Darn seemed quite old, and even if he had ill intentions, he wouldn't be a match for her.

Wait, this arrangement is even worse!   Hastur didn't want to be in the same group as Dean Darn at all.

He was already considering a polite excuse to leave.

"It's no trouble. This is our duty. It's because we didn't take good care of Professor Wayne that such a regrettable incident occurred."

Dean Darn sounded self-reproachful, and Instructor Folen offered a few words of comfort.

The basement they were responsible for was directly below the bell tower, with the entrance on the first floor of the tower.

The door was tightly closed, with a chain of rusty locks hanging on it.

The bell ringer, who was responsible for ringing the bell on time, always climbed directly to the top floor using the outside ladder, without entering the bottom floor of the bell tower.

Dean Darn stepped forward to unlock the chains and pushed open the door. Inside was pitch black, making it difficult to see anything clearly.

"It's rarely sunny here, so it's quite dark."

Dean Darn led the way with a kerosene lamp, illuminating a large area ahead and allowing Hastur and the others to see inside.

The place was empty except for a table near the wall. There were no other items.

There was clearly a hidden door on the floor that had been closed.

Hugh and Instructor Folen, also carrying kerosene lamps, entered and looked around. They didn't find anything unusual.

"Since it's locked, Professor Wayne is unlikely to be here." Hastur stood at the entrance, forcing a smile.

He didn't want to go in at all.

(End of Chapter)