Potential Leads

Mallory moved quickly through the forest as she pedalled quickly and navigated around the trees.

The moment that she spotted the person that her compass had pointed to and she saw the strong aura, she made her bike come to a stop and threw out some throwing weapons towards the lower half of their body.

Any kind of throwing weapon that was lightweight and could wound them was enough to do the job.

So long as it was not a fatal wound that could kill them in seconds, they would live on and could be healed with a little healing potion.

It allowed Mallory to not hold anything back against them and it had worked in her favour.

There was no warning given and no mercy as she threw out her throwing weapons to wound them.

Each time she did so, the throwing weapons would pierce and cut into their flesh then they had to be removed so that a healing potion could be applied to them.

Either they could leave it in and try to fight back or attempt to escape or they could attempt to remove them to heal themselves.

Either decision would lead to them not being able to do as they wished when they were slowed down or incapable of walking properly.

Their attempts to fight back or get away resulted in the blunt end of Valis coming towards them and knocking them out.

They never expected to be tracked down and they never expected someone to attack right away so Mallory had the complete advantage.

Her bike allowed her to reach each of them who had spread out and travelled in different directions.

Each of them had a monster warding talisman placed near them so they would not be attacked by monsters while she was away.

Mallory finished capturing the last of them but her eyes caught something. "Hm?"

There was a strong aura that lingered around the mouth area of a woman that she captured.

Mallory carefully pried open her mouth and looked inside. "So that is what it is."

While the woman was still unconscious, Mallory took out some tools and started to prod at something inside. "Almost got it.."

A tooth had suddenly opened up and a small tablet dropped down but it was caught by the spoon that Mallory placed underneath the tooth. "The fake tooth trick. It either means that she is a true fanatic that is willing to die for the cause or others see her as someone expendable or a liability."

It was something seen in spy movies or other war related series where there was a need for information to not be leaked to the enemy.

The classic example was the Cyanide Pill carried in a hollow fake tooth and the person who had it would simply open the tooth with their tongue and would bite down on the pill, capsule.

If Mallory was not careful and had given the woman a chance to see how hopeless the situation was or that she was about to be captured then she may have taken the pill and died.

If she woke up and did not wish to tell Mallory or anyone anything then she could just choose to do the same but Mallory had found it before then. "I really hope that there are not many like this. It is unpleasant digging around in peoples mouths like this."

Mallory waited around a little until she heard the sounds coming from further away and there were some familiar faces that appeared while they brought others with them.

Once Mallory went ahead, the others had went to inform the city guards that were still stationed nearby that it was time to act.

The tire tracks left from her bike had helped to lead the way and it was very easy for them to track where Mallory went or where the criminals were tied up.

Mallory greeted the person that seemed to be in charge of the group of guards and handed the tablet over. "Take this one in for questioning too. It may be possible that she may know something more. Here is what I found in her mouth within a fake tooth, it seems that she was prepared to die if she was captured so it could be possible that she possesses some useful information. Be sure to prevent them from being able to harm themselves and check their bodies for any markings."

There were many other valid reasons why a woman would carry around such a thing and would willingly use it but Mallory hoped she was closer to the truth.

There had been no useful information given to point Mallory or others in the right direction so they could find the source of the problems that were ahead of them.

All they had were some people that had been captured previously that knew very little or nothing at all so the investigation kept hitting dead ends.

If there was any kind of useful information gained from the new captives then that would be very helpful but even the simplest of things could help to point out who they were working for or who they were affiliated with.

Some tribes or groups carried totems or wore accessories while others had tattoos or paintings on their bodies so they would be easier to identify when Goddess Seshat had so many books available to research them to narrow them down.

If it was not some random group or tribe then there was a possibility that they could be a member of another familia.

They were very weak compared to Mallory but her defeating them was primarily due to her acting the way she did to catch them off guard.

Her estimation was that they were equivalent to a non familia member or somewhere within level one.

If they possessed curses or other skills and magic then they would not have been able to put them to use in time before they were knocked unconscious.

The pain inflicted on their lower body was more than enough to distract them enough so they could not use any kind of chants.

If they did possess a status like her then it would aid with the investigation further.

Her goddess would have an easier time recognising the status of the other gods so it would help identify what familia or god was behind the actions of those people that had caused problems within Visa City or the village.

Once she had come face to face with Almura again, Almura looked down towards smaller and younger cat girl then sighed. "For such a small thing, you sure can get a lot done in a short amount of time."

Mallory rolled her eyes and replied. "I had a little help so I cannot take all the credit but… that is one small problem dealt with. I have a feeling that this is just a very small part of what we have ahead of us so do not lose your vigilance."

Franco shrugged. "There must be some kind of reward for this right?"

Swaine nudged him and complained. "You should be grateful for just having this experience. I am sure that we must have grown a lot already!"

Swaine was hardly the brains of the group but he knew enough about how he would improve more when he was forced into more dangerous situations.

Most others would not take the risk unless they had a healer with them or someone to watch over them but Swaine and the others had talismans and Mallory to protect them when things became to difficult for them.

Franco was not convinced and said. "Hey, fool. Those talismans cost Valis to buy so how about you think about the amount of Valis we just used up to gain this experience?"

Mallory interrupted him and stated. "The city lord is paying so you do not have to worry. Just put it on the list of expenses for the monster extermination in certain areas that we have covered. The magic stones or drop items that Swaine picked up should cover a lot too so what has been used can be replaced."

She yawned cutely and continued. "We should head back for now."