The God of Jesters
Chapter 141 - 3.04.2 I hope they killed her.

Chapter 141: 3.04.2 I hope they killed her.

"Why were you dancing on my rooftop?" The young woman had asked Max, who was sitting on the side, hiding from her eyes. "It’s not a dance, it’s a matter of life and death."

"But it looked like dancing to me."

A cursed memory that pained him to no end, so Max ignored it whenever similar dreams came to him.

Tonight, he was going to dance again, and like many nights in the last five years, there would be no one to make fun of him anymore. But now was not the time to mope, he had cried enough. It was time for revenge.

As their names dictated, the Smeltvers started as a small-time smelter clan that barely was able to compete with the blacksmiths. Always considered the working class before industrialization and slave to Blacksmiths will. For it was the blacksmiths that were able to add value to the material they processed.

It just so happened that blacksmithing as a profession lost its value when the giant steam-powered machines and casting were introduced. Causing the need for the processed ore to increase, which in turn propelled this small clan to new heights.

The current head of the family is Yazmod Smeltver, the first dwarf to marry a human woman with elvish blood in her. Making him pretty famous in the city for a while.

The very fact that those with elvish blood are beautiful is well known among the masses, causing many envious gazes to be sent Yazmods’ way. But it was probably this envy that had brought him the curse of never siring a child throughout his life.

Of course, that was until a year ago.

Though Max, who was reading the specific details carefully in the public records building, shook his head in disappointment. ’Just hearsay, everyone already knows this.’ This was to be expected, it was freely available records that everyone had access to. Of course, you had to put in a notice before being able to access it.

But for that fact alone, nothing juicy or secret would be in here. And Max needs to personally investigate the details if he wishes to learn anything. At least, not all was lost for him. The public records had the whole family tree of Smeltvers, and the last time it was updated was three years ago.

Which should be enough. ’A total of 48 living members, each should be operating in different parts of the smelting industry... in the Smeltver family business.’

The next thing that he needed to do was simple, just follow up on every lead he found, all the forty-eight members, and see what they do for a living. If they are young, then what school do they go to, what kind of food do they eat, and the like?

If they are old, he would search their workplace and their normal habits and try to find any oddities.

As for why he did it?

He knew for a fact that loads of gangs in Bothal had a Clan behind them, it was their backing, while they were the clan’s support.

If there were unruly workers, people not selling their land or other kinds of similar annoying things that stand in the path of progress, then the gangs would come and put these fools in places.

From what he understood, these kinds of operations would require a high exchange of money, there should be a mediator that works with these gangs, a Proxy that would share the info, resources, and salary with these men.

And who was to trust with such an important job, other than family?

Blood is thicker than water, and a person would die first before seeing any harm come to their family. So if Yazmod is not some gullible dwarf, which he isn’t considering his position, he won’t appoint any third party to such an important, albeit dangerous job.

As for who to follow and where to find the members? It was easier said than done.

’The adult males, then females, and then the youngsters.’ Under his own prejudice depending on age and position in the family, he created a list. With the top one being a high-priority target and the lower he goes, the more he can be sure that the Smeltvers were really not as he had expected them to be.

Which would be disappointing, but at least this would prevent the death of any innocents, while Jester, would have to pay for his lies, or so he thought in his head.

But no matter how much he tried it, he couldn’t hide the hope and expectation hidden in his heart. He prayed for my words to be true. He prayed that the lovely couple who were just awarded with children of their own were his true enemies.

He wished to bathe in their blood and from the faces he saw on the public records, his mind was already imagining a scenario, which he hated himself for liking.

Such conflicting emotions from one man. A man trying to play the kind assassin, which he was not. Or so I thought of him too, as I could look deep into his mind, a feat that even he can’t achieve.

He doesn’t know what he wants in reality. And me intruding here would be stealing his autonomy.

So I chose to wait and see, what this starving fool would do with the food platter I provided, would he throw it aside or eat it like I expected him to?

******

"I will say this straight, Fahna. I won’t believe this boogeyman you speak of. But the rest, I can believe it." Salveraz said, taking a sip from his cigarette, before continuing. "But the rest, even a fool will see that something wrong is going in the city. Though none point it out, as those that do accidentally lose their job or get caught for corruption charges."

"Are you claiming it’s the government doing this?"

"Or just hiding and it’s been happening for the last two years and from what I have seen, that boogeyman you speak of left the city Durum during the incident?"

"Officially, he is dead. Or so many had believed. But I have a reason to think that he is here, and as I said before, I can’t say why and how."

"Then I can’t help you if you refuse to speak of the details to me." Salveraz completely refused to help Fahna. Yes, he might have owed her father in his younger days, but it doesn’t mean he would go and help out of his way before knowing the full picture.

Not to mention, not helping Fahna here was the right choice, he knew that something wrong was going on in the city. Multiple Human disappearances were not noticed on the census due to the constant stream of new dreamers that slowly filled in the empty number. Making it harder for those in higher seats to see any inconsistency.

While those below and in the know suppress the office-level workers who were creating all the reports, causing small changes to those reports so that they can never be noticed.

As for why and who was doing all this?

He didn’t know, and he didn’t dare to. With age comes wisdom, and from how only the humans were targeted, he can see what kind of people might be behind all the disappearances.

People who look like him. And even though it is wrong, he is fine as long as it doesn’t harm the dwarves.

Because at the end of the day, he was a dwarf before a detective.

"If you can’t, then I can’t tell you the details of who did the killings."

"No need, I can already imagine what kind of person it was." Salveraz sighed with some tiredness.

From the shape of the feet found on the scene of battle and the brutality that was shown during it. It can be seen that this was not a simple assassination. One Dwarf that survived only lost a single eye, not killed.

While the rest that were killed, died pathetic deaths.

The enemy had complete advantage, but they didn’t use it and only destroyed the eye of the red dragon Knight dwarf.

As for the fact that one of the dwarves has survived, Salveraz was not going to mention it to Fahna, who had come here as an advisor. Let her be an advisor for a while, then send her back to Cynark. That would be the best thing that can happen in this place.

"But I know who they are... well, as a show of goodwill. I can tell you that they were active during the Cynark’s battle with the Yethel kingdom."

"If you were talking so freely about it, it means this individual is not from your country?"

"Yes, someone from Yethel. It might help you to look up all the immigrants that came from Yehtel in search of work."

"Do you know how many of them come every year?"

"No, you tell me?"