In this world, Magic is Everything. All people, all races, are granted with the power to perform mystical and magical feats via grimories, mystical tomes granted to each and every child on their 15th birthday. Those blessed by the mana can have their names written down in legend.
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A mysterious set of murders of young female tourists have started plaguing the mood in Rague. The city’s economy will suffer if this continues, so the mayor has asked the Magic Knights for help. Capture the murderer!
[attr="class","shadowsSub"]Details
Minimum Number of Players: 2 [break]Minimum Word Count: 2500 [break]Location: Royal Raque [break]Special Requirements: NA
[attr="class","shadowsSub"]NPC Information
What NPCs are in this mission? Please fill out the template for any notable NPCs. While those you have to socially interact with during the mission are not required any enemy that is presented in the mission must be listed in here. [break][break] Name of NPC: Chain Wizard x 1
[break] [break]Health Limit: Grand [break]Physical Speed: 5 m/s [break]Physical Damage: Junior [break]Magic Element and Types: Chain| Physical Reinforcement [break]Combat Style: He uses his restraining magic to take control of those he wants to show fear to. Also, his physical reinforcement is where he mainly uses for strength and speed buffs. This is for when he needs to handle business himself. [break]Additional Information:The Chain Wizard, once known by the pure name Apple
Roc Lily watched over the port begin to submit to the evening. Night fell over Raque, and its people began to take notice. Shipyard workers, sailors and tourists bundled together into hasty groups and left their respective fields of work for the day. It was not a normal end of shift for these people. Their wary glances, their low tones and their hurried pace all betrayed the sense of terror that had momentarily gripped the noble city. Darkness insinuated the return of a criminal that had taken the front page of several newspapers and the subject of many more rumors. Their title shivered spines and sent civilians scurrying back to their warm homes. Roc couldn't blame them.
The crime scenes he'd investigated had been horrific. In his history with criminals, Roc understood there were a few types of people that found themselves pushed to the fringe of society. This "Hangman Killer," as he'd been unofficially dubbed, was of the kind Roc had been careful to stay away from. Their type, the artist, or the freak, or the obsessive, as they were largely referred, put themselves in their life of crime. Some couldn't make ends meet, or couldn't find honest work for themselves. They occupied the positions that would keep them or their families alive. This killer got no such thing from these victims. Whatever game he played was no more than just a game. It was for their enjoyment, and everybody caught in their sights suffered great loss. The scenes of the crime were deranged artistry. They held no political movement, they bargained for no material gain, and they were carrying out no vendetta against these victims. The passionate impersonal feeling was a harsh contradiction. There was no care for the person, only care for the work created from their body.
Each scene of the crime found its victims hanging, by some extremity from bloody lengths of chain. The victims adorned alleys, beaches, market streets, or wherever the killer decided to leave the evidence. No clear correlation could be found by Roc or other assistant investigators as far as the victims or the locations were concerned. Eight people had died, varying in age, gender, prominence and wealth. The location seemed not to matter, but was contained to the city of Raque. Criminals leads had been hounded by the resident Blue Rose magic knights, but nobody had any information on the serial killer. They were an anomaly. They appeared to have nothing to do with anything outside of their work. When the latest victim, a ship captain, back from a long fishing journey, and well-loved throughout the city turned up dead, assistance had been called. A small outside investigative team was summoned by the leadership of Raque.
It consisted of Roc, apparently somewhat known for his criminal history and his prior work with magic knight investigators, who was surprised at the invitation, and another magic knight of whom Roc was unfamiliar. Titaniya Somerset, a more senior magic knight with the Black Bulls. Roc only recognized the surname as being the same as his training partner, Artemis. He'd wondered for a while if that's why he was recruited into the mission. Ultimately, it didn't matter, Roc had no problem fighting against the freaks that gave criminals a bad name. There was nothing redeeming about the Hangman Killer, and Roc would be glad to rid the city of them for a paycheck. He found himself waiting, at the appointed rendezvous point, for his partner to show.
Lazily billowing smoke bloomed from a few houses and brave businesses still open amidst the crisis. It rolled away from the ocean water, where a gentle breeze pushed against Roc and Raque. Night had fallen almost completely over the city. Before sunset, Roc had spent the day flushing out his own criminal contacts. Unfortunately, he found them absent from their usual hangouts. The territory which had once been hotly contested within Raque had been abandoned and replaced with strange insignias. The only other place he'd seen such markings had been during his investigations in Kikka. Back then, he'd been attacked mercilessly by well organized criminals. If a link between those groups and this killer existed, then trouble in Raque would have suddenly compounded. It was imperative that Roc solve this issue. He only hoped his partner was as capable as her sister. If so, the mission would be an exceedingly simple thing.
Titianiya had spent the day preparing at base, choosing not to train that day as she rarely did on days in which she was aware of a mission she was going to be sent on. Instead she read up on the mission and the crimes that apparently have been plaguing Raque for the past few weeks. ‘The hangman killer’ as he was given the moniker of something that Titaniya disapproved of, giving people notoriety in the form of their own titles like that only would embolden them further and give them the ‘honor’ of being known, best to just leave it at ‘killer’.
In any case she had gone over how every victim was left in a horrific state, found hanging from long bloody chains. The victims were of varying age, wealth, and gender leading to no clear connection in who the guy might go after next. All Aya cared about from the report was the chains, the chains definitely made her assume the magic of the killer was one of chains and as such she would be prepared to deal with such things. From her research over the day she had went over that a lot of chain users may favor restaining type magics and from how the victims were displayed she figured this was the case, of course she could not assume that was the only thing he could do as some of the victims were able bodied adults so unless they had been taken fully by surprise it as likely the man had more than restraints to bridge the gap or he was naturally strong.
On another note she looked a bit into the guy she was being sent out with, a younger man from her sister’s squad of Green Mantis, he had apparently been investigating this for a longer time so that is why she assumed he was even on the case because as if the magic knights would put a newbie onto something like this for no reason. Still she looked forward to seeing what he would do and hoped to get a good opinion on him during this.
The time for preparation came to a close and Titaniya got outfitted in her standard all black attire with silver decoration, her mantle blending nicely with her normal black cloak and of course her wide hat to top off the look. Then she left the base, the sun already setting as she arrived in Raque and night fully formed when she got moving towards the rendezvous point.
Soon she would see her would be partner and they two would be able to see her large and rather foreboding silhouette as she moved deliberately and swiftly forward, her footsteps laud in the silent night, but in no way was she stomping, just a sound ‘tac tac tac’ as she took each step till she was next to the mantis.
Half leaning forward she spoke down to the boy in a clear and calm tone, her face mostly hidden in her attire, just the cold watch of her black eyes staring into him “I assume you are the one then? I had hoped for someone taller, but I assumed you are here because you have been on the case longer not because you were strong anyway.” she stopped her looming over the boy to turn her attention to the city as she still spoke to him “Shall we get down to it then or do we wish for the cold night to set in further before beginning to search.” She tried to make it obvious she was only speaking down to him because of his lower rank in the squads and not because she already assumed he was weak because she had no opinion on him besides him being a lower rank so she was able to keep open minded about his strength, but she did not have her hopes up either.
Titianiya just wanted to get right two things and figured there was no need to introduce herself to him or for him to do so to her as if he was smart he would have already looked a bit into who he was assigned to work with as she had to him, but she did ask about if he wished to wait only because letting it become further in the night might be more the way to catch out a killer who slipped out of his hiding to hunt at the dark hours of the day.
Titaniya's size was the most immediate impression Roc got from the magic knight. She towered over the Green Mantis knight, and against the dark knight, with her Black Bulls cloak and dark clothing, it was quite the imposing figure. Roc had been reaching for his weapon before he caught sight of the bull head that signaled her affiliation, and even then he wasn't entirely put at ease. She had a similar intensity to Artemis, with pale skin and a rigid physicality. It was a mixture of comfort and hostility to stand next to the woman. She was dressed a little more formally than Roc might've liked for an investigation, but he couldn't exactly complain. He was just happy his solo investigation had ended.
"Taller than you?" Roc muttered under his breath. She clearly wasn't one for greetings, and more for business. Roc had no problems with that. "Roc Lily, nice to meet the younger Somerset sister," he said briskly. At her mention of business, he hopped up from his seat and got to debriefing the magic knight. "The local Blue Roses are handling things less subtly. I've gathered word on three suspects they've been... negligent towards," he chose his words diplomatically. After staying in their town for so long, Roc had curried no favor with the magic guild, nor had they earned any of his. They were anxious about the killer in their midst, and their heavy handed patrols had earned little success. For a Green Mantis to search for the criminal that eluded them was an insult of themselves. Making friends with the higher class squads wasn't very interesting for him anyways.
From his coat pocket, Roc pulled the sketch of the insignia that had cause him so much grief in Kikka. "Firstly, have you ever seen this symbol before?" Roc knew it was a long shot, but if she could connect the dots between the criminal elements in Kikka and Raque, than even that piece could inform some deductions about the work before them. He'd hand the sketch of the symbol over towards her to examine. It was of a triangular snake's head, abstract in form and loosely resembling the design given to magic knight squads. Despite that similarity, no such snake squad currently existed or ever did exist within the Clover Kingdom or other kingdom's magic knights. As she, presumably examined the image, Roc would continue with his findings from his investigation.
"Right now, there's three subjects I like for this, only because they've under examined by... other magic knights. First is Isadora Hei-Yu, former Blue Rose magic knight and recipient of the most black stars in the squad's history. Her attitude towards justice became somewhat deranged towards the end of her career, ultimately leading to her arrest here in the city of Raque. I've been unable to meet the woman and see if any tampering had occurred on her cell during the time of the killings. Raque doesn't like their jail being questioned. It's public knowledge that she used Chain Magic." Roc hoped that Titaniya's greater influence as a more senior magic knight would be enough to grease the wheels of meeting her.
"Second is Wyatt Theroux, magic tutor here in the city. He's the kind of guy that nobles call when their children decide they want to be magic knights. Two of his students were killed in the line of duty in quick succession, leading to some public suspicion about his skill. Three of the victims were related, in some way, to his former clientele. He lives above a training studio near the center of town. He's confirmed to be a Chain Magic user by the testimony of the families of these clients." The man's reclusive nature and deep ties to some loyal magic knights had made access for Roc impossible.
"And lastly, Tseren Binder, a young and wealthy collector. He used to have private showings of art he made from the remains of magical beasts. When it got out that he was hosting these shows, the magic knights came down hard, and he was forbidden from these gatherings. That was two weeks before the first killing. I couldn't find anything about his magic, except that it was somehow related to metal. His manor is on the coast, but private security wouldn't let me inside without more concrete evidence." An infiltration would be necessary to gather more evidence on the guy, but Roc wasn't opposed to breaking rules to catch the monster behind the Hangman Killings.
"Truthfully, I've hit roadblocks on all three leads. You got any thoughts on how to proceed?" Roc hoped that her initiative would bolster whatever choice they made. With any luck, swift and lucky action would prevent another killing, but Roc felt no need to add to the pressure. He would wait to hear the woman's thoughts on all the evidence he'd presented to Titaniya.
Titaniya stood watching the boy some as they seemed to take a moment to regard them before responding, despite her attempt to skip past any such introduction the boy chose to introduce himself anyway, Roc Lily then started to get to his feet as he also mentioned about her being the younger sister, at least he chose the right wording, but Aya did slowly go back to looming someone over him as he gave his debriefing.
The Mantis started by dissing another squad’s handling of the situation before he went about pulling to show some symbol. It was something she had not seen before, a triangular snake head much in design like the sigil used for the magic knights, perhaps intentionally trying to emulate them. “Peculiar, but no I do not recall seeing the symbol before. Perhaps there is some new group trying to form its way around.” she spoke simply enough her tone never changing to anything more than a clear and calm one.
As she was examining it further the green knight began to explain some suspects he had been working on, all two of the three used chain magic, however the last one was unknown so she quickly started her own feedback on his examinations.
“Firstly I will start by talking on the wealthy man, Tseren Binder, While yes one can think that that is enough motive I think not, for one from what has been described on the killings I find it hard to believe that this is about a grudge on magic knights, attacks would be more targeted towards them, more consistent in class. Then there is the fact we do not know for sure his magic is chain, but that is a minor thing.” she took a moment to hand him back the sigil before continuing.
“Next I do not think Isadora Hei-yu is up there for the same reason as Binder, but also for the fact that if it was her wouldn't we see more of a trend towards having criminals or low lives be on the targeted end as victims? I think so.” she then continued into the last one “For me the strongest suspect, given your description, may be Wyatt. Firstly he has the capability to do the crimes with his presumed skill in magic he would be at least able to easily handle any novice such as normal civilians, he also has an easy way to evade most questioning due to his contacts in some higher ups, but unlike miss Hei-yu he is not supposed to be in jail.”
Her mind was set on Wyatt and that meant those other two leads could wait for awhile as it was time for them to check on him “With that I suggest we make some haste in locating Wyatt, lest we wish to waste the night and maybe end up with a fresh body to gauke at.” she gestured for him to lead the way as well he is the one with the info one where this Wyatt is supposed to be “Lead on to this roadblock of yours and I shall deal with it.”
Roc was disappointed the woman knew nothing about the sigil. It would have to be another loose end in this case for the time being. He patiently heard her feedback on the profiles he'd developed. It hurt a little to have Isadora and Tseren be dismissed so methodically, but ultimately, he respected the woman's seriousness for the mission. She treated the information with the same grave urgency as he felt. Some minor feelings were nothing in the face of another victim. There was no definite answer that her suspicion would be correct, but Roc was happy to go with the outside perspective. He hadn't gotten much of any help with this case, so to hear any of his theories be given the time of day was a relief. He pocketed the image of the sigil for another day, and was surprised when she motioned for him to lead the way. Again, it made sense in a vacuum, but Roc was impressed to be given so much agency with so little questioning.
It was uncomfortable to walk in front of such a tall, looming woman. She seemed to get a thrill out of her height, and it only made Roc feel as though he was walking with Death herself in tow. He considered using his vehicle magic, but decided against it. His locust construct was anything but subtle. With the Blue Roses out in full force, it was up to this pair of knights to explore the routes less traveled. As they walked towards Wyatt Theroux's training studio, Roc came across a shortcut that looked far less appealing under the moonlight. It had been shady when he first discovered it, but not it was absolutely treacherous. They were magic knights and time was of the essence. Some risk could be accepted.
"I hope you don't mind falling off the beaten path," Roc would take a moment to feel out the woman's take on the path he suggested. Unless she strongly opposed it, he'd take off through the alley, finding a steep angle towards the rooftops of Raque. Several stories above the streets of the city, there was more freedom to move and observe. Roc could sprint and leap with little effort between buildings, now and again checking behind to make sure that Death was following along. If the Hangman Killer made any moves in the streets beneath their path, the Blue Roses would surely catch on to it. With this improvised road, the training studio would promptly come into view. Otherwise, it would take quite a while to reach the center of the city.
The studio itself was a gated business, with a wide floor plan and six stories. Roc would pause in their trip to identify it to Titaniya. "Word is that the guy lives at the top floor of the studio. It's been closed to the general public for a little while now. Nobody who goes in or out is willing to talk to me about him." Roc had spent the better part of two days staking out the studio and harassing every individual that left the studio at any point. None of them were Wyatt Theroux and none of them were very happy to be approached openly by a Green Mantis magic knight. "My roadblock is that I can't get in without some force." Roc would lead Titaniya to a descending staircase a block or so away from the studio. "If I'm wrong about my suspect and I break into their place, then I'm in quite a bit of trouble," Roc said.
"My thinking is that if there's two of us, we can come up with some sort of plan to gather evidence on the guy to prove him innocent or more firmly suspect him. That is... if you're okay with a little breaking in." Roc wasn't happy with the force of his plan. Burglaries had never been his style, even when he was a criminal. It felt a little funny that he was considering more serious crimes now that he'd donned the magic knight robe. Something about the liberties it granted him made it feel like he could get away with so much more than he ever could before his life as a magic knight. "Of course, if you've got a better plan, I'm open to constructive criticism," Roc snickered. He could only hope that a Black Bull knight wouldn't be too put off by his suggestion of a blatant crime while on a mission.
Titianiya watched as Roc seemed to register her words fully before leading on, Titaniya walked behind him and to one side, it was apparent she was making herself walk slower in order to let him stay leading, but as result it caused her to loom just a bit more than her normal lending in to that thought of having the uncaring aspect of death following just behind, looming over the mage as mortality looms over all, her face holding a grim expression of a smile.
“I do not mind it at all” she spoke in response following the other man up into an alley then onto the rooftops. She effortlessly made the leap on to follow behind him still as they made it quite quickly towards the center of the city, the training studio coming into view. On times when he looked back to make sure she was still with him he would be met of course by her being right behind him seeming to take little effort to keep in pace with his athletics.
She descended behind him as he spoke on why he could not get closer, that being he could not get let into the studio without some force and thus if he was wrong about the suspect then there would be quite a bit of danger involved for him to deal with as the aftermath. He went on to say how because there are two of them that it might be easier to see about gathering evidence by of course breaking in and searching the place.
She nodded a bit “Well firstly how many others are said to live in the studio? Or is it just him, If we don't have to worry about being caught out by anyone besides him then well, why not just ‘use the front door’ or so to speak” she was heavily suggesting that they could just kick down the front door to get inside and get to searching for any evidence, of course doing so in a quiet manner would be good. “If we have more to deal with than just him inside then I can suppose a window would work as well. I'll let you choose seeing how you have already cased the house.”
She would be interested to see what the boy could do, seeing how most mantis had been low lives before they joined up with the squad she had figured he would have no qualms about breaking and entering in order to look for evidence, she herself did not mind it, anything to get the job done and bring in the killer before he struck again.