章節 95: Even a Dead Dog Can Speak
At the entrance of the inner city royal palace of Titan King City, Thunder Fort, a figure in a black robe approached the guards on duty with urgency. "Who goes there?" a guard asked, bending down to scrutinize the newcomer.
"I've been sent by Lord Wystan to inquire about the whereabouts of Prince Tyrrel's dog's corpse," the robed figure replied, his face partly concealed, his voice low and grave.
"It's at the kennel infirmary," the guard pointed toward the direction of the inner city gate, "just near the outer city gate. Take a left after you exit."
"Thank you," the robed figure turned and made his way toward the gate, hearing the guards whisper behind him, "What mischief is that damned black sorcerer up to now? Ever since they arrived, nothing good has happened!" "Shush, don't talk nonsense!"
The robed figure descended the grand staircase as if coming down a mountain and, upon reaching the statues flanking the castle's plaza, quickly ducked behind one.
"Did you get the information?" Grayson and Katheren, who had been waiting, hurried over to ask.
"You really came up with a tricky plan!" Andros lifted his hood, revealing his face, and relayed the soldier's directions to Grayson.
"A ruse as Wystan's underling proves useful. Captain, you'll have to keep up the act," Grayson said with a slight smile.
Summoning the little owl, he transformed the trio into tiny insects and perched on her back. They flew toward the outer city, with the little ball of fluff landing on a quiet and deserted street as directed by Grayson.
"This should be the place," Grayson surveyed the street, bordered on one side by the inner city wall and on the other by towering stone houses. At the street's end, an open door of a house revealed a dark corridor, which seemed eerily sinister even in daylight.
"Little one, let's fly in and take a look," Grayson, now a cricket, nudged the little owl's head.
"I'm so tired of carrying three people around without even a bite to eat," the little owl complained, fluffing her feathers.
"You on the ghost ship..." Grayson began, but the little owl cut him off with a squawk, "Don't say it! I'll go!"
She hopped toward the ominous doorway, tilting her head curiously as she heard a snoring sound from within. Her big round eyes widened as she peeked inside and saw two even larger, rounder eyes light up.
A six-legged black hound leaped out of the shadows, its paws thudding heavily beside the little owl. It lunged forward with its mouth wide open, and the little owl, her feathers standing on end with fright, forgot to fly and instead turned tail and fled down the street.
She tumbled down the stairs and crashed to the ground in panic. Before she could regain her footing, the hound's hot breath knocked her over again. As the beast approached with its red tongue lolling, the little owl wrapped herself in her wings and screamed.
"Little fool, cancel the transformation!" Grayson, who had fallen to the ground, shouted back at Elyra. The little owl, in a moment of clarity amidst her terror, let out a powerful cry, and a golden light shone in the hound's eyes.
Startled by the blinding light, the hound instinctively retreated. Then, two shots rang out, and silver bullets from Grayson's gun struck the hound's eyes. The black dog, in pain, turned and scampered back into the sinister hallway.
"You little fool," Grayson scooped up the little owl, chiding, "You're a disgrace to birds everywhere. I've never seen a flying bird run on two legs to escape!"
"Wah, I won't help you anymore, you meanie!" The little owl shook her feathers, flinging the dog's saliva onto Grayson. Helplessly, Grayson looked at Andros and Katheren, who shrugged with suppressed laughter.
As heavy footsteps echoed from the corridor, Grayson quickly whispered to Andros and then, pulling Katheren, hid in a corner by the stairs.
"Who's bullying my dog?" A white-robed Titan emerged from the door, scanning left and right. Finding no one, he paused, then heard a voice from the staircase, "Hey, it's me!"
"Who are you?" The Titan bent down, puzzled, to face the black-robed figure.
"I was sent by Lord Wystan to check on the dog that belonged to Prince Tyrrel. Is it here?" the black-robed figure asked with a somber tone.
"You're one of the black sorcerer's men, aren't you?" The Titan had a moment of realization and nodded, "The dog is here. Do you want to see it?"
After receiving an affirmative response, the Titan lifted the figure onto his shoulder and led him into the corridor. Along the way, he informed Andros that this place served as the infirmary for the military dogs of Thunder Fort, where all injured or deceased canines were treated.
He took Andros through twists and turns to a secluded room, saying as he opened the door, "Normally, someone else's dog would have been disposed of by now, but since this was Prince Tyrrel's dog, I dared not handle it myself, so I left it here."
The Titan led Andros into the room, oblivious to the small bird that silently followed them in. In the modest space, the body of a white-furred giant hound lay on the floor.
"Thank you. May I have a moment alone with it? I want to take a closer look," Andros asked the Titan to set him down, and after a moment's hesitation, the Titan agreed and left the room.
"Good, we've found you!" The little owl landed, and Grayson and Katheren jumped off her back. After Elyra dispelled the transformation, Grayson looked up at the dog's corpse and said.
He had Elyra shrink the dog's body and then sent her to keep watch in the corridor. Reluctantly, she flapped her wings and flew out.
"Now, let's see what you know."
Grayson lit a cigar and squatted next to the dog's body, examining it closely. He noticed its white fur was neatly groomed, with no signs of struggle or residue on its paws, and its bones were not dislocated or broken.
Lifting the dog's eyelids, he saw signs of dilated pupils. Prying open its mouth, he found clotted black blood, which made him frown and shake his head softly.
"What did you find?" Andros asked, eyes fixed on Grayson.
"It's a bit strange," Grayson said, placing the dog on the ground and looking up at the two. "Firstly, the dog's fur is intact and neatly groomed, with no scars on the body, no broken bones, and no blood or residue on its paws. There's no sign it struggled."
"Could it have been cleaned up already?" Katheren suggested, glancing toward the door, "Isn't that Titan responsible for dealing with dead dogs?"
"That could only cover up part of the evidence, but not wounds or broken bones. There's no singeing on its fur, and I found dilated pupils in its eyes and black blood in its mouth, indicating it died from poisoning," Grayson explained, showing them the dog's mouth.
"Poisoned?" Andros and Katheren exchanged looks, realizing, "That's why no one heard the dog bark!"
"But," Grayson glanced at them with a puzzled look, "if they could poison Tyrrel's dog, why not just poison Tyrrel directly?"
He stood up and said to the two, "I didn't find similar black blood clots in the oral or nasal cavities of the three bodies, and they didn't seem to have died from poisoning. There were no lacerations on their bodies unless..."
"Unless what?" Andros and Katheren stood up, looking at him intently as he suddenly brightened and called out, "Elyra!" The little owl flew in from outside, "What's up?"
"We're heading back to the palace; we know enough here!" he declared, his eyes alight with determination as he extinguished his cigar.
The trio, led by Elyra, returned to the hall where the charred bodies lay. The hall was deserted, the bodies still lying in silence. Grayson had Elyra shrink them and then sent her to keep watch outside.
He meticulously checked the bodies, finding no apparent lacerations but discovering that all their necks were broken. He slit open their throats with his claw blade and, after a careful inspection, stood up with a hint of a smile.
"As I suspected, their necks are all broken, with no burns, soot, or black blood clots like those in the dog's mouth. They didn't die from burning or poisoning!" he announced, standing up from the bodies.
"So they were strangled, and then the bodies were burned?" Andros asked, furrowing his brow, "Why would the murderer do that?"
"To conceal their method of killing!" Grayson pointed at the bodies, "A broken neck leaves distinct bruises, but if the skin is severely burned and blackened, it's hard to notice at a glance."
He took a puff of his cigar and smiled at Andros, "Just like when we first saw the bodies, we assumed they died from the fire. Without a thorough examination, such details can easily be overlooked."
"But why would Solon have someone do that?" Katheren asked, clearly puzzled, "How does covering up Tyrrel's cause of death benefit him?"
Grayson shook his head with a knowing smile, "It doesn't benefit him because it wasn't Solon's order."
He crushed the cigar butt on his claw blade and said to the two, "Come on, it's time to meet the real murderer."
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