Chapter 247: Business Partners If the God of Death's Agent's created underworld was large enough to contain all the victims, then there was indeed no need for him to dump one body on the outskirts for discovery. The only explanation was that his underworld was already full. If the Agent truly summoned a deceased person to operate under their identity in the city, then considering the two missing persons cases and the one murder case suspected by the Inquisition to involve the same perpetrator, by any count, the God of Death's Agent must have already killed four people. "Why did he kill so many?" Aiden didn't quite understand. "Did the duration of his granted power expire?" "No, the Progenitor once told me, offering one death grants nearly half a month of the 'God of Death's grace'," Kyle said slowly. "This person clearly killed unnecessarily. My guess... it might be his hobby." "Have you noticed a commonality among the deceased?" Kyle prompted. "All women under forty," Aiden thought for a moment and realized. "Indeed, he has a preference for his victims." If the Agent killed solely out of necessity to gain the God of Death's grace, there would be no need to be selective about victims, nor should he commit unnecessary murders. But now, not only had the Agent likely killed an extra person, but the three discovered victims also vaguely indicated his preference... Combining these points, the possibility of the Agent killing for pleasure was high. A thrill killer, who might kill again at any moment... This was truly the worst-case scenario. Aiden's face darkened at the thought. Nᴇw novel chapters are publɪshed on Novᴇl_Fire(.)net "Precisely. In comparison, the Red-light district is actually the most likely," Kyle said with crossed arms. "Not only are there more potential victims, but there are also many opportunities to strike. Moreover, I suspect the deceased he's using to cover his tracks... is likely also a woman from the Red-light district. To impersonate the dead, he would likely follow the deceased's previous patterns of activity." Aiden considered it. While not absolute, this prioritized search direction seemed generally correct. "But I have a question. If the God of Death's Agent is controlling a dead person to operate in the city, where is his actual body?" Aiden asked. "Most likely in the underworld he created. If the deceased's body is destroyed, the gate to the underworld reopens, swapping his real body out. Living humans can't enter that space, but it's no problem for undead blood-kin," Kyle answered. "Wait, his real body hides in the underworld while he controls the dead outside. Then how can you detect his scent?" Aiden frowned suspiciously. "Hmm?" Kyle realized something. "Do you perhaps think his method of controlling corpses is like a lich, hiding his phylactery and attaching a soul fragment to remotely manipulate the body?" "Isn't it? Necromancy is black magic derived from the 'Death' authority. Since he has power granted by the God of Death, he should be capable of that level of necromancy, right?" "Warden, blood-kin cannot separate soul from body," Kyle smiled. Aiden paused, taken aback. "I'm surprised the Inquisition's intelligence on blood-kin is so incomplete that even a Supervising Inquisitor like you doesn't know," Kyle sighed, throwing up his hands. "The curse engraved upon us grants us special powers, but also afflicts us with bloodlust and fear of sunlight. This curse does not permit our spirit to detach from this body. Blood-kin cannot become liches." Aiden genuinely didn't know this. In fact, the current Inquisition likely had no record of this information at all... They were primarily concerned with blood-kin weaknesses and methods to defeat them. "Blood-kin can't split soul fragments into corpses, but high-ranking blood-kin can directly infuse a part of their own body into a corpse, fusing with it. This allows him to control the deceased through the gate of the underworld, but his scent will remain on the corpse," Kyle explained. "I see... Then I have another question. He can hide his real body in the underworld. If he stays hidden inside, won't we be unable to attack him?" Aiden raised another doubt. "You don't need to worry about that. This kind of 'underworld' created by power has certain limitations. It must have a fixed 'anchor' in this plane and depend on it to exist," Kyle waved his hand dismissively. "In other words, this 'underworld' must be attached to something in this world—either the wielder of the power or the dead summoned from this underworld. If all the bodies of the dead summoned from the underworld are destroyed, he has no choice but to come out, otherwise the underworld, having lost its anchor, will disappear." "Understood." Having thoroughly grasped the third power held by the God of Death's Agent, Aiden finally felt somewhat grounded. "So? I've even revealed this information to you. Shall we start tonight?" Kyle proposed. "Alright," Aiden agreed after brief consideration. Letting a serial killer roam the city was far too dangerous regardless. "But let's be clear first. You only need to find the Agent's hiding place and maintain surveillance. That's enough." "Oh?" An expression of pleasant surprise appeared on Kyle's face. "Judging by that... Warden, are you confident you can take him down?" "I'm not confident, but I know someone I can ask," Aiden replied calmly. Abigail had promised to act once the Agent's location was found; Aiden estimated she likely wouldn't renege on this. "Is it Miss Liddell?" Kyle guessed almost immediately, having experienced her power firsthand. "It is," Aiden nodded. There was nothing to hide. "You actually associate with a powerhouse of that level? May I ask, what is your relationship?" Kyle asked curiously. Aiden thought for a moment. "Business partners, I suppose." "What kind of 'business'?" Kyle lowered his voice, already assigning special meaning to the word in his mind. Cooperation between two mysterious powerhouses walking the path to godhood was likely something that could shake the foundations of a nation. Facing the vampire whose imagination was running wild, Aiden answered expressionlessly, "We're planning to partner up to produce feminine hygiene products."