Demonic Devourer's Development

Chapter 216 - INTERLUDE. Sherlock Rogues

With how scheduled God of Monks' life was, it wasn't as long as God of Rogues would've liked until some of his angels grew alarmed with his silence. From there, the news spread. No one believed God of Monks to be dead yet, and God of Rogues couldn't imagine the outrage when they found out… Everyone was alarmed as it was.

Soon, a full-out investigation started. Or, to be more precise, the arguments about who should lead it.

"I'm the most knowledgeable among us. You can look down on me for losing so much of my power, but I didn't lose my knowledge—the most valuable thing I have," Goddess of Wizards stated, jerking her chin up.

"Forgive me, goddess, but you must admit that you aren't the most knowledgeable in every area. Surely Goddess of Druids knows more about nature, and God of Fighters about weaponry… And I know more about crime." God of Rogues smiled sweetly. "Isn't that right, guys?"

Goddess of Wizards stayed bitter. "Yes, because you do most of it. But making crime and solving crime are entirely different things."

"Goddess of Wizards is right!" God of Paladins proclaimed. He spoke in his outside voice, though they were currently indoors—as usual. "There is clearly something truly abhorring going underfoot. We must shed a light of knowledge on it, and God of Rogues, who always skulks in the dark, cannot be trusted with such task."

"He's a doer, not solver. I think that my expertise would be more useful than that of both of you," Goddess of Rangers quietly addressed Goddess of Wizards and God of Rogues. "I know how to track prey, no matter the environment. If there's a single trace of the culprit, I will find it."

God of Rogues was pretty sure he erased everything she could find. But he didn't want to risk it. She was as good at searching as he was at hiding. Which was just the reason he was pushing to be in the head of this investigation.

"Goddess, I don't want to diminish your expertise, but investigations are more than just searching for tracks. The investigator will have to interrogate witnesses, too, and discern the meaning of the evidence. And neither you nor Goddess of Wizards are well known for being sociable. Now, let's take, say, Bards." God of Rogues smirked at the said god. "He's the most sociable of us, but how much does he know about investigative work?"

Said god playfully bowed. "Not as much as I'd like right now. A pity! Or I would've gladly offered my hand in this."

"Can't we work together on this?" Goddess of Clerics spoke up. "One searches for evidence, another analyses it, the third asks the witnesses…"

"Impossible!"

"No."

"This would be inconvenient." God of Rogues spoke last, smiling. "Listen, since we have our candidates pinned down, why won't we go straight to voting? After all, the longer we wait, the colder is the trail."

"Agreed." Goddess of Rangers nodded. "I'm in no mood talking with you until sunset."

"I'm normally all for talking until sunset, and then doing even more pleasurable things after, but on today's occasion, I will agree that it is vital to spend more time in action than in consideration of said action. In other words, we should do something before it's too late. Who knows what fate torments our comrade at this very moment?"

"Yet you talk so much," Goddess of Rangers muttered. "Why won't you just vote?"

"Of course, my dear… But I have to think about whom to vote for, and I always think best when I talk. In fact, I do everything best when I talk, except things that require the use of my tongue in other ways."

"Other ways?" God of Paladins gave God of Bards a suspicious look. "Don't speak again about such vile things!"

"Vile? You think even eating is vile now? Oh, now we are doomed to die from hunger if we won't die sooner from the gloominess your lectures bring to our souls." God of Bards put a back of his head to his forehead with a tormented expression. "Woe on us!"

"Enough of that foolishness. If you are not voting, then at least don't interfere with others' thinking!" Goddess of Wizards chided and that, finally, shut the two up. At least for long enough for everyone to vote.

It was a hard sell for God of Rogues. Goddess of Wizards normally would've won, but no matter what she said—they did look down on her even now after her death. Goddess of Rangers was also a dangerous competition, but despite her clean reputation, she was quite a recluse and had very few points of interaction with other gods.

A few urging smiles, a few right words placed with a spell into the right ears with others being none the wiser, and with five votes against two and three God of Rogues was chosen as the investigator on the business of the disappeared deity.

"Thank you all for your trust in me," he said heartily to the gathered gods. "I will do my best to solve this mystery. Please, don't go too far away yet—I will have to ask you about the last time you spoke with the victim."

"What will you do until then?" God of Paladins asked. "Shouldn't you ask us first?"

"No. The first people I have to question are the angels who knew about God of Monks' movements. Then I can pin down the place where he disappeared and search it for material clues." God of Rogues wagged his finger in the air. "This is the procedure!"

"The procedure?.." Goddess of Rangers frowned in puzzlement. "There's a procedure for this?.."

"There's so much you don't know about solving crimes, goddess. But don't worry. I have centuries of experience in watching other people trying to solve mine. I won't let you all down, my friends!"

"You better don't, scoundrel," Goddess of Wizards muttered and added louder. "Then the rest of us should continue with our search for Devourer.. Together, this time. Who knows if this disappearance will repeat?"