Chapter 278: Jack’s Findings

(The Imperial Court, Jack Sullivan’s POV)

Struggling with the turmoil raging within him, Jack stepped onto the dais and glanced towards Emperor Diomande, who acknowledged him with a slight nod, before his gaze shifted towards Prime Minister Vinicius, whose knowing wink and faintly sinister smile made Jack’s stomach churn with disgust.

For a moment, Jack simply stood there, staring at the hundreds of nobles and Imperial officials gathered before him, struggling to find the words with which to begin his testimony.

He had prepared his notes the previous evening, rehearsing the sequence of events and the conclusions he was expected to present, yet now that the moment had finally arrived, he found himself strangely reluctant to speak.

’It’s okay Jack, find the courage....’

He told himself, as taking a deep breath, he finally began speaking.

"Your Majesty, I, Jack Sullivan, was appointed by the Imperial government to investigate the murders that occurred within the Imperial Academy, and before presenting my deductions concerning the identity of the perpetrator, I would first like to establish the facts uncovered during my investigation."

Jack began, his voice carrying clearly throughout the courtroom.

Emperor Diomande nodded in acknowledgment before raising his hand slightly, gesturing for the Chief Imperial Inquisitor to continue with his testimony.

"When I arrived at the Imperial Academy following the massacre, my immediate priority was to secure the primary suspect, Riven Dawnriver, and place him under Imperial custody while the investigation proceeded."

Jack explained, glancing briefly towards Riven before continuing.

"At the time, Duke Drew Dawnriver had already arrived at the Academy and was preparing to take his son back to his estate, which meant that I was required to intervene and stop the suspect from being taken away, in accordance with the standard procedures followed by all Imperial investigators."

He paused momentarily, allowing the gathered nobles to absorb his words before proceeding with the account of what had happened next.

"However, when I attempted to enter the detention room, I was confronted by Duke Drew Dawnriver himself, who proceeded to knock me unconscious and murder the young assistants accompanying me."

Jack declared, his expression remaining grim as he recalled the incident.

"Following this attack, Duke Drew forcibly removed his son from Imperial custody and departed the Academy, openly disregarding the authority granted to Imperial investigators under the laws of the Valdrak Empire."

The revelation immediately provoked an angry reaction from several sections of the courtroom, as nobles who had previously remained silent began exchanging furious remarks amongst themselves.

"Shameful! Absolutely shameful!"

"Like father, like son! What else could anyone expect from that family?"

"How dare he murder Imperial officials while they were carrying out their duties?"

The accusations grew increasingly loud as several nobles turned towards Drew Dawnriver, expecting the Eastern Duke to display at least some degree of embarrassment over his actions.

However, Drew merely leaned back in his seat with a broad grin spreading across his face, appearing thoroughly pleased with himself as he listened to the accusations being hurled in his direction.

If anything, the outrage surrounding his actions seemed to amuse him, as he made no effort whatsoever to defend himself or offer an explanation for what had occurred.

"In my opinion, the reason for his interference is quite obvious!"

One particularly agitated noble shouted from amongst the gathering.

"His son must have confessed his guilt to him, and the Duke decided to eliminate the investigators before they could uncover the truth! Both father and son should be punished for their crimes!"

Several voices immediately rose in agreement, while others nodded grimly at the accusation, seemingly convinced that Drew’s violent interference was evidence of a larger conspiracy.

Even Emperor Diomande’s expression darkened as he turned towards the Eastern Duke, although Drew continued smiling without displaying the slightest concern over the hostility directed towards him.

After allowing the murmurs to continue for several moments, the Emperor raised his hand, signaling for the courtroom to return to silence before gesturing towards Jack.

"Continue with your testimony, Inquisitor Sullivan."

Diomande instructed, his voice carrying an unmistakable note of authority.

Jack bowed his head respectfully before turning his attention back towards the documents resting upon the dais.

"Your Majesty, I will admit that learning about the deaths of my fellow investigators left me in a rather disturbed state of mind, particularly because they had been carrying out their duties under my direct supervision for quite a while."

Jack continued, his voice growing noticeably heavier as he spoke.

"However, regardless of my personal feelings of unrest, I remained an Imperial Inquisitor entrusted with uncovering the truth, and I understood that my responsibilities could not be abandoned simply because the investigation had become personally painful."

He paused briefly before opening the first page of his report.

"Therefore, over the following five days, I devoted myself entirely to examining the circumstances surrounding the massacre, working without sleep or meaningful rest as I attempted to establish exactly what had occurred inside the Academy."

The courtroom remained silent as Jack lowered his gaze towards the documents before him, carefully arranging the pages containing his observations from the crime scene.

"Now, Your Majesty, allow me to explain what my investigation uncovered."

Jack announced, turning to the first section of his report.

"With Riven Dawnriver having already departed the Academy, I began by examining the location where the murders had occurred, starting with the bodies of the deceased students and the physical evidence surrounding them."

He glanced briefly towards the section occupied by the grieving families before continuing in a slightly more restrained voice.

"Upon arriving at the scene, I confirmed the deaths of twenty-one students, all of whom had suffered fatal injuries inflicted during what appeared to have been an exceptionally violent confrontation."

Several parents lowered their heads at the mention of their children, while others listened with expressions of barely restrained anger as Jack proceeded with his findings.

"Following my preliminary examination, I consulted Sir Roderick, the Chief Weaponsmith of the Imperial Academy, who possesses considerable expertise in identifying the types of weapons responsible for particular wounds."

Jack explained, raising his gaze towards the elderly blacksmith.

"Sir Roderick, who is also present in this courtroom today, examined the injuries sustained by the victims and concluded that the cutting patterns were consistent with those produced by a halberd."

He paused momentarily before delivering the next portion of his testimony.

"More specifically, the dimensions and characteristics of those wounds suggested that the weapon used during the massacre was none other than Sky-Cleaver, the personal halberd belonging to Riven Dawnriver."

An uncomfortable murmur spread throughout the gathering as Jack revealed this detail, with several grieving parents immediately directing furious glances towards the young man standing before the Emperor.

"The weapon in question has since been recovered and remains under Imperial custody, where it has been preserved for presentation as evidence during these proceedings."

Jack added, allowing the murmurs to subside before continuing.

"Now, considering that Sky-Cleaver belonged to Riven Dawnriver, and that the injuries sustained by the victims were consistent with those inflicted by his weapon, it would naturally appear that the evidence points towards him as the primary perpetrator."

Several nobles nodded approvingly at this statement, while others exchanged satisfied glances, seemingly convinced that the investigation was proceeding towards the conclusion they had anticipated.

Standing beside the Imperial throne, Prime Minister Vinicius observed Jack with a faint smile, appearing thoroughly satisfied with the manner in which the Chief Imperial Inquisitor had presented his findings.

Thus far, everything had unfolded exactly as he had expected, with Jack emphasizing the evidence against Riven while carefully avoiding any conclusions that might undermine the accusations brought before the court.

However, Jack was not finished.

"Nevertheless, Your Majesty, while the weapon used during the massacre may have belonged to Riven Dawnriver, there were several other circumstances surrounding the crime scene that I found exceedingly difficult to explain."

Jack continued, his voice remaining steady as he turned to the next page of his report.

"Certain details did not align with what one would ordinarily expect from a massacre committed by a student of Riven Dawnriver’s known abilities, and the more closely I examined those discrepancies, the more troubling they became."

He paused briefly, allowing his gaze to wander towards Prime Minister Vinicius, whose smile had now quickly started to fade.

"At first, I believed these irregularities could be explained through a more thorough examination of the evidence, but as my investigation progressed, I began to realize that several important questions remained unanswered."

Jack declared, raising his head to address the Emperor directly.

"And before this court can arrive at any reasonable conclusion concerning the identity of the murderer, I believe it is absolutely necessary that those questions be examined."

For several moments, the courtroom remained silent, as the assembled nobles waited for Jack to elaborate upon the mysterious discrepancies he had just mentioned.

However, beside the Imperial throne, Prime Minister Vinicius was now seething with rage, although he carefully concealed his growing fury behind the faintest of frowns.

The satisfaction that had accompanied Jack’s earlier testimony had completely vanished, as he watched the Chief Imperial Inquisitor turn another page of his report with an increasingly hostile expression.