The next morning, Miles woke up to a gray sky and the smell of wet pavement. He grumbled, a feeling of dread settling in his stomach. He was no longer a carefree man with no responsibilities. He had a job, and it was a demanding one. "A detective," he muttered to himself, "who would've thought? Looks like I've traded one unhappy life for a workaholic one." He put on his black long coat and black trouser, his hair neatly combed, some falling on his forehead, sighing at the stiffness of the material.
Just as he reached for the doorknob, a new notification flashed in his mind, its stark blue text cold and unyielding.
[New Quest: Suicide]
Objective: Find out what happened to Katherine Vance.
Reward: 100 XP, 50 Skill Points.
Note: This is a mandatory quest. You have 7 days to complete it.
Miles's felt the name familiar, wondering where he had heard it from, "Katherine Vance? Hmmmmm." His mind went back to the Kath girl of yesterday and the name he saw on her documents. "The girl from the day before, the one who had disappeared into the rain, she's dead?!"
He felt a mix of shock and confusion. Was this his first real case? He had to find her, and he had to find out what had made her so distraught. He knew this wasn't just a simple detective job. This was his new life, a life where every sad, little mystery was his to solve. He opened the door and stepped into the cool, damp morning, his first official case already on his hands. "Katherine Vance?!" He whispered.
_______
Miles stepped into the grand, bustling hall of the Aethelred Institute, a feeling of unease settling in his gut. The system's quest to find Katherine Vance felt surprising and sad, a far cry from the detective work he'd imagined. He was supposed to be a professional, but this felt like meddling.
He navigated the maze of corridors until he found the main briefing room, where the other recruits and several senior detectives were already gathered. A stern-faced man in a crisp suit stood at the front of the room, his eyes scanning the crowd. "Listen up, recruits. The standard detective units have been filled. You, the new recruits, will form a specialized investigative unit. Your objective is to handle cases that fall outside the typical jurisdiction of the city's police force—mysteries with unexplained circumstances, strange occurrences, and matters of a more delicate nature. The unit will be known as the Aethelred Initiative for Singular Cases, or AISC."
Miles's mind reeled. Singular Cases. The system had brought him here for this exact purpose. He glanced around, spotting Ethan Morales, who gave him a nod. He also noticed a tall, cold-looking man with piercing blue eyes, he was the senior examiner who instructed them in the final exam, and a stunningly beautiful woman with an air of quiet confidence, Cecilia Beaumont.
The head of the institution continued, "Your team has already been formed. Mr Miles Corbane, Mr Ethan Morales and Ms Cecilia Beaumont."
Miles's blood ran cold. The man who instructed us in the final exam, cool? He stared at the cold man, and a wave of anticipation washed over him.
The man continued, "Your team will be led by Inspector Finch Crookman." A tall muscular man with fiery red hair and a no-nonsense demeanor stepped forward. "He is the best we have at unraveling the impossible. He will be your head of operations."
"Your first case is already on your desks," Inspector finch said, his voice sharp and clear. "It's the case of Katherine Vance."
They all were unaware of the girl who died except Miles who has already been given a quest to solve the case. Even with the sound of the "suicide" that sounded cold and hollow from the man's voice, they were still standing poised, their eyes staring without blinking except for Miles who was kind of feeling creepy about their odd behavior.
Inspector Finch cleared his throat before he continued, his voice cutting through the whispers. "The police have conducted an initial investigation and have officially ruled it as a suicide, the victim was found in her bathtub, in the water that has turned completely to blood before they arrived, after slitting her wrist and bleeding herself to death in the bathtub, but since we have to confirm if what we think is what really happened, her body is undergoing an autopsy before we conclude the scene to be Suicide, here's a photograph of the crime scene.
He brought it out of his pocket coat and gave it to Ethan Morales, who he thought would be more matured among them, miles and Cecilia went behind him to look at the black and white photo of Katherine Vance, her body all pale and drenched, she was already taken out of the bathtub, her slitted wrist spotted in the photograph and Ethan returned the photo and Mr Finch shoved it back in his pocket coat.
He continued, "But due to the strange circumstances and a lack of clear motive and since the cause of the suicide is still unknown. Your jobs as detective of this unit is to investigate the cause of what drove her into commiting suicide."
The team was directed to their office, a large, well-lit room with four desks. Miles's eyes widened, absorbing the details of the new space. The desks were mahogany, gleaming in the light from a large bay window. The walls were lined with bookshelves and corkboards, a perfect blank slate for a team to fill with clues. The air was thick with tension as the four members stood awkwardly, each waiting for the other to speak.
Miles broke the silence. "Well, I guess we should introduce ourselves properly. I'm Miles Corbane as you all have heard before. I, uh, passed the exams yesterday."
They all glared at him like he was stupid at first and saw it as a reasonable thinking and Ethan followed, "Ethan Morales," he said with a charming smile. "Pleasure to be working with you all."
"Finch Crookman," the cold man said, his voice flat and emotionless. He didn't offer a handshake.
The beautiful girl, who had been quietly observing them, finally spoke. "My name is Cecilia Beaumont. It's nice to meet you all."
Inspector Finch, who had been watching them, clapped his hands together. "Alright, introductions are over. Let's get to work." He pointed to a file on the central desk. "This is the initial report on Katherine Vance. A team has been working on the information-gathering phase, but we've been asked to take over the investigation. The police have no leads. We will be combining our own intelligence with their initial findings."
He turned to Ethan. "The initial report indicates Katherine last known location was a City park. You and Miles will go to the site. Cecilia and I will stay here to process the existing data. Our team is known as AISC-Epsilon, or AISC-E."
Miles frowned, confused. "Why isn't Cecilia coming along?" he asked, not wanting to leave the quiet, beautiful woman behind.
"Because we have different roles," Inspector Finch replied in a cold manner and absence of warmth. "Cecilia and I will be working on the intelligence side. You and Ethan will be on the ground, gathering information firsthand maybe sometime she could join you guys."
Ethan looked at him with a hint of disdain. "I will contact you guys if there's any update," he said to Inspector Finch and Cecilia, before turning and heading for the door.
Miles followed, but before he left, he glanced back at Cecilia. Their eyes met for a brief, fleeting moment, a spark of understanding passing between them. Then, he left, the heavy door of the office closing behind him. As he walked away, he knew she was already back on the documents about Katherine.