"[...
Mission in progress…
Find the origin of the problem in Jericho and eliminate all those responsible for it. Your judgment will determine the reward earned.]"
Because of everything that had happened, the villagers were now watching Jonathan's group with caution. Everyone was nervous since it was probably the first time any of them had seen a group of people like that.
They didn't know what was going on, so they stepped aside.
"An unadapted town despite their knowledge." After the opening of Nevermore Academy, all the villagers realized how strange those students were.
Not just anyone was admitted, only people with special gifts. This made clear the origins of Nevermore Academy, and they labeled any student from that academy as an outcast.
Everyone thought that as long as they remained united as a rooted community, nothing could affect them. But now, with everything happening, no one believed that the deaths of the mountaineers were caused by animals.
And now that Jonathan knew where a certain group of outcasts hiding from The Healing Church were located, he had to find a way to solve it without causing too much commotion.
In ancient times, prisons that housed many inmates were the perfect refuges for humans who lived in fear of beasts.
The prison cells were small and adjacent to each other, allowing many people to inhabit them together.
This one in particular was small, but there were larger ones as well, which also had tall watchtowers that made it easy to detect any external threat. In prisons, weapons were stored for attacking and defending against beasts.
"This is how Jericho's prison looks." Jonathan looked at the police station run by Sheriff Galpin, who apparently was not inside the station.
"Who are you?" The police officers near the station approached Jonathan's group when they saw all those armed people outside.
Jonathan asked quickly: "Is Sheriff Galpin here?"
"I asked you once, and I'll ask you again—who are you?" The police, alarmed by Jonathan's group's weapons, began reaching for the holsters of their pistols to be ready.
Seeing this, Jonathan nodded to an agent in his group, who quickly pulled out an identification: "You don't have much authority to investigate, but this will give you an idea of who we are."
"Are you federal agents?"
"Correct."
"Are you here for the murders?"
"That's right." Jonathan entered the police station, walked straight into Sheriff Galpin's office, and stared at the wall.
"We need a record of all prisoners in the last 48 hours." Father Doug, dressed as he usually did, stayed at the reception.
When Jonathan saw all of Sheriff Galpin's investigation, he sighed and ordered everything to be packed up.
It wasn't good for an ordinary person to investigate cases they could never figure out. If they did, they would likely end up dead or driven insane.
And now that this man could be the key to identifying the origin of his son's problem, Jonathan needed to keep him under control at all times.
The problem would be Sheriff Galpin's stubbornness, since Jonathan believed it would be complicated to deal with him.
"Boss, the agents are beginning to run tests on the prisoners." Father Doug informed Jonathan quietly.
"I'm going. I'll handle it personally."
As Jonathan passed by the cells, he didn't notice anything strange until he encountered a man staring straight at him.
"Open the door." Jonathan ordered without breaking eye contact with the man.
In an instant, before anyone realized it, Jonathan appeared in front of the man, and before he could say anything, he drove a knife into his chest.
"Aaaaah!" Jonathan stabbed the thug who screamed, striking him in the heart. The man's lips moved slightly, but he said nothing as he died.
Jonathan was cold and merciless.
From the start, he hadn't planned on letting him go.
Especially now that he knew what was necessary to understand what he was facing.
Just as he had been told, all those who associated with dark entities that harmed people were enemies.
As long as his judgment didn't waver, Jonathan would not hesitate to kill his enemies.
"If they are dark entities, do not hesitate, or you will die." Now Father Doug truly understood the meaning behind those words.
Jonathan didn't consider himself a good person. He had fought to survive since he was very young and had encountered so much darkness in his life that he could no longer distinguish good from evil.
However, he didn't consider himself a bad person either. He was something in between and never wanted to change.
In reality, he was a kind person.
"Showing mercy is optional, but having a kind heart and not harming others is not!"
That was what he lived for.
He didn't know if that would ever change, but until then he planned to hold on to his beliefs.
Jonathan let out a long breath and pulled out a handkerchief to wipe off the blood. "Another one?"
"Well, they had the same trace. Killing people not associated with Nevermore Academy are the orders." Just as Jonathan was about to leave, an agent entered with new information.
"Sheriff Galpin is heading to the cafeteria?"
"Yes, boss."
"Then let's go."