Paul's eyes, however, narrowed, a flicker of suspicion replacing his confusion.

This was a man who acted with confidence, who wielded a power they had only ever associated with the Temple's elite, and yet he was denying any affiliation.

It didn't make sense, but it was also a possibility they had never considered.

"That's absurd," one of the sons, a burly man with a fiery temper, growled. "Everyone knows that only the Temple teaches and grants the holy aura."

Ray's smirk widened. "Everyone knows a lot of things," he said, his voice flat but expressions playful.

"But that doesn't make them true." His gaze settled on Paul, who was still trying to process the new information.

"So let's get back to the matter at hand. The truth about the woman who was burned yesterday. The man from the Temple, other two families, and your family's involvement."

Paul stiffened, his eyes now filled with caution. "We have no involvement in the matter," he said, his voice firm.

"We are a respectable family. We would never stoop to such acts."

"Really?"

Ray asked, his voice filled with a chilling doubt. "Then prove it, that you are not involved."

Paul's eyes widened. "Prove it? Who are you to ask for proofs, what if we don't accept your demands, no first of all who are you to begin with."

Ray Laughed, then with serious expressions he spoke, "Accept or not but there exist things that you shouldn't know about, so I'll make myself clear, that whoever was behind this incident, they won't have a good end."

Floria looked at Ray, her face a full of shock.

The sons were speechless; their faces filled with scepticism. Ray could see in their faces that they knew something and that was written on their guilty face..

"Now," Ray said, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper, "tell me everything. Or I can go and have a little chat with the Willsons and the Dorians."

His words were a clear threat. He was a force to be reckoned with. The Epstens had just witnessed his power and his confidence.

They knew that he was not someone to be trifled with. They had to give him the answers he was looking for, or they would face the consequences.

Paul looked at his sons and then back at Ray. He knew they were cornered. He had no other choice but to tell Ray what he wanted to hear.

"All right," he said, his voice filled with a painful resignation.

"We will tell you everything. But you have to promise us that you won't reveal anything to the other families. This is a matter of our family's honor."

Paul looked at Ray, his face etched with a painful resignation. He gestured for his sons and wife to sit, and they all took seats around the table.

Paul then took a deep breath, his hands clasped together.

"All right," he said, his voice filled with a hollow defeat.

"We will tell you everything. But you have to promise us that you won't reveal anything to the other families. This is a matter of our family's honor."

Ray didn't say anything, but a single nod was all Paul needed. He began his story.

"The three families have been rivals for a very long time. We've always been trying to one-up each other, but recently, the Willsons and Dorian families have started getting along.

It all started when a week ago, a person from the Temple came."

Paul's voice dropped to a near whisper as he continued. "He told us he was the vice-captain of the Delta squad."

"What is this Delta squad?" Ray asked in questioning tone.

Paul seemed to relax a little, taking a moment to explain. "The Temple has five extermination squads. Four are for hunting night creatures—Honor, Oscar, Gama, and Delta.

And the one called the main squad, or the healers, are the savers. They hunt creatures as well, but their main job is healing and protecting, the priests of the Temple are all of main squad.

His tone then became more grim, "One of the two vice-captains of the Delta squad, a man named Zeth, visited unannounced. But it seemed the Willsons and Dorians knew that beforehand."

Ray's eyes narrowed. "Why did he come unannounced? And instead of going to the knight garrison, he came to the two houses?"

Floria, who had been listening silently, finally spoke up, her voice tinged with bitterness.

"The real reason is something we don't know, but he is just living his life in luxury here and wrongly using his power."

Ray looked from Floria to Paul, a chilling coldness in his eyes. "So what's the reason behind the witch incident?"

Paul's face became serious, and he leaned in, his voice low and heavy with shame. "That vice-captain is a lecherous man.

He forced that woman to sleep with him, but when she refused, he threatened to kill her. But she was ready to die rather than sleep with a man other than her husband."

Ray thought he finally understood the whole matter, "So that's why she was killed in a broad daylight? For rejecting her advances! " but then Paul shook his head.

"No, sir," Paul said, his voice pained. "That wasn't the end of it. There were others who also being forced to give in to his demand.

So instead of killing her, he ordered to kill another woman to set example of her."

"Instead of her, they killed another woman?" Ray asked, questioning.

Paul shook his head. "No. He didn't just want to kill her. There were other women, too, who were refusing his demands. He ordered her to be burned to show others what would happen to them if they refused."

A quiet fury began to build in Ray's eyes. His voice dropped in disappointment, filled with a dangerous rage. "He did such a thing? And you all just watched it?"

Paul, seeing Ray's anger, quickly said, "The Dorians and Willsons are the reason he is doing such acts."

He knew that was a feeble excuse, but it was all he had. "They are providing him with everything, even with other women, so they can get more and more of his favor."

Paul continued, his voice now filled with an urgent warning. "You have to understand, he isn't just a simple man. He's a vice-captain of one of the four forces.

He holds so much power in his hands. Going against him would be the same as going against the Temple itself."

Ray's face remained impassive, but his mind began to race. Does this mean the Temple itself was corrupted?

That a high-ranking person was using his powers for such things? He pushed the thought aside for now.

"Who were these women?" he asked, his voice low. "Are they the part of this city?"

In return, Floria answered, her voice filled with a painful resignation.

"A few of them are locals, including the one who died yesterday, while some of them were from the small villages that we saved."

Ray now understood the situation completely. Ray then asked a question that had been nagging at him.

"But when the Dorians and even the Willsons are involved, why did they leave you out? I don't believe you wouldn't have wanted to be a part of this."

One of the sons, who had remained silent until now, spoke up. "Our elder sister is a part of the knighthood, and she is also one of the captains in the Gama squad.

This makes our position better than the other two families. Maybe because of that, they planned to lick the boots of that Vice-leader Zeth."

"Indeed, it can be the case," Ray said, his expression softening slightly.

"Well, now I can rest assured that the Epsten family is not in the wrong. Well done." Saying so, he got up.

Paul's eyes widened in surprise. "Are you leaving? Or are you visiting those families next?" he asked, his voice filled with a mix of shock and confusion.

Ray gave a short, cold laugh. "I'm leaving the city today, but maybe I'll return here one day."

He didn't explain, nor did they ask, but the look on their faces told him everything he needed to know.

This made all of them confused.

Why had he been interrogating them so seriously when he wasn't going to do anything? But they didn't ask, nor did Ray explain, as he found himself on the

On the other hand, Ray soon found himself back on the streets again, making his way toward the gates of the city.

He walked through the city, a quiet figure among the busy crowd. He watched people going about their day, and the world seemed peaceful.

A child laughed while chasing a ball; the group of women having conversations, while the man selling his goods as he looked through a basket of fruit.

It was a regular calm scene. But Ray knew the truth. Underneath the calm surface, a deep rot was growing.

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