Queen Without Crown

Chapter 69 The List of Victims

Tonight Prince Gaurav stays at the Alsatian palace. Outside the rain fell very hard. Many times there were thunderous sounds and lightning was flashing.

Somehow that night he felt a bit uneasy and reluctant to close his eyes even though his body felt very tired. From earlier he was just lying on the bed with his mind floating.

The man then sat leaning against the bed and his eyes unintentionally led to a glass window that was covered in a long white curtain.

Simultaneously the bright light of lightning made Prince Gaurav able to see the situation outside for a moment. It was then that the man saw that someone was standing in front of the window.

Prince Gaurav immediately went to the window to check. But there's nobody out there. Even the guard who had been standing guard near his room was now invisible. Maybe the guard was on patrol or had already returned to his post.

Prince Gaurav walked back to his bed and tried to close his eyes. The man then fell asleep for some time but his sleep was interrupted when his ears heard a commotion.

Prince Gaurav hurriedly came out and walked down the corridor towards the direction of the commotion. It turned out that there was already a crowd accompanied by a hysterical scream.

"What's up?" Prince Gaurav stepped forward to gather the crowd.

The man saw the Elok Princess standing pecked with a pale face. In front of her a female servant stiffened with a terrible condition. The woman's body was torn to shreds with the intestines decomposed. His blood pooled on the granite floor.

Prince Gaurav immediately approached Princess Elok and hugged the woman. The woman's body trembled violently, obviously if she was in shock. Perhaps this was the first time he had seen such a terrifying sight.

"Come, go back to your room! " Prince Gaurav said in a soft voice. He led the Eloquent Princess to walk towards his room.

Prince Gaurav helped Princess Elok lie down and envelop her body. His hand stroked the woman's head and kissed her as a form of empathy.

"D-he was killed because of me! " Dripping tears drenched the cheeks of the Eloquent Princess.

"Sshh..relax! " Prince Gaurav tried to calm down Princess Elok who began to sob.

"It's all my fault! " The woman looked at Prince Gaurav with wet eyes. Sadness and fear were clearly in his eyes.

"It's not your fault! "

"I should have died, not him! Nana.. " The woman wailed bitterly.

"No! Be thankful that you are alive. I am so thankful that nothing happened to you! " Prince Gaurav looked into the eyes of the Elok Princess to show his sincerity.

Then she hugged the Elegant Princess and let the woman cry on her shoulder. The noble lady looked extremely fragile like a dandelion petal blown by the wind.

"The man followed me here. He'll take me!"

Prince Gaurav looked at Princess Elok in confusion.

"Whose guy? "

"The man I met in the prairie of Masserjarvi." The voice of the Elok Princess implied fear.

*****

"How could this happen again? " King Satria was furious when he got news of the discovery of another murder victim.

The man rushed to the scene with his guards. This time the location was a river bank far from the settlement. There's a Royal Investigator named Radit.

"Do you know the identity of the victim? " King Satria questioned the investigator who had just finished examining the victim's body.

"There are people who know this man. His name is Seno, he works as an antique dealer. He has a shop in the market. "

"Has he just returned home from traveling? "

"For that I do not know, Your Majesty. Later after meeting his family, we can only find out. "

"Are there any eyewitnesses? "

"There was an angler who happened to pass dawn earlier and found the body of the victim lying here in a terrible condition. "

"Did that person not see someone?....or something?"

"The man said he didn't see anyone. But even though the rain only stopped after falling overnight, he said the condition of the corpse was still warm. So it's thought he was murdered not long before his body was found."

King Satria fell silent and thought about all the possibilities that happened to the victim. Then he went to see the condition of the murder victim's corpse. Radit followed him from behind.

"Who put that piece of hand there? "

"When it was found, that piece of hand was already there. "

"What is a ring? " King Satria pointed the ring finger at the piece of the hand.

Radit looked closer. Seen a circular stroke at the base of his middle finger, it looks like the victim is used to wearing a ring. But the ring does not exist.

"Your Majesty is right. "

"Has fish scales also been found on his body? "

"Right Your Majesty, but this time the scales were splattered on the ground. So maybe, in fact, the killer accidentally left those scales on the victim's body. "

"Try Your Majesty, look at this! " Radit showed rather deep footprints on the ground. The trail leads to the river.

"Who's footprint is it? Does it belong to the fisherman? "

"That's not a trace of the angler, it's likely the trail belonged to the killer! "

"Have you heard of Rusalqa, Radit? "

"Yes, I've heard of it. They are half-fish creatures like Mermaids but they can change into human beings. " Radit looked at King Satria with a frown.

"Does His Majesty think that the killer is that creature? "

"Yes, I thought so! " The King of Satria answered.

*****

Queen Gita takes her baby to the library accompanied by her two personal servants, Esme and Talitha. The woman can't wait for Eldrige to return so she can help him find out more about the creatures that are wandering around terrorizing the tranquility of the Elfian Kingdom.

"Come with Princess Juwita because I want to find some books." Queen Gita hands her baby into Esme's arms.

"Okay, Your Majesty." The two servants answered together.

Queen Gita walked slowly down high shelves and filled with books. Although she has not yet memorized the books she wants, she managed to find some books that look interesting and might be able to help her husband's investigation.

The woman diligently read the pages of the book before her, but they still did not answer the questions that plagued her mind.

"Phase of finding a partner? " Murm the woman.

According to the book he read, at the age of adulthood the Rusalqa will look for a partner. But sometimes, they will choose humans to be their partners. They will ensnare their potential partners by pretending to be human.

"Searching couples? But I don't think this is what I'm looking for. " Queen Gita reopens the pages of the book.

"Rusalqa will lose his scales when his body is unwell or dying." Queen Gita's lips muttered as she read on the next page.

"Is the Rusalqa who killed those people actually dying? "

"Ah, if only Eldrige were here! " Queen Gita rests his face on both hands.

"Why are you expecting Eldrige? " Suddenly came a familiar voice denouncing him.

"You surprised me! " Queen Gita smiled seeing her husband already standing behind her.

"You visit the library every day is it because you miss the guard? " King Satria pouted.

"Don't say that, baby. I came here to help you. Look what I found!" Queen Gita immediately approached her husband and invited him to sit down and show him the book she was reading.

"You still think that a creature called Rusalqa is the murderer ?"

"Yes." Yeah."

"Then, what if you help me catch him? "

Queen Gita was silent for a moment, but she finally nodded her head.