It took a long moment for me to process that statement. Killion? As in, the town elder Killion? That kindly old man, one of the only people who hadn't been blatantly racist to Sybil? I couldn't imagine how he could have committed these crimes, and had half a mind to call Hickory out, when I looked over to see Sybil nodding along with him. What was going on?

Sybil caught my confused expression, and explained, "Sorry Abel, but I had my suspicions. He offered us more money that most towns of this size could afford, and seemed to have more experience dealing with vampires, which is a rare thing to see outside of adventurers, most of which hit Tier 3 before retiring," she turned back to face Hickory before continuing, "It sounds like you're offering to help us take him down, but I'm certain that my partner and I would like to confirm that he truly is the one behind all of this before we go pointing swords around."

The man nodded. "That is understandable, though I will not be waiting much longer. I've allowed this psychopath to take far too many lives already. You understand."

He escorted us to the door, then slammed it shut behind us. An anxious Jeffors awaited us.

"Are you guys alright? I'm sorry, I was supposed to be there with you guys, I-"

Sybil cut him off with a glare. "You were what?"

Jeff flinched, but managed to get a couple words out. "I was supposed to be there and protect you guys. Elder Killion told me so."

Sybil looked back at me, before nodding and strutting away.

I patted the poor guy on the shoulder. "Don't worry man, you didn't do anything wrong, just what you were told. Sybil just doesn't like it when people feel like they need to protect her, you know how it is." That last part was a blatant lie. I didn't want the guy scared of us, he'd been plenty helpful, even if it was an obvious ploy to spy on us. He was just a guard, doing what he was told, and he didn't even know that he was acting as a spy. He'd probably just unintentionally report on us later in casual conversation with the elder.

Still, though, it really wasn't his fault. Sybil was just being hostile, but she had her reasons, ones that I understood perfectly well. Now, Killion would know that we'd had a private conversation with Hickory, and if he were a paranoid man, then that could cause him to try to make a run for it. That sped up our timetables a bit. We could have a few weeks, or just today, but in either case, we needed to move much faster.

An idea sparked in my mind. "Hey, Jeffors, my man. Do you think you could set up a meeting with Killion for my partner and I, just to go over the details of this quest?"

I received a curt nod in acknowledgement

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

Tier 3 Quest: A Long Night Many have been lost. It is up to you to find and exterminate the threat to the village led by Killion. Objective 1: Find and slay the true source of the disappearances .

Rewards: 10 Gold Pieces, 25% Class XP

Hidden Objective 1: ???

Rewards: ???

Hickory had said the kids were alive. Perhaps that was what the hidden objective was, freeing them before anything bad could happen to them? If that was true, then that was further incentive to get this over with sooner, rather than later. Not that I needed anything to save a bunch of little kids from whatever wicked fate they would otherwise face.

I'd talk to Killion, and if he was really kidnapping children for this 'Red Kingdom,' then I'd kill him, and then I'd go get the kids. Simple as that. If anyone else tried to stop me?

Well, they'd just have to die.

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Sybil and I once more sat in a conference room with Killion. Now that I was paying attention, I found that he did seem quite wealthy, especially for this area. His fabrics were noticeably richer, designed in intricate patterns. Where the majority of the villagers seemed thin, their clothes bare, the town's head was fit and well adorned.

Still, this wasn't anything conclusive. He could be a greedy asshole without being a kidnapper. All it did was point towards Killion being a jerk.

"Hey, Killion." I greeted him with a false smile. Inside, my teeth were grinding together. "How's it going?"

He laughed warmly. "Oh, quite well, noble adventurer. How's the quest coming along?"

I noticed that glint in your eye, you bastard. "Oh, not great. I'd estimate maybe a week before we find the cause of these murders." I allowed the smile to fall off my face as I glanced over at Sybil, who stepped closer to him, into the range some might consider personal space, and bowed her head.

"We hope you and your people can put up with us a little longer," Sybil said, her head still bowed.

Killion flushed a little and stepped backwards. "Ah, no need for that, young lady!"

Sybil quickly unbowed her head and stared back at me before nodding. She had it.

"Ah, well, what was it you wanted to discuss again?"

“Oh, we just wanted to discuss any ideas you may have had about the case. Perhaps there is some or another stealth monster that’s particularly common in this area?” Sybil and I had discussed how best to disguise the real reason that we’d called for this meeting, and had decided that just asking a normal question was best. If we just backed out after greeting him, he would get suspicious. This way, he’d still think we were trying to track down a monster, and not investigating him.

“Ah, yes, well, you see-”

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That man could talk. We’d been in that meeting room for at least a couple hours, all while he tried to throw us off his trail. It was all worth it, though. According to Sybil, not only had the man smelled very faintly of blood, it had seemed to correlate with the scents that she’d found at the crime scenes we’d investigated earlier.

It didn't matter, though. We knew it was him now. All that was left now was to apprehend him. For that, though, we'd need Hickory.

The tall door creaked open. "Back so soon? I hope that means you've made the decision to fight with me."

A nod later, and we were pulled into the house.

It was time to get geared up.