As soon as he arrived downstairs at the apartment, Charlotte sensed that something was wrong. In front of the Savings Society apartment building, there were actually four or five patrol carriages parked, along with more than a dozen military horses tied up. Several city patrol soldiers were chatting idly by the carriages—clearly, something had happened.

He went up and greeted them in a friendly manner, saying, “I am a First-Class Clerk of the Central Government Office, Charlotte Baker, a tenant here. I’d like to know what happened?”

Charlotte was simply too young; claiming to be a senior clerk made it easy for others to think he was a fraud. Besides, Kilmainham Prison’s name was certainly not as useful as the Central Government Office, so he reported his outdated identity.

The patrol soldiers exchanged glances and laughed together, saying, “There’s been a burglary, and someone was killed. We’ll have it sorted out soon, Mr. Baker.”

Charlotte still felt a bit uneasy and asked, “Can I go home?”

The patrol soldiers replied, “Of course, no problem. We’ve already examined the scene.”

Charlotte entered the apartment and went up to the second floor, only to see the corridor full of patrol soldiers, which made his uneasy feeling even stronger.

When Charlotte saw his own room, the door wide open and several patrol soldiers talking at the entrance, he was certain he was the unlucky one.

He stepped forward and asked, “This is my room. May I ask what happened?”

A young and handsome patrol soldier instinctively drew his longsword, his face alert. An older colleague pressed down his hand and said, “Dobbin! This man just came back from outside, he’s clean, no bloodstains. He should be the tenant the doorman described, Mr. Charlotte.”

The patrol soldier who had drawn his sword spun it and sheathed it again, then said sympathetically, “Sir, I’m afraid you’ll have to come with us.”

“There’s been a homicide in your home. Someone killed a lady in your room.”

Charlotte couldn’t help but feel a dull headache and asked, “Mr. Dobbin, may I know the details of the case?”

The young patrol soldier replied, “This afternoon, a gentleman and a lady came to visit you. They forced their way into the apartment despite the doorman’s attempts to stop them. The gentleman violently broke down your room’s door and started fighting with the lady inside your room.”

“The gentleman killed the lady who came with him in your room, and then escaped through the window.”

“Unfortunately, your life will now have to revolve around this incident.”

From his memory and the messy women’s clothing in the room, Charlotte could roughly judge that ‘his’ previous private life was probably not so ‘pure.’ But he hadn’t expected trouble to come knocking so soon, and in such a serious form.

He rubbed his brow and asked, “May I check my things in the room?”

The young patrol soldier nodded and gestured for him to go ahead.

Charlotte stepped into his room. The first thing he saw was clothing scattered everywhere, even messier than before, with several garments stained with blood—clearly, a fierce struggle had taken place.

Charlotte glanced at the multi-headed chain flail and the vampiric hand axe thrown in the corner, as well as the diary on the desk, and quietly breathed a sigh of relief, deciding to carry the vampiric hand axe with him from now on.

He turned and left the room, saying to the apartment manager, who had been standing by with the patrol soldiers, “Sorry, I need a new room.”

The manager hesitated for a moment and said helplessly, “There are only a few suites left in the apartment, and they’re relatively expensive. If it were an accidental incident, we’d take responsibility, but in this case, I’m afraid you might bear some responsibility as well, Mr. Charlotte…”

Charlotte smiled slightly and said, “I’ll make up the difference for the reduced rent on this apartment for a full year. I need to go out with the patrol soldiers now. When I return, please show me the new room.”

“And please have someone watch over my belongings in the room so nothing gets lost.”

With Charlotte’s promise, the manager relaxed considerably and said, “I’ll have Mary wait here for your return. You know, Mary has always been reliable.”

Charlotte nodded and said to the two patrol soldiers, “I’m ready to cooperate with the investigation at any time.”

The patrol soldiers had already figured out the case, and now that Charlotte, the person involved, had returned, their task was complete.

In this era, the Fars Empire used patrol soldiers to perform the role of police on Earth, but there weren’t so many rules or detailed procedures.

Chapter 11: Social Relations

In other words, law enforcement in this era was very rough, with little professionalism.

It was said that the patrol soldiers’ case-solving rate was less than three percent. Theft cases largely depended on private detectives, while robbery, kidnapping, and murder cases were almost entirely solved through private rewards.

It was better than a lawless society, but not by much—a rough and not very pleasant legal system.

The patrol soldiers quickly withdrew from the apartment, invited Charlotte onto a carriage, and sped off toward the patrol headquarters.