With Snapper leading the way, we all headed toward Larg's home.
During our journey there, I had time to process things while also questioning several others.
What I was most concerned about was the sudden presence of Jude: a detective who just so happened to appear when needed most, turning Mel's disappearance into an investigative mystery and possible kidnapping.
For someone who supposedly harbors romantic feelings for her, he seems awfully thrilled about this whole endeavor.
Not only that, but before he appeared at our table, I had never once seen him inside the station, nor did I notice the sound of his footsteps approaching us. The way he stared at me back at the station was also odd.
Something about him isn't right... or maybe I'm just overthinking it.
Sooner or later, we arrived at our destination.
For someone who lived alone, Larg had quite a considerably large cottage.
I guess being an info broker must pay well, I thought.
It was quite an ominous looking home that was as isolated as it was gloomy, with only a few other buildings that amateurishly surrounded the area, blending into the scenery.
"... Okay, that's pretty strange," Snapper said, as we all approached the white fence that formed a rectangular perimeter around Larg's front yard.
"What is it?" I asked, noticing that he seemed quite troubled about something.
"It's Larg's fence gate..."
I motioned myself closer toward the gate, noticing it had already been opened slightly.
"He's always so meticulous about these kinds of things. He would never just leave his gate open like this."
"Hmm, is that so?" Jude crouched down, closely observing the gate, unable to find a lock. "Usually, people who stray from typical behavioral patterns tend to have undergone some kind of psychological turmoil... something like having a guilty conscience perhaps."
"The hell are you tryna say?" Snapper glared at him rather menacingly.
"Excuse me," Barshall then interrupted as he entered the front yard and approached the front door of the cottage.
It seemed as though Barshall had already become suspicious enough to associate Larg with Mel's disappearance.
"I-Is he alright?" May asked with concern.
"He's been like this ever since Larg became a potential suspect," Amber replied. "He probably thinks he might've actually kidnapped the princess."
"What do you think?" I asked her, slightly curious about her opinion.
"Honestly I'm not sure. Snapper seems to think that Larg is innocent, and he's known him for much longer than any of us have, so it's probably better we take his word for it."
My thoughts pretty much aligned with Amber's words, but I felt as though her opinions were favored by a new found trust toward Snapper rather than a more logical bias.
Suddenly, there was a loud banging that pounded against my eardrums.
We all turned our attention toward the front door as Barshall hit his fist against it, almost like he was planning to knock it down.
"What the hell is going on with you, old man?!" I heard Snapper yell as we all approached him.
"Mister Larg Loman!" he shouted, completely ignoring Snapper. "My name is Keene Barshall, a noble servant, loyal to Princess Meleragine. I am speaking to you as a representative, on behalf of the Melanargia kingdom! You are to return the princess at once, or face the consequences of your foolish actions!"
He continued to bang on the door more profusely.
"W-what if he's not home?" May said.
"Yeah, old man. You can't keep banging on someone's door like this when they haven't answered the first time."
Snapper grabbed Barshall by the wrist.
"You need to calm down."
"R-right," he said, as the tension in his body ceased, "I apologize for my impetuous behavior. I cannot help but think that the princess might be in grave danger."
Barshall lowered his head as if a deep penitence was weighing it down.
"We'll do everything we can to find her," Amber reassured him. "You have my word."
"I appreciate your words, Miss Amber, but if Mister Larg is not currently home, then where else would we be able to find him?"
"He's probably at a local tavern, getting wasted," Snapper answered disappointedly. "I guess it's probably better if we split ourselves up and search around—"
"Hold on a second, Snap," Jude interrupted.
"I TOLD YOU NOT TO CALL ME THAT!"
"Sorry, but I'm just curious about something..." He moved in front of the door, where Barshall stood previously. "If the front gate was unlocked, then perhaps..."
"Hey, what're you doing?"
Jude wrapped his hand around the door knob, twisting it and unlocking the door before gently pushing it open.
"Seems like I've still got it," Jude gloated.
Hesitating to enter, he turned to Snapper, who was frozen in shock.
"Lemme guess, he doesn't usually leave his front door open either?"
"... So now what? You're just gonna break into his house and look for clues? Is that it?"
"That's exactly right… Wow." He mischievously grinned with a look suprise. "I think you'd actually make quite the detective one day, Snap."
"... You're lucky I don't have my dagger on me right now."
"... Well then, shall we?"
Jude gestured for us all to enter after opening the door widely.
Inside Larg's home, the most noticeable thing to Amber and I was the stench, which made us both recoil slightly as we wandered into the lounge area.
Although I had previously gained firsthand exposure to Larg's bad odour, this smell was something else entirely.
It was almost like something was rotting somewhere inside.
"Yo, Larg, you in here?!" Snapper called as he moved around the lounge and into what appeared to be Larg's bedroom.
I noticed how capacious it was inside the house, like it was intended to exclusively accustom members of the Giant race.
The ceiling was very high and the communal space seemed large enough to occupy a whole crowd of people, however, it was quite dark inside.
"Ugh, it smells like crap in here." Amber plugged her nose, unable to bear the stench.
Barshall, repeatedly calling the princess's name, began to search the house aimlessly.
I doubted that Mel was being held captive here or anything like that. If the door was unlocked, then she surely would've just exited the home of her own accord.
"Hey, what kind of clues are we supposed to be looking for exactly?" Amber asked as she approached Jude.
"Anything that can tie Larg to Mel's disappearance, like maybe one of her possessions–something that belongs to her," he replied.
"Something that belongs to her, huh…?" She started looking around. "I'll accompany Barshall in the kitchen then."
"Mind if I join you?"
Jude pulled out a strange circular object from his pocket.
"What the hell is that?"
"It's called a Vision Lens," he said while casually screwing it into his eye socket. "It's a device that uses Vision energy to magnify the world around you."
In some ways it was similar to Clairvoyance, but just less technical.
"I'll go check out the bathroom then," I decided.
"I-I'll come with you," May insisted, scurrying towards me as everyone began to separate.
"Are you alright, May?" I asked her, noticing that she seemed much more nervous than usual.
She hesitated for a moment before answering.
"... I-I'm not sure what it is exactly, but I have this really bad feeling."
"Do you think Larg did something to the Princess?" I asked.
"I'm not sure… but something about all of this just doesn't seem right."
It seems May could also tell there was something off about this situation.
There was this uneasy feeling that had been brewing inside of me ever since I heard about Mel's disappearance.
Part of me felt that I was probably overthinking things, but everything became much clearer the moment I opened that bathroom door.
May and I stood frozen in the doorway, letting the rotten air of the room seep into our nostrils as the image of pure disaster sunk into our minds.
"... W-what—??" May barely managed a word as she collapsed on the floor, shivering and panting.
I couldn't blame her for that reaction. For her, this scene was like reliving a tragic moment in her childhood.
I–on the other hand–continued to fixate on the gruesome display in front of me, unable to say or do anything.
"Did something happen?" Snapper raised his voice from behind me, having heard the sound of May's body hitting the floor.
Instead of answering Snapper verbally, I simply moved out of the doorway so he could see it himself.
I watched his mouth open slightly the moment he laid his eyes upon it.
"... I see."
There was one particular way this situation could have occurred, however, nothing was ever certain.
In fact, I was hoping such a thing simply wasn't the case at all.
"Do you think…?"
"Yeah… it had to be him." Snapper turned to me, his complexion dull and void of any emotion. "The Viper's back."