A Tale of Forgotten Gods

Chapter 140: Anarchists’ Fund

Taking a carriage, Murphy exited the Latvensa city, and went for the central Pacian which managed all the finance of different branches.

The gas lamps of Pacian flickered to life against the bruised purple of autumn afternoon light as shadows of the streetlamp moved forward.

A heavy mist of coal smoke came out of industrial chimneys. His gaze lay on various houses that had expensive window glass and golden curtains. From inside, a few growls of dogs rushed in. The pets of the rich families.

Murphy pulled his trench coat tighter, stepping out of the path of a rushing hansom cab. Around him, the city hummed with the familiar chime of church bells and the relentless, distant thrum of steam.

He looked around and asked one citizen, who wore silver-embroidered spectacles. ”Sir, can I know where this Pacian Bank is?”

The man gave him a small judging glance, then pointed toward a street that forked in three. ”Move to the right, then go forward and take the right path. You’ll find a board; go straight from there.”

Murphy gave him a nod and walked through the city. A few luxurious carriages passed by him, called out by the local families for their trips. A few teenagers were playing outside with their pet dogs, a few golden retrievers.

Finally, as he moved to the straight pathway, his gaze lay upon a large building that had the same name as the transactions.

It stood as a fortress of wealth, towering over the surrounding streets with an intimidating presence. A few statues of dragons and a large one of a falcon were placed on either side of the door, and inside was a fountain that spilled water in a small well.

A few workers ran through the pathway, placing a few boxes of medical items. On the board ahead, it stated the name as ’Herbius’ Company.

Although he only took a simple glance at that building and moved away toward the bank, because he had a better idea than to execute directly sooner.

As the bank came ahead, he noticed the size of the financial industry. If the branch in Latvensa was a church, that central archive of the Pacian Bank was a cathedral. Giant granite pillars held up a massive triangular pediment, carved with the image of a blindfolded goddess holding scales and a cornucopia spilling golden coins.

In the front were twin iron gates, forged with intricate patterns that guarded the main entrance. Two armed security guards in pristine navy uniforms stood at the steps as their hands rested on the hilts of their sabres.

Murphy stopped at the edge of the street, pulling a silver cigarette case from his inner pocket. He snapped it open, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it with a small match, then took a long drag, letting the grey smoke blend into the autumn mist.

He narrowed his eyes and examined the layout. Breaking in today wouldn’t be as simple as scaring a clerk with a high-grade government bluff. Of course, this place held the financial heartbeats of regional lords, massive corporations, and the deepest secrets of men like Asterion Hetten.

Which made it pretty obvious that the security here wouldn’t just look for ministerial decrees; they would double-check them with the central office.

’A frontal approach won’t cut it this time.’ Murphy thought, a cold grin spreading across his face as he flicked the cigarette butt into the gutter. ’Let’s see if I can think of a plan while I go there.’

Turning his collar up against the biting wind, he walked past the main gates, blending into the crowd of wealthy citizens. He needed to find the back delivery entrance, the shifts of the guards, and the structural weak points before the night fell.

That time, it was better to play dirty and do a simple crime to stop the bigger one. Although, he attempted to go with his first plan before choosing to simply rush in at night.

He entered the bank to examine the details and the staff cycle.

As he entered inside, he pulled the document out. He took a paper from the nearby desk and filled out the whole cheque before copying the signature.

He filed a fake report that claimed the use of the fund was an illegal anarchist plot.

Murphy walked inside and moved toward the manager’s office.

Outside, a clerk was working and noticed the Detective. ”Hello, sir, are there any issues?”

”A very big one. Can I meet the manager?”

The clerk opened the door. ”Yes, sir. Go ahead.”

Without wasting a moment, Murphy stepped through the door. Inside, a man with a trimmed beard looked at him. His authoritative gaze locked onto the Detective. ”Sit down and tell me what happened, sir.”

Murphy pulled out the cheque from his pocket, then slid it across the table. ”That’s report of the government, signed by Mr. Asterion. In his account, a very suspicious activity was clearly pointed at a funding toward illegal anarchists.”

The manager’s eyes widened in slight fear; the reputation of the bank was clearly endangered if people found out that this bank funded terrorists. ”Mr. Detective, is it extremely dangerous?”

”Ah, I can’t say yet, although the central government sent me this news to bring here. You must stop this account for a while until the investigation completes; don’t worry, and do not tell anyone about this if you don’t want to endanger the reputation.”

The manager quickly brought a document and signed it, flagging the account quietly, which would delay the payouts for those who would use cheques.

Murphy gave him a slight nod and stood up. ”Don’t worry, officials are coming soon to investigate. We will manage it soon, rest assured.”

The manager heaved a sigh of relief and leaned against his chair. ”Thank you.”

Afterward, Murphy quietly exited the bank as the manager strictly called out his employees to stop the payouts.

As he exited, he heard a few people yelling at the clerk, asking for the payment as they had brought the cheque, but the clerk refused, saying Mr. Asterion had denied the payment.

Murphy scoffed as he came out, knowing that his plan was working.

The next step was to destroy the reputation of the royal family through the nearby company. Using that legitimate business against him.

Outside, he looked at the large building of the medical company and entered inside with a maddening smile that simply said that he was preparing something far bigger and more dangerous for Asterion than just simple execution.