Apple Sweetness.

"How can you do this to me? How can you murder me like this?" The thin faced man hushly asked, no longer yelling, as if he was somewhat defeated.

Elizabeth darted her blue eyes in his direction, finally having the time to register his unkempt appearance. From his features, one could tell he could be the same age as the Chief, but somehow he still looked…. Older?

He had short brown hair, the style of an army man. There was a shadow beard on his thin jaw with grey strands peppered in it. His face was frigid, and looked unwashed. He was standing so one could tell he was a bit taller than the average height, but everything about his exterior character seemed very….. human. If it were not for his golden eyes, it was very easy to mistake him for a human.

The Chief stood up and sighed. "Murder? This order was given by the King himself, if you have a problem with it, Maximilian, then you approach His Majesty or to make things easier you can approach Oliviér and ask him to hand over your case back to you."

Elizabeth fell into thought again. The name Oliviér Lé Fóix, struck a chord in her. It was as if it rang a distant and old memory.

Why did it sound so familiar?

The thin face– no, Maximilian looked like the color on his thin face had suddenly drained from him. "You-You have finally drained me of everything and now I am no longer–"

"I have given you options, Maximilian, the imperial orders on my desk will not read themselves so please allow me to handle this Young Lady before you cry me a river." The expression on the Chief's face was an exhausted one.

The Chief walked from his table, his height a shoulder taller than Maximilian. "Come, Elizabeth," he ordered, not looking back as he left his office.

Elizabeth forced her legs to move from the spot, and followed the Chief. He moved faster without looking back at her shorter legs that had to add pace to manage to keep up behind him.

"Tell me, Elizabeth, how did you make it to Hara from Vie Town so quickly? I received a letter from James saying you would be here in a week time, you are several days earlier."

She ran forward, as the Chief's eyes searched for her from beside him. "S-sir I boarded a Slave Carriage," she said in-between heavy breaths.

"Hm," the Chief nodded. "I will inform you that your job will be tedious….. no the circumstances around your job will be tedious, you must persevere if you wish to keep your job."

Creases formed on her forehead. Hm? Circumstances? She did not understand why the Chief had said that.

A pair of red eyes looked down at her shorter frame. "You will be a part of the Private Bleach case. I assume you have heard of Bleach."

Her throat became drier and itchier than it already was. B-Bleach? The Legendary Greatest Swordsman? The Mysterious Werewolf Butcher? Amongst Commonerfolks, Bleach was some kind of twisted hero, a Vigilante that would rid the world of the diseases that were Werewolves.

How could she not have heard of Bleach? She nodded. "Yes sir," she answered. "I-I will truly be a part of the case?" She did her best to restrain the excitement in her voice.

The Chief paused, before nodding. He moved his hand, and Elizabeth watched him collect a rip blood red apple from the basket of Apples hung on the wall.

"Take this," he brought the succulent apple before her.

Her first instinct was to ask what it was for, but having been trained by her Mother to become the Concubine of some wealthy merchant, she knew not to ask.

She simply collected the apple, and as she looked back in front of her she realized that they were in front of an enormous hall door. On the highest point of the door it read–

"O-oli…." Her eyes strained to read what was written so high on the door.

"Oliviér Lé Fóix," The Chief breathed before using just a hand to push open the hall door.

As the doors were opening, revealing what lay inside, the Chief glanced at her with the exhausted expression he gave Maximilian. "I implore to look past the….. negative circumstances." He told her before walking in.

Elizabeth shrugged off the statement, and followed the Chief inside. Her eyes went wide in an instant.

Without thinking her legs carried her forward. She had expected that she was walking into someone's office, but this….. this was not an office.

It was a whole library!

Rolls of massive shelves with books of different colors wove around in an abstract shape. The golden chandelier illuminated a serene and peaceful light that matched the atmosphere.

And…. Was that music she heard? Yes, music. A low and somber music, chilling, yet alive, it definitely added to the already solemn yet serene atmosphere.

She giggled as she looked at all the books. She was not exactly a book lover, but as someone who never had books provided for her and had to perform manual labor to support her education…. Books had somehow woven a spider net in her heart.

She placed them at high importance, and had gained a certain excitement whenever she saw one.

Her empty fingers traced on one of the shelves as she unconsciously moved. She had expected with so many shelves around that it would be dusty at least but it was actually very clean, and smooth.

She sighed, leaning towards a shelf to take a better look at some book when–

"Hello?" Said a deep voice. It was gravel yet like the atmosphere somber and serene to the ears.

The sweet-sour taste of berries wafted her mouth as she sucked in a breath from shock whilst the exquisite yet fresh smell of blackberries attacked her senses.

Her eyes followed the voice, her head leaning back in surprise when her blue eyes met with the golden-red eyes staring right into her.

They were the deepest shade of red she had ever seen, yet the touch of gold corrupted the majestic yet unholy sort of red. The red were simply dark-red rings around the bright and enchanting gold pupils.

Never had she seen a Werewolf with such eyes. Her heart could not help but palpitate.

"Hello…." She replied hushly, afraid the Perpetrator might remove those absurd eyes from her line of sight when she wanted to understand them, unravel the mystery as to how anyone got those eyes….. they were simply…

Alluring.

"You reek of human scum."

She blinked, snapping out of her self-imposed daze.