The Scholar, The Swordsman and The Sorcerer

Chapter 7: Death in the Afternoon

Commander Di and her guards led the three of them through the halls of the main building, across the courtyard through driving rain, and into the dormitory housing the First Year students. This would have made Zhihao more certain Ling Sao had accused them of attacking her but for one thing. "It can't be a small problem," he muttered. "Not when they're interrupting a guest's dinner."

That made Commander Di arch a brow at him. "Clever boy. But don't expect me to tell you what the situation is."

"No, ma'am." Zhihao glanced around the main hall of the dormitory, noting guards on every flight of stairs and students peering out between them nervously. Spotting a guard standing at the head of the stairs, blocking the entrance to the rooms he and his fellow Perfects shared, he guessed, "Something happened in our quarters?"

"Not telling," the woman said as they stepped beneath the drying stand beside the door. Once they went from sopping wet to uncomfortably damp, she led them up the three flights surrounding the balconies, past murmuring students.

Those murmurs answered the question without Commander Di needing to say another word. "Dead" "Murder" "Killer" were enough to tell him at least part of what'd happened. At a guess it wouldn't be a good idea to ask further. People from Bai Shui Forest learned not to be talkative to authority and Zhihao didn't want to be accused of knowing too much.

They reached the entrance to their quarters, where two guards waited, holding the door for them. There were more guards beyond, surrounding something in the middle of the floor. Whatever it was, was hidden, but Zhihao couldn't pretend to be surprised when they were allowed past to look at a familiar sprawled figure.

"That's Ah-Sen, right?" The man lay on his back, being examined by an earnest young woman in plain dark blue robes. Zhihao recognized her as one of the teachers who'd helped guide them during the magical testing. As for the body, the only reason he recognized it was the clothing Ah-Sen had been wearing when they'd first met. If it was him, though, his face was too purple and congested to tell. "What happened to him?"

"That, Perfect Xiao, is why we've brought the three of you over." Commander Di eyed them thoughtfully. "None of you seem surprised."

"How?" Meng Ma asked in a confused sort of way. "All you're thinking about."

The Commander glared at him. "Are you supposed to pry into other people's thoughts that way?"

A blink. "You projected. Can't help seeing when you project."

For a moment Zhihao thought the Commander would lose her temper. "I hate dealing with baby sorcerers," she muttered. "Always an answer for everything."

"Not everything. Just saying what I know."

She ignored him. Turned to Zhihao. "And you? You know who this is?"

"The students on the way were talking about murder. I didn't know who, but it was obvious someone had died." Residents of Bai Shui Forest lived near death all the time. It could be horrifying, tragic and untimely, but it was something he'd no control over and losing his self-control wouldn't solve the problem. "He's too damaged to be sure, but he's wearing Ah-Sen's clothes and Ah-Sen was the only other person with a key to our rooms."

That made the Commander sigh. "Yet another answer for everything." She gave Mi Zhein a sharp look. "And your explanation?"

"He did it to himself." At her blink and stare, he added, "I did warn him to stay out of my rooms. Check my records. I have a condition that requires me to take certain medicines. Ones dangerous for anyone else to touch. He obviously went through my things and came into contact. Bet his hands are sausages right now."