Baking up a New Adventure! (A Cookie Run: Kingdom Story)

Part 8: Gathering Clues

Castle: Dungeon: 8:00 AM

"Hey-!" Chili Pepper shouted as we approached. "Oh, I thought you were Rye Cookie again. What are you two doing down here?"

"We came to ask you a few questions before the trial tomorrow," I explained. "First off, what were you doing yesterday night at the time that the crime was committed?"

"Last night?" Chili Pepper pressed. "I was asleep already. Why do you ask?"

"We needed to get your alibi," Gingerbrave explained. "To prove that it wasn't you who committed the crime."

"Now it's my turn," Chili Pepper insisted. "What did you do to make Rye so upset yesterday?"

"Huh?" I wondered.

"She came back yesterday afternoon and she was fuming about you," Chili Pepper told me.

"Yes," Another voice confirmed. "She came into my bar with her pistols pointed at me, and she threatened to use them on me if I didn't make her order exactly right."

"Sparkling Cookie?" I gasped as I spun around to see him standing there. "What are you doing here?"

"I heard you were defending Chili Pepper," He answered. "I have some information that might just help your case."

"What is it--?" I asked him.

"This hooded figure came into my bar yesterday and ordered a bottle of hot sauce," Sparkling Cookie explained.

"You should testify about that tomorrow," I told him.

"T-testify?" He pressed.

"Yes," I nodded. "Your testimony could really help our case!"

"Err... okay," Sparkling Cookie nodded. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Not right now," I assured him. "Thanks for offering, though. See you at the trial tomorrow."

"Right," Sparkling Cookie agreed, though he looked a little uneasy as he turned and left the dungeon.

"We should get going, too," I decided. "We need to gather evidence for the trial tomorrow. We'll be back later."

With that, Gingerbrave and I turned and headed out of the dungeon.

Kingdom: Courtyard 8:15 AM

"Okay, where should we start gathering evidence?" Gingerbrave asked me.

"Hey! You there!" A voice called, and Almond Cookie appeared in front of us. "You two are defending Chili Pepper Cookie, correct?"

"Err... yes," I nodded.

"Then you're going to want to see this," Almond Cookie told us. "Come with me."

Almond followed a trail of spicy footprints into the forest. Scattered throughout the forest were tiny jewels and coins.

"Are these from the royal treasury?" I wondered as I picked a few of them up.

"They must be," Almond concluded. "Whoever took them made sure to drop a few things along the way, almost at an interval. No doubt this was meant to make Chili Pepper seem all the more guilty. But... this is where the trail stops."

Forest Clearing: 8:30 AM

"No sign of the rest of the royal treasury, though," Gingerbrave sighed.

"Still, we should look around this area for further evidence," I decided. "You never know what you could find."

Gingerbrave and I scanned the area for anything that looked like something that could help us prove Chili Pepper's innocence. Something stood out right away in the dirt; a red container with a fire design plastered on it.