Mil was still calculating in his mind, since the external difference wasn't particularly great…
After finding this Hero Goblin, he would make it hide and find a Goblin of similar build to take the blame.
The afternoon sun made the white stone fountain outside the church scorching hot, and in the tailor shop's display window, children's cloaks embroidered with the church's emblem were displayed.
Several girls wearing daisy wreaths ran by, laughing; the silver bells on their waistbands blended with the distant sound of a bard's lute, forming a noisy melody.
Mil and the others walked through the crowd amidst the clanging of baking bread and the blacksmith's hammering.
Mr. Machilo's house was near the winery, with white walls and red bricks, and green creeping fig covering half the wall.
The duplex villa looked like the family's financial situation wasn't too bad.
Mil strode forward, knocked on the door, and called out:
"Tribunal, open up!"
The one who opened the door was Machilo's widow, a woman under 40, wrapped in a faded wool shawl, her face tanned by the sun but looking somewhat haggard.
"I am a Church Cardinal Deacon, a Tribunal Assistant, here to understand the situation."
As Mil finished speaking, the woman's gray-blue eyes suddenly flinched upon seeing the church emblem.
"Ahem…! Hello, madam, I am Judicial Officer Paul of the Tribunal, serving as the investigator for this incident. I'm here mainly to understand…"
The Judicial Officer suddenly stepped forward, but before he could finish speaking, Mil suddenly lifted his foot and stomped hard on his foot.
"Wahhh—!"
Paul clutched his leg, letting out a low growl like a Goblin.
Mil, however, waved politely and said:
"Let's go inside and talk."
Inside the house, the front hall was simply furnished but exuded a military atmosphere; polished chainmail was repurposed as a fireplace screen, and a blossoming cornflower sat in the center of the elm long table.
Looking at the escutcheon hanging on the wall, Mil asked:
"Mr. Machilo, was he a knight before?"
"Yes, sir, he was formerly a formal knight under Modelin Baron, stationed at the pass near the Black Forest. Two years ago, he participated in the Fourth black magic crown War. After that, our family settled back here…"
Upon mentioning the Fourth black magic crown War, everyone gasped; it was the largest war in the past century, and Lilith's grandfather was martyred in that war.
As for a Golden Swordsman… it had nothing to do with gold, it just represented a pure swordsman, basically not relying on magic, belonging to a high-level swordsman.
Mil looked at the records in his notebook, pondered for a moment, and then asked:
"When did Mr. Machilo join the Iron Lily Adventure Team?"
The middle-aged woman paused for a moment before replying:
"He… joined temporarily to investigate the Goblin matter."
Upon hearing this, Mil sneered. The priest had claimed there was a very powerful adventure team in the village.
It turned out there was only Ms. Isotta.
"How old is your daughter?"
"Six years old this year."
Mil suddenly frowned, feeling that the whole thing was a bit illogical.
Goblins aren't Cultists; they usually only capture adult females.
However, judging from the records, they captured both males and females, and even targeted young children?
"Where is the child now?"
The woman sighed, shaking her head:
"Alas… she's been locking herself in her room these days, hardly ever going out."
"It's normal for children to be traumatized… try to counsel her more."
Mil casually comforted her. In reality, he only cared about how to find that Goblin.
The rest of the investigation was just incidental.
After roughly understanding the situation, Mil prepared to take his people to find Ms. Isotta.
Upon leaving, he found that Judicial Officer Paul had disappeared.
Mil was rather pleased; that guy was originally an assistant assigned by the Tribunal.
One less person would make it easier to make subtle moves.
According to the information provided by the Church, this Hero-level Goblin seemed to have targeted this village, and its activity range was almost exclusively in this area.
The Adventurers' Association had dispatched multiple second-tier elite adventure teams, but none had been able to capture it.
It even solo-killed a third-tier mage…
But its skin was still green, indicating it hadn't been affected by chaotic power, nor was it a special type of Goblin; it was just simply strong.
After waiting for over an hour near Ms. Isotta's house, the clanging sound of chainmail finally came from the end of the village road.
The members of the Iron Lily Adventure Team, dragging their weary bodies, walked towards them against the setting sun.
Upon closer inspection, it was a group of young women in their early twenties, six in total, the oldest probably no more than 25.
Unexpectedly, it was an all-female adventure team. Mil stepped forward and said:
"Good evening, everyone, we are from the Tribunal. May I ask who is Ms. Isotta?"
The woman leading them stepped forward and nodded:
"Hello, I am Isotta."
After speaking, she paused, as if remembering something, then stumbled through a bow:
"Pardon my rudeness, I am Isotta Degli Spadari, a magic swordsman of the Spadari family."
"It's fine, no need to be so formal… I'm just here today to understand the situation regarding the Hero Goblin."
After some questioning, the general content was the same as before, only confirming the location and time when the Hero Goblin attacked them.
"Do you have a grudge with that Goblin? Why does it always target you few? And so many attacks have occurred…"
Looking at the compiled clues, Mil's brows furrowed deeper and deeper, and the few girls were also somewhat at a loss:
"We're not too sure either…"
At this moment, another mage behind them suddenly mustered her courage, stepped forward, and bowed:
"Mil! We have always admired you. Thanks to you, four of us sisters, including myself, were able to awaken!"
As she spoke, the girls' eyes seemed to glow. Mil awkwardly pursed his lips and secretly glanced at Lilith, but unexpectedly met her gaze directly.
"Oh dear… My fiancé is so favored by young ladies, it's truly an honor."
Only then did everyone realize Lilith's identity, and they bowed to her again:
"Is this, is this the magic genius, Miss Lilith? As expected of the most beautiful woman in the Holy City, seeing is believing!"
"Hmm… the most beautiful woman in the Holy City? But that's only in the Holy City. There's an even more beautiful one in the capital who has our great hero utterly captivated?"
As she spoke, Lilith lazily propped her cheek with one hand, her purplish-red eyes silently watching Mil.
Mil also sighed helplessly, having agreed to a cooperative relationship, why was she starting to talk nonsense again?