Conflicts with the Investigator

You called out to the household that Ms. Crowe had arrived, before righting your clothing and replacing your illusion spells. The last thing you wanted was this AWIO investigator discovering your identity. You opened the door to an unexpectedly unique woman.

Ms. Crowe was petite with cute but mousy features. She was probably in her late 20s or early 30s. At first she was rather unassuming, but there was an undeniable charm to her presence. You could smell the faint scent of magic on her, and you got the sense that she wasn’t quite human. She was wearing a tailored women’s suit–charcoal gray with subtle pinstripes. The jacket was a bit rumpled, but she looked quite professional. Underneath, a deep emerald blouse peeked out. Perched atop her head was a fashionable hat with a subtle curve to the brim. The fabric was a deep black, and it was adorned with an understated silver pin in the shape of a crescent moon.

She had long, dark hair that was slightly frizzy. A pair of round glasses sat on the bridge of her nose, framing her sharp, observant eyes. She had an air of bookish charm and delicate features. You noticed her hands were stained with ink, and there was a smell coming off her that you did not recognize. She was not at all physically intimidating, but at the same time, there was something about her that set off alarm bells in your head.

“Ms. Crowe?” You stated in a friendly tone, trying hard not to let your inner thoughts permeate your speech.

“Yes. Good morning. I’m here to see you about your sponsorship check up.” She regarded you with a cheerful expression, but it felt like her eyes were boring a hole into you.

“Y-yes. Please come on in. I’m James, but most people call me Jim.”

You moved to the side and gestured for her to enter.

“Thank you, Mr. Holt.”

You did not fail to miss that she had not used your first name. Still, she made her way inside the apartment.

“Have a seat wherever you’d like.” You tried to continue your kind way of speaking.

Rather than finding a seat, Ms. Crowe instead began wandering around, clipboard in hand. You watched as she went through the kitchen, bathroom, living area and the bedroom all while taking notes. She didn’t even make an effort to acknowledge the girls. In fact, she seemed almost uninterested. She continued on like that for a few minutes before finally having a seat in the dining area. You chose to sit down next to her. Kiri and Cerena also sat down while the others hovered in various parts of the apartment.

“Did you need to ask me, Kiri or Cerena any questions? I think things have been going well. I knew both women before sponsoring them, so the adjustment hasn’t been hard.”

“I’ll be honest, Mr. Holt. I’m not impressed.” She said while staring at you over her glasses.

You shot a questioning glance over to Lexi, who just shrugged in confusion.

“Oh well, I know the apartment is pretty small for so many people, but we are actually in the process of buying a larger house for everyone.”

“It’s not the apartment. It’s you.” She said, while jabbing her pen in your direction.

“Well, I admit that I have my shortcomings, but…”

“When I heard there was a man who was rejected previously for sponsorship and suddenly managed to partner with a previously unknown slime, a minotaur who rejected partners for years, a devil who is one of our longest residents and most senior employees, a hellhound with a notoriously bad attitude, and a dangerous mantis girl, I thought he’d be some impressive man. To think it was just some middle-aged maintenance worker.”

“What the hell is your problem! How dare you speak to James that way!”

It was Lexi who spoke up first.

“Lexi.” You said in a soothing voice. “It’s okay. Show Ms. Crowe respect. She’s just doing her job.”

Lexi crossed her arms and clenched her teeth in frustration, but listened.

“Is there something I’ve done to offend you, Ms. Crowe? I feel like we’ve gotten off on the wrong foot.” You tried to smooth over whatever it was that irritated her.

“I’ll be blunt, Mr. Holt. Nothing about your case makes any sense.”

“What do you mean?” You said with a calm tone. You felt your grip tighten.

“There are discrepancies in your file, which made no sense until I learned that your family friend was the current head of HR and now one of your partners. My guess is she tampered with your file. This slime woman, Morgana, was never on file before now, and there is no record of her immigration other than some sloppy paperwork. Her appearance in the new world seems to coincide with a recent portal breach which you so happen to have been the maintenance worker for afterwards.” She started in a rapid fire way.

“Well, I can see how that would seem odd, but I was under strict observation by AWIO security during my analysis of the portal.” You tried to counter.

“You mean by the hellhound you now sponsor?” Ms. Crowe fired back.

“Yes, that’s true…” You said sheepishly. Obviously, that looked sketchy despite actually being a coincidence.

“My guess is the slime is an illegal entry, and you used your connection to forge her papers as well. The fake documentation of her immigration lists her as a slime, but based on what I can see, she’s actually a queen slime. Then we have Ms. Lexi herself, who suddenly went from your “aunt” to your partner. As a devil, I’m sure it had to do with a deal you made with her. The minotaur, hellhound and mantis were somehow tamed by you despite their histories of **** and partner rejection. The question is: Why? Why would you hide an illegal entry? Why would a devil like Lexi go through all these hoops just to become your partner? Why would these other monster girls change their behaviors so suddenly?”

You felt a lump in your throat and your mouth became dry. This woman deduced all this? The anxiety you felt was quickly turning to nausea. You had no idea how to respond.

“I’ll tell you why. That devil made a contract with you in exchange for helping you seduce and control these women.” Ms. Crowe pointed at Lexi with a smug grin.

Everyone looked at Elara with confusion.

“What? Lexi didn’t make me…” You started.

“You would say that now that you’ve become this devil’s thrall.” She snapped before you could finish.

“No, it’s not like that I–”

“Don’t worry, Mr. Holt. I can sense the demonic magic coming off of you. It’s not your fault. I learned that she’s known you since childhood. You are obviously a victim of grooming. I’ll use my magic to remove the compulsive spells and set you free.”

“That sounds like an awful lot of conjecture with very little evidence, Ms. Crowe.” Morgana chimed in with a tone that was both calm and intimidating.

“I may not have direct evidence, but I have enough information to call for a formal investigation.” Ms. Crowe gave a triumphant smile while pushing her glasses up against her face. It would have been cute if not for the current circumstances.

“You’re well out of your purview. The purpose of this visit was to assess how Kiri and Cerena are adjusting to the sponsorship, not to throw out accusations.” Lexi stated in her business tone.

“It doesn’t matter. All I have to do is go over your head and state my concerns about their well being. It wouldn’t take more than a half-decent investigator to put the pieces together.” Ms. Crowe retorted.

“You could have done that beforehand when you had these concerns, but you didn’t. Why would you come to our home just to make threats?” Lisbeth asked, her muscular body tense.

“I wanted to see it for myself. I won’t allow some two-bit devil to subjugate humans in this world.” Ms. Crowe declared, before standing up in front of you, taking out a strange amulet and facing it towards Lexi.

Your instincts warned you that this amulet held some sort of magical power. The way she brandished it made you immediately worry that she might do something awful to your wife. Between exposing yourself and protecting Lexi, you knew what your priority was.