Jor stepped forward. It turned out he was one of the men that Nelly had pointed to. He didn't look bothered, not knowing that Drake's system would tell him who was lying and who wasn't. His arrogant confidence radiated around him as he stood in front of Drake.

"Do you know who took Nelly?" Drake questioned, maintaining eye contact with the arrogant man.

The man shook his head. "No."

{A lie has been detected.}

"Did you have anything to do with Nelly's kidnapping?" Drake continued, not revealing that he already knew that the man was lying. He remained calm, acting as though there was no sign that something was wrong.

"I don't know who took her or why," he stated, a smug smirk on his face.

{A lie has been detected}

Drake nodded. "Please sit at the table. I need to speak with you later."

The man paused for a second before complying. He wasn't expecting to be asked to stay.

Drake called a few more people listed on the town roster. Some of them were Nana and Tod. He asked them the same question. They didn't know either. Nor were they lying. So far, the only one was Jor.

Drake smiled, looking at Nana, then down at Tod. "If you want to leave, you can. Nelly stays with me until I'm done. You can sit with Mayor Ivan if you want." He offered. He didn't want to separate Nana from Nelly. It wouldn't be right.

Nana took Tod over to the table where Mayor Ivan was sitting. Drake took the wooden toy resembling Renn out and handed it to Tod. "Someone I met back home made this and says to say hi. His name is Bren."

Nana gasped, tears welling up in her eyes. "He's…he's alive?" she asked. Her voice was trembling.

Drake studied her for a moment. "Is that good?"

Nana nodded. Her hand went to her lips as she tried her best not to cry.

"I need to finish. I won't have time to tell you very much; I have to leave right after I'm finished. I'll tell you when I come back again."

Nana nodded, tears of joy spilling down her cheeks.

Drake turned and faced the remaining people. The next one to come was a man named Trey. He was also one of the three that Nelly had pointed to. Drake decided to change the order of the questions and add a few more. He already knew this one was guilty.

"Do you know why Nelly was taken?" Drake questioned.

Trey shrugged. "No, why would I know?" he shot back.

{A lie has been detected}

"Do you know who was involved with taking Nelly?" Drake continued, not revealing he knew that man was lying.

Trey rolled his eyes. "No, why would I know that?"

{A lie has been detected.}

"Do you know how many were involved with taking Nelly?" Drake asked. He needed more information. So, he added more questions to his short list that he was using.

"No. I don't know anything." He growled out. He was clearly getting annoyed, wanting the questions to stop.

{A lie has been detected}

Drake smiled. "Sit over with Jor, please. I need to talk to you after." He did not indicate that he knew Trey was lying.

Drake was scanning the remainder of the room. He hadn't gotten to Gavin yet. Nor the third man that Nelly had pointed out. He went through his list, going from one name to another. Everyone seemed to be telling the truth. The Tavern was emptying quickly. There were only a handful left.

Drake called the next name. This time it was Gavin. Although his nickname was Billy, he couldn't seem to call him by it. It felt somehow wrong.

Gavin stood smugly in front of Drake, waiting to be questioned. Drake stared back for only a second. The gleam in his eye from before was still there.

"Do you know why Nelly was taken?" Drake asked.

"Yes. I believe she was taken to stall you from doing your quest. It's timed, isn't it?" Gavin asked, smiling.

The system remained silent.

"So you know where she was being taken?" Drake continued, studying Gavin.

"To the ocean. They were taking her to Treasure Island to be sold," Gavin said, smiling wider.

The system remained silent.

"Did you have anything to do with her being taken?" Drake was staring at Gavin with intensity. He was openly answering his questions. It was something he didn't suspect.

"No. I only know because I investigated it after she was taken," he explained, still smiling.

The system remained silent.

"Do you know how many were involved?" Drake asked, needing that information too.

Gavin smiled widely. "I know three names. I know there were groups on the road to stall, although I don't know who. I know there was a crew from a ship that she was given to that was heading to the beach. They were supposed to wait for their ship to arrive to pick her up." He explained smugly.

The system remained silent.

Drake turned to his friends, giving a meaningful look. They nodded. Mike handed Nelly to Nana, then stood protectively in front of them, keeping the table with Jor and Trey separated from Nelly.

Drake looked at Gavin. "Any chance you want to tell me who they are?"

Gavin chuckled. "I can tell you, but I want to see if you can pick them out yourself first. So far, you're doing rather well."

The system remained silent.

Drake sighed. "Have a seat with Mayor Ivan."

He called the rest up, of those left in the tavern, one after the other. The last of the three men finally made his way up to Drake. His name was Victor. His arms were folded across his chest. There was an evil gleam in his eye that made Renn stiffen up, ready to defend her master.

Drake smiled widely. "Aw… I don't even have to ask you anything. Your demeanor said it all. Tell me… why did you, Jor, and Trey kidnap Nelly?" he asked, not bothering with the formalities.

Gasps came from those left in the Tavern.

"I didn't do anything!" Victor yelled. He was more pissed that Drake figured it out.

{A lie has been detected}

Drake smiled wider. "Let me tell you a little about myself. I have a very unique skill that allows me to detect when someone is lying. All dimension masters have it. I'm only an heir, but I still have it. The moment you lie, I know. You and your two friends have lied to me."

The moment Drake informed him that he and his friends were lying, the man lashed out, pulling a knife from his belt and swiping it toward Drake. Drake didn't hesitate. He stepped back, slamming his staff. A green pulse was sent to all three of his suspects, encasing them in a cocoon of soft green energy. They were bound, unable to get free.

"Mayor Ivan, I suggest you lock these guys up," he said calmly. "I still need to ask everyone else. I don't believe there was anyone else involved, but I'd like to make sure."

Ivan nodded, getting up to find some of his soldiers who had already been interrogated. By the time he was back, Drake had finished with the rest of those in the room. He was right. There was no one else involved.

Drake had to release the prisoners from the energy cocoon so that the soldiers could take them. Victor was the first to respond, diving in with a dagger he had hidden on his person. Drake lifted his palm, shooting a plasma ball. It exploded in his face, killing him on the spot.

{You have killed a Level 1 kidnapper 1/3}

The other two men backed away. Drake's message confirmed that there were only three. He sighed, seeing that he would need to kill the other two as well.

One rushed toward the front double doors of the tavern. He had a knife in his hand. He tried to stab Chad while attempting to escape. With ease, Chad sliced through the man's chest with his sword, killing him.

{A member of your cohort has killed a level 1 kidnapper 2/3}

Drake saw that no rewards were given. This wasn't the first time. He figured there would be one after the main quest to save Nelly was complete.

Panicking, the third man pulled out an ax, swinging it toward Mike, who was the closest. Mike caught it with his gauntlets, pulling it from his hand, then killing the man with the man's own ax.

{A member of your cohort has killed a level 1 kidnapper 3/3}

{Quest Complete: Save Nelly}

{Quest reward: Timed Quest/Find the chamber of knowledge/obtain the Master Spell book has been reset}

{5:00:00:00 time remaining.}

Drake shook his head. The gut feeling he was having vanished. There was no longer anything wrong. He turned to Nana. "We have to go. We have a timed quest to complete. I'll tell you about Bren when we get back."

Nana nodded, smiling through her tears. "Thank you."

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