Cora
```Been some days after the last group of convicts was dealt with. The Fire Macen, 'not found', managed to prove his innocence and walked away a free man; the Dark Elf and the Canifor happened to be working with each other after they broke out, one killing people and the other eating them... An almost-perfect crime if they weren't already wanted dead or alive.
Now? There's another man W:DoA. Flyers are already replacing the last group of them, depicting a Red Oni man with a broken horn and the other one missing entirely as if cut off. He is wanted for execution in another region of Drase, and a continent-wide call for action has been made, reaching New Salvainia very soon. The man has been accused and convicted of murdering travellers between settlements, and attempted murder of officers of the law, and is now at large in New Salvainia.
The location is unknown, but there are several warnings; this man is violent, has killed several bounty hunters, and is known to be able to empower himself in combat.
Worthy prey for a special hunt?```
Judy
Kohm frowned as he took a 'look' at the poster, using tremorsense to slowly unravel the image and words by differentiating the different layers of ink.

It took a while, but soon he had the full story in his head.

"Dangerous fellow." That was his assessment of this Oni. Clearly not someone to be trifled with, if his feats were any indication. Violent, and with the skills to back it up. It would be foolhardy to assume that the skill level of the bounty hunters were all insignificant- yet he had managed to evade them all, even killing those unlucky enough to get in his way. Heck, *He* Wouldn't want to be in the if possible, and that would be while he was in his prime.

Half crippled as he was? He had serious concerns regarding whether or not he'll just be pitied upon. Of course, if that were to happen it no one would really bank on- No, he was getting ahead of himself.

Sighing as he stepped away, he went over the previous days of his life mentally.

Being a tutor of runes was quite a strange experience, considering how over two decades ago he was the one being taught, but he wasn't quite opposed to it.

Now his student though...
He sighed, a headache budding in his head as he thought about her. She... Was not a *Bad* Student per say- in fact, she could even be considered exemplary in the department of hard work and inquisitive thinking, but...

He really wondered how Felix even as a complete coat of hair at this rate. By the gods. Thankfully, he could now rest a little, giving them the excuse that he 'needed to prepare for the next lesson'. Felix probably saw through it, but he was kind enough to not call him out.

...Other than that, while interacting with the bubbly little crew was certainly refreshing, it also reminded him too much of his old days in a band for comfort. The jokes, the laughter... While he went along, and they were quite accepting, how could one feel they really belonged when their mind was on a different circle of friends?

He could feel his stomach sink as he thought of that. He had come all the way here to broaden his horizons, yet it already felt like his time was over. It wasn't just that terrible, terrible battle- the time he spent sitting around recovering as a whole had dulled his mind, much like what happens when someone stuck a sharp blade into the soil- and while with sheer determination he had made tremendous leaps and bounds in terms of his recovery, now that he could now hold some semblance of normal life, the enthusiasm driving him vanished. Much like how adrenaline-fueled activities left one drained after, he just wasn't so certain of his path anymore.

Was it already time to hang up his traveller's cloak? He let that thought hang in the air as he continued walking, no direction in mind.
Cora
*Cries in doesn't double space because old mobile discord was doodoo*

```There really was no specific place to check out besides exploring the whole place within range. Kohm had oughta just go about his 'usual day' until something comes up.
Though he wasn't walking long. I assume due to his blindness he has his other senses enhanced even with Tremorsense being a thing, but Kohm would hear footsteps going into an alleyway, then a gasp, and rushing back out crying for help.
"Murder!" The person screams, running away and calling any law within range - of which there happened to be none. A panic sets in and people start moving more quickly, the swifter runs making a mad bolt for the nearest precinct and the rest mumbling about what could have happened.
But they all knew. It was the Highwayman. Or at least that was the name given by the majority speaking; considering this criminal has mostly come upon travellers like highway bandits do, and it sounds better than 'missing a horn and the other is broken - man' it makes sense that he'd have been named 'Highwayman'.
Good place to start, checking out what has happened in the alleyway. Darkness nor light would matter to blind eyes, but the stench of death and blood would...```
Judy
Kohm's mind went blank- any previous lines of thought were completely dropped, and before he knew it, he found himself stepping the alley.

Quickly, he cursed himself mentally for his childish impulsiveness as he realised that he had acted foolishly and quite unlike how a mercenary as experienced as him should have acted... But in spite of that, after a moment of deliberation, he sighed. And stood his ground, instead of backtracking with the crowd like he should have.

"Well... It won't hurt to investigate just a tad, surely?"

Take a tentative step that placed himself just around the corner of the alleyway, Kohm would prime his ears, and let the tendrils of his tremorsense investigate just what the sight that incited a commotion was.
Cora
```Grisly is what the sight was. A Macen man in his mid-thirties was attacked to being near-unrecognisable. Several of his limbs have been sliced off, with very few offset wounds suggesting near-clean cuts that severed them; his left arm at the shoulder, and the same leg. The Achilles' tendon of the remaining foot has also been cleaved deep, the foot barely hanging off the end of the ankle.
None of these wounds were post-mortem - there was far too much blood for these injuries to have been applied after death, and given that every body part is still present and accounted for, the perp is not a trophy collector. What was also curious is that the the massive laceration in the abdomen that splits open the rib cage to the pelvic bone is not the killing wound - but the skull cleaved in two down the middle all the way to the jaw is.
A damn horrific death... No way out besides the mercy of a blade to your brain.
Closer inspection of the wounds suggests that the weapon is heavy-headed or likely two-handed, sharp-bladed, and the attacker has higher than average strength. This either suggests a Beastkin who possess greater strength at base, a well-trained and skilled fighter, or someone with a strength buffing spell or enchantments.
So there's a two-in-three chance that it's the Highwayman. Where did he go from here, though?```

Yeah I've edited Deliverance now.
Judy
Kohm felt his heart skip a beat, and instinctively he gripped his right arm with his left, a shrill metallic *Clang* Reverberating as he accidentally struck his limbs together too hard.

At least this jolted him out if his momentary fugue. After letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding in, Kohm regained his calm. But even as his breathing stabilised, he felt a grim determination rise in his heart, and he knew right then he was going to something stupid.

"Fuck it. I'm going to hunt this bastard down"

But stupid as it was, it was something that Kohm could never ignore. Morally, unforgivable. Individually, unacceptable.

"The Highwayman... Huh? What a coincidence. Now, where do I begin?"

It would be fairly logical. Check if there were any prints, smudges on the ground that he could follow. He had to act fast, otherwise he might lose track.
Cora
```There were very few traces of 'where' that one could tell of. Several blood footprints leading in a direction, yes, but a specific way to go, no.
Just then, Kohm hears several rushing footsteps coming from outside the alleyway. Seems like the law has been informed and coming to investigate. There are two men in full plate with large pole-axe halberds, accompanying a lone unarmored man who appears to be the detective. For a moment the guards appear hostile to Kohm, but the detective quickly assesses the situation and gives a verdict; "Stand down... He's not the Highwayman."
The two men bring their weapons back and hold them in a non-hostile way. They turn around and stand with their weapons horizontal to make a kind of barrier and block people from getting too close, while the detective - a Wood Elf woman with dark features, familiar to her colleagues and somebody else named 'Feuryfaye' - approaches Kohm.
"I'm Lee," The woman introduces herself. "I assume you're a bounty hunting this Highwayman?"
When last we saw Lee she was risking losing her job and precinct no matter what decision Fay made, hunting down the Artist thief after valuable and historical paintings got stolen. That was 'then' and 'there'; this place is in a different area of the city to the gallery, so Lee has either lost her last precinct but kept her job in a new one, or is specifically assigned to the Highwayman case, or at least so happens to have responded to this murder. Funny how she happens to be the one who shows up when the law is stretched thin though.```
Judy
"Just a very concerned citizen not a few moments ago, but yes, I guess I am one now." Kohm would nod, prosthetics and blindness in full display as he turned to face the officer. He was quite glad that the authorities arrived so timely- he might be acting foolhardily, but he knew taking the Highwayman alone would be a most perilous task. Help would be invaluable in this case.

"As you can see, this does indeed look like the handiwork of the Highwayman. I've managed to trace some of his footprints, and those oni sized looking fit make the odds of it being him almost certain. While unfortunately, those prints don't lead to a clear path, I have the rough direction of where the culprit's fled."
Cora
```Lee looks over Kohm with concern but nods confidently. She listens to Kohm's analysis, and also takes a look at the scene of the crime.
"It is. Axe wounds and extreme brutality. Judging by the dryness of the blood, this happened last night at the earliest." She says, then looking over to the footprints. "Ah those are his too, the matching size. This guy's already killed five people, including this victim here, since arriving in New Salvainia three days ago. We don't know why he's killing, none of the victims have any common background." Lee pauses for a moment and turns to Kohm again. "He's a Red Oni and they tend to enjoy combat - at least in my experience. But murdering defenceless people doesn't make any sense."
Lee scratches her head thinking about it. Nothing adds up in any way. She's often a very meticulous and highly intelligent detective, but that this case has no motive of any kind is confusing to her.
Lee looks at the direction of the tracks and narrows her eyes, recalling the last four murders for mutual details.```
Judy
Watching the detective think, Kohm couldn't really do much but remain silent and use his tremorsense to prob for more clues around him. 

He had far less knowledge of the situation to produce a clear line of thought with and considerably less experience when it came to investigation. While he *Could* Spitball outlandish theories, no one needed to hear a hammed-up tall tale right now.
Cora
```A few short moments pass before she reaches into her coat and pulls out a map of the area. "I figured something out," She says, looking over the map and mentally positioning things. "Each time the Highwayman has killed, he's walked in a direction. Five kills, five lines, and there is one common zone where they all pass through; a derelict industrial building... Maybe that's his base of operations or something?"
The looming fear that it could be an cleverly made trap is there... But it's the best lead they've got.
Lee turns back to Kohm. "I can take us there right now. It's not too far away."```
Judy
Kohm takes a moment to think about it, crossing his arms and placing a finger to his chin. Frowning in the meantime, he soon realised there wasn't any other lead but this, as shifty as it sounded.
"...Sure. But before that, what's the plan you have in mind?"
Cora
```Lee nods. "Yeah; we'll need more muscle. Let's go back to the precinct so we can get a couple more officers. I don't want to take any chances with our lives."
She calls out to the two armed officers, who break their barrier and return to the group. After this they would all begin on their way to the precinct nearby.
Lee's kind enough to slow down for Kohm if he needs to, and help him find his way. She can sense his magic, and though aware he is blind yet capable of assessing visuals with a spell of his, she's still concerned.
One of the officers leads the group from the front and the other follows behind. It's a good formation for them to ensure they don't get blindsided, especially if the Highwayman is around.```