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~~((National Rescue Dog Day - page 5 of 20))~~
Melchor opened his mouth to say something, but he was interrupted.

"Hello in there," came the apparent officer's voice. It was rather soft yet still masculine, and his Valgan accent was faint.

Now that Evangelina was looking, the police officer actually had a bit of a babyface.

"Sorry to trouble you," the officer went on, "but would you mind exiting the vehicle? I have a few questions. I promise I won't take up too much of your time."

They were more than a little reluctant to do so, but none of them were eager to get into a fight with the local police, either. They all stepped out of the limousine one more time.

Evangelina saw a reaper floating just behind the man, observing them all from over his shoulder. If his unusual entrance hadn't been enough of a clue, this was confirmation. But the fact that he had actually brought his reaper along was interesting.

Taking that kind of risk meant one of two things: either he was very confident in his ability to protect his reaper, or he was trying to be courteous and diplomatic. In some circles, keeping one's reaper hidden was a sign of ill-intent and distrust. Allowing the reaper to be seen, therefore, was sometimes regarded as an extension of good will and openness to discussion.

"Thank you for your cooperation. I am Officer Brand of the RPMP."

That was the Ridgemark Private Military Police. There was no government-run law enforcement in this city. The RPMP was instead jointly-funded and operated by the largest companies in Ridgemark.

Evangelina had known this, yet it was still somehow difficult for her to wrap her head around the idea of local law enforcement being powerful enough to keep the peace between Abolish and the Vanguard. Surely, there had to have been other players involved, right? Foreign influence of some kind?