Sergei looked over the merchant who sold that cursed idol to that poor family from earlier. The man was erratically sprawled out on the ground in front of his stand, clearly deceased by his eyes rolled up behind his sockets and the mass of foamy saliva sprouting out of the man's open mouth. The Inquisitor's gaze shifted from the place to place, noting the details of the merchant's death. People and other merchants huddled up away the Inquisitor, keeping their distance as they watch him observe the scene. 

"...You said a spider had done this?" queried Sergei

"Oh, ah, yes M'Lord." the old woman said, uneasiness in her voice. "I-I never seen anything quite like it. I was simply walking by his stand and he just started yelling, rolling over the stand 'ere. Before I knew it, he collapsed dead as a door nail. I knew these streets were at times suspicious but I-"

"Enough...You! Do not touch that statue. Leave it where it is..." the Inquisitor hissed just as a street urchin backed away before they could fold their grasps on one of the idols while no one was looking. He could sense the idols were tainted and didn't want yet another demon incursion. 

Her tone was very recognizable to the Inquisitor. Whenever something happens and he becomes involved people begin to worry, usually for the right reasons. Being an Inquisitor had not made him many friends outside of the order usually due to his cold tone of speaking, his stone-still frown, and the occasional declarations of heresy. It was that last part people get antsy about, especially since one little piece of evidence could point directly at them, where they were innocent or not. The natural effect were witnesses or suspects overstating their facts, mixing it in with their opinions. This simply made them more suspicious; Inquisitors basically suspected everyone of heresy, they just simply needed the ammunition to prove it and unlucky to most, they were rather resourceful.

He then eyed the curled up husk of a large spider disturbingly as large as his hand a few feet beside the man. The arachnid's purplish pigmentation and natural markings conveyed its identity of the rare kind and very poisonous of the species. Oddly however, this specific species was not native to this hot climate. Perhaps it was an escaped addition to a living collection of exotic animals? A possibility but Sergei wasn't much in buying coincidences; his target lies dead and unable to voice a confession any more, especially not with all that venom-filled foam. He could resurrected the man and cure his body of ailments but more than likely, he would eventually condemned to the stake; a waste of his holy abilities.

Aside from the tainted statues he would eventually be addressing, the entire scene reeked of foul play. This merchant must have been murdered in order to prevent the disclosure of any important information. Sergei may be old but was far from being a foolish coot and his Inquisitorial introductions has since created the mental mandate to investigate the suspicion of the dark forces, even if there was only a slight hint. Something big was at play here and he was sure he was about to step deeper into it.

Looking back to the dead arachnid, its size and coloration would have been made highly noticeable. It seemed someone had delivered the eight-legged killer in secret before they arrived to the son-to-be dead man and dealt the dirty deed. Examining the marketplace, it was tightly packed with enclosed spaces and people traveling in every direction. The true assassin had to have been closed but considering Zaphere's hot environment, almost half of everyone in the city would be wearing cloaks of some sort and some of the other merchants would have been carrying plenty of supplies, all of which could have been used to hide the spider. Of course there were other options to but sadly he was on the opposite  side of the street when the murder occurred; he had no reliable leads to go by and only the witnessed who observed the man's death. It was hardly enough information to go buy which bugged the Inquisitor profusely.

It was not in Sergei's best interests but he had to leave this case postponed due to lack of supporting evidence, despite his own virtual breakdown of the incident. For the moment, he would have to leave the murder to the local patrol whom probably had already arrived but have done nothing in fear of interfering with his own investigation. Sergei turned to the closer of the town guards whom nearly jumped jut as soon as he found the Inquisitor's gaze had set upon him.

"Y-yes M'Lord...?" the soldier anxiously asked.

"A death or possible murder has taken place here. Begin your own investigation and gather the evidence..." the Inquisitor ordered.

Sergei then turned to the former merchant's cursed wares still left undisturbed and accounted fore. Muttering an incantation, he cased a spell over the idols, creating a smooth radiating barrier around them. With the seal in place, there was no hope for the evil residing withing the idol's form to transfer vessels. Granted, here was too much to carry by himself to the local monastery but he simply claimed one of the idols for his own investigation before returning back to the guard.

"I want you to collect this merchant's ware and deliver them to the monastery. The clergy will know what to do with them."

"At once M'Lord!" said the soldier, nearly jumping into a salute.

Sergei eventually made his way out of the dispersing crowd at the guards began their examination of the scene. With the sealed idol in hand, the inquisitor set off to perform his hunt, using the evil in the small statue as a compass. Zaphere was a big town with many residents living in it. But with the scent of corruption in the air, the Inquisitor was now devoted to his new witch hunt. If the city had to burn hotter than the sun it was under before he located his wretched quarry, than so be it.