"Second point, the servants and housekeepers in the Earl's Mansion had witnessed a female waiter they had never seen before, and the time when she was seen appearing near the noble lord's room was within the time range of the noble lord's death." p>
German also told me the same thing.
Well...when I think of him, my mood instantly worsens a lot.
"The noble Lord was assassinated between nine and ten o'clock that night, and the only woman among the guests who did not have a corresponding alibi was Miss Xue."
"Why does Xue have a waiter's uniform? How does she know where the waiter's uniform is?"
"Hmm... I think the murderer didn't want to disguise himself as a waiter at first. He just happened to find a place where waiters' uniforms were kept very close to the lobby. Just to be on the safe side, he decided to put them on temporarily."
"Oh - that's why you let down your guard and was witnessed by so many people? What if some servants with good memories find out along the way?"
This doesn’t make sense, Miss Trainee Police Officer.
"Well... in short, the person pretending to be a female waiter is very 'suspicious'. I just need to... ask the witnesses to identify their appearance..."
"That won't work, right? If it's Snow pretending to be a female waiter, she will definitely change her appearance."
This statement of mine can just fill in the loopholes in Manda's language.
"Because I have changed my appearance, I am not afraid of being seen by other servants. I think it is more reasonable to think this way, isn't it?"
"Well..."
"However, all this is just my imagination. If I want to prove that the fake female waiter is Snow, I need evidence."
"I got it!"
Manda squeezed me with her arm.
"Ahem, then the third point...listen up, this time it's about the motive of murder."
"Okay..."
Regarding the motive for the murder...this was unexpected.
In my opinion, in a case, the method of killing, alibi, logical reasoning, etc. all belong to the category of rationality.
The motive for murder is the only emotional thing, but it is the only one that is the trigger of the entire case.
Trade disputes, private revenge, seeking pleasure, love and hatred...
Behind every murder motive is an emotional story.
What you kill for is very important, and why you die is also important.
In a magical world that values sensibility, as a dispensable private detective, I cannot ignore the emergence of murderous motives.
I heard Manda taking a deep breath.
"I checked Miss Snow's personal information. She came to Woolworth a year ago, and so did Miss Harriman and the noble Lord."
"..."
"Moreover, Miss Harriman and the noble gentleman entered the city on the same day. They..."
......
I listened to Manda without saying a word.
"..."
"...Hey, do you have any comments?"
"Ah..."
What's going on...
Manda's voice seemed to have fallen into a sponge and disappeared before I could hear it clearly.
It is obviously the most important motive for murder, but I listened absently.
But at this time, I was thinking about other things.
"Where did you find that information about Xue?"
"The police department's archives...and other investigative materials of our predecessors."
"That's it..."
Archives...
"Hey, Manda, after the Earl's Mansion murder case, have you participated in the interrogation of relevant personnel?"
"Well...no, if it's an interrogation...the seniors completed it immediately and recorded the content in detail. I don't need to ask again..."<
/p>
"That's right...what about the investigation of the crime scene?"
"Because this is Earl's Mansion, it is not appropriate to have too many police officers inspected. Only two can be sent at most at a time... It is not my turn as a trainee police officer..."
I'm always unsure of myself in terms of experience, this guy.
That means...Manda, like me, based her reasoning on the information provided by the police officers.
"By the way...what do you think of the motive for the murder I speculated on?"
"Well, I think it's pretty good."
"No, it's not such a general evaluation! What I mean is, after listening to this, will you think...Miss Xue is suspicious?"
"I don't think so."
"Well..."
My quick reply seemed to shock Manda.
"It's not that I don't find your words unconvincing, it's just that I'm stubborn, that's all."
"..."
"Your speculation about the motive of the murder is perfect, but it is speculation after all, and I will only start to doubt it when the evidence is solid."
"It would be too late..."
Manda murmured unconvincedly.
I can understand her feelings. After all, it is really hard to accept that the "suspicious points" she worked so hard to find were rejected by a low-ranking private detective on the grounds that "I am very stubborn."
If it were someone who was not familiar with me, he would have already started to get angry.
"Okay..."
"..."
"Since it's not enough, I will make it perfect for you to see..."
Manda muttered something to herself or to me.
I don't know if this guy can be perfect, but she will undoubtedly make a good police officer.
......
"Hello."
After walking for about ten minutes, Manda spoke again.
"Huh?"
"I was thinking just now, it always felt like...you were specially protecting her."
"She?"
"Snow, Miss Snow."
"You are overthinking~~"
Are you still sulking about what happened before...
"No matter what information you get, you always trust her, don't you?"
"Hey, she's not that special, okay... I believe everyone."
No...Manda will not bring personal emotions to matters related to the case.
Did she realize something?
"Believe everyone...how to find the murderer?"
"It's very simple. All you need to prove is that everyone except the murderer is innocent."
Rather than proving someone's guilt.
"Wouldn't it be too much trouble?"
"Trouble is trouble, but isn't this the safest way?"
"...I don't understand."
"Then there's nothing we can do."
"...Can you tell me what you think?"
"...I don't have any ideas."
Saying it regardless of the premise will only interfere with Manda's thinking.
Don’t do unnecessary things.
"Really, then I'll try another way..."
Manda stopped and turned her body towards me. The umbrella covered her face, and I saw her hands tightly grasping the handle of the umbrella.
"Do you know anything about Miss Xue?"
"As I said, you are overthinking~~"
"..."
Since then, I have been staying behind closed doors for a long time.
......
"It's you! That uncle from last time!"
As soon as I entered the hotel, little Edith saw me.
"Hello, little Edith~~"
"Uncle, you are lying!"
"Eh?"
"I obviously lent you so much adult time, but I haven't become an adult at all!"
Ah~~So this is what I was referring to.
"Well..."
I looked at Edith's round face and resisted the urge to pinch it.
"Becoming an adult is not just about appearance."
"Huh? Why?"
"Think about it, do adults know a lot of things?"
"Yeah."
"Adults are called adults because they know more."
"Well..."
"Only adults who know more can answer other people's questions, right?"
"Hmm... So, uncle, you are an adult too."
Yes, yes, uncle, I am over a hundred years old, a very old man.
"Okay~~ Now uncle has a question. If you answer it, you will be an adult."
"Really? What's the problem?"
"What's your name?"
"Edith Alexia! My name is Edith Alexia!"
"Okay~~Congratulations on becoming an adult."
"Yeah!"
Little Edith raised her hands in celebration.
I know I succeeded in cheating.
Yeah~~
"So uncle didn't lie to you, you have really become an adult."
"Well! Thank you, uncle!"
"But, little Edith, you are only a temporary adult."
"Hey?! Why?"
"You are too young."
"That's...okay."
Edith instantly felt lost again.
"But~~ As long as you lend uncle some more 'adult time', uncle can maintain your current 'adult status' for a longer time."
"Really, really?"
"Would uncle lie to you?"
"I...I believe uncle!"
As soon as she finished speaking, little Edith happily jumped off Xue's lap.
Watching little Edith go upstairs, Xue's cold voice came:
"When did you have the power to allocate your time?"
"What I have is the power to deal with children~~"
"It's just like your usual style."
"Oh...are you mocking me?"
"I don't know. In other words, I'm not an adult."
Xue's face still had no expression, but from her words, I could hear a different kind of relaxation than before.
She is probably in a good mood today.
"You're looking for me to handle a case, right?"
"If I said I came here to escape the snow, would you believe it?"
"I believe."
"Well, I didn't expect you to be so frank..."
"In other words, I'm setting an example for you."
Do you mean for me to be frank too?
If possible... I really don’t want to ruin Xue’s good mood.
"..."
"What do you want to ask this time?"
"Asking questions can be left to the police officers..."
I remembered the scene when I met Director Brooke in the library three days ago.
"Actually, the lord entrusted me to take charge of the case together with the chief of the police department. Not long ago, the chief and I proposed that once he confirmed the murderer, he would immediately arrest him."
"In other words, I don't want you to interfere too much?"
"Well...after all, I still know little about what happened in the Earl's Mansion."
"...Do you agree?"
My word... I thought about agreeing to Director Brooke at first.
Because, even if I don't intervene, after Director Brooke finds the murderer, I can still get the lord's bounty.
And if I intervene, even if I can retain my nominal rights, I won't be able to convince the police officers.
Furthermore, I am just a low-level private detective, and intervening in the case without authorization will only increase the difficulties out of thin air.
However, from a certain perspective...perhaps only by choosing to retain your rights this time can you gain the possibility of making the next choice.
So——
"If you are as stupid as me, you won't do stupid things like giving up on your own initiative."