Deduction Part 2: “Motive and Crime Scene Examination”
In this world, identifying the culprit in a murder case is quite difficult. The reasons are the sheer number of crimes and the lack of evidence.
First of all, crime is extremely common. In the slums, pickpocketing and assaults are everyday occurrences, and among adventurers and mercenaries there are many rough individuals, so fights are frequent.
This is a world where weapons like swords and spears are sold everywhere, and people’s physical abilities naturally increase from hunting monsters, so people die easily. You could even say that the value of life is light.
One reason for the lack of evidence is the wide variety of possible murder weapons. In the modern world, weapons are somewhat limited, kitchen knives, guns, bats, golf clubs, and the like. But in this world, there exists a supernatural power called magic, which expands the possibilities infinitely. If someone is bludgeoned to death with ice magic and it melts afterward, for example, the weapon cannot be found.
There does seem to be magic that can appraise what kind of magic was used, but only a limited number of people can use such rare magic.
If someone is killed by bandits, monsters are crawling all over the place, so bodies killed outside the city are often devoured, making it difficult to identify the culprit.
Even in murders that occur inside a mansion like this, there are countless possibilities, such as outsiders or assassins disguised as servants, and the chances of catching the true culprit are extremely low. But even so, culprits are caught.
The reason is that even without evidence, if someone seems suspicious enough, it becomes a crime.
Ridiculous, right?
But that’s how it actually is.
Simply put, witch trials. A world where people are tortured until they’re called witches, and culprits are fabricated as a matter of course.
In other words, no matter how little evidence there is……a murderer can still be “found.”
But that kind of resolution isn’t interesting, is it? The great detective Ale will brilliantly unravel the truth for you!
“… I see. In other words, everyone except Jeanne-san had, to some extent, a reason to kill him.”
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Still, this is one hell of a family. To think that almost everyone had a reason to kill Jack…
First, Count Moriarty.
Apparently, he and Jack are not related by blood at all, they’re father and son in name only.
Whether he didn’t want to make a son not related by blood into a lord is unclear, but it seems like there was some kind of reason.
Conclusion: Quite suspicious!
Next, Countess Ratchet.
It seems she had been found out by Jack for having a relationship with a certain man. In other words, an affair. To keep it from being exposed to Count Moriarty, disguising it as a curse to silence him… that line of reasoning is possible.
Conclusion: Very suspicious!
Next, the count’s daughter, Bartley.
Since she was shedding tears with a worried look, I didn’t think she was that suspicious at first, but it seems her standing in this household is somewhat low. It’s only natural that the son who will be the next lord is prioritized, but whether a young girl can accept that is another matter entirely. Jealousy toward him, perhaps……
Conclusion: A little suspicious!
Next, the head butler, Hanneen.
He’s apparently been a butler of the Noirden family for a very long time. He’s also in charge of educating Jack as the next lord, but whether due to personality issues or something else, it doesn’t seem to be going well.
Conclusion: Moderately suspicious!
And then, the maid, Jeanne.
She had no motive to speak of. She was fidgety the whole time, but with no motive and being a newcomer, she had little involvement. The only thing was that she reluctantly confessed to having broken one of Jack’s favorite plates the other day.
Conclusion: Not suspicious!
And that’s the result. There’s no real progress to speak of, but with this many people having motives, it doesn’t seem like an outside perpetrator is likely.
… Jumping to conclusions might be dangerous, but according to Salvia, she immediately set up a barrier around the mansion to prevent anyone from leaving, so the culprit shouldn’t have been able to escape. That means the culprit should definitely still be inside.
Now then, the information we can get directly from them is all accounted for. Next up…
“Let’s proceed with a crime scene examination. Salvia and everyone else, please wait here.”
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There are no signs of a struggle in the room, but the sheets are in disarray, suggesting he thrashed about on the bed in agony.
The body was moved to another location for preservation and placed in a coffin, but from what I saw earlier, there was no sign that he was holding anything or left a dying message.
In other words, if we’re looking for clues, it’s this room, but…
“There probably isn’t any evidence left, huh…”
The only disturbed area is the sheets, the window is locked, and there are no bodily fluids or blood. There are no traces of flashy magic being used.
So, is there really someone among them who can use magic to suffocate another person?
“Hmm… huh?”
… Come to think of it, why aren’t there any marks on his neck?
Let’s assume the magic used to suffocate someone works by depriving them of air. When someone can’t breathe, wouldn’t they instinctively touch their neck at least once? Like, “I can’t breathe—”…?
It’s unnatural.
And from what I heard, Jeanne came to the room immediately after hearing the scream, right? But she didn’t see any shadow leaving the room.
But the mana Salvia sensed was when Jack raised his voice in this room, right? It’s only natural she’d sense mana from Jack while he was being suffocated, but the fact that she didn’t sense mana anywhere else means the culprit was in this room. It’s basically impossible for the person using magic not to emit any mana at all.
Curses aren’t that convenient either. Setting up a curse in advance and activating it from afar… that would be difficult.
Then how did the culprit in this room escape? They shouldn’t have been able to. Since we arrived second, the culprit should have fled in the opposite direction from us. But in that case, could they really avoid the people coming from the other direction and naturally merge in without being noticed?
Exactly. If Jeanne wasn’t the culprit, there’s no way the culprit could have escaped without being seen.
But Jeanne, who had no motive, is naturally eliminated as a suspect. Then the culprit is…?
“… Huh? Death by suffocation…”
Wait a second, something’s off. Death by suffocation… yes, the cause of death was suffocation.
A person who couldn’t breathe, who should have died while struggling in agony…
“Why ─── … I see, so that’s how it is!?”
The puzzle pieces click into place. I see, so in this case, the culprit is…
What do you think about this chapter?
