Pokémon Detective Case Files

Chapter 457 The Other Side of Valuable Documents

Chapter 459 The Other Side of Valuable Documents

"It's just bad luck with the dice."

Seeing the guards gradually showing signs of impatience, the magician scratched the back of his head and smiled.

The unusually muddy ground looked familiar; it was the very spot where the travelers had faced the king the day before. Tracing the footprints back to their source, they could even see the secret passage through which Luna had led them into the garden.

Looking back from the open garden, it became clear that the exit of this secret passage was cleverly hidden among neatly trimmed bushes, behind which were gaps in the palace walls and low walls of varying heights. The designer of this passage had clearly used many optical illusions, such as variations in elevation, so that even if someone on the ground found the exit, they would hardly realize that it was actually a narrow, barely passable passage. Even now, though Yueju already knew of the passage's existence and had personally traversed it, if he were to try to find the way out, he would only get lost among the towering main buildings.

In fact, even Sander, the old gardener who had tended the garden for decades, was completely unaware of the existence of this secret passage.

As Blueberry already knew, the footprints were the weight of five people—and just as Leclerc said, there were only footprints leading to the garden, and none going out in the opposite direction.

If Lian Wu were here, he could use the thief skill [Footprint Tracking] to confirm the direction of the route. But even without confirming it himself, Leclerc's men wouldn't lie about such a thing. They could just ask the guards behind them to find out the details of the incident. The fact that the guards didn't speak up at the moment meant that there was nothing unusual about the footprints here.

Therefore, Yueju didn't waste the opportunity to inquire about this known information. Instead, she frowned and asked, "Lopa, you must be one of Count Leclerc's trusted subordinates, right? Then do you know Luna? In your eyes, can such a court spy be considered a subordinate trusted by Count Black Moon?"

"If you're asking about Luna Silvia, I know her."

The guard nodded, but his tone became subtle. "However, if you were to ask Luna whether she enjoys the Earl's deep trust, I think that's a difficult question to answer. After all, her status speaks for itself."

"A secret spy lurking around the king, that's understandable." Yueju nodded to herself, then frowned. "But it's a bit strange. Since Luna doesn't have Count Leclerc's complete trust, how does she know about the secret passage in this garden path? Even Mr. Sander, who has worked in the garden longer, doesn't know this route."

"In fact—" The bodyguard Lopa hesitated for a moment before revealing the truth, "Luna is not on the list of those who know the secret passage. I guess the person who knows it may have found it on their own—but it may also have been leaked from the King or the Earl. After all, Luna used to work in the royal court before becoming a gardener."

"So, according to you, all the guards who have served before the king in the past might also know this road?" Yueju pressed on relentlessly.

"No." Lopa shrugged. "The secret passages in the palace gardens aren't exactly interesting topics of conversation, and it's hard to imagine the king mentioning them in his daily life; it's just a possibility. But Luna is different from the others; her demeanor makes it easy for people to lower their guard."

The questioning clearly yielded no substantial progress. After observing the secret passage for a while longer and still finding nothing, Yueju turned her gaze back to the fruit tree that had been stained red with blood.

Upon closer inspection, one can see that, in addition to the bloodstains, there are several marks on the tree trunk that resemble some kind of chopping mark—or rather, three marks, like three closely spaced horizontal lines of varying lengths that do not intersect each other.

"Despite the presence of such traces, Leclerc still suspects that we killed the king with iron wire. It seems that either the criminal investigation technology of this era is really inadequate, or the Earl of Black Moon is completely uninterested in the truth of this murder case."

The magician turned to Lopa, "After the incident, besides Hugo's head, was anything else missing from the garden?"

In order to investigate at close range and avoid disturbing the crime scene, Lantana, with the help of Gothic Boy, floated above the rose bushes, making him look somewhat like a legendary wizard, although his posture was more like that of a Magikarp with its tail hanging up.

"There weren't many miscellaneous items in the Wang family garden to begin with. However, after comparing the gardening tools left at the scene with Sander's testimony, we found that a spare axe was missing. But old Sander is quite old, so it's possible that it was replaced and a new one hasn't been replaced yet," the guard said.

"Are there any relevant records? Can we determine when the axe was replaced based on the current wear and tear?"

Lopa shook his head: "The axe was a cheap one that Sander bought from a traveling merchant out of his own pocket. These kinds of handmade items from small workshops will age even if they are left unused. Besides, gardeners usually keep their tools in the same place, so they inevitably mix and match them sometimes."

As if reminded of something, Yueju showed a thoughtful expression when she heard the word "mixed use".

"Speaking of which, since the body was missing its head, why were you so certain it was the king's body?"

The other person was clearly unprepared for this question, giving a look of utter bewilderment—"Why would you think that?"

"His Majesty was the only one in the garden during that time! And the body was clearly dressed in the king's robes, how could it be fake?"

"Why can't it be fake?" Lingju crossed her arms in mid-air, a confident smile on her face. "Clothes can be taken off and changed, and the king himself knows the layout of this palace like the back of his hand. Isn't it incredible that he can perform an escape magic trick in his own garden?"

"But."

"Would a king of a country die so easily? And if the murderer killed him, why go to the trouble of cutting off Hugo's head? Wasn't it precisely to hide the fact that 'the real king is not dead'?"

Yueju felt that the more she speculated, the more reasonable it seemed; according to the logic of a mystery drama, the story should develop in this way.

"That's just wishful thinking on your part."

Looking at the magician who had been sent back to the surface by Gothic Boy's "telekinesis," the guard said solemnly, "His Majesty has no reason to do such a thing."

"Fake your own death—it's not as pointless as you think."

"A brief power vacuum can test the ambitions of those around him, and it can also give His Majesty, trapped in the deep palace, a rare moment of freedom—time to do certain shady things. More importantly, for the King, playing such a prank only slightly diminishes his already dwindling prestige; there is no loss. If one day he tires of such tricks, he can simply reappear in the capital with that face that is so well-known on the kingdom's coins, without any risk whatsoever."

"You have no evidence," Lopaban reminded him, looking at his face.

"Then let's examine the body," the magician said confidently. "Before that, we need to go to the king's usual office. In your country, the king should leave his fingerprint when signing royal decrees, right?"

"Maybe there are, but I'm not sure if I can find something like that."

"Then go find the king's everyday items, such as his scepter, letter paper, and table—anything smooth that can leave a mark. Find some finely ground charcoal powder and sprinkle it on the places the king has recently touched."

He gave the guard a thumbs up, a hint of pride in his smile. "You know, unlike the gardener's axe, everyone has an unforgeable 'product number' on their fingers."

It's time to let this era witness the criminal investigation technology of 500 years of civilization.