Shirou and the Maid Aria / Shirou and the Man Who Looks Like a Woman

Shirou solicitously invited her to sit down.

She sat down, crossed her arms, and calmly awaited the question. In short, she seemed very quiet and well-behaved, but she had a somewhat doll-like stiffness, and her eyes and brows held an innocent air that was much more childlike than her face.

Shirou treats the maid, Miss Alya, in a completely different way than he treats the Red-haired Miss. He is very kind and friendly to her, making this lovely silver-haired, red-eyed lady feel completely at ease.

Frederick silently memorized the scene. He felt it necessary to tell his daughter to be more wary in the future; the silver-haired maid type seemed to be Shirou's type. Which one did he like? Silver hair? Red eyes? Or the Maid Outfit?

At this moment, Shirou asked the maid to write down her name and address, which unknowingly led to the problem.

"Miss Alya, now we have some questions for you," Shirou suddenly said in English.

Miss Alya then realized that Shirou had been speaking to her in 'German' before. However, she maintained her delicate, doll-like smile.

"Yes, sir."

"We want to know as much as possible about what happened last night," Shirou said. "We know you can't provide much information directly related to the murder, but what you might have seen or heard, which may seem insignificant to you, could be very valuable to us. We hope you can tell us everything in detail."

She didn't seem to understand. Her delicate, doll-like face still wore a smiling expression. She said:

"Sir, I know nothing."

"Okay, let's take it one question at a time. For example, do you know if the mistress called you last night?"

"Yes, that's right, sir."

Do you remember when that was?

"Sir, I don't remember. You know, I was asleep when the train conductor called me."

Chapter 1246 Shirou and Maid Alya

"Oh, so when your owner travels, does the train conductor always call you?"

"Yes, sir, that's always been the case. My noble and delicate mistress often needs to be served at night; she doesn't sleep very well."

"Ah, so you got up after you agreed. How did you get there, wearing a cloak?"

"No, sir. I went wearing this Maid Outfit. My master said that as the Lord's personal maid, I must always maintain the image of a Lord- level maid. So right now, my only outfits are white, black, and black and white maid outfits! But once I reach the highest level, I can get the legendary rainbow maid outfit!" The maid seemed to be full of pride in her maid career.

Shirou really wanted to complain about the Lord- level Maid—what exactly is that level? And what's with the maid outfit that changes color?

The German maid before me had long silver hair and a delicate, doll-like face; in fact, she was indeed a doll—an artificial being that was almost indistinguishable from a real person.

Shirou was familiar with this; it was the Einzbern Family's exquisite craftsmanship. She was delicately beautiful, like a work of art, gentle in nature, highly capable, and hardworking.

Compared to humans, she possesses the same or even greater understanding and calculation abilities, but she will not act impulsively or have excessive desires beyond her goals.

Compared to her mechanical demeanor, she also displays a polite smile at appropriate times, making her, to be honest, the perfect maid.

"Oh, does your master have a red cloak, a bright red like blood, a majestic cloak?" Shirou asked.

"No, sir, my mistress prefers blue."

"Oh, go on. I was just kidding, I didn't mean anything by it. So you went to Lord El-Melloi's side. And what did you do there?"

"I gave my mistress a scented massage, sir. My head of household said it would help her fall asleep more easily. When she was almost asleep, she told me to leave, so I went back to my room."

Do you know what time it was?

"I don't know, sir."

"So, how long did you stay with Lord El- El-Melloi?"

The maid paused, the light in her red eyes momentarily flickering, as if a computer were performing a calculation.

"Twenty-eight minutes and forty-three seconds, sir."

"Please continue."

"After that, because it was getting colder in the room, I went back to my room to get a blanket for my head of household. I covered her with the blanket, she said goodnight to me, I poured her a glass of mineral water, and then I turned off the light and went back to my room."

"And then what?"

"It's nothing, sir. I went back to my room and fell asleep."

"Did you run into anyone while you were walking in the hallway outside?"

"No, sir."

"Think again, have you seen a woman wearing a red cloak?"

She opened her gentle eyes and stared at him.

"Sir, really, there's no one around except the train conductor. Everyone's asleep."

"Did you see the train conductor?"

"Yes, sir."

What is he doing?

"He came out of a room, sir."

"What?!" Mr. Frederick jumped up excitedly, leaning forward and asking urgently, "Which private room?"

Alya blinked her beautiful Ruby eyes in confusion, puzzled by the sudden interruption.

Shirou pulled Mr. Frederick back to his seat and said, "The train conductor has to go at night when he hears the bell. Do you remember which room it is?"

Alya smiled and replied, "Sir, that's in the middle of the carriage, with two or three doors separating it from my master's room."

"Oh, if you could, could you please point out which private room it was and what happened?" Shirou said.

"Sir, he almost bumped into me. I was just bringing a blanket to my master from my room."

"So, he almost bumped into you as he came out of a room? Which direction did he run in?"

"He apologized to me, sir, and ran haltingly toward the dining car. Another bell rang, but as far as I know, he didn't go there."

She paused for a moment, then continued, "I don't understand, how is this...?"

Shirou comforted her.

"It's just a matter of time," he said. "It's all routine. The poor train conductor has had a busy night, first waking you up, then having to get up after hearing the bell ring again and again."

"He wasn't the one who woke me up, sir. It was someone else."

"Hmm, the other one? You've seen him before?"

"No, sir."

"Ah! If you saw him again, would you recognize him?"

"I think I recognize him, sir."

Shirou whispered a few words in Mr. Frederick's ear, and the latter stood up, walked to the door, and gave an order.

Shirou asked her questions intermittently and in a friendly and unrestrained manner.

"You may have heard that this victim was a big shot who caused chaos in Europe."

"Yes, sir. I know him. He's a thief! A robber! We hate this man. He caused our master to lose his loved ones and the family to suffer great losses," Alya said angrily, frowning.

Shirou took a handkerchief out of his pocket and handed it to her.

"Miss Alya, is this your handkerchief?"

She examined the handkerchief closely, remained silent for a moment, then looked up, her face slightly flushed.

"Ah! It's not mine, it really isn't mine, sir."

"Look, there's an 'A' on it, that's when I realized it's yours."

"Ah, sir, these handkerchiefs are only used by young ladies and wives; they're quite expensive. They're hand-embroidered; I imagine they must be from Paris."

"If it's not yours, then do you know whose it is?"

"Huh? You're asking me? Oh, I don't know, sir." Alya paused, then shook her head.

However, Shirou noticed that her answer was somewhat hesitant.

At this moment, Mr. Frederick whispered a few words in his ear. Shirou nodded, then said to her, "We have called all three train conductors over. Could you please identify which one you encountered last night when you delivered the blanket to the Lord?"

Three train conductors entered. Hartless, a tall Black man; a dark-haired man; the conductor from the Greek and Paris carriages; and the fat, burly man from the carriage that had been added later. Alya glanced at them and then shook her head.

"No, sir," she said. "None of them were the ones I saw last night."

"But all the train conductors are here. Look again carefully, are you sure you're not mistaken?" Mr. Frederick said.

"Sir, they were all too tall. The one I met was short, with very fair skin, and a very handsome gentleman. When he apologized to me, his voice was very soft, like a young lady's, so I remember him quite clearly."

Chapter 1247 Shirou and the Man Who Looks Like a Woman

"A short man, pale-skinned, handsome, and with a voice like a woman," Mr. Frederick muttered sternly.

The three train conductors and Miss Alya have been asked to leave.

Mr. Frederick waved his hand in despair.

"This is all so confusing, so utterly incomprehensible! The enemy Old John mentioned, is he still on the carriage? But where is he now? How could he have vanished without a trace? My head is spinning. Shirou, please say something. Tell me, how can the impossible become possible?"

"Sir! You are absolutely right!" Shirou said. "The impossible cannot happen, therefore, whatever appears to be possible must be true."

Mr. Frederick said anxiously, "Tell me clearly, what exactly happened last night?"

"Sir, I am not a prophet. Like you, I am also perplexed. This case is progressing in an unusual way."

"No progress, nothing has been done."

Shirou shook his head.

"No, that's not true. The case has made significant progress. We've learned some facts, and we've gathered all the passengers' testimonies."

"What do these testimonies tell us? Nothing," Mr. Frederick said, spreading his hands.

"Sir, I don't think so."

"Perhaps I'm exaggerating a bit. The American, the Kairi Shishigou, and the German maid—yes, they provided some clues. You could say they made the whole case even more perplexing than before."

"No, no, no," Shirou calmly denied.

Mr. Frederick seemed quite unconvinced and retorted sharply.

"Alright, let's hear what the wise Shirou has to say."

"As I said, I'm just as confused as you are. But at least we've gathered all the testimonies, and now we can start analyzing and solving the problem. We can organize the existing facts in an orderly manner."

"Please continue." Mr. Frederick raised one eyebrow.

Shirou cleared his throat and flattened a piece of paper.

"Let's review this case based on its development. First, there are some indisputable facts. Old John, or Darnic, was stabbed thirteen times and died last night. That's the first point."

"Yes, you're right, you're absolutely right, sir," Mr. Frederick said with a mocking wave of his hand.

Shirou, unperturbed, continued calmly, "Professor Waver and I discussed some strange phenomena. Let's leave that for later. Another crucial fact, in my opinion, is the timing of the crime."

"Everyone knows this; there's nothing new," Mr. Frederick said. "The case occurred at 1:15 a. m. All the facts prove that."

"Not all the facts are true; you've exaggerated again. Of course, there are some facts that can prove this point."

"I'm glad, at least you're willing to admit that."

Shirou was unfazed by his interruption and continued speaking calmly:

We are faced with three possibilities:

"First, as you said, the crime was committed at 1:15. The German maid Alya's words can corroborate this, and they also match the evidence provided by Waver."

"Secondly, the crime may have been committed later, suggesting that the evidence was intentionally fabricated."

"Third, the crime may have occurred even earlier, and the evidence presented is false."

"Currently, the first possibility is the most likely, and the evidence is the most substantial. However, if we believe this hypothesis and continue the investigation, we will inevitably encounter other questions that arise as a result."

First, if the incident occurred at 1:15, and the perpetrator couldn't escape the train, then the questions arise: Where is he? Who is he?

Mr. Frederick stood with his arms crossed, tapping his arm with the fingers of one hand in a slow, rhythmic motion.

"Let's examine the testimony carefully. We first heard that there was a man, short in stature, with pale skin, handsome features, and a voice like a woman's. This is what Kairi Shishigou said."

He said that Old John told him this, and that Old John hired him to deal with this person. But there's no evidence; we only have a few words from Kairi Shishigou. Thinking about it more deeply, one can't help but ask: Is Kairi Shishigou a trustworthy person?

Mr. Frederick's fingers quickened their pace.

"Looking back, it's quite amusing. During the investigation of this case, we lacked sufficient communication tools to maintain contact with the relevant departments of the Mage's Association. The ancient road blocked all communication, and the Snow Spirit's rampage and the train's protective barrier trapped us all. Therefore, it was impossible to thoroughly investigate these people."

We can only rely on reasoning. To me, this makes the case all the more intriguing—no trial process, just pure intellect. I asked myself: 'Is Kairi Shishigou's explanation acceptable?'