Shirou's Hypothesis / Shirou Questions the Tutor ...

"I don't know. I didn't listen to a lot of what you were saying. I don't understand a lot of what you're talking about. Don't ask me!" Waver said, clearly annoyed.

Chapter 1259 Shirou's Assumption

"Alright, Shirou, tell me your thoughts! I'm all ears," Mr. Frederick said, abandoning his own thinking and seeking an answer.

Shirou nodded and said:

"Ah, sir, you need to change your original thinking and approach this case from a completely different angle. That is, how did the murderer initially intend to make his entrance? Don't forget, the sudden rampage of the Snow Spirit disrupted the murderer's original plan. Let me imagine, if there were no snow, and the train continued its normal journey, what would happen then?"

"If the Snow Spirit hadn't gone berserk and the train hadn't traveled smoothly, this case would likely have been discovered this morning, at the Italian border station. Members of the Mage's Association in Italy would have arrived and obtained the same testimony as us."

Mr. Caules will produce a threatening letter; Mr. Lion Kagari will tell the story of how Old John hired him; Old Boss Li will be eager to tell everyone that a mysterious person or vampire has passed through his private room; the armband will also be discovered. But there will only be two things that will be different."

"That man would have passed through Old Boss Li's compartment before 1 a. m., and the train conductor's uniform would have been left in the restroom. According to the killer's modus operandi, it should have been thrown away in the women's restroom."

"You mean?"

"What I mean is, the killer's original plan was to make it look like someone sneaked in from outside the train. The killer killed Old John a little before 1 a. m., then got off at the next stop and ran away."

Someone might encounter a strange train conductor in the aisle, and the conductor's uniform would be thrown in an obvious place. Then the Mage's Association would see through the murderer's deception and know that the murderer, disguised as a train conductor, has already gotten off the train and run away. As a result, none of the passengers on the train would be suspected.

This was the killer's meticulously planned murder scheme.

Shirou emphasized as he spoke:

"However, everything changed because of this Snow Spirit rampage. Without a doubt, we can now understand why that man stayed in the room of the dead for so long. He was waiting for the train to continue its journey. But the Snow Spirit was causing a huge disturbance, and the train deployed a protective barrier, so he realized that the train could not move, and he had to come up with another plan."

Create the illusion of a vampire murder case: the vampire invades from the outside, commits the crime, crosses the barrier, and leaves through the heavy snow. That way, no one in the car will be a suspect. In the freezing cold, it will also be much more difficult to search.

But the more this is the case, the more it indicates that the murderer must still be in the car.

"Yes, yes," Mr. Frederick said eagerly, "I understand everything. But where did the handkerchief come from?"

"I was just about to talk about that, but I'll take a detour and not go straight to it. First, you must realize that those threatening letters didn't have a specific target. Maybe they were copied from a bad detective novel. They're not real. In fact, they were purely written to mislead the investigators. We must ask ourselves: 'Were they meant to deceive Old John?'"

On the surface, the answer seems to be no. His instructions to Kairi Shishigou appear to be aimed at a clear enemy with whom he has a personal grudge. He is also fully aware of the identity of this enemy.

The prerequisite is that we believe the story of the Kairi Shishigou is true. However, Old John must have received a very different letter, the one mentioning Kaineth. We found a fragment of that letter in his private room.

In case Old John didn't realize the danger was imminent, the letter was meant to make him understand exactly why his life was in danger. It was precisely that letter, as we've said, that the killer didn't want anyone else to know.

Therefore, the first thing the killer focused on after committing the crime was to destroy it. This was the second obstacle in his plan. The first was Snow Spirit's rampage; the second was that he didn't expect we could restore the completely charred fragments."

In fact, if Shirou hadn't used the Creative Power within the Power Gemstone shard, ordinary Magecraft wouldn't have been able to restore the shard into text.

"That letter, so carefully destroyed, must have one thing in common: there must have been someone on the train with a very close relationship to the Kaineth family, so much so that finding that letter would immediately raise suspicion about that person."

"Rin El- El-Melloi?!!" Mr. Frederick exclaimed in surprise.

"In fact, I asked her, and the Lord said she wouldn't mind if we pinned the blame on her. That way, she could seize the glory of avenging her family and solidify her position." Shirou shrugged.

"Then... isn't it her? Who else could it be?" Mr. Frederick asked in surprise.

"Alright, sir, what we need to find is the deeper meaning behind this incident. In any case, let's take a look at the other two clues that have been discovered."

Let's put the lighter issue aside for now; we've talked about that a lot. Let's talk about the handkerchief instead! Simply put, this clue directly connects to someone whose name contains the letter A. She or he unintentionally left it there."

"Exactly," Frederick said. "When she realizes her handkerchief is missing, she will immediately take steps to conceal her identity."

"It's both right and wrong."

Are there any other conclusions?

"Of course. For example, suppose you commit a crime but want to arouse suspicion in others. Well, there's this one person on the train, a woman, who has a very close relationship with the Kaineth family. Suppose, you left her handkerchief behind... she would be questioned, and her relationship with the Kaineth family would be exposed, that's it. A motive, and a piece of physical evidence connected to the murder."

"But in this case," Waver suddenly said, "She didn't care at all, and she had no intention of hiding her identity."

"Ah, really? Is that what you think? That's exactly what the Mage's Association thinks. When facing important figures, the authorities inevitably become hesitant and sometimes even have to compromise," Shirou said incisively.

"For some reason, the murderer was eager to conceal his identity, so he dragged such an important figure into the matter. Or perhaps this important figure wanted to favor the murderer, or the suspect, it's hard to say."

Chapter 1260 Shirou questions his tutor

"You mean Lord El-Melloi might be covering for a traveler? Who is it? And who else is connected to Kaineth?" Frederick asked, puzzled.

"You've met him; our teacher Waver has a lot of opinions about her," Shirou said with a smile.

The man looked up and glared at Shirou.

"Alright, let's not talk about that person anymore. Let's talk about the most important thing." Shirou changed the subject.

"Huh? Who is it?" Mr. Frederick was puzzled. There were only a few ladies in the car, but he just couldn't figure out the connection. Kaineth died before he was married, and although it was a political marriage, he seemed quite satisfied with his fiancée. He hadn't heard of him having a mistress? Or perhaps an illegitimate daughter?

Shirou ignored Mr. Frederick and got to the heart of the matter.

"In fact, I've been searching for the connection between the passengers here and the incident, that is, the connection with the deceased Darnic, and then I was surprised to discover a surprising fact."

"What facts?"

"The people in this carriage are very likely all connected to the Sub-species Holy Grail War!"

"That can't be right. My family participated in the Holy Grail War back then, but something happened, and the previous generation swore they would never set foot in Japan again," Frederick said.

"..." Shirou thought to himself, "So that's why you're so hostile to Kairi Shishigou."

"But that's not quite right either. I've looked into all the previous Sub-species Holy Grail War, and these people weren't involved," Frederick retorted.

"Wow, you seem to know quite a bit about the Sub-species Holy Grail War," Waver interjected.

"Of course, since it's being held in Europe and America, right on our doorstep, how could we not check it out? But after some assessment, I've realized that this Sub-species Holy Grail War doesn't offer any real benefits. Aside from being able to summon a more powerful familiar within a limited time, there's no other advantage. Plus, you have to contend with multiple equally dangerous enemies, making the survival rate extremely low. Compared to that, it's really not that great." Frederick shrugged.

"That's true, but there are still many people who enjoy this kind of war," Shirou said.

"Well, but what exactly do you mean? I've heard that there aren't any survivors of the Sub-species Holy Grail War on this train," Frederick asked.

"It doesn't have to be a survivor; it could be a family member of a victim, or a participant in the next Holy Grail War," Shirou said.

"And what about the priest?"

"Possibly a church overseer."

"Okay, even if that's the case, then what?"

"They're targeting Darnic; he's the mastermind, and all participants in the Holy Grail War who know the truth will see him as their enemy."

Mr. Frederick shrugged and said with a puzzled look:

"Are you suggesting the killer was seeking revenge against Darnic? We already knew that; Caules told us."

"Yes, revenge is rather ridiculous for Magecraft, which is why I couldn't understand it before. What's more, there are also prestigious families in the Magecraft world involved, the most noble of the nobles."

"Yes, if those people wanted to deal with Darnic, there would be no need for them to go through all this trouble and do it themselves," Frederick said.

"Yes, that's true, so there must be a reason why they're here," Shirou agreed.

At that moment, a waiter from outside knocked on the door. He came in, bowed slightly, and then said to Mr. Frederick:

"Gentlemen, the meal is ready."

"Let's go up there," Mr. Frederick said, standing up.

After exchanging a few polite words, they left the room and headed towards the dining car.

Preparations are complete inside the dining car.

Shirou and Mr. Frederick sat side by side at one side of the table, while Waver sat to the side.

The waiter went out through another door. Then, the sound of a bell and his loud voice could be heard.

"Serving begins. Dinner is served. Dinner begins, first table."

Shirou and Mr. Frederick Waver sat at the same table.

The people who came to the dining car to eat were all very gentle and self-disciplined. They spoke very little. Even Old Boss Li, who was usually very talkative, was unusually quiet, though he muttered to himself as he sat down:

I don't think I'm very hungry.

The Italian man and the Red-haired Miss sitting nearby comforted the old man.

With comfort and encouragement, the elderly man finally ate some of the food that was served.

Before the food was served, Shirou instructed the head waiter to whisper a few words to him, asking him to deliver the last meal to Olga Marie and her tutor's table. After the meal, he deliberately delayed paying the bill.

Thus, Olga Marie and her governess were the last to leave the dining car.

"Excuse me, ladies, may I have a word with you regarding this case?" Shirou stepped forward and said.

Olga Marie exchanged a glance with her governess, who, as before, gave the girl an encouraging look, signaling her to make a decision directly.

Young Ladies Marie looked at Shirou and spoke.

"Of course, sir, please have a seat."

Shirou sat down and looked at the blonde young woman approvingly, saying:

"Teresa is indeed a remarkable woman. As a tutor, she is dedicated to raising the young lady wherever she goes. However, it is truly puzzling that someone like you did not step forward when the incident occurred on the train. Instead, you adopted an attitude of avoiding strangers and not interacting with others."

"Sir, I'm just feeling unwell. Resting peacefully in this situation and not disturbing others is also a form of self-cultivation."

"But I don't believe for a second that a little illness would make such an excellent woman like you put down your responsibilities. In fact, you did a great job when we searched your room for your belongings earlier."

Yes, at that time, Teresa was also in good health, but she still helped Marie with her studies, and when entertaining guests, she did not take on too much responsibility, but encouraged Marie to do things according to her own ideas.

Now, during dinner, Teresa is doing the same thing.

Since the governess never forgets to do her best to teach Marie, why does she suddenly show her delicate and weak side when she is sick? According to her behavior, she should also show her strong side in this situation and become a role model for the girl.

This simply doesn't make sense.

"Sir, what exactly do you want to say?" This time, Teresa no longer pretended to be weak; she put on a stern face and transformed into the image of a strict teacher—perhaps this was her true self.

Shirou said to Marie's tutor, "Miss Teresa, you possess the Magic Eye of the Future, and you even see the future of the murderer."

"What nonsense are you spouting? We already said she wasn't feeling well, and we didn't go anywhere last night!" Marie slammed her hand on the table angrily.

Chapter 1261 Shirou questions Rin

The Astronomical Lord, Marisbury Animsfia, participated in the Sub-species Holy Grail War and then disappeared.

He completely abandoned Olga Marie, and although he inherited the Animsfia family to the girl, he held no hope for her whatsoever.

Similarly abandoned were the branches and followers of the Animsfia family, who either quietly continued their research or gave up on themselves.

However, among these people, there were those who did not give up on the young Olga Marie, and hoped that she could grow up, stand on her own, and regain her father's trust.

At this moment, when Shirou interrogated Teresa, Marie jumped out like a little lion, protecting this 'family member' who genuinely cared for her.

"Young Ladies Marie, while your defense of your family is certainly respectable, there are times in this world when familial bonds must be set aside for the sake of justice. For example, standing up to stop a loved one from doing something wrong takes courage."

"Teresa didn't do anything wrong! We were just witnessed!" Olga Marie argued, her mouth agape.

Shirou and the other two's eyes lit up, and they were about to ask more questions.

"Young Miss, it's alright."

At this moment, Teresa Fellowes stood up, stopped Marie, and said:

"Yes, I do indeed possess the Magic Eye of the Future."

"So you chose not to come out and avoid us because you saw some important vision of the future?" Shirou asked.

"No! The reason I've been avoiding you is to avoid this awkward situation of being dragged into it. I don't know anything about the murderer."

Although it's a futuristic Magic Eye, all I can see are scraps of the story. I don't know who will be killed, nor do I see the killer's face. I merely sensed an unknown danger, so I took action.

Within a realm where magic is forbidden, the idea of confronting such a dangerous being is truly unthinkable, so I simply stayed in the room with you, Miss, that's all."

It seemed the other party didn't want to admit anything more, so Shirou didn't press the matter. He took out the handkerchief and asked:

"Then may I ask if you can take this handkerchief back?"

Teresa Fellowes is from a branch of the Animsfia family, and her family name should also begin with the letter A, similar to the relationship between the Rin and Kaineth families in the past.

Even if the letter A is embroidered on it?

"Well, even though it's embroidered with an 'A' and looks a bit like my handkerchief, the style is still different. Of course, I know I don't expect you to believe I'm completely innocent. But I assure you that handkerchief isn't mine."

"Maybe someone put it there to implicate you?"

She smiled slightly.

"Sir, are you still trying to trick me into admitting it's mine? But the fact is the fact, Mr. Shirou, this handkerchief is not mine."

She spoke with great seriousness.

"How many times have I told you! This handkerchief is definitely not ours! Can we leave now?" Olga Marie said angrily.

"Alright." Shirou extended a hand, inviting the two ladies to leave.