Shirou and the American Colonel

Olga Marie and Marie left. Shirou glanced at his friend.

"Look," he said, "We've taken another big step forward."

"Excellent," said Mr. Frederick sincerely. "If it were me, I would never have suspected the Animsfia family. I confess, I thought they were completely unrelated. Now I think it is very likely that she committed the crime. She has Magic Eye that sees the future! She must know what will happen in the future, and therefore know how to get rid of the search."

She first killed Darnic with a knife, and then, anticipating that we would investigate the knife wounds, she stabbed him thirteen times, alternating between her left and right hands.

She also foresaw Snow Spirit's rampage, so she donned the red cloak to create the illusion of a vampire. Knowing your identity, she must have done something else to mislead us."

"Sir, do you believe Miss Teresa is the culprit?"

Shirou continued:

"Is that really without a doubt? I think your confident demeanor makes it sound like you're saying that once the train clears the snowdrifts, we'll hand the case over to the police and then we can call it a day."

"Don't you believe that Olga Marie explicitly asserts, and vouches for, in her honor, that her governess is innocent?"

"That girl likes her tutor, doesn't she? She wants to save him! You must know she's an aristocrat. Aristocrats are good at lying, they have an air of nobility, but what else is there to say besides lies?"

"Well, you know, I have the opposite opinion; what he said might be true."

"No, no. Don't forget this handkerchief. This handkerchief alone is enough to prove everything."

"Oh, right, the handkerchief? I don't think so. You should remember that I kept reminding you that there's actually another possibility regarding the handkerchief's owner."

"Despite this..."

Before Mr. Frederick could finish speaking, the door to the dining car opened, and Lord Rin - El-Melloi entered.

She walked straight toward them, and all three of them stood up.

She only spoke to Shirou, ignoring the other two.

"Sir, I heard," she said with a cool smile, "That you have one of my handkerchiefs here."

Shirou glanced at Frederick, his eyes revealing a triumphant joy.

"Is this the one, Your Lord?"

He took out the finely embroidered cotton handkerchief.

"That's it. The first letter of my name is on the corner."

"But Lord El-Melloi, the letter here is A," said Mr. Frederick, "And your first name should be Rin, and if it were a family name, El-Melloi would also begin with EL."

"Oh, sir, this handkerchief is something I had when the family was divided. I've always cherished it. You know, I haven't been given the El-Melloi surname for very long. The 'A' here has commemorative significance; it represents my family, the Archizorti."

She gave him a cold look.

"I can give you the address of the Parisian who embroidered my handkerchief. Just show them the handkerchief you have, and they'll tell you it was made when I was twelve. The handkerchief is mine, do you have any objections?"

Mr. Frederick was somewhat stunned; the other party's blatant display of malice left him bewildered. He seemed to have thoroughly offended the other party. But the other party's attitude clearly indicated that they were no longer going to conceal their involvement in the murder.

"This morning, when we met, you didn't tell us that this handkerchief was yours," Frederick asked again.

"You didn't ask me," Lord Rin El- El-Melloi said coldly.

Frederick choked.

"Please sit down, my Lord," Shirou said.

She sighed and agreed.

"All right."

Chapter 1262 Shirou and the US Colonel

Rin El- El-Melloi sat down gracefully, wearing a navy blue dress with a tight-fitting mini-skirt, a small black hat adorned with flowers, and her legs, clad in black stockings, were pressed together to one side.

"Actually, gentlemen, how long this matter takes is irrelevant. Your next question should be to me: how did your handkerchief end up next to the corpse? My answer to that question is: I don't know."

Rin gave a sweet, aristocratic smile.

"You really don't know?"

"I know nothing at all."

"Please forgive me, Your Lord. But how can we believe your answer is true?"

Shirou said very gently.

Rin El- El-Melloi replied dismissively:

"Isn't my name, El-Melloi, enough? Even if the Mage's Association comes, I'll tell them the same thing."

Shirou shrugged. Indeed, he was only entrusted by Mr. Frederick, the train director, and only had the right to investigate, but he was not a law enforcement agency. When a detective brilliantly solves a case, only to find that there is collusion between officials or between officials and businessmen, then no amount of evidence is of any use.

"Alright, next question, Your Lord, are you sure you don't know any of the people in the carriage?"

She answered seriously:

"No, sir, not a single one."

She stood up.

"Do you have any other questions?"

"Your maid, when we showed her the handkerchief this morning, should she have recognized it?"

"Ah, Alya must have recognized me. She saw the handkerchief but said nothing; that shows she's loyal to me."

Rin nodded with satisfaction and walked through the food cart.

"That's right," Shirou said softly. "When I asked the maid whose handkerchief it was, she hesitated. She couldn't decide whether she should admit that the handkerchief belonged to her mistress. However, doesn't that seem different from my guess? No, perhaps it actually makes sense."

"Ah!" said Mr. Frederick, making a habitual gesture. "She's a terrible young lady. No wonder she's Lord. Indeed, none of the Lord of the Clock Tower should be underestimated."

"Is it possible that she murdered Old John?" Waver asked Shirou.

Shirou shook his head.

"Those knife wounds, those deep cuts that penetrate the muscle, could not have been done by an old and frail person."

"But what about those that are a little shallower?"

"Yes, those that are a bit shallower."

"I'm thinking about it," Shirou said. "I talked to her when I was searching her luggage, and she remarked that she felt like a helpless little girl... She glanced at her hands instinctively, but she was looking at both her left and right hands at the same time..."

Mr. Frederick said helplessly, "This doesn't solve the problem of left-handedness."

"No, by the way, did you notice that when the Italian was demonstrating his fire-starting technique, he used his left hand?"

Mr. Frederick shook his head. He recalled how astonishing and unexpected the revelations of the case had been over the past half hour. He said in a hoarse voice, "Lies, and more lies. It's astonishing, a whole morning of lies."

"There are still many more secrets to be revealed," Shirou said happily.

Is that what you think?

"If that's not the case, I will be very disappointed."

"This deception is terrible," said Mr. Frederick, "But you seem pleased." He added, with a hint of reproach.

"Lying has its advantages, like that classic fork in the road leading to the land of lies and the land of honesty," Shirou said. "If you can find the truth and confront a liar, they usually confess on their own, often unexpectedly. As long as your deduction is correct, it will have an effect; at least they will react."

"So what should we do next?"

"Finding the truth within the lies was the only way to handle this case. I called each traveler in turn, carefully considered their testimonies, and asked myself, 'If he is lying, why is he lying about that particular point? What is his reason for lying?'"

So I have my answer. Assuming they're in a house of lies, then they must constantly add believable reasons to their lies, continuing to lie around that point.

This method worked quite well on Red-haired Miss. Now, let's try the same method on the others."

"Shirou, what if your prediction turns out to be wrong?"

"Then, in any case, this person is no longer a suspect."

"Ah! You're going to use the process of elimination."

"Absolutely right, this is the simplest and most practical method. Snow Spirit's rampage hasn't stopped, so we have plenty of time." Shirou glanced out the window and leaned back on the sofa.

Mr. Frederick smiled and asked:

"So, which one should we deal with first?"

"That true gentleman who cherishes ladies, the US Colonel," Shirou said.

The US Colonel was clearly furious because Shirou had summoned him to the dining car for a second meeting. His expression was intimidating. He sat down and asked:

"Did you send me?"

"I'm sorry to bother you again," Shirou said, "But there are some situations where I think you can provide us with strong evidence."

"Really? I can't sense it at all."

First of all, have you ever seen these two lighters before?

Shirou took out two lighters from the drawer that he had found in Old John's room; one was provided on the train, and the other was a flip-top lighter made in the United States.

"I've seen them. One was from a train; I asked for one before. The other was a flip lighter; it works really well."

"Is this flip phone yours?" Shirou asked.

"I don't know. I didn't put any personal markings on it, but I had one before, the same one, but it was gone when I got on the train," the colonel said.

"Ah, I found this on the train." Shirou smiled and returned the lighter to the colonel.

"Ah, then this must be mine, thank you." The colonel took the lighter.

Do you know where this was found?

"Have no idea."

"It was found next to the victim's body."

The US Colonel raised his eyebrows.

"Can you tell us, Colonel, how could it possibly have gotten there?"

"If you mean whether I personally went to the deceased's room and left the lighter there, then I can tell you, no!"

"Have you never been inside Old John's, Darnic's, private room?"

"I've never even spoken to him in my entire life."

"Oh, Colonel, as far as I know, you studied at the Clock Tower. You know, in recent decades, the Clock Tower has hardly been accepting students from outside the community. I suppose you must come from a rather noble head of household. You must know quite a few talented people in social circles, right?"

"I joined the army, was considered an outcast by my family, and was not welcomed in social circles. Are you satisfied with this answer?" the colonel said coldly.

"Okay, since you never spoke to him, that means you weren't involved in his murder?"

The colonel raised his eyebrows mockingly again.

"If that were the case, I wouldn't be giving you the facts. But the truth is, I didn't murder that guy."

"Well, okay," Shirou mumbled, "None of this really matters."

"What did you say?"

"I said, these things are unimportant."

"Ah!" The US Colonel seemed taken aback. He looked at Shirou uneasily.

"Therefore, you see," Shirou continued, "The lighter itself is not important at all. There are plenty of them on the train, and among the passengers is a master of fire attribute Magecraft. I can come up with eleven other clever explanations to clear your name regarding the lighter's presence."

The US Colonel stared straight at him.

"I think the real reason I wanted to meet you is something else entirely," Shirou continued. "Perhaps, the Red-haired Miss has already told you that I happened to overhear someone saying something to you at the secret passenger ship?"

The US Colonel did not answer.

"She said, 'Not now, after that's over, after that's done.' Do you know what she meant by that?"

"I regret to inform you, Mr. Shirou, that I must decline to answer this question."

Why?

The colonel said curtly, "As for the meaning of those words, I think you should ask Red-haired Miss herself."

"I've already asked."

So, she's refusing to tell you?

"Yes."

"Then, things are quite clear. Since she doesn't want to talk about it, I won't say a word to you either."

Are you unwilling to reveal the secrets of your loved one?