Prepare a Big Surprise

He had barely voiced his guess when the train conductor refuted it without hesitation.

Then, at the train conductor's signal, a body was carried in by staff. This was the staff member he had mentioned who had last come into contact with the Mystic Eyes. Seeing the large patch of blood gushing from his right chest, staining his clothes red, everyone present couldn't help but frown.

He... committed suicide?

"Could it be... that he was threatened by the killer? Like his family members were kidnapped... Oh, sorry, I was being a bit stupid."

Hansa was about to speak when he noticed that the dead staff members on the ground bore a striking resemblance to the train conductor and the other staff members in front of him—sometimes nine-tenths. He realized that these staff members were artificial beings created through Alchemy, tools that resembled humans. And threatening a tool itself was simply impossible.

Then, the train conductor gave an even more astonishing answer.

"According to our autopsy, the staff member died at 4 p. m., and the cause of death was that his body was emptied out by an unknown creature."

"... Huh? You mean he was already dead when he examined the Mystic Eyes?"

This answer truly astonished all the Magus present.

"That's right, he died in the afternoon."

The train conductor nodded and recited all the answers they had gathered from their investigation.

"If he died in the afternoon, then what happened afterward...?"

"Wait a minute, I have a bold idea. May I examine the body briefly?"

"Of course, even if you don't say anything, we will ask everyone present to cooperate with the investigation. After all, there are no outsiders on this train, and apart from the crew, you are the most suspicious."

The train conductor answered very frankly, expressing his doubts about the people in front of him directly. The Magus present was very unhappy, but there was nothing he could do about it.

"Hehe, feel free to do the inspection. However, I hope you can act quickly and not delay the auction. If you don't have the results by 6 PM tonight, I'm not in the mood to keep you company."

Aozaki Touko sneered, completely disregarding the suspect's identity. Instead, she went directly to the long-dead corpse, channeled her magic to her fingertips, and gently slid it across the body.

As magic flowed through the circuit, specks of magic seeped into the corpse below, and Aozaki Touko carefully examined the inner workings of the dead body.

Then, as she used her own magic to create a line of sight and began to examine the mostly hollowed-out body all the way to the heart, her eyes widened slightly in surprise, and a strange smile appeared on her lips.

At this moment, Rovey also came over, quietly watching her actions, and made eye contact with her. He nodded slightly, then raised his hand and Projection a short sword, throwing it directly into her hand.

"Then I'm going to start the surgery. Are you all okay with that?"

"Can."

Finally, after obtaining the train conductor's permission, Aozaki Touko unceremoniously tossed the short sword into the corpse's chest, then used Magecraft to directly extract the bright red but empty heart.

The moment the heart appeared, everyone present changed their expressions. Yvette, in particular, hid behind Rovey in fear, unable to bear the sight of the bloody scene.

Of course, unlike this little girl, the reason why the others' expressions changed upon seeing the heart was not because the scene was too bloody, but because they saw—

Inside that blood-red heart, several strange worms were wriggling incessantly.

"What is this thing...?"

The others looked surprised, while Rovey Wei remained silent. Aozaki Touko, however, smiled happily and then, as if she had expected it, dropped the knife and heart from her hand.

"Well, that's about it. You can investigate the rest yourselves. I won't say anything more, since it's a big no-no for me, Magus, to reveal other Magus' secrets."

"Well... I look forward to your satisfactory answer~"

Aozaki Touko picked up the water on the table and gently rinsed her fingers. Then, she got up and, amidst everyone's confusion, called to Rovey, and together they left.

As for what exactly happened...

She already had a pretty good idea of the correct answer.

Chapter 138 Preparing a Big Surprise

As Grand Puppet Master, Aozaki Touko's expertise in ergonomics is undeniable. If we're only discussing research on human anatomy, she is undoubtedly the world's foremost expert. Meanwhile, Rovey, the next successor to the Clock Tower's Mineralogy Department, is also a true expert in gems and various other types of minerals.

Therefore, with the clues provided by the two of them and their personal identification, even if one is unwilling to believe the result before them, it has now become a fait accompli.

The container used to store the Mystic Eyes in the warehouse had its seal broken, and the Mystic Eyes itself had been replaced with four ordinary gems and disguised with an illusion spell. There were no clues at the moment.

This conclusion was reached after observation by everyone present and assessment by Rovey, a polymath who possessed both Jewel Magecraft and illusion skills. At this point, they had no choice but to believe it.

So, with little hope to begin with, the train conductor handed the four ordinary, low-quality gems that had been replaced to Rovey, who was from the Mineralogy Department, and asked him to investigate them a little after returning to his room to see if he could find any clues.

The current situation then proceeded to the routine investigation phase.

According to Lita and the train conductor, the warehouse where the goods were stored was intact, with no signs of fighting or damage, and the other party entered through the gate through normal procedures.

In other words, the only person capable of doing something like this right now is the train crew member, who is the unfortunate guy who has already died.

Based on the timeline, the theft of the Mystic Eyes could only have occurred after he entered the warehouse.

However, the train conductor and others had carefully investigated all of his routes from yesterday, trying to find the switched Mystic Eyes, but they still had no clues.

According to eyewitnesses, he left the warehouse at 7 p. m. yesterday, and because he is an android, he did not wander around after his shift ended, but went directly back to his employee room.

This has been confirmed by other train staff; no one had contact with him during that time, so there is no possibility that he passed on the Mystic Eyes.

What follows is the scene of the employee committing suicide in his room.

Based on the known clues, his entire crime timeline can be described as extremely tight, leaving no extra time to pass the stolen goods, and he undoubtedly lacked the motive and ability to commit the crime.

Moreover, as an artificial human, his personality and mission are predetermined and cannot be bought or threatened. His entire purpose is to serve the train, so he has no motive to commit a crime.

Similarly, as an artificial being, he possesses only a faint magical aura. Although he can perform some low-level Magecraft, his true magical level doesn't even reach that of a fully-fledged [Cause] Magus. Such powerful illusions are absolutely impossible for him to perform; someone else must be responsible. Coupled with his empty body and the heart that has been eaten away by insects, the entire incident becomes even more perplexing.

Even Lita, with her extensive knowledge, can only tentatively conclude that the employee was already dead in the warehouse. Someone followed him, sneaked in, and used him to easily open the container, swapping the Mystic Eyes before brutally murdering him. They then used insects with clearly special magical properties to manipulate his body, creating the illusion that nothing had happened, before finally committing suicide to cover it up, turning the entire incident into a cold case.

It can be said that this thief was indeed highly skilled, managing to complete such a well-concealed plan despite the patrols of the Mystic Eye Train, and even covering it up so skillfully.

This makes the whole thing very tricky.

Currently, the only evidence they have is that the other party is a master of illusion, possessing illusion techniques at the level of the Age of Gods, and having the ability to control insect familiars and manipulate corpses.

Beyond that, no one knows anything, and the truth remains elusive.

After obtaining everyone's consent, Rovey, under the pretext of going back to investigate, took the four ordinary gemstones to his room to study them, hoping to find some new clues.

Aozaki Touko also stated that she had little interest in the upcoming investigation.

After all, she was Magus, not a detective posing as Magus, so she naturally had no interest in outsmarting a strange thief.

It was indeed a pity that two pairs of Jewel-Grade Mystic Eyes were lost, but that was the organizer's business. What did it have to do with her? She was just a guest.

Ultimately, this incident is undoubtedly a dereliction of duty on the part of the organizers, right?

After all, she had a clear alibi last night, so even if there was suspicion, it wouldn't fall on her.

Even though she had guessed the truth, Aozaki Touko still wanted to taunt her directly. "Is it because you guys couldn't produce Jewel-Grade Mystic Eyes, so you staged this whole thing?"

However, saying such things now would undoubtedly ignite the woman named Lita, who might even attack her directly. It was not convenient to start a conflict at this time, so Aozaki Touko kept quiet for a while.

Compared to those clueless guys in the restaurant, she had a very fruitful day...

Or perhaps the so-called thief never intended to hide it from her at all.

They brazenly used several metaphorical features to directly convey information to him in the restaurant.

It was clearly extremely dangerous, but he still did it. This behavior was just like that of a phantom thief in another world, wearing a white suit and brazenly showing off his skills to the police.

This time, the Rail Zeppelin was completely exposed by that guy, who even cleared his name and escaped unscathed.

The thought of this outcome made Aozaki Touko's smile even harder to suppress than Ak's, but she had studied facial expression management, so she naturally wouldn't do anything stupid that would drag her down.

And what happened was not just the current situation. During this breakfast, she also completely confirmed Lita's true identity and her level of magic.

Putting aside the absurd rumors circulating that "the owner of the Rail Zeppelin must possess a Rainbow-level Mystic Eyes," she has now witnessed firsthand the true power of the train's owner.

Although there was no direct observation, one could roughly deduce from the aura that it possessed a pair of powerful Mystic Eyes of the highest quality and gem-grade, though its actual abilities were currently unknown.

Aozaki Touko finally understood why that crazy woman had been targeting her ever since she got on the bus.

It turns out that Rovey's guess was indeed correct; that woman was the real person in charge behind the train, and her reluctance to reveal herself while boarding as a customer was also a scheme to outmaneuver him.

Now, seeing the other party's impotent rage, I feel really good inside.

Tsk tsk, at least in Aozaki Touko's opinion, that guy definitely won't have the energy to deal with her in the short term.

They should just go and play their own detective games.

Shortly after the morning commotion, Rovey and Aoko returned to their guest room together.

At that moment, the other Magus in the restaurant were all actively staying there to help with the investigation, while Aozaki Touko was pulling on Rovey's arm as she hurriedly followed him back to their room.

"Hey, Rovey, you must have stolen it, right?"

As soon as he entered, Aozaki Touko spoke to him with great enthusiasm, getting straight to the point.

Because Rovey had set up an isolation barrier in the room the night before, ostensibly to maintain privacy, they didn't need to worry about being eavesdropped on. Besides, those guys were too busy to bother listening to them.

"Oh, how do you know?"

Rovey didn't answer directly. He just plopped down on the bed and lay down leisurely, his expression not at all like someone who had done something wrong.

"Ha, you're still pretending with me."

Seeing his expression, Aozaki Touko chuckled and then sat down next to Rovey with a strange smile on her face. However, her fingers were groping all over Rovey's body, clearly searching for something.

"What are you doing? You female hooligan, can't you have some self-control in broad daylight?"

Finally, after enduring her groping and even her exploration of sensitive areas, Rovey, who was leaning against the bed, sat up, slapped away her restless hand, and then put on a reproachful expression.

"Huh? Did you have a reaction just now?"

However, the next second Aozaki Touko said something that made him feel extremely nauseous.

"Don't be so shy. After all, it's just a normal situation. Besides, didn't you say before that you have some feelings for me? Even if that's true, I can help you get rid of them..."

"Get away from me, you perverted bastard!"

Seeing Aoko grinning mischievously as she crawled down from the bed toward him, Rovey was speechless. He then slapped her face with a pillow.

I thought that every time I entered a dream, I would try to download computer parts to myself, and then mentally rape my own Merry, who was already an extremely heavyweight existence.

I never imagined there would be someone outside who wanted to physically rape him.

For a moment, Rovey felt like he had committed some terrible sin, and all the guys he knew were so perverted.

"Hmm... Take out the hidden Jewel-Grade Mystic Eyes first, and I won't do anything reckless."

"..."

After a brief silence, Rovey spoke up, "Why do you think I stole the Gem Mystic Eyes and that it's still on me right now, Aoko?"

"Heh, you're practically revealing your hand to me already, and you're still asking this kind of question?"

Aozaki Touko chuckled lightly, then answered with great ease.

"Is there even a question? Of course, it's the Magecraft and clues you left behind..."

"Leaving aside the Crest Worms, which is clearly Matou Family Magecraft, the fact that the gemstone comes from Finland is enough to tell the story. After all, you and I just got on the train in Finland, so it's perfectly normal for you to have some impression of Finland gemstones, right?"

Aozaki Touko gently spread her hands, revealing a helpless expression, and then she continued, "Besides, I saw the information about the Matou Family when I accompanied you in the Holy Grail War. You were the one who gave me the information about insect familiars and corpse manipulation back then, how could I not recognize them? Among all the people here, everyone has the opportunity to obtain the Northern Europe Gem, but you are the only one who knows the secret of the Matou Family and can use other people's family Magecraft so easily."

"As for why you deliberately left behind that familiar called the Crest Worms, it was simply to temporarily clear your name of suspicion. After all, you are the next successor of the Mineralogy Department. In addition to being proficient in Alchemy, mastering the illusion magic of the Golden System is already quite remarkable. The Crest Worms Magecraft that manipulates corpses is not low-level; it is clearly a type of Magecraft that only people from the Zoology Department would use. Putting aside your completely unrelated relationship with the Zoology Department, how old do you think you are? No normal person would think that you could master several great Magecraft that are completely independent of the system, right? After all, human energy is limited."

Listening to Aozaki Touko's explanation, Rovey stroked his chin and nodded thoughtfully. Then, feigning surprise, he said, "I really didn't expect you to actually read the information I gave you. I thought that during the Holy Grail War, you were so engrossed in shopping with Scáthach that you forgot all about the things I had arranged."

"Ahem... that was just necessary communication between companions."

When Rovey pointed this out, Aozaki Touko's expression became somewhat awkward.

However, since he said that, the situation was indeed... like that.

"Finally, let me ask you one more question, Senior Aoko. Where do you think those two Jewel-Grade Mystic Eyes are? After all, the train conductor said that the staff member hadn't had any contact with anyone in the time leading up to his death, right? Why do you think they're on me?"

Then Rovey asked Aoko another question, the most important one in this case.

—Where did the Mystic Eyes go?

However, the question that had troubled Lita and even the entire train seemed to have been answered in Aoko's mind long ago, and she had also anticipated the question raised by Rovey.

Instead of looking puzzled, a slight smile appeared on his lips before he gave the answer.

"Didn't I tell you? Of course it was on you. Didn't you take it right in front of them?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"I'm really impressed with you. Do you really have to resort to this Holmes- style detective method at a time like this?"

Aozaki Touko's expression suddenly turned quite helpless at Rovey Wei's cryptic behavior. She covered her forehead and said, "Aren't those four gems on you just four Jewel-Grade Mystic Eyes? They're just shrouded in illusion. Although I can't figure out how you managed to cast such an illusion that could deceive Jewel-Grade Mystic Eyes, this is the only answer."