Shade left the room without caring whether Baron Herle immediately followed. He walked down the corridor and found Miss Bayes, who had been waiting at the corner for some time. The young girl with long brown hair asked expectantly:
"How did it go?"
"No problem. Hide quickly, he'll be here soon."
Shade said, then complained:
"Conversations between nobles and merchants are such a pain. Whenever they speak, every word seems to carry three meanings."
"You've worked hard, Detective. What excuse did you use to lure Baron Herle out?"
Miss Bayes asked curiously, as though she were learning.
"I didn't use an excuse. I just gave him a look. For someone like him, I don't believe he wouldn't be curious about what that look meant. He surely never imagined he would be attacked even in the duke's residence, so he would definitely follow out of curiosity. It's human nature."
Shade gave a simple explanation, then silently counted to three. In fact, he counted to three twice, but the two of them soon heard faint footsteps from the other end of the corridor.
Miss Bayes looked at the young detective with admiration.
What followed was very simple. For the first time, Shade witnessed the "interrogation techniques" of an age where steam and mystery coexisted.
First, when Baron Herle curiously turned the corner, Miss Bayes punched him in the face.
Then, acting furtively, the two of them dragged the unconscious Baron Herle into a broom closet on the third floor that Miss Bayes had scouted beforehand.
Finally, Miss Bayes tied up the baron with rope from the closet, stuffed a rag into his mouth, placed him inside the broom cabinet, and put paper and a pen in his hands. After confirming that the broom closet was completely dark and would not expose her