Drawing Him Out

"I need you to explain the entire case to me in detail!"

Seeing how simple the description of the side quest was, Qin Ran spoke slowly.

"Aren't you looking for Hunter's daughter? That man who treats every police officer like his servant!"

Sheriff John glanced at Qin Ran and snorted disdainfully, making his dissatisfaction with Hunter clear.

However, he still told Qin Ran everything he knew.

"The body was discovered by a drunk this morning, near the train station!"

"It was tossed into a corner like garbage!"

"I've dealt with plenty of vicious criminals, but none of them ever treated a corpse like this!"

Speaking of the murder case before them, Sheriff John grew irritated again. He subconsciously lit a cigarette and offered one to Qin Ran.

However, Qin Ran refused.

He raised the pipe in his hand and gestured toward John.

Even though it was an empty pipe, with no tobacco inside, and he had no matches.

It still convinced Sheriff John.

"Pipes are too troublesome. They're nowhere near as convenient as cigarettes, especially Ship Cigarettes. They're pretty good. You should try them!"

Sheriff John muttered as he lit his cigarette and began puffing away.

After taking two drags, he continued.

"I'm severely short-handed right now. If you're willing to help, I'd be very grateful!"

"This is a certificate I signed. It'll allow you to enter the church school Hunter's daughter attends. I hope you find something!"

As he spoke, Sheriff John picked up a pen and wrote something on a sheet of paper.

A dozen seconds later, he handed the paper to Qin Ran.

It read—

Qin Ran, police consultant, specially employed by the police department.

Sheriff: John

Chief: Patrick

1861.4.1

Below the signatures was the police department's seal.

Seeing the chief's signature, Qin Ran looked at John in surprise.

"That bastard went off on his honeymoon two weeks ago, dumped everything on me, and then this headache happened!"

John took a hard drag from his cigarette.

"I thought you'd send someone to help me look for her!"

Qin Ran waved the letter of appointment in his hand.

"I told you, I'm short-handed right now! Extremely short-handed!"

John replied irritably.

Qin Ran shrugged at the man's emphasis.

Apparently, this was the limit of the help John could provide—if he wanted more assistance, he had to complete the side quest first.

This differed somewhat from his earlier guess, but the essence remained unchanged.

"Whether or not a side quest is triggered, I should receive a letter of appointment!"

"However, players who don't trigger it will choose to head straight for the school Artilly attends!"

"If something happens there, then I need to hurry!"

With that thought, Qin Ran immediately stood up.

He needed to hurry to the body-dumping site near the train station and take a look.

After that, whether he found anything or not, he should head to the church school as quickly as possible, just in case—Hunter had mentioned that Artilly rode a carriage to school punctually every day, and spent the rest of her time, including weekends, within his and his wife's sight!

Thinking of the trunk beneath the bed of the missing Miss Artilly Hunter.

Qin Ran believed the school would be a very important place.

Perhaps there would be no direct clues, but at the very least, he could find out who had taught the missing Miss Artilly Hunter.

And that might become the next clue to finding her.

"See you around!"

Qin Ran waved at John.

Without waiting for a response, he walked outside.

He left the police station and immediately hailed a carriage.

"The train station!"

Qin Ran instructed the driver.

Noisy crowds, chaotic crowds, foul smells, and filthy ground.

The moment Qin Ran stepped out of the carriage, he saw another side of the city.

Gone were the neatly dressed people and peaceful smiles.

All that remained was the hardship and endurance of those struggling to survive.

People trying to make a living were everywhere.

Young laborers, middle-aged women selling sundries, shouting newsboys, and beggars.

There were also some people who blended into the crowd, yet were distinctly different upon closer inspection.

They wore tattered clothing, but their hands were exceptionally clean and nimble. They crouched or stood in corners, observing passing travelers. Once they spotted a target, they would quietly follow, using those clean, nimble hands to reap their rewards.

Under Qin Ran's gaze, these people had already completed several thefts.

There was no need to doubt their identities.

Thieves!

However, Qin Ran did not meddle. He had more important matters to attend to.

Qin Ran surveyed his surroundings.

He quickly found his target.

A uniformed police officer was still quite conspicuous here.

Even when standing in a corner.

Qin Ran walked over.

"Step back. You can't come any closer for now!"

Seeing Qin Ran approaching with a long case on his back, the police officer standing guard immediately called out.

He was a young man. Even though he was guarding the place alone, he stood perfectly straight.

Conscientious and responsible, with a strong sense of justice as well.

That was Qin Ran's guess as he took out his letter of appointment.

"You're Mr. Qin Ran. I've heard of you. Hello, I'm Karl!"

After carefully examining Qin Ran's letter of appointment, the young police officer smiled.

The identity arranged by the game proved useful once again.

Of course, what ultimately got him through was the letter of appointment in his hand.

Qin Ran put away the document and asked.

"Hello, I'm Qin Ran!"

"Can I go in and take a look now?"

"Of course!"

The young officer answered affirmatively and stepped aside.

Qin Ran walked in.

This alley was even dirtier and smellier than the streets outside.

The alley was narrow, cramped, and oppressive. At its end stood a high wall, apparently the rear wall of some building.

Ordinary people would not come to a place like this.

If that drunk had not stumbled upon it by accident, the body might have rotted and stunk before anyone found it.

Qin Ran examined the ground.

The moment he entered the alley, the skill Tracking activated.

Chaotic, indistinct footprints.

Traces of blood.

They appeared one by one before Qin Ran's eyes.

But they were of little use. The footprints were a disorderly mess, repeatedly covered over and impossible to distinguish.

Aside from telling Qin Ran where the body had been placed, the bloodstains were useless.

Qin Ran frowned unconsciously.

This was not what he wanted.

He looked toward the walls on both sides and discovered a patch of red on the wall to his left.

Blood!

Qin Ran walked over and stared at the bright red stain.

His mind raced.

"There are no drag marks on the ground. The murderer carried the body into this place!"

"To conceal the body, they must have put it in something like a sack!"

"But some blood must have seeped through the body's covering, which is why this stain was left behind!"

"However, not much seeped through, or there would have been dripping blood on the ground!"

"This means the place where the murderer killed that woman wasn't far from here!"

"Furthermore, to conceal the woman's identity, the murderer deliberately destroyed her face!"

Then Qin Ran measured the height of the bloodstain.

"The murderer wasn't tall, but must have been strong, or they couldn't have carried a female corpse!"

"Also, they brushed against the wall on the left, meaning they carried the female corpse on their left shoulder. Their left arm should be more muscular and stronger. They're left-handed!"

"The murderer disemboweled that woman. They must have held tremendous hatred and possessed some knowledge of butchery!"

"Setting aside the possibility that they were showing off, why didn't they bury or burn the body, which would have been safer?"

Qin Ran asked himself.

A corpse had been abandoned here, and even if the alley was hidden.

It was still nowhere near as secure as burial or burning.

Unless...

Doing this was more convenient and concealed for the murderer!

It would never arouse suspicion!

Qin Ran looked outside the alley. Even from its depths, he could clearly see the laborers carrying goods in the distance.

Those people struggling to make a living in the distance seemed to fit his deductions perfectly.

"Karl, I found something!"

Qin Ran called to the young police officer.

"What did you find?"

The young officer looked astonished. Even though he had heard of Qin Ran's reputation, he found it hard to believe that Qin Ran had discovered something so quickly.

"The murderer should be slightly shorter than you, but very strong and left-handed. Go ask around over there. Find out who was recently seen with a red-haired woman, and who used to be a butcher or butcher's apprentice. You might find something unexpected!"

Qin Ran pointed at the laborers in the distance.

A police officer's identity would be more persuasive than his when asking questions.

And more intimidating—that was what Qin Ran wanted.

If the murderer truly was a laborer, that intimidation would be enough to make them panic and reveal a flaw.

"Uh... all right!"

The young officer hesitated, but ultimately did as Qin Ran said.

Without a doubt, the reputation of his game identity came into play once more.

And everything happened just as Qin Ran expected.

A disturbance broke out among the gathered laborers moments later.

A short but powerfully built man suddenly pulled out a dagger and took a frail man hostage.

People scattered in every direction.

The young police officer confronted the man, but failed to bring the situation under control.

Instead, the man became increasingly frantic, and the dagger in his hand had already cut the hostage's neck.

The moment blood began to flow, cries of alarm erupted around them again.

Qin Ran prepared to act.

Using Karl's identity to lure the man out had achieved its purpose. There should naturally be no casualties next.

However, Qin Ran's brows furrowed slightly the next moment.

A hand was taking advantage of the chaos to reach toward the pocket of his coat.

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