English
Indonesia
Chinese (Simp)
Japanese
Korean
Spanish
Portuguese
French
German
ArabicArknights: The Scarlet Devil of Terra — Chapter 36
Chapter 36: Detective Lee
“So Flandre is going to be a tainted witness!” Flandre Scarlet raised her small hand, her crimson eyes wide with innocent curiosity as she asked the question.
“Bite your tongue! What tainted witness? Flandre, you are a specially invited expert for the L.G.D.’s Special Inspection Unit, personally hired by Chief Executive Wei. This visit is strictly for summarizing the details and archiving the files after a successfully solved case.” Beatrix quickly reached out and clamped a hand over the little vampire’s mouth, her voice dropping into a frantic, hushed reminder.
“Oh, so that’s how it is!” Flandre scratched her blonde hair, blinking in mild confusion before following the others into the towering headquarters of the L.G.D. in a daze.
Fortunately, since they had technically been working at the Chief Executive’s mansion earlier that morning, the three of them arriving at this hour was not considered a late clock-in. However, they ran into a wall of trouble just as they were preparing to officially close the file.
The headache naturally came from the victim’s surviving family.
Although the highly unreasonable woman from the previous encounter was absent, the family’s legal representatives expressed total, aggressive rejection of the official case conclusion. The finalized report stated clearly: The murderer resisted arrest and was killed on the spot by Senior Superintendent Ch’en, Superintendent Hoshiguma, and Officer Beatrix of the L.G.D., assisted by expert Flandre Scarlet; the scene was engulfed in a massive fire, leaving no intact corpse of the perpetrator.
From the family’s perspective, these three officers were the exact same people who had physically stopped them from contacting that other Sarkaz the day before., the official claim that one Sarkaz and three L.G.D. officers killed another Sarkaz without producing a single shred of physical evidence, a crime scene photo, or even a charred body was absurd to them. Closing a murder case based solely on the verbal testimony of four people, summarized in a single short sentence, was naturally unacceptable.
The representative slammed his hands on the desk, claiming they had never even heard of a second Sarkaz operating in Lungmen. He demanded to know how it was mathematically possible that they encountered one during the day, only for a mysterious, invisible second one to kill the victim at night. He loudly and seriously suspected this entire narrative was a theatrical play directed and acted out by the L.G.D. themselves, a blatant cover-up to hide the fact that the true murderer was actually the little Sarkaz girl currently being shielded behind their uniforms.
“You watch your mouth! I told you it wasn’t her. If you want to throw accusations around, you need hard evidence. Spouting baseless suspicion in this office… believe it or not, I will lock you up right now for obstructing justice.” Beatrix glared at the man, her eyes turning dangerously cold.
“There is no need for the officer to be so angry, nor is there any need to escalate this into such a troublesome affair. I happen to have a way to at least prove the murderer isn’t the little Sarkaz lady standing behind you.”
Just then, a somewhat lazy, smooth, and entirely flippant voice rang out from the open doorway.
As the room’s occupants turned to look, Flandre let out a sudden gasp of surprise.
“Whoa, Flandre thinks that’s a really big Carp spirit!”
A brief, heavy silence blanketed the office.
“Ahem. Good afternoon, officers. I am a private detective commissioned by the victim’s family to help investigate the scene and gather evidence. You can just call me Lee. Of course, who I am isn’t really the important part here. What matters is that I might be able to completely clear this lovely young Sarkaz lady of any lingering suspicion.”
Seeing the awkward atmosphere settle over the room, the self-proclaimed detective Lee smoothly introduced himself, adjusting his posture before continuing his train of thought.
“You say you have a definitive way to clear Flandre of suspicion?” Ch’en looked at the tall man with heavy skepticism, her hand resting near the hilt of her sword.
“Naturally. Although I have accepted the commission and the paycheck from the victim’s family, in all fairness, I also do not believe this lovely young lady before me could possibly be the murderer.” Lee answered with an easy, natural smile.
“Speak then. What exactly is your method?” Hoshiguma crossed her arms, looking at him with equal suspicion, waiting to hear what brilliant idea this newcomer had brought to their heavily guarded floor.
“It is actually quite simple. I took the liberty of investigating the bodies of the three victims at the morgue. I found that there is actually a distinct bite mark on the neck of the youngest child. However, because the bodies were covered in severe lacerations, and the sheer sight of a completely mummified corpse is quite shocking to the human eye, most people subconsciously glossed over the existence of this specific wound.”
Lee reached into his coat and took out a prepared forensic photograph. He placed it on the desk, showing the horrific, mummified corpse of the boy who had once been chubby but was now drained down to the bone. Lee tapped a long finger against the boy’s shriveled neck.
The group leaned in, looking closely at the direction he pointed. There was indeed a very faint, crescent-shaped bite mark etched into the dried flesh. It was not at all obvious among the many violent wounds and was heavily obscured by the deep wrinkles of the unnaturally dried skin. It was the kind of detail that was nearly impossible to spot at first glance unless a professional was specifically hunting for it.
Now that it was brought into the light, it naturally became the absolute strongest piece of physical evidence in the room.
“To be completely honest with you all, I believe this bite mark was not made by this young Sarkaz lady. Based on the depth, the dental arch, and the sheer width of the traces, this should be a mark that only a fully grown adult male could leave behind. Therefore, we only need to compare this Sarkaz lady’s bite pattern with the wound on the deceased to entirely rule out her suspicion of murder.”
After Lee finished his explanation, he left the gruesome photo resting on the table and stepped back, standing quietly and politely to the side.
“Very reasonable logic. So, sir, do you think this physical evidence can be used to rule out the criminal liability of our expert, who was personally invited to this city by Chief Executive Wei?” Ch’en nodded slowly, then turned her sharp, predatory gaze directly toward the family representative who had been rambling so loudly just moments earlier.
Seeing the shift in the room’s dynamic, the man did not dare to utter a single word of protest. Ch’en had framed the situation perfectly. If he continued to question the L.G.D. after this, the only path left for him would be to pack up his entire extended family and flee Lungmen by nightfall. And that was assuming the city’s underbelly would even let them reach the border alive.
Everyone in the room knew that countless powerful people wanted to curry favor with Wei Yenwu. If making this loudmouthed family disappear would make the Chief Executive even a fraction of a degree happier, many dark factions would gladly lend a hand to do the man a bloody favor.
The representative quickly nodded, his throat bobbing in fear. Any delay in his response would be interpreted as having further objections, which, if reported upward, would truly spell the end for his life in this city.
Acquiring Flandre’s bite mark was a simple task. Hoshiguma walked over to her personal locker, took out a soft piece of bread, and handed it down to the little vampire. Flandre happily took a large bite, leaving a perfect, tiny dental impression in the dough.
The official cast of the bite mark from the corpse was quickly brought up from the forensics department. When the two impressions were placed side by side on the desk, the difference was so stark and comical that even someone with severe astigmatism could see they belonged to two entirely different species of predator.
Only then did the heavy tension in the room dissipate, allowing everyone to breathe a complete sigh of relief. Before this moment, they only had witness testimony to rely on, but now, with definitive physical evidence proving Flandre was not the killer, there were zero remaining obstacles to permanently closing the case file.
Just as the pale representative was turning to leave in quiet disbelief, Ch’en’s voice cut through the air, stopping him in his tracks.
“There is one minor detail I forgot to mention earlier, and I think it is only fair I tell you now. When the murderer was killed last night, it wasn’t just our L.G.D. personnel at the scene. Chief Executive Wei’s direct Shadow Guards were also present in the shadows., our application to close this case was personally reviewed and approved by both Chief Executive Wei and Madam Fumizuki. Alright, you two are dismissed. You may leave.”
If the dental evidence was meant to let him know that Flandre truly did not commit the crime, then this final sentence was meant to clearly tell him that the person he kept loudly accusing of harboring a dangerous Sarkaz was precisely the highest, most untouchable authority in all of Lungmen.
The man’s face drained of whatever color it had left, turning the shade of old parchment.
“I… I certainly didn’t mean to question the Chief Executive’s judgment. Officer Ch’en knows how it is. After all, with such a massive tragedy striking the family, I simply had to get a clear explanation for the elders…”
“Yes, and we have generously given you that explanation. The Special Inspection Unit is not a hospitality lounge for receiving guests. You two may leave.” Hoshiguma stood up from her desk, her massive frame casting a long shadow as she walked slowly toward the door.
The sheer physical pressure radiating from the towering Oni forced the man to subconsciously retreat into the hallway. Lee also tactfully tipped his hat, offering a polite nod to the group of officers before turning on his heel and following his client out of the room.
After the heavy doors clicked shut, Beatrix reached out and picked up the sleek business card Lee had left resting on the edge of the desk.
“Lee’s Detective Agency? What an interesting fellow.”
Although the tall man had only appeared for a few brief minutes, he had smoothly solved a massive bureaucratic nuisance for them, ensuring they would all remember his name. It could be said his client got the hard truth, Flandre was officially cleared of all suspicion, and he successfully entered the good graces of the Special Inspection Unit. Everyone got exactly what they wanted. It seemed every single party profited immensely from his timed intervention.
‘Is this that Lee?’ Flandre thought to herself, tapping her chin. Her other set of memories did not have a particularly deep impression of the man’s lore.
Although he had the bonus of starring in his own animated short, perhaps the owner of her past memories simply did not care much for furries, and it just so happened that Lee’s Detective Agency was entirely staffed by them. Because of that, her past life’s knowledge of the animation was strictly limited to just reading the title on a screen.
However, the moment the words ‘Lee’s Detective Agency’were spoken aloud, Flandre instantly remembered his true gameplay identity. He was one of the only two six-star Merchant specialists in the entire game, the absolute strictest father figure to the Last Knight boss in the Mizuki Roguelike, the ultimate community spokesperson for soggy noodles, and the exact same Lee whose iconic phrase’I’ll have two bowls’ had once swept across the internet landscape.
She really did not expect to cross paths with him at this specific point in the timeline. But he was indeed someone who left a deep, lingering impression.
After the bureaucratic mess was finally settled, Hoshiguma took the time to escort Flandre back to her temporary home. As for their resident rich beat cop, Little Tiger, under the stern urging of her strict superior, she could only reluctantly return to her scheduled street patrol duties, grumbling the whole way down the stairs. Old Ch’en remained behind, locking herself in her office to formally archive the bloody case.
By the time Flandre arrived back at the residence, it was already noon. She immediately contacted Alina, who happened to be actively looking for her as well.
The reason for the call was quite significant. Aside from the dedicated medical team staying behind to monitor the infected, Kal’tsit and the Reunion Movement had officially reached a preliminary cooperation agreement. Alina was currently packing her things, preparing to leave the city. The best news of the afternoon was that Kal’tsit had also promised to arrange for a specialized caster to help thoroughly check Talulah’s body for lingering spiritual anomalies.
“That’s wonderful news!” Flandre cheered into the receiver, genuinely happy to hear the development.
Although the little vampire knew an ocean of ancient spells, the vast majority of her magic was entirely focused on absolute, catastrophic destruction. For this kind of delicate, complex soul magic, Patchouli or her older sister Remilia would probably have absolutely no problem sorting it out, but Flandre herself really did not have any good, non-lethal solutions for spiritual parasites.
Over the next few days, Flandre’s life returned to a quiet, comfortable daily routine. Aside from occasionally dealing with Beatrix’s suffocating affection and harassment at night, she spent most of her time reading thick books or watching television alone on the sofa. Occasionally, she would be picked up and taken to the Special Inspection Unit by either Hoshiguma or Ch’en to help them handle some particularly troublesome, magically tainted evidence.
“Flandre-chan! Tomorrow is going to be a beautifully sunny day. Let’s go on a fun outing together!” Beatrix suddenly tackled Flandre from behind, hugging the little vampire tightly against her chest as she spoke with overflowing enthusiasm.
“Huh?” Flandre blinked, struggling slightly against the soft grip.
After finishing the required reading for Alina, the gentle Elafia needed time to transcribe the texts to spread the knowledge to the infected, meaning Flandre had basically been left to her own devices these past few days, save for their daily evening chats.
However, considering her chaotic past experiences going out into the city with Beatrix, Flandre always felt a lingering sense of dread. Although Little Tiger was undeniably a good person with a warm heart, being in her immediate vicinity always seemed to attract various flavors of disaster. The key issue was that, in order to prevent Flandre from turning a minor ‘trouble’into a’deadly, blood-soaked trouble,’ Beatrix would always physically hold her back from using her powers.
Because of this restrictive dynamic, Flandre was more than a little hesitant about agreeing to go out together.
“Oh, don’t worry your cute little head about it! This time the trip is officially organized and funded by the L.G.D. Not too far from where our mobile city is currently docked, there is a beautiful, scenic tourist town. The department arranged for us to travel there to investigate a suspected smuggling case, and they gave us a whole week of paid time to do it. It would be an absolute pity not to go out and have some real fun with such a perfectly good opportunity…”