Just then, a cheerful voice called out from the right.
"Milady, I've brought the witness."
Everyone turned toward the sound. Two women stepped out from the crowd. One was a cheerful young woman with gray hair, while the other was a timid girl with pink hair. Christina Fenlbia immediately walked over to the pink-haired girl.
"You witnessed the victim's death, didn't you? Please tell everyone what you saw."
"Wait. Who is she?"
The police officer interrupted Christina. The sudden appearance of a girl who seemed to be a witness had clearly confused him. Even I felt like an explanation was necessary. This case was getting more complicated by the minute.
Christina answered on the girl's behalf.
"She lives next block. Her room is directly above and across from the victim's room. Looking down from her window, she could clearly see what the victim was doing."
"How can you be certain she saw it?"
"When I looked out through the victim's window, our eyes met. She immediately shut her window in a panic, so I concluded she'd witnessed something."
"But that's only speculation. It doesn't prove she saw the victim die."
"Let's hear what she has to say first. Miss, please tell us."
Christina offered no further explanation and simply allowed the pink-haired girl to recount what she had witnessed.
The girl nervously began speaking.
"Today, after the third bell rang, I saw that man bring the victim a cup of water before leaving. Later, while the victim was reading, he got thirsty and picked up the cup. Then suddenly..."
"Wait. Why were you watching the victim in the first place?"
The police officer interrupted again. I had been completely absorbed in her story—why stop her now? Still... why had she been watching him?
"W-Well..."
The pink-haired girl rubbed her hands together shyly. She hesitated for a long moment before finally managing to say,
"Because..."
"Because?"
the officer prompted.
Suddenly, she covered her face with both hands and swayed back and forth in embarrassment.
"Because handsome guys reading books are really attractive."
"I-I see... Never mind. Please continue."
No one had expected such an answer. Even the officer looked momentarily speechless.
The girl continued.
"Yes. The victim took one sip, let go of the cup, and grabbed his throat with both hands. He looked like he was in terrible pain. I got so scared that I crouched down without daring to watch. The way he struggled... it looked like he was possessed. A few seconds later, curiosity got the better of me, so I peeked again. I saw that man lift the victim up, wipe the water off both the victim and the table with a towel, then take away the cup and the book before placing three folded paper packets on the table. After he left again, the victim never moved. That's when I realized... he'd been murdered."
Her testimony stunned everyone present.
It matched Christina Fenlbia's deductions perfectly.
No wonder she was known as The Genius Detective.
The moment the truth came to light, Lincoln shouted desperately,
"She's lying! I didn't go into my brother's room until after he died!"
"Silence!"
The police officer barked before turning back to the witness.
"If you saw all of that, why didn't you come forward immediately?"
"I... I was afraid you wouldn't believe me. And if I spoke up carelessly, that man might come after me."
"Then why did you decide to come forward now?"
"Because this maid told me I'd be safe."
The pink-haired girl pointed toward the gray-haired woman. She was wearing a thick winter coat, making it impossible to tell she was actually a maid.
Christina then introduced her.
"This is my attendant, Mira. I sent her to bring the witness here."
At that moment, the two officers who had gone to search for evidence returned.
"Sir, we found the water-damaged book."
I could clearly see the dark, soaked stains covering several of its pages.
"Damn it!"
Seeing that the evidence was undeniable, Lincoln cursed, sprang to his feet, shoved through the crowd, and tried to escape.
"Don't let him get away! Arrest him!"
The officer immediately ordered the other policemen to pursue him.
Just then, I spotted a familiar orange-haired beauty stepping into Lincoln's path. A flash of light purple hair appeared for an instant, and the next moment Lincoln pitched forward onto the ground.
I was certain those two were Grace and Ethefelis.
The officers hurried over with handcuffs and arrested the unconscious Lincoln, while I led Alice toward Grace and the others.
Before we could reach them, the senior officer stepped forward to thank them.
"Thank you for stopping the suspect. May I ask who you are?"
"We're—"
"Just bystanders."
Grace had been about to introduce them when Ethefelis smoothly cut her off, making it clear they had no intention of revealing their identities.
I hated to say it, but Grace could be a little naïve sometimes. Thankfully, Ethefelis stepped in before she said anything unnecessary.
When traveling abroad, nobles should avoid revealing their names whenever possible. There had once been an incident where a foreign noble was murdered by local commoners, and the local king covered it up by calling it an unfortunate accident.
But every noble knew the truth. The local people had been crushed under excessive taxes imposed by their lord. Unable to retaliate against their own ruler, they vented their hatred on an innocent foreign noble who happened to be traveling through.
"...Bystanders. Understood. Thank you again for your assistance."
Fortunately, the officer didn't press the matter any further. He simply thanked them once more.
Grace answered with unwavering conviction,
"It was the right thing to do. We can't let criminals get away."
Afterward, the police arrested Lincoln and carried away the victim's body.
Now that the truth had come to light, the crowd gradually dispersed.
As for me, my heart just wouldn't stop pounding.
Grace had been both beautiful and incredibly cool just now. How could those words suit her so perfectly?
I was falling for her more and more.
I felt my face growing hot.
It was strange. This was the middle of winter, so why did my face feel like it was the middle of summer?
"Mr. Jacob, your face is really red. Are you not feeling well?"
"Hm? O-Oh, I'm fine. Really, I'm perfectly healthy..."
Alice suddenly said something so unexpected that I hurriedly brushed it off.
So I was actually blushing...
How embarrassing.
Grace didn't notice, did she?
But Alice wasn't about to let it go. She seemed determined to dig into how I was feeling.
"Really? You're acting strange. You look completely lovestruck."
"W-What?!"
That nearly gave me a heart attack!
Alice actually said something like that. Did I really look that obvious?
As a man... where was my dignity?
Just then, I heard Grace calling my name.
I immediately looked toward her. She was waving as she walked over.
"Mr. Jacob... Miss Ali...ce..."
For some reason, Grace faltered while saying Alice's name.
The hand she'd been waving slowly lowered.
A frightening look crossed her face. The brightness in her eyes faded, replaced by a dim, lifeless gaze.
"Grace, what's wrong?"
Her sudden change worried me, but she avoided my eyes and shook her head.
"...It's nothing."
What was wrong with her?
It felt like she didn't want to tell me.
Had I done something wrong?
Then, without warning, someone smacked my wrist.
"Ow!"
"Mr. Jacob! Are you okay?! Where does it hurt? Are you in pain? Should we call a doctor?!"
Grace instantly abandoned her earlier expression. She anxiously grabbed the hand that had been struck, bombarding me with worried questions.
What was going on with these sudden emotional swings?
I couldn't make sense of them.
Still, I had a feeling my hand hadn't been hit by accident.
I looked toward where the blow had come from and saw Ethefelis pulling Alice away.
Only then did I realize she had been the one who hit me.
But why?
I retraced everything that had just happened.
I'd been holding Alice's hand while walking over.
Grace's expression had changed the moment she saw us.
Then Ethefelis smacked my hand, forcing me to let go.
Ah!
I got it.
This was one of those classic romance novel misunderstandings.
Karen had once told me Grace might have feelings for me too.
She must've seen me holding Alice's hand and gotten the wrong idea.
I had to clear this up immediately.
Otherwise, I'd be no better than a scumbag.
I held Grace's hand in return and looked at her seriously.
"Grace, I'm fine. It was just a slap on the wrist. And I was only holding Alice's hand because I was worried she'd wander off again. There was absolutely no other reason. Please don't misunderstand."
"W-What does that have to do with me...?"
Grace lowered her head, refusing to look at me, almost as though she wanted to avoid me.
No.
I'd made up my mind.
I was going to confess right now.
Even Karen couldn't stop me anymore.
"Maybe it has nothing to do with you, but I don't want you to misunderstand me. The thing I fear most is you getting the wrong idea, because I really..."
"I-I understand! Please don't say any more..."
Just as I was about to tell her, "I really like you," Grace cut me off and gently pulled her hand away.
And with that...
My courage to confess vanished.
Tears streamed continuously from her eyes.
Had I done something wrong?
She looked so unwilling...
As though she were rejecting me.
Maybe Grace never liked me at all.
Maybe Karen's analysis had been wrong.
I'd simply rushed things.
What should I do now?
I should apologize first.
I'd only caused her trouble.
"I'm sorry. I let my emotions get the better of me. Just pretend you never heard any of that."
After saying those words, I turned my head away.
I couldn't bear to look into Grace's eyes anymore.
I'd been completely full of myself.
"No, I..."
Grace seemed to say something after that.
But I couldn't hear a thing.
My mind was drowning in nothing but regret.