Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 107 Human Diversity

Elaine Declone is very cute and somewhat childlike. Although she is about the same age as Levi, she looks like a high school girl. She has a petite figure and big, round eyes that exude a sense of ease that comes from not having been through the harsh realities of life.

But the first thing she said after she came in and sat down was quite surprising.

"I didn't kill my elder sister."

She sat in the chair, staring wide-eyed at Li Wei and the others.

"I love Sister Derosali the most, how could I possibly kill her?"

“………………………?”

It must be said that everyone was stunned when they heard this, but Elaine didn't care about their reactions at all and continued talking to herself.

“I know what you’re thinking. John is my boyfriend, but my older sister stole him away, so I hate my sister. But that’s not true at all. I don’t hate my sister at all, and I’m actually very happy that John married my older sister.”

"You...are you happy?"

The head inspector scratched his head, completely bewildered, as if he couldn't understand human speech.

"Yes."

Elaine stared at them and nodded vigorously again.

“John is my prince. He came into my life when he was smart, funny, witty, and very cute—of course, he can’t compare to you, Detective.”

At this point, Elaine looked at Levi and offered a somewhat embarrassed explanation.

"But at that time, in my eyes, he was my treasure, my most noble and supreme prince. So, you have no idea how happy I was when he was with my sister! My most admired sister had chosen my prince, which proved that my judgment was correct! And I was also honored to be able to offer my treasure to my sister. I thought that this way, everyone would be happy! So, when my sister mentioned this to me, I felt extremely honored..."

"Um……………"

Li Wei looked around. The head inspector had a "Who am I? Where am I? What am I listening to?" look on his face, while Mr. Howard raised his eyebrows, showing a hint of surprise.

"Okay, I think we've gone a bit off-topic. Let's get back to the main point."

Li Wei finally managed to turn the eerie atmosphere back on track.

"Some people say that after yesterday's ball, you and Mr. John were alone together, and then Ms. Porto saw you. Is that true?"

"Ah, yes, that's true."

Elaine nodded.

"May I ask what you and Mr. John were talking about?"

John said he loves his sister, but he also loves me, so he hopes I can be with him too.

At this point, Elaine also showed a happy expression.

“I’m happy too, but my older sister doesn’t seem very happy… she looks very angry.”

"………………………"

Li Wei silently tapped his head; he was now feeling a bit like the head of the police force.

"After that? Where did you go?"

“I asked John to go and keep my sister company, but John was terrified and didn’t want to go back. So I took him to the lounge, and we stayed there for the night.”

“Can anyone prove it?”

“There was a bartender in the lounge at the time, and I think he can vouch for me.”

"Okay, thank you for your help."

Li Wei glanced at the notes Annie handed him and nodded.

"Please sign and put your fingerprint here."

"Ok."

Elaine stepped forward, and following Li Wei's instructions, first looked through the record, signed it after confirming that it was correct, and then pressed her fingerprint as Li Wei instructed.

Li Wei stared at her, then suddenly asked a question.

"Ms. Porto has a gun, you know that?"

"Of course I know."

Elaine became even more excited at this point.

"I went with her to pick it out; it was inlaid with pearls and rose petals, it was very beautiful!"

"Um………"

"You must catch the murderer who killed my sister and avenge her!"

Elaine gave him a final reminder before turning and leaving the room. Watching her leave, Levi reached up and touched his forehead, then looked at the head inspector.

"Please send someone to ask the bartender if what this lady said is true."

"Ok."

The head inspector picked up the communicator again, issued the order, listened for a moment, and then nodded to Li Wei.

"The bartender said that's what happened. He said a man and a woman came into the lounge. The man was crying his eyes out, while the woman was very calm and even comforted him. He thought it was a couple arguing. After that, the two of them stayed on the sofa in the lounge and hardly left."

Is he sure?

"The bartender left a few times and even slept for a while, but he said that when he woke up, the two men were indeed sitting on the sofa."

"You need to go up stairs to get from the lounge to the suite, right?"

"of course."

"Let's leave it at that for now."

As Li Wei spoke, he stretched, and Mr. Howard also yawned, smiling as he looked at Li Wei.

"I never expected young people these days to be so adventurous!"

"I think it's pretty good."

The head of the police force didn't seem to mind and said with a smile.

"I wish I had such good fortune. Of course, as for you, Detective, I'm sure you would be willing to have any number of women."

"Who knows? But judging from the accounts of the maid and Miss Declon, there should be a clear difference between Miss Declon's feelings for Miss Porto and Miss Porto's feelings for Miss Declon."

Li Wei stroked his chin and spoke in a low voice.

Just then, a cool and indifferent voice rang out.

"This kind of thing happens often in girls' schools."

"Oh?"

Li Wei turned his head and saw Annie sitting next to him at the typewriter, her fingers gently stroking the cold, hard metal keyboard as she spoke.

"Is that so, Miss Branson?"

"Ah."

Anne nodded.

"In girls' schools, older students take care of younger students, just like sisters. And some younger students really do treat older students as their older sisters, sometimes even thinking that nothing in the world is more important than their older sister..."

“That makes sense.” The chief inspector nodded in deep agreement.

“Do you remember? That young lady just said Mr. John was her treasure. I could tell from her tone that it didn’t sound like she was talking about a lover at all, but rather like she was talking about something else. You see, it’s like a subject has obtained a rare treasure and presents it to the Queen. Her Majesty thinks the treasure is wonderful, so the subject is very happy… that’s the feeling.”

"I just wonder what the person who is being treated like a treasure thinks."

Li Wei took another sip of tea, then looked at the chief inspector.

"Please welcome in, Your Highness, the lucky prince."

When John entered the room, he was shrouded in a somber mood, his head hanging low, looking utterly dejected. There was no trace of the smile from the previous night on his boyish, innocent face. He sat down in a chair and nodded to the three of them; clearly, Madame Porto's death had deeply affected him.

"Before we begin, may I ask you a few questions, young man?"

Before Li Wei could even ask any questions, Mr. Howard interrupted. Li Wei glanced at the latter and saw that the old man's eyes were shining with curiosity—well, okay, if he wanted to hear the gossip, then he could just listen to the gossip first.

"Of course, sir. What would you like to ask?"

“We just spoke with Miss De Clon, and she said she was happy to give up her boyfriend to Ms. Porto… What are your thoughts on this?”

The old man was clearly in high spirits now, and his face looked radiant.

John remained silent for a moment, then gave a wry smile.

“She was very happy… In fact, she was the one who got me to get close to Rosalie.”

"……………oh?"

Upon hearing this, Li Wei and the head of the police force sat up straight.

If you talk about that, I won't be sleepy anymore.

"What do you mean?"

"Looking back now, it was indeed a bit strange at that time."

John sighed.

"When I first started dating Miss Elaine, I thought she was an innocent, lovely, lively, and enthusiastic girl. To be honest, I really liked her and even thought about marrying her. But when she was with me, well… she couldn't stop talking about Rosalie. She always said that her older sister was the most beautiful, perfect, and outstanding person in the world…"

John gave a wry smile at this point.

"At the time, I was indeed a little puzzled by this, but Miss Rosalie was a woman after all, so I didn't think much of it. I just felt that it was because Elaine adored Rosalie, and then she said she would introduce me to Miss Rosalie, so I agreed."

John sighed.

"Indeed, after meeting Rosalie, I found her to be a rare beauty in this world, and she had a certain charm that made people unconsciously want to get close to her. However, at that time, I didn't have any improper thoughts about Rosalie. On the contrary, after that meeting, Elaine came to me and asked me how I felt about Rosalie. Then she said to me, 'Do you want to marry your sister?'"

"………………………"

"I was startled at the time, thinking Elaine was testing me, so I swore I would never stray. But Elaine got angry instead. She thought that my dislike of Rosalie was disrespectful to her older sister... Then she told me that she wanted me to marry Rosalie, and that in that case, she would be willing to stay with me forever. I... After all, I'm just an ordinary person. Maybe rich people like to play this kind of game?"

Li Wei and the others exchanged a silent glance. Was there even a question? Rosalie and Elaine were both beauties. At this point, what choice did adults make? They would definitely want them both.

It's not surprising that rich and powerful people have several lovers outside. Elaine herself is willing. Unless John cuts himself off, wouldn't it be the most enjoyable to have both?
"But Ms. Porto probably doesn't know about this."

Mr. Howard quickly grasped the key point: if it was a consensual affair among the three of them, then there was really nothing to say. Young people, after all, can afford to be a little wild and adventurous. But the problem was that John knew, Elaine knew, but Rosalie didn't.

This is interesting.

"Yes, I also asked Elaine privately what Rosalie thought about this, and she confidently said that her older sister would be very happy, and that it would be a surprise for her..."

"…………………"

"After I married Rosalie, I realized that Elaine's idea was probably just wishful thinking on her part."

"Oh? What do you say?"

"Rosalie is a very strong-willed and very self-centered person. I don't know if all rich people are like this, but in her view, the world seems to be... very simple."

John hesitated for a moment before giving his opinion.

"Simply put, whatever she wants will be hers. She has never experienced being rejected by anyone, but conversely, she is also very controlling of her things. Many times, she simply doesn't listen to what I want to say. Conversely, she doesn't care about my opinion when she wants to do things."

John said, then sighed.

“I know what the Porto family thinks of me; they think I'm only here for the money. But the truth is, I don't want any of those things, and I know what others think of me. So I didn't intend to ask for much, but Rosalie gives me whatever she wants, not allowing me to refuse. Like this honeymoon trip, I originally planned to go to some places with her, without spending too much money. But she didn't even ask me before booking tickets for the Arctic Star, which is completely beyond my means…”

Listening to John's complaints, Levi and the others felt quite sympathetic. A man who can't be the breadwinner of his family is truly in a terrible situation. Levi thought that if John didn't think so much, he might be more content being a gigolo.

"Okay, let's get back to the topic."

Having had enough of the gossip, Li Wei felt it was time to get back to the main topic.

"What did you and Miss Declon talk about in private last night?"

Actually, she found me first.

John hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“She said it was my birthday that day, and she thought it was a good day to tell Rosalie about what happened between us. But I thought Elaine was being too naive, so I tried to persuade her to give up the idea. Honestly, I don’t know what would happen if Rosalie found out about Elaine’s thoughts. In the end… Rosalie overheard our conversation.”

"So, Rosalie knows that you approached her because of Elaine's encouragement, and she also knows Elaine's thoughts?"

"……………………"

John nodded silently, while Levi and Mr. Howard exchanged a glance.

This explains what the maid saw at the time.

"And then you didn't go back to your room?"

“How could I dare go back? Rosalie looks like that, she would definitely kill me if I went back! In fact, I was in a daze after that, I don’t know what happened, and when I came to, it was already broad daylight…”

"Where were you at that time?"

"It should be in... the lounge. I'm sorry, my mind was really muddled last night, I can't remember clearly... At least when I woke up this morning, I was in the lounge, and Elaine was still beside me..."

"By the way, did you know that Ms. Porto has a gun?"

"I know, that's why I don't dare go back... If I go back, she really will shoot!"

"Um... thank you for your cooperation."

Levi took the record, gestured for John to sign it, and then let him leave the room.

After a moment of silence, Mr. Howard broke the silence with a chuckle.

"It seems that good things aren't so easy to come by."

"If everyone agrees, that would be a good thing, but for Ms. Porto, it's a nightmare."

Li Wei made a comment.

"There are still two people left, let's continue questioning them."

"Who's next?"

"Mr. Bourne, the butler."

As Li Wei spoke, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

"I'd like to see what he's hiding."

(End of this chapter)