Walking in the Question and Answer System of Heroic Spirits

[Aside from Karina and Aozaki Touko, who spoke frankly, everyone else was in an uproar because of her words.]

Reines: "Oh no..."

If she still doesn't realize she's been set up at this point, she'll be truly out of her mind.

There's no point in explaining now; she's already mired in this mess. No one will care about her explanations, and no one will speak up for her.

Rin Tohsaka: "As expected, I've been identified as the murderer."

King of Heroes: "Hahaha, this kind of plot full of intrigue and scheming is more to my liking."

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "This was a premeditated operation; even the Golden Princess's request for help was probably..."

Rin Tohsaka: "Sigh! So, the culprit is this Byron?"

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "It's hard to say, but given the current situation, he's clearly the prime suspect."

Danic: "It was a ridiculous charade."

Fiore: "It's disgusting to exploit people's sympathy."

Afu: "Are all magicians this despicable?"

Everyone: "..."

If you're going to complain, then complain, but please don't make sweeping generalizations.

"This simply cannot be ignored."

[Byron looked at Reines with feigned sincerity and said insincerely, "I hope you can explain what's going on, Miss El-Melloi."]

[He couldn't have only just found out now. It's clear from the moment he called Karina in; at the latest, between learning of the Golden Princess's death and arriving here, he already had a general understanding of the situation.]

Reines: "Indeed, Miss Tiadera discussed this with me, but I swear I did not kill her. After all, what's the point of killing the person who suggested escaping here?"

"Really? If the terms of escape can't be agreed upon, conflict could easily occur, right?"

[The dark-skinned man, Mick, suddenly spoke up and started a fight.]

Reines gritted her teeth in anger, but dared not make a move.

She knew these bastards were waiting for an excuse, an excuse that would be enough to kill her.

Once she's dead, all the charges can be pinned on her, leaving no one to testify. They can then seize the opportunity to take advantage of the situation and usurp the remaining power of the already weakened El-Melloi.

Grey was furious, her right hand gripping Adr tightly beneath her cloak.

She wanted to make a move, but Reines secretly stopped her.

Once the crime is confirmed, there's truly no going back.

Rin Tohsaka: "Well, this confirms it was a trap."

Kiritsugu Emiya: "No, this case doesn't seem to be that simple."

Weber: "I think so too."

Rin Tohsaka: "Hey, doesn't their behavior explain everything?"

Feng Xi: "That's just their inherent flaws at play."

Feng Xi: "No matter what happens, their first thought is to suppress their opponents and seek benefits for their own families. They don't care who killed the Golden Princess."

Feng Xi: "Even the people involved don't care, do they?"

Rin Tohsaka: "...Stop talking, my impression of the Mage's Association is getting worse and worse."

Artoria: "How can someone of such despicable character be fit for a leadership position?"

Danic: "So, the Magicians' Association, such a corrupt organization, should have been overthrown long ago."

Feng Xi: "Hehe, you're no match for them, so let's not laugh at each other."

Danic: "..."

[Byron: "In any case, it seems necessary to investigate you thoroughly."]

【"yes."】

Reines feigned composure and said, "I expect to be treated politely, especially since I can only stomach good black tea and tasty scones for breakfast. Otherwise, it would ruin my intention to offer special assistance."

[Byron: "Assistance? What do you intend to do, Reines El-Melloi Archizorti?"]

Addressing someone by their first name signifies that relations have been completely severed, and there's no need to feign politeness or respect anymore.

"That goes without saying, Byron Balereta Izeluma."

Reines said jokingly, "I'll find the murderer for you, on the honor of El-Melloi."

Kenneth: "Heh, Izeluma, very good."

Weber: "Teacher, calm down."

Kenneth: "Don't worry, I'm calm."

Ilya: "So, is it Miss Reines' turn to be the detective this time?"

Kiritsugu Emiya: "Impossible. She's not good at this at all. In the end, we'll probably have to rely on the Second Prince."

Kiritsugu Emiya: "If the person involved in the previous incident had been the Second Lord, he would never have been so easily outmaneuvered."

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "Moreover, with such a major incident, the second prince, as the head of the family, naturally cannot stand idly by."

Kenneth: "Sigh, Reines seems clever, but she's still far behind those cunning old foxes."

A moment later, everyone left, leaving only Reines and her companion, along with Monarch Balyeleta.

That's right, this monarch volunteered to stay and monitor Reines.

[Originally, Aozaki Touko volunteered, but Byron refused, citing that she was also a suspect.]

Inolay, who arrived last, was very interested in the situation and volunteered to take on the task.

Kenneth: "Hmph, Enolae, that woman is like a persistent ghost."

Rin Tohsaka: "My lord, you can't possibly be the murderer, can you?"

Because of Aozaki Touko's previous experience, they no longer dared to trust Inola's performance.

These magicians are masters at turning their backs on people without hesitation.

[Inolai: "So, where do you plan to begin your investigation?"]

Reines: "If possible, I'd like to start with the room layout and the corpse."

Even so, facing the gruesome corpse and smelling the thick stench of blood, Reines almost vomited.

[Inole: "I see. Whatever makes you happy."]

[After taking a few seconds to compose herself, Reines began her on-site investigation.]

The room was about the size of a typical café, and the main furniture included a canopy bed, a table with a jellyfish-shaped lamp, several paintings that appeared to be Impressionist, and a simple bookshelf displaying a few introductory magic books titled "Grimoire."

Each item is a luxury befitting the name of the Golden Princess, but the variety gives the impression that only the bare minimum is included.

The room contains a window and a door, as well as a skylight, but its structure prevents humans from entering or exiting.

If we're going to consider skylights, it's more practical to think about magic tricks that allow people to walk through walls.

Finally, there was the corpse.

"...This was dissected so thoroughly, you can't even tell what the murder weapon was."

The torso and limbs were neatly dissected, the clean cuts so sharp they made one's eyes widen.

There were no signs of resistance on the body, and the appearance of the cross-section suggests that the victim was killed before she could resist.

With the investigation concluded, the task of collecting the body parts naturally fell to Trimmau.

Ilya: "Hmm, it seems like there are no clues at all."

Kiritsugu Emiya: "The cuts were very clean, there were no signs of resistance, and the magic locks were activated. These are all clues."

Kiritsugu Emiya: "However, since the murderer is a magician, these clues become almost useless."

Rin Tohsaka: "Yes, when it comes to magicians committing crimes, there's nothing they can't do, only things you can't imagine."

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "It's impossible that there were no signs of resistance. Could it be that the Golden Princess was bound or drugged and then killed?"

Weber: "It was probably a drug; the other person didn't seem to be in any pain."

Chapter 178 - Detective Reines (Part 2)

"When magic is incorporated into a murder weapon, all causes of death are possible."

Reines murmured, "If that's the case, why does the formation of a locked room also become a clue?"

[Enolae: "I see, so you think the secret room was completed by chance."]

[Reines: "Yes, the locked room in detective novels is used to eliminate clues pointing to the murderer. Because theoretically, no one can kill, so it's impossible to catch the murderer."]

"However, since all the suspects are magicians, that claim is meaningless."

Kiritsugu Emiya: "Indeed, for a magician criminal, a locked room is completely unnecessary."

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "Could it be that, like yesterday's video, it uses a similar effect to that Mystic Eye to achieve remote killing?"

Kenneth: "It shouldn't be. This happened before that case. If the methods were the same, we should have realized it when we found the body."