Pokémon Detective Case Files.

"The murderer? Mr. Telt, what do you mean? I've used my connections to access internal police documents, but I've never heard of anyone being injured or killed in the bombing."

The burly man with the thick beard was taken aback, but then burst into laughter again. He pointed at the detective and said, "You're much more interesting than those guys in the police station. Aren't you going to ask me about my identity, position, or where I was at the time of the incident?"

"You've been asked these questions countless times, haven't you? Whether it's the truth or a lie, you've memorized a set of mechanical answers. What's the point of listening to that kind of testimony?"

"So that's why you provoked me like that? Did you think I was some kind of plaything?" The bearded man became aggressive again, questioning the detective with a fierce expression.

A character with unpredictable temper often gives people a ruthless impression, but it's a bit too late to say such a harsh word now.

Hugo remained unfazed, simply shrugging. "Didn't you tell us to just ask whatever questions we had? Okay, let's not change the subject. Mr. Telt, what did you mean by the murderer you mentioned later? Didn't the Liyong City Police Department already classify this explosion as an accident?"

He emphasized, asking each word carefully, "Why do you believe there is a murderer in this case?"

Completely overshadowed by the detective, Telt remained silent for a long time before finally sighing, "This is a fact I don't want to recall, and I didn't even tell the police."

“I understand your emotions very well, and I can even roughly guess the answer to this question, but only what you, as the person involved, say can be considered credible testimony.”

Hugo calmly gazed at Telt, waiting for the man to speak.

.

When Telt joined the Liyong Power Plant, the plant was undergoing its second phase of expansion.

With the establishment of the bio-power generation system, the number of Electric-type Pokémon in the factory exceeded seventy. The trainer who originally served as the breeding consultant began to struggle, so Factory Manager William dismissed him and hired the more capable Tilter instead.

The newly appointed Telt lived up to expectations, transforming the breeding park and preparing special meals. Within a month, the health of the seventy-one Electric-type Pokémon in the factory was well managed.

Everything is moving in a positive direction.

Tilter really enjoys his current job. It's not that taking care of Pokémon makes him happy; that's just part of the job. Because of the nature of his work, he always treats the Pokémon like lords who need to be served. If the lords are comfortable, Tilter can earn money.

What truly made Telt love his job was the generous pay he received from Factory Manager William.

Liyong Power Plant is the most promising energy company in the city, so it's normal for its salaries to be a bit higher than its peers. But it wasn't until Telt received his first month's salary that he realized his previous thinking was rather naive—the salary William listed when he hired him was just the base salary.

People living in the desert cannot imagine what the ocean looks like. With such limited knowledge, Talter was speechless with shock when he received his first month's salary.

Actual wages, monthly performance wages, business bonuses, travel expenses, reimbursement subsidies, holiday gifts... all these compensation and subsidies combined make the actual wages in the factory almost three times that of the industry average.

What's even more appealing is that the benefits at Liyong Power Plant rival those of high-ranking officials in the Elf Alliance. Not only are employees never required to work overtime, but they also receive two extended vacations each year.

For Telt, Plant Manager William was a godsend; his power plant was practically a cash cow for him.

It was during this period that Telt developed a habit of spending money extravagantly, which forced him to hastily find a new job after the bombing.

Yes, a life of easy money can't last.

When the factory manager came to tell him to leave the factory immediately, Telt was wielding a huge iron shovel, mixing the day's Pokémon food in his workshop. After he left the factory in a daze, he heard a deafening explosion.

"I probably won't get my year-end bonus this year, right?" This was the only thought on the face of the shattered dream of the bearded hairdresser.

Chapter 123 The Day the Explosion Happened

"The reason I say there is a killer is because after the explosion, I bypassed the police cordon and sneaked into the burning factory—there I saw a hellish scene."

Mr. Telt lowered his voice and spoke slowly to the three people beside him, seemingly expecting some surprised or fearful reaction from them.

To everyone's surprise, not only the detective on the other side, but even the two girls showed absolutely no interest.

The chestnut-haired girl wearing a sun hat was writing something in her notebook, not even lifting her eyelids while he was keeping her in suspense; the one with black hair in a high ponytail was even more outrageous, staring blankly at the Archaeopteryx that was still casting "Clear the Fog," making no attempt to hide her disinterest.

The trainer regretted not having chased the two listeners away earlier. Were they really members of the detective team investigating the case?

Could you describe the scene you witnessed in more detail?

Just as Telt was almost in the awkward position of talking to himself, Detective Hugo continued to press him with gentle words.

"I would also like to know why you didn't tell the police about these things afterwards. If it's convenient, please explain as much as possible."

"No problem. But before that, I'd like to confirm, have you ever witnessed a Pokémon's corpse?"

The bearded man prepared the detective, warning him that his words might shock some people.

"I've seen some of them."

For some reason, Hugo recalled a sentinel mouse that had died in a car accident.

Officer Jenny had told him that the formula for determining the time of death of a Pokémon had been verified by experts, and the paper had been uploaded to the forensic database. Although no one had yet used that formula to solve a case, it had gained widespread acceptance among experts.

To Hugo's great surprise, because the name he gave to the corpse transformation curve of Normal-type Pokémon was too long, it was changed to "Sentinel Curve" when it was included in the book, completely eliminating the traces of the paper's author. It can only be said that fate played a trick on him.

"Where are those two ladies over there? Do they really think Pokémon turn into shiny specks of light and drift away in the air after they die?"

"Don't worry about them, keep going." Hugo urged earnestly, tapping his knuckles lightly on the table.

Although the source of the information was somewhat unreliable, the group already knew what was inside the factory, and the detective couldn't bear to see Telt continue to keep them in suspense.

He even began to reflect on himself—was he also this annoying when he discovered important clues and kept them to himself?

"Sigh..." Telt sighed heavily, finally getting to the point—

"Those Electric-type Pokémon that I had spent more than half a year with died neatly in the power plant where the explosion occurred, their bodies charred and carbonized. When I saw them, their bodies were still glowing with fire, but they were already motionless and there was no way to save them."

Azure's note-taking motion, Touko's absent-minded expression, and the detective's light tapping of the table all freeze in time.

The Archaeopteryx, having just cast "Clear Fog," was still outside its Poké Ball. Upon hearing about the corpse and death, it trembled uncomfortably, its eyes growing increasingly vacant.

Although I didn't witness it firsthand, the scene Talter described was truly horrifying...

Finally, it was actually Azure, who had been doodling in her notebook, who broke the silence—

“Mr. Telt, I remember you said before that there were seventy-one Pokémon in the factory, and they were all... dead there? Did you count them on the spot?”

"Do we even need to count them?"

The bearded groomer squinted, seemingly unmoved by the scene he was depicting, and said dismissively—

"I've been managing those elves there for almost a year now. I can tell at a glance if they've all arrived. Seventy-one, all there, all dead. There's no way I could be wrong."

Telt's answer was somewhat far-fetched, but the girl didn't dwell on the question for long before moving on to the next one—

"You mentioned Electrode and Magnemite earlier. Are these the only two Pokémon in the factory?"

"To be precise, there are two Pokémon families, totaling five: Voltorb, Electrode, Magnemite, Magneton, and Magnemite. The power plant only uses these types of Pokémon, supposedly because they have the highest power generation efficiency. I'll also tell you the number of these Pokémon; quickly write them down in your notebook—"

The trainer's tone remained sarcastic as always.

"There is one Magnemite, five Electrode, five Magneton, thirty Magnemites, and a Voltorb in the factory. They form a neat formation when they discharge electricity, and they do the same when they die, which is why I said I could tell their numbers at a glance."

Azure silently added to the number in her mind, and indeed there were seventy-one in total.

"So, who owns these Pokémon? And who has their corresponding Poké Balls?"

“The owner is this factory,” Telt replied with his eyes closed. “Their Poké Balls are locked in a safe in the factory warehouse, and only the factory manager has the key. They are not used except in special circumstances. The factory’s staff take them out from my breeding area every day to assist with their work using the power of these Pokémon’s Electric-type moves.”

Do they enjoy living in the factory? Are they mistreated by the employees?

"Like it? I don't think any person or Pokémon would like their job. Labor is painful, oppressive, and unavoidable. Those Electric-type Pokémon spend all day in the same place, generating electricity and nothing else. I don't see anything to be happy about in their lives..."

Telt's words surprised everyone, but he quickly changed the subject, denying what he had just said—

"But the elves themselves might not think the same way I do. Even if we release them back into the wild, the Thundurus in the ravines and meadows will still just hop around and release electric shocks; and the Magnemite in the caves will still just float around aimlessly like that bird over there. Maybe they live comfortably in the power plant, with no worries about food or water."

"You are not a fish, how can you know the joy of fish?" I never expected this rough man to think so much...

Azure wanted to ask more questions, but the detective stopped her. Hugo had asked her something earlier, and he wanted to confirm the answer to that question first.

"Mr. Telt, why didn't you report this to the police?"

"Hmph, a report?" The trainer's face showed obvious contempt—

"Didn't those police officers already know about this? Otherwise, how could those bodies have disappeared so quietly? They buried them! Detective, do you know how they classified this explosion?"

"As far as I know, it was an accident of unknown cause," Hugo replied, referring to the materials provided by Officer Jenny.

“They said more when they questioned me,” Telt laughed sarcastically.

"The police said that the newly built factory inadvertently created a special magnetic field, which subtly affected the minds of Magnemite and Mischief, driving them crazy and causing them to become nervous, eventually leading to a chain reaction of self-destruction in a workplace accident."

"They say the Pokémon have gone crazy? Ladies and gentlemen, don't you think that's a ridiculous reason?"

Chapter 124 When the Moonlight is Distorted

After leaving the open-air bar and saying goodbye to Telt, Touko also parted ways with the detective; she was going to check on N's situation.

After learning about the explosion, the prince of Team Plasma became depressed and occasionally muttered dangerous words to himself. This worried the kind-hearted and energetic girl, who couldn't leave him alone for long.

Hugo and Azure went to the scene of the explosion in the afternoon.

By this time, the number of police officers stationed at the scene had decreased significantly. Azure sent out Ditto, and this very useful purple clay expertly began to play tricks, quickly distracting the remaining police officers. The two then strolled into the old power plant site as if taking a walk.

However, the power plant is now just a completely cleared ruin, and even the smell of gunpowder from the fire has been completely washed away by the rain.

At the epicenter of the explosion, rubble and broken walls almost completely covered everything. The two searched for a long time but found little useful information other than the crater created by the explosion itself.

Perhaps turning the ruins upside down would yield more evidence, but while Hugo is an excellent detective with considerable investigative skills, he can't single-handedly command a scientific investigation team. If the Garchomp borrowed from Cynthia were still around, perhaps they could try digging around.

However, even if the earth dragon has already been teleported back to the backyard of the town, and even if Hugo really goes to great lengths to plow through the ruins, will he necessarily find new evidence?

It's important to understand that corpses are always the most crucial evidence in a murder case, and that green-haired prince mentioned that the police had already removed and disposed of all the Pokémon corpses from the scene. Instead of wasting time on this, it would be better to investigate the Pokémon cemetery and crematorium in Liyong City.

The two ended up spending the afternoon doing some pointless things, which is pretty much the norm in the detective industry.

The approximate extent of the explosion was measured, confirming that the fire was indeed caused by an explosion inside the factory, and a new schematic diagram of the power plant's internal topography was drawn.

After finishing all this work, the exhausted Azure and the detective concluded their investigation for the day and officially wrapped up their work.

.

7 PM.

Buckle buckle.

In an ordinary hotel in Liyong City, Bilan knocked on the door of Hugo's single room and heard a lazy response.

"Is this Azure? You can come in directly, the door isn't locked."

The girl was momentarily dazed and unconsciously became reserved.

Before opening the door, Bilan even tidied her clothes. She was still wearing the same casual clothes she wore during the day, even though she hadn't showered yet, but she had left her sun hat in her room.

Just as she was about to use the reflection of the doorplate to fix her bangs, Bilan suddenly realized that her behavior was a bit ambiguous. But then she remembered that the two of them usually lived under the same roof, and it would be too pretentious to start being coy now...

With her mind racing, Bilan reluctantly pushed open the door.

However, the moment I stepped inside, that bittersweet feeling of ambiguity completely vanished—everything in front of me looked so familiar, just like being back in the living room of Yuqi Residence!

In the cramped single room, the first thing that catches the eye is the white coat hanging on the coat rack. The little Chimchar and Piplup, who were brought out this time, each held a berry as a snack and ate it with relish.

The detective, just as he had been pondering the case at the Yuxi Mansion, was dressed in casual loungewear and squatting undignifiedly on the table opposite the bed. He was using his elongated baton to gesticulate and tease a large pile of papers spread out on the bed.

"These are news clips taken from recent newspapers in Liyong City, which include interviews with passersby who discovered the discovery and interviews with factory workers."

Hugo stood up abruptly on the table, flicked his wrist, and smoothly put the baton back in his pocket. He then turned to Azure, who had just entered, and introduced her—

"The accounts of passersby were almost identical—first they saw factory workers gradually evacuating from the factory, then they heard a tremendous explosion, followed by thick smoke and flames billowing from the factory, which grew increasingly intense until firefighters and police arrived and began trying to extinguish the fire—all of which are basically consistent with the testimony given by Telt. The factory workers unanimously admitted that the factory manager urged them to leave the factory, and that the terrifying shockwave only occurred after everyone had left."

"This all seems to be information that has already been confirmed... You were just studying this?"

Azure was somewhat surprised. Wasn't this just going around in circles with the known facts? Did the detective really need to make such a big fuss on the bed?

"Of course not, there are actually many follow-up reports about the case on the sheets."

"Follow-up report... Are you investigating the movements of the Liyong City Police Department?"

The astute detective assistant instantly grasped Hugo's thoughts, his eyes warily fixed on the pile of papers spread on the bed.

The familiar snap of fingers rang out as scheduled—

"That's right! Azure, I've discovered a startling fact in these reports!"

Hugo raised his eyebrows in delight—

"Reporters captured images of the aftermath of the explosion. Look, here are images of a large number of police cars cordoning off the scene, teams of police officers maintaining order, firefighters rushing from fire trucks to the fire, and the explosion site billowing thick smoke—do you notice anything amiss?"

"Uh... no Pokémon escaped from the factory?"

While rapidly browsing the information in her hand, Azure answered subconsciously.

"No, this is not unusual. The factory manager prioritized the human employees, which led to the elves being trapped in the fire. This is one of the possible scenarios. You are just inferring the facts from known private information. If N and Telt hadn't told us about the elves' deaths, this lead wouldn't exist at all."

The detective waved his hand with great flair—

"Azure, for detectives who value rigorous logic, relying on individual witness testimonies is not a good habit. Silent evidence is the foundation of trust. In this case, there is a very awkward detail—I mean those more obvious, more ordinary, and more incomprehensible things! That is a distortion of reality, that is the real contradiction that cannot be ignored!"