in2ebook Chapter 1314 White Rat
Chapter 1314 White Rat
Chapter 1314 Guinea Pig
Having already guessed a bit of what was going on, Tang Ze was in a very relaxed state of mind. So when he actually encountered the Mechanism Mask deep inside the tomb, he was well prepared.
Since this is actually a curse effect of a skill, similar to the Guinsoo's Rageblade, but different from the forced mechanism of the Lion Child's Hall, even if you get hit, the duration won't be very long, so there's no need to panic. Therefore, when the first teammate turned into a rat, Tang Ze couldn't control his despicable and earth-shattering laughter.
After turning into a rat, each person retains their original mask, but is shrunk to the size of a palm. Apart from making terrified squeaks, they can't do anything else. As long as they are careful not to step on others, there are no other problems.
You know what, because the mouse form it transforms into is quite similar to a chubby gray fancy mouse, soft and plump, it feels pretty good to hold in your hand.
Soon, Tang Ze was punished by the group for laughing too loudly and even rubbing his teammates.
Tang Ze's luck is generally average. Unless some lucky player like Ran Mouri takes pity on him and gives him a lucky boost in a co-op, he's not much better than his teammates in terms of judgment.
Based on Tang Ze's previous suspicions, the skills he acquired were likely not granted by the Co-op trait, or rather, the Co-op trait shouldn't grant abilities so frequently. It was likely that a large number of abilities he acquired himself at the end of his first playthrough, when his level was probably not low either. Since he's not a lucky player now, it's unlikely he'll become one in his first playthrough either.
So when his teammates deliberately diverted his aggro and he was hit by ten of Mot's curses, Tang Ze, who wasn't using a resistance P-class, still got caught in the crossfire.
"You seemed to be having a lot of fun pinching me just now. You look pretty good too."
Asai Narumi's eyes curved into sinister fox eyes, and combined with his mask, which resembled a fox spirit from a ghost story, he exuded a villainous aura.
Not to mention that Tang Ze was a tiny mouse, no bigger than a palm, with an eye patch on. Being held in someone's hand and threatened like this, the feeling of being surrounded was indescribable.
The next second, he was lifted off the ground by Asai Narumi by the tail, and then roughly rubbed in his hand.
The duration was relatively short, so I need to hurry up and get my revenge.
Perhaps due to his hair color or the design, Tang Ze's rat form was a bit whiter than the other gray rats, making him look more furry. Before long, he passed through everyone's hands and was squeezed into a rat pancake.
"Let go, let go—" The moment he turned back, Tang Ze quickly protested, escaping from Miyano Akemi's endless pinching. "I only pinched her a few times, I wasn't that rough!"
"9
And it's not like I was the only one making them, didn't you guys make them for others too?! And you're still laughing? I'm talking about you guys in the police academy group!
It was all taken out on him for laughing out loud!
"You know what, only the Joker is the guinea pig." Kenji Hagiwara, having already handled and felt the texture, stroked his chin. "Why is that? Because of the wig?"
The official members of the group were basically aware of Tang Ze's "trick" of changing his hair to white. They were speechless for a while because of this bizarre and idealistic setting. However, as the public's stereotype of the Joker image became more and more profound, Tang Ze's white-haired form became so realistic that it was impossible to see any flaws.
If we switch to the same scale, then it seems quite normal for Tang Ze's fur to be a little white.
"Not necessarily." Miyano Akemi, having enjoyed pinching him, covered the lower half of her face with her fan. "There might be a metaphor in it. Mice are the most common laboratory animals. When Shiho discovered the special effects of APTX, it was because she found that a mouse reverted to a juvenile state before it died."
As a double-degree doctoral student with extensive laboratory experience, Shiho Miyano deals with mice extremely frequently.
The shock to a scientist's worldview upon witnessing experimental mice regress into naked, red-cheeked infants is self-evident.
As for why such an association would occur, others who haven't experienced it might not be clear, but Akemi Miyano, who personally participated in the Pisco Palace walkthrough, will never forget it.
Gin in the arena is not a quiet person. Just like Gin himself, he doesn't talk much, but he always has a few trash talk to him.
This includes referring to Tang Ze as an experimental subject.
"That's very strange." Morofushi Kagemitsu pushed up his goggles. "The Hall of Craftsmen and the Hall of Craftsmen have no connection with the organization, do they?"
Those who would treat Tang Ze as a guinea pig are either members of the organization or lunatics within the Tang Ze school; they are inextricably linked to the organization's influence.
Pu Hejiang is an ordinary person who has worked diligently as a sound engineer for over 30 years. Even if he goes crazy in his old age and blows up his boss to get him fired despite being of retirement age, it doesn't mean he has any connection with the organization.
"Well, I don't know—another coffin has arrived. Who's going up this time?"
"Shade, you're here?"
"I don't want to—"
'
"Grab him! Oh dear, he's moving too fast! Joker, grab him! Nobody's allowed to run!"
In contrast to the inexplicably cheerful atmosphere of the Phantom Thieves, the detectives were in a much heavier mood.
The Kudo residence now houses not only Shinichi Kudo, who rarely returns to stay, but also Shuichi Akai, who is pretending to be younger, and Heiji Hattori and Kazuha Toyama, who are unaware of this.
It's not uncommon for people, not just Shinichi Kudo, to stay at someone's house while they're on a temporary trip. Even Heiji Hattori himself is used to it. They just pack their bags and move in without a word.
The detectives are checking each other's information and reviewing the events of the past few days.
"Yes, the flute is indeed a crucial factor." After confirming this, Shinichi Kudo pushed the draft of the evidence in his notebook to the center of the table. "It's just a pity that Reiko Akiba graduated six or seven years ago, so it's quite difficult to know for sure about her interpersonal relationships in college."
The four people who were killed were all graduates of the first class of Domoto Academy, while Akiba Reiko was from the eighth class. The most recent graduating class is now more than ten years old.
So many years have passed, and not only have the students at Domoto Academy changed, but the faculty has also changed. It is not easy to investigate the detailed interpersonal relationships back then.
"I made several trips around the academy, asking teachers who might have a good relationship with Akiba Reiko and some school staff. The only connection between the flute and her should be her fiancé," Hattori Heiji said, presenting the results of his investigation at Domoto Academy that day.
"Her fiancé?" Shinichi Kudo, having received the new information, quickly looked up.
"Yes. Akiba Reiko had a fiancé named Soma Hikaru, who also graduated from Domoto Gakuin and was a flute player. Considering their age when they started dating and getting engaged, it's highly likely they met and fell in love while still in school." Hattori Heiji revealed all the information he had gathered. "After learning this, I contacted the police in Tokyo, and the answer I received was that Soma Hikaru died in an accident three years ago."
Hikaru Soma was 28 years old when he died. It should be said that without the impact of this accident, his child with Reiko Akiba might be in kindergarten by now.
"Is there something fishy about this accident?" Shinichi Kudo frowned.
Regarding this deceased fiancé, if he is the key figure connecting the case and the flute, it seems as if suspicion has been shifted to Akiba Reiko.
The problem is, based on their interactions over the past few days, Akiba Reiko, despite her sharp tongue, is actually a very soft-hearted person.
However, this accident can explain Akiba Reiko's current hedgehog-like communication style. Having lost her current close lover, her inner channel for obtaining security has been severed, so she can only raise all her sharp quills and use an aggressive form to ensure her safety.
The pain caused by that death probably still affects her to this day; otherwise, it would be hard to explain where her obsession with this performance comes from.
Domoto Academy is where her dreams began, and also where she met her fiancé. Given the chance, she would never want to miss this performance.
"The police have also investigated Soma Hikaru's situation and are verifying it. I think there's a significant problem here." Hattori Heiji frowned and quickly flipped to the brief record page.
Soma Hikaru is an illegitimate child, his father is unknown, his mother passed away five years ago, and he has no siblings.
From a social perspective, apart from Akiba Reiko, there may be no other person in the world who cares about him.
"—He fell to his death at a rally. The circumstances of his death were rather unusual; he had been drinking and accidentally walked onto a cliff, where he lost his footing and fell."
As soon as Heiji Hattori got to this point, Shinichi Kudo's eyebrows furrowed.
Can someone be held legally responsible for the death of another person due to encouraging them to drink alcohol? That depends on the specific circumstances.
If it is a traffic accident, then needless to say, if the deceased was going to drive, then encouraging him to drink alcohol would clearly endanger the life of others. Such behavior is subject to joint punishment, and because it assists in dangerous driving, it constitutes an independent criminal offense. Regardless of whether the person involved is dead or not, they can still be held accountable.
However, it is more difficult to determine whether an accidental death is caused by intoxication.
In theory, organizers have a duty of protection. If an organizer allows a person who is intoxicated to approach a dangerous area knowing that the person has lost their normal ability to act and make judgments, it constitutes the crime of causing death by the person with a duty of protection.
However, the degree of intoxication of the parties involved needs to be determined. If the person drinking with them is not in a state where they need assistance and is only slightly unsteady on their feet, it is difficult to place the responsibility on the person at the table.
Another requirement for this charge is that the intoxicated person is in a dangerous situation due to their own condition or the environment, such as being near water or on the road. If the person who encouraged the person to drink fails to provide necessary protection, they can also be held accountable.
However, it's difficult for Hikaru Soma to meet all of these criteria. Shinichi Kudo doesn't believe that the person who persuaded him to drink hadn't studied how to exploit loopholes.
"Could this gathering be related to Domoto Academy as well?"
"It was a training camp organized for graduating students, the kind that required registration. Mr. Domoto really values the students he mentors." Hattori Heiji nodded. "The police are confirming whether the four deceased participated in this training camp."
Out of consideration for Toyama Kazuha sitting next to him, Hattori Heiji's expression was rather tactful.
Hikaru Soma had no relatives or friends, but he had a beautiful and outstanding girlfriend. After graduation, his girlfriend's career took off and she became quite famous at the time, as an excellent soprano singer of the new generation.
It is not surprising that such a person would attract malice, and given his limited social connections, such malice is unlikely to be easily rectified.
People who have lost their parents are like rootless duckweed. Even for Akiba Reiko, it would be very difficult to investigate this matter. Unmarried men and women are, after all, not couples with the same interests.
Not to mention the even more egregious bullying logic hidden behind this logic.
Their malice wasn't heavy; it wasn't malice that necessarily wanted to kill. Rather, it was more like a tentative malice, hoping for the worst possible outcome.
It was like reaching out to poke someone standing on a high place; it wasn't actually pushing them down, but the disregard for life and the curse that the other person was better off dead reminded Shinichi Kudo of the scene he witnessed when he entered the world of the Phantom Thieves.
Indeed, it was like thick, black mud squeezed out of one's soul, making one feel disgusted and annoyed at first glance.
"If we can confirm that the deaths of the four people are related to Hikaru Soma's death, then the motive for the crime might be clear. The real question now is, who is the culprit?" Shinichi Kudo stroked his chin. "Based on this reasoning, the most suspicious person becomes Reiko Akiba. But we all know that's unlikely."
He was present when Akiba Reiko was attacked. If his reaction was all an act, then Akiba Reiko wouldn't need to be a singer. Wouldn't it have been better for her to switch to the entertainment industry?
With acting skills at this level, she's not just an actress anymore; she could go into politics.
"Do you tend to believe that Hikaru Soma has other unknown relationships?" Heiji Hattori, who hadn't spent much time with Reiko Akiba, remained noncommittal but chose to trust Shinichi Kudo's judgment.
"Yes, that's right. The flute is a very strong piece of evidence, but we can't rule out the possibility that the culprit wanted to frame Akiba Reiko. Let's check again tomorrow to see if these four people have any other common enemies."
"The only saving grace is that if that's really the motive, then there shouldn't have been any further cases," Hattori Heiji said optimistically.
"That's hard to say—" Shinichi Kudo lowered his gaze, looking at the name on the notebook.
He chose to start with Akiba Reiko because the perpetrator in the three cases had carried out the killings with a very meticulous plan.
This can be seen from the arrangement of the flute. In the bombing case where two people died, the longest part of the flute was placed at the scene, which means that he had planned how to arrange the three modules of the flute from the beginning.
The more meticulous the investigation, the stronger the malice. Judging from the way the other party treated Akiba Reiko, it's hard to believe that his resentment had dissipated.
On the contrary, the killer's impromptu act of targeting Akiba Reiko is more likely to reveal flaws.
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