The fairy maid cheers for her deceased master today.

"Ice cream? Stolen?"

Ex almost turned around and left.

Time is precious; how can I waste my time on such a small and insignificant case of stealing ice cream?

The phrase "ice cream theft case" just doesn't feel right. When did stealing ice cream become a criminal offense? I've never seen anything like it!

Ex raised an eyebrow, looking at the exquisite little wooden box on Catherine's table. Inside the box was tin foil, which was completely empty, without a trace of cream.

"That's right." Catherine tapped her fingers lightly on the table and said with a smile, "I just bought it yesterday and put it in the ice bucket, and now it's gone."

"and……"

Elena added.

"There wasn't a trace, the door lock was intact, and the windows hadn't been touched."

That makes sense. I don't believe a thief would steal this ice cream.

The ice bucket was also placed nearby.

Ex crouched down and examined the ice bucket closely. It was made of brass, with frost on the inside and coarse salt and ice at the bottom.

This is a very common preservation method in this era.

To preserve ice cream, place it in a sealed container, and then put it in a wooden barrel filled with ice and coarse salt.

When salt and ice are mixed, an endothermic reaction occurs, lowering the freezing point of the mixture to around -10°C. This is generally enough to preserve ice cream for several hours.

"Is this really how it's preserved?" Ax asked Catherine.

"Of course! This is the ice cream I saved for today!"

"Who has the key?"

“It’s just me and my maid Mary,” Catherine said. “You haven’t met Mary yet; she’s in charge of the daily chores and cooking.”

"Where's Mary?"

"She went out shopping... She always leaves around this time. She should be back soon."

"So the suspects are...me, Angel, Elena, and Mary?"

"Yes." Catherine nodded, then suddenly chuckled, "Now that you've joined us, Sir, shouldn't you show us a few skills? Let me see if this job suits you."

Oh? It seems like you already have a clue?

So yesterday was just the first round of interviews, and today there's a second round.

"Angel," Ex immediately looked at his fairy maid, "where were you yesterday?"

Angel's blue eyes widened immediately. "Master! I didn't steal any food!"

Catherine chuckled. "Don't be nervous, little maid. This is just a routine matter."

"That's not me!" Angel scoffed. "If I want food, I'll just ask Master!"

Ax stroked his chin. Indeed, although Angel was greedy, she never stole anything.

Stealing cookies in front of people last time didn't count as stealing.

"When did you discover the ice cream had been stolen?"

"Just now, after I got up, I took out the ice cream to try it. But before I went to sleep, I checked it again, and the ice cream was still in the box."

So the time for sneaking a bite is between last night and before you get out of bed this morning.

Where was the ice bucket originally located?

"Little Kitchen," Catherine said, getting up to lead the way. "This way."

The kitchen wasn't big, but it was very clean. The ice bucket was originally placed in the corner, next to a worktable with various kitchen utensils on it, and a steam pipe was connected to it.

Ax checked the window. Indeed, the lock was intact, with no signs of forced entry. They were all from the detective agency; there was no way they could be wrong about that.

Catherine added, "And I require that no unauthorized people enter the kitchen, and Mary always locks the door when she goes grocery shopping."

Then it means that only you and Mary could have committed the crime.

No, they are more likely to be the perpetrators. The keys could also have been stolen.

"But Mary doesn't eat ice cream. And the kitchen was locked when I opened the door this morning. So—"

Catherine paused.

"This is a locked-room ice cream theft case!"

This can be a locked room mystery? No wonder he's a detective novelist.

That makes things difficult. There are still too few clues; we'll have to question everyone's testimony one by one.

"etc."

He suddenly squatted down and carefully examined the bottom of the ice bucket.

Not just the bottom of the ice bucket, but the entire kitchen floor. It had clearly just been cleaned; the water was still wet.

"What's wrong?" Catherine asked.

"A locked room is impossible," X shrugged. "Obviously, Mary came to the kitchen early this morning and cleaned it."

"But Miss Mary wouldn't steal food," Catherine insisted.

Why?

"Mary has been my maid for many years, and I trust her."

This reasoning is not valid for a detective.

However, X didn't say much, but went back to the living room and checked the ice bucket again.

The ice cubes in the ice bucket were sharply defined, translucent, and cold.

Angel leaned closer: "What's wrong, Master? Why are you staring at the ice?"

"It's nothing."

Ex picked up the small wooden box again, looked at it, and then shook his head.

Elena, eager to participate, asked, "Sir, wouldn't you like to hear our testimony?"

"No, that would be too much of a waste of time."

Ex put down the wooden box.

"I've seen the truth now. No one stole any... the ice cream just melted on its own."

"You did it yourself?" Irene asked, somewhat surprised. "How is that possible?"

Faced with this imposter detective, Ax patiently explained, "Let me double-check the preservation method. It involves wrapping the ice cream in this small wooden box, then placing it in an ice bucket filled with ice, right?"

Irene nodded.

"The ice bucket wasn't wrapped with any additional blankets or insulation pads. The small wooden box was very thin. The ice bucket was also located near the kitchen steam ducts."

X shook his head.

"Obviously, the insulation was inadequate. The ice cream melted on its own."

Elena immediately shook her head. "Really... No, if it melted, it would definitely have melted inside the wooden box. But the wooden box is very clean!"

"And the ice in the ice bucket was still intact, maintaining its low temperature. Clearly, someone took the ice cream!"

The ice in the ice bucket showed no signs of melting.

"That's how it looks from your perspective. But there's another possibility that the wooden box was clean... it was washed. Similarly, the ice in the ice bucket was also changed."

Ex smiled slightly.

Indeed, the biggest mystery in this case is why the ice cubes in the ice bucket were so brand new and angular, without a single sign of melting.

There is clearly only one explanation: it was replaced.

Since the ice cubes have been replaced, the reason for the replacement is most likely that the ice cubes melted, causing the ice cream to melt as well.

The person who changed the ice was probably the maid Mary.

Imagine Miss Mary going into the kitchen to clean and suddenly discovering that all the ice in the ice bucket has melted and the wooden box is wet.

She took it out and found the ice cream had completely melted, so she cleaned it all over again. Then she replaced the ice in the ice bucket with the freshest ice cream that had arrived…

So the ice cubes in the ice bucket were sharp and brand new, because they were fresh ice cubes that someone had just delivered that morning.

Irene was taken aback: "It's that simple?"

"It's that simple."

Just then, the sound of the door opening came from the doorway.

Miss Mary returned carrying the food.

"Mary," Catherine looked at Mary, "did you clean the kitchen this morning? Did you wash this box too?"

Mary blushed. "Yes, yes, Miss Catherine. This morning I found water in the ice bucket, so I took it out, washed it all, and replaced the ice. The ice cream in the box had also melted, so I washed that too."

"Okay, that's all, you can go back to your work."

"Yes, Miss!" Mary immediately returned to the kitchen.

Ax then laughed: "It seems Mary is still suspected of cheating."

"No, she doesn't eat ice cream, especially ice cream containing dairy products." Catherine shook her head with a smile, emphasizing again, "She gets sick if she eats it."

Got it, lactose intolerance. I see.

"Actually, I only remembered this morning when I saw it that I forgot to move the ice bucket." Catherine stuck out her tongue. "As expected of a knight, you noticed it at a glance."

That's clearly a rhetorical question.

Elena then realized that Catherine had only said the ice cream had been stolen because she wanted to test her knighthood.

The case was solved instantly, without any ripples.

However, X began to wonder if solving the case was Elina's wish.

He couldn't help but ask, "Miss Elena, what are you planning to do later?"

"Uh, I... I have to do a sales call later."

"What kind of work? Let me help."

"This... is just about finding a cat."

...May I ask, is Catherine really that famous as a detective?