Alchemists do not need self-cultivation

"You just said... when you opened the door, the body fell out?" Isaac asked Asen.

"Yes, Avril and Cecil, who happened to be passing by, were also there. The teacher was so frightened that she fainted."

"I see."

Isaac smiled.

"Hey, Golden Drill."

"Huh? What is it?"

"You're in charge of the case regarding the discovery of the body, right?"

"……Yes."

Do you know the identity of the body?

"After a brief investigation, we have determined that the body is likely that of Maxim, a graduate of St. Margaret University who went missing eight years ago."

"I see. I understand the general situation now. How about I help you solve this problem?"

"what?"

“It’s time to start the showdown with that brat again,” Isaac said with a smile.

------

"The body that fell from that tomb was that of a man named Maxim. Although he was a graduate of the academy, he would suddenly return every spring, stay for a while, and then set off on his travels again. He was a mysterious man. According to rumors, he was a fraudster, a thief, and a criminal who had committed all sorts of bad deeds. He seemed to be hated by everyone, and that's probably why he was killed. His physical characteristics and the time of his disappearance both fit the description. He was said to be a handsome man. However, he returned to the academy eight years ago in the spring and stayed for several weeks, but he suddenly disappeared after leaving his luggage in his room."

"As expected of Anjie, she got this information so quickly."

On the way to the Great Library, Ange and Isaac recounted information about the corpse.

"I've heard a lot about the mysterious events at this school. Although this person named Maxim isn't very famous, he has left behind some strange tales in the academy."

Anjie organized the information in her mind.

"According to the information obtained from the police officer, the tomb was last used eight years ago for the funeral of a girl named Millie Maru. There has been no record of it being unlocked since then, but the man was not in the tomb at that time."

"You could also secretly open the tomb door, kill the person, lock them inside, and then lock the door again when you come out. What's so difficult about that?"

"Your Mightiness."

"Ok?"

Ange looked into Isaac's eyes and said, "If you really want to lose to Victorique in reasoning, you'd better think from the perspective of an ordinary person, rather than from the perspective of a superhuman like an alchemist."

"……All right."

Isaac nodded helplessly.

"Could someone have stolen the key?"

"The keys are managed by the funeral home and are handled very securely."

"The criminals might be them."

"That's unlikely, anyway, this person has offended so many people, a few more won't make a difference."

"Obtaining the key requires going through many procedures, and unless it is a group crime, one person cannot complete it."

Isaac is now also beginning to recall the intelligence that Gurevan and Asen had told him.

"The body fell out directly after the tomb door was opened, which proves that the body was not killed and locked in the tomb, but was locked in while still alive. It kept knocking on the locked door for help and finally collapsed against the door due to exhaustion."

"There are still two points of doubt."

Anjie held up two fingers.

"The first question is, why would Maxim, who died eight years ago, dress up as a knight from long ago? Second, what is the significance of the primrose bouquet adorning his chest?"

"Hmm, does this mean the reasoning has reached another deadlock?"

If Maxim didn't enter the tomb on his own, this would be a murder. Someone locked him alive inside. The perpetrator of the murder eight years ago is probably still in this academy. That's why Grevin is in charge of this case.

Isaac pinched his chin and lowered his head, recalling the details of the case and the people who had gathered around.

There's not much to say about Ah Sheng and Gu Leiwen. They were the first to witness the body, and Gu Leiwen, as the sheriff, would definitely be there.

However... Isaac noticed something unusual about Avril, the friend that A-Sheng had recently made. Although he didn't mention it earlier, Isaac still noticed something unusual about her.

If they went directly to the entrance of the tomb, then they shouldn't have had anything new on them.

But Avril was holding a book with a purple cover at that time. It was impossible for her to have such a thick book on her person at first. Did she pick it up on the road?

As they pondered this, the two unknowingly arrived at the foot of the Great Library.

Looking up at the towering library rooftop, Isaac laughed.

"It seems like another time-consuming battle. Based on the intelligence we have so far, it should end in my victory."

Chapter 1087: Dark Rationality

Victorique: "The culprit is Millie Marou."

Isaac: "...So fast?"

When he first arrived at the top floor of the Great Library, he told Victorica about the discovery of the body and offered the information he had gathered to request a rematch.

The original plan was to decide the winner at noon the next day, but Victorica came up with the answer directly.

"I haven't given you much information, have I? How could you deduce that from that?"

“These ‘fragments’ you’ve provided are enough for me to reconstruct the truth.” Victorique yawned.

This might be a puzzle that Isaac could use for a duel, but for Victorique it's just a mental exercise.

"...But that girl named Millie Maru should have died long ago. Maxim was still alive at her funeral."

“This is ‘the crime committed by the deceased’.”

Victorique looked at Isaac with eyes so clear they were almost unbelievable.

“Maxim’s actions were all just my imagination. He was chosen by the bedridden Milimalou as her companion on her journey to death. Because a knight must accompany and protect a noblewoman.”

"Was the clothing of a medieval knight for this purpose?"

"That's not all. There are three fragments of chaos here. The first is a medieval knight's robe; the second is the stolen key; and the last is the remains of the past, one of which is missing. By piecing these fragments together, we can conclude that Milimaru drugged Maxim to put him to sleep so she could dress him in knight's robes. Then, using the stolen key, she entered the tomb and switched the remains of the previous knight with Maxim, who was now in a deep sleep disguised as a knight."

Victorique shared all her thoughts.

"Then she died. Maxim was sleeping inside the burial chamber when the funeral home staff were about to move Milimalou's body there. Sadly, he didn't realize he had been chosen as a companion to the afterlife. The funeral home staff also didn't notice that in the dark burial chamber, the remains they had always seen and grown accustomed to had been replaced with living people dressed in identical clothes. So they buried the dead Milimalou and tightly closed the burial chamber. When Maxim awoke, it was pitch black inside, with only the remains. Perhaps he found the dead girl and learned the truth, or perhaps it was pitch black all around, and he knew nothing at all, but the iron door had already been tightly shut."

As she said this, she looked up at Isaac.

"Although it's just a guess, if you go into the tomb to investigate, you'll find that one of the bodies is missing, which is where Maxim was lying."

"...I'll go check."

Although Victorique said it was just speculation, if there really was one less body in the tomb, then this duel would be her victory.

"Isaac".

Just as Isaac was about to leave the Great Library, Victorique called him back.

"what's up?"

“A rational investigation is a good thing, but if it’s too rational, you won’t be able to analyze the criminal’s motives, and then you’ll never be a match for me,” Victorica said.

Do you think I'm the kind of person who's absolutely rational?

“What’s more terrifying than absolute rationality is the kind of rationality I see in you that can completely abandon the concept of good and evil for the sake of a goal. I call it dark rationality.”

"...You think you've seen right through me after knowing me for only a short time?"

"The answer derived from the 'Fountain of Wisdom' can probably be analyzed from your performance on the ship."

After Victorica finished speaking, she picked up her pipe, which was empty of tobacco, and took a puff.

"The culprit's motive is hidden in that bunch of primroses."

"what?"

There is a legend about primroses. The legend tells of a young god who had a clever and beautiful fiancée. They were deeply in love and were about to marry. However, his fiancée unexpectedly fell seriously ill and soon passed away. The young god was heartbroken, unable to eat or drink, and spent his days gazing into the distance, longing for his fiancée. Not long after, he also died. The other gods were deeply saddened by his death and transformed him into a flower—the primrose.

"What does this have to do with the case?"

“When his wife died, her husband turned into a flower to stay by her side, which means they will be together forever,” Victorica explained. “Perhaps Millie Maru, knowing that her death was imminent, wanted to keep Maxim by her side by killing him, and dressing him in knight’s attire was also a way of keeping him by her side.”

"...It's inexplicable."

"So you don't understand people's hearts. It's better not to underestimate a woman's obsession."

"..."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"Sir, how is it?"

"...0:3".

"So that's how it is. There was a defeat."

"That brat is really weird. It's really unpleasant to feel like it's over before it even started." Isaac frowned.

"Where are you going now, Your Excellency?" Ange asked.

"Let's go back to the tomb and check the situation. Hopefully, Victorica is wrong."

If there are no missing corpses in the tomb, then her conclusion this time is invalid, and the competition can start again...

"The police have discovered something new at the crime scene."

"what?"

"It is said that one of the platforms for visiting the bodies in the tomb is empty, which means that a body is missing. However, they believed it was unrelated to the case and did not investigate the missing body."

"..."

Is there a problem?

"No, I'm just admitting I failed."

He lost three times in just a few days, a kind of failure that Isaac had never experienced in his life.

Ange patted Isaac on the shoulder.

"Failure will help you grow."