"Ethan." The girl looked over. "You can be considered experienced... Don't you think that woman was too calm at the time?"
"you mean……"
"She was taller than the children and could easily see over the fence. She undoubtedly saw Brody on the roof just like Mr. Ponson did - his head. As a mother, a mother of four children, one of whom was about the same age as Brody, do you think her reaction was normal?"
"It's not normal." Ethan shook his head, "But this doesn't mean——"
"I know." Hitzfeld interrupted him, "People are different. She might be a calm person by nature~"
"But some things can only float on the surface. It's still the same reason. No matter how calm she appears on the surface, she must be in turmoil inside."
"I grabbed that piece of pie just to test whether that calmness was real or not."
"Hitzfeld." Ethan raised his voice slightly, "You mean--"
“She forgot the sugar.”
The girl nodded.
"Maybe it's not forgetfulness, but pure fear."
"I think she must have discovered something from these years of being married."
Chapter 40 The Real Murderer Behind the Scenes
At night, Karen Baker, who had returned, was a little irritable.
He was very happy when he met Hitzfeld at the candy factory - this meant that the direction of their investigation was the same, which undoubtedly gave him great encouragement. In his excitement, he forgot the other party's identity and made a few sarcastic remarks.
To be fair, he had no ill feelings towards this girl. The source of all the conflicts and contradictions actually came from the people around her: Ethan Doyle, who was recently rumored to play a complicated role in the Wayne Mutiny.
Ethan Doyle's original surname was Heidegger, and his father committed a serious crime of treason in the North.
Like many agents, Karen Baker could not accept the result of Heidegger's vindication. In his opinion, no matter what the reason was, Heidegger caused the advent of the Death Tree - this fact could not be denied.
What is there to redress? Right is right, wrong is wrong... There are thousands of people who accidentally commit serious crimes. If they are all redressed according to this standard, will the police still be able to catch bad guys?
This dissatisfaction with Ethan reached its peak when he learned that Daisy was injured.
He would unconsciously blame them in his heart, blaming them for not protecting Daisy well, even though he knew that this resentment was unfounded - how could a policeman who volunteered to act as a guard need protection from others? How could this be justified in the world?
But he couldn't help thinking this way, and he even took his anger out on Hitzfeld, thinking that she had no principles by getting involved with "Heidegger", and that no matter how talented she was, she didn't deserve his respect.
This is the cause of the contradiction.
In the afternoon, he thought he could use his position to force himself to get ahead of her in the investigation.
He initiated an investigation into the diocesan bishop, during which all Bishop Lanno's powers would be temporarily stripped away, and the affairs of the diocese would be temporarily controlled by Gail, the leader of the local Flintstone Knights.
Then the church was searched.
The search was very thorough, even the murals had to be taken down and the carpets had to be lifted up... He watched with his own eyes as his capable men hammered on the wooden boards inch by inch to find a secret room that might contain treasure, but what was the result?
There is no secret room.
No.
They searched almost every inch of the church and only found an underground wine cellar in the backyard.
There was some food and water in the wine cellar, it was well hidden, and one had to sweep away all the leaves on the ground and dig out the outline of the trapdoor from the cracks in the soil, but this proved nothing.
There was no treasure, no money, no account books and stocks that Karen had imagined must exist. There was only that little bit of stuff... at best a few more jars of wine.
The interrogation of Bishop Lanno also yielded no results. He insisted that this was a habit he had developed during his early adventures: he had been on guard against enemy raids and had to hide inside for a night every once in a while.
To put it bluntly, this was a serious lack of trust in the diocese's defense. If it were exposed, it would not only bring shame to Bishop Lanno himself, but would also be a serious violation of the precepts.
But Karen couldn't convict him for something like that.
After coming out of the interrogation room, he was furious, and his face was so gloomy that everyone who saw him dared not speak loudly.
"Oh, right." After he vented his anger, he seemed to suddenly remember something, "Where did Aisuen Hitzfeld and her sinner friends go?"
I haven't seen them since nightfall. It's so strange. Is she such a person who gives in so easily?
If he were in the queen's shoes and was treated so unfairly there, he would definitely make a fuss regardless of the consequences.
This was irrational, and he wondered if he was investigating in the wrong direction, or if the other party had found the right path?
"They just came here." A black-clad police officer reported in a low voice, "I saw them talking with Captain Gale in the distance... I don't know what they talked about, but Captain Gale seemed to be leading them to the orchard."
"Orchard?" A question mark popped up above Karen's head.
He couldn't understand what was the point of going to the orchard at this time.
Could it be that the secret room he had been looking for was hidden in the orchard?
But didn’t we already find out Bishop Lanno’s general whereabouts during the previous investigation?
He rarely went to the orchard, and whenever he did, he was at least accompanied by Captain Gale.
Even if he had to discuss something with someone temporarily, Gail would watch him from a distance - this was necessary protection for the diocesan bishop.
Captain Gale is not young anymore, and Bishop Lanno joined the order halfway and was promoted. It can be said that this relationship has existed since Bishop Lanno took this position... and it has continued to this day.
How could he have the chance to set up the secret room in the orchard?
Just when Karen was confused, a group of people had quietly ambushed in the orchard... strictly speaking, in the tomato orchard.
"Hitzfeld."
Half crouching behind the tomato rack, Ethan gripped his gun tightly and whispered, "I think we should at least wait for Mapus to come back..."
"Impossible." Hitzfeld rejected it.
She hid nearby, and because she was much smaller than Ethan, she could half-stand up from time to time to relieve the stiffness.
"In his eyes, we were separated. Moreover, someone had just died and Bishop Lanno was under investigation... Mark, who he feared the most, was forced to hide."
"You say, what better time could there be for him than now?"
It sounds like that's the case.
Ethan couldn't refute it, but he still had a lot of concerns.
"So you're sure it's him?"
"of course."
Hitzfeld said with certainty.
"You see... everyone feels awkward and uneasy about the atmosphere of Enling Road, but he is the only one who is not afraid. This in itself is very outstanding."
"Then why isn't he afraid? Is it possible... it's not that he's not afraid, but that he's also uneasy about the patrolling knights, but he has reasons for staying here and not giving up the house."
"You mean, the resident who took over No. 14 died...was he responsible?"
"Of course, No. 14 is too close to the house, and he wants to put an end to all threats."
"But……"
"And did you notice that he still didn't let us stay the day after the murders on the 14th? What does this mean? He didn't want us to search his house. He was afraid that we would discover the biggest secret left by the count in that house!"
"But he has an alibi!"
"Oh, it's so easy to achieve this effect. Do you remember the threats we received in our dreams? Those powdered sugar characters?"
"remember."
"Such a clumsy method, does it look like a murderous spirit?"
"Now I see, it is indeed ..."
"So it wasn't his own power. He must have used some props... something contaminated... something that might be of the same nature as my ring. It's most likely a relic left by the count in the secret room. He just needs to give this thing to Mrs. Ponson and ask her to do something with it within a specified time. He can then stay with us at a different time, and his suspicion will naturally be cleared."
"Oh! My goddess... So Mrs. Ponson forgot to put the sugar in?"
Ethan's mouth opened in surprise.
"I still have a question, Hitzfeld." He glanced at the reflection of armor several meters away - it was from Captain Gale.
Captain Gale was too big, so the two men could ambush him well by just crouching, but he had to lie prone.
...He looks really funny when he sticks his butt out.
"That's right. Even if it's him, why would he be with Madam Xinlai... I mean, they obviously don't know each other, so why would Madam Xinlai be his accomplice?"
“Not to be.”
"what?"
"Not being - they've been partners from the beginning. Ever since before she married Maxine."
"Hitz... Phil?"
"Do you remember he has an ex-wife?"
“My goddess——how did you think of this!???”
"Candy store, Barrès's words."
"I still don't understand—"
"Then let me change the angle. If it were you, and you disguised yourself like that, would it be difficult to change your voice?"
"It's not difficult."
"That's right... Everyone can speak with a pinched throat. If you wear a mask or an iron mask, your voice will be further distorted."
"But that weirdo didn't want to say a word! What does that mean? It means she wants to hide the fact that she is a woman! And that time point was too long ago. I calculated that it was almost not long after he divorced his ex-wife, so I immediately began to doubt Mrs. Xinlai's true identity."
"But how did they get Mark to believe her...?"
"Who knows. Maybe Mark is also deeply troubled by his physical defects. Plus, they can manipulate nightmares, so it's too easy to give him some hints..."
With a sigh, Hitzfeld suddenly heard a creaking sound coming from the darkness.
"Shh-"
She stopped Ethan from saying anything else.
"he came."
"Remember what I said before?"
"It's time to test whether you are still an agent."
Chapter 41 Awakening Instinct
Ethan swallowed his saliva and looked nervously at the darkness ahead.
It was very narrow - most of the view was actually blocked by the red eggplant vines and racks, and he could only vaguely see through the gaps... there seemed to be a deep human figure crawling out from the open space in front.
The other party was very cautious. Theoretically, no one would be patrolling in the garden at this time, but he was not even willing to carry a lantern. His entire figure and face were hidden in the shadows, and were further covered by the night fog.
woo-
The night wind is howling.
The air flow passed through the layers of shelves, making a rustling noise, faintly mixed with strange whimpering sounds.
Ethan began to get goose bumps.
When he saw the man, he was obviously a little scared. He immediately lay down when the noise was heard, and even curled up and retreated a few meters, as if he wanted to retreat back underground.
Should I rush over and grab him?
Ethan panicked. He turned to look at Hitzfeld, only to find that her face was also obscured by shadows.
At this distance, if I spoke softly, no one would hear me. She didn't even give me any more hints...
Helplessly, he could only begin to recall - desperately recalling those things that once seemed to him to be instinct rather than experience.
This situation clearly indicates that there is a secret passage and secret room in the basement of the house leading to the red tomato garden. This is the reason why Hitzfeld mentioned before, "I have to live here all the time."
Yes... He has been living here... He has the earl's relics in his hands... It may be a contaminated taboo item...
But he still wanted to live here... He was unwilling to give up... He even tried to take over the orchard by using those crooked ways...
This probably is……
There must be something in the orchard... and he is determined to get it.
Thinking of this, Ethan gradually calmed down.
