Chapter 111: Interlude. 7 Days Until the Detective Becomes a Robber (1)

Day 1.

Click.

I closed the lid of my pocket watch.

‘Five minutes until the train arrives.’

In five minutes, Grand Duke Catherine would arrive at this train station.

‘I hope everything goes according to plan….’

Our Taylor John pursuit team’s plan was simple.

Marking each Taylor John suspect, with me, Charlie, and Detective Beron each taking one.

My assignment was the Iron-Blooded Grand Duke of the East, Catherine.

‘Grand Duke Wilhelm’s son is coming up with her too, right?’

The Grand Duke’s son, Wilhelm, was the Grand Duke’s eldest son and was currently in marriage talks with a princess of the Eastern Allied Kingdom.

The odds were high that a conclusion to this marriage arrangement would be reached during this New Year’s Festival, and the Grand Duke and his son seemed extremely concerned about it.

‘Otherwise, why would he try to steal a photo from his ex-girlfriend?’

So, the Grand Duke would surely try to flaunt his wealth and power during this trip to the capital.

It seemed I wasn’t the only one who thought so, as the station had been bustling with crowds since early this morning.

“Think the Grand Duke might throw some silver coins this time?”

“Anything he gives would be nice.”

Drifters who came out hoping to get something.

“I hope we get a scoop.”

“It’d be great if he says something about this marriage arrangement.”

Reporters wandering around looking for usable stories.

“I just want to see the Grand Duke’s son’s face. Is it smooth enough to woo a princess of the Eastern Kingdom?”

“What does his face matter? Do you think a princess of a nation would marry a man based on his looks?”

“Ugly guys always act all cold and rational like that.”

“Hey!”

Even idle nobles who came out just to watch.

All sorts of people gathered, each chattering noisily.

‘There are too many people.’

Sighing while wedged in the crowd, I couldn’t possibly push through.

At this rate, I’d only be able to see Grand Duke Catherine from a distance, if at all.

‘Should I have come straight to the station last night after solving the case?’

Like lining up for a famous restaurant that got featured on TV?

But is that really tailing? I’m supposed to be tailing Grand Duke Catherine, right?

‘No, well. Even now, it doesn’t really feel like tailing.’

The tailing I’ve seen on TV or in movies wasn’t like this.

Why does my tailing always end up like this?

If this is tailing, then an idol concert would be a full-blown tailing show!

“Excuse me! You just stepped on my foot!”

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

I quickly moved my foot and stepped back.

Truly, pushing through this crowd was impossible.

‘Let’s not think too gloomily. It’s not like I need to stick that close anyway, right?’

Right. So what if my tailing is a bit clumsy?

I have a cheat key.

The eye that sees criminals.

With that ability, distance is no issue at all.

Even if they look tiny, as long as I can see them.

Whether that silhouette is pitch black or not, that’s all I need to check.

I could identify whether the Grand Duke was Taylor John or not in under three seconds.

‘First, confirm. If the Grand Duke isn’t the culprit, then go help Detective Beron or Charlie.’

I wasn’t placing the Grand Duke’s likelihood of being the culprit very high.

As I was experiencing firsthand, the Grand Duke was a person who drew crowds.

Always followed by guards, a status that couldn’t move alone.

For such a Grand Duke to secretly commit murder would hardly be easy.

The detective or the sculptor were more likely to be Taylor John.

Of course, just in case, I had secured a photo of the Grand Duke’s son, but that was it.

That photo was for tracking other suspects.

In other words, it was far more likely to be used when I needed Grand Duke Catherine’s cooperation, even if it meant using less-than-honorable methods.

‘I hope I don’t have to resort to such methods, but….’

I wasn’t skilled enough to be picky about means and methods in solving a case.

So if necessary, I would use anything.

Just as I was steeling my resolve.

Toot-toot!

A horn sounded in the distance.

“Wow! The Grand Duke must have arrived!”

Instantly, my ears went numb from the cheers.

“Your Highness, Grand Duke Catherine!”

“The Iron Wall of the East! Savior of the Eastern Front!”

“Your Highness! Please look this way!”

In the distance, a huge, pristine white carriage decorated with flowers was emerging from the train station.

Four horses pulled the carriage, and guards in splendid formal wear were visible to the left, right, front, and back of the carriage.

‘Somehow, I feel a little sorry for Grand Duke Kalan.’

Both are Grand Dukes, but one has no direct train and has to travel bumpy mountain roads, while the other receives all sorts of lavish protocol and cheers the moment he arrives in the capital by train.

Of course, if you take away the title of Grand Duke, they were incomparable in stature from the start.

‘Come to think of it, Grand Duke Kalan must have come up to the capital too, right? Or is on his way.’

Maybe I could get some help from him?

While I was briefly lost in other thoughts, the carriage approached my vicinity.

A wrinkled hand emerged from the gap in the curtained carriage window and waved to the people.

That’s right.

I could see that wrinkled hand.

‘As expected, Grand Duke Catherine isn’t the one.’

No expectations, no disappointment.

‘Should I go to Detective Beron’s side, or Charlie’s? What should I say when I get there?’

As I was thinking about my next move, watching the carriage pass by.

‘…!’

At that moment, I saw it clearly.

The narrow gap in the curtained carriage window.

Beyond that gap, on the seat opposite the waving Grand Duke.

A pitch-black, shimmering shadow was sitting there.

“Hey!”

I urgently grabbed the shoulder of the person in front of me.

“That person! Do you know who that person is? The person sitting opposite Grand Duke Catherine!”

“Huh? No idea! I was too busy looking at His Highness the Grand Duke! Was there someone else in the carriage?”

“Wasn’t he alone? Only one person was waving their hand outside the carriage.”

“You have good eyesight. You could see inside that carriage?”

Everyone shook their heads at my question, but someone answered.

“If it’s opposite His Highness the Grand Duke, it was probably Grand Duke Wilhelm’s son sitting there. Protocol-wise, he’s the only one who can ride in the same carriage as His Highness.”

It was the reporter who had been looking for a scoop earlier.

“What? The Grand Duke’s son was inside that carriage?”

“Oh no! I was waiting thinking he’d come in another carriage behind.”

“No, why would someone who might soon get married and become a groom hide inside the carriage?”

“He really is ugly, right? That’s why he’s covering his face!”

Leaving the murmuring crowd behind, I quietly sank into shock.

‘Grand Duke Wilhelm’s son is Taylor John? Really?’

I didn’t expect to find out so suddenly and easily.

It was so unexpected it felt like some kind of trap.

But it didn’t seem unreasonable.

Grand Duke Catherine was one of the three under suspicion of being Taylor John.

Even if it wasn’t the Grand Duke but his son who was the culprit, it seemed plausible.

If Grand Duke Catherine had been bringing his son along, it was possible.

Moreover, I only see the criminals of the cases I’ve recognized as black shadows.

Aside from Taylor John, there’s only one other culprit I’ve experienced but failed to catch.

‘Liman….’

That man whose identity I still don’t know.

The person who drove a wedge between me and Grand Duke Kalan in the Northern Region and fled.

But I remember what he looked like before he was covered by the black shadow.

His face bore no resemblance to Grand Duke Wilhelm’s son in the photo.

He, who had acted as Grand Duke Kalan’s right-hand man for so long, couldn’t possibly be Grand Duke Wilhelm’s son.

So the conclusion is one.

The identity of the black shadow I witnessed is Grand Duke Wilhelm’s son, and he is Taylor John.

—

I stayed at the station for quite a while longer, just in case.

But as expected, a carriage for the Grand Duke’s son never appeared, even by the end of the procession.

It was unthinkable that Grand Duke Wilhelm’s son hadn’t come up to the capital.

It was a moment that made it even more certain that the shadow I saw was Grand Duke Wilhelm’s son.

‘Then, I should follow that carriage I saw earlier.’

I quickly ran out, searching for the carriage’s tail.

Fortunately, catching up to the carriage wasn’t too difficult.

The huge, pristine white carriage was moving forward extremely slowly, surrounded by the crowd.

After about thirty minutes of movement, the carriage disappeared into the interior of an elegant mansion.

The Grand Duke Catherine’s residence, located in the capital.

‘The security is tight.’

Grand Duke Catherine’s subordinates were highly disciplined.

It seemed impossible to get inside.

‘With Grand Duke Kalan’s residence, I could infiltrate all the way to the Grand Duke’s bedroom with my eyes closed.’

Once again expressing regret for Grand Duke Kalan, I fell into deep thought.

‘What should I do from now on?’

Should I just sit and wait for the Grand Duke’s son to come out?

‘No. He might use the main gate for official schedules, but he wouldn’t use it to go out to commit murder.’

Guards were keeping a sharp watch at that main gate.

That security would be just as bothersome for Taylor John.

Of course, Grand Duke Wilhelm’s son is the son of this house.

He could go out anytime if he showed his face.

But wouldn’t the guards get curious if the young master went out drinking every night?

If every time the young master of the house they served went out at night, a murder case article appeared in the morning paper the next day, anyone who wasn’t an idiot would figure out his identity.

‘The Grand Duke’s son probably isn’t that stupid.’

There must be another way to leave that mansion without going through the guards.

A secret passage, side door, small gate, hole.

Whatever it’s called, there must be a separate passage connected to the mansion.

Otherwise, he couldn’t possibly go around committing murders while evading the guards.

‘In that case…, what if I use that passage?’

If I go up the passage in reverse, couldn’t I infiltrate the Grand Duke’s residence undetected?

‘Good. That sounds plausible.’

The passage would surely be cleverly hidden, but I felt I could find it.

This is like starting a maze from the opposite end.

Finding the exit from the entrance is difficult, but I’m starting from the exit.

I already know the secret passage exists.

Next, it’s time to examine the conditions for the secret passage.

‘Let me think. Where would the exit need to be to go out from this mansion to commit murder?’

To the east and west of the mansion, other noble district mansions stretched on.

Going out there would make it hard to avoid people’s eyes.

The south is the main road where I’m currently standing.

Not even worth considering.

Finally, the park to the north.

‘Relatively few people.’

It was a park I had visited once before.

Even though it was a park, it didn’t get much sunlight and had a somewhat dark and gloomy atmosphere even during the day.

There were better parks nearby, so there was no need to come here specifically.

So….

‘If I were a murderer, I’d definitely favor this route.’

I decided to trust my deduction.

Leaving the front of the Grand Duke’s residence, I moved to the park behind it, but.

“Ah, damn it.”

Why are there so many people today?

“Mom! Mom! Does a princess live in that castle?”

“No. Not a princess, but the Grand Duke’s son who might marry a princess lives there.”

“I didn’t know there was a park like this here.”

“Me neither. My legs hurt, let’s sit for a bit before going.”

“Wasn’t it amazing earlier? Did you see the attendants scattering flowers in front of the station?”

Listening, I could understand why people had flocked here.

The many people who followed Grand Duke Catherine’s carriage all the way to the mansion.

A significant number of them, reluctant to just go home, had moved to the nearby park.

‘What do I do? With this many people, searching will be difficult….’

I was a little worried, but soon changed my mind to think positively.

Of course, this was a park with few people.

But it wasn’t a place where people never walked at all.

If there was a secret passage connecting the park to the Grand Duke’s residence, it would undoubtedly be in a spot within the park that people rarely wandered through and was hard to discover.

So, let’s treat this crowd not as an obstacle but as a guide.

Then focus my search on areas with the fewest people.

“Alright. Let’s do this!”

Steeling my resolve, I began searching the park.

“Mom! That mister is crawling under the bushes!”

“Shh! Good children don’t look at things like that.”

—

‘Ah, damn it. Where on earth is it?’

I searched all over, but the secret passage wasn’t easily found.

The park grounds were wider than I thought.

‘Maybe there’s no secret passage after all?’

Harboring doubts, while diligently wandering deep inside the park.

Tap.

Suddenly, someone grabbed my shoulder.

“Mr. Hayes.”

“…?!”

Who knows my name?

I reflexively turned around, and the next moment, I was startled.

“Mr. Walter?!”

My mouth dropped open in surprise.

Why are you here?

No, more than that.

“What on earth happened to you?”

Blood was dripping from Walter’s abdomen.

Walter, clutching the bleeding area, smiled while sweating cold sweat.

“Sorry, but could you hide me somewhere?”

Saying that, he collapsed right then and there.

No, no!

What is this situation all of a sudden?