The detective is dead, I did it.

Chapter 40 Little Didi

Meanwhile, Charlotte, at some point, put on a pair of white gloves and began to carefully examine the body.

Throughout the ordeal, she kept her brows furrowed, as the viscount's naked state made her very uncomfortable.

But she did not avoid his gaze.

This is her profession, and she will not give up the pursuit of the truth because of any personal feelings.

After the inspection, she took off her gloves and threw them into the trash can.

"They were strangled by ropes, at least two people, no! At least three people pulling at the same time." She walked to Li Ang's side and said, "The strangulation marks are of varying depths and the directions of force are different, which means it wasn't just one person pulling, but several people pulling at the same time from different angles."

The detective was right; there were indeed four people: Amy and her three companions.

"Although there were marks on his neck indicating resistance, there were no defensive wounds on his arms or any signs of being hit on his face. This suggests that he was attacked suddenly without any warning."

"In other words, the murderer was a servant in this mansion. And the fact that it took so many people to strangle him suggests that the murderers weren't very strong; it's possible that the maids did it."

"You're right," Li Ang replied cooperatively.

Every word she said matched the information she saw through her abilities.

Without using any superpowers, relying solely on observation and experience, she reconstructed the events of the case in minutes. Is this the skill of the legendary detective Charlotte Holmes?

Charlotte turned and walked toward the door.

The old butler stood in the corridor, his hands clasped in front of him, his face ashen, his lips tightly pressed together, as if he were desperately trying to maintain the last vestiges of an old-fashioned gentleman's dignity.

"Butler," Charlotte asked, "who is with the Viscount tonight?"

"As is customary, two maids are on night duty each night, and the Viscount will call them when needed."

"Bring them here."

The old butler acted quickly and immediately brought the two maids over.

"Where were you when the incident happened?" Charlotte questioned the two of them.

One of the maids spoke timidly: "Around nine o'clock in the evening, the Viscount called us in... and then told us to go back to our own rooms."

"Why did I call you in?"

The maid's face flushed red, her lips trembled, and she couldn't speak.

So Charlotte didn't pursue that question further, but instead changed her approach: "What did he say when he called you out?"

"He didn't say anything."

"Was he alone in the room at the time?"

"Yes...yes."

Charlotte didn't ask any more questions. She waved her hand, signaling the old butler to take the two maids away and lock them up temporarily.

She wondered to herself.

Nine o'clock in the evening was the time when she and Li Ang entered the collection room.

Did the Viscount have a premonition that something would happen tonight, or was he creating an opportunity for someone, by sending the maid away at that time?

The old butler waved his hand, and two male servants stepped forward, one on each side, and led the two trembling maids away.

During the incident, both maids insisted on their innocence, but Charlotte completely ignored them.

After all, a qualified detective must be suspicious of everyone at the crime scene, not to mention that no one can verify the truthfulness of the two maids' words.

After their footsteps faded into the distance, she turned around and looked at Li Ang. "Assistant, use your abilities to find some clues."

Li Ang nodded.

Although he knew the truth, he couldn't say it directly. Instead, he needed to find a reasonable way to deliver the truth to Charlotte.

He walked around the Viscount's bedroom, where the labels on every item were useless information about their material and age.

At that moment, a small piece of cloth that had fallen onto the carpet next to the foot of the bed caught his attention.

The fabric was white with irregular tear marks along the edges, as if it had been accidentally torn off during vigorous activity.

[Amy's clothing fragments were scraped off by the carved details at the foot of the bed during the crime.]

Amy was one of the four assistants, but Charlotte didn't know it.

"This is a maid's uniform." He handed the strip of cloth to Charlotte. "It was torn off someone during the crime."

Charlotte took the strip of cloth and examined it closely. "The color and style are definitely maid's. And it looks like it was just shaved off recently; the edges of the fibers haven't frayed yet."

She wasn't too surprised; the piece of fabric only further proved her guess was correct.

"Mr. Butler," Charlotte turned around, "find all the maids who are not in their rooms tonight and give me their names."

The old butler nodded and turned to carry out the order.

Not long after, a list was sent over, which included Amy and three others. Apparently, these people had not returned to their rooms after their operation, so they were discovered immediately.

After Charlotte finished checking, she returned to her room, took out a pen and stationery from her pocket, and began to write a letter.

The letter was addressed to the London Armed Detectives Association, stating that the case involved a nobleman's murder and a witch's guild, and therefore requested the association to urgently dispatch armed detectives to assist in the investigation.

Li Ang walked to her side and watched her finish writing the last few lines.

"Isn't it a bit too late to notify them now?" he said. "The Witch's Guild has probably already vanished without a trace with those maids. What can armed detectives do here? Collect the Viscount's body?"

If he had tried his best, he might have been able to keep Helena, but he didn't.

He was unsure who was right and who was wrong about the maids' fate, the viscount's atrocities, and the wronged souls beneath the limestone, so he didn't take sides.

Charlotte stamped the letter and then burned it with a candle.

"The death of a nobleman is no small matter. Moreover, it involves the Witches' Guild, so we cannot be careless. If they are plotting something even bigger behind the scenes, we cannot bear the responsibility if we are late in notifying them."

The Detective Association's attitude towards the Witch Society has always been "better to kill a thousand innocent people than let one guilty person go free," making them comparable to cultists.

Li Ang thought she was making a mountain out of a molehill. Those women had already achieved their goal and should have left. They couldn't possibly be staying here plotting something else, could they?

But he didn't say these things aloud; he just needed to do what he was supposed to do.

If Helena and the maids haven't left the mansion yet, then it's just bad luck for them, and they can't blame anyone else.

Time passed by, second by second.

Before dawn, footsteps were heard in the lobby downstairs, and a blue-haired, golden-eyed girl appeared in everyone's sight.

She was not tall, wearing a black coat over a blue and white shirt, a blue striped skirt, and a black detective hat with a blue bow on the brim.

Her face is round with delicate features, but the natural upturn of her lips gives her a carefree and easygoing feel.

She spotted Charlotte standing by the window at first glance, and a bright smile immediately bloomed on her face.

"Yo! Little Titi! I'm here!"