Welt Yang apologized again to March 7th and Stelle, but neither of them minded, outright stating they trusted his judgment.
Welt Yang nodded in relief. "Alright, I think Miss Jingyan has waited long enough. Let's review the footage together."
"Understood. Please follow me."
Jingyan led the group to the Omniscient Mirror and began retrieving the recorded data.
As she pressed a button in her hand, the transparent glass displayed images. She explained that due to the Ambrosial Arbor's Yin-Yang interference phenomenon, not only was footage lost, but the sequence couldn't be guaranteed either.
March 7th patted her chest. "Leave this to Stelle! She's the best at this."
Stelle gave her a deadpan look. "Aren't you the great detective…?"
"Exactly! You're the super-capable assistant to the great detective!"
"I'll start playback now."
At that moment, the first scene appeared on screen:
Scene 1: "Luocha walks through the streets and enters a strange alley. The place looks dangerous, but he seems entirely unbothered, strolling in with nothing but a sword."
Scene 2: "Luocha exits a small inn. He isn't carrying any heavy luggage."
Scene 3: "Luocha enters the Three Pages Bookstore and leaves shortly after. Empty-handed—likely didn't buy anything."
Scene 4: "Luocha gazes at the scenery from the docks of Exalting Sanctum, a coffin standing beside him. He might've just disembarked from a starskiff or be waiting for one. After a while, he sets his luggage aside and leans on the railing, watching the starskiffs come and go below."
March 7th scratched her head, utterly lost. She turned to Stelle and fired off her three soul-searching questions:
"So? Any ideas? What's the correct order?"
Stelle pinched her chin with two fingers. "Hold on, I'm thinking!"
"I've got it! Four, two, three, one!"
March 7th followed Stelle's train of thought. "Let's see if this sequence makes sense… Hmm… Luocha gets off the starskiff, enters Exalting Sanctum, checks into a small inn to drop off his luggage—even his precious coffin.
Then he visits the Three Pages Bookstore but doesn't buy anything. After leaving the bookstore, he slips into a shady alley."
Even Welt Yang praised her. "The logic flows smoothly. This does seem to be the correct order. Stelle really is quite sharp."
The moment she was complimented, Stelle immediately puffed up.
"Hmph. That year, I walked with my hands in my pockets, not knowing what a worthy opponent even looked like."
"Nice, nice! As expected of the elite assistant personally selected by the great detective March 7th!"
Afterward, Jingyan also made a new discovery while discussing with Welt Yang, continuing to search for further clues in the remaining footage.
...
Before long,
Jingyan returned with new footage.
"Sorry for the wait. I've reviewed all recordings before the empty lot… Though 'all' is a stretch—a lot was lost.
This is all I found: Someone exited through that archway about an hour after Luocha entered the lot, but Luocha himself wasn't captured…"
"Eh? This—?!" March 7th gasped. "Isn't this the exact same scenario from The Fisherman's Case?!"
Stelle side-eyed her. "Too much detective fiction rotting your brain?"
"Ugh, you're the worst! I'm serious—The Fisherman's Case had this exact scene."
March 7th organized her thoughts. "It's from Fisherman's origin story. He was originally a medic from the Alchemy Commission but got tangled with the mysterious 'Tea-Drinking Society.' Two men in black from the 'Tea-Drinking Society' cornered him alone and forced him to drink poison.
The poison had an effect similar to the Vidyadhara's 'molting rebirth,' actually reversing Fisherman's age and turning him into a child. From then on, the child Fisherman investigated the 'Tea-Drinking Society' while solving bizarre cases."
[LMAO, Detective Conan but make it Xianzhou?]
[Conan: Finally, a worthy opponent.]
[So the Black Organization is just a tea club now?]
[Poison serial number APTX-4896?]
[I knew there was a reason The Fisherman's Case was highlighted. This parody is next-level.]
[Kudou Shinichi: Just say my name at this point.]
[Conan: Hello, copyright fees, please.]
[Gin: Ah~, Sherry!]
[No wonder this novel's been serialized for 200+ years. Fits the lore scarily well!]
——
"Why is a tea party so ruthless…?" Stelle found it absurd.
Welt Yang sighed quietly.
"Indeed. Sounds like their tea might be on par with Himeko's coffee…"