At that moment, the train passed through a short tunnel, and the car plunged into complete darkness; the lights did not turn on.
Total darkness!
"What's going on? Flight attendant, flight attendant...!"
Shouted Akagi Takeo. He had been reading something, and the sudden darkness bothered him greatly.
A flight attendant in uniform entered the car and bowed to Akagi Takeo: "Sir, do you need anything?"
"Your lights are not working, fix them immediately."
The flight attendant tried several times, but all the lights in car three were broken. Since the train was already moving, it was impossible to repair them, so he could only apologize repeatedly.
Akagi Takeo, muttering under his breath, looked around and headed directly to a seat where there was a small lamp.
Heiji looked at the little lamp curiously. It was impossible for a train to be equipped with lamps, meaning someone had placed it there on purpose.
The power of the lamp was too weak; it could only illuminate a very small area.
Akagi Takeo lowered his head to look at the paper in his hands. From Heiji's perspective, he could only make out the dense words covering it, but the content was a mystery.
The car fell silent again.
Surely, Kazuha had woken up very early to prepare the bento. After eating, she leaned on Heiji's shoulder and fell into a deep sleep.
Sensing Kazuha's faint body fragrance, Heiji, with nothing to do, decided to close his eyes and rest as well.
The train entered a tunnel once more.
This tunnel was much longer than the previous one, and the car suddenly plunged into darkness.
"Baka!"
In the darkness, Akagi Takeo's angry insult echoed, followed by the sound of a button, obviously trying to turn on the little lamp.
Pff~
Suddenly, an extremely subtle sound was heard in the darkness.
At the same time, Heiji felt someone rush past him.
Soon after, the train exited the tunnel, and the car was lit up again.
"Ladies and gentlemen, to compensate for the inconvenience, the train manager has decided to offer you a free bento meal." The flight attendant entered, pushing a service cart, and began handing out bentos to the few people in car three.
"Thank you."
Heiji accepted two bentos. Since they were free, there was no reason not to eat them.
"Sir, sir, ah...!"
When touched by the flight attendant, Akagi Takeo collapsed in the seat, his face pale and completely motionless.
"Heiji, what happened?" Kazuha woke up from the commotion.
"It looks like someone fainted... no, wait, it smells like almonds."
Ding-dong!
"A C-Level murder case has been detected. The host is requested to solve the case and find the culprit before the train reaches the next station. Otherwise, you will not receive the corresponding evil value."
I knew it!
The system notification confirmed Heiji's premonition: that guy was dead.
"What happened to him?" The middle-aged man wanted to approach and check.
"Nobody move! He's dead. You can't alter the crime scene."
A lazy voice, yet full of unquestionable authority, echoed.
"Dead? Call the police!" The middle-aged man stopped dead in his tracks...
"Dead? Doesn't look like it." The woman, who had just come out of the bathroom, looked at Akagi Takeo with skepticism. He seemed to just be asleep.
"Dead?" Engo Masanami was stunned for a moment, then a satisfied smile appeared on his face.
Heiji observed the expressions of the three, and although he had a general idea, he needed to examine the body to be sure.
"Dead? What do you mean dead? Heiji, call an ambulance!" Kazuha screamed.
"He's really dead. You should smell the almond scent in the air. It's the smell of potassium cyanide evaporating."
Heiji approached, holding Kazuha's hand, with a serene expression.
"Potassium cyanide? It's a very potent poison, but it needs to dissolve in water. Does this mean it was from that glass of water?" said the middle-aged man, looking at the glass in front of Akagi Takeo.
After the man's analysis, everyone focused on the glass of water.
Heiji did too, but he was not influenced by the man. He carefully examined the surroundings of Akagi Takeo and the body itself.
Suddenly!
He noticed that the collar of Akagi Takeo's shirt seemed to be damp.
"Kazuha, the gloves."
"Here, Heiji."
Kazuha quickly pulled a pair of white rubber gloves from her bag. She had become Heiji's assistant during investigations, and in her bag, along with money, documents, and some cosmetics, she carried a few small essentials for solving cases.
After putting on the gloves, Heiji prepared to examine Akagi Takeo's body.
However, the middle-aged man stopped him.
"Wait. You told us not to approach the body, so you can't get any closer either."
Heiji looked at the man: "I told you not to approach because you might contaminate the crime scene."
"Well, you could contaminate it too," replied the man with a cold smile.
"Heiji is not as clumsy as you all. He's very good at solving cases."
Hearing someone doubt Heiji, Kazuha became upset and, holding her boyfriend's arm, defended him proudly.
"Solving cases? Is he a cop?" the woman asked with curiosity.
"No, Heiji is a detective. A great detective!" Kazuha exclaimed, full of pride.
"A detective?"
The three were surprised.
"Let me introduce myself. My name is Heiji Hattori, and I am a detective," Heiji said calmly.
"Heiji Hattori! Are you the famous high school detective from Kansai?" exclaimed the flight attendant, surprised.
Upon hearing that Heiji seemed very famous, the expressions of the three suspects subtly changed.
"Then, may I pass?"
The middle-aged man quickly stepped aside. If he was a detective, there was no reason to stop him anymore.
The closer Heiji got to Akagi Takeo's body, the stronger the almond smell became.
Heiji carefully examined the collar of Akagi Takeo's shirt. He had barely lifted it slightly when a very strong almond scent hit his nose.
Although it was overpowering, Heiji made a new discovery.
Just above the collar of the shirt, on Akagi Takeo's neck, there was a tiny wound, like a needle prick, impossible to see unless one looked closely.
What does this wound mean?
Heiji stood still, lost in thought. What seemed like a simple case had now become confusing and full of doubts because of that wound.
------------------------
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