Chapter 27
<27>
However, that doesn't prove the middle-aged man is the culprit.
"You didn't see Miss Kent swapping it directly, did you? Everything you've said so far is just circumstantial evidence."
"It's your job as Inspector to turn that circumstantial evidence into concrete proof. Please investigate."
Really?
The eyewitness account is plausible, but it still doesn't make sense. Why would someone who stands to lose a fortune if the ruby is stolen commit such an act?
An investigation requires evidence. Especially if the suspect is an innocent citizen. And even more so if the informant is a criminal.
But the Thieving Crow's tip was just an eyewitness account, with flimsy evidence.
Can one truly trust a criminal's word?
Not all criminals are liars.
But I've seen countless criminals who lie, steal, and frame others. This woman could be one of them.
Knowing about the replica, which hasn't been revealed to the press, sounds quite convincing, but the author could have accessed the investigation records. It wouldn't be difficult to concoct a persuasive story from that.
"Ah, this is frustrating!"
As I refused to believe her and continued to press her, the woman pounded her chest in frustration.
"I told you the notice was fake! To throw off the police! What I stole that day was the Cat's Eye!"
"...The Cat's Eye was stolen?"
"Ah! Slip of the tongue!"
Raven's gaze turned cold as he watched the woman cover her mouth.
I can't trust this woman at all.
How much a criminal can be trusted is a crucial condition for a plea bargain. In that regard, this was a failed deal from the start.
Raven added 'Cat's Eye theft' to the statement, organized the file, and stood up from his chair.
Then, putting on his jacket that had been hanging on the chair, he said,
"Since I've received the tip, I'll investigate, but you shouldn't expect much. If I were Miss Kent, I'd contact Mr. Hopeless."
"Forget it? This is absurd. You want to be a prime example of incompetent police for ignoring a crucial tip?"
"Yes, that's right. I'm incompetent, so I can't make a plea bargain based on baseless accusations."
"Accusations!"
"Ah, and I'm a busy person. I don't have time to waste on someone who 'didn't steal the Scarlet Queen's Heart,' so I won't be coming back."
"Hey..."
Now I know her weakness. If I drag this out, not only Raven but she too will become anxious.
"If the 'person who stole the Scarlet Queen's Heart' calls me, I'll come, but until the day you're locked up in prison, I wish you a peaceful life."
Taking a bold gamble and turning away, the woman desperately called out to him.
"Ah, hey!"
"Why are you calling? Did you steal the ruby?"
"No."
"Then I have no business here."
Raven opened the door and took a step outside.
"You searched my place, right?"
But he stopped immediately at those words.
Is there something in the apartment?
She might be trying to probe, worried that something she hid might have been found. And she might reveal important information.
"Yes, we searched it."
Raven replied and listened intently.
"Were there any cats?"
"......"
"I hope they weren't taken."
Bang! Raven left without hesitation, closing the door.
"Hah, it was a waste of time after all."
"You can say that again."
I muttered to myself, staring at the door Hunt had left through.
Did the first method fail in the end? Then only the second method remains.
Escape.
It was at the moment I started planning, staring at the firmly locked door.
Beep beep!
A message appeared before my eyes.
[Sudden Mission]
Finally, God...
No.
The devil has answered my prayers!
"It's short by one penny?"
Penny Fincher, the head of the accounting department, stamped a big red rejection seal on the document and was handed a stack of papers.
Expense Claim
Glancing at the title of the document, then at the desk clock, Fincher waved her hands dismissively as if the claimant were a fly.
"One second late..."
She shook her head, then paused as she looked up.
"Oh my, Inspector Hunt!"
The person who submitted the expense claim one second past the deadline was none other than the star of the Eden City Police Bureau.
"I thought it was some careless junior officer from another team. Who would have known it was the Inspector?"
Fincher smiled broadly, her lips curving at the same angle as her pointed glasses, and eagerly accepted the documents Raven handed her.
"Originally, anything submitted even a second late is rejected without exception. However, considering the special circumstances of the Special Investigation Unit, I'll accept it this time."
"Thank you. Then..."
As Raven was about to leave after submitting the claim, Fincher couldn't keep quiet.
"By the way, Inspector, you brought the expense claim yourself. Hasn't Claire not returned to work yet?"
"A new office worker will be here soon. Excuse me."
"Tsk tsk."
Fincher clicked her tongue behind Raven as he turned away, changing the subject.
"Everyone is swamped with work, especially with the capture of the most notorious thief. Claire is so irresponsible, quitting without notice."
The accounting department head had no idea that the person who had quit without returning to work was currently imprisoned in the basement of this police bureau.
Claire Kent's resignation was recorded as having been made with just one phone call. The reason given was winning the lottery.
"Someone so reckless will surely squander it all even if they win the lottery. Claire would probably spend it all on cat food and end up a beggar like that old cat lady down the street."
Raven, walking out of the accounting department past Penny Fincher's soliloquy, paused.
"Were there any cats? I hope they weren't taken."
Why did that sentence come to mind now?
Hah, this is a waste of time.
There's a mountain of work. He shook his head and quickened his pace.
It was past midnight when Raven left the Police Bureau after resolving the piled-up cases late into the night.
However, on his weary commute home, Raven did not head to his own house.
Click.
Raven inserted his key into the old door at the end of the dimly lit corridor and turned it. Before leaving work, when he had asked for this, Detective Wesson had handed it over and asked,
"Why are you looking for this?"
"I have something to find."
Wesson looked puzzled. There shouldn't be anything left to find in the suspect's apartment, which had already undergone three searches.
Perhaps not. Maybe something was missed.
He opened the door and turned on the light, revealing the apartment, still bearing the traces of the search.
The mattress was stripped of its sheets and flipped, leaning against the bed frame. The few drawers and the wardrobe gaped open.
Raven moved through the mess as if searching for something, but found nothing.
Then his steps stopped in front of the trash can.
'This is...'
Several cans of a familiar brand were discarded in the trash can. It was the cat food he had given to the innocent Claire Kent, feeling sorry for suspecting her as the Thieving Crow.
"Hah, innocent Claire Kent."
What a foolish thing to do.
It was absurd that she thought he gave it to her because he liked her.
Wait.
"I... I like you, Captain!"
What was that confession?
"......"
No. It must have been some ulterior motive.
Raven stood there for a moment, then shook his head and moved on.
The window next to the bed led to the fire escape on the building's exterior wall. Dusty, empty bowls were placed on the metal landing.
It seemed that the woman, who lied every time she opened her mouth, wasn't lying about taking care of cats...
Raven continued to look around, both inside and out, and then stood in the silent room, muttering to himself.
"Nothing."
Resigned, he walked towards the door empty-handed.
Were they really taken?
As he stepped into the corridor and was about to close the door.
Meow~.
The moment Raven heard a faint cry, he turned around. Eight pointed ears rose above the windowsill.
