Under Nakamura Lehei's "Tiyì", the Yokogou Police Department began to confirm Kawako's alibi. In Chuanzi's slow narration, Nao lowered her head and sorted out the entire course of events.

The first is that after they enter the haunted house, they meet Saruto Eiji, who plays "Jack the Ripper", in foggy London, and after chatting with Saruto for about five minutes, they enter the Hyakki Night Zone. If what Saruto said is true, then the time they met Kawako was the time for Saruto to go to the bathroom.

It took about ten minutes to meet Kawako until the end of the argument with Sasabe, and it took about six or seven minutes after Sasabe disappeared until he met Saruto, who was about to go to the bathroom again, and Fuer found the body together. That is, there are only seven minutes from the disappearance of Sasabe until his body reappears.

Within seven minutes, it can be deduced that the injured Sasabe staggered back to the break room, and then what happened to the prisoner in the rest room, and finally died outside the door of the break room when the prisoner poisoned him and went out to call for help.

What can you do in these seven minutes?

Nao bit her lip lightly, and glanced through the gap in Rukai at the few people in the lounge - except for Kawako, who had been with them all the time, anyone could have poisoned and killed Sasa in just seven minutes, including Saruto, who met on the way before the body was discovered.

Because Sasabe's corpse was mortem due to the toxin, and the air temperature in the haunted house was very low, it was difficult to accurately deduce the time of death, and the alibi of the rest of the people was too vague to have clear time witnesses. Although it can be deduced that the time of Sasabe's death was within these seven minutes after they were separated, the time of being poisoned cannot be determined at all according to these seven minutes.

Thinking of this, Nao slightly turned his head to look at Yanagi beside him.

According to Yagyu, the poison in Sasabe is an alkaloid, and there are many and complex types of alkaloids, and the time of poisoning varies depending on the dose and type. If we can know the type of poison he was in, we may be able to calculate the real time of his death.

"Now, Yanagi," Nao didn't look up, but kept looking ahead and asked the young man next to him in a low voice, "How much do you know about alkaloids?"

"Alkaloids, it's just a superficial understanding. Yanagi didn't look back, and pushed his glasses in place, "My father has seen several cases of alkaloid poisoning in the past, and all I know is the type and general symptoms of poisoning. What's wrong?"

"Maybe you've already thought of it," Nao and Nioh looked at each other, and the latter gave her a smile, "There is no exact time of the crime in this case, only the time of the deceased's death, and the alibi of several suspects is very vague. If we can figure out what the poison in the deceased is, and then deduce the time of poisoning based on the type of poison, we may have an unexpected breakthrough. ”

"That's right. Yanagi turned his head sideways to look down at Nao, who was sitting beside him, and began, "The deceased's whole body has tonic spasms, a stiff smile appears on his face, and his body is arched...... These symptoms all point to a very common alkaloid. If my guess is correct, did you who had contact with the victim before his death find that the victim was overly excited, agitated, and irritable? ”

"If that's ......," Nao gnawed on the tip of her thumb, recalling the battle with Sasabe.

Sasabe did practice karate, and he was a good hand according to his posture, but he was overwhelmingly defeated by the nervous Nao. Although he couldn't see the color of his face clearly in the dim light of the hundred ghosts walking at night, he could really feel the unnaturally heavy breathing, and he had to do something when he was at odds...... Nao originally thought it was the effect of alcohol, after all, a thick smell of alcohol erupted from his mouth, but now that I think about it, it is also very likely that it is due to the symptoms of excitement after poisoning.

She put down her finger and nodded, "I do have that symptom." ”

"Then you can be sure. Yanagi smiled confidently, "One of the victims is an alkaloid called 'Sycamoreine'. It is extracted from the seeds of a plant called strychnine and is generally used to treat bruises or paralysis. However, in the countryside, it was also used to poison rats, but it was discontinued because it was too toxic and easy to be injured by mistake. ”

"Wait, where do I seem to be......" Nao was stunned, and then gently bit his thumb again, "Turtle ...... Seems to be ......"

She suddenly raised her head and looked at Liu Sheng in surprise, her golden green eyes sparkling.

"It's 'strychnine', my grandmother has inconvenient legs and feet, and she used this medicine a few years ago, and the main ingredient of this medicine is caravine spp.! I specifically checked the side effects of this drug, saying that it will cause poisoning if used in excess, and only 30 to 50 milligrams of oral administration can kill an adult within 20 minutes. ”

"50 milligrams is the weight of a grain of sand. Nioh rolled up his pigtails and muttered with palpitations, "It's terrible that just a little venom can kill you." ”

"But that kind of drug can't be bought without a doctor's prescription, and you can only buy 10 milligrams at a time, because it's a highly toxic drug after all. If the prisoner wants to stabilize the lethal amount of dìng, he must buy it in fractions. "Assuming that the victim was killed by 50 milligrams of caravin, the time required to die would be about 20 minutes." The onset of this poison is very slow, and it is too late to realize the poisoning. ”

"That means he was poisoned when he met us, and he started to poison on the way back to the break room or after he had already arrived at the break room, and finally died outside the break room door. Nao tapped his fingers on his knees with folded legs, "It took about seven minutes from the time we met him who was arguing with Kawako-san until the body was found outside the break room, which means that he was poisoned in the ten minutes before he met us. ”

"And at that time, Saruto happened to be with us, and there was no time for poisoning. Nioh narrowed his eyes, "So the suspect ......"

The eyes of the three of them were fixed straight on the table where everyone was sitting.

"It is said that she stayed in Hyakki's night walk until the deceased came to harass her makeup artist, Kawako-"

"Minister Nakamura Lehei, who got a lunch box in the lounge and left the gymnasium—"

"And the screenwriter Kusata Tanaka, who was bullied by the deceased and ran out of the lounge—"

――All of them are possible!

The argument at the table continued, and the topic had changed from Kawako's alibi to several people exposing each other's scars - especially between Nakamura and Kawako. Tanaka Kusa was too good-natured to mediate the dispute between the two, while Sarutoshi and the Yokomizo Police Department were silent with gloomy expressions on the side.

Nao looked at the scene in front of him and hesitated for a moment, then suddenly stood up and walked in front of Chuanzi. The sudden movement made the two teenagers behind her look at each other for some reason, and the few people who were arguing also forgot to speak in surprise.

"Chuan Zisan, excuse me. Nao smiled at her, "I have a question, can I ask you?"

"Okay, what's wrong?"

Kawako was very fond of this girl who had rescued her, and immediately changed her face and replied with a smile, which caused Nakamura Lehei to snort lightly, and Tanaka Kuta, who was helpless against the dispute between the two, cast a grateful look at Nao.

"Kawako-sanji doesn't remember what he drank before Hyakki met Sasabe at night?"

"Drink?" Kawako was stunned for a moment, and Fuermo thought with his chin on his head, "Yes...... It was about 11 o'clock, when I was eating a bento in the lounge, and the guy was eating a bento next to me, and I drank the miso soup that came with the lunch. ”

"I didn't do anything, and I still eat bento as a matter of course?" Nakamura Lehei pushed his glasses and snorted lightly, "We have already started business, he only came to the mock store, and as soon as he entered the lounge, he rummaged through the tea cabinet to find coffee to drink, and said that he had a hangover yesterday and couldn't work today." That guy deserves to be a bastard who only knows how to eat and drink!"

"Miso soup after coffee?" Nao turned her head to look at Tanaka Kusata in surprise, "Didn't this Tanaka-senpai say that he drank alcohol?

"Who knows!" Kawako snorted from his nose as well, "Although he may be disrespectful to the deceased, he was indeed a bastard who only knew how to eat and drink in the community before!

"Because of this, we have lost very little of our club funds. Nakamura furrowed his eyebrows in disgust, "It's not uncommon for me to use karate and scold members for extorting funds." ”

"Ah, so Minister Nakamura has often been blackmailed?" Kawako curled her red lips and glanced at him, "So you are so angry that you want to kill him?"

"What do you mean by that! Aren't you often harassed by him!"

"Oops, it's going to be ...... again," Tanaka Kusata retreated to Nao's side and scratched the back of his head, and said with some embarrassment, "Senpai Mori and the minister are always like this, and they often quarrel in the club because of comedy rehearsals, but they have no ill will towards each other!

"No, nothing, I can tell. Nao curled her lips and turned her head to look at Tanaka again, "But senior, does Sasabe really drink a lot at club events?"

"Well, that's true. Tanaka lowered his head in embarrassment, "Sometimes it's the juniors in the ministry who are sent to buy it for him, and sometimes it's the wine that Sasabe seniors bring by themselves." ”

"What about today?"

"Today's sake was brought by the seniors themselves, and it is a bottle of foreign sake that I don't know. Tanaka pointed to an iron shelf in the corner, "and took it out of his bag—the red backpack on the shelf over there." ”

Nao looked at the backpack on the shelf, and narrowed her eyes.

Turtle pine, miso soup, coffee, foreign liquor, connect several things, and it seems that there are some answers that are about to come out.

"Why didn't you say it earlier!"

As if thinking of something, the Yokozo Police Department jumped up and bounced towards the shelf that Tanaka was pointing at. And Nao has already got what she wants, and now she is only one last step away.

"That, Saruto-senpai......" Nao walked up to Saruto, who had been silent, and opened his mouth a little shyly, "Can you take me to the bathroom, it's a Hyakki night area outside, so, that...... I'm a bit ......"

"Ahh ”

Saruto gave her a strange look, but still didn't refuse her request. The two of them greeted the Kawaida Police Department, who was in charge of recording on the side, and walked out of the room together. Nioh and Yagyu, who were sitting by the door, glanced at each other and walked out of the lounge in Nioh's voice, "I'll go a little bit too." As soon as I left the lounge, I heard the voice of the Henggou Police Department in the room shouting, "The Forensic Bureau is coming!".

Outside the door, Sasabe's body had been carried away, and only the white, humanoid lines and standing signs showed that there had been an incident. The three of Nao walked silently to the bathroom under the leadership of Saruto, each with a solemn and silent expression on their faces.

But when he got to the bathroom, Sarudo suddenly stopped, turned his head and looked at Nao behind him.

"Tell me, what do you want to ask me?"

"Huh?" Nao was stunned, "Why are you ......?"

"Don't forget what area I'm responsible for, I'm also an authentic mystery fan!" Saruto grinned and showed a mouthful of white teeth, giving Nao a thumbs up, "But what I don't know is why you want to investigate what he drank in the morning, isn't it true that if you get a little bit of alkaloids, you will die immediately? Whether it's drinking alcohol or coffee or something, it's too far from the time of death." ”

"Because the poison he took was most likely a special alkaloid, and the symptoms of poisoning did not appear immediately after taking the poison. Symptoms will slowly emerge within twenty minutes, followed by sudden onset and death within the last few minutes. Nao looked into Saruto's eyes, green eyes full of approval, "What I want to know is who is in charge of the coffee and bento in the lounge." ”

"I see, I see. Sarudo nodded, "The instant coffee and bento are both in the hands of Kusata, as he is the only junior in this Kaibara Festival. However, although he ordered the bento, there is no name written on the bento box, and if it is poisoned, the chance of getting it wrong will be very high, and for coffee, we all disassemble the instant coffee into small packages and put it in the box, and each of us has drunk it, so this is not likely. ”

"That's right...... Then it is only possible to approach him when he is drinking coffee or eating a bento, and it is possible to poison him when he is drinking. Nao looked down and thought, "Now that we're back to square one, the three of them are still not suspected." ”

"Sorry to interrupt," Yanagi suddenly said, "I forgot to mention that the properties of caravan make it only soluble in alcohol and chloroform, and it tastes very ...... Bitter. ”

"Very bitter?" Nao frowned, "If that's the case, miso soup won't be possible." Because no matter how much you don't pay attention, it is impossible not to taste the bitterness in the soup, and the same is true for wine, although there is alcohol that can dissolve carucine, but when poison is added, the taste is ......."

"Then it's just coffee. Nioh pulled up his braid and rubbed it against his lips, saying, "If it's black coffee, the bitterness can be masked." ”

"No, our coffee is all instant coffee in bags with creamer and sugar in it. If it is a very strong bitter taste, it will be noticed. Saruto touched the inch hair on the top of his head in distress and said, "It seems that the only way to do this is to tell the police department everything we know, and then let them investigate it professionally." ”

Nao bit her lip in annoyance, but nodded.

This time, because she was one of the first discoverers, her actions were limited to a large extent, and she could not look for clues at the scene at will, and could only peek into the truth of the case from the existing barren clues. Although she once thought that the identity of the poisoner was already looming, and that she could get important evidence by figuring out who was responsible for the bento and coffee, Yanagi's subsequent "bitterness" once again cut off the clue.

"It would be nice to know what kind of drink the poison was used in, so that the scope of the investigation would be much narrower. Had he ever drunk something we didn't know?"

Nao sighed and walked with the others to the way back to the break room.

As soon as he walked into the lounge, Nao saw a sleek wine bottle on the table and a grim face on the side. Several suspects were already a little impatient, and they were all urging the Henggou Police Department to let them leave first.

"The police department, it seems that we can only go back and wait for the report of the forensic department. ”

The Kawaida Police Department on the side looked at the angry people and said in the ear of the Henggou Police Department.

"Well, that seems to be the only way to it. ”

"What's going on, Yokogou Police Department?" Saruto asked aloud as he stepped forward.

"Ah, the bottle was found, and the glass was found in the backpack, but there were no fingerprints on the bottle. Yokogou replied to Saruto, "It seems that we can only go here today, and you can go back after you make a note." ”

"Bottles, glasses, I see," Na......o whispered, "It seems that this bottle has a lot to do with Sasabe's death." ”

She glanced sideways at the bottle of foreign wine she didn't know on the table, and softly read the words on the bottle, "Amer... What is it?

"Amer Picon, a fairly famous liqueur from France. Kawako stroked her long hair in a variety of ways, walked up to Nao and explained, "It tastes very bitter, but the liquor is as beautiful as syrup, I didn't expect that guy Sasabe to have such a gorgeous taste." ”

"- Bitters?!"

Nao screamed, drawing the rest of the crowd to look sideways.

"It's this, it's this!" she said with a sparkle in her eyes, and she even unconsciously used the Okinawan dialect. Nao suddenly looked up at Tanaka Kusata, who was startled by the shouting just now, and narrowed her eyes dangerously, "Tanaka-san, Sasabe drank this wine, right?"

"Yes, yes. ”

"So, did you watch him take the wine out of his bag with his own hands, pour it and drink it 'himself'?"

Nao unconsciously spoke an Okinawan dialect and walked towards Tanaka Kusata while asking. But in Tanaka's eyes, her tone and eyes at this time are more in line with the word "approaching". Being stared at with golden-green eyes full of cold light, I somehow felt the hairs on my spine stand up. Cowardly as he was, he suddenly became flustered, and even his voice stumbled.

"No, that's right, Sasabe's seniors took it out by themselves, and poured their own wine......

"Then why doesn't there be any fingerprints on the bottle?" Nao grinned, "Think about it, did he wear gloves or something when he drank?"

"Hands, gloves?" Tanaka paused, as if thinking, "Okay, it seems to be worn, and the seniors seem to say that this wine is too precious, so you have to wear gloves to hold it." Oh no, don't all the wine collectors on TV do that, wear gloves and hold wine or something. ”

"Is that so?"

Nao was stunned for a moment, but after a while, he regained his full momentum, and even forced him to be more powerful than Fang Cai. She turned to the Henggou Police Department and asked, "Police Department, do you have the fingerprints of the deceased on the wine glass?"

"Ah, of course, what are you doing here!" The Yokogou Police Department was obviously taken aback by Nao's momentum just now, and seemed to shout a little annoyed, and the timid Tanaka and Kawaida beside Yokomizo even shivered. For a while, except for Nao and Henggou, who spoke, no one could make a sound.

"That's right!" Nao was not affected by Yokomizo's momentum in the slightest, and turned to face Tanaka again, "Then Tanaka-san, could you please explain why Sasabe, who was drinking with gloves, left fingerprints on his wine glass?"

"Because, because ......" Tanaka took another step back, and fine beads of sweat were already oozing from his head. His gaze shifted to the wine bottle, and suddenly he realized something, and shouted dissatisfiedly at Nao, "Why do you ask me? Do you think I poisoned my senior's wine? I just happened to see him drinking at that time, and I was at my post when I found the body of my senior!"

As soon as he finished speaking, all eyes were on his face. Except for Nakamura Lehei, who still has a paralyzed expression, everyone else looks incredulous.

"So, was Sasabe really poisoned?" Nakamura Lehei pushed his glasses and looked at the Yokozo Police Department.

"That's right. The police nodded, and suddenly let out an eerie laugh, "Hehehe, I never seem to have told you the cause of death of the deceased." ”

"But, but, you talk about drinks and fingerprints, doesn't that mean that Sasabe was poisoned?" Tanaka's face suddenly turned pale, and he looked at Nakamura for help, muttering at a loss, "Nakamura-senpai, you think the same way, right?"

"No, I thought Sasabe was beaten to death after getting drunk. ”

"How do you ...... like this?"

"It's not just that. Nioh pursed his lips and said, "From the very beginning of the interrogation, the Yokozo Police Department focused on the traumatic injuries of the deceased who was beaten, and I also said that 'brain trauma after investigation'. If people who don't know the cause of the deceased's death hear about alcohol, the first thing that comes to mind is 'could the deceased be drunk and beaten to death?' 'Did he have sleeping pills in his bottle?' and the first person to notice the direction of the investigation was the prisoner who poisoned him. ”

"I was just thinking about asking, but I didn't expect you to be full of loopholes because of your weak heart, and finally you said it yourself. Nao lowered her eyes, "If there are no ghosts in my heart, why are I afraid? ”

Tanaka sat down on the ground with a pop, and was quickly handcuffed by the Kawaida Police Department.

The police car roared away, and the campus of Lihai University was calm again. The red sunset hung over the treetops, warming the chill of the killings. The three teenagers stood outside the gymnasium and looked at the gymnasium red by the setting sun with emotion.

"I didn't expect it to end like this, it's really a farce. Nao breathed a sigh of relief, "It's all luck to be able to solve the case, and I'm really far from it based on clues alone." ”

"But thanks to your last question, the momentum of the ancient Okinawan martial arts is really incomparable to ordinary people!" Nioh chuckled, "Even I feel the chill of the air, let alone face your Tanaka directly." Now, Yanagi?"

"Well, it seems that the 'training' you mentioned last time was karate. Yanagi took Nioh's words very naturally, and said seriously, "But be careful when training, the scars are not suitable for women." ”

"Hi Hi ......"

Nao sighed helplessly. Nioh and Yanagi looked at each other and laughed together.

"-Nao!!"

"-Nioh!!"

Two chorus shouts crashed into everyone's eardrums, and from a distance, two short teenagers were squeezed out of the crowd. The one with short blond hair is Shumi Sakamoto, and the other red-haired boy is Marui Bunta, Nioh's classmate.

"Where have you been, why have we been looking for so long!"

"That's right, Jack and Yukimura are also helping us find it, so we'll have to say hello to them!"

As soon as Shumi came up, she pounced on Nao, and Marui also stood beside Nioh. Natsuki Ujigawa walked slowly behind the two and beckoned to a few people.

"Nao, it's time to eat. ”

"Hmm. ”

Nao curled her lips and smiled back at "Werewolf-san" and the newly acquainted Yanagi.

"Do you want to go to dinner together?"

"Ahh

Nioh raised an eyebrow at Yagyu, who smiled and nodded.

"It's okay, this can be regarded as 'sharing joys and sorrows'. ”

"Poof, then the next 'common tribulation'?" Nioh curled the corners of his mouth.

"Let's get in touched! Let's go and meet them at the school gate!"

Marui closed the phone and made a V-sound, his beautiful purple eyes bent together with a smile, "Let's go!"

Everyone nodded, laughing and walking towards the gate of Lihai University.