"I'm also a mystery novelist." Victor boasted, "How about I set the rules this time?"
His hair and eyebrows were turned snow-white by the cold light outside the window, giving him a slight resemblance to a snowman. However, the excitement between his brows made him look more like a child eager to play a game rather than a weary and cynical man.
The Falcone Manor is also one of the oldest estates in Gotham, possibly even older than the Viscount Manor. The walls here are adorned with panels and vintage patterned fabrics. Near the corner by the fireplace, there's only a small round window, projecting a bright oval shadow onto one side wall, with the trajectory of light clearly visible.
The texture of the wood feels heavy and old; the dark green silk tablecloth is newly replaced, but the candlestick and fruit plate still reveal a touch of antiquity. The weaving style of the wicker chair has a hint of Florence, and the bookshelf is also filled with books in Italian.
Shiller gave Victor an encouraging glance. In the dim light from the fireplace that hadn't been extinguished yet, Victor glanced around and said, "There's still some wine left, let's finish it off."
Tim turned on the flashlight and went to the dining table to get the wine and glasses. They barely managed to finish the remaining bottle of wine, pouring half a glass for everyone.
"Let's take turns asking and answering questions in a clockwise order. One person asks a question, the next person answers. After answering, ask a new question. If you can't answer, take a sip of wine. How about that?"
"A bit clichéd." Alberto answered honestly.
"It won't feel that way once you start playing." Victor said, "because there's a lot to consider. We don't have any clues right now."
"I'll go first." Cobblepot glanced at Tim, who was sitting next to him. Now Tim is the one who knows the most. Cobblepot starting the questions can prompt him to reveal more information.
No one objected. So Cobblepot began, "What was the condition of the body when Brainiac discovered it?"
"It was already swollen," Tim answered, "which is also why the face photographed on the water surface wasn't clear, making it impossible to determine who it was. Additionally, I can tell you that the deceased's clothing was dark, holding nothing in their hands, floating on their back in the water, roughly at two-thirds of the room's length."
Cobblepot nodded, indicating that the answer was acceptable. Then Tim looked at Shiller next to him and asked, "Professor, do you think the deceased might have died a non-natural death?"
"Of course." Shiller said, "Without a doubt, this is a murder case."
As soon as he said this, everyone exchanged glances. Although Tim didn't ask for reasons, Shiller explained, "The rain last night wasn't heavy, the storm surge hadn't really arrived yet, and the seawater's backflow wasn't fast, leaving plenty of time to evacuate."
Clearly, there was still doubt among the group, but they didn't ask at this time because, according to the rules, it was Shiller's turn to ask. He looked at Alberto sitting on the single sofa and asked, "Is Evans alright?"
Alberto glanced at Victor. Victor said, "There's indeed no rule that questions must be related to the case."
"He's fine." Alberto sighed softly and said, "Not long ago, he even went to see the theater exhibition in Venice."
"You're lying." Tim stared at him coldly, "His personality has always been fragile, and you've taken up too much time, so much so that he's almost gone."
"I'm trying to figure it out." Alberto said.
"The most effective method is to give him more time out, but you're unwilling to do that."
"If I let him stay out all the time, I'll never find a solution." Alberto seemed provoked as well, "This is a matter between brothers, none of your business. Mr. Drake, mind your own affairs."
Tim held himself back. He sat on the sofa thinking about something, with a somewhat displeased expression, thus revealing more of Moriarty's side, as if pondering another of his criminal advisory journeys.
Alberto then looked at Shiller. Shiller's gaze showed some concern, seemingly worrying about both brothers simultaneously. Alberto sighed silently, then said, "It's my turn to ask a question."
He looked at Victor beside him, then said, "What does the floating position of the body represent?"
Victor pondered carefully, then said, "This is indeed key. Under normal circumstances, if nothing is worn to provide buoyancy, the body wouldn't submerge this much in water. And to maintain buoyancy at two-thirds of the room, there must be something on it. If it's not holding anything, nor tied with anything, then it might be inside the body."
This reasoning didn't face any objections. So Victor turned to Ethan and asked, "When did everyone evacuate from Arkham Sanatorium?"
Ethan seemed somewhat displeased with being trapped but, having nothing to do other than participate in the game, he said, "It should have been before 9:00 PM."
"The arrival of the storm surge and the backflow of the sea were both predictable. Analyzing from Gotham's geographical situation, the backflow of seawater along the coast should move from south to north. It shouldn't take more than half an hour to reach the sanatorium up north. Even if discovered later, everyone should evacuate by 9 o'clock. After all, the residents of this city should already be quite accustomed to these disasters, and there shouldn't be any delays."
The crowd confirmed his conjecture. Indeed, as he said, even for a psychiatric hospital full of mental patients, evacuation wouldn't take long. Even those bound to restraint beds, upon hearing about a natural disaster approaching, became suddenly free of ailments and followed the Doctor swiftly. It's a natural disaster after all; if it were a human catastrophe, they might even follow up with a few shots. There's no questioning the survival instinct.
Ethan couldn't turn his head, so he maintained his posture and asked, "Can we determine the gender of the victim?"
This question posed some difficulty. The information currently available was indeed insufficient for such a determination. However, Cobblepot did not immediately give up; he continued to attempt reasoning.
"I've been to Arkham Psychiatric Hospital many times, and I've been there frequently lately to accompany patients. The ground floor of the hospital is used for receiving patients and their families, and there's a nurse's station in the back for the convenience of nurses accompanying patients to the backyard to get some air. Many female nurses come and go on the ground floor."
"The first floor is where the consulting rooms are, and both Doctors and Nurses go there. However, there's a nurse station on the east side of the first floor because some mental patients exhibit aggressiveness during treatment, and most of the staff assigned there are strong males. This means the gender ratio on the first floor leans towards males. Theoretically, the likelihood of the victim being male is higher."
"But there's a loophole; the nurses of Arkham Psychiatric Hospital have often weathered many battles, especially the male nurses. Most are strong individuals trained in professional restraint tactics, and some have even transitioned from the mob, making it very difficult to kill these people. Thus, it's hard to definitively say whether male or female."
Cobblepot raised his glass and took a sip. The crowd did not find Ethan's question inappropriate—it elicited information from Cobblepot that might otherwise have gone unsaid. Tim probably knew the most about the case, but Cobblepot certainly knew the most about this hospital. Even Shiller wasn't as knowledgeable as Cobblepot, given his frequent visits to see Edward after moving and changing locations.
The baton finally returned to Tim. Cobblepot pondered briefly and asked, "Among the Doctors and patients evacuated from Arkham Sanatorium, who is missing?"
This time, everyone perked up their ears, as this was indeed a crucial question. Even if it was temporarily impossible to retrieve the corpse, the method of elimination was still very useful. As long as you can determine who is missing, you can more easily identify the victim.
"Unfortunately, I don't know either," Tim said. "They didn't evacuate according to Brainiac's orderly arrangement; they all went home as soon as they discovered the seawater backflow. The thunderstorm also damaged some signal towers, and some areas are out of contact, temporarily leaving the list of missing persons undetermined."
He too picked up his glass and took a sip. Victor quickly emphasized, "As long as you share what you know or reason, it's a reasonable answer; not knowing is a reasonable answer as well, and only truly unreasonable answers require accountability."
"He just wanted a drink," Shiller said.
Tim savored it carefully, chuckled coldly, and said, "Not as good as Drake's house."
Alberto gave him a cold glance.
Tim cleared his throat and asked, "Professor, what do you think the motive of the killer could be?"
"Tim," Shiller sighed helplessly, "even for a Spiritual Ability User, there still needs to be a medium. Without a body, crime scene, or even a single photo, any motive is just wild speculation. You've truly stumped me."
Shiller took another sip of his drink. The slightly icy look on Tim's face faded, replaced by a playful smile towards Shiller, as if to show he did it intentionally, yet confidently believing Shiller wouldn't blame him, with a hint of smugness.
Shiller looked once more at Alberto, asking, "Does your father know about Evans' situation?"
"He knows," Alberto sighed again lightly, "He's also quite worried about it. Brainiac has promised to find a solution. He helped us contact the powerful Psychic Ability User, Lilith of Heavenly Sign, who is researching treatment plans."
Shiller nodded thoughtfully. Alberto seemed slightly distracted, taking a while before asking, "Can your lethal ice ability stasis the mind?"
Victor shook his head, saying, "If you mean freezing a single personality, that's impossible. The way dense ice stasis the mind is by lowering and maintaining temperature, enabling the brain to operate at minimal efficiency, achieving a state of unconsciousness without a way for precise isolation."
But Alberto seemed relieved. Victor added, "However, I'd recommend considering this as a last resort, not a lifeline. People frozen are effectively dead; you won't find a solution this way. Your father would lose both sons at the same time."
Alberto nodded lightly. Then Victor looked at Ethan next to him and said, "Your moves are quite skilled; have you been on the battlefield?"
"I was a military doctor," Ethan replied. "I've not only fought in Afghanistan's frontlines but also stayed there for several years."
His gaze shifted to Tim, "Combat training might handle common folks, but without life-or-death battle experience, it's tough to deal with veterans."
Tim clenched his fist, but it wasn't out of anger towards Ethan. Being disarmed was indeed a bit embarrassing, but on reflection, his moderate combat capabilities and lack of life-or-death combat experience were because he didn't need to risk his life alongside Batman in the perilous City of Darkness. Since joining the Wayne Manor family, he'd only engaged in brain work; it's normal not to beat a battle-hardened Afghanistan veteran.