Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 852: Homicide Case

Chapter 852 -852: Homicide Case

Princess Margaret had never been to Tobesk before, and the last time she visited Draleon, she was sixteen years old and accompanied the current king on an official visit. As a result, the princess was very talkative this afternoon, partly because “Sherlock Holmes,” who ran a vineyard in the New World, had just left Tobesk before coming to Carsonrick.

Shard was happy to gauge the princess’s temperament through this mode of conversation, and Mr. Benhart also appreciated that such private conversations could narrow the distance between himself and the Royal Family. Thus, none of the three intended to end the conversation proactively.

At two in the afternoon, the princess’s maid had prepared afternoon tea and some snacks for them. As for the bottle of red wine that had already been opened, it was put away again. It appeared that the princess with the light golden hair truly enjoyed the “Blood Brew” provided by Shard.

Around three in the afternoon, while Shard was discussing this year’s steam pipeline renovation project in the city with Princess Margaret, there was a knock on the door. The maid, who seemed to be a First Ring Sorcerer, quietly walked to the door, listened to the guard’s words at the entrance, and then returned to the princess’s side, whispering:

“It’s Earl Sachia.”

Her voice was neither too loud nor too soft, just audible enough for Shard and Mr. Benhart to hear. The two sensibly stood up:

“Your Highness, we shall take our leave now. May your journey in Tobesk be smooth.”

“Perhaps you should save that for the farewell party. Viscount Benhart, you must have received the invitation letter, right?”

Princess Margaret said to the middle-aged vampire, who nodded slightly and then left the room together with Shard.

Waiting at the door was a somewhat plump middle-aged man in a black formal suit with a monocle. His haircut was unique, parted in the middle and combed to the sides, making him appear somewhat short.

Mr. Benhart obviously knew this earl, and after exchanging greetings, the earl entered the room.

Shard, along with Mr. Benhart, walked along the corridor towards the staircase:

“Is that the local earl?”

“Yes, he’s considered one of Huntington City’s traditional nobles. His son was the previous mayor of Huntington City, and he himself has a seat in the Senate’s Upper House. It’s said he’s seeking a partnership with the Aphrola Family, a well-known seafaring family, to get involved in the New World’s ore business. Despite his friendly appearance, he’s actually quite ruthless. Many of the famous gangs in the area are associated with his family. But of course, those are just ordinary people…”

Mr. Benhart spoke of the local secrets as he and Shard went back to the first-floor dining hall.

The two planned to finish their afternoon tea before Mr. Benhart would take Shard for a tour of the city’s black market for Circle Sorcerers. However, just as their two cups of hot drinks with goat milk were served, one of the Royal Guards protecting Princess Margaret hurriedly entered the dining hall. Under the watchful and puzzled gazes of the people around, he went straight to Shard and Mr. Benhart:

“Gentlemen, Her Highness requests your presence upstairs again.”

This middle-aged man, appearing to be in his thirties, with some freckles on his face and an expression of determination, seemed a bit flustered in his eyes. Mr. Benhart stood up in surprise:

“What happened?”

He lowered his voice as much as possible. The uniformed guard wanted to speak but then closed his mouth, leaning in close to Mr. Benhart’s ear:

“Someone is dead.”

He said nothing more and then led the bewildered Shard and Mr. Benhart towards the dining hall entrance.

The third floor of the club remained quiet, but the accompanying Royal Guards had sealed off the entrances to the three staircases. The manager of the White King Club was sweating profusely while conversing with the secretary of the visiting group, whose photo had been published in the newspapers.

All the rooms on the third floor had their doors closed, and the number of Royal Guards in front of the princess’s room was even greater than before. After confirming their identities, the guards wanted to search Shard and Mr. Benhart. Fortunately, the princess’s maid opened the door in time, allowing them to enter.

As soon as they entered, they were shocked to see the plump Earl Sachia lying motionless next to the sofa on the carpet, with an overturned teacup by his side, the tea soaking a large area of the carpet. The princess’s personal physician—not Miss Violet, the Grand Witch, but another doctor—was examining the corpse, while the Captain of the Royal Guard was inspecting the items on the coffee table.

The room was eerily quiet, with everyone busy with their tasks. As for Princess Margaret, surrounded by her maids, she was seated at a desk on the other side of the room. A screen obtained from somewhere blocked the sight of the sofa and the desk, preventing the princess from directly seeing the dreadful scene.

“What’s happening? Did Princess Margaret kill Earl Sachia, and now wants to silence us, the witnesses?”

Shard pondered an impossible answer, somewhat lamenting that a murder had actually occurred here:

“This princess sure has terrible luck.”

Princess Margaret did not see them again, instead, Mr. Wood, the Captain of the Royal Guard with a Colonel of Carsonrick rank, informed them of the current situation while he was inspecting around. The matter was not complicated at all; after Shard and Mr. Benhart left here a while ago, Earl Sachia entered the room to discuss the farewell dinner on Saturday with Princess Margaret.

At that time, the pot of black tea on the coffee table had not been replaced; the maid had only brought new cups to pour tea for the Earl. Not long after drinking the tea, the Earl suddenly collapsed and died. Although an autopsy had not yet been conducted, the apparent marks on the corpse undoubtedly indicated signs of poisoning.

Therefore, that pot of black tea became the most suspicious poisoning tool. Since three people had drunk the black tea, Shard and Mr. Benhart were called back up.

“Are they trying to have us testify that the black tea was not poisoned and that the Earl’s death had nothing to do with the Princess?”

The three stood by the coffee table talking, and Mr. Benhart asked this question as discreetly as possible. Mr. Wood nodded slowly:

“Gentlemen, there’s no need to be too tense; the local police will soon arrive to investigate. It’s just that the deceased’s identity is too special. Plus, he died here, right after drinking the tea prepared by Her Highness’s maid… Viscount, don’t worry, you won’t be implicated; you just need to testify.”

Mr. Benhart nodded immediately; he understood the implicit message:

“It’s truly unfortunate this happened, but it has nothing to do with Her Highness. The Earl was a good friend of mine; we even played Roder Card in Velindale during the summer… The police are coming?”

He then realized something was off, glanced cautiously at Shard, who also got the hint. Even if they weren’t involved in this, the police would certainly investigate “Holmes,” a foreigner’s identity in the death of an Earl with a seat in the Upper House, and their identities could be compromised despite Mr. Benhart’s cover.

So, they absolutely couldn’t let the police come here, or at least, not let the police have the chance to investigate Shard’s identity.

Fortunately, Shard had dealt with similar situations more than once. He turned to look at the corpse lying on the floor, as the elderly doctor with salt-and-pepper hair, dressed in a beige checkered formal suit and holding a medical kit, had already stood up.

“Colonel, was the Duke coming to this room from other rooms on the third floor or from outside the club? Maybe investigating where he was before could help us find the poison source.”

Shard asked softly, and Colonel Wood agreed deeply:

“That’s what we think as well. The Earl had been in another room on the third floor. I’ve already sent someone to check that room; no one is in there now. The Earl arrived at the club after lunch, and according to the club’s waiters, three people had entered his room, each bringing red wine, dessert, and cigarettes. The kitchen is also being inspected, but so far, nothing suspicious has been found.”

Shard nodded, glancing at Mr. Benhart, who got the hint:

“Why don’t we check the situation of those three before the police arrive? If we can reveal the truth before the police come, I believe it would greatly benefit Her Highness’s reputation.”

He spoke in a lowered voice:

“If we find the murderer before the police arrive, my local status can minimize the impact of this incident. Once the police arrive, those vampire-like journalists will catch wind of it, so it’s best to keep the police downstairs for now.”

Mr. Benhart’s suggestion was quite valuable, and Colonel Wood nodded and went behind the screen to consult the Princess at her desk. Princess Margaret also thought Mr. Benhart’s suggestion was good, thus specifically instructed to notify the secretary accompanying the visiting group to delay the local police for half an hour.

With permission granted, Colonel Wood then took Shard and Mr. Benhart next door. As the key suspects in the case, the three who had secretly met with the deceased Earl Sachia after lunch at the club had already been summoned and were waiting there for the police.

At this moment, the Royal Guards had already sealed off the entire third floor of the White King Club, allowing no one in or out, while the Viscount Lyon, responsible for crisis management accompanying the visiting group, had also begun to act.

Even in the Steam Age, the power of the Royal Family stretched to every corner of both the Draleon Kingdom and the Kingdom of Carsonrick, and these actions would not be questioned. But among the various contingency plans the Royal Family had prepared for Princess Margaret Anjou’s visit to Tobesk, they had not anticipated the first mishap would occur before the visiting group even left the Carsonrick Territory.