The detective is dead, I did it.

Chapter 45 The Most Unreliable Detective

"By the way, when did you realize something was wrong?"

By the time Li Ang asked that question, the dark red dust in the basement had completely dissipated, but a burnt smell lingered in the air, making one's throat tighten.

Charlotte didn't answer. She reached out and pulled a folded white handkerchief from the inside pocket of Leon's coat. A small blue flower was embroidered on the corner.

"What's this?" Li Ang looked at the handkerchief that he didn't know when it had been placed in his pocket, with a puzzled expression.

"My handkerchief. I put it there last night when you weren't looking."

Charlotte unfolded the handkerchief to check it, and after confirming that it hadn't been damaged in the previous fight with Leon, she folded it up again and put it in her pocket.

"What's the point of putting this thing here?"

"Why don't you take a guess?" Charlotte tilted her head, a familiar smile curving her lips as she looked at him.

Seeing the other person's signature smile, Li Ang subconsciously asked, "It can't be something like location tracking, can it?"

"You're right! But that's not all, but you only need to know this much."

Seeing that Charlotte didn't seem to intend to continue, Li Ang activated his clue-providing ability and looked at Charlotte.

Besides the initial hints I saw, one of the remaining question marks on the list of abilities has now been unlocked.

[Item Bond: Allows you to attach a perception mark to small items you've held for more than seven days. This mark allows you to sense the holder's location, actions, and changes in the surrounding temperature. The mark remains until the item is destroyed or leaves the area of ​​effect.]

It turned out to be the case.

Li Ang quietly withdrew his gaze.

This ability is like a high-end tracker; it can even detect the target's movements, which is truly frightening.

"Your timely intervention to block my attack just now," Charlotte said.

Li Ang looked up at her, waiting for her to continue.

Charlotte didn't continue the conversation, but instead took out her pocket watch and glanced at the time.

"Since you risked your life to protect me, I won't pursue the matter of you acting on your own initiative."

"Let's go. Let's see how our witch is doing now."

The two walked down the steps from the basement, pushed open the iron door whose lock had been broken, and returned to the Viscount's bedroom.

The viscount's body was still lying on the bed, but someone had covered him with a blanket, preserving his last shred of dignity.

The unpleasant smell in the room hadn't completely dissipated, but it was much fainter than it had been in the middle of the night.

Shirley sat in a chair with her legs stretched out and ankles crossed, holding a teacup in her hand and sipping tea, seemingly oblivious to the corpse lying not far from her.

Hearing the noise coming from the basement hallway, she stopped drinking water, turned around, and said, "Hey, Little Titi! Are you done up there?"

Charlotte didn't answer her question, her gaze sweeping over the open bedroom door beside her, and then over the still-lit kerosene lamp at her feet.

"Have you been guarding this place the whole time?"

"Yeah, right!" Shirley patted her bottom, stood up, and stretched her arms. "You told me to guard the basement door, so I guarded the basement door. I haven't left it for even a moment. I even drank my tea here."

She pointed to the kettle and teacup on the table, her tone carrying a hint of self-satisfaction, as if to say, "I'm carrying out this task very seriously."

Charlotte frowned. "Has anyone come out of this door?"

"No." Shirley shook her head, her blue wisps of hair swaying gently beside her ears. "There's no one here."

There are no other entrances to the basement. Could it be that Helena is still down there?

But they searched down there, every inch of the place, but there was no trace of the other person.

"She can change her body shape," Li Ang said, as if he had just thought of something. "She can shrink to the size of a mouse. When you were guarding the gate, did you see any small creatures scurrying out through the cracks?"

Shirley tilted her head and thought about it seriously for a moment, then her eyes suddenly lit up.

"Yes!" she clapped her hands. "The light in the room suddenly went out, and then a big black rat darted out from under the door and ran into the hallway."

"Because the room was too dark, I couldn't see clearly. I was wondering, are the rats in this mansion running so fast?"

"Luckily, I found a kerosene lamp, otherwise it would have been pitch black here."

Li Ang looked at Charlotte, whose lips were pressed into a thin line and whose expression had turned very bad.

"Shirley Eckert," she finally spoke, "as a Royal Armed Detective, how could you let a criminal escape right under your nose?!"

Shirley scratched her head, but there was no embarrassed expression on her face.

She thought about it seriously for a moment, then tilted her head and asked, "Hmm... but isn't that a mouse?"

"That's a witch. She has the ability to change her form; I remember it was clearly stated in the letter to the association," Charlotte said through gritted teeth.

"Even if you say that, I haven't received your letter!" Shirley scratched her head. "They didn't say anything except to tell me to come here."

Charlotte closed her eyes and remained silent.

He was clearly quite angry about Sulli's remarks.

At this moment, she had already cursed those armed detectives in the association to the extreme in her mind.

Not only did they fail to explain the mission details clearly, but they also sent the most unreliable member of the armed detective team.

They must be deliberately trying to disgust themselves!

Li Ang stood aside, silently marveling at Helena's ridiculously good luck.

Just as she came out, the corridor light went out, and coincidentally, the armed detective guarding the door was such a carefree person that he wouldn't even think twice if he saw a mouse running by.

With perfect timing, favorable location, and harmonious relationships, she was transformed from a sitting duck into a mouse that slipped away right under a cat's nose.

"But you don't need to worry," Shirley said again. "From the moment I arrived at this house, I used my ability to declare a stay of absence to set up a barrier around the walls. No one can leave this house without my permission."

She extended her index finger and drew a circle in the air.

"Although that witch escaped from the basement, she absolutely cannot leave this house. As long as we conduct a thorough search of the entire mansion, she won't be able to escape."

Charlotte opened her eyes and looked at her. "A thorough search? Do you know how many people are still available to participate in the search of this mansion?"

Shirley paused, then asked, "Aren't all the servants still here?"

"You'd better not count on them."

Shirley looked completely bewildered.

At this point, Li Ang briefly recounted what had happened in the basement, including the entire process of Helena activating the Life Alchemy Magic Circle.

After listening, Shirley suddenly realized, "No wonder I felt a strange force affecting me just now; it was because of this magic circle."

"Your sequence level is higher than that witch's," Charlotte said. "The magic circle's power can't reach you. At most, it will weaken your senses, like drinking hot tea and thinking it's cold tea. That's about it."

"But I was drinking tea at the time," Shirley said with a subtle air of self-righteousness. "The tea was hot; I didn't feel it getting cold."

Charlotte's lips twitched, but she said nothing.