Chapter 250.2: The Detective's Deduction (Part 2)

Since the Union's doors had been closed and there was a barrier enclosing it, they were certain that Fuzzy Dice was still within the building. So it was easy to conclude that he had discarded the cloak and tried to blend in with the adventurers.

Everyone else thought the same, as they turned suspicious glances at that one adventurer.

(Hmm... there's no suspicious readings.)

Just in case, Mira used Life Sensing to scan the Union, wondering if the thief was not hiding somewhere while everyone suspected the adventurer. But she could not see anything out of the ordinary. In other words, it was more likely that one of the many adventurers present was Fuzzy Dice

And currently, the most suspicious person there was the one the detective was pointing at. The Anti-Magic Beast Camouflage Cloak itself was a rather popular item, even if it was costly. But as far as the detective had seen, only one had been sold in the past few days.

Then, while it was common for many adventurers to come and go from the Union, it was hard to think it was a coincidence that the only person who bought that cloak was present after Fuzzy Dice made his entrance.

「No, wait! It's not me! I'm not... I was just...!」

The detective had plenty of reasons to doubt him, which only made the other adventurers also doubt him even more. Feeling pressured by that, the adventurer began to hesitantly step back, eventually bumping on the wall and yelling, 「Please, wait!」

Then he continued, 「I just... I was told to do this!」 desperately trying to defend himself.

He claimed that two days prior, a stranger had asked him to buy an Anti-Magic Beast Camouflage Cloak. And he was offering a sizable payment, while also providing advance payment for the cloak itself, so the adventurer instantly agreed.

On top of that, half of the reward was also paid in advance, while promising to pay the other half in the Union at the time of the heist. So he was there waiting for that.

That was the man's justification.

「Someone asked you, sure...」

Another adventurer muttered that with a doubtful gaze. Almost everyone else reacted in a similar way, believing that was merely the first excuse he could think of. Even Mira felt like it was a rather idiotic excuse. It simply seemed like a way too convenient and hard to verify excuse.

However, she could not help but wonder if Fuzzy Dice really would try to use such an excuse. The detective also thought the same, frowning with puzzlement after hearing the adventurer's excuse.

As far as Mira knew, mostly from the detective's stories, Fuzzy Dice was a much more daring and fearless character. In her mind, the real Fuzzy Dice would swiftly turn around and reveal his identity, before commending the detective for spotting him. At least that was the impression Mira had of Fuzzy Dice.

So she stared at the adventurer more intently, and then she noticed something.

(Oh...what's this?)

Seeing that, she began looking around at the other adventurers, and then began to grin as she became certain of her discovery. But she decided to keep silent, feeling like it was too early to reveal it. It was the detective's time to shine, and she would not dare do anything as rude as to intrude in the conflict between two men.

「I... I have this as proof!」

Feeling everyone's judging stares, the man took out a piece of paper from his bag, showing it to the detective. It was essentially a check of sorts, given to him by that stranger and which he could use to trade in for the remaining half of his payment.

「Hmmm, is this a playing card? A joker...」

It was one half of a torn joker card. While the detective looked at it with interest, another adventurer raised his voice.

「Wait, so it was you?」

Everyone looked at the adventurer, who looked like an average man who had just started his life as an adventurer. Unbothered by all the eyes focusing on him, he walked forward while he took out a piece of paper from his own bag.

But then another sheet of paper fell out and fluttered a bit before landing next to the detective's wheelchair.

「Oh, I'm so sorry.」

He seemed flustered as he ran up to the wheelchair and picked up the paper. Then he focused on the first sheet he extracted, brought it close to the torn joker card in the detective's hand and held it against it.

「It's a perfect match.」

That second adventurer held the remaining half of the torn playing card. In other words, the first adventurer had been telling the truth about that request.

Following that, the second nondescript adventurer explained that he had been given a small bag and a torn playing card, and was instructed to arrive at the Union at that specific time. He was told he would find someone with the other half of the card who would take the bag. He, too, had been handsomely compensated for completing this task.

The second piece of paper that had fallen from his bag had been the list with all the instructions he had to follow. He even showed it to the detective.

「I'm glad I was able to fulfill that request even under these circumstances.」

The plain beginner-looking adventurer explained that, and the previous suspect also seemed relieved that he was able to explain why he was there. Then they smiled with satisfaction, knowing their work was complete.

But then another adventurer had a question.

「But wait, then does that mean he planned everything with the cloak to play out like this? So he already knew this could happen?」

Essentially he was asking if Fuzzy Dice had prepared for the adventurer to become a suspect, but also put things in place so that he could explain himself eventually.

「Yes, knowing him, I wouldn't doubt he thought that far ahead. It clearly follows his usual pattern.」

The detective confirmed that. Thanks to the exchange that played out in front of them, all of the suspicion on the adventurer had been cleared. But that also meant that Fuzzy Dice still had to be there amongst them.

So they asked the adventurer what the stranger who requested that looked like, as that stranger had to have been Fuzzy Dice, but the adventurer could only describe him as a man without any standout features.

That was also how Fuzzy Dice in disguise was often described as.

Then the detective explained that whenever Fuzzy Dice used a scapegoat, they would be able to quickly prove their innocence, and they never became a suspect again, almost like the thief felt some guilt for implicating them.

「I'd say that Fuzzy Dice planned for things to play out like this.」

Saying that, the detective looked at the adventurer for a while, and then his face lit up as he got an idea, and asked something. 「By the way, what's your Class?」

「I'd think it's obvious, but I'm a swordsman.」