Chapter 34: The Victim Outside the Photo

"Everyone must have thought the woman in the photo was the victim at first glance! Therefore, the real victim must not be her! It's a very simple reverse thinking problem!" Sari said smugly. No one reacted as quickly as he did, and he was sure he'd be the center of attention today! Decker's face changed, and he growled, "Shut up!" But his warning came too late. Many people in the crowd laughed openly. Elin's lips curled into a faintly mocking smile. "Unfortunately, your answer is incorrect," Felice said with a smile. Sari felt as if he had been slapped, his face turning bright red. He shouted angrily, "What are you laughing at? Do you know the answer?" The crowd fell silent. Observing a photo for two minutes was indeed challenging. Now, if they were asked to immediately state who the victim was, they couldn't say. Sari snorted and directed his anger towards Elin, who wore a mocking expression: "This lady seems to know who the victim is?" Elin stood up and said calmly, "Does any senior want to answer? If not, I'll give it a try." "Please go ahead," Felice said with a smile. "The victim is not in the photo." Immediately, there was an uproar! "Dora's granddaughter indeed has a knack for detective work." "Impossible! She has no reason to say that!" "She must be guessing! How does she know?" Felice smiled and asked, "Miss Elin, why do you say that?" Decker's heart sank. Judging by Felice's tone, could Elin be right? "First, look at the woman. She indeed has blood all over her face and looks miserable. However, I noticed an abnormal muscle pattern at the edge of her face, with wrinkles above her cheekbones. Additionally, her shoulders are slightly too broad for a woman. I suspect this woman is a man disguised with a wig and mask." "Second, the man's posture. He holds the knife in one hand and the woman in the other, with his right hand holding the knife in a reverse grip, which is not conducive to controlling her from behind." "Third, the woman's blood loss. Judging by the amount of blood in the photo, the woman should be unconscious, yet her eyes are open." "Considering these points, I believe the victim is not in the photo. This photo is a poorly staged setup meant to lure the real target into a trap." "Congratulations, you are correct," Felice said, admiring Elin's sharp observation. Elin smiled: "There is also another reason, a bit of a trick." "I trust the competition organizers wouldn't display the victim's tragic scene and nightmare so openly on a big screen. Doing so would be disrespectful to the victim." Felice nodded, smiling at Elin. Everyone was stunned. Was this information something a normal person could observe in two minutes? Had it only been a few minutes? Five minutes? In such a short time, she could analyze so much and be correct? Hausman straightened his chest proudly. Haha, she must be the boss! Who else could be so impressive but the captain? "No! You must have known the question beforehand!" Sari shouted, "You are so close with the young lady, she must have told you the answer!" Decker wished he could rush over and cover Sari's mouth. He cursed internally. What kind of son did Brown raise? How could he be so stupid! Can't even read the situation! Felice's gaze turned cold. Without even looking at Sari, she said, "We established a question bank with over three thousand questions, selected randomly." She walked over to Elin, took the cash from a waiter, and handed it to her with both hands. "Here is your game prize." Elin took it without hesitation, smiling: "Thank you." "Besides a large cash reward for the correct answer, we have prepared a small gift for each participating guest." Someone whispered in the crowd, "Look at her, taking the money so eagerly." "Yes, I've never seen anyone so desperate to grab the money!" The murmurs grew louder. Felice's eyes showed a hint of disappointment. Most people did not take the items from the waiter's silver tray. They acted very high-minded. Felice found these people hypocritical. After leaving the military, she went into family business, believing that most things in the world could be solved with money, and no one disliked money. Their pretentious behavior bored her. Felice said coldly, "Do you think our gifts are too shabby to be worth taking?" Everyone snapped out of their daze, hastily denying any such thought. Felice gave a forced smile: "Seems like I was overthinking." At this, most people dared not act pretentious anymore and took the gifts from the tray with smiles. "Next, the competition officially begins. I will explain the rules. First, no one can discuss or consult others during the competition, except for team members. Second, the ranking is based on time, with the earliest correct answer being first place, and so on." "Alright, please follow me to the second floor." Felice led the way upstairs, where a well-arranged scene awaited. The woodland was filled with flowers, and a strange fishy smell mixed with the floral scent made many people uncomfortable. "Please don't be alarmed, this is just a display prop," Felice explained with a smile. The crowd stepped forward, standing before the woodland, shocked by the scene. Staff walked through waist-high grass, around a half-red stone wall, and parted hanging branches to reveal an extremely lifelike corpse. It was a nude male body, face down in a large pool of blood, covered in small wounds with dried petals stuck to them. The most shocking wound was from his lower body, with smooth white waxwood branches tearing through the body. "Is this really a prop?" Someone covered their mouth, gagging, while others questioned, and many more observed the crime scene, eyes thoughtful. "Here, I thank you on behalf of the prop artist for recognizing his skills," Felice said with a hint of a smile in her eyes. "This is the crime scene. Next, let's go to the interrogation room to watch the police interrogate the suspects." After a few steps, they moved away from the sickening scent. They reached a row of small rooms, each with a person sitting inside made of wax. In the first room were two young men, with a video at the entrance showing their interrogation. These two discovered the body and reported it. One was a non-native learning the language, and the other was a Latin American Q citizen. According to their statements, they finished their day's studies at around 4 PM. After class, they did not leave immediately but found the body during a walk. In the second room was a man who had a violent altercation with the victim. He was tall and strong, the son of a police superintendent, and an anti-gay activist. The victim was gay, and the suspect was the last to see the victim, with a violent argument and physical confrontation. The third room had a body on the floor, also covered in small wounds. The standout feature was the body being torn by sticks, similar to the first prop body. Both victims were people of color. The second died three days after the first was discovered and had conflicts with the second suspect over homosexuality and racial issues. In the fourth room, the previously seen non-native boy sat confused, a book in his hand with a flower tucked inside, while a tall shadow loomed behind him, holding a knife. This hinted at the boy's fate. "These are all the clues. There's no time limit. Those who deduce the culprit can give their answer and name to the waiter." "If there are no objections, the competition begins!"