Murder Mystery

The bombshell beauty seemed to have a realization, her expression turning serious. "I've heard of Saw, but never watched it. Still, what you're saying reminds me of some plotlines from webnovels."

"Endless horror," I, the bombshell beauty, and the young man all muttered in unison, nodding to each other in acknowledgment.

The red-haired girl, who'd first pointed out the oddity, couldn't help but chime in, "This… I've heard of those kinds of stories too, but we don't have any evidence for that, right? Isn't this a little too… unrealistic?"

The young man moved behind the couch, shrugging. "I get that. I've never seen any supernatural powers myself, so I find it hard to believe that our situation here is straight out of a novel. But given that, I'm guessing none of you are the masterminds behind this kidnapping, right?" He looked around at each of us carefully. I, too, leaned toward believing that we were all victims here, though there was no way to be certain.

"How about we introduce ourselves? If we're really going to face a series of tests, we might need each other's help." He nodded and said, "I'm Carl, Carl Roy, a software engineer. I was taking a nap in my company's lounge when this happened."

The two high school girls exchanged a glance before the red-haired one spoke up. "Danny Roberts, a student at No. 17 High School. Last thing I remember, I was dozing off in my classroom, and now… here I am."

The girl with the ponytail spoke quietly, "I'm Janice, surname Herbert, Danny's classmate. I was in the library reading when I… somehow ended up here."

'Interesting. Very interesting.'

If no supernatural forces were involved, then whoever kidnapped us would have to be extraordinarily skilled. The bombshell beauty turned to me and said, "I'm Lana Rhodes, an advertising copywriter. I was in my office when all this went down."

Clearing my throat, I introduced myself. "I'm Gregory House, a student at Nearsea University," I gestured at my slippers, "as you can see, I was just asleep at home when this all started."

Though they seemed innocent enough, I didn't trust these four entirely, so I'd used a fake name and claimed to be from a different university. Nearsea University and Coastal University sound pretty similar, anyway. Carl clapped his hands, suggesting, "So, shall we head out and see what this test is all about?"

Exchanging glances, we nodded and made our way toward the door. Before leaving, I grabbed the five bottles of water from the coffee table—never know when they might come in handy, and at the very least, they'd quench our thirst.

———

Carl carefully opened the reinforced door. As the puppet promised, it was unlocked. We entered a spacious room with gray walls and wooden floors, facing three more doors labeled Strength, Intellect, and Team.

"Strength and Intellect make sense as tests of physical ability and mental skills, but… Team?" Danny asked, puzzled.

Lana studied the signs for a moment before shaking her head. "I'd guess it means something like 'teamwork' or 'cooperation.' 'Team' implies a place for a collective effort."

I had to hand it to her; the bombshell and I were on the same page.

Of course, I had an edge thanks to the hint from that mysterious voice. For Lana to figure it out on her own showed she was sharp and quick-thinking, even in an unfamiliar and dangerous situation.

Not wanting to be outdone, Carl added, "That sounds about right. Looks like these three doors test us on physical skills, intelligence, and teamwork. So, which door should we pick?" He asked while glancing primarily at Lana.

'This guy… he's probably just using this as an excuse to ogle her, right?' I snickered inwardly. Lana thought for a few seconds, then said, "I don't think we should choose the Team door. We're all strangers here and don't seem to have any military or group training experience. A team-based challenge would likely be the hardest for us since it requires coordination and trust."

A wise choice. But her comment about teamwork had a certain subtle undertone. I mentally noted this detail.

"As for the Strength door, I don't think we're a good fit for that either. I'm not exactly trained for physical endurance, and Danny and Janice are both young girls. House here isn't even wearing shoes," Lana observed.

I glanced at her slender legs, ending in white high heels, and forced a dry laugh. 'Right back at you,' I thought to myself. Both Carl and Danny couldn't help laughing at my slippers, and even the usually serious Janice cracked a small smile.

Carl approached the door labeled Intellect and turned back to us with a resigned look. "That just leaves Intellect… anyone here good with puzzles and brain teasers? Because I'm not."

With a small, confident smile, Lana nodded, "I'm fairly confident in that area. Let's go with the Intellect door." She looked at me and the girls, and seeing them nodding like pecking chicks, she smiled approvingly at Carl.

'Hey, what about my opinion?' Not that it mattered; I was going to pick Intellect anyway.

The door handle turned easily, and we cautiously entered the next room. In the center of this twenty-square-meter space was a table with some sheets of paper and a pen. In the corner, a door was locked shut. I walked over to check and, sure enough, it was locked.

Lana strode over to the table, picked up one of the sheets, and read aloud, "A group of five people—Person A, B, C, D, and E—checked into a hotel for the night. The next morning, Person A's body was found on the road outside. The initial police assessment was that the cause of death was a fall from a high place. Here are statements from the hotel owner, receptionist, and Persons B, C, D, and E."

"Hotel Owner: Person A checked in at 6 PM in room 310 on the third floor. He called for room service at 10 PM, and I didn't see him after that. I worked the lobby from noon to midnight, took a few room service calls from Person E, and saw Person B return around 9 PM."

"Receptionist: I started my shift at 11 PM and worked until 9 AM. I handled a room service request when I arrived, and the owner left around midnight. I didn't have any interaction with Person A."

"Person B: I checked in at 3 PM in room 102 on the first floor, left for work, and returned after dinner around 9 PM. I stayed in my room and went to sleep at 11 PM, waking up at 7 AM."

"Person C: I checked in around 11:30 PM on the fourth floor, room 420. When Person A died, I was packing my luggage. I stayed in my room after checking in."

"Person D: I'd checked in the day before in room 305 on the third floor. I usually go out for lunch and dinner, and at midnight, I was at the third-floor swimming pool for an hour. Last night, I saw a room service person near Person A's room."

"Person E: I checked in this morning in room 221 on the second floor and ordered room service for every meal. I've stayed in my room since 9 AM without stepping out."

"After gathering these statements, the forensic examiner determined that Person A's time of death was between 12:30 and 1:30 AM. You inspected the crime scene, and from Person A's room, you can see the body from the window."

The question reads: "Was it suicide or homicide? And if it was homicide, who is the killer?"

After finishing, Lana held up the paper and asked, "What do you all think?"

Danny and Janice exchanged a look. Danny sighed, "I'm really not good at this kind of thing… suicide or homicide… probably homicide, right? Why else would they ask?"

Carl frowned, pacing around. "I agree. Based on the way this riddle is set up, if it was a simple suicide, why bother with all these detailed statements?"

Lana handed each of us the paper to review. Ignoring Carl and Danny's guesses, she crossed her arms, deep in thought. After skimming it, I glanced at her, sneaking a look at her stunning figure as I formulated my thoughts. Silence hung over the room.

Lana frowned, resting her chin on her hand. Carl muttered to himself as he paced, and Danny looked troubled, clutching the paper, while Janice quietly glanced over her shoulder.

Since this was supposed to be an individual assessment, I couldn't afford to keep playing dumb. It was time to show my worth. I spoke up, "Maybe we should consider the possibility of suicide. If the question were only asking us to identify the killer, there wouldn't be a need to include a suicide option."

Lana's eyes flicked toward me, curiosity glinting in them. "So, you think suicide's a possibility?"

I paused before replying, "No, I think it's homicide."

Danny groaned, clutching her head. "Why, though?" Carl looked equally perplexed, adding, "I think it's also likely homicide. The killer should be one of Persons B, C, D, or E, but I can't figure out which one is the most suspicious."

I took the paper from Danny, laid it on the table, and picked up the pen. "I've played quite a few detective puzzle games, so one detail caught my eye. Look at the second-to-last sentence: 'From the crime scene, opening the window, you can see Person A's body.'

"Why would the window need to be opened? If it were suicide, Person A would have opened the window and jumped out, leaving it open. Logically, the only reason the window would be closed afterward is if the killer closed it. So, I'd guess it's homicide, with the killer closing the window."

Danny clapped her hands in sudden understanding. "That makes sense. Nice job, House!"

I smirked and continued, "Thank you, thank you. Now, let's analyze the suspects. The key must lie in the statements."

I drew a rough floor plan on the paper, marking each guest's room. "Let's start by eliminating anyone who, on the surface, seems to have the lowest chance of being the killer."

Lana stepped closer, bringing a faint, pleasant scent with her. I took a subtle breath, but I couldn't tell if it was perfume or her natural scent.

She pointed to the first floor and said, "I'd say the hotel owner can be ruled out. If his statement is accurate, he was already home at the time of the incident." I nodded in agreement and crossed the owner off the list. "I agree; his testimony doesn't conflict with the others."

Lana tapped her chin thoughtfully and continued, "Next, Person B should also be innocent. They were staying on the first floor and were back in their room by 9 PM."