Chapter 4477: The Darkest Night (Twelve)

The car stopped by the roadside. As soon as he got out, Victor covered his nose. A strong smell of blood filled the air. He frowned heavily. The streets of Gotham had not smelled this strongly of blood for a long time; it probably dated back to the gangland era when the mafia burned each other out, and at least three or four people would have to be beaten to death to produce such a stench.

"Are you sure only Pelota died?" Victor couldn't help asking into his phone, "No one else seriously injured?"

Brainiac didn't answer. Because Shiler and Victor quickly arrived beside the prisoner transport van. The van had overturned on the ground, and the bloody smell came from there. Before Victor could see what was inside the van, he heard Shiler, standing in front of the van, say softly: "... 'The Hound of the Baskervilles'."

"What?" Victor looked at him.

Shiler looked back at him and said: "The classic chapter you wanted has arrived."

He stepped aside a little to let Victor come over. As Victor walked over, his pupils suddenly contracted. Inside the prisoner transport van, no complete corpse could be seen. Pelota was scattered in various corners of the van, as if torn apart by something.

Looking closely, the most obvious thing was the claw marks on her chest. That absolutely could not be human-made—unless a person could grow claws over fifteen inches long, such marks could not possibly be left.

The wound was deep enough to see bone; to be precise, one swipe almost pierced the lung. If it weren't for the strength and integrity of the ribs, it could even have split the torso in half. The rest was similar. Besides claw marks, there were tooth marks. Those tooth marks looked like they were left by a saber-toothed tiger. More importantly, beside the van there was a huge footprint with a diameter of at least ten inches.

Just as Victor was shocked by this horrifying crime scene, suddenly, a low canine whine echoed from afar. That sound carried a terrifying desolation, startling Victor to take a few steps back and look in that direction.

But there was nothing there, only dense clouds spreading into the distance, and behind the clouds, the night remained starless.

"My God," Victor sighed from the heart, "I shouldn't have been so obsessed with Holmes. Did we really summon that demon hound from Baskerville?!"

"Your brain still isn't turning," Shiler calmly evaluated, "Does the demon hound need to be summoned from Baskerville? I'm sure Gotham's mutant stray dogs are no inferior to it."

Victor slapped his forehead.

"Although what Rodriguez said is factual, I still have to point out that he is really too calm. The matter of Gotham's mutant stray dogs will be discussed later. Based solely on the claw marks and footprints, the terrifying creature that killed Pelota is at least six feet tall—if it's a dog, its shoulder height would be about that of a human. This is unimaginably huge and terrifying. Although in the dark ages it might not compete with the Seagull King and Caesar Cat, in Brainiac's era, this is a terrifying monster of unimaginable size. Moreover, to intimidate us, it deliberately let out a terrifying howl in the distance. This proves it is a cunning beast."

Victor grabbed his hair hard and said: "Why did this monster attack Pelota? Why..."

Victor's unasked question was naturally why it wanted to create such a horrific case. Such a beast killing people actually only needs one claw; doing it this gruesomely is clearly deliberate.

Victor looked at Shiler and then said: "Séance so many times in one night—isn't that a bit excessive for you?"

Shiler shook his head, saying agreeably: "This is not an act of violent venting. There was no hatred atmosphere in the van, and the killer still retained reason. It's not hard to see that besides Pelota, there were other officers in the van. Only she ended up like this, while the others were unharmed. This proves the killer only wanted to target Pelota."

"Good lord, won't those officers go mad when they wake up?"

"New recruits might, " Shiler said, "but Gordon usually doesn't assign newcomers to prisoner transport. If they're veteran cops who've seen too many big scenes, this is nothing."

"If it wasn't deliberate venting, how did it become like this?"

"Remember? The van overturned. And from the traces on the road, it rolled several times. During the shaking, the killer was like attacking inside a tumbling washing machine, unable to fully control himself, so it turned out like this."

Shiler then turned his head to look at the van door and said: "The van door shows no signs of damage, proving he didn't ambush midway but had already gotten on board. But such traces are obviously not something a humanoid creature could leave, proving he has shapeshifting ability. The officers' side has been verified by Brainiac as having no issues, proving he didn't board in human form. To board in another form and remain undetected proves he can become very small, possibly another smaller beast form. This proves the killer has the ability to shift between different beast forms."

"The overturning also happened suspiciously. The road condition here is not bad, with no danger." Shiler opened his phone, glanced at the dashcam and camera footage Brainiac sent him, then said, "Actually, ice formed on the road, causing the front axle to lose control. But this ice formation is even more suspicious. It's still snowing heavily now, with snow depth fast exceeding one foot. Under these conditions, letting tires directly contact ice is very difficult unless someone poured water to make ice. Therefore this couldn't be the work of a single person. At least two perpetrators: one responsible for causing the accident, one responsible for shapeshifting and killing."

"Since the killer might be a superhuman, we can also infer that the one causing the accident is too. After all, precisely pouring water outside the dashcam and camera range isn't something ordinary people can do. So these two superhumans: one can control water, one can shapeshift into beasts..."

Shiler stopped. Victor looked at him and asked: "What's wrong?"

"Although I didn't see signs of venting inside the van, I think the body's posture also carries some meaning. Nor do I rule out the possibility of humans disguising as beasts to commit the crime." Shiler shifted his tone, then said, "The claw marks on the chest, especially the attack on the lungs, seem intentional. The footprints under the van are also special, looking deliberately left. Together they form something ritual-like..."

Victor's eyes lit up instantly, then he said: "Could it be an old-style murder case?!"

"Perhaps."

After saying that, Shiler glanced at Victor and then said: "Why don't you remember?"

Victor was stunned for a moment, then said: "Sorry, I got lost in thought. But I feel it's better to hear the full reasoning before writing..."

"There is no full reasoning left; this is all of it."

"Why?" Victor asked, "You already reasoned out superhumans earlier? As long as you also reason out the motive, the killer would be clear as day."

Shiler extended a hand and pressed it on Victor's shoulder, then said: "I know you lost your student, and that makes you sad."

"Uh, thanks for the comfort, I'm feeling better."

"I mean, you just lost your student, so don't let me lose mine too."

Victor watched Shiler's departing back, feeling somewhat inexplicable.

Police had already set up the cordon. Gordon crossed the cordon, looked at Victor, and asked: "What does the great detective say? Can I see your notes?"

Victor handed over his notebook, then roughly repeated Shiler's words, and said: "He thinks this is a classic old-style murder case. The other party might want to fake a beast attack to show some meaning..."

Victor said this and then stopped. Gordon looked at him, then said: "What meaning?"

"Nothing, just pretend I didn't say it."

Victor gave him a fake smile, then also slipped away. Sitting in the car, he let out a long sigh, looking at Shiler and saying: "My good lord. I just got into Holmes, and then a case like the Baskerville Hound appears. Doesn't that make me the prime suspect?! Good thing I ran fast!"

Shiler glanced at him, then said: "Can you do that?"

"Of course! Turning water into ice is my specialty!" Victor widened his eyes and said, "Once I clear up the cause of the accident, my suspicion will be great. You gotta help me with an alibi!"

Then he said somewhat despairingly: "Am I really too gentle, that everyone wants to frame me?!"

"Probably true," Shiler said, "If anyone angers you, you'll freeze all of Gotham. That guarantees no one dares to provoke you."

"No, I can't do that." Victor gritted his teeth for a long time before saying, "After Nora wakes up, the days are the happiest of my life. Especially after Gotham dawns, we feel like we've returned to when we first started dating. And we have Billy; I couldn't possibly destroy this beautiful life with my own hands. This is absolutely out of the question."

"There's gain and loss," Shiler said, "If you want to play a good husband, good father, good teacher, you naturally have to deal with those who want to bully honest people. But with me providing your alibi, this case won't involve you at all."

"Thank heaven." Victor sighed deeply, leaning back in the chair, then said, "Actually, the key lies in the traces left by that ferocious beast. Although I can turn water into ice, and dense ice is sharp enough, I myself am just an ordinary person and can't get onto the van. Even if I wanted to commit a crime, I could only break in violently. This point doesn't make sense."

"Your earlier reasoning about superhumans is sound. Such superhumans should be rare, and Brainiac surely knows—Brainiac, are you there?"

"... I should not be."

"What?"

"I mean, I'm busy counting Gotham's mutant stray dogs."

"You think mutant stray dogs did it?"

"There's a certain possibility."

"But why would mutant stray dogs target Pelota?"

"I'm checking whether she has any suspicion of animal cruelty."

"What nonsense is this?" Victor said, "Obviously we should start with superhumans. Are you mentally confused? Mrs. Brainiac?"

"I'm unmarried, thanks. But I've recently been following Superbody. I'm thinking what gift to give her for Christmas."

"Oh, really? If there's good news, you must tell us first. I've never attended an electronic life's wedding... Brainiac! Can't you do some real work!"

"Alright, Victor. Don't you think we have a more important problem to solve right now?" Shiler stopped typing, put his phone away, and said.

"What problem?"

Shiler pointed at the sky. Victor glanced at his watch. It was already 8:20, but the sky remained pitch black, showing no sign of lightening.

?? Some people say Victor being a scientist writing books feels off, but actually, in comics, the Iceman's favorite thing to do is freeze Batman and then chat with him about art, philosophy, and life ideals—on the surface he's a science guy, but deep down he's a literary youth.