Chapter Twelve: Killer Testimony

"How's Wright's condition?" Edgeworth peered over the top of the file marked 'Blue Star Train Personnel' when Maya slipped through the crack in the doorframe into the makeshift office Ema had arranged for his use. "Has he improved at all?"

"Not so you'd notice." Maya shut the door behind her and clicked it into place. "Dr. Bolysm shoved him into an MRI and it turns out Nick's got a herniated disc that's going to town on his back. Dr. Bolysm's decided to keep him comfortable with some muscle relaxers until she can get him scheduled in for a surgery either at the Fey clinic or another hospital, depending on, and I quote 'wherever she can bully a surgeon into doing it the quickest'."

"I had no idea Wright's back was in such disrepair." said Edgeworth, slightly perturbed at how precarious Wright's health had become. Aging was a tightrope walk at best, but he never expected someone as tenacious as Wright to suffer from such a parlous affliction.

"Nor did he." said Maya unhappily. "Nick didn't like the idea of going under the knife and said as much, but after seeing the results, I don't think there's an option now. It's really bad."

"How bad, precisely?"

"I don't think you want to know the details. It's pretty gross."

"I assure you I will live."

"Well... alright. If you say so. Imagine, if you will, a jelly donut that's been squished flat by a jackboot, all of it's fruity goo squirting out of its body like a squashed bug on the windshield of a van going ninety-"

"Alright, that's enough." What remained of Edgeworth's appetite fled for the hills. "You may cease your description."

"See? I told you it was gross." Maya rested her hand against her cheek. "You're lucky you only heard the second hand story. I got the play-by-play analysis from Dr. Bolysm. I have to hand it to Nick, though. Even with his nasty back being the way it is, he still wanted to come back and help us out with this case. He said it was pointless to just stick around when he could be out doing something useful for the investigation."

"His tenacity is commendable."

"Yeah, and highly unpopular with Dr. Bolysm. So, now he's in a coma, drooling on his shirt. Serum number 16 strikes again."

"He'll be out of commission for a while, then." Edgeworth readjusted the papers in his hands and resumed reading them. "I just hope I wasn't nearly that undignified while under the influences of that sedative."

"You weren't much better, but you weren't wearing a shirt at the time, so there wasn't anywhere for the saliva to soak." said Maya. "So, what's that you're reading?"

"Some supplementary material I requested." said Edgeworth. "The detective is going to bring the other materials I need in order to makes sense of this case soon, so I'm keeping myself occupied for the time being with the personnel records for the train staff."

"Does that mean you have an idea on what's going on, then?" Maya asked curiously. "A lead on our culprit?"

"I have a theory I'm following, but I'm not going to adhere myself to anything just yet until all the facts have been accounted for." Edgeworth set down one paper and picked up the next. "The crime scene investigation is completed, but I've yet to conduct the majority of the interviews and I'm just now going over the reports from the forensic analysis, so it's still too relatively early to say."

"Well, at least that's something. The forensics team looked positively exhausted when I saw them leaving the crime scene. Frankly, I'm amazed they still had any oomph left in them to process it after they dragged Nick up that staircase. He's not what I'd call a heavy hitter on the scales, but dead weight is still dead weight. Even carrying around a little kid that's out for the count isn't a walk in the park."

"It's no wonder to me why they are all enervated. Everyone has been working around the clock with the double homicide, not to mention the incident at the Prosecutors' office, so they were bound to become bereft of energy sooner or later. That's why I told them to wrap up their investigation and resume it in the morning."

"What about you?"

"What about me?" Edgeworth glanced up from the file.

"Aren't you going to stop for the night too?" asked Maya. "It's gotten pretty late and you just got out of the hospital. If you push yourself too hard, you'll get sick and then you'll join Nick and Pearly in the clinic and I doubt Dr. Bolysm will just let you leave."

"There's work to be done, so no. I have no intention of stopping now." Edgeworth reached for the second file, this one entitled 'Train Scene Forensic Results' and flipped it open. "I'm well versed in this sort of workload, so I know my limits. If you feel the need to henpeck someone, you'd do better to focus your efforts on Wright. He's the one currently at the mercy of the doctor, who appears to have taken a shine to him. I wonder about his safety."

"Oh, pssh. He'll be alright." Maya stretched her arms behind her back and smiled. "Dr. Bolysm likes to talk a good game, but she only ruffles feathers for her own twisted amusement. This isn't a case of Oldbag syndrome. She was just teasing him."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Dr. Bolysm's a happily married lady and has been for ages." Maya snagged a chair from the corner of the sitting room and dragged it over to the desk. "She's actually one of the only Fey ladies whose marriage worked out. Mind you, it was the second one, but it lasted, so who can really scoff? She also takes great pride in her work, so professionalism trumps a good laugh every time. Nick'll be just fine under her care. So, what's next on the agenda for tonight?"

"Mostly paperwork and interviews, but why do you ask?" Edgeworth raised a questioning brow. "As you already pointed out, the hour is waning fast. Shouldn't you be retiring for the evening?"

"If you're going to stay up, then so will I." Maya squished the chair right next to his, sat down, and craned her neck around his arm so she could see the file in his hands. "You're only in this mess because I asked you to help me out and it wouldn't be very fair of me to just ditch you to do all the dirty work on your own."

"You needn't bother with that. I can handle this on my own." Edgeworth pursed his mouth into a thin line; he couldn't see the document with her head in the way.

"I didn't say you couldn't. However, I am going to lend a hand so it's finished faster and everybody can get some sleep, which you and I both need. So, I'm very sorry to have to break it to you, but you're just going to have to deal." Maya unapologetically gave his arm a pat. "Besides, what kind of person would I be if I just left you to tackle all this on your own?"

"A typical one." Edgeworth gently pushed the side of her head out of his line of sight with two fingers.

"Tch, who ever said I was typical?" perked Maya, who didn't seem at all fussed at being maneuvered out of the way. "Okay, let's get started. What's the evidence say about the train car? Did you get anything new from the crime scene?"

"Yes, but I highly doubt you are going to like it. If you will direct your attention here," Edgeworth underlined several lines of text on the forms with the same two fingers he'd used to remove her head from in between his view and the papers. "I ordered a complete analysis of the oxygen canisters you and Detective Skye found earlier in the train's storage compartment, and a series of fingerprints were lifted from them and then identified-"

"Really? Score." Maya punched the air. "That's means we're one step closer to the killer-"

"If you would let me finish, the prints were found to belong to Pearl Fey, so you may wish to retract your previous statement."

Maya's sunny expression instantly grew grim.

"Pearly's prints?"

"Yes." Edgeworth indicated the report again. "Pearl's fingerprints were found on the canisters in the train car. We also found them on the door to the storage closet, inside the storage compartment and all over the train compartment itself. Why, no one can say for certain, but there's no mistaking the prints are Pearl's. I've had them checked thrice."

"That's really strange." Maya's brows creased worriedly as she mulled over the documents in his hand while her chin rested on his forearm. "What about the lighter found in the vent? Were her prints on that, too?"

"Pearl's prints were not found on that in particular, though an unidentified print was present on what remained of the lighter." Edgeworth closed the file with the hand attached to the arm that didn't have Maya's head weighing it in place. "I think I may have figured out to whom that belongs, but the mounting evidence suggests that Pearl was inside the train compartment before it exploded and had something to do with the empty canisters. That much we cannot deny."

"You don't actually suspect Pearly, do you?" Maya lifted her head off of his arm. "Pearly can't even squish bugs. She wouldn't kill anyone-"

"The facts as they stand point to Pearl being a suspect." said Edgeworth curtly. "As far as we know because I haven't had the chance to interview her, she doesn't have an alibi for the time of the train compartment going up in flames, nor does she have one for when Mrs. Voyant died, and she was found at the scene of the second murder. She had the opportunity to commit both crimes."

"She doesn't have a motive or means, though." rebuked Maya. "Don't you need three things for it to be a match? We don't know what the murder weapon was yet, so who can say if she had the means, and name one motive Pearly would have to murder Mrs. Voyant or anybody on that train. I can't think of a single reason why she would do such a thing, and unless you can figure out a reason why, that ship won't sail past the first day in court."

True to her point, Edgeworth couldn't come up with a motive that might have driven Pearl over the brink, but even without a motive, the evidence spoke volumes.

A knock at the door, however, broke them out of their discussion.

"Enter." Edgeworth put the file down on the desk and looked at Maya warningly, who nodded and promptly ceased their conversation for another time.

Once given the go ahead, the door opened to admit Phil the junior doctor.

"Hi, Phil." Maya greeted the junior doctor in as friendly a manner as she could muster, though the circumstances of their last meeting had been nothing short of shocking. "How's Pearly doing? Is she going to be okay?"

"Miss Pearl'll be fine." Phil said stiffly. "She's a bit groggy from being clocked on the head, but she'll pull through alright. I stitched her up and now she's resting up safe and sound just like your boy the porcupine."

"Oh, that's such a relief." Maya exhaled gratefully. "Thank you so much, Phil. I don't know what I would've done if something'd happened to Pearly. I really owe you one. You'll let me know when I can go see her, won't you?"

"... yeah." Phil absently fidgeted with the bracelet on his wrist. "She's lucky, in any case. If she'd been hit just a little differently, I don't know if she'd have made it. However, until she wakes up, I can't allow any visitors. It's for her safety, so I hope you understand."

"I gotcha. I'm just happy she'll be okay. She's really fortunate you got there when you did, Phil." praised Maya. "Who knows what could've happened had you not been there."

"Yeah... who knows."

"Phil, is something wrong? You're not acting like yourself." Maya's eyes narrowed. "What's the matter?"

"I'm just tired." Phil ran a hand over his face. "It's been a long day, that's all. I'm not as young as I used to be and it's taking its toll." Edgeworth snorted. That was putting things mildly. The junior doctor's broad shoulders drooped slackly against his body, his scrubs were smeared with bloodstains that likely belonged to Pearl, his white coat was ripped, and his handsome face was drawn into a careworn scowl.

"Phil, you're twenty five. That's hardly old." Maya said in a bid to cheer him up. "Hey, do you want to talk about it? I've got the time if you do."

"Nah, I'm good." Phil angled Edgeworth with a contemptuous look, but didn't speak further.

"Then, is there something else you need, Doctor?" Edgeworth inquired placidly; had he done something in particular to warrant the doctor's ire? "Or have you just decided to stand there as part of the decor?"

Phil's scowl deepened and he shoved a hand into his white coat's pocket.

"Yeah. The autopsy report for Mrs. Voyant came back and I was told to deliver it." He fished out the envelope and handed it to Maya. "I'm running errands on top of everything else, so here you go. Use it, burn it, eat it, I don't care. Just take it."

"Phil... are you sure you're alright?" Maya handed the file off to Edgeworth.

"I'm fine, Mystic Maya." Phil attempted one of his cheeky grins from earlier, but ended up just looking gassy. "You don't need to fuss over little ol' me, so I'll just let you get back to doing whatever it was you were and-"

"If that's the case, Doctor, then I require something of you." Edgeworth skimmed the new file and set it down on the desk.

"And what's that?" Phil's yellow eyes flashed in his direction. "I've got a lot to get back to, so can we be quick about this? I haven't got time to play right now."

"I need to speak with you."

"What about?"

"I am in the process of drawing testimonies from witnesses about the crime and you are a witness."

"How'd you figure that?" Phil demanded coldly.

"Other than the young lady named Mercy, you were the first one at the scene. As such, you could have seen something of note that may shed light on the truth of this case." Edgeworth pointed at him. "So, I need to speak with you on the matter and get an official statement. Surely if Pearl is in such stable condition, you can spare us a few minutes of your time to clear the story surrounding Mrs. Voyant's death."

Phil's scowl shifted from contemptuous to downright unpleasant.

"No."

Edgeworth stared at him.

"I beg your pardon?"

"I said no. Nope. Nada. Not doing it. Too bad. So sorry, but not really." Phil chirped flippantly. "Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some patients that need tending. See ya."

He then strode to the door, pulled it open with one swift yank, and left.

"Well, that went well." Maya stated once the door slammed shut. "And here I thought your issues with witnesses stopped with just getting them to say their names and occupations- Mr. Edgeworth, if you keep up that frowning, birds are going to nest in those furrows."

"Maya," Edgeworth reached under his glasses and pressed firmly on the sore spots cored into the bridge of his nose by the nose pads. "I need his testimony. Is there any way you can think of that would get him to cooperate that doesn't involve me having his hide arrested for obstruction of justice and all around jackassery?"

"There's always Dr. Bolysm." Maya suggested. "I can call her and see what she can do."

"Good. Please do that, then. I would like to solve this case while avoiding snippiness if at all possible. Simply put, I'm not in the mood."

"That doesn't shock me. Hey, Mr. Edgeworth... you aren't really going to have Pearly arrested, are you?"

Edgeworth briefly stopped rubbing at the marks on his nose and glanced at her from the corner of his eye.

"Maya, I cannot turn a blind eye to the facts, even if they point me in a direction you find distasteful. Justice isn't something one gets to edit to suit themselves. Doing so is how people become like Von Karma. However, until I have all the facts of this case, I am not going to issue an indictment. That would be acting rashly and I like to have my facts verified before I pursue an arrest."

"You also don't want to arrest Pearly because Nick'd take on the case in a heartbeat and you'd lose in about five minutes."

Edgeworth didn't reply.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." smiled Maya. "Okay, so if Phil's not yet roped into this rodeo, who's next on the interview list?"

"I have issued a summons for our first interviewee, but you may wish to leave the room during that time." said Edgeworth. "In fact, this might be a prime time for you to make that call to the doctor."

"What? Why?" Maya's cheek puffed out.

"It may become uncomfortable for you to witness."

Before Maya got the chance to ask what he meant by that, the door knocked again.

"Enter." said Edgeworth.

The door swung open, but this time it didn't admit Phil the uncooperative junior doctor.

"Mr. Edgeworth." 'Mr. Doe' bowed to Edgeworth and then did the same to Maya. "Miss Fey. I was requested to come to this place for an interview concerning the events of today and last night. Is that correct?"

"Yes, it is. Please, come in." Edgeworth beckoned him inside and gestured for him to take a seat in the chair before the ancient desk he'd claimed as his own. "Have a seat and we will get this underway."

"I do not see why this warrants further discussion." 'Doe' shut the door behind him and did as Edgeworth instructed. "I have already given my statement about what happened during the train station explosion that occurred last night, and I don't believe that I left anything of particular import out of my disclosure."

"I will be the judge of that." Edgeworth replied coolly. "Now then, let us drop this charade and get right down to brass tacks."

"I do not understand what you mean, Mr. Edgeworth." said Doe.

"Oh, but I think you do." Edgeworth rested his forearms on the desktop and steepled his fingers. "Before we begin, I must let you know that there are no recording devices of any kind in this room, nor do I have any plans to disclose you who truly are to the police at this time."

Doe's eyebrows lifted a millimeter.

"What makes you so generous today, Mr. Chief Prosecutor?" asked Doe.

"Yeah, what makes you so generous?" whispered Maya.

"I know for a fact you are not responsible for the slaying of Mrs. Voyant, nor the train attendant, and therefore, in this case, you are a witness and nothing more." said Edgeworth. "As a witness, I need to speak to the real you, not the facade from behind which you are operating. You cannot speak freely without arousing suspicion in a regular environment, and, in this instance, I am willing to bend the rules in order to gain the information I seek."

"You're bending the rules?" Maya gaped at him, almost a little impressed. "You?"

"Trust me, I take no pleasure in doing so and I'm not overly fond of myself right now." said Edgeworth. "Now then, Mr. Doe. Shall we dispense with the masquerade and get on with things?"

Though he had about as many facial expressions as a protagonist in a romance film aimed at lovelorn teenagers, Mr. Doe didn't look remotely convinced.

"What of your prior accusations of my dealings with the train station incident? You were quite quick to place the blame on my head, if you recall."

"I realized upon my search of the sword chamber that no card bearing a shell insignia was left at the scene of the murder. Had the killing been your doing, you would not have left without placing one to shift the blame away from your clients." said Edgeworth. "I suppose it's possible you were the culprit behind the train explosion and if there had been a card, it would have been burnt to a crisp, thus leaving no trace of your having been there, but, then again, if the culprit had been you, I doubt you would have reported the incident to the authorities so promptly. Implicating yourself at the scene when you were still there would be uncharacteristic of your known past methods of operation, not to mention highly stupid, which you are distinctly not."

"A discerning man to the last degree." said Doe.

"So, that leads me to the conclusion that as of yet, you have not dispatched anyone here at all. As for why you should trust me, I give you my word that as long as no murders that occurred here have been your doing, I shall keep my peace." Edgeworth inwardly swallowed down a vitriolic, self imposed lecture for this, but he had no choice but to bargain. "However, this agreement only lasts for the duration of this case. Do not expect such clemency in the future."

As far as Edgeworth was concerned, the next time he ran into this man, his neck was the formal property of the courts, a guilty verdict, and the noose.

"Y-you might as well tell him, y'know. He's just going to find out regardless." Maya attempted to back him up, but Edgeworth caught the pronounced wobble in her voice; she was properly terrified of this man. "Mr. Edgeworth never misses a trick, so there's no p-point in trying to hide anything from him, and he doesn't lie, so you know he won't go back on his word about the lack of devices and stuff, so... so you aren't going to lose anything by just doing what he wants. There's a murderer on the loose, so it's best for everyone if we find out who it is before somebody else dies and if we focus too much time on you, well... it might happen again."

Remarkably, Doe appeared to consider her point.

"... very well. You have made a decent argument, young lady. He does indeed know much and miss little, so I suppose I shall have to lift the veil ever so slightly." said Mr. Doe. "Alright, Mr. Chief Prosecutor. You may ask your questions. I trust you. However, I still have a duty to my client that I must fulfill and I do not intend to give away the identity of the client, nor what I have promised to carry out. Also, if you go back on your word, I hope you realize that my distaste for traitors runs far deeper than most care to swim."

It was common knowledge what became of anyone whom ran afoul of this particular man's bad graces.

They became stains on the pavement within a matter of hours afterwards.

"I wouldn't make such an offer if I wasn't intent on keeping it." Despite his stomach being riddled with butterflies, Edgeworth smirked confidently, took out the notebook from his waistcoat pocket, and turned to a new page. "Now then, if the witness will state his name and occupation."

"John Doe, manju salesman."

"Your actual name and occupation, if you please." snorted Edgeworth.

"Oh, if you insist. Shelly de Killer, professional trained assassin."

"Thank you. Now then, Mr. de Killer, exactly why were you in Kurain village in the first place? Someone of your skill set is definitely out of place in a sleepy villa such as this. What caused you to travel so far out here?"

"I was called out here on business."

"I see. Please elaborate as much as you able about this 'business'."

"Very well. About two week ago, I received two requests on my website who were interested in procuring my services." said de Killer. "Upon agreeing to the terms, I came to the place specified in the perimeters of the task, which just so happened to be Kurain Village."

"What were the nature of these requests?" asked Edgeworth. "Were they standard requests that you were asked to fulfill in your line of work?"

"Yes and no." de Killer's whole body swayed slightly from side to side in thought like his ice cream cone used to do during the international incident involving the president of Zheng Fa and the death of a bodyguard. "The first one was a standard request, an assassination appeal of a fairly simple order, but the second one was not. It was... far stranger than that."

"Who was the assassination target?" Edgeworth inquired sharply.

"I never speak of the targets's identities. That would be breaking my code of trust with my clients." said de Killer. "However, it is as you said. I never fulfill a request without leaving a card to detract suspicion away from my clients, so I am not responsible for the old woman's death, nor of that of the train attendant. Still, it doesn't really matter who the target of that request was because I refused the request outright."

Edgeworth found himself taken aback.

Shelly de Killer screened his killings?

"Why?"

"I happened to be rather fond of the target, so I refused the appeal." said de Killer with an almost imperceivable smile. "Though it might shock you for you have never held such dark thoughts, I am allowed to pick and choose my clientele depending on more than just their trustworthiness. There aren't many trained assassins left for competition, so I assure you I am never short of work. I can afford to be picky."

"Well, well, who knew business was booming in the assassin industry?" Maya commented bleakly.

"It's a lucrative business in terms of the bottom line, though the means of production can make some squeamish. You would be amazed at the number of requests I receive on a monthly basis."

"No, sadly, I really wouldn't." said Edgeworth. "So, you didn't take the first request. Can I take that to mean you took the second?"

"You may." nodded de Killer.

"Then describe the nature of this second request."

De Killer thought for a minute.

"I suppose the best way to describe it would be 'odd'."

"Odd?" pressed Edgeworth. "In what way?"

"I think what struck me the most about it was that it wasn't an assassination request." de Killer said as he recalled the contents of the email.

"You weren't getting fan mail, were you?" Maya's nose wrinkled. "Because if you were, that's just creepy."

"No, no. Nothing of the sort, though I hate to say, I have in the past. People have a horrid tendency to glorify those whom they should not. It's a sad trait of human nature. In any case, the composer of the letter was merely asking of the nature of my skills offered, more specifically if all I did was assassinations. So I wrote back, explaining that while I was best known for assassinations, I've also done staged robberies, subterfuge, mutilation, disfigurement, torture, injuries, keying of cars, mangling, just to name a few of my services that they might wish to consider-"

'It's a true shame I can't use any of this against him.' Edgeworth thought bitterly to himself.

"-but for some reason, they weren't interested in those options at all. Instead, they wanted to know if I had ever protected anything before."

"Oh?" Edgeworth's interest piqued.

"The client explained they had a priceless artifact, a rare treasure of immense value and worth, nigh irreplaceable, and they needed it guarded because someone was planning to destroy it. Truthfully, I had never gotten such an innocent request before, so it intrigued me somewhat. Then, after meeting with the client and finding them to be a worthy individual that could be trusted with my services, we hashed out the terms of the deal and I agreed to protect the relic with all of my abilities."

"So you took on the job of a lionized security guard to protect an inanimate object." Edgeworth's eyebrow arched. "That sounds rather beneath you."

"Not as much as one would think. When the client introduced me to what was to be guarded, I realized immediately the full extent of the artifact's intrinsic value and why the client wanted it kept from harm. Its worth is incalculable."

"And you can't divulge what this item is?"

"Absolutely not. That would directly breach the code of trust with my client." said de Killer.

"Hmph. I see." Edgeworth glanced at Maya, who loomed just over his shoulder after she'd abandoned her chair to stand, probably, he suspected, to make herself seem bigger; her instincts were that of a puffer fish. "Maya, do you know of anything kept in Kurain Village that could warrant such a sum?"

"Nothing that I can think of off the top of my head." Maya wracked her brain for details. "The urn of Ami Fey holds a certain amount of cultural significance, but we found out upon appraisal that it's monetarily worthless ages ago."

"What else?"

"There's the statue of Ami Fey, but I doubt anybody'd really be able to do more than give it a few good dings. That statue's pretty heavy, so I don't think it'd be easy to completely destroy. There was also my, formerly extensive, 'Steel Samurai' collection, but I dunno if that counts."

Edgeworth spared her a flat look.

"I highly doubt anyone would pay a professional assassin to guard that, regardless of its value to collectors."

"You never know, people have done weirder things. However, I think on this instance, you're right. Oh, there's always the sword housing the Murdering Malice." Maya suggested suddenly. "That thing's really old and could be worth something. The hilt's inlaid with gold and silver, so that has the potential to be lucrative."

"Perhaps the client is Dr. Bolysm. She's probably the only one likely to hire someone of de Killer's clout to guard a silly sword just because of some ridiculous legend that holds no merit in reality whatsoever."

"You really didn't like that story, did you?"

"Of course not. That tale was utter rubbish." scoffed Edgeworth. "First off, if all of this happened in Japan, why is it here in the states? Secondly, if the sword is that dangerous, why is it in the village and not far away where it couldn't harm any of the villagers? Thirdly, there was a door attached to the streamers and the sword, yet not once in the story did she explain what was behind, or purported to be behind, that door. So what's behind there and why didn't she specify? I think it's all a clever tactic to keep prying eyes from snooping around what's potentially a goldmine for the right thief and nothing more, just like the case with Nine Tales Vale. Murdering Malice. Hah. What complete nonsense. I've seen Swiss cheese with fewer holes in it than that story-"

"Is there anything else you wished to ask me?" de Killer prompted. "Because time is growing short and we are all growing old, so please be on with it."

"Ah. Of course. Excuse me." Edgeworth coughed into his fist and resumed his perusal of his notebook. "So, you were hired to guard this treasure, though you will not specify what it was or who sent you. Why were you positioned outside the train station?"

"I was waiting for the package to be delivered." said de Killer. "You see, the item had not arrived in Kurain village when I was contacted and I was to observe its transferal and intervene in case anyone attempted to make a move out in the open. The client warned me of the possibility of interlopers arriving on the scene to steal or destroy it, but luckily the package was indeed parceled off to its courier fully intact."

"Who did you see while you were parked at the train station, Mr. de Killer?"

"I saw you, Mr. Edgeworth." said de Killer. "I also saw that young lady whom I mentioned, the one with the bagel-like hairstyle, greet you at the train."

"Was there anyone else of note that you saw pass you by? Anyone whom caught your attention as acting odd?"

"Actually... yes, there was. Not ten minutes after you and the young lady departed from the station, I remember seeing a strange young man lurking about the platform."

"A young man?" Maya perked up at this. "What did he look like?"

"He was fairly squatty in terms of height of a male, probably no more than 5'3, but he was rather thin, almost emaciated looking, and had the face of a pinched rat." said de Killer. "I didn't get a good look at him long because he scurried off at the first sign of a group of mediums passing by the station like a hyena having spotted a pride of lionesses coming back from a kill."

"That sounds awfully suspicious." Maya's face puckered into a scowl. "Mr. Edgeworth, did you see anybody like that when you got off the train?"

"Not that I can remember." said Edgeworth. "In fairness, I had just been cornered by an overly enthusiastic attendant and was eager to get off the train. All else eluded my notice."

"Have you seen this guy since then?" Maya shifted her attention to de Killer.

"No, he's evaded my eyes ever since, I am afraid to say." replied de Killer. "I watched for him to make his return as he struck me as suspicious, but he never did depart from the train station that night. The train station has been out of commission ever since then too, so I imagine he's still about the village somewhere. However, he definitely struck me as one who was, as they say, unhinged. I would do well to steer clear of him. He might have been one of the interlopers my client mentioned."

"I will make a note of this man and set the detective about the village to see if anyone has seen anything useful." Edgeworth jotted down the memo in the notebook. "Mr. de Killer, you previously mentioned that the last person you saw before the train car exploded was Pearl, the young lady with the hairstyle you described as 'bagel-like'. Please relate the details of that encounter."

"Around 9 pm, the young lady came by the stall for some manju. Apparently, she had been asked to get some for a friend of hers in the hospital and she was quite pleased at being useful in order to make him feel better."

Maya shot Edgeworth a pointed 'does that sound like a murderer to you?' look.

"What happened, then?" Edgeworth chose to ignore her.

"She paid for the manju and left." said de Killer. "I did not expect her to return, but an hour later, I saw her again."

"Did she buy more manju?" asked Maya.

"No. I initially thought she would, but she didn't even spare my cart a second glance. She seemed very bound and determined by her brisk stance, and I expected she was probably late for her train."

"What made you think she was traveling?" queried Edgeworth. "It was a bit late to be going on a long term excursion, wasn't it?"

"That's what I thought at first. However, judging from the size of her backpack, it looked as though she was either stowing away on an adventure, or running away from home."

"She was carrying a backpack, you said?" Edgeworth wrote down some more notes in shorthand. "What kind? Was it a rucksack for hostelers, or was it more of a leather child's school pack?"

"It looked like a camping bag, big, large, orange and heavy. I remember being stunned at how strong the young lady must've been, being able to lug around something of that size."

"Did you get a good look at her face?" Maya suddenly pressed.

"No, I didn't. She was at the far side of the train station's platform and it was rather dark that night, so I didn't see her very well, but I recognized the outfit and the hairstyle. It's quite memorable, to say the minimum."

"When did you see her come back out?" asked Edgeworth.

"Around ten thirty."

"Did she have the backpack with her?"

"Actually... no. No, she did not." de Killer idly scratched at his mustaches. "I thought it strange that she didn't have it with her, but I surmised that she either had forgotten something pressing for her trip, or she was just running an errand for someone on the train. She did seem like an agreeable sort of girl, and she'd already been seen once before running errands for others when she purchased some manju for her friend, so it didn't seem out of the realm of possibility."

"No... it isn't at all." Maya bit her lip. "Pearly always wants to help out whenever she can. She never says 'no' to anybody."

"I desperately wish she did." Edgeworth pinched the bridge of his nose. "Thank you, Mr. de Killer, you have provided some definite insight into the matter at the train station. You are free to go."

"Thank you." de Killer removed himself from the chair. "And our bargain still is upheld, I trust."

"Of course." Edgeworth acknowledged. "I am a man of my word."

Even when he didn't want to be.

"As am I." said de Killer. "Now, if you will excuse me, I need to close up shop for the night. The manju ingredients won't last without being properly stored."

"You've gotta hand it to him." Maya whispered to Edgeworth. "When he picks a role to hide behind, he stays committed to it."

"Also, I have a word of advice for you, Mr. Edgeworth."

"Oh? And what would that be?" Edgeworth regarded de Killer as the assassin turned confectioner strode to the door and grasped the handle.

"I heard you refer to a tale a woman of this village told you as 'rubbish'. While I understand why you would come to this conclusion, immediate dismissal without thorough analysis is an unfortunate method of thinking that could potentially cause future problems. Don't dismiss anything too prematurely, for even in the most outrageous of lies, a nugget of truth may yet be found." de Killer almost smiled as he pulled the door open. "Though you are free to do as you wish. For after all, what do I know? I am but a simple manju salesman."

(A/N- Hey, everyone! Okay, so I've got a lot to cover down here. First off, thank you all so much for all the love and support you've shown my fic with your reviews and comments and likes and favorites and what have you. I wanted to post this chapter earlier, but I ended up contracting a mild fever and was down and out for a few days, but it seems to be receding somewhat, so that's where I was in case anyone was wondering where I'd wandered. Also, a little bit ago, I was surfing through the internet looking for MitsuMayo inspiration pictures for my plot bubbles so I could think and found, to my astonishment, that you guys had drawn fan art for my story. I'm not on any of those sites, so randomly coming across something specifically designed with my story in mind was more than a little shocking to me, but it was a happy shock, so thank you, I loved the fan art. I really like everyone's blogs, too, even if I don't post there.

Also, to the person who bought me those kofis on my page, thank you so much! I wasn't sure about the etiquette regarding these things, since I am a bit of a goober when it comes to the finer points of internet society, so I figured I'd just say something on here so it would reach out properly.

So, in short, you guys are amazing, I think your blogs are fantastic and thank you so much for everything! It really means the world to me that you're all enjoying this so much. And, as always, thank you for reading and please review!)