Tang Qi sat down and waited for a while before Chief Stanna came over.
However, by this time, the stern expression on her face had softened a lot, at least her gaze towards Tang Qi was not as sharp. She must have taken this time to understand Tang Qi's current situation from the principal.
Having just lost his parents, and being a slender teenager, how could he possibly be the murderer?
"Tang Qi, right? I was too stern just now. I hope I didn't scare you."
"You can relax. I just have a few questions to ask you. It's routine inquiry, nothing else. Everyone who was at the school last night will go through this investigation."
"Then let's begin."
It must be said, once the stern demeanor is retracted, Chief Stanna is indeed a mature woman with great affinity and quite beautiful.
Whether by the aesthetics of this world or those of the Previous Earth, she is a stunning beauty, especially her tall figure which makes one regret that she should have been a model instead.
If it were the original soul, facing such a gentle and mature big sister, he would probably be shy and excited, spilling all the beans.
Unfortunately, it is now Tang Qi.
Watching the female chief sitting in front of him, opening a small notebook, ready to begin the routine questioning, Tang Qi didn't wait for her to ask her first question. He slowly raised his tightly wrapped arm, casually pulled with the other hand, and untied the bandages.
Soon, Tang Qi's wound that was healing well but still horrifying appeared in front of Stanna.
Of course, an upsetting wound like that couldn't scare a female chief. Stanna grabbed a passing forensic scientist on the scene, whispered to them for a moment, and then the forensic immediately examined Tang Qi's wound.
Not long after, the forensic re-bandaged Tang Qi and then reported the findings and conclusions to Stanna.
Before leaving, the forensic also kindly reminded Tang Qi, "Kid, if you've been bitten by a dog, especially so severely, it's better to get vaccinated for rabies as soon as possible. Doing so within twenty-four hours would be safer."
The forensic's conclusion essentially proved Tang Qi's innocence.
After all, a person with such a severe arm injury couldn't possibly have skinned four teenage girls alive at dawn.
She accepted the kind intentions; if he were still an ordinary person, he would actually worry about rabies. But now, as long as Tang Qi wishes, he could always check his own state.
Moreover, the primal herbs from the Saha Continent seemed to be very effective.
Although he was completely out of suspicion, Tang Qi still had to go through the routine inquiry, but this time, Chief Stanna's expression was completely eased, and occasionally she even revealed a couple of very stunning smiles.
The interrogation was underway when suddenly, another commotion ensued.
Both of them looked towards the source, only to see a girl anxiously breaking through the police cordon, hurrying toward them, with several policemen unable to keep up for a moment.
"Tang Qi, how are you? Are you alright?"
"Lady, I can vouch for Tang Qi, he's my friend. He walked me home last night and he definitely has nothing to do with this case..."
"Ugh~"
Clearly, Sally arrived a bit late and was a bit rushed, not yet understanding what had happened here.
She was anxious to testify for Tang Qi, and unwittingly turned her head to see everything inside the room. Although the bodies had been removed, the solidified black blood on the bed and the floor was still enough to be horrifying and upsetting, causing Sally to throw up on the spot.
Poor girl, it was her first time witnessing such a powerful scene.
If nothing unexpected, she might have nightmares tonight.
However, her interruption had actually imparted quite a favorable impression of both Tang Qi and Sally to Chief Stanna.
It seemed that these were just two plain high school students.
The previous doubts, due to professional conduct, softened after understanding the situation, which was quite normal.
After Sally felt better, Stanna then took them away from the scene before turning back to continue the investigation.
She hadn't been in the position of chief of Messer City Police Station for long, and she encountered such a thorny and vicious case as soon as she took office. She was somewhat overwhelmed and on edge.
Besides the horrific nature of the case, the location was also too delicate.
Saint Thorn High School has an extraordinary status in Messer City, although the families of the four cheerleaders who died could only be said to be well-off, not to the extent that the police station can't afford to provoke them.
But the other students might not be the same.
Many people here are either rich or of high social status.
Handling this case poorly might not only spell the end of the case being solved, but she might also lose her position first.
Why is that?
This atrocious case was handed to her, a newcomer, because none of the seasoned detectives would touch it.
However, these "external factors" were not the main cause of her headache. What truly troubled Chief Stanna about this case was its complexity.
In a single night, the skin of four girls in the prime of their youth was flayed off without making a sound, unnoticed by students in the neighboring rooms. This alone spoke volumes of the murderer's terrifying proficiency.
What's most incredible is that not a single clue was left at the scene.
No fingerprints, hair, footprints... nothing at all, not even biological evidence like sweat.
In Chief Stanna's decade plus career in law enforcement, she had never encountered such a killer.
Although she's an outstanding policewoman, she had a feeling that this adversary might far surpass anything she could imagine.
After sending Tang Qi and Sally beyond the police tape, Chief Stanna turned back, frowning.
At this moment, Tang Qi, just having stepped outside the cordoned area, paused and his gaze flickered, pondering something before swiftly making a decision.
Tang Qi turned to face Chief Stanna, a trace of "hesitation" fleeting across his face, but he spoke up nevertheless: "Chief Stanna, have you ever heard of 'Venus' Kiss'?"
"Ah?"
Chief Stanna was momentarily startled by Tang Qi's words, tried to recall what he mentioned, then shook her head.
"It's a minor game, similar to 'Bloody Mary', not popular in the Divine Eagle Federation, but origination and widely played in the Anglo Kingdom within the Europe Alliance, a pastime for young girls during the boring late hours, a game about fear and beauty."
"The rule is..."
Tang Qi paused here.
At this point, something seemed to dawn on Chief Stanna and she grew solemn.
Indeed, as Tang Qi continued, her entire body tensed, goosebumps formed, and her scalp tingled.
Tang Qi was equally serious, casting a distant gaze towards the busy room as he spoke: "Venus is a symbol of love and beauty. Legend says that receiving her kiss grants eternal beauty and the sincerest of love."
"This delightful little game dictates that the girl must be stripped naked, lying on the bed on her side, surrounded by red rose petals, and must wear a floral crown upon her head. Beside her, a seashell filled with deep blue seawater must be placed."
"If the ritual is successful, the one who summoned it will receive Venus' blessing—beauty and sincere love."
"If the ritual fails, the summoner will pay with her looks and lifespan, becoming older and uglier."
"Of course, this is just a trivial game."
"Venus... perhaps, does not exist."
"Hiss~"
Every word Tang Qi spoke, Chief Stanna's heartbeat intensified.
Without any need for further explanation, Sally by her side was also showing a face of horror and admiration.
Leaving admiration aside, the horror was easy to understand.
Because at that moment, inside the opened doorway, an exact scene as described by Tang Qi laid bare.
As a police officer with excellent memory, Chief Stanna knew without looking back that the layout on each girl's bed within that room, matched Tang Qi's description without any discrepancy.
Chief Stanna, at this point, was both surprised and excited.
A case that seemed intractable might find a breakthrough due to Tang Qi's words.
Yet Chief Stanna's imagination was clearly not enough; the truly significant breakthrough was in Tang Qi's following words.
"As I understand it, to complete this little game, the key prop is that seashell. According to the rules, it must be a shell from the Aegean Sea, and while it's not rare, it's unlikely the four girls could have found an authentic one on such short notice."
"So..."
The answer revealed, Tang Qi didn't elaborate further.
Just as Chief Stanna, excited, was about to turn around, he gave another reminder: "Chief Stanna, someone capable of a heinous crime like this must be terrifying. If possible, when capturing him, try not to give him a chance to counterattack or escape."
Chief Stanna may or may not have taken this last advice to heart. After hastily responding with an 'okay', the decisive and beautiful chief hurried back to the crime scene, heading straight for the four abnormal seashells lying quietly beside the bed, filled with deep blue seawater.