Pokémon Detective: Cynthia Forces Me to Adopt a Pokémon

Chapter 312 Poisoning - The Bizarre and Tragic Murder of the Corpse

"It is clear that the prisoner died from poisoning."

The cramped single-room rental room was filled with an unbearable stench of decay.

After donning a disposable protective suit, a mask, and shoe covers as usual, and using a plastic head covering to prevent hair from falling out, Ms. Joey opened the deceased's eyelids to check the pupils while explaining to the officers present—

"Judging from rigor mortis and body temperature, this person died approximately ten to twelve hours ago. In other words, he was poisoned last night."

The poisoner died from poisoning; is there a more ironic way to die?

The toxicologist closed the deceased's eyes, stood up, faced the head of the investigation team, and said—

"This is clearly a case of poisoning for two reasons. First, the deceased's face was severely distorted and deformed, and the pupils were paralyzed and dilated. Moreover, the furniture and items in the room were in disarray, which was very likely caused by uncoordinated convulsions of the limbs. This is a typical manifestation of muscle loss after acute poisoning. Second, the deceased had nosebleeds before death, and his face was purplish-black, indicating that his blood circulation was also impaired at the time of death."

"My initial assessment is that this death was caused by a combination of blood-circulating toxins or neurotoxins. However, to determine the specific type of toxin, we need to collect blood samples and analyze them in a laboratory. Of course, it would be even better if we could obtain the residual raw materials of the toxin directly."

"So, Miss Joey, is it possible that the toxin that killed this suspect is the same as the insecticide spray toxin detected in the discarded medical supplies?"

The simultaneous appearance of two poisons in one case was truly bizarre. But out of caution, the head of the investigation team, despite feeling the chances were slim, still asked to confirm.

Joey chuckled through his mask—

"The difference between that childish poison and the poison that killed this person is like night and day, even greater than the difference between a Wishiwashi and a Wailord. Based on my experience, this is clearly a highly potent poison concocted using the venom of one or more Poison-type Pokémon. Furthermore, the poison maker likely made specific modifications to the human body to increase its lethality and success rate..."

"The only problem right now is that we can't figure out how this deadly poison got into the victim's body. There didn't seem to be any food or containers used to ingest the poison at the scene. Were they taken away by the poisoner who arrived later?"

"There's one last question I have to ask—do you have any other forensic doctors in your police station? I'm not a professional in this field, so we need more people to carefully examine the deceased for any injection marks such as needle marks."

"Of course there's a forensic pathologist. We've already notified the coroner from the bureau; they're about a ten-minute drive away. But the sooner we start collecting evidence at the scene, the better. I'm really grateful for your help, Ms. Joey."

The officer sincerely thanked Miss Joey.

"Don't worry about it. Consider it an apology for the mistake made by the Poison Skull Frog back then. He was careless and almost misled your investigation."

Joey shook his head in response, then casually asked—

"Speaking of crime scene investigation, did Officer Jenny and the detective find anything?"

"This rental house was searched yesterday."

Officer Jenny's voice rang out behind the toxicology expert.

"The victim's suitcase and workbench showed signs of being ransacked. Someone took away all of the deceased's documents and electronic devices, as well as all the raw materials related to the insecticide spray toxin—in addition, there are no Poké Balls containing Pokémon in the room now, which were likely also taken away by that uninvited guest."

"So, this deceased person might not necessarily be the real culprit who poisoned the area around Feiyun City, but rather a scapegoat killed by the real criminal?"

The search team leader scrutinized the new criminal investigator, who was highly regarded by the chief, and asked with a frown.

“No, I don’t think so,” Officer Jenny replied decisively.

"The victim could not possibly be innocent. Previous investigations have clearly shown that although the deceased's identity is unknown, he did frequently travel to and from the vicinity of Feiyun City in the days leading up to the poisoning incident. Furthermore, the landlord of this rented house had already confirmed the suspect's appearance before the arrest operation began, confirming that it was indeed the deceased from this area. Therefore, I believe that the experimental equipment and empty syringes found here are undoubtedly the personal belongings of the poisoner—which means that the victim who rented the house from the beginning must be the real culprit in the poisoning cases around Feiyun City."

"Oh, have you found the empty syringes and chemical containers?"

"Yes, some of them still had water stains. If tested, they would likely contain the same substance as the aerosol toxin. The person who ransacked the rental house didn't seem to be targeting this stuff."

"That makes sense. But the situation is now much more complicated."

The officer narrowed his eyes, nodded hesitantly, but still pressed for more information—

"So, have you considered the possibility that the deceased had a dispute with his accomplices, which led to his poisoning?"

Officer Jenny thought for a moment and then analyzed the situation logically—

"This room was used by the deceased as a workshop for preparing poisons, but judging from the signs of habitation, it doesn't seem like two people ever lived there. Moreover, the investigation into the poisoning incident has only identified the deceased as the only suspicious and dangerous individual. If the deceased had a human accomplice, then this accomplice neither participated in the poisoning process nor in the act of distributing the poison... Although this possibility can be considered, it is still a bit low."

“I understand what you mean, it makes a lot of sense. It is a bit far-fetched to assume that the intruders who raided the scene were accomplices in the poisoning incident. The two cases cannot be so simply linked.”

The officer was convinced by Officer Jenny's logic and nodded in agreement with an appreciative look on his face.

At this moment, Miss Joy, who had been silent for some time, suddenly spoke up—

"Are you saying that the identity of this deceased person is still unknown?"

"Yes. This person rented the house using a false identity a month ago. Before that, his identity and whereabouts were completely unknown, as if this poisoner appeared out of thin air. We initially suspected that he might belong to Team Plasma, but poisoning elves without a purpose doesn't seem like something that organization would do. On the contrary, the poisoner who killed the poisoner seems more like someone from that side..."

The chief investigator looked at Joey: "Have you discovered any clues?"

"There are no clues or anything like that," Miss Joey said with a shrug.

“I’ve seen this person before. I wasn’t quite sure before because my memory was a bit hazy, but I took a moment to compare the photo while you were discussing the case, and it’s definitely him.”

The toxicology expert didn't lower her voice intentionally. As soon as she uttered those nonchalant words, everyone in the room except the deceased stared wide-eyed.

Ignoring everyone's reactions, Miss Joey continued—

"This guy's name is Servilik. I saw him once at the Pokémon Hospital in Rikyu City more than ten years ago, before he disappeared from the medical field."

"Selvilik?"

The chief investigator repeated the rather long name, looking puzzled.

"Hehe, not many people probably know this name now, even he himself has abandoned it. However, you may have heard of his nickname in the underworld."

Joey pointed downwards at the victim lying face down, his body a gruesome sight, and named him—

"Plague scholar".

"…………"

Although Miss Joy spoke with great confidence, embarrassingly, no one reacted noticeably to this prestigious title, and the surroundings remained silent.

Until one of the veteran detectives in the team mustered up his courage and hesitantly spoke up—

"The 'Plague Scholar'? Could it be that poison dealer who caused trouble in Liyong City back then? Isn't he dead?"

"It's obvious that he's only dead now. Five years ago, he simply disappeared under an assumed name."

Joey glanced sideways at the poisoned corpse on the ground and pointed out with a touch of dark humor.

"About ten years ago, this 'Plague Scholar' was an attending physician at the Pokémon Hospital in Liyu City. I met him when I was interning at that hospital. I never expected that we would meet again in this way."

Miss Joy sighed, as if recalling her own girlhood, and continued her story with deep emotion—

"After I finished my internship, when this attending physician continued to work at the Elf Hospital in Liyong City, a very serious medical accident occurred—it was this accident that led to the original Dr. Selvilik becoming the 'Plague Scholar,' a poison dealer in the underworld."

"Ah, could it be that incident!"

Miss Officer Jenny and the chief investigator both exclaimed in surprise.

As Miss Joy narrated, one important keyword after another came into the police officers' ears, and their memories were finally brought back to life.

"I remember now, it's the case of Miss Officer Jenny from Liyong City being promoted to local police chief!"

The officer belatedly realized what was happening and said—

"At the time, an unscrupulous doctor was troubled by an economic dispute and happened to find that the other party had brought their Pokémon to the hospital for treatment. So, the doctor harbored a desire for revenge and secretly switched the size information of that Pokémon with other Pokémon, which led to the hospital prescribing a hugely different dosage of medicine. In the end, the Pokémon, which originally only had mild symptoms, died during the operation."

"In the end, it was Officer Jenny from Liyong City who discovered the clues in this incident. With Miss Goth's lie detector skills, they perfectly reconstructed the whole story. Afterwards, Officer Jenny was promoted for her merits, and at the same time, she left behind the fearsome nickname 'The Shadow' in the underground criminal world."

"So, the bad doctor from back then was this Servilik?"

“I remember now! Although the case was eventually solved, the perpetrators were not punished by law.”

The young and inexperienced Officer Jenny, fresh out of school in Feiyun City, said indignantly—

"Back then, Pokémon rights were far less valued than they are today. Before a Pokémon underwent surgery, trainers mostly signed pre-operative agreements that exempted the doctor from all liability. Even if the trainer of the victimized Pokémon pursued further action based on prescription issues, the responsibility for the Pokémon's death could only be attributed to the careless novice doctor who failed to check the dosage. In addition, the perpetrators acted discreetly, and apart from the indirect testimony obtained by my cousin through a lie detector test, the police could not find any further evidence. With so many unfavorable conditions for bringing a lawsuit, they had no choice but to let this unscrupulous doctor go unpunished."

"Yes, that's basically the gist of the incident."

Miss Joey nodded and continued—

"After this ordeal, although the 'Plague Scholar' escaped legal punishment, he ultimately could no longer continue to work in the medical field. So, he began to change his name and contact criminal forces in the Unova region. At first, he provided criminal advice related to poisons to murderers and gangsters. Later, he simply began to concoct and sell various types of poisons himself."

"Because of my profession, when I first started out, I frequently witnessed the poisoning incidents caused by this 'Plague Scholar.' The number of humans and elves who died from his concoctions was at least dozens, if not hundreds. It was only during our investigation that we gradually uncovered this 'Plague Scholar's' real name and past identity. However, in recent years, he's become much quieter. According to the police officers I've worked with, that might be related to the rise of Team Plasma. He's either been secretly recruited by them, or he's been eliminated for his misdeeds against elves…"

"However, the current situation of suddenly reappearing after ten years of hiding his identity, causing a large-scale poisoning case, and then suddenly being poisoned is really hard to understand."

"This is indeed a tricky case. To be honest, we still don't even know why this 'plague scholar' is spreading the poison on such a large scale."

Faced with one mystery after another, Officer Jenny sighed deeply.

The search team leader even covered his head, surrendering in a gesture of defiance—

"This is no longer a case that our single investigation team can solve. We need the chief, no, at least investigators from the Alliance headquarters, to have any chance of cracking this case."

Miss Joy then asked Officer Jenny curiously, "Speaking of which, Officer Jenny, what's your detective friend up to these days?"

"Ask about Azure. She seems to be on the phone with her boss at the agency. After all, with such a major case within a case, she definitely needs to hear the opinion of the real detective."

"is it?"

Joey glanced at this junior member of the Officer Jenny family, her eyes darting around, then suddenly leaned close to Officer Jenny's ear and whispered as if sharing some unspeakable secret—

"Speaking of real detectives, I have a help hotline that's been circulating among Officer Jenny in the Sinnoh region. I managed to get it from them during my journey to catch Toxicroak. How about giving it a try?"

"........."

After a long silence, Officer Jenny politely declined—

"Maybe not. I think that phone number is probably busy right now..."

.

At this moment, the police and forensic experts were unaware that, following the mysteries of the motive for poisoning, the murder of the poisoner, and the theft from the crime scene, the arriving forensic experts and crime scene investigators would present them with yet another impossible, unsolvable, and unbelievable mystery of poisoning—

There were no needle marks on the body of the "Plague Scholar" Servilik, nor any wounds that allowed the poison to enter the body directly.

Moreover, after the forensic pathologists completed the autopsy, they found absolutely no trace of the source of the toxin in the deceased's respiratory tract, throat, or stomach—a bizarre and unimaginable phenomenon in the eyes of both toxicologists and professional forensic pathologists.

The deadly toxin seemed to appear out of thin air in the victim's blood, killing the notorious and wicked doctor in an unbelievable way.

It was like a deadly, poisonous curse that would haunt you and claim your life.