Chapter 862: The Definition of Mystery Fiction
Nineteen and the man wearing the gas mask were both clever people, and with Lin Yu's nudge, they quickly realized something was off.
"My emotions do seem a bit abnormal," Nineteen thought with a frown. "Sure, this guy is infuriating, but under normal circumstances... I shouldn't be so insistent on arguing with him when there's clearly a monster lurking around."
However, despite his internal reflection, Nineteen didn't back down on the surface. He just let out a cold snort without saying much.
The man wearing the gas mask, on the other hand, pondered for a moment before speaking up.
"It's the mist... The 'accompanying mist' that appeared with this monster has the effect of driving people irrational and making them irritable and quick-tempered."
Nineteen gave a slight nod.
He agreed with the man's analysis.
Still, he couldn't resist a jab.
"So what's the gas mask on your face for, decoration?"
Perhaps because knowing his emotions came from the mist had overcorrected his behavior, the gas mask man, who had been acting so irritable just moments ago, was now remarkably calm.
He listened to Nineteen's retort without the slightest hint of anger, simply explaining in a composed tone.
"This gas mask of mine can't protect against the Misty Islands' fog. It only filters physical toxins and sprays. Against something like the Misty Islands' mist that directly corrodes the soul and mind, where it only 'looks' like fog but doesn't actually work through 'inhalation,' it's basically useless."
Seeing the man respond like that, Nineteen felt somewhat embarrassed by his own remark and let out a sigh.
"Fine... Anyway, since it wants us to fight and bicker among ourselves, and it infiltrated the airship by replacing one of us, that probably means its direct combat ability isn't all that strong. It's avoiding a head-on fight with us."
Fu Luo nodded. "Correct. So maybe we don't need to worry about how to fight it once we expose it. Priority one is just flushing it out."
"Well then... Great Detective, Your Excellency, do you have any leads?"
Nineteen turned to Fu Luo and asked.
Seeing the conversation back on track, Fu Luo spoke again. "As I said earlier, this monster might not be able to perfectly imitate our appearances or inherit the details of our memories. I'm not saying that someone who's quiet and doesn't know anyone is definitely the monster in disguise..."
"After all, the monster could also do the opposite and deliberately pick someone everyone is familiar with."
"So, to determine which of us has been replaced, we still need to find clues in the specific things people say."
Fu Luo said, tapping his head. "Even if it's someone I've never met before, I can tell from their words whether they're the real person or a replacement. After all, when it comes to details, the difference between truth and fabrication is night and day."
"Unless someone has professional training or considerable talent in lying, fooling me isn't that easy."
"And a monster from the 'Misty Islands' wouldn't know much about our world to begin with... Trying to fabricate enough details to prove you know a world well? That's way too hard for a monster that probably isn't even that smart to begin with."
As Fu Luo spoke, Nineteen stroked his chin. "Whoa, Your Excellency is quite confident... But how exactly do we go about this?"
"Simple. Introduce yourselves. Just say whatever parts you want to share."
"Talk about your life, the food you like, the TV shows and celebrities you enjoy. Anything works."
"Then... during that time, the rest of us can ask random questions."
"I'll start with myself," Fu Luo said calmly. "Most of you probably know me pretty well. I'm from Zheng City, my Class is 'Detective,' and the reason I got into this line of work is because I love mystery novels. My ID is actually a combination of two famous detectives' names from fiction."
"Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot."
Fu Luo said confidently, and Nineteen stroked his chin as he asked, "So which story in the Poirot series is your favorite, and why?"
"Murder on the Orient Express, without a doubt. Whether it's the narrative pacing or the final twist, it's an unmissable monument in mystery fiction, and Poirot's final choice also really resonated with me... Agatha truly deserves her title as the Queen of Mystery."
Fu Luo answered, and the man with the gas mask also spoke up. "Besides those two, are there any other mystery authors or stories you'd recommend?"
"There are plenty. Seichō Matsumoto, Edogawa Ranpo, Raymond Chandler, Ellery Queen... I think every single one of them is outstanding, and their works are all worth reading. Including many newer generation authors like Kanae Minato, Stieg Larsson... they're all very much worth checking out."
Fern chimed in. "Those two you mentioned aren't really 'newer generation,' and the latter doesn't even really count as a mystery novelist."
"I don't pay much attention to 'newcomers' who just won an award recently and only have one or two short or medium-length works to their name. So to me, mystery writers who rose to prominence in the past decade or after the internet became widespread, and whose works focus on the information age, I habitually call them 'newer generation,'" Fu Luo said eloquently. "This label isn't really standard... but I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way."
As Fu Luo spoke, King Vulture let out a sigh.
"Blah blah blah, what's he even saying... I can't understand any of it."
"You don't really read mystery novels either?"
Although Lin Yu could fully understand the conversation, he chose not to act like he understood and join in. Instead, he struck up a conversation with King Vulture.
After all...
The "Old Yao" persona didn't look like the type to know anything about mystery novels.
Hell, "Old Yao" didn't even look like the type who could read!
If not for the widespread nine-year compulsory education and the excellent literacy campaign, Old Yao's appearance and facial features would suggest he shouldn't know a single character.
Sure enough, hearing Old Yao's words, King Vulture looked visibly pleased.
"Of course I don't really read them. The only mystery I've ever seen... is that anime, Detective Conan, and only the theatrical films."
"I really like Kyogoku Makoto."
King Vulture gestured excitedly, and Lin Yu nodded with a look of vague understanding.
"I've never seen that one either. Not really familiar with it."
"The only mystery I've ever read... would probably be the Tiger Team adventure books!"
Fu Luo, who was listening to the two of them chat from the side, finally couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Fine, I'll let the Tiger Team books slide... But which of the Detective Conan theatrical films with Kyogoku Makoto in them has ANY mystery elements at all?"