The Great Demon Holmes

Chapter 9: Studying the Blood Character (4)

"It's actually quite simple to deduce all of this," Sherlock said as he walked back to the corpse and pulled up one of the woman's arms. "Look, the entire arm is stiff like a wooden stick, and it slightly bends outward. This isn't rigor mortis but a result of the tendons in the armpit being cut. It renders the victim's arm completely immobile."

As he spoke, he casually gestured towards the legs of the body. "The same method was used to sever the inner muscle group in the lower limbs. This leaves the victim paralyzed on the ground, unable to struggle or even scream, as the killer used a hook to damage the vocal cords and glottis."

His tone carried a profound sense of despair and agony in every word he uttered.

"And this method is a traditional way of preparing beef in the town of Rochester," he continued. "To ensure the freshness of the meat, they would do this to live cows. While cutting the meat, they would use the juice of the Euphorbia plant to stop the bleeding. The cow's body would still twitch during the process—it's quite fascinating. But this practice was banned over 20 years ago by the local authorities, who deemed it animal cruelty. They just had to meddle... However, if you're interested, I can introduce you to some excellent underground restaurants in London that serve this type of cuisine, although they can be quite pricey." Sherlock smiled as he spoke to Catherine.

"Focus on your case!" she snapped.

"Right." Sherlock continued, "In any case, the killer's skill is not something that can be acquired in just a few days. If the arteries in the armpit were cut, the victim would quickly bleed to death. The killer has extensive experience and extreme patience in this regard, likely deriving pleasure from it."

"But the underground restaurants in London wouldn't provide the necessary environment for such training. The killer must have their own methods or perhaps even raises large livestock themselves. I lean towards the latter, as it would be more discreet... The juice of the Euphorbia plant is effective in stopping bleeding, but prolonged contact can cause itching and hair loss on the skin. Wearing close-fitting cotton shirts can alleviate this itching sensation."

"And about the victim's mouth," Sherlock continued. "As I mentioned earlier, the killer damaged the glottis because there is a clear tearing mark around the mouth. You see, to damage the glottis, the hook needs to be pressed downward. It's difficult to achieve that angle without opening the mouth."

No one responded to him. Perhaps they couldn't keep up with his rapid speech, or perhaps... who knows what they were thinking.

Sherlock didn't mind. His pace quickened even more as he continued, "In the process of dissection, the victim's face becomes incredibly distorted due to pain and the tearing of the mouth. But afterward, the killer meticulously rearranged the facial muscles to their normal position."

"I said earlier that it was around five or six in the morning. The killer persisted in completing this task at that time, likely due to an obsession with the beautiful faces of women. It's something like 'ugly women don't deserve to be killed' or a similar sentiment. They even risked leaving witnesses behind."

"Such a person, even if they come from an affluent background, would either frequently invite beautiful women to their home for pleasure, which is a cruder solution, or they would collect portraits of beautiful women. I even suspect that they might be skilled in painting themselves. In any case, these are the most common methods to satisfy such a preference and still maintain a public image."

"But what you're saying has no evidence. It's just wishful thinking," Catherine attempted to argue.

"I never claimed to have evidence," Sherlock chuckled. "These are just the most reasonable speculations at the current stage. You might as well put some effort into exploring this direction. I don't believe you are the kind of people who need concrete evidence before taking action."

"Oh, by the way, the killer has an injury on their right rib. I can be certain of that because there are noticeable marks of hesitation on the sternum incision of the body. Their arm trembles slightly when performing delicate horizontal movements, as the muscles are adhered."

Sherlock mimicked the action of holding a knife and cutting through something.

This lengthy explanation actually contained a vast amount of information, but it only took about a minute to say. Sherlock spoke with a clear tone, but at a speed triple that of a normal conversation, completely disregarding others' feelings. It was as if he didn't want people to keep up with his train of thought or be amazed by it. He treated this deductive analysis ability as something exceedingly ordinary.

To be honest, this response from the surrounding crowd took Sherlock by surprise. He had always held the inherent impression that members of the Judicators were the kind who would engage in brutal pursuits, only needing the name of the culprit to embark on a merciless hunt. However, they actually listened carefully to his deductions.

Catherine's expression shifted from her initial aloofness to contemplation, eventually becoming quite fascinated. Even the usually silent Bailiff Bartholomew alternated between furrowing his brow and relaxing it.

Sherlock hadn't anticipated this reaction at all.

From his understanding of the Judicators, he had thought they were the type who would launch into ruthless pursuit and bloodshed once they knew the name of the culprit. But now, they were carefully considering his deductions, and even nodding slightly at the end, indicating that they had followed his train of thought and affirmed it after digesting the wealth of information.

In contrast, the young constable in the steam armor standing outside the alley looked utterly perplexed, mouth agape.

"Based on the scene, we can only speculate to this extent. That's why I said I'm no longer needed here," Sherlock finally brought the topic back to the beginning. "So I will take some unanswered questions back home and contemplate them. It's the most helpful course of action for the case at the moment."

Catherine hesitated for a moment, her gaze shifting back and forth between the body on the ground and Sherlock. After a few seconds, her eyes settled on the face of the grieving Bailiff.

After a short while, she spoke slowly, "Remember, you have less than 20 hours. If you succeed, you will naturally receive the Church's gratitude. But if you fail, you will face the appropriate punishment."

"Punishment?" Sherlock's tone didn't reflect much confusion. "Forgive my frankness, but given the stringent conditions you have imposed, it seems logical that not finding the killer would be the reasonable outcome. So why the punishment?"

"Pressure makes people more focused on their work," Catherine replied calmly, giving him this statement.

This indicated that she knew these demands were unreasonable, but she didn't care. There was no need for any reason to punish a commoner. In fact, Sherlock felt that if he were to be stabbed to death right now, it would instantly compel the culprit to reveal themselves. The people here wouldn't hesitate to chop him to pieces.

However, such unreasonable and even dehumanizing behavior seemed perfectly reasonable to everyone present. It was a crushing disparity ingrained in the societal structure that went beyond ethics and morality. No one would question why a member of the clergy would indiscriminately hack an innocent person to death, just as no one would care if a wild grass was sentenced to death for being trampled on during a walk.

Of course, Sherlock had no interest in evaluating the merits or drawbacks of this social hierarchy. He was just an ordinary detective, so he politely smiled and said, "Then... may I request a carriage to take me home? It's quite far, Baker Street in the Lower City."