Part 12: Poison

: We have a lot of possible locations to explore. Let's have a look at the one that won't use up a day first:






: Uh... hello? Is this the office of Renard Vulpes?

: !



: Ah! It's you two!

: Mousey? What are you doing here?

: Oh, uh, this is where I work.



: Although, to be completely honest, it's normally Monsieur Vulpes who chooses which cases to take on...

: I see. Well then, can we speak with Monsieur Vulpes?

: Oh, uh, I'm afraid that won’t be possible. See, Monsieur Vulpes is on vacation right now. He's visiting his father in England.

: England?

: But he is set to return in a week or two! Maybe you can come back then?

: That's no good to us. Our case will be over by then.

: There's nothing to be done about it. I suppose we'll have to come back later.



: Same as always.



: Hi Mousey.

: Is there any sign of Monsieur Vulpes?

: No, no. Not yet. He’s still.. vacationing. Come back next week, next week!







Lander Hagelslak (Saint Saens: Carnival of the Animals~L'Elephant (The Elephant))

: I am Lander Hagelslak, the founder and owner of this establishment.

: And I am Jayjay Falcon, defense attorney. Good day, Monsieur.

: Oh, lawyers! Very fancy. I must say that I once dreamed of being a lawyer, but, well circumstances wouldn't allow it. It’s a funny story. You see, when I was a young boy, I befriended the son of a Hungarian attorney...

: (Falcon. You have to help me.)

: Wh-what is it?

: (It’s the smell, Falcon. It’s overpowering me. It's demanding that I lay waste to the shop.)

: For pity's sake, restrain yourself, Sparrowson.



: YES.

: No, no, no. We're actually here on business, Monsieur.

: Business?

: First things first. We believe that this chocolate wrapper originated from your shop. Are we correct?



: This was almost certainly bought from this very establishment.





: Is there any chance that your produce could have been... contaminated?

: Absolutely not, monsieur! I stand by my claim that my chocolate is the finest in all of Paris. I go to great lengths to ensure that the highest quality is ensured. Any contaminations would be terrible for business, you understand.

: I see.

: Was there something else you messieurs wanted to ask?



: Can you tell us who bought the chocolate that was contained in this Wrapper, Monsieur Hagelslak?

: I'm afraid not, messieurs.



: I thought elephants never forget.

: My memory is impeccable, monsieur. But you must understand that I have dozens of customers a day. There are hundreds of people who could have potentially bought this particular item.

: Hmm... so your memory is good, but you need further information... If we were to give you the description and name of a person, would you be able to tell us whether they purchased something from you?

: Oh! Yes, yes, that I could probably do, monsieur.





: Have you ever served Juan Querido, the prince of Spain?

: A prince of Spain? No, monsieur.

:Well, that’s good to hear. Our clue would have turned into a dead-end if our own client turned out to be the chocolate fiend.

: I did once serve a princess from Mali, if that is any help. You see, I met the girl while hiking through the Himalayas...

: Please stop.



: Have you ever served a tiny mouse named Mousey?

: No, monsieur. Mice terrify me.



: Have you ever served a member of the royal guard by the name of Major Howl?

: No, Monsieur.

: Are you sure?

: Yes, Monsieur. I have served many soldiers, but I don't recall seeing a Major here in recent memory.

: What does that mean, Falcon? Have we lost our lead?

: Not necessarily. It just means that Major Howl didn't buy the chocolate that may have killed him. There's still the possibility that someone bought the chocolate for him. That's our lead. That's who we want to find.

: I see.

: I did once serve a high-ranking officer of the British army who was on his way to Zimbabwe, if you want to hear that story.

: No, I don't want to hear that story.



: You know, Falcon. It’s possible that we just haven’t encountered the chocolate fiend yet. Rather than coming back here every day and making aimless guesses, we should wait until we have someone specific in mind.

: You might have a point, Sparrowson.

: Thank you for your time, Monsieur Hagelslak. We shall return when our investigation has progressed a little.

: Any time, messieurs.









Vendors and buskers, performers and thieves, bourgeois and peasants all bustle from place to place.

: Prince Juan said that he met a flower girl here. Cygne, I think he said her name was.

: There's a swan with flowers over there. Do you think that's her?

: I think so. It's possible that she knows the murderer, or even that she is the murderer herself, so we should probably act with tact and finesse.



: Tact, Sparrowson. Tact. We've been over this.



Cygne (George Bizet: Carmen Suite #1 - Intermezzo)

: All the characters have "talking / typing" sounds... kinda like Undertale? Don't know what those are properly called. Anyways, Cygne has the softest "bee--bee-beep" sounds imaginable, to go along with her theme.

: Yes. I wish to purchase a rose from m'lady.

: I’m afraid that I'm out of roses. I sold my last one a week ago.



: ’Tis a beautiful flower from a fair maiden.

: Please don't mind Sparrowson. He fell out of his nest as a baby and has said dumb things ever since.

: Hey!

: Let me introduce myself. I am Jayjay Falcon, defense attorney. Are you Mademoiselle Cygne?

: That's right. Catherine-Marie Cygne. I suppose you’re here to ask about the royal assassination attempt?

: How did you know?



: To be honest, I'm surprised it's taken so long for someone to directly question me.

: The Parisian police seem to have a habit of missing obvious leads. So, do you mind if we ask you a couple of questions?

: Business is slow. Please, ask away.



: Where do you acquire your flowers from, if I may ask?

: Normally, I gather them from the wild.




: But since it's still Winter, I have to buy a lot of my flowers from a merchants who travel to Italy and the Netherlands. That's how I acquired the rose.

: What can you tell us about this particular merchant?

: Not a lot, monsieur. He's just an old man who passes through Paris a few times a year, selling his goods and Wares.

: I see.

: No chance of him being a super secret assassin?

: No, monsieur. Did you want to ask something else?



: Mademoiselle, you mentioned that you sold your last rose a week ago. Who did you sell it to?

: The person who bought the rose... I didn’t catch his name, but he was a charming red fox.

: Sounds like our Juan.

: I met him around a week ago, on the 6th. We talked for a little while. About the usual things, you know, like how everyone seems to be in debt these days. Then he bought a rose and left.



: Oh? Why's that?

: Well... Actually, never mind. It’s just a gut feeling.



: Mademoiselle, it just so happens that were defending this particular fox in the Cour d’assises. If you have something to say that could prove his innocence, now would be the time to let us know.

: ...I'm sorry, messieurs. I can't.



: Wait! Mademoiselle Cygne, wait up!

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>: ...Damn.

: Nice display of “tact and finesse”, Falcon. You scared her off!

: The swan obviously knows something crucial about the case. We need to get to the bottom of whatever it is.

: Agreed. But I don’t think she'll be in the mood to tell us anything else. I know. Why don’t we try acting with a little more “tact and finesse” next time?

: Hush.