Oritis in the world of Detective Conan

Chapter 124 Azoth's Theorem Proof (Part 2)

The library's hall is lined with rows of bookcases, a large number of books and materials are piled on the ground, and a huge planetarium is hung under the dome of the hall.

Conan asked curiously: "Um, Grandpa Guard, we heard that the library's 'curse' killed several directors. Has there been any crime here?"

The old guard was very disdainful of this: "Those police said that several directors died in accidents, hastily closed the case, and used a 'curse' to prevent the residents of the town from approaching the library, but I know that is not the case at all."

"The 'Curse' existed when the library was first built. Back then, one of the four founders, Ms. Maria, cursed anyone who attempted to refine the Philosopher's Stone. They would pay with their blood and lives for peeking into its secrets."

The old guard pointed to an oil painting hanging on the wall of the hall. "That's Lady Maria. According to the records of the Esoteric Church, she was the first to refine the Philosopher's Stone, and she was subsequently assassinated."

Everyone looked at the oil painting, which depicted a dignified woman in a white robe holding a book in her hands.

Amuro Toru was also a little curious: "What exactly is the so-called 'Philosopher's Stone'?"

"It is the pinnacle of alchemy. Legend has it that it can transform poor metals into precious metals, cure all diseases, and even grant immortality."

Toru Amuro immediately frowned. The effect of the Philosopher's Stone was almost exactly the same as the purpose of the Black Organization's drug research. He was a little worried that this place might be known to the Black Organization.

Maori Kogoro did not believe that such a thing existed: "If such a thing really existed, then Ms. Maria would not have been assassinated so easily."

Xiaolan carefully noticed that the symbols on the planetarium were somewhat similar to those on the key in the blind girl's hand: "The triangle symbol engraved on the planetarium and the symbol on this key are similar."

The old guard nodded. "Yes, these symbols represent the four basic elements in alchemy. The equilateral triangle represents fire, the inverted triangle represents water, the equilateral triangle with a horizontal line represents air, and the inverted triangle with a horizontal line represents earth."

"So, the symbol on Director Arya's key represents the earth element?" Conan looked up at the key in the blind girl's hand.

"Yes, I remember that Curator Arya gave me this key before she disappeared. When I saw the elemental symbols engraved on the key, I felt that something was wrong. Because the curators before her died or disappeared after discovering the elemental symbols corresponding to them."

Hearing about the case, Conan immediately became interested: "Since there are so many cases, haven't the police found the murderer?"

Mentioning the police, the old guard became quite irritable: "Those police officers probably didn't take these cases seriously at all. They even secretly took away those precious samples while investigating!"

Seeing the old guard furious, the blind girl stepped forward to smooth things over: "Mr. Guard, could you tell us the details of the murders of the previous curators? Perhaps we can solve these mysteries."

Hearing the blind girl's words, the old guard's tone became respectful again: "Of course, Director. The offices of the previous directors have been well preserved after their death or disappearance."

The old guard led the group to a laboratory. "This is the office of Director Arya's predecessor, Director Cangyue."

Conan surveyed the room: books and potion bottles filled every corner, most arranged according to shape and size, creating a pleasing sense of order. However, the table was a mess, with manuscripts scattered across the open books, and potion bottles stacked haphazardly next to a scale. On the nearby wall, a large, dried blood-drawn triangle symbol was visible.

After carefully observing the table, Toru Amuro asked the old guard, "Was this Zangetsu Director conducting some kind of experiment before he died?"

"Yes, I remember that the day before Director Cangyue's accident, he claimed that his experiment would make considerable progress, but the next day he was found dead in his office. The police gave the cause of death as suicide by poisoning, but I know that's impossible!"

"Director Cangyue's left ring finger was severed, and his director's ring was also missing. I reported this to the police, suggesting it might be revenge from someone who hated the cult, but they simply dismissed the case as murder for money and brushed it off."

The old guard also showed everyone the photos taken by the police when they came to collect evidence. The pale face of Director Canyue in the photo was particularly clear, and Conan suddenly felt that he seemed to have seen this face somewhere.

Xiaolan was a little scared: "Cut off the finger? Why do you do that?"

"Because alchemists need a pair of steady hands, missing fingers means imperfection and the inability to obtain stable experimental results. Therefore, finger amputation is also considered a form of punishment within the esoteric cult. However, Director Cangyue managed the library's affairs in an orderly manner during his tenure, so it is unlikely that someone within the cult was responsible."

After all, this was not a case that happened on the scene, and Conan was unable to find any effective clues, so he turned his attention to the pile of manuscripts on the table.

There were also quite a lot of symbols symbolizing the element of fire drawn on the manuscript paper, but Conan found a piece of paper that was a little special among them.

This piece of paper was out of place with the other manuscript papers and seemed to have been placed here later. While everyone's attention was attracted by the huge equilateral triangle symbol on the wall, Conan secretly read the contents of the paper.

It seemed to be a letter, and it said:

"The quartz sand is ready. Remember to be alert to any visitors with bad intentions."

The content of the letter was so brief that Conan didn't understand what it meant, but he felt that this library was not as simple as it seemed. When he held the paper against the window, the setting sun shone on the paper, revealing a symbol that was very familiar to him.

Conan was shocked: Isn't this the mark of the Muse? Sure enough, this library is the base of the Oritis Organization, and there may even be members operating in the library!

Thinking of this, Conan hurriedly asked the old guard for confirmation: "Grandpa Guard, is there anyone still living in this library after Director Cangyue passed away?"

"No, ever since the news of Curator Cancelled Moon's death spread, apart from an old man like me willing to guard the library, who else dares to approach the library? Speaking of which, Curator Cancelled Moon had a twin brother named Helios, but he disappeared after Curator Cancelled Moon's death. Curator Arya took over, but not long after, she also disappeared one night."

"Does this library have any secret passages or hidden rooms?"

The old guard nodded. "In the past, the Esoteric Cult did build some secret passages and hidden doors to avoid unnecessary trouble. However, many of these mechanisms require special techniques from the Esoteric Cult to open. It's impossible for a member of the Esoteric Cult to kill the curator."

Maori Kogoro immediately put forward his own guess: "Could it be that the murderer killed the director, stole the ring, and escaped through those secret passages?"

"That's impossible. Stealing the rings that symbolize the status of a curator is useless. Those rings are specially made and can only work on the corresponding curators. Even if an outsider steals the rings, they will not be recognized by the cult."

As the sky gradually darkened and they hadn't gotten any useful information, they had to temporarily leave the library and return to the town to find a hotel to stay in. Conan's mind was full of thoughts about the information and truth that might be hidden in the secret passages and secret rooms. He decided to wait until everyone else went to bed before returning to the library to investigate.