Is This For Real?
To uncover the full story of the incident, we had to rewind a few days.
Separate from that nightmare of a first experience, Liana Aishinkiore had thoroughly enjoyed Lancaster Family's Ripper.
Everyone else felt the same.
Even Hanna, who usually showed zero interest in anything, had been completely immersed back then.
And fun games have a way of sticking in your memory for a long time.
Even after the closed beta test ended, the players kept bringing it up in conversation.
Liana Aishinkiore was no exception.
"It's been a while, Pletta."
"It has, miss. I've heard you've been on a real hot streak lately."
"Just got lucky. And my eye for talent's pretty sharp."
Pletta Selwyn, the imperial chief investigator, and Liana were childhood friends.
To be precise, Pletta's father, Baron Milan Selwyn, had served the Aishinkiore family as an administrator for three generations, so it was only natural for daughters of similar ages like Pletta and Liana to grow close.
For Liana, who only had an older brother above her, Pletta was one of the rare same-sex friends she could truly open up to in the family.
Even after Pletta earned recognition for her skills and joined the Imperial Investigation Bureau, they kept in touch.
"How about you? Anything new? No big cases lately?"
"No big cases? The black mages might have quieted down, but incidents keep popping up all over the empire."
Pletta let out a deep sigh.
She'd just returned from a mission in the eastern provinces yesterday.
She'd gone through hell resolving a reported mass disappearance of villagers there.
"You really have it rough. This time around, I got a faint sense of just how tough your job is."
"Pardon?"
"Figuring out anomalies from suspects' tiny behaviors or glances when there's zero evidence—it's insanely hard. Even when clues do show up, you have to piece together the full context, and one slip-up means everything unravels…"
Liana started chattering excitedly.
Pletta listened quietly at first, but as the conversation went on, things got weirder and weirder.
"Excuse me, miss, but what exactly are you talking about?"
"Ah! Look at me, rambling again. You know how our merchant guild's been raking it in with Path of Gold lately, right?"
"Yes, the rumors even reached the east. The Priest's Path in particular is impossible to get—it's trading hands at three times the production cost."
"I didn't know it went that high… Anyway, the original creator of that game made something new. It's called Lancaster Family's Ripper. We're still figuring out commercialization, but it's definitely fun, so—kyaa!"
Whoosh. Pletta shot up from her seat.
Liana stared at her with wide eyes in surprise, and Pletta asked in a flustered voice,
"Miss! Where on earth did you hear the name Vice-Count Lancaster?!"
"Wh-what's wrong all of a sudden?"
"Do you happen to know any other bureau investigators besides me?"
"Of course not! Why would I know any investigators besides you?"
A chill settled in Pletta's eyes.
"Miss, could you tell me more details? About—Vice-Count Lancaster, that is."
"Th-that's…"
Liana instinctively realized something was wrong, but she was overwhelmed by this 'investigator' side of Pletta she'd never seen before.
After getting a rough rundown on Lancaster Family's Ripper,
Pletta barely had time to catch up with Liana before heading straight to the bureau.
Lancaster Count. More precisely, Vice-Count Lancaster.
Just three months ago, he'd been brutally murdered in his own mansion.
A noble killed in his home was a massive crime in itself.
But evidence found in the mansion, testimonies from surviving servants, and interrogations of suspects caught at the scene all pointed to something beyond a simple grudge killing.
The bureau had concluded it might link back to black mages purged years ago, so they'd classified the case and were investigating covertly.
And on that top-secret team was
"Miss, where can I find a Mr. Yujin Feltro?"
Lead investigator Pletta Selwyn.
"Hold on, Investigator. I think there's some misunderstanding here…"
"What misunderstanding would that be?"
"What's this about the Vice-Count Lancaster murder? I don't even know who Vice-Count Lancaster is."
The investigator's expression grew even colder at my words.
"Is that so? Then why is a case we're investigating in strict secrecy being mentioned through you, young master?"
"Vice-Count Lancaster is really dead? No, did he even exist in the first place?"
Stay calm.
I recalled my conversation with Wiki while making Lancaster Family's Ripper.
Mafia is a game based on the modern era, as the name suggests.
The word 'mafia' immediately brought to mind cigarettes, fedoras, suits, phlegmy Russian or Italian accents, and Tommy guns.
But to people here, 'mafia' just meant street thugs swinging knives or clubs.
'They're thugs, sure… but way too tacky.'
Besides, the empire's crime syndicates were far worse than mere mafia.
At least mafia didn't sacrifice people or turn them into rotting flesh monsters, right?
I needed a backdrop people could really immerse in.
It was only natural to ask the knowledge spirit who'd existed for eons, longer than my 23 years reincarnated in this fantasy world.
I went with the second.
Black mages were practically taboo in the empire.
Just look at how dark magic—totally unrelated—was shunned for sounding similar.
But this was a VR game.
Forcing players into black mage roles could spark massive backlash.
And murders are more relatable.
They happen everywhere people live.
Easier to make believable, more realistic.
That's how Lancaster Family's Ripper—finding the disguised killer in a count's mansion—came to be.
'References, my ass! Why's the victim name identical too?'
I frantically searched for Wiki.
The guy who'd been sorting books in Delta Sector moments ago had vanished.
He'd bolted the second shit hit the fan.
Yeah, my fault for not properly version-controlling the source.
Even college assignments get you an F if you submit AI-generated crap without review.
Those links they spit out are never right.
But still.
Pulling a real-time active investigation as a 'reference'? What kind of sourcing is that?
'Wiki, you're on latrine duty for ten days as punishment.'
My teeth ground together.
"Uh… Investigator Pletta, I think I can clear this up properly. I can't leave the library right now, so could you come back after closing at 6 PM?"
"6 PM… Understood, young master."
Pletta backed off, seemingly satisfied for now.
No matter how much I'd fallen out with my dad, I was still the third son of a count.
The bureau couldn't drag me off like a perp without catching me red-handed.
And this mess was clearly Wiki's fanboying plus a misunderstanding.
"I'll explain the full context, and if that's not enough, we play a round."
Simple.
Luckily, I'd fixed most of the issues from the first tester feedback.
Time for the second closed beta anyway.
Do it without me—Liana's crew and the investigator.
The misunderstanding would melt away like snow, everything resolved in a puff.
…I'd thought that naively.
Luckily, the misunderstanding cleared up.
No need to even make the investigator play the game.
We had records on paper, and cross-referencing with the tipster—Liana—ruled out even the slightest suspicion.
"Sorry, Sir Yujin. I didn't think Pletta would come straight here."
"My deepest apologies, young master Yujin. Given the sensitivity…"
"Haha, no worries. Happens in the line of duty. My fault too for not vetting the source properly."
"But how did that spirit Wiki access bureau secrets?"
"…Beats me. That ras—er, the spirit went into the stacks and hasn't come out. I'll let you know if I find out."
I figured that wrapped up the farce with Liana and Pletta's apologies.
But then,
"Young master Yujin."
"Yes, Investigator? Need more help?"
"If it's not too much trouble, could you continue cooperating officially?"
"?"
"From what you've said, this Dimension magic tool seems perfect for our investigation. The higher-ups are focused on it, so I'd like your formal input."
"Uh… you mean…"
Use Dimension as an interrogation machine?
Not impossible.
Hell, brilliant idea.
As a game, it logs players' thoughts and behaviors. Analyze the logs—no extra grilling needed—to reconstruct the crime.
But… what's in it for me?
Liana Aishinkiore was basically my business partner.
Her wins were mine; mine hers.
She'd fronted 100 gold for Dimension's first run—personal funds.
First dibs on Lancaster Family's Ripper was payback.
But Pletta? No favors owed, no debts.
Just more hassle, no upside.
I must've looked reluctant, because Pletta—as if expecting it—handed over a document.
Authorized release of specified seized artifacts and magic tools for cooperative use in ongoing investigation.
"What's this?"
"We've seized a ton of artifacts and magic tools lately. Raid on a magic tower illegally selling to nobles."
"Lady Liana mentioned you're struggling with modding them due to physical limits."
True. A 2nd-circle mage grappling with an 8th-circle archmage's runes? Tough sledding.
Wiki's help was irreplaceable, or this project would've been scrap paper ages ago.
Best fix for mana shortages: artifacts or specialized tools.
"Lots of seized items boost mana sensitivity and artifact affinity."
Problem: those run hundreds of gold—way beyond a librarian's salary.
Scraping by for Dimension dev; artifacts were a pipe dream.
"Cooperate on the case, and we'll donate two gratis. Seized stuff gets scrapped anyway."
Free high-end artifacts?
I glanced between the paper, Pletta, and Liana.
"…A vice-count murder. Can't refuse to help on something that serious."
I signed quick.
"As creator of Lancaster Family's Ripper, I'll make damn sure we catch the killer!"
I've played tons of mystery games. I'll spot the real culprit easy.