Day 6, meeting between Erika, Dlanor, and Blackquill in Erika's dressing room.

[very_good_end]

[and, Erika would come back to her dressing room where Simon was waiting, with Dlanor A. Knox with her.]

[She'd quietly shut the door behind them once inside.]

Miss Dlanor... it's time you meet Prosecutor Simon Blackquill.

I've been using him to fulfill Knox's Ninth. He's been a very effective 'Watson'.

Go ahead. Introduce yourselves.

Comments

[deathsentencedlanor]

I am Archbishop Dlanor A. Knox, Chief Inquisitor. It is a pleasure to meet you at LAST.

[weeabird]

[If we're using titles like bookends...]

Prosecutor Simon Blackquill, inmate. I'm told you're here to show me something?

[very_good_end]

Ah. I'll explain that. You know how we agreed my status as 'the detective' is a Devil's Proof?

Well... this is the closest thing I have to a Devil to show you.

Of course, it brings up the problem that you, having never seen a Devil, will not recognize it as satisfying the Devil's Proof, but... if you're of the opinion to stop cooperating with me otherwise, you really forced my hand, Mr. Blackquill.

I need you to continue fulfilling Knox's Ninth.

[weeabird]

What are you on about now? Her ninth what?

[very_good_end]

Dlanor, explain Knox's Ninth to the man.

[deathsentencedlanor]

Knox's 9th: "It is permitted for observers to let their own conclusions and interpretations be heard."

... The Knox in question is not me, but my FATHER.

[weeabird]

Ah, I see. I had already guessed that this was essentially the role I'd been assigned in her supposed narrative. What is yours?

[very_good_end]

We are... ah, how should I put this. Partners? No, that's a bit too strong. Associates? That's a bit too weak. Suffice to say: we work together.

You get it don't you? A mysterious incident happens. I play the role of the detective. I investigate, find the clues, form my reasoning, confront the culprit, and the truth is revealed.

Miss Dlanor, on the other hand... she is here to enforce the rules and make sure it is a fair mystery that occurs.

You are a prosecutor, aren't you, Mr. Blackquill? Suppose you found a dead body locked inside a closed room. It would be fair to say that you would need to find some explanation for how the room came to be closed and how the culprit escaped. There would need to be a reasonable, detectable answer to that.

However...

What if someone tried to say: "There was a secret passage the culprit used to escape, and it's really well hidden and you just can't find it?"

That makes no sense, does it? At the very least, if such a hidden passage existed, there would be evidence it existed. ...Someone would need to have built it, for some specific reason, and it would need to be detectable. In terms of Dlanor's actions, it's a violation of Knox's Third.

Therefore, there can be no secret passage out of this supposed closed room. If someone was to suppose there was, Dlanor would step in.

Without Dlanor, I wouldn't be able to fulfill my role as the detective. Without myself, Dlanor would not be able to properly enforce any violations that occur. --You see? We both need each other.

And I need you by extension to continue to be my 'Watson,' so to speak, Mr. Blackquill. ...Not forever, but it's too late in the game to make a shift to someone else. I think we've been working rather well together.

[weeabird]

And if I refuse to be your Watson, would that be considered a violation? In the case of such a violation, what sort of 'enforcement' would that entail?

[very_good_end]

Hm... let me put it this way, Mr. Blackquill. It's in the interests of everyone if you do.

--What if I told you we have a plan that could break this entire game?

[weeabird]

Thus far, you still have my ear. What is your plan?

[very_good_end]

[she nods, then lowers her voice further]

All right. It's like this. When I talk about enforcing these rules? ...I hate to use a vague term like 'powers,' but this is literally something we do. We can't at the moment, because like everyone here who talks about vague 'powers' it's just not available, but once that changes?

The first thing I will do is assert my authority as the detective. The game runner-- ah, in this case it's all right to think in terms of this being the emcees-- the emcees will have to acknowledge it.

Then, Dlanor will bring up all of the violations of Knox's Decalogue that we've encountered so far. ...There are ten parts to it, in all. The fifth is generally omitted for clarity, but I can tell you without going in to too much detail that there are many, many violations here. ...I've only been able to investigate one crime scene, as opposed to one for each person who dies, for example.

At this point, one of several things happens. All of them end with an objectively Good outcome.

[weeabird]

Let's say for a moment that everything you say is true; that such powers exist but are simply unavailable to the two of you at this moment. From that logic, it seems natural to assume that whatever party brought you here, be it our emcees or someone in cahoots with them, is the same force by which the aforementioned 'powers' were stripped. Would you agree?

[very_good_end]

Not necessarily! ...There's a more in depth answer, but I don't want to go in to it. Suffice to say they're intrinsic to our very existence: not where we go.

Here's the problem, though. Knox's Decalogue cuts both ways. In order for me to assert my authority as the detective... I have to have fulfilled the responsibilities of the detective.

I can't be the culprit, for example, that's the biggest one. If I used my vote on someone who dies: I would have committed murder. I could not possibly hope to successfully assert my authority in that case because I would have already precluded it with my own actions. Even putting my vote on someone who doesn't die, but isn't the person freed, would count as attempted murder, which would amount to the same thing. Therefore, I have to put my vote on the person being spared, each time, without fail.

...

Are you getting the picture now?

[weeabird]

I understand your assertion that the Drilled Inquisitor is here to enforce the detective story meta narrative.

What I don't understand is why, if she has thus far been unable to stop the many violations being committed, you are working under the assumption that she will be able to stop them in the future.

[very_good_end]

That's the whole point... she can enforce all of this retroactively.

Let's go back to what happens when we bring up our accusation of violations that occurred. It happens all the time. The emcee will have several options.

One: they can address the violations. The nature of the entire game will change. There will be a detectable culprit. I will be the detective. I will uncover the culprits and solve the case with my own reasoning. --It goes without saying that I will not fail. That's the first possible outcome.

Two: they can't address the violations. They have absolutely no response to Dlanor's accusations. In this case, what happens is called a "logic error." ...It's a very nasty thing. If they admit a logic error has happened, the entire game is unmade, on the spot. Everyone goes home, as if this never even happened. ...Nice trick, huh?

Three: they can't address the violations... but they refuse to admit the logic error. This is even worse. Technically, they can take as long as they want to try to find a solution to the logic error... but it's akin to being stuck in a sort of 'limbo'. And in the meantime, as the detective who detected the logic error, I would be able to take control of the game.

Right now, even if the actual ability to 'use' the authority of the detective is denied to me, as long as I'm still acting within the confines of the detective's 'role', it's still possible I can enact this authority in the future...

...And that's where you come in. You really gave me no choice. You're fulfilling Knox's Ninth by listening to my reasoning and providing your honest opinions... if you stop, then it might be enough to preclude any hope I have of enacting my authority. You have to keep hearing my investigation and giving me your opinions on my clues... and you have to do it honestly. Like we've been doing.

[weeabird]

In the spirit of that honesty, tell me this: If you are eliminated peaceably, without having broken any of the rules, you could still be considered the detective, correct? After all, if your win conditions are tied into the mystery rather than the game, being disqualified should be an inconvenience rather than an outright loss.

[very_good_end]

[she sighs]

... That's our Plan B. If the group is really of a mind we need to be gone, I'll go out first. Dlanor will volunteer the next round. No one has reason to want her harmed. That was going to be the second part of my request yesterday: get Dlanor out safely.

It's possible we could still try to finagle it as "the detective temporarily retired from the case and then came back..." but, really, does that sound like a situation worthy of I, Great Detective, Furudo Erika?

[she scoffs]

[weeabird]

[considers]

Very well. That's all I need to ask on the subject. If it's so important to you, then I'll continue to field your questions for the time being.

1/2

[very_good_end]

[a smile, and a nod]

Thank you. I'm glad to see you understand what you need to do.

[very_good_end]

[a more strained smile]

You understand what you need to do, oui?

[weeabird]

I most certainly do.

[very_good_end]

... [unsure]

...Good! In that case...

I actually wanted to bring to light one clue I had detected the other day, Mr. Blackquill. Let me ask you this question.

Is Detective Fulbright in the habit of wearing... makeup?

[weeabird]

[snorts]

Amusing as the picture is, I sincerely doubt it. Why do you ask?

[very_good_end]

It was not merely his belongings I examined the other day, Mr. Blackquill. I had the moment thought to examine his sunglasses... and of course, the face underneath.

'How strange,' I thought. 'This man is suffering no outward physical stress, he seems to have collapsed momentarily from sheer fatigue, and yet...'

He has no signs of fatigue on his face, such as dark circles around his eyes, or other signs of puffiness that would normally be associated with exhaustion and lack of sleep. It is a clue by reason of absence, as it were.

One possible resolution would be if the man took to wearing makeup to cover up such telltale marks. Yet... these doesn't quite provide the right piece to the puzzle, does it?

What do you make of that?

[weeabird]

[his smile immediately fades]

...It's peculiar.

[very_good_end]

I concur. It surely is a very interesting discrepancy.

I think it would be to the benefit of my investigation if I privately met with this Detective Bobby Fulbright. May I have your permission?

I can have Dlanor nearby if you think it necessary. She's much stronger than she appears, Mr. Blackquill.

[weeabird]

Yes, of course I have no issue with that. Fool Bright is quite docile and should give you no trouble...

[pauses. There is an uncertainty that wasn't there before.]

...Perhaps let him know that I approved of your meeting.

[very_good_end]

That should be quite acceptable. Thank you, very much.

I have shared this reasoning with Arataka-san, but I believe there are more murderers to be found here. We are clearly progressing along an established level of difficulty in detecting them.

"Handsome Jack," did not at all conceal his behavior, and was known before the game began by two other contestants.

"Matt Engarde," had some common sense to avoid saying too much to myself when I engaged him, but he was known by one other person, and his facade was short lived.

"Shiba Reiichirou," was seemingly pleasant and did not stand out in his individual interactions. It was only when those interactions as a whole were analyzed and he was confronted that he finally showed his true face. Furthermore, no one has admitted to knowing who he was before the game.

...Following this trend, I believe we shall see further culprits. Perhaps the next one will have persons vouching for his good nature, and he will not confess, even when pressed to extremes. In which case, the only evidence available will be observations, interactions, and voting patterns.

Just from the existence of a string of murderers voted out as a consequence of their crimes, this level of reasoning is possible for Furudo Erika.

What do you think, everyone?

[weeabird]

I have my reservations about the idea of an intentional progression of difficulty, but I have come to the same conclusion myself in regards to the population here. We were clearly not selected at random, and there are almost certainly more killers among the lot.

[very_good_end]

Indeed...

[pause]

...

Mr. Blackquill, you said something very interesting just now.

You said, "there are certainly more killers among the lot."

"The lot." As in, "people who are not myself, and are not the other two people in this room." The 'other' group. Beyond immediate company.

That's a very interesting thing to say, prosecutor and convict, Simon Blackquill.

That statement precludes the possibility that there is a killer in this room. How could you make this assumption, I ask myself?

Of course, it is natural you would know this of the detective, since I cannot possibly be the culprit.

Dlanor, certainly, is also beyond such concerns.

That leaves yourself. And the only way you would speak as if you were innocent of murder... would be if you were, in fact, innocent of murder.

...Am I correct?

[weeabird]

[cringes in the distinctive manner of an Ace Attorney character who has just been owned]

I— I simply misspoke! I excluded myself because obviously there is no need to speculate about my own status!

[very_good_end]

...Indeed?

[of course, that just made Erika more calm as the confidence of her perfect reasoning as the detective washed over her]

That prompts the question, though, does it not? Why then has Prosecutor Simon Blackquill not announced his crime and offered himself to be put to death?

...Of course, it would go against the standards of self-preservation. Perhaps there's another angle to observe this apparent contradiction.

Why, then, have others not come forward suggesting Prosecutor Simon Blackquill be put to death?

After all, his sister, Aura Blackquill, and his handler, Detective Bobby Fulbright are both present, are they not?

Yet, unlike Maya Fey with Matt Engarde, and unlike Fiona with Handsome Jack, there has been no public denouncement of prosecutor Simon Blackquill.

...How can this be, I ask myself? My little grey cells can imagine several possibilities.

One, is that they are simply too afraid. If they dared try, perhaps Simon Blackquill would be of such a nature to silence them immediately through force. It would be in-line with the state of his being manacled.

...And yet, prosecutor Simon Blackquill has met with the detective privately many times, knows the potential of her deductive abilities, and never once tried to physically silence her. We must therefore rule out that possibility.

Two, is that they believe, perhaps, that prosecutor Simon Blackquill is capable of redemption. This is possible, yet it would prompt the question of 'why' they would think that. Is it perhaps wishful thinking on behalf of his sister and presumed handler? His sister does seem to carry some hidden affection for him. His handler is also a self-proclaimed 'Hero of Justice,' a title that implies a certain degree of optimism. Certainly, this is a possible resolution. But then why does Simon Blackquill purposefully exclude himself in talk as a 'killer'? Certainly Prosecutor Simon Blackquill would not be deluded of the nature of his own actions. Thus, this resolution, while possible, does not fully comply with all available evidence.

A third resolution, and one which seems to be in line with all available evidence, is that they both already believe he has in fact committed no crime, and the innocence of prosecutor Simon Blackquill is a so-called 'open secret'. It would explain why his handler seems minimally concerned with monitoring him, to the point they will waste away the day watching a Samurai action show.

...Of course, as the detective, I must be concerned with exposing all secrets, even open ones.

[weeabird]

Perhaps my sister and handler believe, but are incorrect. Perhaps "prosecutor Simon Blackquill" bears such shame for his actions that at times, he dissociates from them entirely!

[sweats]

[very_good_end]

...Oh. Is the heat of the room getting to you, monsieur? It is not perhaps, so hot, but if you would like to excuse yourself there is certainly nothing keeping you here...

...Although the sudden impulse to escape a situation is certainly a telltale sign a suspect has been caught dead to rights in the detective's logic...

As is the faces they make.

But, listen to me, talking about 'suspects.' Mr. Blackquill is guilty of nothing, after all. --Isn't this right?

[weeabird]

It is nothing of the sort. I am the one who committed that unforgivable deed, and I shall entertain no more speculation on the subject.

[Begins his tactical retreat.]

[very_good_end]

...Hm. How interesting.

I suppose it is possible that this line of reasoning is completely wrong. I, after all, have no details about the actual incident. It's possible I've misinterpreted all of the evidence available and instead that Prosecutor Simon Blackquill's terse confession is the truth.

...But then, that puts me in a very difficult spot...

I called this meeting with the assumption that Prosecutor Simon Blackquill is trustworthy. Surely, if Prosecutor Simon Blackquill is capable of murder, he would only exploit the trust I placed in him. --As I've made consistently clear, I have no fear of losing my own life. However... if something were to happen to Miss Dlanor... that would certainly put me in a very, very difficult spot. She's my weakness, I suppose you could say.

Of course, only a few people have even the slightest inkling that there is a connection between I, Great Detective Furudo Erika, and the unassuming Miss Dlanor A. Knox. --Not that we've tried to hide it. Miss Dlanor is very honest and upfront. But still, it is a detail only a few have stumbled upon.

A fiend who wanted to hurt me very much could certainly attack Miss Dlanor to get to me.

...

Mr. Blackquill. There is no reason for me to think there would be a vote placed on Dlanor A. Knox before she volunteered for release, oui? Let me hear the confirmation from your own lips.

[weeabird]

I am not a commendable man, but I keep my word when it is given. I have no intention of harming or endangering either of you — this I swear.

[very_good_end]

... Good. Thank you very much.

Remember. We certainly did not have any strange talk here. I am certainly exactly what I appear to be. At no time did I ever claim to have any 'powers,' nor would I, other than those provided by my little grey cells. --Certainly Mr. Blackquill, once he leaves this room, would not at all talk to anyone saying 'cooperate with that girl's whims, there's a prize in store if you do.' Certainly he would realize I was already taking a chance by talking this much, and only did so because I was so pressed.

The detective's deductions must be honestly pursued, and earned, Mr. Blackquill. I'm sure you can appreciate that, as a prosecutor.

...Oh. But, Miss Dlanor is free to talk about whatever she wants. Why don't you stay and ask her about Knox's Decalogue if you like? In the meantime, I will excuse myself to find Detective Bobby Fulbright.

[weeabird]

Rest assured, I would prefer to argue from a basis that does not make me sound like a madman. I believe it is better for your sakes as well if I maintain discretion.

[pauses at the offer to stay. He looks tired.]

...Yes, I suppose I would be more interested in learning about the rules by which a detective operates.

[very_good_end]

Ah, Mr. Blackquill, you will find when you embrace the state of not caring at all what others think of your actions, the options become much, much, more numerous.

Until we meet again. Au revoir, monsieur.

[and, she'll curtsy, give a little nod to Dlanor, then make her exit.]