Sholmes' Suite
You're now playing as Ryunosuke Naruhodo. It's been four months since the final case of the previous game. After dealing with Sholmes' antics, you get the chance to tell him and Iris about a letter you just received from Susato.
- Miss Susato's letter: You tell Sholmes and Iris about the letter, which talks about the previous case, and mention how you helped Soseki Natsume with two cases on Briar Road.
- Startling news: According to the letter, when Soseki returned to Japan, Professor Mikotoba asked him about 'the case of the haunted lodgings'. Something Soseki said apparently troubled the professor, and that's why he sent the telegram to make Susato return to Japan. And for some reason, Sholmes doesn't want Iris to publish her story about the case.
- Miss Susato's repatriation: Professor Mikotoba lied about being extremely ill in the telegram so that his daughter would return to Japan. It seems like he knows something about this case that he's hiding, and so does Sholmes.
Iris offers to read over the case notes she and Susato compiled with you. You recall how, six months ago, you got Soseki acquitted for the stabbing of Olive Green. The day after the trial, Sholmes told you that Green had recovered from her coma, and asked you to visit her at Saint Bartholomew's Hospital.
Miss Green's Hospital Bed
Sholmes shows you and Susato to Green's room. You should first examine the picture in the center: A photo of her friend, Duncan. Then you can talk to Green. In summary, she's an artist and has been in a coma during the previous trial. She's still waiting to be discharged from this hospital.
Suddenly, a British police officer orders your team to go to Soseki Natsume for something more urgent.
Shamspeare's Room
You get to see a shocking scene that almost looks like murder: Shamspeare lying on the table with soap and teacups. Unfortunately you can't investigate yet. Talk to Soseki and he'll have colorful things to say in this scene and Inspector Gregson who introduces you to Shamspeare, the most bizarre character in this game's history. Once Sholmes appears on the very left, you know what that means: Dance of Deduction!
The Great Deduction: Cause of Death
- Careful observation of the victim reveals to us the events that transpired in this disconsolate room last night.
- Foam at the mouth of the deceased clearly indicates the use of poison.
- Next to the victim, we notice a large dining plate, which contains, you will observe...
- ...one half of a sizeable bar of soap. Meaningful? Indubitably.
- Why is this soap set so purposefully upon the dish? Like the victim's last supper, in fact. Yes...
- Could it be that the man was about to eat it? Of course, the fork reveals the answer.
- It appears the man's appetite was his undoing.
- Taking up arms in the form of his cutlery, the victim engaged in a deadly battle for his life.
- Yet the struggle against his hunger was in vain, for in the end, he couldn't resist devouring the slippery feast!
- But London's foul soap is besmirched by foul poison.
- Yes, the victim's life was claimed by poison that tainted the contents of the plate!
- The soap...and the lather about the young man's mouth are too perfectly matched to ignore.
- The cause of death was clearly intoxication due to excessive ingestion of foul soap!
- ...Though personally, I have a greater interest in the taste of foul candlewax, of course.
Conclusion: Poisoning from soap ingestion
Nature of the Beast: Course Correction
Did Shamspeare really die from eating soap? Let's see if we can't correct Sholmes' deductions. On statement 6, rotate the camera until you can see another piece of soap on the ground. Present the other piece of soap. Sholmes changes tack and and says the victim wasn't eating soap at all. Well, if there isn't anything to eat on the table, how could he have been poisoned? Present the teacup on statement 11. Shamspeare must have consumed poison while drinking from the teacup!
Conclusion: Poison in the tea
The Great Deduction: Suicide or Murder?
- Careful observation of the victim reveals to us the events that transpired in this disconsolate room last night.
- The cause of death identified, we proceed to Act Two, where we ponder the next question:
- Was this suicide or murder?
- The audience will recall that death occurred during the victim's 'last supper'.
- Did the man dine and die alone? This single teacup suggests the answer.
- To draw a conclusion on such meagre evidence would be foolish however, certainly.
- The careful criminal could have absconded with his own cup to cover his tracks.
- Well, allow me to lift the veil of doubt, my dear fellow.
- Indeed. What reveals the answer, of course, is the broken lock!
- Though forced open now, at the time of the incident, this door was locked.
- And the sole key was in the victim's pocket.
- In other words, when the victim consumed the poison, he must have been alone.
- Alone with his inferior soap, from whence wafted an inferior scent.
- And with that acrid aroma lingering in the air, the victim met his end...in tragic solitude.
- We can take comfort only in the fact that his soul was well cleansed on its way to the hereafter.
Conclusion: No possible perpetrator present
Aftermath: Course Correction
Soseki seems to be acting strangely...why is that? On statement 5, turn the camera around to examine the victim's left hand-you'll find it holding a second teacup. Present the other teacup. If there were two teacups, there likely was someone else drinking tea with the victim! On statement 9, Examine the pile of books on the table. The books happen to have the same titles as the ones Soseki bought the other day. Present the pile of familiar books. Soseki must have been present at the night of the murder!
Conclusion: Soseki Natsume
Investigation time!
Unfortunately, poor Natsume gets arrested by Inspector Gregson. But with him gone, you can now examine the crime scene. People might easily missed it so start with the torn envelope on the right side of the table. Also put the two teacups on the court record. Then check the center window: With the few bricks out of the way, you find soap frozen from the outside weather condition. You can check Shamspear but he hasn't moved an inch yet until you finish your investigation.
When you do finish your investigation, if you're waiting for a surprise, you would've been correct: Shamspear suddenly comes alive and does the Shakespeare number before he collapse on the floor, stunning everyone. Inspector Gregson calls the hospital, ending a fine performance of a scene. How could he still be alive? Check the trials later on to find out what makes him unique.