Simulation Test

ZANAYA

"You may now enter," said the robotic voice.

When I stepped inside, the glass tube closed and the green line surrounded it. Eventually the surroundings changed and now I was stepping on a tiled floor.

I noticed I was inside a house. My eyes wandered and stared at a man lying on the floor bathed in his blood. The place was surrounded by yellow cordon and by police and medics. I could see that he was no longer alive. He was stabbed many times in various parts of the body so he probably died immediately. It seemed like he was killed out of rage.

On the other side, a lady was crying. Next to her were a housemaid who look stunned and a man who looked like a gardener with an emotionless face.

The medics have already taken the corpse and I think the funeral home will be its destination.

I was staring at them when a policeman looked at me and suddenly smiled.

"Agent 499, you're already there, come and help us determine who the culprit is."

Huh? Why me?

I suddenly remembered that I was in a simulation test; I almost thought what was happening was real. And so I began to follow the police. They handed me a paper and found out it was a police report.

JUAN DELA CRUZ

43 YEARS OLD

TIME OF DEATH: 9:30 AM

FOUND DEAD IN THE LIVING ROOM WITH 44 STABS

A BUSINESS MAN AND OWNS MULTIPLE COMPANIES.

If so, Juan dela Cruz was a wealthy businessman. No wonder someone wanted to kill him.

"It was indeed a murder. There were no missing belongings of the dela Cruz. But the question is, who would have done that to a philanthropist like him?" the policeman even held his chin while saying that.

"Chief Robles, the suspects are ready for questioning," another police officer approached us.

"Agent 499, shall we?"

I was no longer surprised to see that the three suspects were the lady, the maid and the gardener.

"Wait! Why are we here? Shouldn't you be out looking for Sir Juan's killer?!" the gardener scolded us.

"Calm down. You are our primary suspects because you were the only ones inside the house when the incident happened," Chief Robles explained calmly.

It was as if I was feeling bad vibes in that gardener. It was as if he wanted to cover up something. What if...

"Mister Gardener, where were you when the murder of Mr. dela Cruz happened?" I dared to ask so that I could get out of the simulation. I have a feeling that this gardener is the killer. With his body like a weight lifter, Mr. dela Cruz is no match because of his thin body. But what was his motive for the murder?

"Of course, I'm in the garden and watering the plants. What else?" Mister Gardener shouted at us again.

"Then Mr. Nito, haven't you heard anyone shouting?" Chief Robles asked next.

"Probably nothing! The distance was very far from the garden to the living room!"

"Wait, Mister, don't shout. Please calm down," a policeman who was with us tried to calm down the gardener.

"Then why are you focusing on me?" he asked and glared at me. He added, "Why don't you ask Ma'am Lourdes? She was inside the mansion when the murder happened."

He was trying to divert our attention to others. Well, all three of them were suspects here, and no one can prove if the alibi of mister gardener was true.

"Mrs. Dela Cruz, Mr. Nito said you were inside the mansion at the time your husband was killed. Was this true?" Chief Robles inquired from the lady who is still crying a river.

She nodded in response.

"Can you tell us where you were in the mansion when the crime happened?"

The lady took a deep breath before answering. "I was in the room at that time. I was looking for my husband's wallet."

"And why are you looking for your husband's wallet?" I asked her.

She looked at me for a moment before she answered my question. "It's because he doesn't give me his income from the shop. I just thought maybe he's giving it to another woman."

When it comes to money, many people were willing to kill just to get it. But money and concubinage, when you combine it, it’s definitely a strong motive to pull anyone to commit a crime.

"But believe me, I couldn't kill my husband. That's the truth," Mrs. dela Cruz added and sobbed again.

Suddenly, the gardener spoke up, "Isn't that right? You and Sir Juan are always fighting; I even saw you holding a knife the other night and pointed it at sir."

The lady's sobs grew louder. "I only did that so he could tell the truth. I had no ill intentions."

Mrs. Lourdes' story seemed to touch my heart. I don't think she could have done that to her husband.

"Why don't we ask the maid?" I suggested.

She looked at me in shock. She seemed anxious because she kept squeezing the hem of her blue dress.

"I think you were also inside the house when the crime happened, weren't you?" I probed.

She nodded and then turned to Mister Gardener. He stared at her. It was as if their eyes were talking and they were the only ones who understood.

"Have you noticed anything weird?" I asked next.

"N-None," she stuttered.

"Why are you questioning her like that?!" the gardener interjected again.

I really have very little patience with this man. I'm annoyed beyond reasons. Instead of minding him, I just stared at the maid.

She was still anxious and she was still holding the hem of her dress. As a result, I focused my attention on her dress until something caught my attention. Now, all I had to do was prove my suspicion correct.

"By any chance, are you having your menstrual period?" I asked her.

Her eyes widened and uneasiness registered on her face.

"N-No."

"Before the crime happened, did you cook?"

"No," she replied and she seemed confused now.

"What kind of question was that, Miss, are you even a detective or not?!" the persistent gardener asked again.

I will admit I was offended by what he said even though I am not yet fully a detective and I do not know yet if I fit in the detective class. That's why I couldn't help but answer.

"Will you please shut up? I can ask many questions even if it is irrelevant as long as it will lead to the exposure of the culprit, got that? And most importantly, it's none of your business. SO SHUT UP!"

He just stared at me. I really couldn't hold back anymore. He's so annoying.

"Or maybe you're interrupting in the conversation because you're hiding something, aren't you, Mister Nito?" I'm trying to provoke him in case he knew something.

He just laughed out loud, "I have nothing to hide, Miss."

I ignored him again and turned to the maid once more.

"Since you always say no to my questions, I have to ask one last question. Where did you get that?" I asked her and pointed at the bloodstain on her skirt. It’s just small and it could not be noticed if not looked at carefully.

She didn't know what to do and seemed very bothered. I noticed Mister Gardener reaching out to hold her hand.

"You said you were in the kitchen when the crime happened. I believed that, but Mr. Dela Cruz went into the kitchen to get water, didn't he?"

She nodded then I pointed the glass on the table to prove my point.

“Then he came into the living room and you took that opportunity to kill him,” I recounted.

The maid just cried. Mrs. Dela Cruz, on the other hand, was ready to lunge at the maid, but fortunately the police stopped her.

Everyone was surprised when the gardener shouted again.

"NO! IT WAS ME! I killed Sir Juan. I'll admit it now. It's not Inday's fault but me. Don't involve her in this anymore."

I can say that he was just pretending.

"What are you saying? Please don't talk anymore. Let me go," Inday said.

"I can't allow you to be imprisoned, you know that."

"Chief, Nito has nothing to do with this because I really killed sir," the maid admitted and cried again.

"You're shameless. After we help your family, this is all you're going to repay?" Mrs. Dela Cruz has gone mad.

"I only did that because Sir Juan had taken advantage of me several times. I can no longer stand him insulting and abusing me. Forgive me, Ma'am Lourdes," Inday pleaded and the tears continued to flow.

"Inday did the right thing, someone like sir Juan must disappear from this world," the gardener said with disgust.

"Case closed," Chief Robles finally said.

Inday surrendered peacefully to the police. Now Mister Gardener was crying. I felt sorry for him and now I understood why he acted like that before because he and Inday are in love.

"Congratulations, Agent 499. Job well done!" Chief Robles praised me.

After a while, the surroundings changed and I was in the glass tube again. My five minutes ended exactly so I was out of the glass tube.