The new semester opens with a bang that shocks the four Houses of QED University, an exclusive school for promising students of the science of deduction and art of detection.
The Holmesian Harriet Harrison never thought that the day would come when...
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MORRIE
I COULD see puppet strings attached to every person around me. I only needed to lift my fingers to make them dance.
This academy may be the breeding ground for detectives, but for me, it was nothing but a stage for my puppet show. Watching them dance to my own tune was entertaining. I could sit and sip my favorite chamomile tea while they do my bidding.
Take Aiden Alterra of House Adler, for instance. He wasn't the type to bend the knee to anyone but I managed to make him sit and bark like a dog. What kind of bone did I use to tame him? A secret of his that shall never be revealed.
One could see why I perfectly belong to House Moriarty. Letter "M" for Moriarty, letter "M" for manipulator. My brother is a Moriartian alumnus, and it came as no surprise to me when I was sorted to the same House. Apparently, being a raven, the sigil of our House, runs in the blood.
"Hoy, Moriartard!"
I was walking across the hallway when I heard a female voice behind me. There could only be one person who would call me by that name. But I chose to walk straight out of the hall. As a man who values my time, I could not spare a minute or two for such insult. There were other pressing matters that I needed to take care of.
"Hoy, tinawag kita, ah? Hindi mo ba ako narinig?"
Someone grabbed my wrist and pulled me a few steps back. Since it would be unbecoming of a gentleman to slap her hand, I let her drag me to where she was standing with our bespectacled classmate.
"I have to attend an urgent House affair," I told Harriet who was be pissed by my blatant ignorance. "If you wanna say something, do it quick. I have no time for nonsense."
"If you have time plotting for world domination, maybe you can spare a minute or two for this," she replied as she jerked her thumb toward Wilhelmina, who was looking anxious. "Frankly, kung ako ang tatanungin, ayaw ko nang hingin ang opinyon mo, pero dahil kasama ka kahapon sa nagligtas sa kanya, you are now part of the case."
I only gave Wilhelmina a cold stare before returning my gaze at Harriet. "So this is about what happened yesterday. Do you have any update? Can you recall the face of whoever abducted and brought you to the abandoned clock tower?
Our seemingly mute classmate quickly turned on her iPad and began scribbling on the screen. She showed me a series of dots and dashes which I quickly understood.
"So someone from your House texted you to wait in front of that dilapidated building?" My left eyebrow raised as I watched her nod.
"Galing daw 'yon sa isang Housemate niya na classmate natin," Harriet added. "Nang tanungin ko ang taong 'yon kanina, hindi raw niya tinext kahapon si Mina. At heto pa, nawawala pa magmula kahapon ang phone niya."
"That would mean someone stole that person's phone and used it to send message to Wilhelmna," I nodded, touching my chin. My mind began putting together the puzzle pieces and imagined how the whole affair went down. "And she, unaware that it wasn't her Housemate, went in front of the tower."
