Furina stood beside the victim's bed, her gaze sharp and focused. Chen Lin approached quietly.
"Captain."
"Mm." Furina nodded coolly, though inside she was screaming: Ask me! Ask me!
"Captain, did you notice anything?"
Yes!
Furina cleared her throat, lifted her chin, and placed her hands on her hips with confidence.
"Of course."
"The victim's limbs are stiff. I estimate time of death to be within the last 24 hours—likely sometime after midnight."
"I checked her fingernails. No skin fragments or signs of struggle. That rules out physical conflict with the killer."
"There are no visible injuries. So either she was killed instantly without realizing it, or the killer used drugs to sedate her and then suffocated her with an external object."
"She's unclothed, but her valuables—including the gold necklace—are untouched. That rules out a botched robbery."
She turned to Chen Lin with a look that clearly said: Compliment me now.
But Chen Lin didn't catch the signal.
"Sigh… no praise? How tragic."
Furina glanced again at the victim's twisted expression.
"Did she see something terrifying before she died?"
"Could she have died from fright?"
"No… her eyes are bloodshot. That's consistent with mechanical suffocation."
Chen Lin's voice broke her thoughts.
"If she was killed without resistance, she must've been asleep."
"But she's still wearing makeup and stockings. Doesn't look like someone who was ready for bed."
She looked at Furina. "Captain, I think the killer undressed her after death to make it look like a sexual assault—to mislead our investigation."
Furina didn't respond immediately. Instead, she walked to the head of the bed and gently lifted the victim's head to inspect the pillow.
If the killer used the pillow to suffocate her, and she hadn't removed her makeup, there should be lipstick residue.
Sure enough, a clear lipstick mark was visible—no smudging, no signs of struggle.
"I won't rule out your theory."
"If she were awake, she would've resisted. But the clean lipstick print suggests she didn't."
"My guess? The killer intended to sedate and assault her—but she recognized him. So he panicked and killed her."
"No signs of forced entry. That means the killer entered naturally—or was already inside."
"In other words… this could be someone she knew."
Chen Lin leaned in, glancing toward the roommate in the living room. She lowered her voice.
"If it's someone familiar… could it be the roommate?"
"She might've used drugs to avoid leaving physical evidence."
Furina shook her head. "We need evidence. Until then, anyone could be the killer."
She stepped out of the bedroom. "Let's start by understanding the victim's social circle. Maybe a colleague or relative had a motive."
"Once the coroner checks for biological traces or drug compounds, we'll know more."
Furina approached the roommate, Chen Lin following with her notebook.
The roommate's name was Li Yue. She had been the captain of her university's Taekwondo club and had won multiple championships.
Now, she sat curled on the sofa, clutching a plush toy, trembling and swallowing nervously.
Furina stood before her, serious and composed.
"How did you meet the victim?"
"Ah!"
Startled, Li Yue snapped out of her daze.
Her voice quivered. "A few months ago, Xiaoyan posted a roommate ad online. I had just graduated and didn't have much money… so I contacted her. That's how we met."
"Do you know anything about her social relationships?" Furina asked.
Li Yue nodded slightly. "Her name is Zhang Xiaoyan. She worked as a model at Meixiu Agency. But she never talked about her friends or relationships."
"She was always kind to me. Really sweet. I don't think she had any enemies."