To everyone's surprise, the boy in front of them immediately reported the name of a particularly famous private chemical company in Jianning and a university known throughout the country. He laid out everything—Department Head, Advisor, class, etc.—in an orderly, clear, and complete manner, then explained, “My student ID is in my bag. {Advisor} is also quite well-known in the industry, you can go ahead and verify. Sorry, I haven’t had a chance to ask yet—what exactly did I do wrong? I’ve been in the lab recently working on a methanol sodium catalysis experiment. You should be able to check the surveillance footage to prove it…”

　　Chad Bennett raised his hand to press the Bluetooth earpiece and said softly, “Ask him if he knows about that bag.”

　　“On April 16th at 2 p.m., you went to the Financial Center and bought a bag. What was it for?”

　　In the interrogation room, Ethan Brooks clearly paused for a moment, then replied, “I don’t know anything about a bag.”

　　“He’s lying,” Chad Bennett said in a low voice.

　　Noah Wright didn’t understand what he meant, and Chad Bennett didn’t explain. He spoke into the earpiece, “Show him the surveillance footage of the victim buying the bag.”

　　The detective opened a folder and pulled out high-definition surveillance images from the International Financial Center boutique. The victim was facing the cashier, a huge gift box already wrapped by SA and placed at hand.

　　The police questioning was aggressive: “—How do you want to explain this?”

　　“……” Ethan Brooks stared motionlessly at the photo.

　　Although it was only a few seconds, his expression changed in an extremely subtle way. Chad Bennett and Noah Wright immediately exchanged a glance.

　　“He’s my roommate.” Ethan Brooks used two fingers to push the photo back across the table to the detective and said, “His name is Lucas Morgan. So? What did he do?”

　　“These two roommates don’t seem to get along,” Chad Bennett said, stroking his chin.

　　Noah Wright looked at him as if to say, “How do you even know that?” but Chad Bennett didn’t answer, instead instructing Mason Reed, “Have the Cultural Relics Protection Office call their school and internship company to verify.”

　　Mason Reed responded and left. Noah Wright nudged him with his elbow, “Stop being mysterious. If you’ve got something to say, just say it.”

　　“You’re the one full of crap. Even if I talk crap, it’s the kind that’s enlightening and fragrant for miles, got it?”

　　Noah Wright: “…………Fine, you’re the boss, whatever you say goes.”

　　Chad Bennett was pleased with the flattery. Imitating the way Ethan Brooks had just returned the photo to the police, he used the tips of his middle and ring fingers to push the edge of the paper, signaling to Noah Wright, “See that? The subtext of this gesture is: ‘I don’t even want to touch this guy, the farther you keep it from me, the better.’—And as roommates, after not seeing each other for a day and two nights, his first reaction isn’t to wonder what happened to him, but what he did wrong. Does that mean, in his eyes, Lucas Morgan is the kind of guy who’s always getting into trouble?”

　　“What kind of person is Lucas Morgan, and what’s your relationship with him?” the police in the interrogation room asked instead of answering.

　　Ethan Brooks took a breath and slowly leaned back in his chair.

　　—Twenty-one years old, about to graduate from a prestigious university as a graduate student, obviously a highly intelligent person who skipped several grades, and exactly the kind of person detectives least like to deal with.

　　“Our relationship is pretty average.” Ethan Brooks leaned back in his chair, opening with this line: “We’re completely people from two different worlds.”

　　The detective frowned, “What do you mean by that?”

　　“Lucas Morgan is a Beijing native, comes from a very wealthy family, has a wide social circle at school, but academically he’s not exactly…” Ethan Brooks paused for two seconds and said tactfully, “gifted.”

　　Chad Bennett said in the earpiece, “Let me translate for everyone: He’s a slacker, I’m a top student, and I’m going to look down on him with ultimate disdain, yay!”

　　Detective: “……”

　　“Although we’ve been roommates for over a year, I’m not close to him. I spend most of my time in the lab and library, tutor four times a week, and rarely go back to the dorm. Especially lately, I’m trying to secure a PhD spot, and with all the thesis work, I basically sleep in the lab.”

　　The detective asked suspiciously, “But you both came to Jianning for the internship?”

　　“We’re both under the same Advisor.” Ethan Brooks explained, “Although it’s called an internship, I’m actually here to collect some key data to take back to Beijing for my PhD thesis.”

　　“What about Lucas Morgan? Is he also trying for a PhD spot?”

　　Ethan Brooks’s expression was a bit hard to describe, “…He’s probably just here to mess around.”

　　The detective leaned forward, “Mess around? Can you describe in detail what you mean? What does he usually do? Does he not study at all?”

　　“Not exactly,” Ethan Brooks replied, “but his study time is basically less than eight hours a week, which is pretty much the same as not studying.”

　　The interrogation room fell into a brief silence.

　　“…Freaking overachiever,” Chad Bennett muttered.

　　The detective used all his self-restraint not to roll his eyes on the spot, turned a page in his notes, and asked again, “Besides studying, does your roommate have any hobbies or special habits you can tell us about?”

　　Ethan Brooks thought for a moment, seeming to find it a bit tricky.

　　“Just say whatever comes to mind, the more details the better.”

　　“……”