Chapter 24: Some Butterfly Effects

After completing their inspection of the scene, the two men did not linger. They handed the premises over to the forensics team and left the apartment together.

Downstairs, they ran into Luca, who had just arrived by car.

After a brief exchange, Luca frowned upon learning what had happened. "Detective Somerset, did the victim upstairs die of 'Pride'?"

William nodded. "Yes."

Luca’s expression turned increasingly puzzled. This did not align with the original plot; the butterfly effect had manifested. In the original story, Luca remembered that the second victim was killed for "Greed"—a lawyer who took dirty money to defend criminals and rapists. But now, "Pride" had appeared ahead of schedule. The butterfly effect was making certain things uncontrollable.

William keenly sensed the change in Luca’s expression. "Greco, did you find any leads over in the Bronx?"

Luca shook his head. He was currently still canvassing the area with Leon and would find something soon, but the killer was also moving very quickly.

David, anxious to crack the case, took the initiative to invite Luca. "Would you like to come upstairs and take a look? You have a keen eye for observation; you might be able to spot other clues, right?" He truly regarded Luca as a master detective.

"No need to trouble yourself." Luca pondered and analyzed, "The appearance of the 'Pride' victim proves my theory was correct: the killer is murdering people based on the Seven Deadly Sins, and he is staging the murders with a sense of religious ritual. Gentlemen, do you think the killer could be a Catholic?" He attempted to steer their investigation directly. "Or rather, where would the killer learn about these Seven Deadly Sins? He is also familiar with quotes from 'Paradise Lost,' suggesting he has read a significant number of related books, perhaps including 'The Divine Comedy' or Dante’s 'Inferno'."

David frowned. "The killer is clearly just a cold-blooded madman. Even if he’s read those books, it doesn't prove he's cultured."

"Wait..." A flash of inspiration struck William like a lightning bolt. He pointed at Luca and said, "You’ve given me an idea! Yes, we can identify the killer through these related books... bookstore purchase records, library borrowing records... Mills, go check now. See which bookstores in New York are selling these titles. I’ll go to the library to check the lending records!"

Luca was relieved. If they could obtain information through the library, he wouldn't have to go through the trouble of canvassing every lead with Leon.

David and William immediately split up to begin their investigation. Luca chose to accompany William to the library. No matter how strong the butterfly effect might be, the killer's library borrowing records surely shouldn't just disappear, right?

...

Shortly after, outside the library.

Luca and William walked through the entrance together. As William looked at the young man beside him, he couldn't help but think of his nickname and the things he had done in Little Italy.

"Greco, there is one thing I have always been curious about," William said, puzzled. "You are so enthusiastic about maintaining peace, so why don't you leave the Mafia? If you want to do charity, you could easily change your identity."

Luca smiled. "If I didn't have the status of a family leader, do you think those gangs would listen to me?"

William choked. It was true; sometimes the deterrent power of a family was stronger than that of the police. The police were bound by rules and could not kill at will; even with criminals, their core objective was to arrest and convict, letting the law pass judgment. But certain families, operating on both sides of the law, had fewer scruples—if they said they would kill your whole family, they would. The fact that the crime rate and resident complaint rate in Little Italy had dropped was an undeniable reality, even if the outcome was somewhat absurd.

"Last time in Times Square, you helped the police, and this time you stepped up to help us again. And Little Italy—because of your presence, the crime rate has dropped significantly. Everything you have done commands my respect. Greco, you are different from any other gangster I have ever met."

"This is the first time I've heard a police officer praise me. Oh, thank you; I’m flattered."

"You are always maintaining peace. Do you believe this world can eventually become peaceful?" William stared at Luca’s face, not forgetting that before Luca had declared "I love peace" in his interview, he had also complained about quite a lot.

Faced with William's question, Luca thought for a moment and countered, "That depends on what kind of peace you are hoping for... Detective Somerset, a thousand years ago, philosophers proposed the Seven Deadly Sins. Do you think there will ever come a day when humans no longer possess these sins? If that happens, you police will be out of a job."

William was slightly stunned, not knowing how to answer. He understood what Luca meant. People without the Seven Deadly Sins were saints who did not yet exist; ethics and legal rules could only restrain them, but they could not erase evil at the root. Therefore, human conflict would never cease.

The older black detective stood in front of the bookshelf, lost in thought for a long time, then let out a dry laugh and shook his head. There were things in this world that were too contradictory, yet perfectly logical. Like war and peace. Or, for instance, how the words "Mafia" and "Ambassador of Peace" ever managed to end up in the same sentence.

...

While Luca and William were checking borrowing records at the library, in a villa on Long Island, a man covered in blood lay on the floor. With one breath left, he stared in terror at the bald man standing before him.

John Doe calmly used the man's blood to write a word on the floor nearby:

*Greed.*

"For years, you used sophisticated rhetoric to conceal the truth, deceiving clients into buying junk stocks and reaping huge profits."

"When you sat in the most expensive hotel on Wall Street, drinking rare red wine, did you ever think of those you had deceived?"

"You have committed the sin of Greed."

John knelt in front of the man and forcefully plunged a dagger into his throat. "In this filthy world, your crimes are unforgivable."

The man spat out bubbles of blood, his body convulsing as his struggle slowly faded. John sliced his arteries, "releasing" the blood.

If one greedily plunders wealth, then all the filth in their veins should be drained out... Only then was there a sense of ritual.

After finishing, John traced a large cross over his chest and shoulders. "Go to hell, greedy man."

Blood stained the exquisite wool carpet. John stood up, walked around the room, and picked up a photograph from the bookshelf. It was a group photo taken when the company first opened, showing a group of partners. The man who had just died was one of them.

John smiled coldly. In his view, these people had not only committed the sin of Greed, but also Lust and Pride. He could smell the rancid stench of their sins from hundreds of meters away—these wolves of Wall Street who devoured people without shedding a drop of blood.

This was just the beginning; he would execute the rest one by one. Those who committed the seven deadly sins were unforgivable. Just like that disgusting, obese man who couldn't even stand up—seeing him at dinner would surely make one lose their appetite. That starlet, though beautiful on the outside, had a soul so ugly that she couldn't go on living once she lost her beauty. Ha, he had given her a chance to live, but she had chosen to die. And these blood-sucking wolves of Wall Street.

None of these people deserved to exist in this world.

A sick smile slowly curled the corners of John’s mouth:

"I had no choice. I am the one chosen by God."