Chapter 585: Chapter 416: Follow-up on the Explosion Case
When that plane was detonated, passengers were disembarking in an orderly fashion because they had only heard an announcement about a technical malfunction that temporarily prevented takeoff. They were informed that the plane needed to be inspected, and only after the inspection could it take off normally. Hence, the evacuation at that time was very orderly.
This orderly process resulted in a relatively slow evacuation, so the passengers were completely unprepared when the plane exploded.
Those who had already left the plane were better off. The passengers just stepping onto the gangway were swept off their feet and sent flying into the air by the shockwave from the powerful explosion.
Fortunately, the passengers who could afford to fly during this period were somewhat wealthy and willing to spend money on nutritional supplements to boost their physical health. Consequently, even if they fell from the sky, they were mostly just injured, with no life-threatening harm.
Despite Pengcheng having established regular flights with Kyoto, Pengcheng airport didn’t have its own planes. Flights from Kyoto would depart at noon, arrive in Pengcheng in the afternoon, stay overnight, and return directly to Kyoto the next noon.
Under normal circumstances, the vast airport would house just one plane, not even a spare.
The explosion didn’t just enrage the officials in Pengcheng; even the Kyoto Imperial Court started making continuous phone calls, asking why the plane exploded before takeoff.
Bear in mind that even before the disaster, planes were not cheap. An explosion before takeoff—not to mention even the slightest accident—would necessitate a thorough investigation to determine the root cause.
Because Zachary left the plane on his own initiative, and even though he directly contacted the air police and reported a potential problem with the plane, prompting the air police to inspect it, his suspicion was only reduced, not completely eliminated, after the explosion.
Soon after the explosion, the air police brought Zachary and Madeline to the airport office for separate inquiries.
There wasn’t much to ask from Madeline’s side. Since Zachary had led the entire process and considering the Taylor family’s background, Madeline’s suspicion was quickly cleared, and she was let go.
Zachary’s situation was a bit more complicated. Although Mr. Thompson had significant influence in Saxon County Camp, the incident was too deeply connected to Zachary, necessitating a thorough interrogation.
"Name."
"Zachary."
"Gender."
"Male."
"Why did you need to board the plane to Kyoto?"
"To go home."
"To go home?"
"Yes, I have settled down in Kyoto. I came back to visit my parents this time, stayed in Saxon County for a few days, and after spending time with them, it was natural to return to Kyoto."
Hearing this, the air police nodded. The plane explosion was a big issue, and even though not much time had passed, the information of all passengers on the plane was already compiled and sent to the Pengcheng officials.
Due to the principle of making exceptions for exceptional situations and the limited number of survivors from the explosion, the officials had sent the information of uninjured passengers to the airport first.
The air policeman questioning Zachary already had the files related to him at hand, so naturally, he also understood Zachary’s background and social relationships.
After reviewing Zachary’s files, the air policeman personally judged that the explosion was unlikely related to him. Whether from the perspective of social relationships or Zachary’s character, aside from delaying his journey, the explosion hardly affected him in any other way.
For this reason, the air policeman’s tone was amiable as if having a casual conversation, "I’d like to ask how you managed to discover there was a bomb on the plane beforehand, leading you to leave in advance."
Though the officer’s tone was friendly, he could not help but set a trap for Zachary in the conversation. Not being naive, Zachary detected the implied question and tightened up again, becoming serious and losing his previous casual demeanor.
"I didn’t know there was a bomb on the plane. My reason for leaving was quite simple: I had a persistent premonition after boarding. The longer I stayed on the plane, the stronger the feeling of foreboding became.
You could say it was what people commonly refer to as a sixth sense. Perhaps because of a mysterious object I possess, I often have a sharper intuition for potential threats than others."
Hearing Zachary’s explanation, the questioner did not display any particular skepticism. After all, with the appearance of unusual artifacts, not to mention situations like Zachary’s before the disaster, even more mysterious occurrences were frequently happening.
If before the disaster such a sixth sense would not have been widely accepted, after the disaster, Zachary’s account was readily acceptable to most people.
Actually, at this point in the conversation, the air policeman responsible for questioning Zachary didn’t have any more issues to pursue. Just as he was about to conclude this routine inquiry, a knock on the door from outside suddenly interrupted them.
The air policeman apologized and went out only to return not long after with a grave expression, resuming the questioning, "I apologize, but we just received some new information. Do you know Alexandria, also known as Butterfly?"
