Unikum mars 2021

What had previously been a room for the sharing of sacred
academic knowledge of the mortal realm, was now
tarnished with a sense of dread. A coldness had snuck
into the room, and every time it crept closer, I came to
realize it was Death’s grasp, gently caressing us all, reminding
us of our inevitable doom. Reminding us of our
own mortality. And the catalyst for this horror emitted
from a single occurrence:
The discovery of Stew Dent’s body.
One of his classmates had attempted to nudge him awake,
yet the grasp of Death would not surrender its bounty
with a mere shake. Upon further examination, the cause
of death was determined to be tetrodotoxin, based on
symptoms found on the body. In the middle of a lecture,
someone had poisoned their classmate. No utilities
used for injection were discovered on the premise, so I
deduced that digestion was the only way, and the victim
had gotten a coffee during the break. Thus, I assumed
the culprit must have poisoned the coffee at some point.
The class consisted of five students, Nadia, Julian, Charlotte,
Judy and Daniel. All with the exception of Daniel
partook in the laboratory exercise where they learned of
tetrodotoxin, meaning they all had access to the poison,
except Daniel.
I was neither a detective nor too confident, but at Nadia’s
request, as I was the objective third-party, I was to
attempt to pinpoint a culprit within the hour. If I did not
succeed, she would comply with a police investigation.
I was given a map of the first floor, the only floor we all
had access to. No other third-part could have partaken
as this area of the campus was closed off to all except us
on the account it was a Saturday. These are the testimonies
of the suspects:
W I T N E S S
T E S T I M O N Y
NADIA
“I personally find the murder of Stew heinous. Stew might
have been a quiet boy, but he was kind and had a passion
for his studies. He always attended every lecture, taking
notes dutifully and was an exceptional partner to work
with. Why anyone would murder him is beyond me, as
Stew never really talked with anyone here except when
forced into group projects.”
“As you may remember, I sat in the front, right in front of
Stew. I never really turned around to face him during the
first part of the lecture, however, when the break came
around, he seemed like his normal self. He stayed in the
Lecture Hall when the rest of us left for the break. I went
to the Outside Area for a breath of fresh air and to clear
my head for the next 45 minutes of the lecture. No one seemed
to follow my direction, and I spent the entire break
there, alone. I think Stew went for a coffee at some point,
but that’s only a deduction based on the coffee cup next to
his body. Charlotte and Daniel I believe sat on some benches
in the Lounge Area, I saw Charlotte there through a
window, sitting alone until Daniel attempted to pull a scare
on her. They still sat there the last minute of the break
so I scolded them on my way back in. Judy I believe asked
Julian to accompany her for a smoke in the Smoking Hut.
She probably went there to avoid me.”
“I think this is because Judy despises me. The feeling is
mutual, she’s a racist who hides behind the veil of feigned
ignorance. I have a better mastery of her language that she
could ever dream of, and I’m younger. Judy has the ingenuity
to commit murder, but probably not the energy, however,
she does read an awful lot of murder mystery between
classes. Julian is too dumb to commit murder, or at
least one he could get away with. Charlotte is not too dumb
to commit a murder, but she’s too clumsy. If she stabbed
someone, she would not notice the trail of blood from the
knife as she carried it back to her apartment. Daniel, I do
not know, I have yet to understand Daniel or why he’s here.
He probably doesn’t even know what tetrodotoxin is.”
“By the way, a fair warning. Do not trust what alibi Judy
gives you about Julian. Judy worships Julian, God knows
why. And I believe there’s something between Daniel and
Charlotte, however, I can’t quite put my finger on it. But be
wary, we might be young adults, but we’re capable of lying
just like anyone else.”
MARS 2021 UNIKUM NR 3 21