Feluda did not go to bed until late that night. Lalmohan Babu and I stayed up with him until eleven, talking about Torit Sengupta’s death. None of us could figure out why a young and obviously intelligent man like him had to die such an awful and mysterious death. Even Feluda could not find answers to a lot of questions. He made a list of these: 1. Who, apart from Mr Sengupta, had gone to the forest that night? Was it the murderer? Was it the person who had stolen the sword? Or was it a third person? Who could have a small but powerful torch? 2. We had all heard Mahitosh Sinha-Roy having an argument with someone the same night. Who was he speaking to? 3. Devtosh Babu was about to tell us something concerning the peepul tree and his brother, when the latter interrupted him. What was he going to say? 4. Why did Devtosh Babu mention Yudhisthir’s chariot, more than once? Was it simply the raving of a madman, or did it have any significance? 5. Why does Shashanka Sanyal speak so little? Was he quiet and reserved by nature, or was there a specific reason behind his silence? Lalmohan Babu heard him read out this list, then said, ‘Look, Felu Babu, there’s one man who continues to make me feel uneasy. Yes, I am talking of Devtosh Babu. He spoke quite normally a few hours ago, but at other times he isn’t normal, is he? What if he came upon someone accidentally in the forest, and decided it was Kalapahar, or Raju as he calls him? He might attack this person, mightn’t he?’ Feluda stared at Lalmohan Babu for a few seconds before speaking. ‘Working with me has clearly improved both your imagination and powers of observation,’ he remarked. ‘Yes, I agree Devtosh Babu is certainly physically capable of striking someone with a sword. But consider this: whoever took that sword knew Mr Sengupta had gone to the forest. So he deliberately took the weapon, followed him—don’t forget it was a stormy night—found him, and then killed him. Could a madman have thought all this out and acted upon it, especially when it meant finding his way in the dark in inclement weather, then holding the torch in one hand and using the sword with the other? No, I don’t think so. What is essential now is a return visit to the forest, and seeing if we can pick up a clue. There’s no point in speculating here. The only thing I am sure of is that Mr Sengupta had gone into the forest to look for the hidden treasure. Perhaps he wanted to collect it and take it back to Calcutta. But what still doesn’t make sense is why he was so sorely tempted in the first place. He was living here very comfortably, and was clearly very well paid. Did you see his clothes and toiletries? Everything was expensive and of good quality. Even