| “ | Are you saying I've been robbed by a celebrated person? That's wonderful news! Gertrude will be ecstatic! | ” |
–The Black Rose Victim | ||
The Black Rose Victim is a man on the Amphitrite Express who was thieved from by the Black Rose.
In reality, 'he' is simply the Black Rose herself, gaining notoriety and catching Passepartout's attention.
Background[]
The man supposedly is a well-to-do British traveller who owns a silver-plated cigarette case he stored in his compartment aboard the train, which he travelled on with his wife, Gertrude. However, this is all a backstory concocted by the Black Rose for her disguise.
Role[]
Passepartout may run into the victim when the Black Rose Mystery is active. He may offer to help him after noticing him looking like he has lost something, and will be informed that his case seems to have been stolen. Some further probing will reveal that a young woman is likely the culprit, but she has disappeared without a trace!
Upon disembarking from the train, the man will be present again and will show Passepartout a single black rose he found in his compartment with some puzzlement. A nearby man will excitedly show Passepartout a news headline about the Black Rose, and the victim will realise, with some excitement, that she was his robber.
At some point later on in the journey, the case will resurface... in Passepartout's suitcase, as gifted by the Black Rose herself.
Later, while aboard the El Dorado if Passepartout delved into the Black Rose Mystery, Rose can admit that she was indeed the man on the train, adopting his gait to demonstrate and proving herself once more as a master of disguise.
Character[]
The victim trivialises the robbery somewhat, being so excited to have been stolen from by a well-known thief that he ignores how valuable the case was. His cluelessness is used for comedic effect, like when he insists that Passepartout can find the thief by watching out for 'the guilty eyes'. As it turns out, this oblivious persona was an invention of the characteristically humourous Black Rose.