Phoenix and Maya go to see the Berry Big Circus show headlined by magician Max Galactica. The next day, they discover that Max has been accused of murdering the circus' ringmaster, Russell Berry, though Max states he is innocent, as he was discussing his salary with him. After meeting Berry's daughter, Regina, Phoenix and Maya hear about the crime from Gumshoe, who claims that Max's ability to fly places him as the prime suspect as only the victim's footprints were found. Finding that most of the staff seem to also suspect Max because of his cocky attitude, they hear from Moe the Clown that Max allegedly hit Ben the ventriloquist with a bottle the other day. While looking through Berry's office, they find the contract that Max had mentioned to be dated a week prior to the meeting. Phoenix threatens to drop Max's defense, prompting Max to confess his strained relationship with the other performers, convincing Phoenix to change his mind. Phoenix ends up chasing a monkey to one of the performer's rooms, where they find a bust of Max and a diamond ring, which allegedly belongs to Ben's puppet, Trilo. Speaking through Trilo, Ben claims that he saw Max heading to the crime scene on the night of the murder, but Phoenix points out that he would've had to see the ringmaster too. Trilo rebukes Phoenix, saying he wasn't the only witness to the incident.

As the trial begins, Gumshoe explains the strange circumstances of the case before Moe is brought to the stand as a witness, claiming that he saw Max flying off outside his window moments after Berry's murder. After the trial is postponed so that the prosecution can investigate how the murder occurred, Max reveals that he lent Berry his costume on the night of the murder. Revisiting the room they came across the previous day, Phoenix and Maya meet Ken "Acro" Dingling, an acrobat who lost the use of his legs six months ago, but he is dragged away by Franziska, who reveals she wants revenge against Phoenix for defeating Edgeworth. After hearing from Moe that Berry was angry about something on the morning of the murder, Phoenix checks his office and finds a threatening letter pertaining to an incident six months ago, calling Berry to the place where he was murdered. Asked about the incident, Moe explains how Acro's brother, Bat, was put into a coma by Regina's pet lion, Leon, who was then shot by Berry. Regina then reveals that she found the note while returning from Acro's room, leading Phoenix to suspect the note may be from Acro. As the trial resumes, Phoenix accuses Acro of being the one who plotted Berry's murder.

Phoenix deduces the mystery behind the crime scene, explaining that a bust of Max was dropped on Berry's head when he attempted to open a heavy box. When the bust was pulled back up, it latched onto Max's costume, leading Moe to mistake it for Max himself. Believing Acro, who lives directly above the scene, is the only one who could have committed the crime, Phoenix brings out the threatening note, explaining how it relates to the incident six months ago. He reveals that the reason Bat was attacked was because the scarf Regina gave him was covered in pepper, which caused Leon to sneeze and bite down on him, meaning that Acro's intended target was Regina. As the decisive evidence, the bust, appears to be nowhere to be found, Phoenix deduces that Acro has been hiding it inside his wheelchair, leading Acro to admit his guilt. Afterwards, as Moe takes over as the Big Berry Circus' ringmaster, Gumshoe gets in contact with Edgeworth.