Episode 0 - Chain Mail - Part 6

 If you haven't, don't forget to read the first part or the previous part!

Last part, we heard Miyuki's account of meeting the killer, and then went through our second 'Self-question' segment, ending with me choosing to protect her from the (possible) threat of the murderer. Now, we'll try to ensure her safety, but some unexpected roadblocks may come our way...

"Yessir! I also agree! Let's protect Miyuki-chan!"

Mr. Kogure agreed with his nostrils flaring.

A few minutes later, Miyuki Kawahara returned to her seat.

"Sorry, Detectives." Miyuki Kawahara sat down, still covering her mouth with a handkerchief.

She's still a little pale. Maybe because of that, her impression feels a bit off.

"Is everything alright, Miyuki-chan!?"

"Yeah... Apart from that, I still need to work. I have to get back to the set as soon as possible." Once she said that, she sat up as if to run away.

"Hey! Wait a minute!" I couldn't help but grab her hand. It was thin and cold.

 "You are a witness to a murder case. And, the murderer saw your face. As it is, you are in danger. The police will take you into custody for your protection."

 "That's a problem. I have a job to do. I have a lot of fans waiting for me, you know?"

 "But, if the killer attacks you and you get injured, you'll have an even bigger problem. Your opponent is a horrible serial killer. It might end up being more than just an injury."

"Miyuki-chan! This is for the sake of your fans too! Please listen to us!" Mr. Kogure, on the behalf of her fans, earnestly requests her cooperation too.

 "...Alright. I'll ask my manager to adjust my schedule for the future."

"But, I can't do it today. I can't cancel this shooting right now."

 "In that case, we'll take you to work. You never know what might happen along the way."

 "No, it's fine. My manager is waiting for me right there."

"The shooting set is just a short drive away, so don't worry." Her tone is gentle but clearly rejects us.

Why is she refusing us so stubbornly? Ever since she came back from the bathroom, I feel like the situation changed completely.

How should I see this change of heart, when she originally came to us for help?

"Nope, it's useless. We'll accompany you no matter what you say." I refuse to back down. This is a problem without an easy compromise.

 "Are you... doubting me?"

 "No, that wasn't what I meant... You're a crucial witness. Since you saw the murderer's face, you could be the next target."

I'd be lying if I said I had no suspicions, but right now her safety is our priority.

After thinking for a while, she replied.

"Okay. Well then, let's go together." That's good. She, for some reason, accepted it.

After that, we left the establishment and went to her work site. 

It's been about 20 minutes since we left the restaurant. We've walked a long way.

We've been following Miyuki Kawahara, who keeps walking silently. But, when are we going to arrive at the set?

She said that her manager was waiting for her, yet she hasn't interacted with anyone who seemed to be one.

"Um, Miyuki-chan... Where is your work site...? I'd like it if you told me soon..." Mr. Kogure asked in my place.

"It's pretty close." After answering, Miyuki Kawahara entered a back alley under the railway.

 "Huh? Miyuki-chan...?"

By the time we entered the alley, Miyuki Kawahara was already gone.

Damn. Did she give us the slip...? After all, she seemed to hate us following her to the set.

What should we do? Despite it being daytime, the alleys around here are dark and intricate like a maze. I don't know if we'll be able to find out what we're looking for...

"Sir...! What are we going to do?" Mr. Kogure asks for my opinion anxiously.

I decide to---

          >Search for her in a hurry.

   >Give up and return home.

I chose something, and I'll make sure we'll get to its end.

          >Search for her in a hurry.

There's no time for hesitation. I have to find her. If something happened to her...

 "Let's split up to search for her! [Literally a Scooby Doo episode.] Mr. Kogure, please go that way!"

 "Yessir!"

We frantically searched the alleyways. Miyuki Kawahara... where did you go? [Maybe 'Where are you?" would have been better lol]

"Wait." A strange woman stood in my way, interrupting my impatient search.

??? - "If you're looking for that woman, she'll be in the ruined building ahead..."

 "Eh...? Who in the world are you...?"

The woman turned away without answering my question.

"Ah! Wait...!" With my pleadings going in vain, the woman disappeared into the darkness.

"Sir! Did you find Miyuki-chan!?" From the direction the woman vanished, came back Mr. Kogure.

 "Mr. Kogure, that woman now..."

 "Woman? Was Miyuki-chan here!?"

 "No... it's nothing."

I was worried about that woman, but now my first priority is to find Miyuki Kawahara.

The ruined building ahead... Or so that woman said.

They may have come from a mysterious stranger, but I continued to walk as if I was being guided.

"Sir! There!" I reflexively followed Mr. Kogure's pointing finger. In there, was---

Miyuki Kawahara...?

I couldn't see it clearly, but her mouth moved like she was attempting to appeal to somebody.

"S T O P ......"

I have no knowledge of lip reading, however, that's what I felt when I looked at her eyes.

 "Sir!"

 "Yes! Let's go in!"

Mr. Kogure and I chased after her shadow.

We have run up 78 steps. Out of breath, we reach the 4th floor of the abandoned building.

I look around the musty floor, but I can't see her. We continue searching after her figure.

"This is...!" Mr. Kogure and I both exclaimed in amazement.

Is this the set for the shoot...?

A mysteriously flickering candle, many instruments of unknown use, and ancient documents written with kanji I've never seen before.

The first thing that came to mind was a black magic altar that I saw in a horror movie once.

 "Sir... Is this the set Miyuki-chan was talking about...?"

Mr. Kogure asks while sweating buckets. But even if he asks me, there is no way I would know.

Even so, this extraordinary sight is overwhelming me. It feels detached from reality. But, even within it, there is an object that stands out.

I approached the---

       >Old portrait.

          >Giant lump of iron.

The lump is kinda random to be in this room, but the portrait probably will give more information about the room's purpose.

       >Old portrait.

 "Mr. Kogure... What is that?"

I pointed to a portrait in one corner of the altar.

 "Hmm? It looks like a portrait of a Westerner..."

It's beautiful... However, there was something morbid about that beauty.

I feel like there is a bottomless madness in the depth of the eyes staring back at me.

There is a strong intimidating feeling and presence that just doesn't fit a shooting set.

I stood motionless like a frog being stared at by a snake.

"S-sir...?"

"W-what is it...?"

It seems Mr. Kogure is also unable to move. He spoke in a trembling voice as he looked intently at the portrait.

"I... sense a bad presence behind us..."

*Thump* [This appears with a red screen for a split second, the same happens for the following times as well.]

"A bad presence...?"

"Yes..."

*Thump* *Thump*

"I-I don't like that. It's not scary at all. Isn't it just Miyuki..?"

"......"

*Thump* *Thump* *Thump*

"...I understand. Well then, let's turn around together."

"Y-yessir..."

*Thump* *Thump* *Thump* *Thump*

"Well, shall we do it?"

"Hyaaaaaa!?" Mr. Kogure let out a womanly scream.

Wait, it might have been me who screamed.

A beast... It looked like a beast who lost all reason.

Then, it flew at me with the ferocity reminiscent of a predator.

"Gwah...!" Sharp claws dig into my arms, even if I tried to shake it off, it wouldn't move at all.

From its delicate appearance came unimaginable strength.

"Kihiii...!" A strange ear-splitting voice resounds. It looked at me with insanity in its eyes.

Red burning eyes. Strength beyond the norm. There's no way this is a person.

"Sir!" Mr. Kogure intervenes and tries to remove the beast's claws from my arms.

"You bastard! Let go of his arm-!!" Maybe due to being overwhelmed by Kogure's angry shout, the claw's grip on my arm weakened for a moment.

It's now or never! I kicked the nearly nonexistent torso of the beast, letting me finally escape the binding of its claws.

I barely escaped danger, but that was only temporary. The threat in front of us is not yet gone.

"Sir...! What the hell is this guy...?"

"I don't know! I'm only certain it's not friendly!"

"Should we secure it?"

"Yeah... Can you do it, Mr. Kogure?"

"...Unfortunately, I have no confidence at all."

To be honest, I wanted to run away.

I can't believe we have to deal with such an incomprehensible opponent... Why do our cases always turn out like this...?

However, whining won't help me. I have to make up my mind---

[A simple electronic tune replaces the previously tense music.]

Suddenly, music began to flow into the tense atmosphere. It was Mr. Kogure's cell phone ringtone.

"W-who?! At a time like this..." Mr. Kogure muttered in annoyance. But, it had an unintended effect.

The beast let out a groan while showing an anguished expression.

"Uh...Guh...Gah...S-stop...!!" [Screen shakes every time it speaks]

What? What just happened?

"Sir! It's my ringtone! This guy seems to hate it!"

Without a doubt, it's covering its ears in suffering.

"Mr. Kogure, bring your phone closer!"

"Yes, sir!"

"Ah, gah, guh...!" The beast struggled to keep its ears covered while it suffered.

"How is it? This is the power of Miyuki-chan's newest hit "Phantom"!" Mr. Kogure proudly held out his cell phone.

"---!!---!---!!"

The beast spat out unintelligible words while writhing in agony. They were words I never heard before, but I understood that it was showering curses upon us.

And the beast gradually weakened until it finally collapsed on the floor.

I didn't understand why it reacted so negatively to the melodic ringtone.

However, that was only until we went to confirm the appearance of the fallen beast.

"M-Miyuki Kawahara...?"

"No way... Miyuki-chan..."

That ferocious beast and Miyuki Kawahara are {the same person}...? That's absurd...

...Think it over. Calmly, think over what happened...!

Well, this is where I'll stop. The next post will most likely be the first ending to this episode. It will also contain an Inference Logic segment. I hope you'll look forward to it.

Anyway, see you then!

57 - Black Magic

【黒魔術、kuro-majutsu】

[Literally black + magic. The 'jutsu' is also used for words like 'ninjutsu', as it means art/technique. However, the occurrences of those words in the following text use a different Kanji.]

To begin with, magic refers to man-made techniques created to manifest some effect on nature.

Magic, as it is commonly known, is divided into white magic and black magic.

White magic, also known as natural magic, is an art based on the idea that affinities and bonds exist between objects in the natural world, and by elucidating and harnessing them, it would once again reconnect mankind to nature.

In other words, white magic is the art of utilizing unknown forces that were not understood before the Middle Ages, it would be called science, chemistry, and physics today.

On the other hand, there is also black magic.

Black magic is a supernatural technique that attempts to borrow the power of evil spirits (demons) that exist within nature.

While white magic is an art that explains and utilizes the power of nature, which has been studied by intellectuals, black magic has been accepted by the general public as being used to curse others and grant personal wishes such as achieving success and finding love.

Also, since black magic is said to use the power of the Devil, various rituals and spells are required to summon it. A typical representation is "the Black Mass". At the Black Mass, animal and human sacrifices are offered, and all kinds of blasphemous acts are performed until the Devil is pleased and descends to the ritual site.

That is to say, it's the opposite of a normal mass, the act of praising God.

In the Middle Ages, such demonic practices were suppressed. One of the most famous ways was through a "witch trial".

Those thought to be witches are tied up and thrown into a river to determine if they are witches or not.

If they weren't a witch, they would sink to the bottom, and end up dying, but if they were a witch, they would shake off the rope and come back to the surface, then they would be burned to death.

Either way, death awaits. Witch trials were carried out in other ways, but no matter what, those believed to be witches were subjected to cruel treatments and destines to be put to death.

For those in the Middle Ages, all magical powers other than God were evil and demonic. It is said that many of the women put to death as witches were folk healers who were well acquainted with ancient customs such as herbal medicine and charms.

As the sciences unraveled the workings and sources of many hidden forces, black magic became more diabolical than wondrous.

To this day, there are many Satanists following demonic doctrines. They may be performing rituals to summon demons somewhere even now.

Episode 0 - Chain Mail - Part 5

 If you haven't, don't forget to read the first part or the previous part!

Last part, we met with the sender of the chain mail, a woman who reveals herself to be the idol Miyuki Kawahara, whose real name is the same as that of the killer, "Erisa Hattori"! In this part, we'll hear her testimony and figure out if we should trust her or not.

"It was about half a year ago..."

"At first, I didn't pay attention to it, but strange things started happening around me..."

"My dressing room was ransacked, I found a knife in my bag... and I always felt like someone was watching me close by..."

"Mh! That must have been a stalker!"

The outraged Kogure let out a snort. Putting a knife in her bag certainly was done in bad nature.

 "I talked to my manager and my agency's president, but they didn't take it seriously, saying that it happens to every idol."

"But it didn't stop there, I kept feeling like someone was near me, and before long, I could clearly feel their presence..."

"And then, a week ago... I finally saw her."

 "Speaking of a week ago, that was when that office lady was killed on her way home from Setagaya." Mr. Kogure whispered.

"That's right, I had gone shopping that day, it was my day off and I hadn't done that in a long time."

"On the way back, while I was walking through Shimokitazawa... I felt that presence stronger than ever..."

"Everything had gone pitch black, and my head was fuzzy..."

"I don't know how to describe it, it was like an unconscious world without any grasp of reality..."

"I found myself standing in a dark alley... and in there, I saw her."

"She... was killing a person..."

"She was stabbing the dead body over and over... As if she was filled with hatred..."

"Then, she began skinning the corpse's head with the knife... carefully... thoroughly..."

"Ugh...!" It seems that, in the imagination-rich brain of Mr. Kogure, the scene is being realistically reproduced.

He covered his mouth with a handkerchief and desperately struggled against the backflow of gastric fluid.

"I was so scared I couldn't even scream, I was just shaking..."

"Once she finished her work, she stood up, then... our eyes met!"

[A flash frame of demonic-looking eyes appears and disappears as soon as it came.]

Miyuki Kawahara covered her face with her thin white hands and her delicate form started trembling.

"I was so surprised I felt my heart jump out... It was ugly and distorted, but... that was..."

[These are those same eyes.]

"That was... not a human face... It was something much more evil and frightening..."

"I was terrified, but I asked... "Who are you?"..."

"And then... she answered, "Erisa Hattori"..."

"...But I'm not that stupid! Because Erisa Hattori is my name...!?"

"How come that horrible {homicidal maniac} has the same name as me...? Can such a coincidence exist!?"

"I didn't know what was going on... I lost consciousness again... Before I realized it, I was in bed..."

That was the testimony of Miyuki Kawahara.

"This story... You don't believe it, don't you?"

"At first, I thought I was hallucinating too... I couldn't believe it so I went to counseling... Of course, I didn't mention the murderer..."

"Hallucinations, delusions, a {split personality}... They suspected various possibilities and tested for them, but my mental state was found to be always normal..."

"In the end, the doctor just diagnosed it as exhaustion... You're going to laugh, aren't you...?"

"I don't know what to do anymore..."

Mr. Kogure and I, not knowing what to say to her, could only make a low "Uhm" and fold our arms.

"I tried calling the police once, but they didn't take me seriously at all..."

"But I couldn't leave it at that... so I came up with the idea of a chain mail."

"With a chain mail, I can call on a lot of people to help me, and they don't even need to know who I am..."

I see. So, for her, the chain mail was a desperate measure chosen after much thought and consideration.

But I have a feeling she is still hiding something. I can't say what exactly, that's just how I feel.

"I'm sorry. I'm going to have to excuse myself for a bit." Said Miyuki Kawahara, clamping a handkerchief on her mouth, before standing up.

She must have felt sick remembering the murder scene. She looked pale when she limped off to the washroom.

"Mr. Kogure, what do you think of her story?" When I looked at him, his face, too, was pale.

"Y-yessir... I fully support Miyuki-chan, but I didn't really get her story just now."

"Why did the killer use the same name as her real name? And why didn't they kill her for witnessing them?"

Mr. Kogure's questions are right on. There's something seriously strange about Miyuki Kawahara's testimony.

Once again, it seems necessary for us to think about the true intentions behind her actions.

Miyuki Kawahara's True Intentions

Why did she choose such a roundabout way as chain mail in the first place?

       >Because she didn't need to use her name.

                          >Because it can be sent to an unspecified number of people.

Well, that was quick. Let's trust her for now, I'm interested in seeing the supernatural route.

       >Because she didn't need to use her name.

Why did she want to avoid using her name?

      >Because she was afraid of a scandal.

             >Because she was being targeted by a criminal.

Both options make sense, but the second one is the most logical, so I'm choosing it.

              >Because she was being targeted by a criminal.

What we should do is---

                     >Protect her. (Conclusion)

          >Wait, let's think again.

If you're wondering, the second choice restarts from the beginning of the segment at the cost of lowering your final score. Thankfully, I saved before the segment began, so I can avoid this problem.

Let's go with the conclusion then.

>Protect her.

According to her testimony, there truly is a murderer with the same name as her.

I think it's too good a story, but it's reasonable to believe her for now.

It's still a mystery why a cold-blooded murderer didn't kill a witness like her on the spot, but there's a good chance he'll target her soon.

Her protection should be our priority here. And so I relayed my thoughts to Mr. Kogure.

Okay, I'll stop here this time. It does make this post shorter than most, but to make it up, the next post will be larger. How large, you wonder? Maybe bigger than even the last post. Please wait for it!

Like always, see you next time!