Don't forget to check the first and second parts!
??? - "The killer is... {Erisa Hattori}..."
Such was the reveal of the last part, this mysterious name was given by the sender of this episode's namesake. This episode will reveal its true meaning to be... quite unexpected.
"Hello? Hello!?" No matter how panicked I sounded, only a mechanical noise emanated from the receiver's mouth.
"Erisa Hattori...?" Was that the serial killer's name?
...Huh? Something's wrong. She said she 'witnessed' the serial killer.
How could she know their name when she only witnessed them...?
"......"
But, in the end, the name 'Erisa Hattori' was the only lead I was able to extract from her.
I should---
>Search for that name in past official criminal records.
>Search for that name in past unofficial case records.
>Search that name on the Internet.
>Search for that name in past unofficial case records.
Let's see what these 'unofficial' case records are about.
The unofficial case records---
As the name suggests, they are records of cases that have not been officially recognized.
The office I belong to, on the 5th basement floor, exists to manage such unofficial cases.
It's difficult to explain which cases become categorized as unofficial.
As it requires both resolution on the part of the explainer and flexible thinking on the part of the recipient.
To be quite frank, these are outlandish cases that any sensible adult would consider worthy of laughter and mockery.
For example, let's say a drunkard rushed into a police box in the dead of night saying, "I just saw an amazing old lady!".
He said an old woman wearing a kimono and getas [wooden clogs] jumped 4 meters off the ground.
Of course, no one would believe him. But, even if it's unbelievable, it still has to be put on record.
For an ordinary police officer, this report would be nothing but garbage... and then it ends up here, on the MPD's 5th underground floor.
I don't think the name "Erisa Hattori" is in this insane archive, but on the off chance it is, I should try searching for it.
"Erisa Hattori: No matching data."
No good, huh... Even if I knew it from the beginning, I'm still disappointed.
But being depressed won't get us anywhere. Let's think of another way.
Next, I decided to connect my computer to the Internet and search online for "Erisa Hattori".
You can find most things by using a search engine. We live in a convenient world.
I inputted "Erisa Hattori" in the world's largest search engine and pressed 'search'.
To my surprise, there were over 2000 hits.
"{Miyuki Kawahara} (Real name: Erisa Hattori)..." [It's in kanji this time, written as 服部江利沙] Now, let's try searching for her.
"...!!" It was shocking. About 74900 links were displayed.
"I see. Now I remember..." On the screen, I saw a face I'd often seen in TV commercials and magazine advertisements.
Miyuki Kawahara. It is the name of a nationally famous singer who has gained a wide following.
I don't know Erisa Hattori but, even though I'm hopeless when it comes to entertainment, I know the name "Miyuki Kawahara".
There's no way a big name like her could be behind this...
"OOH! That's definitely Miyuki-chan's official homepage, isn't it, sir!?"
[I kept the -chan honorific since there's no good translation for it, and because its sudden use fits the context it appears in]
"By any chance, are you also a {fan} of Miyuki-chan too, sir!? Why, to think you were a comrade! I, Souichirou Kogure, am so glad!
He jumped to that idea with staggering force. Timidly, I tried asking for more info.
"Ah, um, Mr. Kogure, are you a fan of Miyuki Kawahara... -chan?"
"YESSIR! Of course!"
I wonder what he meant by "of course"...
After that, it felt like it took an eternity for time to pass---
He told me how she was a once-in-a-decade gem, a 21st-century idol, and to top it all off, she may or may not have looked like his first love...
Mr. Kogure took this opportunity to give an impassioned speech.
"That phone call..." I tried forcing this conversation back to the topic before it was derailed.
"That phone call just now was from the woman who sent me the chain mail."
"She said she witnessed the serial killer, and then identified them as "Erisa Hattori"..."
"FOOL! [Screenshake] That was just a prank! Okay, even if she did see the culprit, it couldn't possibly have anything to do with Miyuki-chan! It must have been a {different person} with the same name!"
"I know! Maybe this is a harassment campaign planned by a {rival} who is jealous of Miyuki-chan's popularity!"
"There are a ton of idols who envy her! No doubt! That woman is a {liar}!"
[Well, uh, thanks for the metric ton of keywords you dropped on us, Kogure.]
Certainly, I can't think of any reason why an idol singer at the height of her popularity would commit serial murder.
Moreover, although it hasn't been officially announced, gouging out a part of the victim's body makes these murders quite bizarre...
As Mr. Kogure said, was the e-mail just a prank, or was it a harassment campaign by someone jealous of Miyuki Kawahara's popularity?
(Tutorial "Self-question")
You will enter "Self-question" mode when the need for organizing information to decide the future course of an investigation, or when deducing the motives of criminals arises.
A series of choices will appear in a question-and-answer format, you will draw conclusions depending on your selections.
A number of different conclusions may be drawn, each potentially affecting the development of the case.
[Now, just like in the past, what you are about to see are my choices. I chose what seemed to be the most rational (or interesting) options for now.]
The Accusation's Authenticity
Firstly, should we assume that the idea of "Erisa Hattori = Miyuki Kawahara" is correct?
>It is possible they are the same person.
>It may be a different person with the same name.
>It is possible they are the same person.
I chose the first option, considering the fact that there's currently more proof for it than against it, even if it's just the fact that's her true name. And, I wanted to see what would happen if I picked.
Assuming that "Erisa Hattori = Miyuki Kawahara", the key question is whether we should believe the accuser's words or not.
>We can't believe them.
>We should try believing them.
>We should try believing them.
Okay, I haven't been picking any rational choices, but just you wait! The next one was when rationality finally won.
The reason why I should believe her. That is---
>Because I took a risk to call her. (Conclusion)
>Because I'm not sure, but I can't deny it either. (Conclusion)
Well, you reap what you sow, so between these two not-very-confident options, I really had only one choice... Oops.
Was that call a prank? Or was it true? I don't know.
There are too many uncertainties to trust her words. On the other hand, it is also true that there is no basis to conclude she is a liar.
The only person who can prove which is correct is no longer on the other end of the line.
Since she chose to not identify her phone number, I cannot contact her this way. If so, let's try replying to the chain mail again.
"Contact me", an earnest wish put into a plain line of text.
All that's left is to wait for her call...
And this will be where I end it for today, we have finally gotten some actual progress and chosen what path forward to take on the investigation. Next time, maybe we'll finally get to see who's behind this chain mail. That'll depend if I can put in even more text lines next part though, lol
Anyway, see you again 4 days from now!
No comments:
Post a Comment