Don't forget to read the first part, or the previous post if you haven't!
In the last part, we saw the remains of the third victim, and in the desperation to solve this case, we finally took the man on the phone's advice seriously. This led to us discovering the 5th basement floor of the MPD, and the location of the Police History Archival Office. There we read the diary of the deceased Misa Sakita and her feelings towards the bullying done by those who were once her friends. Now, it's time to put the pieces together, let's begin, shall we?
"Sir...! This diary is...!" Needless to say, this is essential evidence.
"Mr. Kogure, how can we unravel this case by using this diary as our lead? That's the key. Let's go over the whole case again."
"Yes, sir. Then, the first thing I'm curious about is who wrote this diary..."
It's, naturally---
>Yuka Kamiyama's diary.
>Misa Sakita's diary.
These first questions are pretty obvious. I do want to choose the other options, but I'll save those for later.
>Misa Sakita's diary.
"It's, naturally, Misa Sakita's diary." There is no doubt about it, given her relationship with Shouta Nozawa, which can be read from the diary.
Misa Sakita was bullied by Yuka Kamiyama. And as a result of being mentally tormented, she died in that car accident...
"Sir. It seems that besides Ms. Kamiyama, other students were playing Mr. Kokkuri with Misa Sakita too..."
The situation is clear. I answered without hesitation---
>The students who committed suicide.
>Mari Horikawa.
Pretty simple, remember how Horikawa transferred to the school only this year? That proves she couldn't be part of Kamiyama's circle.
>The students who committed suicide.
"The ones who played Mr. Kokkuri with Misa Sakita must have been the students who committed suicide."
At the time, Sakita's classmates included Narumi Hasebe and Kaori Itou, in addition to Kamiyama. Both of these girls took their own lives in this case.
If we assume that they were playing Mr. Kokkuri with Misa Sakita, the whole chain of events makes sense.
And Keiko Yamano, who was found dead this morning, probably was too...
I told Mr. Kogure my thoughts.
"Mmmm... I understand. You believe that Misa Sakita's death two years ago was the trigger for this incident..."
Correct. Even though they didn't directly kill her, I think it's alright to say that Kamiyama and her friends indirectly pushed Misa Sakita to her death.
The full picture of this foggy case seems to be gradually coming into view.
"But then again, the students who died in the case... Were their deaths really suicides?" Mr. Kogure asked what could be considered the fundamental question of the case.
I answered despite my hesitation---
>Homicide.
>Suicide.
I'm sure someone wanted them dead, so I'll choose this option. Also, the word for murder (typically 殺人, lit. killing of a person) used here is different (他殺), this one means "killed by another", it's used mainly together with suicide, just like here.
>Homicide.
"I think that their deaths were {homicides}." Mr. Kogure frowned at my answer. To make up for my lack of explanation, I continued.
"...However, the killer didn't directly kill their victims. He probably used Mr. Kokkuri to induce the victims to commit suicide by self-suggestion... That's what I meant by homicide."
"Self-suggestion...?" Mr. Kogure ruminates on my answer as if he were chewing on it.
"But, sir. Didn't Dr. Shikibu say that Mr. Kokkuri doesn't have the power to kill people?"
"Uh-huh. Nevertheless, Keiko Yamano still died. Mr. Kokkuri does have the power to send those women to their deaths."
"...But, would a simple suggestion by Mr. Kokkuri be enough to make a person commit suicide?"
That would normally be impossible. Mr. Kogure's objection is reasonable.
But what if Mr. Kokkuri is more than just a game of fortune-telling for these women?
I wondered if the mental state of the victims was such that it wouldn't be unthinkable for them to commit suicide. Then, a thought occurred to me.
What if, for them, Mr. Kokkuri is---
>Misa Sakita herself?
>Considered sacred?
I doubt these kids would care about the gods, we've never even seen them mention one, and I doubt they would pray to one.
>Misa Sakita herself?
"What if, for them, Mr. Kokkuri is Misa Sakita herself?"
Mr. Kogure didn't seem to immediately understand what I meant.
"Mr. Kogure. Do you remember the Fox Mound?"
"Y-yes, of course."
"The Fox Mound exists to quell the rumors surrounding Misa Sakita's death. For the students of Hanamine High School, Mr. Kokkuri is not just a form of fortune-telling; Mr. Kokkuri is Misa Sakita."
"And as Misa Sakita's diary shows, she was subjected to bullying."
"Yuka Kamiyama, Narumi Hasebe, Kaori Itou, and Keiko Yamano." Mr. Kogure muses as he arranges the details.
"That's right. They bear the cross of having caused Misa Sakita's death. Even if it was an accidental death, they must have felt a considerable amount of {guilt}."
"What if someone who knew what happened two years ago used Mr. Kokkuri to pressure the girls?"
"The guilt that was supposed to have been sealed away in the past swells up again, and Mr. Kokkuri's being is replaced by Misa Sakita's, whose shadow threatens to curse them all."
"Perhaps the emotional strain became too much for ordinary people to bear, leading them to an intense obsessive compulsion with the curse of Misa Sakita, and eventually to their own deaths..."
"Hmmm", Mr. Kogure groans, folding his arms. I guess he isn't convinced by this hypothesis. Not surprising, since I myself am still in the realm of speculation.
Mr. Kogure opened his mouth to sigh. "They must be scared, that's for sure. I would definitely be scared if I were in those girls' shoes."
"But I don't think it's a cause for suicide, especially nowadays when children don't believe in curses and ghosts. Besides, it wasn't just one person who died, was it?"
"...That's right. That's why the murderer provided the girls with a decisive "stimulus" to make them believe in Misa Sakita's curse via self-suggestion."
"Stimulus? What in the world could that be?"
I replied quietly---
>The blood ritual.
>The first victim.
The first victim needed to be affected beforehand too, the blood ritual was done even before they started fearing Mr. Kokkuri's curse, so that should be it.
>The blood ritual.
"The stimulus... that would be the blood ritual." I could see Mr. Kogure catch his breath at my words.
As I recall, Mari Horikawa said something like, "Our wishes will be granted if we give Mr. Kokkuri our blood"...
Why did Mr. Kokkuri want their blood? There must be a reason.
She said that even her friends, who at first were doing it half-jokingly, began to get scared during the process.
Could it be that the Mr. Kokkuri they summoned was Misa Sakita?
The girls must have realized why Mr. Kokkuri was out for their blood.
Two years had passed since Misa Sakita's death, and the guilt of her death was fading, making it a suitable time for playing Mr. Kokkuri again.
But what if a message appeared there from Misa Sakita, who was supposed to be dead---? It isn't difficult to imagine how it would be received.
"The blood ritual was a ritual designed to make them believe in the {revenge} of the dead Misa Sakita. And then, the first victim, Narumi Hasebe, jumped to her death."
"The girls, who had been skeptical, finally came to believe in Misa Sakita's curse. The murderer rubbed salt in their wounds, giving the remaining girls further incentive to follow suit."
"Could this also be the reason for the escalation in the way the students are dying?"
"Ummm... I find that hard to believe." Naturally. We've never driven anyone to suicide, and we don't need to fear the vengeance of the dead.
Consequently, this is only a guess at their state of mind. Whether it is correct or not is something only the dead women could answer.
"By any chance, could the fact that the deceased students' blood was taken away be even further incentive...?"
Mr. Kogure, pale-faced, asked me if I remembered the autopsy scene.
Blood was taken from the corpse to make Misa Sakita's curse more believable.
It makes sense, but how was it accomplished? That, I don't know.
"At any rate, sir, haven't we discovered the culprit's motive? From that, we can infer that the murderer was---"
I took over Mr. Kogure's statement and answered for him.
"Right. The culprit is---"
>Yuka Kamiyama.
>Mari Horikawa.
>Shouta Nozawa.
The person who's always been acting suspiciously, and who shouldn't be involved in this case at all, is...
>Mari Horikawa.
"The culprit is Mari Horikawa." I told him the answer I came up with.
Yuka Kamiyama is the key culprit who drove Misa Sakita to suicide... Shouta Nozawa has a good motive, but he's unaware of the fact that Sakita was being bullied.
Also, he had no doubts that Kamiyama was Misa Sakita's friend.
Although it's through a simple process of elimination, Mari Horikawa, who's deeply involved in this case and played Mr. Kokkuri with the dead students, is the most likely culprit.
"But, sir, Mari Horikawa is a student who only transferred to this school this year. She should have nothing to do with the incident from two years ago."
"Is that really the case? What if we assume that Sakita and Horikawa had a strong bond, something that could later be corroborated?"
"For example, a blood relative. Horikawa, questioning Sakita's death, researched the accident and learned it was more than just a coincidence."
"Then, Mari Horikawa transferred to Hanamine High School, and so began this revenge plot."
"I understand..." Mr. Kogure nodded many times to show he was impressed.
"Mr. Kogure, this is just a theory at this point. I have no conclusive evidence that proves Horikawa is the culprit."
"Yessir, understood! But, we do know what to do next. The killer's next target is---"
"Right, Yuka Kamiyama!"
After escaping the darkness of the basement, we hurriedly contacted the detectives who were assigned to Yuka Kamiyama.
"I'm sorry! We lost her!" Kamiyama shook off the detectives and fled. She hasn't returned to her home too.
I also contacted the detectives keeping an eye on Mari Horikawa and got the same answer.
Reflexively, I shouted. "Mr. Kogure! We need to head to the school at once!"
I'll stop here. Will we be able to save even a single life today, or will this truly be a traumatic first experience with the (near) supernatural? Sorry for this big cliffhanger, but the next part will also include the Inference Logic segment, which has 10 blanks, each with 4 options. So, look forward to next time!
See you then!
