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Kapitel 61

"Who do you mean by 'strange guy'?"

"Well, he's probably a young man around twenty years old. He's not in the doll industry, so it seems a bit strange that he's a customer who came to order a box. I heard he comes and goes very frequently."

"How frequent is 'frequent'?"

"Well, apparently he started seeing him frequently at the end of the year before last. This was said by the non-religious lumber shop owner I just mentioned who used to frequent Hakoya. He said the young man looked very suspicious. The lumber shop owner would visit Hakoya once or twice a week. Hakoya wasn't a big customer, but they had been friends for generations, so he naturally didn't dare to neglect him. And—he said he saw the young man every time he went. But he never spoke to Hyou, just quietly stayed in a corner of the factory. He had also seen him going in and out of the residence behind the factory, so he guessed that he might be Hyouya's family member."

“I see. According to what Toriguchi said a few days ago, Hei got married about twenty-one or twenty-two years ago, so it makes sense to say that the young man is his son.”

That's right, it does match when you calculate it that way, and I remember that too.

"However, there are some things that make it hard to believe that these two are father and son."

"What, isn't that right?"

Every time I opened my mouth, Kyogoku-do glared at me. Torakuchi continued:

"Do you all remember the tofu shop owner's testimony I mentioned last time? The Mikoto's dojo was completed last summer, when a customer ordered a large number of large wooden crates—I think I mentioned that before?"

"I did say that."

"This strange young man seems to be the customer who ordered the large trunk."

How did you know?

"Because they were all wearing gloves."

"Gloves?"

"It is said that his gloves were a bit too thin for winter use—like the kind worn by drivers or photographers—but he always wore them. That's what the lumber shop said. On the other hand, the tofu shop said it was strange to wear gloves in the summer."

"Oh right, that weird guy we met the day before yesterday was also wearing gloves."

"Huh?"

By the way, he is Kubo.

"Sekiguchi! Is Kubo Shunji wearing gloves?"

"Kyogoku-do asked loudly," he said. This was probably the loudest he had made in the past two days.

I replied:

"He—I don't know much about him, but I heard he lost a few fingers, so he always wears gloves—the kind of thin gloves that Bird Mouth just described. However, I've only met him twice, so I can't be sure."

"This is getting worse."

Kyogoku pressed his hand to his forehead, his mind seemingly racing with intense thought.

"No, I'm overthinking it..."

"Kyogoku, you should know the truth by now."

Natsume pressed for an answer.

"Yes, I know. Of the three—or rather, four—in this incident, I already know about two. As for the rest—I think we'll find out after we hear your report."

"I didn't know that before."

"It's precisely because I know that I feel troubled."

Kyogoku-do stood up.

"Anyway, I'll contact Aoki first."

After Kyogoku-do finished speaking, he left his seat. I honestly couldn't figure out what had really happened. Toriguchi seemed to share my feelings. As for Natsukizu, he lay down again.

It seems that the Aoki the lady mentioned is indeed Detective Aoki.

Kyogoku-do returned quickly.

"We couldn't get in touch with him; he just happened to be heading this way."

Kyogoku-do sat down in the exact same spot and posture as before.

"Hurry up and explain, Kyogoku-do. You're hiding something from us and refusing to keep your promise to report to us. On one hand, you say you know the truth, but on the other hand, you're playing coy. Stop hiding it and tell us! You've even called the detectives anyway."

"Wait a little longer, Sekiguchi. Kiba-san will be here soon. We called Kiba-san and Detective Aoki here today to resolve the issue over there first. You guys are the ones who barged in halfway through."

"Wouldn't that be perfect?"

Natsume interrupted.

"Wouldn't it be more efficient to get it all done in one go? But we don't need to wait for the lumberyard. If we wait for him, I think we'll all have to spend the night here. Eighteen years ago, I arranged to meet that guy at ten in the morning, but he didn't arrive until four in the afternoon. So let's get started early."

Natsume couldn't remember people's names, but he always remembered these trivial things.

Kyogoku-do rested his chin on his hand, looked down, glanced at us one by one, then raised one eyebrow and let out a deep sigh. I wonder how many times he'd sighed today.

"I originally intended to separate the stages for laymen and experts. This case is chaotic and unclear, yet there are four or five unnecessary detectives—"

"Trying to hide things is the worst thing you can do."

This is the part I find most unacceptable.

Kyogoku-do, feigning reluctance, recounted the bizarre experience Kiba had told him: the encounter with Yuzuki Kanako at Musashi-Koganei Station—a suicide attempt—or murder attempt?.

The wondrous Mimasaka Institute of Modern Medicine.

The discovery of the kidnapping notice.

The Kanagawa police's extremely ignorant security measures.

And the kidnapping of Kanako, a girl who suddenly disappeared amidst everyone's gaze.

Detention, forced to reflect on one's actions behind closed doors.

Most of this content is supplementary to the information provided by Masuoka, but it is full of a sense of immediacy that would be impossible for anyone who is not involved, and it brings detailed factual descriptions and many hints.

Kyogoku-do's ability to retell stories is exceptional; his retellings likely provide a more accurate representation of the situation than the original narrator's account.

Then Kyogoku-do talked about the facts that Kiba knew outside of his own experience, as well as Kiba's own reasoning.

Yuiko Kusumoto's incomprehensible state of mind and family issues.

Aoki reported to him on various problems within the police force, as well as terrifying legends circulating among the public.

Satomura shared his insights with Kiba—Kiba seemed to have arrived shortly after I left. Satomura then repeated what he had told me to Kiba.

The day before yesterday, a police officer from the Musashi-Koganei Station asked me for my opinion on Kanako and Yoriko.

And the conversation with Yoko Yuzuki.

"—I didn't ask Ms. Yoko what she and the old man talked about in detail; I only got a general idea from the phone conversation. Okay, that's all the information Mr. Kiba gave me. Now we have shared the same information. Is that alright?"

"That's not good! You're still hiding the fact that you knew about it from the very beginning!"

"Didn't I say from the beginning that it has nothing to do with your situation? Don't you understand? With the information I just mentioned, we can fully grasp the current situation. Just knowing this should make you as nervous as I am."

"What can you possibly understand without the intelligence you possess? I don't understand. And Torikochi doesn't understand either—"

I cannot see Natsukizu from my position.

"That's something only you wouldn't understand."

Kyogoku-do cast me a look of utter contempt, and then the awkward silence that lasted for several seconds ended with the arrival of the visitor.

"Excuse me. Ah, is everyone here? Mr. Chuzenji, I am truly grateful for your help yesterday."

Guided by his wife, the young man, who looked like a small mustard seed puppet, politely entered the living room.

Kyogoku-do, with an attitude of having waited a long time, said:

"Aoki, you've come at the right time. Excuse me, although you've just arrived, could you please make some arrangements? Immediately send someone to protect that middle school student named Kusumoto Yoriko who's staying at Musashi Koganei. Contact either the headquarters or the local police station, it's up to you. I'll give you the reason later—"

"Kusumoto? Is that the girl who witnessed the Kanako incident? I see. Excuse me, may I borrow your phone for a moment?"

Detective Aoki hadn't even warmed his seat when he was immediately led by his wife to make another phone call.

"Hey, Kyogoku-do, why must we protect Kusumoto Yoriko? Have you already obtained solid evidence linking Mikoto to the dismemberment murders? Even so, Yoriko isn't the only dangerous girl; there are several other candidates. Our investigation of the Kusumoto family that day was just a side project."

No matter how loudly I questioned him, Kyogoku-do remained silent. Toriguchi was thinking hard, while Natsuki Tsutomu—as always, he was out of my sight.

Aoki is back.

"I immediately asked Kinoshita to handle it for me, and he should have contacted the local police station by now."

"Thank you for your help—although I am still not at ease, we ordinary people can only rely on the police, and there is no better solution."

Kyogoku-do rubbed his temples and stared at the table for a moment, then immediately looked up and asked Aoki to sit down next to Toriguchi.

"You all know Aoki, right? Ah, I guess I haven't introduced him to Toriguchi yet?"

"I've heard so much about you. We met once before at Lake Sagami, but I didn't have a chance to introduce myself. My name is Torikochi, and I'm an editor at a third-rate magazine. I look forward to working with you in the future."

"Yes, I remember. Please give me your guidance."

Bird Mouth moved to the left to make room for Aoki, who then sat down.

I asked in a low voice:

"Kyogoku-do, did you seek help from the police yesterday?"

But my attempt to ask in a low-key manner only resulted in clear and unequivocal rebukes.

"You're really stupid, Sekiguchi. On the contrary, we're the ones assisting the police in their investigation. Your statement is the best example of utter arrogance."

That's true, but there's no need to put it so harshly.

"Moreover, contacting the police was an action we had planned to take from the beginning. It just so happened that the list of shrine maidens that you painstakingly copied and were going to hand over to Satomura fell into Kiba-sama's hands before it reached the police. And since he is currently in seclusion reflecting on his mistakes, we naturally had to consider it separately from the police. That's why I took the initiative to contact Aoki."

Responding to Kyogoku-do's gaze, Aoki said:

"Mr. Chuzenji, yesterday I only asked about the possibility of a dismemberment murder. Since Kusumoto Yoriko had to be placed under emergency protection, what new developments have occurred since then? Could you please explain to me, without interfering with your considerations?"

Aoki carefully observed Kyogoku-do's expression and continued:

"Of course, I can understand Mr. Chuzenji's good intentions in trying to prevent Kiba-senpai from acting rashly. By the way, have you contacted Kiba-senpai yet?"

"No. But I told him last night that he absolutely must come today."

Xia Mujin rolled over and got up.

"So you're stupid. Didn't I just say? Kiba has a 99% chance of not coming. Hey, Kyogoku, you can't stop Kiba just by reasoning. If you really care about Kiba, explain it to me in a way I can understand right now, and then ask me to protect Kiba. That's the only way it will work."

"That's true."

Finally, at least Kyogoku-do made that point.