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Chapitre 85

"Chuzenji Temple—what brings you here?"

Mimasaka silently intimidated him.

"I've come to greet you, Professor. You can do whatever you want without restraint now, all thanks to me. I hope you can thank me first."

Kyogoku-do dressed as usual, in his exorcism attire.

If this place is a battlefield for Kiba, then for Kyogoku-do it is—

"I am here today to drive away the evil spirits."

"That's what the man in black said."

"Wraith? What are you talking about? You still think you can roam the world with just your mouth, like the old saying goes?"

"But if it weren't for my silver tongue, your head would have been on your neck long ago. I regret it now, though, I shouldn't have defended you back then. If you had been exposed for your deception and banished, at least this wouldn't have happened now."

After finishing his sentence, Kyogoku looked around the room.

I was influenced and began to observe as well. The machines, large and small, resembled tombstones.

Kiba wasn't wrong—this room is like a graveyard.

Yoko looked at Kyogoku-do, who seemed unusually frightened. I—to be honest—felt somewhat relieved. Kyogoku-do's eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Kiba.

"Too slow. Kyogoku, we caught up quickly! Okay, do what needs to be done quickly. Exorcise the demons quickly. Don't worry about Kiba!"

After Natsumi finished speaking, she smiled and continued:

"Then this idiot will truly appreciate your kindness!"

Kyogoku-do smiled as well.

“The demon is a monster without any rhyme or reason. If you grab its head, it will slip away by the tail; if you grab its tail, it will break off and run away. The more you know about the demon, the less you understand it. So to get rid of it, you have to swallow it whole.”

"Chūzenji, I don't understand what you're saying. I don't have time to listen to your long-winded explanations right now; you're seriously interfering with my life. Go back now."

Mimasaka was very unhappy, her cheeks twitching uncontrollably.

"Professor, are you still not giving up even when you're about to die? I was thinking that if you were cooperative, I would try my best to leave quietly, but it seems that's not going to happen now. I'm fine with it, but it's very troublesome for others."

"Other people? What do these people have to do with me?"

Mimasaka looked at everyone with an expression of incomprehension.

"The actors are finally all here. Professor, because of your actions, everyone present has been affected by the demon's writing. Minami Kinuko—that is, Yuzuki Yoko, Detective Natsuki Reijiro, Incident Reporter Toriguchi, and Mr. Masuoka of the Shibata Zaibatsu's legal advisory team."

This man—was it Masuoka?

“Police officer Fukumoto, Metropolitan Police Department officers Aoki and Shutaro Kiba, and one other person.”

Another person

Does the other person refer to me?

"—Oh, I forgot about the checkpoint. And now, I'm warning you beforehand, police—"

Kyogoku-do looked at Aoki.

"Besides Aoki and Fukumoto, there are many other police officers on standby outside."

There are police outside.

"I think there's no need to worry about you escaping, but we still have to be wary of someone coming to rescue you. So, Professor, you'd better not act rashly."

"I don't understand, Chuzenji. From what you're saying, those present are either detectives, police officers, or lawyers, but my actions have absolutely nothing to do with a crime!"

"How tenacious. You haven't done anything illegal, so the police can't punish you. But your patient is a murderer—"

--patient

"The police—want to take that person away."

Mimasaka glared at Kyogoku-do.

"You want me to hand over the patient? I can't do that; it's a matter of life and death."

It's really hard to understand.

"Hello, Kyogoku-do, where's the patient? On the second floor? Is that patient a real prisoner?"

"Guankou, you're wrong. I see that the demon on your body is indeed the largest. Upon closer inspection—your symptoms are the most severe."

What does this mean? At least I consider myself the least involved person in the incident among everyone present.

Mimasaka stared at Kyogoku-do with a neurotic intensity, as if he were looking at something dirty.

"Anyway, don't get in my way! And since when did you start helping the police? Is this a game? Even if my patients might be connected to crime—it has nothing to do with you!"

“I—have absolutely no interest in crime, Professor. My profession isn’t detective, but exorcist. I was forced by circumstances to exorcise the evil spirits from everyone present. I originally intended to do it one by one, but I failed; it seems the evil spirits must be exorcised all at once. The methods may have been a bit crude, but I can’t worry about that now. Ms. Yoko.”

Kyogoku-do called for Yoko.

Yoko still looked at the man in black with fear in her eyes.

"It might be a little painful for you. Also—"

Kyogoku-do looked at Kiba.

"The same goes for the old man."

"Don't look down on me, Kyogoku."

After Kiba finished speaking, he sat down on the box.

"I don't know what a demon is. You're still the same as always, spouting things that are incomprehensible. Chuzenji, I'll repeat myself, I'm busy, and I don't want to hear your long-winded sermons."

After finishing her speech listlessly, Mimasaka began adjusting a device next to her.

Mimasaka and Kyogoku-do are both very familiar with each other.

As soon as we saw Mimasaka start working, we all sat down on the chairs or the measuring instruments.

Then, Kyogoku-do finally began to explain the "end" of this long event.

"I think the beginning started when Yoko transformed into Minami Kinuko, right?"

Yangzi did not respond.

"After eloping with Hiroya Shibata, Yoko, who relied on the Shibata family's steady financial support, unexpectedly became a movie star. The truth is pretty much the same as the popular story, so I believe that Inspector Fukumoto, standing over there, and Detective Kiba, a fervent fan of Kinuko Minami, know it better than I do—"

Yoko looked at Kiba with surprise. Fukumoto looked at her with the same surprise. Kiba turned his head away with a poker face like a Buddha, showing an attitude of "say what you want."

"Later, actress Minami Kinuko's popularity soared, but the Shibata family didn't express any dissatisfaction. Perhaps it was because the Shibata family believed that once she became famous, Miss Yoko herself wouldn't want to be associated with scandals and would be even more careful to keep the secret; or perhaps it was because Mr. Hiroya was already dead, so it didn't really matter anymore?"

"Both are true. Mr. Yaohong is very loyal. In fact, when Mr. Hiroya passed away, and when Ms. Yoko had already achieved success in her acting career and even achieved financial stability, and even before that, when Ms. Yoko's mother, Ms. Kinuko, passed away, some people suggested that they should stop providing financial assistance to her, but Mr. Yaohong rejected all of them. Because he stubbornly insisted that it had been agreed that the assistance would continue until Kanako turned fifteen. So Mr. Yaohong himself even thought that Ms. Yoko deliberately chose this profession to show her determination that she would never expose her secret. But then again, the foundation of the Shibata Group at that time was not so fragile that it would be brought down by such a scandal, and the people below did indeed think it was insignificant, which is indeed a fact."

"Masuoka said very quickly. But then again, why did Kyogoku-do bring this person here? Was it to have him say these words? No—Kyogoku-do just said that Masuoka was also influenced by the demons, but I really don't think so."

"I see. So the elements that would have caused the conflict between the Shibata family and Ms. Yoko back then no longer exist, right? But, it wouldn't be a problem if it were just acting in two or three movies, but Minami Kinuko seems to have become a bit too famous."

Kyogoku-do then looked at Yoko.

"Your popularity skyrocketed. Your face not only appeared on the big screen but also frequently graced newspapers and magazines. Next, you landed a leading role in a top-tier, big-budget film. Then, someone noticed that Minami Kinuko was actually Yuzuki Ryoko—"

Yoko endured it quietly. She felt neither sadness nor pain.

"That person, is it Suzaki? You were blackmailed by Suzaki, and later you left the entertainment industry and went into seclusion to escape him."

"Kyogoku, why is Suzaki here?!"

Kiba roared.

"Because Suzaki knows the 'secret,' and he knows that Minami Kinuko's true identity is the previously missing Yoko, that's why he came to contact her. His purpose is money, or perhaps—"

Kyogoku deliberately left his sentence unfinished, probably meaning "perhaps for the sake of his health."

Yoko lowered her head and didn't say a word. Even if it was true, she couldn't possibly answer.

Kiba stared at the wall, then whispered:

"So Utaemon is... Suzaki?"

Kyogoku-do definitely heard Kiba say that, and then asked Yoko:

"Did he tell you that if you didn't listen to him, Kanako would find out the secret?"

Yoko answered with her head still down:

"--Yes."

Upon hearing this, Kiba, who was facing the wall, suddenly roared in displeasure:

"What's the extortion?! Kyogoku, tell me the truth right now!"

Kiba slammed his foot on the floor. But his excited emotions were easily dismissed by Kyogoku-do.

"It's still early; everything has its own order."

Kyogoku-do—he didn't come to uncover the truth of the matter. As expected, he wanted to use the methods of a medium to exorcise the evil spirits for us. He once said that deliberately manipulating the order in which information is released is the secret of psychic abilities.

"Order is the most important thing," he said.

The black-clad Onmyoji turned to face the white-clad scientist.

“Mr. Mimasaka, I remember that Suzaki was your right-hand man when you were a professor at the Imperial University. This Mr. Suzaki, as Ms. Yoko said, is a despicable extortionist. You have employed this man as your confidant for many years—now that you hear the truth, don't you feel anything?”

"Chuzenji, stop asking these stupid questions. What I acknowledge is his inspiration, skill, knowledge, and understanding. As for whether Suzaki is an extortionist or has an abnormal personality, these questions do not affect his qualifications as a scientist."

Mimasaka's tone remained unchanged. Kyogoku-do stopped in front of Yoko.

"Miss Yoko, did you hear what he said?! Mimasaka Koshiro is that kind of person. You should be freed from this inexplicable curse that he has placed on you. Or, even so, do you still have no intention of leaving his side?"

What does that mean? I think I understand what he means.

yes--

"You—know everything?"

"Of course. I try my best to resolve things without saying aloud, but unfortunately, that's the limit. Too many people have died."

Yoko's face grew increasingly pale, reflecting the blue and white light of the fluorescent lamp, making her skin look translucent, like a newly emerged butterfly.

Kiba stared at the butterfly. Mimasaka pursed her lips and looked at Kyogoku-do.

Yangzi—Kuanzi is—Kuanzi—that's right…

"I see! Miss Yoko is Professor Mimasaka's daughter."