Tokyo Mystery Writers

Chapter 185 An Unexpected Perfect Solution

Chapter 185 An Unexpected Perfect Solution

I became involved in this event known as "Object X from Outer Space".

It was because a friend of mine asked me to do this investigation.

His name is Masayuki Ota.

He was the security guard involved in the Kino Yoichi incident.

He was also a student involved in the Banno Yutaka incident.

Similarly, he was also the deliveryman involved in the Shimotani Motoharu incident.

It's strange, but this guy is really unlucky.

Because of his love for music, he worked at a security company at night in order to save money to buy the stereo system he wanted.

After the incident involving Kino and Ichi, he gave up his job as a security guard due to psychological fear and switched to delivering packages during the day.

Unexpectedly, this action led him to appear at murder scenes one after another.

Under these circumstances, it would be difficult not to arouse the suspicion of the police.

After all, everyone involved in the case is dead.

He is the only surviving person connected to the case!

He was very troubled by this, so he sought out me, who had a deep understanding of bizarre events.

They intend for me to find out the truth of the matter.

Next, let me explain my assumptions.

This case is definitely related to that meteorite!

There must be a ferocious monster lurking inside this meteorite!

He was encased in a hard meteorite and flew towards Earth, eventually breaking through the atmosphere and crashing at the foot of a mountain in Kawamoto City!

The meteorite containing the ferocious monster was discovered by Kinou Yoichi, Banno Yutaka, and Shitani Motoharu.

And so, a monster beyond human comprehension awakened!

As Kino and Ichi personally carved the monster out of the meteorite.

A monster resembling a horseshoe crab has appeared in the world!

The monster used its starfish-like suction cups to stick to Kino and Ichi's face!

It wrapped its snake-like tail around Kinwei and Ichi's neck!

As for why it used so much force?

Because the monster wanted to open the mouth of the golden-tailed creature so that it could enter its body through the mouth of the golden-tailed creature and absorb nutrients!

But that monster didn't seem to be good at dealing with humans.

The strangulation was too forceful, killing Kinou Yoichi instantly.

Because it died and could no longer parasitize, it set its sights on Banno Yutaka, one of the original three!

Because the monster was small at this time, it slipped away from the guard's feet the moment the guard opened the door!

Because of the monster's exceptionally keen sense of smell, it quickly located Banno Yutaka's dwelling.

It entered Banno Yutaka's room through the kitchen exhaust fan, just like a cockroach.

Then, taking advantage of the moment when Banno Yutaka was sleeping and snoring, it crawled into Banno Yutaka's mouth!

Although he was unfamiliar with the subject, he accidentally injured Banno Yutaka's throat.

But it still managed to enter Banno Yutaka's body!

The rest of the time was spent residing in Banno Yutaka's body and growing continuously!

And whenever the monster eats.

Banno Yutaka would then experience severe abdominal pain.

Of course, stomach medicine has absolutely no effect.

As time went on, Banno Yutaka's mind began to be dominated by the monster.

The monster is nostalgic for the meteorite that sent it to it.

So he manipulated Banno Yutaka's body and began to draw "meteorite paintings" continuously!

But this kind of life didn't last long, as Banno Yutaka's body could no longer satisfy the monster's enormous appetite!

So it stretched its arms and legs forcefully inside Banno Yutaka's body.

Ultimately, the ribs that are blocking it will be crushed from the inside!

Banno Yutaka noticed something was wrong with his body, and with his last bit of strength, he wrote the letter "X" on the carpet, representing the unknown monster.

The monster then burst through his body, hid behind Banno Yutaka's corpse, avoided the sight of the students who witnessed it, and sneaked out of Banno Yutaka's room!

The cosmic monster that returned to the outside world had transformed into a lizard about thirty centimeters long.

Its next target is Motoharu Shimotani.

Because Shimotani Motoharu knows of my existence, I must kill him!

So the monster, relying on its keen sense of smell, crawled out through the sewer and out of the ventilation opening in the entrance hall of Motoharu Shitani's house.

At that moment, the monster's body underwent a mutation, transforming from a 30-centimeter-long lizard into a gigantic dinosaur four meters tall!

He walked down the corridor toward Motoharu Shitani's room.

Its enormous weight and sharp feet easily pierced through the corridor floor.

Meanwhile, Motoharu Shimotani was sitting in a chair, unpacking the foreign liquor that the deliveryman had just brought.

Looking up, I saw a giant dinosaur monster about to crash into the roof!

Then, Shimotani Motoharu shouted, "No! No!"

But these cries did absolutely nothing to evoke any sympathy from the monster.

The monster spat out crimson karmic fire from its mouth.

Motoharu Shitani was instantly engulfed in flames, writhing wildly!

The monster's mission was over, and it was about to leave the room when it was spotted by the deliveryman who had just burst through the door.

Although the monster wanted to kill the deliveryman, it did so to prevent the situation from escalating.

The monster shrunk its body and then took the opportunity to escape.

Since then, no trace of the monster has been found.

Clearly, he must be lurking in someone's body again, waiting for this incident to be forgotten.

Here, I just hope that person isn't you.

If you feel anything unusual in your abdomen.

Then you really need to consider whether there might be an "X" monster inside your belly.

So, are you all satisfied with my answer?

Upon seeing this answer, Shota Fukasaku burst out laughing in exasperation.

Turning to the next page, he saw a blank sheet of paper. Fukasaku Shota was so angry that he wanted to tear the "Top Hat" magazine in half!

good good!

In the real world, there were cases of monsters killing people. And the final answer was that the monsters were indeed the killers, right?

A bizarre genius? The youngest "famous author" to sell a million copies?

That's it?

Shota Fukasaku, still resentful, handed the sixth issue of "Top Hat" magazine to his mother: "Mom, didn't you want to read this? Here you go."

Sanae Fukasaku sat to the side, observing her son's reaction.

Seeing her son go from being terrified at first, to full of fighting spirit, and then to looking disappointed and resentful, she reached out and took the sixth issue of "Top Hat" magazine.

"Shota, have you finished watching?"

Shota Fukasaku shrugged, pursed his lips, and said with a displeased look, "I've finished watching, Mom. I have to remind you."

"The answer to the story of Maijo Kyosuke is quite outrageous."

"It really is... well, it's hard to say."

"Mom, you'll know once you see it."

Shota Fukasaku shook his head and turned back to his study.

I pulled out a copy of Haruhiko Oyabu's Collector's Edition of "An Eye for an Eye" from the bookshelf.

Sitting on the sofa in the living room, I planned to use this book to purify my soul.

After half an hour.

Just as Shota Fukasaku was immersed in the story of "An Eye for an Eye".

Sanae Fukasaku walked excitedly to Kinji Fukasaku's side, pointed to the sixth issue of "Top Hat" magazine, and said with a smile, "Honey! I think Professor Kyosuke Maijo's article 'Object X from Space' is absolutely fantastic!"

"Although I don't read many detective novels, I really enjoyed reading Agatha Christie's books when I was younger."

""

"I don't know how to evaluate how good this short mystery story by Mr. Maijo Kyosuke really is."

"But I can say with certainty that 'Object X from Outer Space' is probably the most bizarre mystery and the most interesting solution I've ever seen!"

"Hmm... I think... honey, your director friends are right."

"Kyosuke Maijo will definitely become an outstanding mystery writer in the future. Buying the film and television adaptation rights to his works will be a sure-fire way to make a profit!"

"How about?"

Sanae Fukasaku's eyes darted around, and she said with a smile, "Honey? Why don't we take advantage of the fact that Mr. Maijo Kyosuke hasn't become a complete sensation throughout Japan yet?"

"Shall we buy the film and television adaptation rights to Mr. Maijo Kyosuke's work first?"

"Even if we don't bid on it, we might still make a fortune reselling it!"

Shota Fukasaku slapped his ears hard.

I seriously doubt whether I developed auditory hallucinations when I was squeezed out of the store while trying to buy the sixth issue of "Top Hat" magazine at Sanseido Bookstore.

What nonsense is Mom talking about?

"Object X from the Universe" is great!

He even advised his father to buy the film and television adaptation rights to Maijo Kyosuke's story in advance.

Am I the one who's gone mad? Or is it my mom?

Shota Fukasaku placed the copy of "An Eye for an Eye" on the table and walked to his mother's side.

He then extended the back of his hand and placed it on his mother's forehead.

"Shota? What are you doing?"

Sanae Fukasaku looked surprised and pushed her son's hand away, quite puzzled.

Shota Fukasaku placed his hand on his mother's forehead again: "Let me see if you're delirious from a fever, Mom."

"Object from Outer Space X is practically awful, how can you see anything good about it?"

"A monster was killing people in the real world, and the answer turned out that monsters really do exist!"

"This ridiculous premise makes this a completely terrible piece of work!"

"Kyosuke Maijo is a completely unworthy writer!"

"Did they even buy the film and television adaptation rights to Maijo Kyosuke's works in advance, so they can resell them for profit later?"

"Mom, don't you know?"

"Kyosuke Maijo has made a bet against the 'King of Hard-Hard Mystery,' Professor Toshiyuki Nishimura, in a 'hard-hitting mystery' contest!"

"Whoever loses will be utterly disgraced and forced to retire from the Japanese mystery literature world forever!"

"There are only six days left until the competition officially begins!"

"Under these circumstances, are you and your dad planning to buy the film and television adaptation rights to Kyosuke Maijo's works?"

"That's no different from when my whole family went to Hiroshima in 1945!"

Sanae Fukasaku pulled down her son's hand, a smile spreading across her face.

Just as Shota Fukasaku was wondering why his mother was laughing.

Then I saw my mother hold up the sixth issue of Top Hat magazine and turn to the middle of the article, "Object X from the Universe".

"Shota, you're way too impatient!"

"Look here? It seems you've been fooled by Mr. Maijo Kyosuke."

"What you thought you had read was just a little trick by Professor Maijo Kyosuke, nothing more than a false answer."

""

Behind the white paper that the mother was holding, there was a new answer.

Shota Fukasaku finally understood what had happened in this farcical incident.

"Go and see! Professor Maijo Kyosuke's answer is excellent!"

"It's not only interesting, but it also has a touch of 'humorous mystery'."

"I believe that after you read all the answers, Shota, you will no longer think that Mr. Maijo Kyosuke is an unworthy writer."

Shota Fukasaku took the "Top Hat" magazine from his mother's hands.

With a skeptical attitude, I opened the final answer to "Object X from the Universe" —

"I see, that's truly incredible!"

I was sitting in a coffee shop with an elderly man.

The old man with a cigarette in his mouth was none other than "Mr. Y".

Mr. Y is a 78-year-old man with special talents.

It possesses extremely strong reasoning abilities and has solved many cases that the police were unable to solve.

My reasoning is obviously flawed, since I can't explain why Kinou Yoichi's underwear smells like sewage.

Therefore, I intend to listen to Mr. Y's reasoning.

Let's see if he can help Ota clear his name.

"Mr. Y, what are your thoughts on my reasoning?"

Mr. Y, a cigarette dangling from his lips, smiled and said, "Your idea is quite avant-garde, but do you really think so?"

Did "Object X from outer space" kill Yoichi Kaneo, Yutaka Banno, and Motoharu Shitani?

I have a very rich imagination.

Regarding Ohta's testimony and the situation at the scene.

It seems there's no other way besides this solution, right?

Although I really want to use common sense to answer this.

But with my abilities, I simply cannot do it.

Seeing my predicament, Mr. Y said, "I think this whole series of events should be considered as something that happened to humans."

"So, think carefully about what you believe were the actions of humans in this series of events."

""

Mr. Y's question made me think deeply.

There was absolutely no sign of human intervention in the incidents involving Kaneo Yoichi, Banno Yutaka, and Shimotani Motoharu.

Seeing that I was deep in thought, Mr. Y went straight to the heart of the case: "I think the fact that a corner of Kinou Yoichi's tracksuit was cut off is a very suspicious detail."

"Similarly, why does his underwear smell so strongly of sewage, but his sportswear doesn't?"

Mr. Y continued to ask me, "What do you think was inside that meteorite?"

I thought for a moment and only remembered that there was a very beautiful, translucent object inside that meteorite.

When Ota went to Yotaka's house as a student.

I saw that thing fly out of Banno Yutaka's stomach!

So what exactly is it?

Seeing that I didn't speak, Mr. Y offered his answer: "Could that object be a beautiful, giant diamond?"

"That is, diamond, because diamond is actually a crystal composed of carbon."

"Therefore, the police investigation could only find that the meteorite contained carbon, but they had no way of figuring out what the missing element was."

I was taken aback when I heard Mr. Y's words: "An eight-centimeter diamond? That must be very valuable!"

Mr. Y nodded and said with a smile, "That's right, because it's very valuable, that huge diamond is the motive for this series of bizarre cases!"

Confused, I pressed on, "So? How did the killer murder Kinoo Yoichi?"

"And how does one enter and exit the locked room?"

Mr. Y's eyes flashed with an all-knowing look: "The murderer had already been brought into Kinoo Yoichi's room before that unfortunate security guard even arrived."

"Do you remember?"

"Kino's desk has a lot of things on it, including a coffee pot and two coffee cups."

"That's what Kino and I prepared for the guests. If someone is drinking coffee alone, there's no need to prepare two cups."

"Kaneo and Kazuichi only have two friends they feel comfortable hosting: Banno Yutaka and Shitani Motoharu."

"Since Motoharu Shitani was still in Kawamoto City at that time, the only suspect could be Yutaka Banno!"

I was somewhat surprised to hear Mr. Y's words, but I also felt that they made perfect sense.

After all, there are meteorites in the room.

In order to prevent others from knowing about the existence of the meteorite, Kaneo Yoichi's only option is to invite Banno Yutaka, who already knows about the meteorite.

Mr. Y continued his reasoning: "Banno Yutaka was blinded by the enormous diamond, so he planned to kill Kaneo Yoichi and seize it for himself!"

"After Kin'o and Ichi broke open the meteorite, the diamonds inside fell to the ground and rolled under the bed, whereupono Yutaka attacked him!"

"To avoid leaving fingerprints, Banno Yutaka put on the gloves he had prepared beforehand, spread his five fingers like a starfish, and covered Kaneo Yoichi's face."

"This explains why Kaneo Yoichi has five bruises on his face."

"The only one who can surpass the athletically inclined Yoichi Kaneo in strength is Yutaka Banno, who also loves sports. If it were Motoharu Shitani, he might be instantly defeated!"

Mr. Y took a sip of coffee and continued, "Fanno Yutaka covered Kinoo Yoichi's face, took out a prepared crocodile leather belt from his right pocket, put it around Kinoo Yoichi's neck, and tightened it tightly."

"This explains why there are scale-like indentations on Kino's neck."

"Actually, you can't blame the police for this."

"The main problem is that your friend Ota's description completely interfered with the police investigation."

"After all, no matter how you look at it, Ota's description sounds like a monster from the movie Alien."

"Therefore, it was naturally assumed that those scale-like indentations were the monster's tail."

Mr. Y took a breath and continued, "After killing Kinou and Ichigo, Banno Yutaka planned to retrieve the diamonds under the bed."

"But the diamond had rolled deep under the bed and was out of reach, so we decided to move the bed and take it out from the other side."

"But then, the corpse of Kino and Ichi, which is blocking the other side of the bed, is in the way."

"There was no place in the room to put the body, and Banno Yutaka didn't want to share a room with the corpse, so he hid Kaneo Yoichi's body in a cabinet at the end of the corridor, which was used to store mops and rags."

Hearing Mr. Y's explanation, I suddenly understood.

Now I understand why Kinou Yoichi's underwear smelled like sewage.

Seeing that I understood his explanation, Mr. Y continued, "When Banno Yutaka found the diamond in his mobile bed and was about to leave, he heard a knock on the door."

"Fanno Yutaka was extremely panicked at the time, and the room was very cramped with nowhere to hide."

"Left with no other choice, I turned off the lights and pretended to be Kinou Yoichi's corpse."

"After all, the two are quite similar in build."

"Fanno Yutaka pulled out a belt, put it around his neck, and then tucked Kinou Yoichi's baseball under his armpit to temporarily stop his pulse."

After hearing Mr. Y's words, I finally understood why Ota hadn't been able to find the pulse.

Mr. Y continued, "But doing all that isn't enough. When you're pretending to be someone else, the most fatal problem is definitely your face."

To prevent being recognized, Yutaka Banno, in a moment of quick thinking, grabbed a baseball glove and covered his face!

Upon hearing Mr. Y's answer, I gave a wry smile: "That guy Ota doesn't like sports at all, and he's never even watched a baseball game."

"In the dim light of the television, this guy mistook the baseball glove for some unknown creature attached to the corpse!"

"Plus the crocodile leather belt around his neck, Ota just mistook it for a monster's tail—"

Mr. Y smiled and nodded: "When Ota ran to call the police, Banno Yutaka immediately dragged Kaneo Yoichi's body out of the cabinet and put it back in the room."

"While he was pretending to be a corpse, Ota had already seen his outer garment."

"Just in case, Banno Yutaka swapped his clothes with Kaneo Yoichi's."

"After the exchange was complete, Banno Yutaka discovered that his name was still engraved on the hem of his clothes, so he had to cut that part off to avoid revealing himself!"

"This explains why Kinuo Yoichi's underwear smells like sewage, while his outer garment doesn't!"

Upon seeing this answer, Shota Fukasaku felt a sense of inferiority.

He now understands why the outside world calls Kyosuke Maijo a "strange genius"!

This strangeness lies not only in the story itself.

Even Maijo Kyosuke is strange and eerie!

What kind of brain does Maijo Kyosuke have?

How could they possibly provide such a perfect solution to such a bizarre murder case?

Moreover, and most importantly, all the foreshadowing in this answer has been mentioned earlier!

It's perfectly fair to the readers!

Even if Shota Fukasaku doesn't want to admit it.

But I still have to admit that Maijo Kyosuke is a genius who is stronger than I ever imagined!

As the truth of the first case came to light.

Shota Fukasaku then began to look forward to the second case. What unexpected yet reasonable answer would Kyosuke Maijo give this time?

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