MC Bookstore Chapter 179 The King of Misleading Who Surpasses the King of the Secret Chamber
Chapter 179 The King of Misleading Who Surpasses the King of the Secret Chamber
Chapter 179 The King of Misleading Who Surpasses the King of the Secret Chamber
Haruhiko Ōyabu's offensive words plunged the audience of the Japan Mystery Critics Association into silence.
It was perfectly normal for people to whisper and express their dissatisfaction with Maijo Kyosuke backstage, because everyone present had their own perspective.
Even "No Longer Human," which sold six million copies in Japan and over ten million copies worldwide, setting a record for the highest single-volume sales in Japanese history, failed to win everyone's favor.
Even with the evaluation of "The Tokyo Zodiac Murders" as a "masterpiece of classic mystery," there are always writers and critics who value logic and realism and are dissatisfied with its logic and realism.
However, this dissatisfaction is only directed at the work itself; people raise disputes and debates about the work, emphasizing that the focus should be on the book, not the person.
However, Haruhiko Ōyabu's offensive words and irritable attitude have made the matter somewhat delicate.
Because it's quite obvious that Haruhiko Ōyabu isn't evaluating Kyosuke Maijo's work at this moment, but rather Kyosuke Maijo as a person.
Such a topic, which borders on personal attacks, should really not be discussed at a meeting of mystery critics!
Seeing the silence in the room, Kasai Kiyoshi clenched his fists, sweat beading on his forehead, and hesitated whether he should speak up and retort to Oyabu Haruhiko.
As for why Kiyoshi Kasai hesitated?
Because Haruhiko Oyabu, along with Hiroshi Sano, the fourth chairman of the Mystery Writers of Japan, Shinichi Hoshi, the master of science fiction, Tsutomu Mizukami, the master of social realism, and a host of mystery masters and giants, jointly formed a harmonious group of mystery writers, the "Murder Club"!
This harmonious group, composed entirely of giants, masters, and grandmasters, is actually very powerful; it's what's known as insider connections.
It is also one of the organizations that can receive evaluations and jointly safeguard interests!
The reason why Kasai Kiyoshi hesitated to speak up against Oyabu Haruhiko was because offending Oyabu Haruhiko was equivalent to offending seniors like Sano Hiroshi, Hoshi Shinichi, and Mizukami Tsutomu!
Just as Kasai Kiyoshi was at a loss for what to do, a strong and charismatic voice came from behind him: "Oyabu-sensei? What did you mean by what you just said?"
"Mr. Oyabu, I'd like to ask, do you think Ms. Maijo doesn't deserve the title of 'standard-bearer of the new era' because you simply have a problem with Ms. Maijo's work?"
"Or do you have a problem with the writer, Ms. Wucheng?"
Or perhaps—
"Mr. Oyabu, are you deliberately smearing Mr. Maishiro here because you know that Mr. Maishiro and Mr. Nishimura are going to have a sales competition in hard-boiled mystery?"
Gonda Manji slowly walked from behind to Kasai Kiyoshi's side.
Kasai Kiyoshi stared at Gonda Manji's angular face and the mocking look on his face as he looked at Oyabu Haruhiko.
For some reason, she remembered what Gonda Manji had said to her backstage: "Kiyoshi, now it all depends on your performance. You can't let me down—"
The voice of Manji Gonda echoed in my mind.
Kiyoshi Kasai's face felt hot.
I'm a mystery critic, after all!
Moreover, he was a mystery critic who was specially invited by Manji Gonda and on whom he had high hopes!
How could I possibly consider any benefits under these circumstances?
Shouldn't a qualified mystery critic be someone who, even with a knife to their throat, wholeheartedly supports their favorite mystery writers?!
But—is there still a chance?
Having missed the opportunity just now, do I still have a chance to speak up for Teacher Wucheng?
Is there still a chance for Mr. Quan to think that inviting him was not a mistake?
As Kiyoshi Kasai fell into deep thought.
Whispers broke out again from the audience of the Japan Mystery Critics Association, while sharp gazes shifted from Kazutaro Nakajima to Haruhiko Oyabu, who seemed somewhat flustered.
Haruhiko Ōyabu was at a loss because Manji Gonda's words were just too sharp!
Haruhiko Oyabu's original words were merely a protest, arguing that Kyosuke Maijo could not be compared to masters like Edogawa Ranpo, Mushitaro Oguri, Seishi Yokomizo, Seicho Matsumoto, Kyotaro Nishimura, and Seiichi Morimura, who had all been hailed as "standard-bearers of the new era."
Although this was clearly aimed at Maijo Kyosuke, it didn't quite reach the point of directly insulting him.
Under such circumstances, there will naturally be people who share the same thoughts as Haruhiko Oyabu and support his views.
But Manji Gonda truly lived up to his reputation as the vice president of the Japan Mystery Critics Association and a beloved disciple of Kazutaro Nakajima.
He is a master of the art of language!
The main idea is to fight openly and fiercely, until everyone is bloodied and bruised!
If we're going to argue, let's argue to the bitter end, let's tear each other apart!
With just three simple sentences, he revealed everything that Haruhiko Oyabu had been hiding in his heart.
This directly led to Haruhiko Oyabu's social death, making other writers unwilling to support him!
When Gonda Manji saw Ōyabu Haruhiko with his cheeks puffed out, he was so angry that he gritted his teeth and his face turned red, unable to utter a single word.
He continued with a smile, "Hmm? Professor Oyabu, you don't know yet, do you?"
"That's perfect, since everyone's here anyway, and the main topic of discussion is Mr. Maijo Kyosuke's works. What I'm about to say isn't exactly off-topic."
Gonda Manji took a deep breath and then said, "As everyone knows, I was one of the five judges when Mr. Maijo Kyosuke was nominated for the Edogawa Ranpo Rising Dragon Award."
"So, I watched Mr. Maishiro Kyosuke debut. Although I initially cast my vote for Izawa Motohiko, I was ultimately amazed by Mr. Maishiro Kyosuke's talent, which led to his unanimous approval!"
"Therefore, I greatly admire and love Mr. Maijo Kyosuke."
"However, ever since Mr. Maishiro Kyosuke started publishing his short mystery stories in the magazine 'Top Hat' founded by Eru, he has attracted the jealousy of many of his peers, critics, and publishers."
"Among them, the Social Thought Society and the Takara-jima Society were the most vocal in their protests!"
"The president of the Social Thought Society, Kyosuke Ito, out of jealousy, once hired someone to chop off Ms. Maishiro's hands. Although Ms. Maishiro was eventually saved, she was left with some psychological trauma."
"And Takarajima-sha's president, Hosho Shirakawa, overtook Takarajima-sha's *Fiction Mystery* magazine, which was ranked among the top three in Japan, due to the popularity of *Top Hat* magazine."
"So they spent a hefty sum of thirty million yen to invite the 'King of Hard-Film Mystery,' Mr. Nishimura Juuki, to compete against Mr. Maishiro Kyosuke!"
"The competition's theme is hard-boiled mystery, and the competition is scheduled for the 24th of this month, which is ten days from now."
"Whoever loses will have to retire from writing and forever leave the Japanese mystery genre!"
Gonda Manji's words turned the whispers in the audience into a clamor, because this kind of betting competition was something that had never happened before in the entire mystery genre, or even the literary world!
Even though Yukio Mishima and Osamu Dazai disliked each other, they never went to such lengths to break off their relationship!
Looking at the reactions of the audience, Manji Gonda smiled with satisfaction. He then turned his gaze to Haruhiko Oyabu, who was standing to the side: "Mr. Oyabu, we all know that you are highly respected and an indispensable writer in the Japanese mystery genre."
"You and Professor Ikushima Jiro, sitting next to you, can be considered 'the joint founders of Japanese hard-boiled mystery fiction'!"
"Jiro Ikushima is also the first Japanese author to win the Naoki Prize for a mystery novel!"
"I believe, Mr. Oyabu, that your questioning just now wasn't meant to interfere with the match between Mr. Maijo Kyosuke and Mr. Nishimura Toshiyuki, was it?"
Gonda Manji's words were perfectly tactful, a classic case of slapping someone in the face and then offering a sweet treat.
Although it initially put Haruhiko Ōyabu in an awkward position, it has now given him a way out.
However, this does not mean that Gonda Manji is giving in to Oyabu Haruhiko.
On the contrary, during the conversation, Gonda Manji also brought Ikushima Jiro, who was sitting next to Oyabu Haruhiko, into the topic.
The implication was that he was warning Haruhiko Oyabu to think carefully before speaking, lest he embarrass everyone and bring shame to his "hard-boiled mystery" school.
Haruhiko Ōyabu understood what Manji Gonda meant. Although he was unwilling, there were so many people present, and the master critic Kazutaro Nakajima was standing on the stage.
I wouldn't want to make things too awkward, since we're all in the same circle and see each other all the time.
"Mr. Nakajima, Mr. Gonda, of course I am not speaking for Mr. Nishimura Toshiyuki. His choice to compete against Maijo Kyosuke is his own business and has nothing to do with me."
"I just think that you guys are praising Maijo Kyosuke too highly; he's not quite deserving of the title."
"To be hailed as a standard-bearer of the new era by Nakajima-sensei with only two novels and five short stories—this is simply unconvincing to me!"
"You should know that the previous six standard-bearers of the new era" were all renowned authors who revitalized the Japanese mystery literature scene!
"What is it about Maijo Kyosuke that makes you all praise him so highly?"
Haruhiko Ōyabu paused for a moment before continuing, "I am a hard-boiled mystery writer, and the stories I write are completely different from so-called 'orthodox', 'social mystery', and 'unconventional' mysteries."
"Therefore, I don't think there's anything good about 'The Astrological Murders' or 'Convergence' because I don't like stories that lack logic and are not realistic."
"Although police officers appear in 'The Mystery of the Death Row Inmate,' their actual role is completely erased!"
"As for 'A Bellflower' and 'Summer of the Ubume', I don't know how to evaluate them."
"On the contrary, I think the best mystery novel written by Keisuke Maishiro is 'The Third Statute of Limitations,' which was published in the fourth issue of the magazine 'Top Hat.'"
"I thought he would continue down the path of 'The Third Time Limit,' but I never expected him to produce a work like 'Dear Mr. S'!"
"Don't you think 'Dear S-kun' represents Maijo Kyosuke's creative burnout, a decline in quality, and an inability to support his current level of fame?"
Haruhiko Oyabu's rebuttal completely ushered in the climax of the "Japan Mystery Critics Association"!
The audience quickly began discussing the question raised by Haruhiko Oyabu.
Haruhiko Ōyabu looked around smugly, clearly quite satisfied with the questions he had posed.
Because as long as the topic is shifted to the fact that there is a significant gap between Maijo Kyosuke's latest work and his previous works, a breakthrough can be made in this discussion.
This means that Maishiro Kyosuke will not receive the title of "standard-bearer of the new era".
Although the title of "standard-bearer of the new era" is not something that Kazutaro Nakajima said, it doesn't mean that Kyosuke Maijo received it.
Because such an evaluation of an "era" requires joint discussion among several major publishing houses, newspapers, and other authoritative institutions to finally confirm who the "standard-bearer of the new era" is!
But—the mere existence of this topic is enough to make Maijo Kyosuke famous once again!
Therefore, no matter what, Haruhiko Ōyabu cannot allow this evaluation to fall on Kyosuke Maijo's head!
However, Haruhiko Ōyabu's idea was quickly thwarted.
Standing on the stage, holding all of Maijo Kyosuke's works in his hands, Kasai Kiyoshi had completely figured out what he was going to do. He had entered the mystery world and become a mystery critic, all for the purpose of studying all mystery novels at home and abroad and contributing all his love to mystery novels!
After meeting Kyosuke Maijo, she sensed that he also shared an infinite love for mystery novels!
He naturally became a "loyal fan" of Maijo Kyosuke, a feeling that was not friendship but was even stronger than friendship.
This is a feeling of mutual respect between heroes!
Therefore, faced with this situation, Kiyoshi Kasai could not sit idly by. He immediately adopted the same stance he had taken in the newspapers to confront the smear campaign against Kyosuke Maijo as a "red-eyed writer" and launched a counterattack against Haruhiko Oyabu!
"Mr. Oyabu, would you like to hear what you're saying?"
"What do you mean by 'running out of inspiration,' 'not living up to the name,' or 'declining quality'?"
"Leaving aside the fact that after Maijo-sensei won the Dragon Award for Best Author, Edogawa Ranpo, she achieved total sales of over one million copies in just twenty-three days, becoming the youngest and fastest person in history to become a 'famous author.'"
"Not to mention that Ms. Maishiro wrote 'The Tokyo Zodiac Murders' and 'The Summer of the Ubume,' which are worthy of being recorded in the history of detective fiction."
"Not to mention, Professor Mai Cheng, through his four short mystery stories—'A Bellflower,' 'The Conclusion,' 'The Mystery of the Death Row Inmate,' and 'The Third Statute of Limitations'—each pioneered a new style of..."
"An old trick repackaged," a triple-layered reasoning structure, "a logical feast surpassing Ellery Queen," and numerous other feats that "bring police reasoning to new heights."
"Today, I'll single out 'Dear S-kun,' which you, Professor Oyasu, considered to be a source of creative exhaustion!"
Kiyoshi Kasai took a quick, deep breath, giving Haruhiko Oyabu no chance to retort, and continued, "Professor Seishi Yokomizo wrote the comments for 'Dear S-kun' in front of me."
"Yokomizo Seishi called 'Dear S-kun' a 'miracle masterpiece'!"
"While I have no objection to Yokomizo Seishi's assessment, if I were to give it a rating, I would give 'Dear S-kun'..."
Another, more fitting title.
"That's the king of misleading!"
Kiyoshi Kasai didn't have a microphone in his hand, but his voice was unusually loud!
Because this is a battle in which Kiyoshi Kasai stakes his identity as a mystery critic!
This battle was not only to vindicate Maijo Kyosuke, but also to live up to Gonda Manji's expectations of him!
"As Mr. Oyabu just mentioned, Ms. Maishiro's 'Dear S-kun' is showing signs of decline in quality."
"I not only disagree with this, but I also strongly oppose it!"
"Because 'Dear Mr. S' may seem to lack any tricks, it actually contains a very sophisticated deceptive technique!"
"Everyone here is a mystery writer and mystery critic. You should all be very familiar with the three great masters of the Golden Age of mystery: Agatha Christie, Ellery Queen, and Dixon Carr."
"So I'm not afraid to reveal the secret: it's in Dixon Carr's famous locked-room mystery, 'The Mystery of the Villa in the Forest.'"
"The murderer exploited a blind spot in the famous detective Sir Henry Merriville," dismembering the body in the locked room and then, using a picnic basket, carrying the body away from the room with Sir Henry Merriville.
"This masterful technique and extreme misleading method were once hailed as a masterpiece of misleading narratives! And it hasn't been surpassed for many years!"
"But Ms. Wu Cheng's story, 'Dear Mr. S,' has reached the pinnacle of misleading trickery, surpassing even 'The Monster Forest Villa Incident' in its ability to mislead readers!"
Therefore, I would call "Dear Mr. S" the "King of Misleading"!
When Kiyoshi Kasai proposed the "King of Misleading" argument, many writers in the audience immediately frowned.
Because there are many writers in the audience who are good at writing "misleading tricks".
For example, Misa Yamamura, who is known as the "Queen of Tricks" and is good at writing time difference "misleading tricks", is the most unhappy one among them!
Misa Yamamura was around fifty years old and wearing a red sweater. Although she no longer looked like a young girl, it was clear that she must have been a beauty in her youth: "This is Mr. Kiyoshi Kasai."
"I don't care whether Mr. Maijo Kyosuke can be called a 'standard-bearer of the new era'."
"I don't care about the outcome of your argument with Professor Oyabu."
"But since you mentioned misleading tricks," and even called Mr. Maijo Kyosuke's "Dear S-kun" the "King of Misleading Tricks."
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"Then you need to give me a reason that will truly convince me!"
"Even if I'm not qualified, the title of 'King of Misleading' should be given to Mr. Nishimura."
"After all, 'The Hyperbola Murders' is widely recognized as reaching the level of Agatha Christie's 'And Then There Were None'."
"Height!"
Yamamura Misa's words made Gonda Manji frown, because he hadn't expected that Kasai Kiyoshi's casual remark would anger Yamamura Misa.
It also involves Kyotaro Nishimura, a "master of travel mystery" who is very close to Misa Yamamura!
Gonda Manji himself wasn't afraid of Yamamura Misa, after all, he had just recently publicly criticized Yamamura Misa's latest work in the newspaper.
She also said that although her works were bestsellers, their themes were similar and highly repetitive, and their literary quality and storytelling were completely incomparable to those of her contemporaries, such as Etsuko Niki and Shizuko Natsuki.
In particular, in Misa Yamamura's works, the murderers are almost always beautiful and venomous women, which is something that Manji Gonda simply cannot accept!
However, just because Manji Gonda is not afraid of Misa Yamamura does not mean that Kiyoshi Kasai is not afraid either. After all, this is Kiyoshi Kasai's first time participating in such a high-level meeting of mystery critics.
The fact that he could stand on this stage and retort to Haruhiko Oyasu, the "founder of hard-boiled mystery fiction," is already proof of his extraordinary courage!
Thinking of all this, Gonda Manji wanted to speak up to help Kasai Kiyoshi out of this predicament.
Incidentally, the topic of the event was shifted from "King of Misleading" back to Haruhiko Oyabu.
To help Kyosuke Maijo win the initial evaluation of "the standard-bearer of the new era" and generate buzz.
But before Gonda Manji could even organize his thoughts and open his mouth to speak...
Then, Kiyoshi Shikasai spoke up confidently again, angrily rebuking Misa Yamamura—
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