Starting With The Sefirah Castle In The Anime World

At the same time, Sato Miwako was conducting an investigation inside the villa.

The guest rooms on the second floor were all unoccupied, but it seemed as if each room had been thoroughly cleaned just the day before.

Almost all the vacant rooms could be seen at a glance. There was essentially nowhere to hide anything.

She stepped out through the glass door and walked onto the second-floor balcony.

The balconies weren't shared between rooms, but each one offered a fairly good view. Still, the suspension bridge was a good two to three hundred meters away.

The area was densely forested, and the edge of the woods formed a ravine that completely cut off this place from the surrounding forest. Other than the suspension bridge, this place had essentially been isolated from the outside world.

Sato Miwako couldn't help but be puzzled. Why were the wealthy so fond of building villas in places like this?

The transportation was inconvenient, and travel itself posed safety risks.

It would be far too easy for someone with ill intent to destroy that old wooden bridge.

Looking out from the balcony, Miwako could see several members of the Forensics Department combing the area where the murderer had collapsed.

The suspension bridge could be clearly seen from the villa. There were no visual obstructions.

The straight-line distance between the woods and the bridge was over 50 meters, which meant there was almost nowhere to hide for anyone planning a surprise attack on the killer.

So how had he fainted?

This was a major question—one even Miwako couldn't wrap her head around.

And aside from that, the killer himself was a walking mystery.

How could a man with such visible muscle atrophy violently kill two people?

Just a few hours earlier, he had appeared in normal condition. But now, his body resembled that of an elderly man. It was anything but normal.

Sato Miwako had already pieced together the obvious inconsistencies.

She understood that while the murder itself was direct and clear, everything surrounding it was utterly absurd.

A seemingly straightforward case, yet full of incomprehensible elements.

And for some reason, the image of that boy flashed through her mind.

He knew something.

Thinking of that, Sato Miwako recalled what she had seen upon entering. All of the key witnesses seemed like they already understood everything.

No, not seemed. They did know.

Realizing this, Sato Miwako decided to start with the one person she had interacted with most—Ren.

She went downstairs and arrived at the room where the group was resting. She knocked gently on the door.

Knock knock knock!

"Come in."

A calm female voice responded.

Sato Miwako opened the door and stepped inside.

It was a small reception room, also used as a tea room. Four people were seated at a round table's four corners, enjoying cakes and black tea. It was a rare moment of peace after the chaos.

Miwako noticed that both Suzuki sisters looked a little pale, and Chikako—who was scribbling something with a pen—also seemed tense. Only Ren remained as calm as ever, like the surface of an ancient, undisturbed well. Not a single ripple.

"Apologies for interrupting your break. I still have a few questions regarding the case and need to ask that gentleman some routine inquiries."

"Why?"

Sonoko frowned. She didn't mind cooperating with the police, but the repeated questioning was beginning to wear on her nerves.

"Sonoko."

Ren cut her off gently, setting down his teacup and standing up.

"Since Officer Sato still has questions, it's only natural I cooperate with the investigation."

As he spoke, Ren also glanced at Ayako.

Ayako returned his gaze, then looked at Miwako and gave a small nod.

Ren then followed Miwako out of the room.

As the door closed behind them, Ayako's expression turned serious.

"…Looks like this case is just too unusual. That female detective seems to suspect us."

That immediately triggered a response from Sonoko.

"How could anyone think what that guy did was normal?"

Ayako and Chikako both let out soft sighs.

They had witnessed the murder firsthand. They knew better than anyone just how abnormal Takahashi Ryoichi had been. How could professional investigators not realize the same?

"I just hope Ren handles it well."

Sonoko wasn't really worried about what would come after. They hadn't participated in the murder. In fact, they were victims themselves, and had nothing to hide.

The second round of questioning from the detective was probably just an attempt to get closer to the truth.

Still, it all depended on how Ren responded.

After exiting the room, Ren followed Sato Miwako to a quieter room on the second floor.

No other detectives were investigating the villa at this point.

All the critical evidence was outside. The killer had been arrested at the suspension bridge. The crime had occurred along the forest trail across the bridge. There was nothing particularly valuable to find inside the villa itself.

That was why Miwako had brought him upstairs, away from the others.

"So, was it you?"

She wasted no time. Her directness was astonishing.

Ren simply shook his head.

"Detective, it should be clear this incident has nothing to do with us. No one wanted any of this to happen. And you're being a bit too forward. Why are the victims being treated like suspects in a murder case?"

"What do you think?"

Sato Miwako fixed her gaze on him.

"When you spoke to me earlier, you described the scene with such clarity. It's obvious you saw everything."

"I don't know whether you watched it through surveillance footage or something else, but it's clear that you're… very closely connected to this case."

She glanced out the glass door, toward the suspension bridge.

"And that killer, right after murdering two people, was in an extremely heightened emotional state. So how did he just faint, so close to the bridge?"

"And on top of that, he went from a healthy adult to someone with severe muscle atrophy in just a few hours. None of that is normal. At least, not something science can explain."

Ren gave a small nod, acknowledging her points.

"So then, Officer Sato, what exactly do you want?"

Sato Miwako took a deep breath. She knew this was where the real conversation would begin.

"I want to know—does this incident have anything to do with you?"

(To be continued.)

***

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