Chapter Nine: Demo Playtest, Day Two, Answer Time ②, Scene Four

Fuwa interlaced his fingers and continued in a voice full of nothing but self-loathing. “When I accepted the invitation to come here, I never thought that the host, Ms. Kurata, would have any connection to Mr. Youji... I'm afraid that itself says a lot about me.”

A contemptuous sigh came from the speakers.

“Fuwa, don't you think you're being just a little bit self-absorbed? You and Roppongi did show me how amateur detectives can harm the world, but that was just an opportunity.”

“Even I... was just an opportunity?” Fuwa said, stunned.

Kurata sarcastically replied “I've met so many other 'great' detectives since then, and I've seen what they're like, and they're all just unbearable. Setting aside the sloppy reasoning for a bit, I've even seen people accept bribes to falsify evidence... But the ones who accepted bribes weren't qualified for the game, so I sent them straight to hell ahead of you all.”

Kurata continued taunting them. “I realized early on that fighting detectives like you one at a time would take for~e~ver. That's why I came up with the plan to gather you all here at Megalodon Manor.”

Yuki froze. “It was... to wipe out all the amateur detectives at once?”

“Such great opportunities only come around once in a lifetime, so of course we should try to get as much out of them as we can.”

The lounge fell into silence. After a long time, Fuwa spoke up again.

“So, my second question is... just who are you?”

The voice that came from the speakers sounded a bit surprised.

“What do you mean by asking that? I'm Kurata, y'know? ...I really didn't expect you to ask that at a time like this.”

“The last time I saw Kurata Chikage was on the boat to the island. After we arrived at Megalodon Manor, she didn't appear in front of us a single time, did she!?”

Hearing Fuwa's words, Kamo remembered the ferry – where he'd see Kurata Chikage speaking closely to Juumonji. That was indeed the last time he'd seen her.

Fuwa continued in a stern voice “Since we were imprisoned in Megalodon Manor, we've only seen a virtual avatar modeled to look like Kurata Chikage once, and other than that, you've only spoken to us with voice communication for one reason or another... Why have you been communicating with us in such an abnormal way? There's only one reason. You aren't the real Kurata Chikage.”

“Oh, so you think I faked Kurata Chikage's voice and used her avatar's appearance to fool you guys? Interesting. So, then, who do you think I really am?”

“Earlier, I noticed that among the people involved with Megalodon Manor... there was a person who bore a slight resemblance to Mr. Youji.”

“And who might that be?”

The voice that came out the speakers didn't sound the slightest bit nervous. If anything, it seemed to be enjoying itself.

“The director, Juumonji Kaito.”

The speakers were silent.

“Juumonji is also a famous illustrator. Although most game developers today use their real names, artists often don't, and many debut under pen names. Sometimes they even use their aliases when working in another field.”

“So?”

“Juumonji is just a pen name, and your real name is Kurata... You're Mr. Youji's son, and Kurata Chikage's brother, aren't you?”

The sound of tapping on glass suddenly came from the south. Kamo followed it with his eyes and nearly let out a gasp. Standing outside the floor to ceiling window, smiling and waving at them, was Juumonji.

“Hey there, everyone... This is a rare event, so I thought I'd come by and say hi. We've already met a few times now at briefings and such, and some of you arrived alongside me on the first boat.”

Juumonji's headset was illuminated by the lounge's light, and his real voice was blended with the voice of Kurata Chikage coming from the speakers.

The two mingled into a surreal noise.

That amiable teddy bear face still had the same smile.

“It's just like Fuwa said, Juumonji Kaito is just an alias. The name on my birth certificate is Kurata Kaito... I'm Kurata Chikage's younger brother.”

His bright expression looked the same as it had during the preparation for the event, but now, it made Kamo's skin crawl and stomach turn. Even Fuwa, who had revealed his true identity, gasped.

Kamo had felt before that the way the two of them had talked so closely on the ferry... looked more like siblings than coworkers.

Seeing the crowd's reaction, Kurata Kaito frowned embarrassedly.

“I guessed things would go a bit like this before I came out to meet everyone. Guess I didn't soften the blow enough.”

Kamo managed to find his thoughts and asked “What about the real Kurata Chikage? What have you done with her?”

Kurata Kaito narrowed his eyes unhappily from the other side of the window.

“Even if we disagreed on the subject of revenge, how could I possibly hurt my sister? Sis is doing just fine.”

After saying that, he pulled something from the side. It was a wheelchair that had been sitting just out of sight of Kamo and the others.

The outdoor lights illuminated a woman wearing nothing but a bath towel. She had another towel stuffed in her mouth, and tears fell freely from her beautiful almond eyes.

“Kurata Chikage!”

On impulse, Kamo stood up. Kurata Kaito immediately pointed to her left wrist. He probably meant to activate the poisoned needle if anyone tried anything rash.

Kamo stood and glared daggers out the window.

...That fear isn't an act. I'm sure now, the mastermind behind this death game is Kurata Kaito, and he's even using his own sister, Chikage!

Kurata Kaito knelt in front of the wheelchair and caressed its back with a sad face.

“I did all this for my sister who got her life ruined by amateur sleuths, you know? But... she just didn't get that. If she hadn't resisted, I wouldn't have had to do all this.”

So saying, Kaito left the wheelchair and walked up to the floor to ceiling window.

“My sister's a talented woman. She was the one who saved me from the despair I fell into after losing my father, and showed me the path to become an illustrator. She was promoted to producer while still in her twenties, and went on to produce multiple million-plus selling works in a row. My sister is the family genius... I just live in her shadow.”

With a proud look on his face, Kaito continued “Now, as the executive director of MegalodonSoft, Kurata Chikage has become the top producer in the industry... Without my sister's fame and glory, my plan would have never been anything but a dream.”

He clearly worshiped her fervently like a true believer, and yet he'd used her fame to plan such an appalling revenge without the slightest twinge of guilt.

It went without saying... This man wasn't normal.

“It was also thanks to Chikage's negotiation skills that I was able to gather all eight of you here.”

Kamo shuddered and continued to glare at Kurata Kaito, who kept smiling at them through the floor to ceiling window.

“Now I see, you took advantage of your sister's identity. But.. after you locked us all in Megalodon Manor, there shouldn't have been any need for you to keep up the ruse, was there?”

What Kamo didn't expect was for Kurata Kaito to look surprised by that.

“What are you even saying?”

Immediately, he changed his expression to one of pity and continued “My sister had lost a mother and two fathers to amateur detectives, you know? The greatest sin in this world is to arrogantly proclaim oneself a 'detective'. ...In the end, my brother-in-law also lost his life because of your sins.”

Michi shuddered and asked “Could it be that Kurata Chikage's husband... also died because of an amateur detective?”

“Oh, my sister is the one who should be the hero of this revenge drama. The only way this incident has any meaning is if it's done under the name Kurata Chikage.”

“...You're insane.” Fuwa muttered.

Kamo thought that comment would enrage Kurata, but there was still only a faint smile on his teddy bear face.

“Guilty as charged. Now if you'd said that you understood Chikage, that would really give me chills.”

Saying that, Kaito pulled out his cell phone and glanced at it.

“We are way over time, so I'm declaring the Answer Time's ending here... Fuwa, I'm afraid I'll have to have you turned into a new mystery. I hope it hurts."

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