アンデッドガール・マーダーファルス 4話

What did you just say? Let me repeat myself. One of you is Madame Hannah’s murderer, and that I will prove that to you now. I don’t believe you. Claude, let’s hear her out. I think we owe her that much. Thank you very much. Now, let us begin.

Let us solve the mystery of who killed Hannah Goddard and how. {blur2pos(320,315)fad(381,1)}The Headliner Appears {pos(320,50)blur2fad(313,1)}Episode Four After inspecting the scene of the murder, I was left with seven problems. First, the fact that there was no sign of Madame Hannah noticing the murderer.

Second, the fact that the attack did not take place during the day when a vampire’s powers wane. Third, the fact that a still usable bottle was left at the scene. Fourth, the fact that the murderer seemed to know the layout of the mansion.

Fifth, the fact that the murderer left the silver stake in the storage room. All of these actions would’ve been unnatural for any outsider. But I’d like to bring the utmost attention to the sixth problem… It has to do with sound. Sound? At the time of the murder,

Claude and Alfred were both close to Madame Hannah’s room, but neither of them heard any sound from that room. What’s so strange about that? It just means the murderer was cautious. Indeed. But if the murderer had driven the silver spike as hard as they could into Madame Hannah’s chest,

It should’ve made a loud noise, similar to that of hitting a nail. There are four possible explanations for this. First, that both witnesses are lying. This would indicate that they colluded in the murder. B-But I would never— Yes, I am aware of that. Neither of you have alibis.

If you had colluded, you would have worked out fake alibis for each other. Next. There was a sound, but not when they were near her room. Which means that the murder may have taken place before 1:00 AM. Ms. Rindo… I made certain that there was nothing amiss in the storage room. Yes, yes.

Besides, before 1:00 AM, Raoul and Alfred were near her room. Next. What if the murderer did hit the stake with a hammer, but placed something in between so it wouldn’t make a sound? But there was plenty of blood on the murderer’s coat.

That would be proof that when they killed her with the stake, there was nothing to get in the way of the blood splatter. And so, there is only one explanation left. The murderer held the stake in their bare hand, and then used strength alone to drive it into Madame Hannah’s chest.

That’s why no one heard any noise at any time. So why didn’t the murderer use a hammer to drive the stake in? Alfred? Y-Yes? Let’s say you heard a “clank, clank” noise from the lord and madame’s room. Now, what would you have thought that sound to be?

I would believe that the madame was repairing some furniture again. I see. What about you, Claude? I’d think that Mother was tinkering with some furniture again. Correct. Even if you had heard the noise of a hammer blow, no one in this mansion would find that suspicious.

Then perhaps the reason the murderer couldn’t use a hammer was because it would break the stake itself. Which would mean that the murder weapon wasn’t the silver stake, but a stake made from something else. What are you talking about, Ms. Rindo? I found that stake in the storage room…

What you saw was a silver stake covered in blood, and Madame Hannah’s wound. That’s all. It is entirely possible that the murderer used a separate stake that was around the same size. But… But what would that second stake be? A stake frail enough to break if it were hit by a hammer.

There’s no way something like that could kill my wife. Then let us now talk about our seventh problem. What we have now, ladies and gentlemen, is a simple bottle left at the scene of the crime. The murderer took it out for some reason and left it at the scene on purpose.

They splashed around holy water, right? Precisely. Now, this is the important part. The bottle was dusty, but wiping it off did not remove the dust. Which means the outer surface of the bottle was not dirty. This is our final problem. Why was there dust on the inside of the bottle?

If the bottle was full of liquid, it would be impossible for the inside of the bottle to be dirty. Which means that the bottle was empty from the start. In order to make it look like they splashed holy water around, the murderer left an empty bottle behind at the scene.

However, there were definite traces of holy water on Madame Hannah’s body. So where did the holy water come from? Since the victim was a vampire, a lethal weapon made out of something other than silver, something much weaker, could be only one thing. Holy water.

The murderer froze holy water, creating a stake made out of ice. They then took that into the mansion, stabbed Madame Hannah with the ice stake as she slept in her armchair, and killed her. The blood splatter was blocked by the coat they were wearing,

And the erstwhile holy water stake melted immediately from the high temperature. The melting holy water soaked her clothes, and caused her skin to burn. After the murder took place, the murderer collected Madame Hannah’s blood in some sort of container. Then they left behind the coat they no longer needed, and a blood-flecked bottle,

To make it look like the murder had been committed by an outsider, and then left the room. The murderer then waited quietly until Lord Godard left to go hunting. Then, after Lord Godard checked the storage room, they broke the lock and snuck inside. They then poured Madame Hannah’s collected blood

Onto the silver stake to make it look like the true murder weapon. Then all that was left was to have Lord Godard witness that awful sight after returning from his hunt. Now, this reduces my deduction to but a single problem. Why did our murderer use this trick? Tsugaru, do you know?

It’s just like that soba shop rakugo story. Someone was messing with time. You don’t have to try to be clever every time. Regardless, you are correct. The construction of an alibi— That’s the only reason the murderer would do such a thing. Lord Godard thought that the murder took place

While he was hunting from 1:00 AM to 1:30 AM. But if the stake that was in the storage room was not the murder weapon, it would become possible for the crime to take place between 12:30 AM—when their meal ended—and 1:00 AM. From this information, we now have five conditions the murderer must fulfill.

First, they must not have an alibi for the actual time period when the murder took place, from 12:30 AM to 1:00 AM. Second, they must be someone we originally thought unable to commit the crime due to their arranged alibi from 1:00 AM to 1:30 AM.

Third, they must have had a few minutes to freely move around during the latter time period. Fourth, they must be strong enough to stab someone with a thick stake and break a lock. Fifth, they must be skilled enough to have committed the murder without being noticed by vampires with their heightened senses.

Let’s discuss the first condition. The only ones who do not have an alibi from 12:30 AM to 1:00 AM are the two servants and Raoul. Of these three, the two that fulfill the second condition are Giselle and Raoul. B-But… These two also fulfill the third condition.

Raoul came after Lord Godard a minute after he left. He had plenty of time to go into the storage room and stage the silver stake. Giselle also testified that she left Miss Charlotte’s side for a few minutes to go to the bathroom. But the only one who has the abilities required

By the fourth and fifth conditions… is Raoul. Wait a minute! There’s no way I could’ve done that! I couldn’t stage the stake! I can’t even touch silver! Indeed. There were fingerprints in the blood on the silver stake. Probably, you reflexively grasped it when you were covering it in Madame Hannah’s blood.

But if Raoul is truly the murderer, his hand should be burnt. And yet, his hand is unharmed. On top of that, no one’s hands show any signs of having been burnt. See?! The deciding factor is a vampire’s regenerative abilities. This was the final trick in our murderer’s scheme. After the body was discovered,

He excused himself due to his anxiety. He then took one of the swords from the wall in his room and cut off his own fingers. This would be unfathomable for a mere human, but he’s a vampire. That is how the murderer was able to destroy evidence of his burns so quickly.

Such an unrefined murderer… I hadn’t even finished my explanation, and yet you decided to out yourself. It’s quite all right, Shizuku-san. Please look after Master for me. I’ll take care of the lad. Now, now… We can’t have you trying to rough up my master.

Raoul set his plan in motion after last week’s attack. He contacted a hunter named Hugo, and told him that he would create an opportunity for Hugo to attack Lord Godard. Unfortunately, Hugo went along with this. Raoul’s plan was to get his silver stake into the storage room

While he held onto the stake’s case. I heard that you all go to church. In that case, it must’ve been easy to secretly obtain some holy water. He filled the case with holy water, and created an ice stake exactly the same size as the silver stake.

As for his motive, it was probably his objection to being a human ally, since it appears as though your sons aren’t fond of humans the way you are. If you need proof, I’m sure you’ll find quite a few things in his room. The bottle he used to collect Madame Hannah’s blood,

The sword he used to cut off his fingers, the cloth he wrapped his hand with to hold the ice— Lord Godard? Lord Godard, are you listening? Did Raoul really… He clearly tried to kill me just now. Nothing could be a clearer confession. What… What am I to do? Fear not.

Let’s just leave this to my assistant. In Japan, we’d say… this is when the headliner appears. They’re all so damn weak. Oho? Father just does everything Mother says. My brother’s all talk, too! But I’m nothing like them! Is that so? Vampires are meant to be solitary creatures.

So why do we have to stoop to their level?! Dearie me. That’s why I thought if I made it look like a human killed that woman, Father would finally come to his senses! But even that didn’t work! Which means… this household is standing in my way.

I’ll just have to kill all of them. Upsy-daisy! Now, now, now… Come one, come all! Everyone is welcome here! I’m not healing? What you’re about to witness… is a grand, fearsome, goosebump-raising event that silences crying children. Behold one of the rarest creatures in the world, the Oni Slayer.

I know not of my parents’ fate, but behold my seething flesh! One hit is enough to kill, meaning it’s as one-hit-kill as it can be. In this world, there isn’t a single monster he can’t kill. No, no. You can pay after you see the performance. But… That’s only if you survive it.

What the hell are you?! Why, I’m going to have you see just that. These blue veins tell a story that involves the inhuman and the supernatural! And of course it does, because even if I may seem human, I indeed am not! “Inhuman” may sound a bit rude, but please, lend me your ears,

As I tell you the humiliating tale of Tsugaru Shinuchi. Away we go! After the restoration, around the year Meiji 30, the powers above declared a massacre. The supernaturals were going to be purged. The Great Purge The rampant yokai were chased, captured, and purged. And this purge was carried out by ruffians…

Who were aptly named the Oni Killers. The ultimate squad, the Oni Killers! Here you see just one of its treasured newcomers, the one and only Tsugaru Shinuchi. Despite being so far away from home, he’s here to perform this terrible charade. Where could I have gone wrong? I thought we were doing so well.

I… I… I’m not like the others! Everyone who’s around your age says the same exact thing. Which means you’re exactly like the others. No… Because I’m a vampire! I’m noble… and strong! Strong? I don’t know about that. I must say that Count Dracula had a much harder bite. I’ve finished my work.

Well done. A light workout before breakfast… As it is still 3:00 AM. Lord Godard… Our job ends here, though I’m not sure if it was the best ending. How could this happen? With Hannah’s ideals guiding our family… Humans and monsters can’t live in harmony. Huh?

This is straight from the horse’s mouth, so there’s no doubt about it. Um, who are you waiting for? Some weird guy holding a birdcage. A birdcage? Are you talking about the Cage User? So he’s already here! Of course he’s here. He’s about to leave. Huh? What about the case? Was it solved?

Mister Shinuchi! Well, well, hello there. What a coincidence, Miss Annie. How can I help you? Why… I came here to interview you two. How are you doing, Ms. Rindo? Other than the fact that I’m a severed head, I’m doing quite well. I heard that you solved the case in a single night,

But could you tell me how it wrapped up? My, word travels fast. Well, I work for the great Epoc News after all. Ms. Shizuku, you heard the lady. Could you start loading our lugga— Wh-What are you doing?! Look out! I just remembered Lady Aya’s order from yesterday. She wanted me to strike you.

You don’t need to remember that when you’re holding a trunk! Look after my master for a minute, would you? They really don’t get along. They’re basically like siblings. By the way, could you ask the butler how everything turned out in the case? I have a few things to speak with Lord Godard about.

Roger! Is it all right, Lord Godard? Lord Godard? Yes… I know there’s no way to keep this a secret from the world. No, that’s not what I meant. Is it all right for you to be outdoors like this? Ah, yes. That’s right. The sun will be rising soon.

But then nightfall will come once more. There’s nothing to regret, Lord Godard. Even if we lose our reputations, we can retry as many times as we need. We’re undying monsters, after all. Right… By the way, what did you want to speak with me about?

Ah, yes. Do you know anyone who fits this description? A man in his early seventies with a slender build, sunken eyes and terrible posture. His right leg is a prosthetic, and he carries a black cane. On the handle, there’s an “M” engraved in gold. That man visited a couple of days ago.

You don’t say. He didn’t tell me his name. He just asked me to call him “Professor.” He then asked me if I’d like to go to London with him, but I have a family, so I declined. How do you know him?

He’s the fool who took the rest of my body and about half of Tsugaru’s. Is that why you’re… Are you all right, Mister Shinuchi? Your head seems to be bleeding. Oh, don’t you worry. I’m used to this. Boss, the dawn’s gonna break soon. We should get goin’.

Master, the bumpy road of terror awaits us once more. Wheedle a consolation fee from the coachman, if you would. Easily done! Hey, hang on a sec… I’d like a comment from you to sum up the case. Well, Lord Godard said he’d lost family members three times during his long life.

Here he lost his wife, and thought it would just be the fourth, but then he lost a son as well. It’s quite the tragedy. Yup. I’m sure that my lady will try to laugh this off as a farce, but it’s a true tragedy. Really, insult to injury.

As we say in Japan, “What happens twice will happen thrice,” but the Godard incident took things even further than that. You see… What happens four times will go-dhard into a fifth. It seems that Arsene Lupin has appeared at the Opera House. Just as he declared in his letter of warning,

He stole the jewel on the leading actress’s costume and fled. Lupin… The phantom thief everyone’s talking about lately? “The phantom thief has taken the Phantom of the Opera, and then disappeared into the city night,” it says. What would you like to do?

Let it go, of course. We don’t have time to deal with that phantom thief brat. At least not right now.