Not a detective

Page 209

"..."

The murder weapon has been found, but... where is the murderer?

The wealthy man looked around frantically, trying to avoid the dark figure, but it had not yet appeared or left a trace.

[Blue text: The killer has no superpowers and no accomplices. But does this mean that this worldview is a world without superpowers?]

"..."

Checkmate.

Asakawa Riku stopped in his tracks. He knew he couldn't answer any of the questions.

Asu caught up with him, her slender fingers slowly touching her chest, then grasping his tie. Her smile remained sweet, yet dangerous.

Although there is still a height difference between the two, even with her head tilted back, the girl does not appear inferior.

She gently tightened her tie, stood on tiptoe, and whispered in her ear:

"I won, senpai~"

The next second, before Asakawa Riku could give any answer, she let go of his hand, turned around lightly, and picked up the paper and the blue pen again.

The touch was both close and elusive, and a faint fragrance lingered.

"We'll have to wait for the final result to be sure."

Asakawa Riku said calmly.

This wasn't just stubbornness or bravado; he simply wanted to witness a miracle happen with his own eyes.

He thought the puzzle was impossible for anyone to solve, yet it was broken in this way.

While he was unwilling to accept this, he also wanted to see just how accurate Asukai Shi's answer was.

And so we wait quietly for the final answer to emerge.

Asu's pen flew across the paper like a dragon or snake, and her expression went beyond that of a pretty girl, becoming somewhat manic.

But for some reason, I feel that it is more beautiful that way.

As the last bit of ink faded, a bead of sweat fell. She picked up the densely written paper, on which was the image of an arrow piercing her heart.

[The killer: An unlucky assassin.]

Method: The assassin entered the room a day in advance, stabbed the tycoon with a knife, dismembered him, and, believing he had completed his mission, lowered his guard. However, he was then ambushed and strangled from behind by a levitating arm. Yes, the tycoon was actually a superhuman with the ability to "come back to life," but he wasn't considered the murderer, so the red-letter rule doesn't apply.

Even with his body torn to pieces, the wealthy man could move freely. After killing his assassin, he didn't leave the scene but instead dismembered the murderer into five identical pieces. Note that the previous dismemberment was completed last night, while this dismemberment was completed today, thus aligning with the autopsy results.

Now you should understand. The moment the police pushed open the door, they only saw a corpse. Only the head belonged to the wealthy man; the limbs and torso belonged to the assassin. That's why they arrived at the wrong autopsy conclusion. The wealthy man had hidden the assassin's head and his own limbs in various corners of the room, which didn't violate the red flag prohibiting the concealment of people. Because what he hid wasn't a complete person, but rather the remains of a corpse.

As for the murder weapon, the knife, it could simply be hidden inside any part of the body, such as inside an arm or the head, without violating the red-lettered rule against hiding anything inside the body, since it was hidden inside the deceased's body. The other perpetrator in this case, the wealthy man himself, is currently feigning death and hiding. They are not considered accomplices because they were mutually hostile and fighting each other.

Once the police search is complete, he can reassemble his body or simply impersonate the assassin. That's the truth of the case.

Tamamo no Haru: Tamamo no Haru AFTER 1

"Ah... I'm so tired."

Kirisame stretched out a big yawn, her neat short hair swaying gently.

Beneath her trench coat, her slender waist, accentuated by her combat uniform, embodied the core strength of a warrior while exuding feminine beauty.

The new assistant is a girl who reportedly joined the Supervision Department not long after graduation and still seems a bit green.

He respectfully accepted the long sword from Kirisame Aoi with both hands and wiped the blood off it with a special cloth...

The knife still felt incredibly heavy, something no ordinary person could wield.

"Lord Kirisame... he's so handsome!"

The assistant's eyes lit up with admiration.

The flash of the blade, the shattered room and brick walls, made it seem as if the world had split apart.

But after realizing what had happened, he found himself unharmed. It turned out that the Mist Rain Executive had even considered his safety.

Only the enemy was cut to pieces.

"nor."

Kirisame Aoi laughed heartily, readily accepting the praise: "Since the position of [Demon Exorcist Expert] was created, it's to solve problems that ordinary executives cannot handle."

The youngest demon-slaying expert... Even though the assistant had only been with the company for a short time, he had heard many rumors, many of which were about the legendary figure in front of him.

Not only is she stunningly beautiful, but her abilities are also top-notch. I'm truly envious.

...Can I become like you?

She wanted to ask but couldn't bring herself to. The assistant knew she was recruited because of her exceptional eyesight, but even she struggled to keep up with that fleeting glimpse of the blade.

The opponent achieved superpower-level speed using only their physical body? That's terrifying, isn't that a superpower?

In the moment when she was in a daze, the senior in front of her suddenly sharpened his gaze.

Suddenly, Kirisame took a long stride, her leather boots landing on a fragment of a corpse on the ground.

"……babble!"

The assistant was so startled she almost tripped. She finally noticed that the pieces of flesh and blood on the ground were actually wriggling, like segments of worms.

They were almost unrecognizable as original body parts, yet they continued to twist and tremble, looking horrifying.

"It's ok."

Kirisame reached out to stop him, kicked up the blade that had just been sheathed, and half-lifted it, drawing a circle around it.

Instantly, they were enveloped by the circle of the knife, and all the flesh outside of it was swept up by the invisible airflow, becoming even more fragmented and torn apart, with blood and flesh flying everywhere.

The trembling assistant finally stopped.

"He's...not dead yet?"

"Hmm, this guy seems a bit tricky..."

Kirisame's expression became more serious. She did not sheath her sword again, but held it still.

The difficulty wasn't in the fighting itself; an opponent of that caliber was insignificant to her.

However, this was the first time she had encountered such an opponent, and it felt somewhat unfamiliar...

...

When she first received this mission, Kirisame Aoi didn't take it too seriously.

A seemingly supernatural enemy has appeared at the scene of a murder, posing a high degree of danger.

It is said that before the murderer was arrested, he suddenly went berserk and grew a complex and sophisticated mechanical prosthetic arm from his right arm, and reportedly injured many police officers.

Even a pistol can't touch him. He can transform his arms into riot shields, machine guns, or even grenade launchers, just like the Terminator.

Therefore, the Metropolitan Police Department requested support from the Inspection Department.

Wu Yu Kui didn't know why this task was reported to her. The reason she took the exam for the title of "Demon Exorcist Expert" was so that she could freely choose her work.

It sounds like he's just an ordinary cyborg. Even if the police can't handle him, the inspectors and superhumans should be able to. How could they not be able to?

The executive officer in charge of observation and command simply said:

"That enemy is acting strangely; it's been determined that you need to deal with him."

...Go if you want.

Wu Yu Kui didn't really care; she wasn't averse to work, as long as the opponents were challenging enough and helpful to her cultivation.

When she arrived at the scene, she discovered that the target was indeed somewhat "abnormal".

The most obvious difference is in appearance.

The person's body was covered in black, every inch of their skin was black, and not the kind of black that black people have, but a completely black color that had been smeared over.

It was impossible to see any details clearly, nor could it be distinguished as male or female. The body shape and movements were neither human nor human, creating an indescribable sense of horror.

It has no face, no eyes or nose, and cannot speak or communicate.

It looks like a monster, or a person possessed by a monster, but the metal part on its right hand and the strange mechanical prosthetic limb are quite surprising.

That thing immediately transformed into a rotary machine gun, showering Kirisame Aoi with dozens of rounds as a welcoming gift—

"It's just that-"

But Wu Yu Kui was a well-traveled person. She moved extremely quickly, deflecting several dangerous bullets and approaching in an arc.

Swah——

Then, with a precise cut, he severed the dangerous prosthetic limb.

Thinking that this had disarmed the opponent's only weapon and lifted the alarm, Kirisame Aoi relaxed and began to observe the strange "shadow figure".

It cannot communicate through dialogue or actions, and shows no reaction whatsoever. Apart from being extremely aggressive, it does nothing else.

...He looks just like the "culprit" Kuro from Detective Conan.

For some reason, I always think of this apt metaphor.

"careful!"

Just then, the "shadow figure" suddenly sprang up, slashing at Kirisame Aoi with a knife made of congealed blood from its severed arm.

Fortunately, the assistant spoke up in time to warn her, and since Kirisame was already familiar with the sound of the slashing, she reacted quickly, jumped away, and avoided the attack.

It wasn't until I realized... that frost had appeared on the wall, and within seconds the ground was almost frozen solid.

In such an environment, even moving around is difficult, and you might slip and fall.

Frosty white mist condensed into ice crystals at the air conditioner vents, and Wu Yu Kui's knuckles, which were gripping the knife, turned bluish-white. The temperature in this room was off. What was going on?

The assistant slumped down next to the filing cabinet, her breath freezing into ice flowers on her glasses.

"Master Kirisame..."

She could hear the sound of her teeth chattering very clearly.

"Don't panic."

The seasoned veteran remained remarkably calm. The moment the blade sliced ​​through the air, three ice spikes shattered half an inch before the blade's edge. Ice shards still clung to the hem of Wu Yu Kui's black trench coat, and the crisp sound of blood freezing echoed in her ears—the shadowy figure's dark hand was drawing crimson threads from his own wound, the sharp edge of a blood-red blade already closing in.

The blade suddenly slashed down vertically, protecting the assistant's throat and preventing it from being cut open.

Fighting alone is easy, but protecting others is not. Even if you can shield her from the attack, in a few seconds, the girl will quickly lose her body temperature and might even freeze into an ice cube.

"Hey."

He let out a melodious sigh.

Misty Rain Kui twirled amidst the ice crystals and blood-red blades, as light as a swallow, her blade tip flicking out, a single point of sharpness.

Click.

The transition from extreme movement to complete stillness was swift, and the sound of sheathing the sword was as crisp as ice cracking.

A second later, countless silver threads suddenly appeared in the air, as if someone had woven a spiderweb with moonlight, covering the entire space. The assistant stared wide-eyed as the suspended blood droplets suddenly all fell, smashing into tiny red plum blossoms on the frost-covered ground. The shadow figure couldn't utter a wail; its pitch-black body simply shattered into countless fragments, belatedly scattering as if in bloom.

Kirisame shook off the ice shards from the scabbard and exhaled a puff of white breath.

...It had been a long time since she had used this trick. To be honest, she never thought that this seemingly boring task would actually push her to this point.

...

"What exactly is this dark figure...?"

The assistant hid behind Wuyu Kui, only daring to peek out with half her head.

"To be honest, I don't know either."

Kiriyu Aoi shook her head.

Neither a monster nor a superpowered being, the Inspection Department has conducted research on this. Each person can only possess one ability, and even if they manifest in different forms, they all lead to the same goal.

Even onmyoji who manipulate different shikigami and use different spells will have necessary spellcasting behaviors and prerequisites, and it is impossible for such a change to occur without any warning.

The "shadow figure" just now exhibited many strange characteristics.

First came bizarre prosthetics that were ahead of their time, then the ability to manipulate temperature, conjure frost, and even solidify blood into weapons—the changes were simply unbelievable.

Even after being chopped into pieces, it showed signs of reviving... as if this couldn't completely kill it.