Not a detective

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In the final moment, I heard Shinonome Suetsuki say:

Do you remember what I said to you last winter?

"Is it 'I love you'...?"

In his dazed state, Asakawa Riku suddenly laughed.

"Stupid assistant."

Then, it plummeted completely.

...

When I opened my eyes again, the heavy feeling of fatigue disappeared instantly, but before me was a blank void, with only the empty horizon stretching into the distance.

I've returned to the cracks in the world.

The girl sitting before him had a blank expression and was staring at him.

"Halftime is over, time to continue the deduction."

"Is this the carrot and stick strategy, slapping someone and then giving them a sweet treat?" Asakawa Riku stood up and stretched. "The halftime break should be longer."

Lying in a hospital bed is really uncomfortable, especially for him. The feeling of his body being broken and out of control is even more painful.

But more than the physical pain, he could not bear the pain of being separated from them.

"To describe being with me as punishment? That's really heartless, senpai."

Asukai Shi smiled and said, "I see you being quite affectionate with other women."

Sure enough, she was also able to observe what had just happened outside.

"If you were nicer to me, we wouldn't have become enemies."

Asakawa Riku shook his head and said.

He sat down again.

Asukai Shi smiled as before: "Decipher the mystery, reason it out, senior. If you succeed, I can repair your body, turn back time, make you all forget me, and make all of this never happen. I am the [Author], and I can do all of this with just a flick of my finger. If you want a perfect ending, you'll have to take it yourself."

"You said it yourself." Asakawa Riku slightly raised his eyes, his fighting spirit rekindled in his gaze: "What if I've already found the [solution]?"

"You're really full of confidence. Is it the power of love that's giving you motivation?"

Asukai Shi didn't take it seriously. She had already seen Asakawa Riku's despair, and this mystery wasn't so easy to solve.

Even the numerous police officers outside couldn't find an answer, and she couldn't figure it out either; it was an abyss of despair.

She was even prepared to spend decades here with Asakawa Riku... even if it meant exhaustive search, she would find the answer.

Therefore, this game has only just begun, and she doesn't think Asakawa Riku will be able to touch the truth so quickly.

"I'm all ears."

She spread her hands, and in an instant, ten majestic swords appeared behind her, forming a sword array that floated in the air, ready to be launched at any moment.

The girl was surrounded by layers of sturdy red barriers, which completely enveloped her body.

These "red words" are those that have appeared before, and all of them are in effect.

...an absolutely secret room.

...All suspects have been cleared of suspicion.

...There are no incredible superpowered individuals, monsters, or martial artists.

...There are no other entrances or exits.

...There was no poisoning, no complicated traps.

...surveillance cameras and life monitoring equipment.

...The time frame for committing the crime was locked.

...The murderer must be a person, and someone who has appeared before.

...All the clues have been given.

...The reasoning must meet the conditions of the Ten Commandments of Knox.

The more real the red text becomes, the more it blocks the path of deduction. Now, you can hardly see Asu's expression anymore; it's like armor, a barrier.

The "blue" reasoning arrows shot by Asakawa Riku simply cannot get past them; they will be blocked.

This must be what people call the "mystery of the heavens"... Seeing such a colossal creature, Asakawa Riku had already shed his despair.

He had reasons to go back, and reasons to win.

"Then let's get started."

Asakawa Riku raised his sharp, hawk-like eyes:

"Listen carefully, this is my final deduction."

Winter of Man: Chapter Twenty-Four: Motive

Before we go any further, let’s talk about motivation.

"motivation?"

Asukai Shi was somewhat puzzled, thinking that after all that buildup, he was going to get straight to the reasoning behind the case.

I didn't expect it to take such a roundabout way.

“Yes, motive.” Asakawa Riku nodded. “I remember now. Shinonome Suetsuki told me last winter that it was about the issue of motive. At the time, I was feeling smug, thinking I had solved the cult case. It was she who reminded me that I hadn’t considered Shinonome Kosuke’s motive. He’s someone who wants immortality, so it’s definitely not as simple as suicide.”

"Wait... are you trying to solve the problem with this kind of unreliable, impromptu idea?"

Shizuka Asu frowned and drew a sword from her back:

"Sixth, detectives must not rely on chance or irresponsible intuition to solve cases."

Just as the golden light was about to shine down, Asakawa Riku reached out and stopped it:

"Don't kill me yet. I told you this was just casual conversation, not deduction."

He discovered that as long as he did not use the "blue letters" to reason about the hypothesis, Asukai Shi's "golden letters" rule was useless.

As long as he doesn't mention the details of the case, he can temporarily circumvent the restrictions of Knox's Ten Commandments...

“This kind of delay is pointless.” Although Asukai Shi had sheathed her sword, she still didn’t have a good look on her face and stared at him with a serious expression.

She also vaguely sensed that Asakawa Riku's demeanor seemed different this time.

Although I still don't understand what he's up to:

"The puzzle cannot be solved without making a final deduction."

"I know."

Asakawa Riku nodded, but he quickly pointed to Asukai Shi and said, "What I want to discuss is your [motive]."

"I've already said it, [in red: I am not the murderer.]"

Asu-i Shi retorted, "Do you want me to hurt you again? My motive was to use you to revive Lu Chuanqian outside, so I created this world."

However, Asakawa Riku didn't seem hurt; instead, he smiled calmly.

"That's what I'm talking about—the real motive is: Asukai Shi, deep down you don't actually want to hurt me, right?"

"What did you say……!"

Asu, like a fox whose anger has been provoked, bristled and glared at him: "I've hurt you so many times. Whether it was the incident on the isolated island or the cult incident, it was all my doing. I admit it. I'm the bad guy! How dare you say that? Even the way you were torn to pieces on the hospital bed outside was my doing. Do you want to experience that feeling again?"

However, Asakawa Riku showed no fear. He walked step by step closer to Asukai Shi.

When they were only inches apart, he lowered his head and looked at the girl who was shorter than him: "Sure, if you really want to kill me?"

He rested the golden sword against his head and stepped forward to meet the attack.

"Are you trying to provoke me and then kill yourself...? Let me tell you, no way!"

Asukai Shi's hand was visibly trembling. The sword was already at his neck, but he didn't strike.

"Because you can't bring yourself to do it."

"Asakawa Riku...you're being too presumptuous. Don't assume I'm like those other women who would fawn over you..."

She gritted her teeth.

"I'm not just making this up, I have evidence." Asakawa Riku smiled, unconcerned by her provocation: "Take what happened three years ago, for example. That was the first time we met. You were about to kill Kirisame Aoi, but I stopped you. You didn't kill me then, but ran away. With your strength, you should have been able to kill me easily, right?"

"Because it wasn't the right time yet..."

"Then what about during the Summer of the Crimson Ray? You sealed me up on that island, but repeatedly activated the time loop before I died. You could have just not saved me."

"I told you, it's not the right time yet!"

Asu-i Uta tilted her head back and stared intently at him, their bodies almost touching: "Your soul must grow to the age of eighteen in this world before it can safely enter your body outside. I must raise you until you are eighteen and ensure that you do not die. This is all part of the plan."

"Then, what about in winter?" Asakawa Riku shook his head: "Supreme True God Church, you could have acted yourself, so why did you borrow Shinonome Kosuke's power? If you had acted yourself, I would have undoubtedly died on my eighteenth birthday. Your power, neither the [Wind God] nor the [Great Tengu] could defeat you. What are you hiding from?"

"I……"

She was speechless.

"Later, when you came to the school to see me in person, why didn't you make a move? Why didn't you attack me the moment you met? Given the difference in strength between you and me, was it necessary for you to try to build a good relationship with me?"

Asakawa Riku pressed forward relentlessly, word by word, while Asukai Shi began to retreat step by step.

"I was an adult back then. If you had just said one word, I would have died, and your plan would have succeeded, but you didn't do that. You not only pretended to be a first-year high school student, but also joined the mystery club and played all sorts of games with me all day long. Did that have any effect on your plan? What was the point of extending that summer indefinitely and making it an endless cycle?"

Finally, he drew close to the sword's edge again and said without any hesitation:

"Asui Shi, does the so-called 'eighteen-year limit' really exist? My soul is already eighteen years old, so why should it be delayed for another eighteen years? How can it match Lu Chuanqian, who is thirty-six years old in the outside world? If this world was created to cultivate me to replace his soul, shouldn't I have been harvested as soon as I was born?"

“Asui Shi, if you really wanted to kill me, I would have died long ago. You wouldn’t just turn me into this fragmented state… You simply can’t do it.”

"...Yes, I can't do it."

After a long silence, Asukai Shi finally sighed.

She looked up and saw tears welling up in her eyes beneath her bangs.

“Asakawa Riku, I watched you grow up little by little. You probably can’t imagine what that means. From the time you were a baby, I watched you grow up. I probably watched you for more time than your mother did. I shaped your body and your memories with my own hands. I underestimated the impact of this creation on me.”

"When I saw you being born, I realized I couldn't bring myself to do it to a little baby. At the time, I thought I'd do it later... That was my biggest mistake."

“I watched you grow up day by day, saw you slowly become like this, saw you diligently practice martial arts, become a hero, and uphold justice…”

“I am both Xu Qishi and Asukai Shi, just as you are both Lu Chuanqian and Qianchuan Lu. No matter what, we will fall in love with the person we are destined to be with. But Xu Qishi has Lu Chuanqian whom she wants to protect. However, I developed an inappropriate sense of self while carrying out my mission and fulfilling my duty. For the past eighteen years, I have never dared to take action.”

She raised her eyes, looking at Asakawa Riku with sadness and pity:

“You’re right, I’m a sinner. My biggest mistake was that my motive was to fall in love with someone I shouldn’t have.”

Winter of Man: Chapter Twenty-Five - The Biggest Mistake

"Senior, you're really wicked... I asked you to deduce the case, not to say these things..."

Asukai Shi threw the sword away, but still didn't strike.

She did not shed tears:

"But it's all meaningless now. Even if I confess, what impact will it have? Senior, you can only stay here with me."

Riku Asakawa said:

"If you had told us the truth earlier, we wouldn't have ended up on the enemy's side."

"...I ruined all of this."

She forced out these words: "Eighteen years ago, when you were born, I failed to make a move, which meant the plan had already failed. I am a despicable person. After the incident, I was afraid that Xu Qishi would come after me, so I even cut off the communication channel between the two worlds. I am her [writer] clone in this world, and also an [Apostle]. I have the highest authority here, and even she cannot interfere. In this way, I hid this world for eighteen years, while she waited outside for hope to arrive. I am the sinner."

Asakawa Riku listened silently.

Shiki Asukai is the creator, destroyer, and guardian of this world.

With just a single thought, this world would have been destroyed eighteen years ago. If it weren't for her protection, none of this would have happened.

But she betrayed her master, the true god, Xu Qishi, who had high hopes for the plan.

“It wasn’t until this year that I finally realized that hiding like this wasn’t a solution. Xu Qishi is a good person, and I shouldn’t let her suffer in endless hope and despair. I’ve decided to go back and tell her the truth so that she can give up completely. Even if she gets angry and kills me, I don’t care. This was a mistake to begin with, and I should take responsibility for it.”