2
Yuma lifted his heavy eyelids and saw a ceiling. The ceiling of the Fourth room, which he'd grown so accustomed to. He realized he was lying in bed.
“I'm...”
He tried to sit up, but pain ran through his temples as though he'd been hit with a baseball bat. He groaned and put his hand where it hurt, feeling a large bump.
“Looks like you noticed. It's for the best if you don't try to move right now, Yuma.”
A voice came from nearby. Yuma turned in surprise, grimacing as another shot of pain ran through him.
“See? I warned you.”
Tsukiyo was sitting backwards in a chair next to the bed, her chin resting on the back.
“Why am I in bed...?”
“You don't remember? Well, I suppose that's only natural, after how hard you hit your head. You fell down the stairs and lost consciousness. It was hard carrying you here. You're pretty heavy, Yuma. Mr. Kuruma and the others were in the game room, and it took all four of us to carry you.”
“I'm sorry... I didn't mean to trouble you.”
“Don't worry about it. Partners are supposed to help each other out. You encouraged me when I was feeling down earlier. Let's call it even.”
Tsukiyo flashed a cynical smile. Her great detective aura was completely restored.
“How long was I unconscious?”
“Hmm? About fifteen minutes, I'd say.”
Tsukiyo glanced down at her watch. Yuma sighed in relief. There was already less than a day and a half left until the police arrived, meaning his deadline for finding the one who'd killed Oita and Madoka was rapidly approaching. He was glad he hadn't wasted precious time lying unconscious.
“But Yuma, please be careful. The Watson retiring after slipping and falling down the stairs is rare even in comedic mysteries these days. You were lucky you only suffered minor injuries. The stairs in this Tower are so steep-”
“No, I didn't slip!”
“What do you mean?”
Tsukiyo asked, eyes narrowing.
“Someone pushed me from behind.”
“Pushed you? Who?”
“I don't know. Like I said, they got me from behind.”
Resting her head on the back of the chair, Tsukiyo's face tensed.
“That changes things considerably. Under the circumstances, it's most likely the person who pushed you was our eavesdropper... Yuma, you checked the upstairs area, didn't you? Was there anyone there?”
“I climbed all the way up to the display room, which I did a full search of, but there was no one there. I thought for sure that meant the eavesdropper had run downstairs, and when I was on my way down to meet you, I was attacked from behind. It was as if... I was attacked by a ghost that suddenly manifested behind me.”
“A ghost? Don't be ridiculous. Lately, special setting mysteries have been getting popular, but those are only allowed if the rules are made clear from the beginning. It isn't fair to have a special setting element suddenly appear after the story is already over halfway done. It's heresy. I refuse to accept it.”
“I don't care if you accept it or not. This isn't a mystery novel, it's real life. I don't actually believe it was a ghost or a spirit. But maybe there's an additional person we don't know of hiding in the Tower.”
“...You mean the person locked in the empty cell?”
“That's right. We thought there wasn't anyone in there from the beginning. But maybe someone was there, and managed to pick the lock and escape, surviving by stealing food from the underground storeroom.”
“Based on how thoroughly skeletized the remains were, the cells must have been abandoned for quite a long time. During that time, they must have been hiding in the darkness without being seen by Mr. Kozushima and the others.”
“That would be difficult, but would it be impossible? Only three people regularly live in this huge tower. They could have sneaked into the storeroom in the middle of the night and stolen food without being noticed.”
“Why didn't the person just leave? Why not call for help and report Mr. Kozushima's crimes?”
“We're deep in the mountains. They probably figured it would be too difficult to escape on foot. And even if they called in to report it, Mr. Kozushima is a powerful man. They must have thought he could easily chase off the police, and that they would be in danger if he found out they were still alive.”
Tsukiyo put a hand to her forehead and let out a long “Hmm...”
“It's pretty far-fetched. If your theory is correct, it would mean the culprit has been living in that dungeon for over a year, watching the bodies of the other victims rot before their eyes. They can't be sane.”
“Would a sane person have committed these crimes?”
If the culprit of Oita and Madoka's murders had gone insane, that would be convenient for Yuma. It would make them easier to frame.
Yuma asked Tsukiyo “What do you think?”
“It's not much of a theory. Even if the person you're describing did exist, why would they wait until so many potential witnesses gathered in the Tower before taking revenge? Besides, there's no reason they would have attacked you, Yuma.”
No, there was an excellent reason.
“You're right,” Yuma replied nonchalantly.
They may have known that he was the one who killed Kozushima. Since he stole their most important prey, they must have hated him deeply. Perhaps that resentment had driven them to push him down the stairs to try and kill him.
As Yuma reasoned it out in his head, Tsukiyo softly “Hmm”ed again.
“We may not know whether or not someone escaped from that cell, but we do have to consider the possibility that an unknown figure is hiding somewhere in the Tower and pushed you down, Yuma. Could it be the same person who eavesdropped on us? We finally have a lead.”
“Where else can we look? How do we get to the truth behind all this?”
As Yuma tried to get out of bed, more pain ripped through his body.
“Don't push yourself, Yuma. Just lie down.”
Placing both hands on Yuma's shoulders, Tsukiyo forced him back onto the bed. Although her voice was gentle, she held him down firmly.
“But we don't have time...”
As Yuma obediently lay on the bed, Tsukiyo blinked.
“We don't have time? Why not?”
Because he had to pin the blame for Kozushima's murder on someone else before the police arrived. Unable to say that, Yuma scrambled for an excuse.
“Judging from Mr. Kagami's attitude, it looks like your reputation as a great detective hasn't reached the Nagano Prefectural Police. If the police do come, they'll probably treat us like nuisances and keep us from investigating properly. But I don't think this case can be solved by anyone other than you. It would be for the better if we find the truth before the police arrive, so the culprit doesn't have time to escape.”
“I see, you have a point. And the assumption that the culprit wouldn't commit any more crimes because their revenge was complete went out the window when they attacked you. You're right, we need to find the truth quickly. Well then, let's get started.”
“Where to first?”
Tsukiyo lightly pushed Yuma in the chest as he tried to sit up. His body, having risen about thirty degrees, returned to the bed. That was enough to send pain running through his entire body, enough that Yuma screamed.
“And just where do you think you're going in your condition? You need to rest up.”
“No! It's too dangerous for you to go wandering around the Tower by yourself.”
“Don't get the wrong idea. I'll have you at my side.”
The dazed Yuma could only groan “Eh?”
“I'm starting the investigation now. Yuma, I'm a great detective. I'm not one of those social school policemen who can only gather information by wearing down their soles.”
Tsukiyo wagged her finger back and forth like a metronome.
“We've obtained plenty of information over the past three days. We're going to break down that information and combine the pieces into a new hypothesis. That's how a great detective works.”
“So you think we're ready to make a deduction from the information we have so far?”
In response to Yuma's question, Tsukiyo cheerily replied
“That's right. Besides, you're injured. I can't just leave you in this room. The culprit might come back and finish you off.”
“Please don't say such scary things.”
Yuma gave a soft chuckle. It was enough to send pain rippling through his side.
“I'm not joking. Since we still don't know why you were pushed down the stairs, we can't let our guard down. So you just rest there. I'll keep a close watch over you. Is there anything you need? Something to eat? Water? I'm taking care of you as your partner, so please, don't hesitate to ask me for anything. Do you need painkillers? I didn't know what could happen when I came here, so I brought a full range of medicines.”
Tsukiyo pounded her chest with her fist.
“I've got medicine too, so I'll be fine. I came here as Mr. Kozushima's doctor.”
“No, no, I'm sure I have medicines you didn't even think to prepare. For example, a cure for erectile dysfunction...”
“Why do you have that!?”
Yuma reflexively shouted, then groaned at the pain in his chest.
“I had to consider every possibility. So, what do you need?”
“A glass of water. I'm thirsty.”
“Understood.”
Tsukiyo went to the kitchenette and poured a glass of mineral water.
“Can you sit up? Drink it slowly.”
Tsukiyo supported Yuma's body as he sat up, then handed him the glass. Yuma downed it in one gulp. The cold water spread through his body, dried out from fatigue and tension.
Tsukiyo placed a hand on Yuma's forehead as he lay down. The feeling of her cool palm against his skin was pleasant. Yuma quietly closed his eyes. Without him realizing, the tension that had been wrapped around his body like iron chains for the past three days had disappeared.
Yuma didn't resist the comforting sleep that washed over him.
“Goodnight, Yuma. Pleasant dreams.”
Yuma thought Tsukiyo's voice sounded very far away.