The Sakuradani Family's Back Business
Koshiro will soon return to Sakuradani-kan. She needed to come up with some way to prevent the takeover. She has to buy time. As she was walking down the corridor leading to the main building, pondering this, a large figure stood in front of her.
"Motonobu-san…?"
Motonobu crossed his arms like a statue of Nio. He was waiting for Hinami.
(Motonobu was the only man staying at Sakuradani-kan on the night of March 3rd, when Sousuke-san was killed...)
When Sousuke's hanging body was discovered in the [detached building], Motonobu, a self-proclaimed novelist, was the person most suspected.
Motonobu, a large man with a huge frame, could kill an adult man weighing over 70 kilograms by hanging. However, there was no way to escape from the locked building.
"The police concluded that Sousuke Isaka's death was suicide. But that was a murder. No doubt about it. There's a murderer in Sengatake Village. And he's used to killing. I don't think it's his first time."
"That's what I think, too. It's very rude, but there's someone suspicious right in front of me."
"What. Are you talking about me? This attitude toward a guest... But it's right to be suspicious."
"Do you admit that you are the culprit?"
"There's no way that's true. I have no reason to kill him."
"Is that so...? At a discussion just last week, three men made contradictory claims about Mother. One of them was Sousuke, and the other... It’s you, Motonobu-san."
"That stupid discussion... I can't blame you for thinking that, the daughter. But your perspective is off. We were all liars, but our claims don't contradict each other."
"Eh?"
"The will shown by Sousuke Isaka was written by Saemon Sakuradani. On the other hand, Koshiro's love letter was written by Yukiko Sakuradani. This fact is not contradictory. Saemon and Yukiko are different people. They are compatible.''
"...That's ... It's sophistry."
"Saemon relied on his old friend Sousuke, but his wife Yukiko was having an affair with Koshiro. Look, there's no contradiction here.''
"That's a very unpleasant view... After that, are you saying that Mother and Motonobu-san are doing it? Mother isn't such a slutty woman."
"I wonder? Our argument holds true except for one thing. The man who put the child into Yukiko's womb. No matter how many physical relationships she had, there was only one man who impregnated her."
"⋯⋯⋯⋯"
"On March 3rd, you met Sousuke Isaka at Oni Tengu Shrine. Didn't he tell you about the crazy strange festival in Sengatake Village?''
"Strange festival? No, what I heard was a warning. I was told to go back to Tokyo..."
"That warning is completely correct. He should have protected himself before worrying about others. It'd be funny if you got killed because of that."
"Does Motonobu-san know about the customs of Sengatake Village?"
"Unfortunately, I'm an outsider. The people in the village didn't tell me anything. However, I have some ideas. I'm not sure yet, but if I use my head, I can get a rough idea. They made Sousuke Isaka look like a suicide. I also solved the locked room murder trick."
"Really...? If so, why didn't you tell the police!?"
"Because if I say that, I'll get arrested."
"Huh?"
"The culprit behind the locked room murder is a man and a woman. Which one do you think?"
"I think it's a man."
Hinami had heard about it from Reiko. There was semen inside Yukiko's v*gina. Only males can ejaculate. She can say this with confidence. The person who killed Sousuke was a man.
"I feel the same way. However, it would be inconvenient if that happened. I was the only man in the Sakuradani-kan that night. If I said that I figured out the locked room murder trick, by process of elimination I would be the one who carried it out."
"If you were the culprit, you wouldn't go out of your way to reveal the trick..."
"There's a possibility that that could be dismissed as an excuse or a cover-up. Again, I'm not a murderer. That's why I couldn't tell the prefectural police that locked room murder is possible. I will be falsely accused of being the main culprit."
"The locked room murder trick. Can you tell me how to do it? I won't tell the police."
"If you promise to return to Tokyo, I can tell you. And one more thing. You will never doubt the trick I will tell you. These are the two conditions. What will you do?"
"Not just Sousuke-san, but you too? Do you think I would accept such conditions...? Do you think I was a heartless girl who would run away and leave Mother behind?"
"I guess. You are brave. A baby frog is a frog."
"...It's rude to call a young girl a frog."
"That's why I won't tell you the trick. You're safe right now. I don't know who the culprit is, but if you get too deep, you'll be killed."
"Motonobu-san. You look like a detective..."
"I'm a former detective. I can tell the difference between suicide and homicide. It's easy to make a locked room. I'll figure it out with a little thought. Those prefectural police guys have sponges on their heads."
"A former detective...? I'm skeptical that you've cracked the trick, but you don't know who the culprit is, right?"
"I have an idea. But the only thing I don't know is the key perpetrator. A man is needed for the crime. However, the most likely candidate, Koshiro, is absent. There is only one man who seems suspicious, but... that one..."
"It's the missing village chief, right? Isaka Taisuke-san"
"That's right. Taisuke Isaka hasn't been seen since March 3rd. He disappeared without a trace. But why does a smart man who carried out a perfect locked room murder have to disappear? You should be proud. You're a father who's lost your eldest son. No one's gonna suspect you. Unless you're hiding on the day of the murder."
"That's certainly true. If Taisuke-san doesn't disappear... ah!"
Hinami was shocked when Motonobu pointed it out.
"You get it, right? It's the opposite. This disappearance is just telling you to doubt Taisuke."
Taisuke disappearing is suspicious. However, no one would have suspected him unless he disappeared. It is hard to imagine that Taisuke was the one behind this clever trick that fooled the police. So why did he commit the locked room murder? It loses its meaning.
"Someone is trying to put the blame on Taisuke-san."
"Probably. It's probably the same trick as two years ago. On the day Saemon Sakuradani died in a fire, the police stationed here at the time committed suicide with a pistol."
"Adashino-san committed suicide with a pistol...! Sousuke-san also said that it was a false accusation."
"Make the murder look like an accident or suicide, and prepare a scapegoat in case the crime is exposed. Adashino was stationed here two years ago, and Taisuke, the village chief, is the replacement sheep this time. It's a standard procedure for the Hokuwakai.
"You know a lot. Is it because you're a former detective and a novelist?"
"I've always been good at research. Should I tell you something? You probably don't want to hear this, but the Sakuradani family isn't all white either."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Yoshiharu Sakuradani was a large landowner in Sengatake Village and the manager of a hot spring inn, but he was also an investor. It was happening at the meeting. It's the Sakuradani family's secret family business. By the way, his accountant is that same Koshiro Himura."
"I can't believe it. Do you have any proof?"
"The Sakuradani family has too much money. Saemon Sakuradani, who started his own financial account after his predecessor, Yoshiharu Sakuradani, died, must have thought it strange. There are so much assets piled up that land and inn management can't explain it. And it's a large amount of money that doesn't seem to be paying taxes to the country."
"Indeed... Father said that Koshiro-san is someone who can be trusted."
Hinami hesitated. Was it okay for someone who wasn’t related by blood to refer to Saemon as a father? But Saemon should have known. Even if he was not related by blood, Saemon was acting like a father.
Saemon raised Hinami, who he didn't know was anyone's daughter. If that's the case, then Hinami should continue to call Saemon her father. That's what Hinami thought.
"It seems he’s been trying to quit his business with Koshiro for years. That’s a fact. I’ve heard about it too."
"The previous generation, Yoshiharu, must have been different. That's right. He was a subordinate who was entrusted with keeping the safe."
"Grandfather highly valued Koshiro-san, but..."
Hinami remembers her grandfather saying, [If anything happens, rely on Koshiro. He will always be on your side]. He was the complete opposite of her father.
"You're starting to peel back the layers, right?"
"Wait. Then it's like...!"
"The Sakuradani family was not intimidated by the Hokuwakai. That was the case when Yoshiharu Sakuradani was alive. The power relationship is the opposite. The Sakuradani family was the ass-holders of Hokuwakai, both in name and in reality."
"! So, the evidence is...!"
"He's an employee who worked at Sakuradani-kan. Among the fired employees, wasn't there a cook with a chipped pinky finger?"
"Wrong... The old man lost it in an accident while cooking. That's what I heard."
"That's a lie. The chef who worked at Sakuradani-kan was a fraud. On December 19, 1956, Japan joined the United Nations, and many of the model prisoners were granted freedom through amnesty. One of those who gladly accepted the released ex-convicts was Yoshiharu Sakuradani. The men who worked at the Sakuradani-kan were all men with scars on their shins. Is this a coincidence?"
After defeat in World War II, the world entered the era of the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union. Japan applied for membership in the United Nations in 1952, but it was rejected due to the Soviet Union's veto power. The Japan-Soviet Joint Declaration was signed four years later, in 1956. With the consent of the Soviet Union, Japan achieved its long-cherished desire to become a member of the United Nations.
The journey was a series of hardships, and since it was a national celebration, about seventy thousand prisoners were subject to amnesty and pardon.
"The Sakuradani family and the Hokuwakai have a close relationship. However, Saemon wanted to cut ties with them, and things started to get awkward. In a way, the Sakuradani family was the inside man who brought Hokuwakai to Sengatake Village."
"Then the real reason why Father was killed two years ago is...!"
"After Yoshiharu died, Saemon has been trying to settle up the Sakuradani family's back business. The Yamatoku Mujin Bank and Hokuwakai will be in trouble if they're about to lose their funds."
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[Introduction of characters]
▼ Yukiko Sakuradani (O type)
The young proprietress of Sakuradani-kan, a long-established hot spring inn.
She lost her husband and became a widow. She is raped by someone from Sengatake Village and she becomes pregnant.
▼ Saemon Sakuradani (O type)
Yukiko's late husband. Burn to death in a fire. He has a severed relationship with Sousuke.
▼ Hinami Sakuradani
Yukiko and Saemon's only daughter. She left Sengatake Village and entered a girls' school in Tokyo. Until recently, she was studying abroad.
She reunites with her mother for the first time in two years and is told that she is pregnant.
▼ Sousuke Isaka (B type)
The prodigal son of the Isaka family, who monopolizes the position of village chief in Sengatake Village.
He was an old friend of Yukiko and Saemon, but they had a rift over a certain incident and their relationship became strained.
He takes out [Saemon's will] and claims that he got Yukiko pregnant.
On the night of March 3rd, he was strangled to death in the detached building.
▼ Koshiro Himura (A type)
A bank employee at Yamatoku Mujin Bank. An obese, ugly middle-aged man.
Although he is the exclusive representative of the Sakuradani family, he was despised by Saemon when he was alive.
He brings out [Yukiko's love letter] and claims that he got her pregnant.
▼ Motonobu Matsudaira (AB type)
Self-proclaimed novelist. A guest staying at Sakuradani-kan for a long time.
He claims that Yukiko approached him and they had a physical relationship.
He is actually a former detective and was investigating the relationship between the Sakuradani family and the Hokuwakai.
▼ Misaki Reiko
A female doctor who works at a clinic in Sengatake Village. She diagnoses that Yukiko is pregnant.
▼ Ran (A type)
An apprentice who works at Sakuradani-kan. She is a twelve-year-old girl, but she does not go to school.
▼ Yoshiharu Sakuradani (B type)
Yukiko's father. He doted on his granddaughter, Hinami.
He and the Isaka family are bitter enemies. He opposed the plan of a ski resort. He died of illness ten years ago.
Although he trusted Koshiro and valued him, the Sakuradani family was actually the sponsor of the Hokuwakai.
▼ Taisuke Isaka (O type)
He has been at odds with the Sakuradani family for several decades over a plan to build a ski resort.
He has a grudge against the Sakuradani family, the large landowners who are hindering the development of the village.
He has been missing since the night of March 3rd, the day Sousuke was killed in the [detached building].
▼ Akari Isaka (O type)
She was Taisuke's wife and Sousuke’s mother. She was old, but she was beautiful when she was young.
▼ Ayane Isaka (O type)
She was the youngest daughter of the Isaka family. A beautiful fourteen-year-old girl.
▼ Ayumu Higashiyama
A police officer stationed in Sengatake Village. He is a beautiful young man with fair skin and an androgynous face.
Although he keeps his distance from the people in the village, he is liked by Ran.
▼ Adashino
Former police officer. He was familiar with Sengatake Village, but committed suicide with a pistol two years ago.
There is a rumor that he was guiding the Hokuwakai, but the Isaka family is the one spreading the rumors.
Due to the bad habits of Sengatake Village, Adashino, who has a strong sense of justice, was arguing with the Isaka family.
[Records of Sengatake Village]
▽ 1960
November 8th: Yukiko gives birth to a baby girl, blood type A.
▽ 1966
Winter: Grandfather Yoshiharu Sakuradani dies of illness
▽ 1974
One day in April: Hinami enters a girls' school in Tokyo and leaves Sengatake Village.
July 7th: Saemon was burned to death in a fire.
July 8th: Adashino's corpse is found at the police post.
August 24th: Saemon's 49th memorial service, rape photo taken of Yukiko
Late August: Yukiko's emotions become disturbed and she begins to kick out the old employees.
▽ 1975
A certain day in July: Sousuke returns to Sengatake Village.
A certain day in September: Yukiko becomes pregnant by the rape demon's seed (♥︎)
September 25th: Yukiko and Koshiro's marriage registration is submitted(?)
▽ 1976
February 24th: Hinami returns home and is told that her mother, Yukiko, is pregnant.
February 25th: Influential people from Sengatake Village gather for discussion.
March 3rd: Handwriting analysis results arrive from Tokyo.
Sousuke calls Hinami to Oni Tengu Shrine.
March 4th: Sousuke hangs himself in a closed building ☠️
The village chief, Taisuke, goes missing.
March 7th: The prefectural police cut off the investigation.
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