Chapter 5 (u)

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This is unexpected. Teramoto is crying, she is shamelessly crying in front of me.

Teramoto: "Why did you do this to me?! You knew already of the consequences, and you still did it! Why?! I did many wrong things, I've been a bad person! I'm sorry! But you know! Even you should know... I don't deserve what's going to happen to me!"

Erika: "You don't... deserve it?"

Teramoto: "Yeah! I don't deserve this! Why do I need to be punished to that extent?! That's not fair!"

Erika: "Pfft..."

Teramoto: "Don't laugh! Why are you laughing now?!"

Erika: "Aha... ahahahahahaha!!!"

Teramoto: "Stop it! Don't laugh!"

Erika: "Oh my! Ha ha ha ha!!!"

Teramoto: "What's so funny about this?! What's so amusing?!"

Erika: "Not fair?! You don't deserve it?! And how did you get this foolish idea that the world is a fair place? Who exactly deserves to be bullied, Teramoto? At least you actually did something wrong. Do you have any idea how many people get victimized while being completely innocent? And now here you complain because your punishment will be too harsh! If that isn't a laughable, what else is? Sorry, but this is just how this world works. The faster you adapt to this reality the better it is. You thought you had it bad so far? You have no idea. Whatever you think you suffered in the past is outrageously trivial compared to what true pain is."

Teramoto: "Stop! I can't take this anymore! That's it! My life is over! I won't even go to school tomorrow!"

Erika: "That's a pity, you'll miss out on a most amusing show."

Teramoto: "I'll drop school entirely! There's no way I'm going through that hell! I don't want to be bullied! I don't want to become everyone's scapegoat! I don't want that! I don't want that!"

Erika: "Calm down, crybaby!"

Teramoto: "Then what am I supposed to do?! You ruined my life, you destroyed everything I had!"

Erika: "That's right. I completely destroyed that hateful castle made of illusions that you built."

Teramoto: "Uuuaaaargh!!!"

Erika: "By the way, your little friend Hibari told me something quite interesting about your so called 'philosophy'."

Teramoto: "What do you want from me still?! Leave me alone!"

Erika: "That's right, there was no point in responding to her, those are your theories, right? This is how you justified your shams and your tricks. What was that again? Yeah, I remember now. You claim that some people have the need to believe in magic. You seem to think that believing in something, even if completely false, is better than accepting the crude reality. But somehow you realized that this world with its rationality is systematically destroying the myths and legends of the past. More and more mysteries are solved each passing days. People can no longer fantasize about ridiculous explanations for natural events. Everything is denuded by the relentless scientific progress. All traces of romanticism are forcibly removed by the merciless jaws of empiricism, all that is left are the bare bones of facts and proofs. Few superstitions and beliefs survived the giant meat grinder of methodical experimentation.

All that left you with a profound sadness, your precious dreams were snatched from you and you cried and despaired. That's when you thought that you could reverse the flow."

Teramoto: "That's right! The truth is too cruel, the truth is hideous! What kind of worth is there in a world that loses its ability to dream? If the sky is gray, why do I need to accept it? What kind of good can come from that? Better it is to paint the sky of many vibrant colors, and who cares if it's fake? Who cares if it isn't the truth?! All I did was trying to stop the rapid descent into a world of despair. I may have fooled people, but I did it for their sake, and for mine! And it's not like I robbed anyone from anything! If those people truly didn't want to believe they would have noticed the tricks, just like you did! Don't you think so, great detective?! Can you really say that deep down it wasn't the very fact that they wanted to believe that it prevented them from realizing the truth?"

Erika: "Certainly, you do have a point... as stupid as they are, even they wouldn't have taken you so seriously if they really used their brain. So I can agree to a certain extent that deep down they wanted to be fooled."

Teramoto: "That's right! Then in the end I didn't do anything wrong! Just like I said!"

Erika: "In other words you just wanted to rekindle in people their inner desire to believe in magic, their ability to fantasize and to dream which is constantly under the perpetual attack of truth, facts, and reality."

Teramoto: "Then you do understand! That's not something that people want, it's something they are victim of. They have no choice but to accept the truth, they have no choice but to refute magic!"

Erika: "And since the truth is horrible, that just robs them of their happiness. Because there's just no way for someone to be happy about the sorry state our world is in. With magic, however, you can just pretend the world is a fantastic place. With magic... you can see beyond facts. With magic you can see beyond the crude and boring reality. You can still believe, you can still hope, you can still find happiness in the darkest hole of this deranged universe."

Teramoto: "Who... the hell are you? How can someone like you understand all of that and yet..."

Erika: "I know the theory all too well. Don't think you invented or discovered anything, Teramoto! But you know what? All of that is wrooong. All of that is utterly stupid! Worthless! Pathetic! Ridiculous! It can't even be redeemed as a joke! Do you really believe in that nonsense? Aren't you ashamed of yourself? I seriously have no words to state my incredulity. This is embarrassing! Look, I even feel embarrassed for you! That's how awkward this is! Do you get it? This is dumb! Completely idiotic! There should be a law to forbid people from even thinking that. Like you should be sentenced to death for atrocities against human brain cells or something. If there was..."

Teramoto: "I got your point already! Stop that!!"

Erika: "Then you see..."

Teramoto: "I see nothing! You just insulted me and my theories like every other so-called rational thinker did! You said that's wrong? Well, why is that wrong? Explain it, if you can! Explain how one can be happy without magic!"

Erika: "Happy?! What are you even babbling about? Of course the truth won't make you happy."

Teramoto: "Then... why..."

Erika: "Who the hell cares about happiness, Teramoto? Happiness is grossly overrated. Those who speak of happiness are the biggest fools, they don't even know what they're talking about. All it takes to be happy, Teramoto, is a few pills. Is that what you hold in so high regard?"

Teramoto: "Wait... no... that's not what..."

Erika: "Then you should understand that valuing happiness in itself is utterly stupid. Isn't the reason to be happy what really matters? Let's just make a stupid example. If you take a good grade you're happy, right? If you take a bad grade you're unhappy. But what really matters here, what really you should look for is the good grade, in other words the reason to be happy. Happiness has only a value if it corresponds to an event that is actually deserving of joy!

Now with your so-called magic, Teramoto, you can be happy regardless. You just fool yourself into believing that the world is a fantastic place when it is not! You just idiotically laugh and rejoice without a reason! And the worst part is that it will be short lived! Reality doesn't change just because you wish for it! Your pain won't go away just because you pretend it doesn't exist! It will return! It will return stronger than ever! You can't fight against reality! You can't fight against the truth! They will catch up no matter how far you escape! That's why you're an idiot! You don't understand!"

Teramoto: "But then what if you can't change your reality?! What if you can't do anything about that? Isn't it better to escape with your own mind? What good can come from acknowledging a desperate situation?!"

Erika: "You're approaching the issue form a completely wrong direction. You say that the sky is gray, but so what of it? What's wrong about the sky being gray?"

Teramoto: "Huh? No matter how you look at it, a colorful world is ten times better!"

Erika: "And who decided that?! Look, you can't change the color of the sky, you just need to accept it for what it is! If it's gray, it's gray! Deal with it! If you think you can paint it of your own favorite color, you're just going to make a fool of yourself. But that doesn't mean that you can't change absolutely anything!"

Teramoto: "What do you mean?"

Erika: "You can change yourself! If you're unhappy about the world, then adapt, evolve! If you live in filth, then learn to love filth! If all around you is filth, then become filth yourself!!!"

Teramoto: "I can't do that! What you say is pure madness! It's crazy!"

Erika: "No, Teramoto, that's what it means to be a witch of truth!"

Teramoto: "A... huh?!"

Erika: "Don't you wish you could look at the truth and appreciate it for what it is? Don't you wish you could accept any truths and survive them no matter how terrible they are? I can do that and much more."

Teramoto: "I don't care about that..."

Erika: "This is just the surface, Teramoto, there's a lot more to that. You see, you were deemed to fail whether I met you or not. That's because your magic was inherently weak. I observed you, you didn't care about the fact that some people would always deny your theories. You thought you could simply ignore them forever, and that's where you've been terribly naïve. Magic is a fragile thing, it takes very little to break it. Why do you think people were killed simply for challenging a dominant belief? You don't really need to worry about a fool stating what everyone knows to be wrong. The real problem comes when someone challenges a lie that everyone deep down knows to be false. What you created with so much effort could be taken away from you at any moment in a single instant, and I demonstrated that. You can't deny that I did."

Teramoto: "Then... then what do you want me to do? Are you saying that I should just give up?!"

Erika: "No! What I'm saying is that you should stop valuing fleeting stuff like your feeble magic. Something that only a few people believe in is worthless. What truly holds power is that which everyone believes in! In other words: truth!"

Teramoto: "Truth..."

Erika: "You may think that I hate you, Teramoto, but that's false. I don't have anything against you, what I truly hate is the magic that befouled your mind. In fact I think that you and I are similar in many respects. You're not much different from what I was before becoming what I am, and you'll soon experience the same hell that I've been through. Don't fear it, Teramoto, if you embrace the truth, that hell won't destroy you, it will make you stronger. Become a witch of truth and you'll survive anything, just like I survived far worse tragedies."

Teramoto: "How... how should I do that? You make no sense!"

Erika: "Don't worry, I'll help you. Just give me your mail address. There is much I can teach you, there is much you can learn. Your journey is just beginning."

The trembling, shaky hesitation is soon replaced by a twisted resolution.

A devilish thought walks past the shattered remains of the wall of sanity.

The serpent's whisper has tainted the core. There are no more doubts, there are no more worries, and not a single care for what the future may hold.

At this point, what is left to lose?

The contract has been signed, the ticket to the world of perdition has been presented.

Certainly I have received it.

Teramoto: "I must have gone crazy for doing this..."

Erika: "If that's what the truth is, then just welcome your new found madness with a smile!"

Teramoto: "A ha ha..."

Erika: "Ha ha ha ha!!!"

Teramoto: "Ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!"

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Chapter 5 (t)

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It seems that Satsukawa is a bit disappointed, he probably thinks that we have reached yet another dead end. We have learned a lot of many interesting facts, and we now have a clearer picture regarding the crime scene and the murder weapon. However very little progress has been made toward learning the identity of the culprit, and the whole situation that led the murderer to commit this crime is still uncharted territory.

Satsukawa: "Teramoto, during our present and past conversations you showed an extraordinary knowledge about this school and its students. It seems to me that you managed to create a very efficient network that let you know everything about everyone here. Is there really nothing that you can tell us about Gotsuji?"

So he was thinking about that. That wasn't a bad question at all anyway. If there is one person that would know about any possible rumors regarding Gotsuji, that one is certainly Teramoto.

Teramoto: "Hitomi Gotsuji... I think you're giving me too much credit by saying that I know everything about everyone. I did have several followers that would act as my eyes and ears... That's how I learned of Kubota's hobbies. Even so, I only know what other people tell me, and everything I know about that girl, I learned it from Kagami. You should rather ask this question to her. I'm sorry I can't be of much help..."

Satsukawa: "I see... thanks anyway, Teramoto."

Teramoto: "Wait a moment though..."

Interesting. She seems to have suddenly recollected something from her memories. The look in her face suggests that she is taking an effort in piecing the facts together. My detective instinct is telling me that a relevant clue is about to be revealed, I can sniff its smell in the air.

Teramoto: "Yes... I think that was..."

Erika: "Don't rush it. Think about it with calm and tell us all the details."

Teramoto: "That's not something that happened at school... it was a few months ago... I think it was the day after Christmas."

The end of December of the past year.

Around that time Gotsuji grew a sudden interest in dating sites. In addition, that's when she started purchasing more expensive stuff than she could normally afford.

This can't be a coincidence. Something must have happened between December and January, something that triggered a chain of events that ultimately led to the crime I need to solve.

Teramoto: "I had just arrived at Shinjuku with my friends. Since we live on the suburbs, we don't really have many chances to hang around the most famous wards and districts of Tokyo. Shinjuku, Harajuku, Shibuya, Akihabara, they're like myths to us. We always dream of going there to have fun. So it isn't unusual for the students of this school to visit those places during long school holidays. I was with Kagami, among the others, and then suddenly she told me that she spotted Gotsuji.

I usually don't pay too much attention to everything that Kagami says. It wasn't very likely that she actually recognized one of our schoolmates in the middle of that crowd, but then I followed the direction where she was pointing at with her finger, and I remember that I thought that she was probably right. To be honest, the girl that I saw was walking away from us, so I didn't even see her face, but Kagami seemed to be pretty sure that it was her.

We just went on our way then, and so I never put that much thought into that. However just a while back I remembered, and I just realized that if it was her, then she was all alone in that place. But there's more, because, now that I think about it, from there she could only be heading toward Kabukichou..."

Satsukawa: "... Are you sure?"

Teramoto: "No... not really..."

Kabukichou... of all the places. That's a well known red light district, under the control of the yakuza no less. That's the place to go if you're looking for hostess clubs, soaplands and love hotels.

Don't tell me that the Sumadera are involved again. Those people are everywhere... they are behind everything... they...

No, calm down, Erika. Think rationally. This is a murder mystery, criminal organizations are forbidden. Besides killing people in such a conspicuous way is not in their style. They aren't amateurs.

Satsukawa: "I find it very hard to believe that a teenage girl would adventure there all alone."

Teramoto: "Yeah... you're right... It was probably someone else."

No, it actually matches perfectly. Everything points into that direction, it can't be a simple coincidence. Hibari must have some kind of special ability to recognize people to compensate for her substandard intellect. Still, what a funny coincidence, this is definitely something that I can use for my plans.

Erika: "Do you remember anything else about that girl? Even small particulars are important."

Teramoto: "No... I don't think so... I have very fuzzy memories of that..."

Erika: "Go back with your mind to that time, focus on the image that is still imprinted in your little gray cells. Remember what you saw that day. Are you sure she was alone? Do you remember how she was dressed? Was there anything off about her?"

Teramoto: "She wore casual clothes, I don't know... there were people around her of course... She was in the middle of a crowd..."

Erika: "I see, well it's all right..."

Teramoto: "Wait... I think I know why she somehow stood out. She was... She was acting suspiciously."

Erika: "Suspiciously?"

Teramoto: "As if she didn't want to be seen."

This is really interesting.

Today Satsukawa brought me the recovered data from Gotsuji's personal computer. According to those files the victim made several searches regarding dating sites, especially those meant for people residing in the Tokyo area. I checked the dates of when each of those files was first downloaded in her hard disk, and the earliest were from December 27 of the past year. In other words it started exactly the day after Teramoto allegedly saw Gotsuji heading all alone toward Kabukichou.

Just what happened exactly that day? According to Teramoto it shouldn't be surprising if a student of this school went to Shinjuku during holidays, but alone? It would make more sense if Gotsuji was with one or more friends, unless she was up to no good to begin with.

And what about that last part? Acting suspiciously? She didn't want to be seen? While in the middle of a huge a crowd?

Satsukawa: "...Erika!"

Erika: "Uh? What are you yelling for?"

Satsukawa: "I've been calling you for a while, are you still with us?"

Erika: "Sheesh, I was just thinking. You should try that sometimes."

Satsukawa: "I wanted to know if you had more questions. I think we should call it a day, it's pretty late. Teramoto's parents will begin to worry, if she stays any longer."

Erika: "I have no objections, I don't think we'll get anything else from her."

Satsukawa: "Okay then. Teramoto, I'm going to give you a ride back to your place."

Teramoto: "Eh, that's not necessary..."

Satsukawa: "I insist, it's the least I can do to make up for keeping you here. Don't worry, I have no intention to climb all the stairs up to your family's shrine."

That's a nice way to say he doesn't plan to talk to her parents, which is what Teramoto was worrying about.

Satsukawa: "All right, just let me make a call first. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Erika: "Be quick, a gentleman should never make ladies wait."

Before leaving the room, Satsukawa leans briefly toward me.

Satsukawa: "Be nice."

Yeah, sure. I am not going to eat the witness alive, I promise.

So it's me and Teramoto now, the two of us, all by ourselves.

Awkward... and yet, decidedly amusing. Because between the two of us, Teramoto is certainly the one who is feeling more discomfort. She is the defeated and I am the victor, this is only natural.

I gleefully observe her nervous gestures. This is actually a pretty funny sideshow.

Teramoto: "You..."

Surprisingly, it seems that Teramoto is trying to start a conversation. So that's why she was so restless.

Teramoto: "You know what's going to happen to me starting from tomorrow, right?"

I see, this is what she was brooding over.

Erika: "Let's see. According to my predictions, not even you have the power to keep the extraordinarily crazy event that has just happened under wraps. It was too exciting and gossip-worthy to expect those first year students to keep silent about it. Most of them are probably already spreading the news by phone. Tomorrow this will be the hot topic of this school. By the start of lunch break there won't be a single student left that won't know about it, including boys. Naturally that means everyone will know that you always lied, everyone will know that you're just a vulgar trickster. More importantly, everyone will know what an unsightly defeat you suffered against me.

It goes without saying that any kind of power you had before today will be gone. Most of your 'loyal' subjects will probably turn against you. They'll claim that they were tricked as well to save themselves from the inevitable scorn and hostility. Don't worry, though, Hibari isn't smart enough to abandon the sinking boat.

I think you should prepare yourself to face even harsher accusations. Once it will be decreed that you're a villain, everyone will find convenient to use you as a scapegoat. I have no doubts that you'll be accused to be Gotsuji's murderer. Trust me, I have quite some experience about this kind of stuff. Hibari won't have it easier, they'll say that she's your accomplice. Some will even suggest that she killed Gotsuji following your orders.

The whole school will turn against you, people will talk behind your back and sneer. Wherever you will look, you'll meet malign stares, accusing you, despising you, besmirching you.

You see, Teramoto, what you said about the fact that everyone deep down is a bully is indeed one of the sad truths of this world. However some people are bound by what they call 'morality'. That basically means that they won't easily commit 'evil' acts, because that would tarnish the image of rectitude that they have of themselves. But that doesn't mean that they lack the same primordial and barbaric impulses of everyone else. So those upstanding and praiseworthy people subconsciously look for morally questionable scapegoats. Against those they can safely unleash their repressed sadism. It's all right, because those are evil, they don't need to feel bad about scum. It's eye for an eye, right? Even if they aren't the offended party, they'll feel entitled to be the executors of that distorted vengeance, and then they'll call it justice or karma.

What I'm getting at, Teramoto, is that you can't even count on those so called 'good-willed' persons. They will all gang up on you. Even those who normally wouldn't bother will jump on the bandwagon just to follow the flow. They will all rejoice for the advent of a special scapegoat which they'll be able to bully with no remorse."

Teramoto: "Stop!!! STOP IT!!!"

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Chapter 5 (s)

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Teramoto: "Do you believe me if I say that she never showed any grudge toward me? It was really as if nothing happened, not that we became friends or anything though. When I first explained my projects to her, she listened attentively and then she approached the issue as if she was a machine that was just given a mission. She never questioned stuff like 'why should I do this', 'why do you want to do this', and so on. All that mattered to her was what kind of tool I needed and how she could perfectly create it."

Erika: "Just as I thought. Then let me confirm something, it was Junko Andou and not you who came up with the idea of that elaborated lock."

Teramoto: "Yes... what I suggested back then was something similar but simpler. Andou then insisted to know exactly what kind of purpose I needed that for. Then she rejected my project and proposed her own. She became suddenly talkative when she started to explain all the reasons why my idea was wrong and her was better. It's as if she was an expert on locking devices or something. She kept repeating that the best lock is a lock that you can't see to begin with.

Naturally it's not like she suddenly gave a damn about my cult, she just wanted to do a good job for her own sake."

Satsukawa: "I think this is a pretty relevant point. In other words you're confirming that Andou knew how to open that door."

Teramoto: "Obviously so, she's the very person that came up with that system... Wait... are you suspecting that she killed Gotsuji?"

That's a pretty good question, but she should have realized this sooner. Certainly what she told us so far doesn't really help in mitigating our suspicions. Is Andou the kind of person that would kill someone in cold blood? I still lack conclusive evidences, but everything seems to indicate that yes, she is that kind of person. However we still lack any proofs regarding a possible relation between her and the victim. Is Oda really the only connection?

Satsukawa: "To your knowledge, how many persons knew the trick to open the shed's door before the crime occurred?"

Teramoto: "Everyone in the occultism club knew... plus Kagami and Andou."

Erika: "That's too many people. Any of them could have told this secret to someone else."

Teramoto: "I think you're forgetting something relevant here, great detective. Even if someone knew how to open the door, there was nothing he could do without the proper tool, and only two of those exist. Kagami has one and I have the other."

Erika: "... Of course it's not like I forgot anything, I was just getting to that."

Teramoto: "Liar!"

Erika: "Silence! Anyway Junko Andou could have made more of those without telling you, or she could have created another one later. I think she gave them a specific name, if I'm not mistaken..."

Teramoto: "Yeah... how do you know? When she gave me mine she said that it was 'Slim Jim'. That made me laugh, to think that she would give a cute name to a tool she made..."

Just as I thought.

Satsukawa: "What if someone stole your Slim Jim or Kagami's and then put it back before you noticed?"

Teramoto: "I can't think of many people who could do that with mine without being ninja."

Erika: "However in Kagami's case I think it would be pretty easy. Whenever she plays basketball her stuff is completely unattended, and she's not bright enough to notice if someone rummaged through her belongings."

Satsukawa: "So in the end there are still a lot of possibilities..."

Erika: "The simplest solution is still the more probable though. Don't you agree, Teramoto?"

Teramoto: "Why are you asking... me?"

Dlanor: "Miss Erika is suggesting that the culprit is more likely someone who already possessed both the knowledge and the tool to open the shed's door."

Teramoto: "I thought you said that Kagami isn't the culprit! Wait... that leaves me, doesn't it?!"

Erika: "I'm glad that you finally realized where you stand."

Teramoto: "It wasn't me... I didn't do anything wrong... I mean, apart from all the wrong things that I did... But I never killed anyone! I could never! I'm not a monster!"

Erika: "Does that mean that you made someone else to do that?"

Teramoto: "Neither! I'm not such a fool to not realize that I'd be still guilty!"

Satsukawa: "And you never happened to give the order to 'punish' Gotsuji, just like you did with Andou and anyone who stood in your way?"

Teramoto: "No! There was absolutely nothing between me and Gotsuji!"

Erika: "Interesting. Perhaps you're telling the truth, and you're completely unrelated to the crime, but what if you're the culprit and you're simply denying your responsibility in a desperate attempt to save yourself from the consequences? You sure showed that tendency with all those: 'I never did anything wrong'!"

Teramoto: "That's different! You must believe me! I'm not lying!"

Erika: "So... it's not like you're telling us all these things about Andou to divert our attention from yourself, right? I just want to make that sure."

Teramoto: "What?! I... I wasn't even thinking about that! Everything I told you about her is the truth! You can ask my friends to confirm my version of the facts, if you wish!"

Satsukawa: "That's enough, Erika. Like I said, this isn't a trial, and this isn't an interrogation of a possible culprit either. Right now we're just collecting Teramoto's statements. Whether they're true or false, that's something that we'll evaluate later."

Erika: "Fair enough. You heard him, Teramoto. So please, be at ease. *giggle* *giggle*"

Teramoto: "Gh..."

Satsukawa: "So, is there anything left that you need to tell us about Andou?"

Teramoto: "Nothing much... Of course the inner mechanisms inside the statue of Pazuzu were also made by her, after she improved my original project. She made me spend even more money because she insisted that a cheap infrared remote wouldn't have worked. Kagami was usually the one that operated that."

Satsukawa: "I really feel like an idiot now for wasting that much time checking the shed a few days ago. That Hibari really pulled a nice prank on me."

Erika: "Sure she did."

Satsukawa: "You knew it all along, didn't you...?"

Erika: "I suspected that. It didn't hurt to check that place carefully though."

Satsukawa: "Yeah, of course..."

Erika: "Ah, I almost forgot! We still need to ask you about the murder weapon. Surely you're not going to confirm that ridiculous story that you told us before."

Teramoto: "That sword is cursed..."

Erika: "Are you still saying that?!"

Teramoto: "Wait... let me explain! I didn't make that up. At the very least I'm not the one who did."

Erika: "What do you mean?"

Teramoto: "I found it among my family heirlooms. There's a storeroom back to my place that I'm not supposed to enter, and you can't imagine how many antiques have been lying there forgotten for who knows how many years! I was looking for some kind of treasure that could impress my friends and our guests, and I found something that surpassed my hopes by far. It was sealed inside a box, and when I say 'sealed' I mean that there was an actual magic seal placed on it."

Erika: "In other words one of those piece of papers that are meant to seal curses."

Teramoto: "Yeah, one of those."

Erika: "And naturally you didn't think twice before breaking it, considering how much you believe in all that stuff."

Teramoto: "It... it was already broken and all tattered! I told you that it was really old! Anyway once I opened the box, I found the wakizashi inside. There was a letter too and it was written by the former owner. He wrote that he believed that sword to be cursed. He stated that there was a demon lurking inside with a thirst for innocent blood. If one was to carelessly wield that sword, he would be possessed by the evil spirit and he would kill the closest person. Fearing that destroying the wakizashi would cause an even greater calamity, he asked the priest of that time to seal it and to keep it forever under his watch inside the sacred grounds of the shrine."

Erika: "Is this all real, Teramoto? You aren't telling us another of your stories, aren't you?"

Teramoto: "No! I swear, this is the truth! I still have the letter somewhere! It's authentic! Can you imagine how ecstatic I was after such a rare find? That's why I brought it with me to my secret place. It became one of my best pieces to impress our guests!"

Erika: "Yeah, I can imagine. I bet it killed at your parties."

Teramoto: "You don't think that the curse was... real?!"

Erika: "Now are you worrying about that?"

Teramoto: "But it happened! Someone actually killed with that sword, just like the letter said!"

Erika: "No, Teramoto, how stupid can you be?! The murderer used that sword because you worked your way to make half the school know that it was a cursed weapon. Because he or she wanted to make it look like the crime was related to your occult club, thus directing the investigations on the wrong path.

As for what concerns the owner of that wakizashi, he was psycho! He killed an innocent person under some sort of crazy compulsion, because his mind was all messed up! But of course you can't expect a deranged individual to simply admit his crimes. So, very much like you, he started telling to himself that it wasn't his fault, that he never did anything wrong! Then he came up with a convenient fantasy to put all the blame onto something else. 'It was a demon! This sword is cursed! It's not my fault!' He convinced himself so hard that he ended up entrusting the wakizashi to a shrine, and so he washed his hands off his crime! Case closed!"

Damn... did I overreact? I was caught up so much in the excitement that I ended up saying more than I wanted to. I just can't stand it when people act so idiotically when the truth stares them in the face. I lost it, I couldn't stay silent any longer. That's not good, I need to exert on myself more self-restraint. I have the bad habit to let my excitement take over me causing me to act against my better judgment.

Teramoto: "How... how do you know all that?!"

Erika: "That's the only logical deduction that one gifted with a decent brain can make, come on! Do you think that any sane person would come up with such a story?"

Teramoto: "That apart... didn't you just imply that the culprit is completely unrelated to my club?"

Erika: "Tch..."

I said too much.

Satsukawa: "Anyway... regardless of curses, what were you thinking when you brought a real sword to school? Do you understand how irresponsible that was?"

Teramoto: "I... I'm sorry..."

Erika: "Well it's not like it would have changed anything. Sword or not, the murderer would have killed anyway."

Satsukawa: "Why didn't you tell us this since the beginning?"

Teramoto: "My father will kill me when he'll know what I've done..."

Erika: "That seems appropriate."

Teramoto: "Why?! I didn't kill anyone! You think so as well!"

Erika: "I never said that."

Teramoto: "Liar!"

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