Chapter 113 Different Standpoints
Edogawa Ranpo sometimes wondered, if they left the island, would the environment outside be as real as here?
No, just thinking about such things would make him laugh. If Edgar Allan Poe could do this, he would not be a planner in the "combination". He would be a transcendent if he could "create" a world.
"The master of the house actually hasn't slept well for a long time," the housekeeper said with grief in his eyes when asked about the deceased's condition. "In recent days, he often told me that he saw someone entering his room, but in fact, every time he fell asleep, he would lock the door and fasten the windows from the inside, so no one could get in."
"Are you the only one who has the key?"
"Yes," the butler replied.
Edogawa Ranpo was holding a bottle of medicine in his hand. This medicine was an antidepressant for anxiety and insomnia, and there was another medicine for heart problems. The former might cause respiratory depression if taken in small amounts, but it was far from the level of suffocation, and the latter... He thought for a moment and asked, "Who prescribed these medicines for him?"
The housekeeper's expression suddenly became strange. He said, "The master's health has always been taken care of by Doctor Chi Jing, and this time is no exception. I noticed that he has been very close to you these past two days. Didn't he tell you?"
Edogawa Ranpo paused and thought of the person who had not shown any abnormality during this period of time.
"You should just call me 'Doctor'..."
"I was suddenly invited here, and it was hard to refuse."
Ranpo suddenly thought of something, and as soon as he went out, he found "Ryuichi". The other party was now knocking in the deceased's room and putting his ears against the walls everywhere, as if trying to find out something.
"When you became this character, did you gain more memories besides your identity?" Edogawa Ranpo asked urgently.
"Long Yi" was a little confused, but he still thought about it: "I have some basic impressions, and some past clips, just like watching a movie, but I can understand what kind of person 'I' am."
Sure enough, with the background of a transcendent, Edgar Allan Poe's supernatural abilities have not only been expanded, but also enhanced and mutated... Maybe he is outside watching him and laughing at him right now. This guy deserves to die!
"Then what would you do if your memory showed that 'you' were the murderer?" Edogawa Ranpo suddenly asked.
"Ah?" "Ryuichi" opened his mouth wide. He was stunned for a moment, then touched his chin and said, "If I were the murderer, eh, well, what would the murderer think when he is about to be caught? What is the best way to hide it from the detective? It's really interesting. I haven't put myself in the shoes of the murderer to think about it... Well, I would probably surrender directly!" While Edogawa Ranpo waited patiently, he stretched out a finger, smiled naturally and said, "Of course, the premise is that this game fails and there will be no punishment."
"Are you doubting that person?" "Long Yi" asked: "Indeed, the problem of 'medicine' cannot be separated from 'doctor'..."
"What is your reason for participating in this game?" Edogawa Ranpo suddenly interrupted.
Long Yi glanced at him thoughtfully and said, "I don't know about the others, but I really came here purely to solve the case. That gentleman told me that he could let me be included in the story of a mystery book."
"I was immediately excited," he said, his eyes bright and his face full of anticipation. "If I could get into the book, wouldn't that mean I could have a chance to get into The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and actually meet Sherlock and Watson? My God, you don't know how tempting this is for a mystery fan!"
Edogawa Ranpo sighed. This man was indeed smart, but he was also the least disguised among the few. As long as he took note of his features and went back to reality, it wouldn't take long for him to find out his true identity. And that "doctor" is...
"By the way," just when Edogawa Ranpo was about to ask something, "Ryuichi" suddenly asked, "Do you have any clues about the past of this villa..."
At the same time in another space.
"Throwing these two detectives into the same story, no matter how bizarre the case is, it would be impossible for them to hold off for too long, right?" Someone saw their actions and asked lazily.
"This is not what I want to do." The other man shook his head slightly. He sat aside easily, with his long green hair hanging down and a smile on his lips.
"This is a good work, but unfortunately, the method of committing the crime in this scene is a bit too difficult to realize." Someone commented on this.
"Besides, don't you think that revenge is the only reasonable thing to do in this situation?"
No matter how they judge, the plot inside continues. Edogawa Ranpo and "Ryuichi" spent some time asking people about the past of this ancient villa, but interestingly, they did not get what they wanted.
"The original owner?" said the maid who had worked here the longest. "I have heard of this." She whispered quietly, as if she was talking about something secret. "It is said that it was an old lady who lived here with her husband, but later... her end was very tragic..."
"Children? No, they have no children, nor relatives. Otherwise, how could this house fall into the hands of the current owner?"
[In a person's life, we naturally have blood ties. It is a God-given fate and a line of continuation of genes and emotions. But some people do not extend this line. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with these people, because nothing is fixed in life, it is just a physical norm. Only with the birth of love and pursuit can this journey become colorful, and this love is not the common love in a broad sense. It can be family love, friendship, your love for a certain skill, or the unswerving pursuit of a goal until death. Continuation is just one of the countless ones.
The old lady is such a lady. She lives in a villa on this island with her partner. They have the money they earned when they were young and some property left by their ancestors, which is enough to support them for the rest of their lives.
Our story actually started from here.
One day, a young woman came to visit from outside the island...】
This is a passage from the book that briefly introduces some past background. But this is actually very important, and it also appears in the second half of the whole article.
"Ryuichi's" mind was working rapidly. While Edogawa Ranpo was investigating, he spent a long time walking through the villa one by one. All the rooms were lined up in his mind, and a layout of the villa was born in his heart. He breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that his guesses all along were correct.
"We need to go find our 'companions'," Edogawa Ranpo said to "Ryuichi" with a dangerous smile, "I'm afraid there are many things they haven't told us."
"Does it also include 'Kyosuke'?" asked "Ryuichi".
Edogawa Ranpo pondered for a moment: "The deceased's past is also problematic. He is our breakthrough point. Perhaps we have not played the same role since the beginning."
"Long Yi" smacked his lips: "A confrontation between actors?"
"Isn't this a bit unfair?" He asked doubtfully, "We have two detectives here, and they haven't shown any intention of doing anything yet. Besides, they are not the 'real people', so there is no need for them to act according to their identities."
After only spending some time together, "Ryuichi" knew that Edogawa Ranpo was definitely the best detective he had ever met. Together with himself, it was hard for him to imagine that his opponent could surpass them in terms of IQ.
"But they didn't say they would definitely help us." Looking directly at "Ryuichi", Ranpo said seriously: "In front of us, there is no mission prompt that we must solve this case. From the beginning to the end, our actions are based on our own profession and our own heart. No, to be precise, there is only you, because for me, 'if it suits my wishes, everything is fine'. The truth is something that only I pursue, and it is important."
"Long Yi" was shocked. After Amano, he had seen another "maverick" detective. He moved his mouth and finally sighed: "If it was in the past... forget it. Detectives are different from each other. Everyone has a different style of handling cases. As long as they are really capable and have not handled the case wrong..."
"Let's go find the 'doctor' first. If I'm not mistaken, he definitely knows something. It's even possible that he is one of the accomplices..." Edogawa Ranpo said in a low voice to "Ryuichi" behind him as he walked.
They acted quickly, and because the investigation took a lot of time, it was almost dark at this time, but it was not yet completely night. It was still drizzling outside and the house was dark. The lights on the wall had been lit up at some point, illuminating the way ahead for them.
Neither Edogawa Ranpo nor "Ryuichi" went to have dinner. They even doubted that in this space, it would be okay not to eat. Servants they met along the way told them that the "doctor" was resting in the front hall and that a long time had passed.
Suddenly, a shrill scream broke the silence. This familiar scene made Edogawa Ranpo pause. He looked at "Ryuichi" and the next second, they ran quickly together.
When they arrived, this was the scene they saw.
The fruit plate in Morishima Ai's hand fell to the ground, and several apples rolled everywhere. A familiar body lay in the middle of the room, with a dagger stuck in his chest, and scarlet blood flowing all over the ground. He lay face up peacefully, with his hands folded on his abdomen, as if he had simply fallen asleep.
"I was suddenly invited here, but it's hard to refuse..." Edogawa Ranpo suddenly remembered what the "doctor" said when he first came.
"It's the doctor. He's actually dead." "Long Yi" took a step back in surprise: "How could it be? It's different from what we expected!"
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