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Authors: Yukito Ayatsuji
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might be telling us in a roundabout way to take a good look at the incident that happened a year ago on Tsunojima. Or could I be overthinking this?’
‘No, it’s very interesting.’
Shimada’s eyes shone in amusement and he reached for his cup.
‘Truly interesting. Another look at the Tsunojima incident. I do think that case needs more consideration. Conan, what do you know about it?’
‘I only know what I read in the newspapers about it.’
‘So I’d better tell you what I know first.’
‘Please do.’
‘You know the outline of the case, I assume? It happened in September of last year. Location: the house known as the Blue Mansion on Tsunojima. The four victims were Nakamura Seiji, his wife Kazue and the servant couple. The gardener disappeared. The fire that broke out after the murders destroyed the mansion. The murderer has not been caught.’
‘I believe the police had their eyes set on the gardener as the murderer?’
‘Yes, but there was no conclusive evidence. I think he was considered suspicious simply because he’d disappeared. And now for the details of the case—.’
Shimada spoke in a low voice.
‘First, I have to tell you more about the master of the mansion, Nakamura Seiji. He was three years older than Kō, so he was forty-six at the time. He’d retired by then, but he used to be a genius architect, highly regarded by those in the know.’
Nakamura Seiji was the first child of the Nakamuras, a family of considerable means living in Usa in the Ōita prefecture. After graduating from high school, Seiji moved on his own to Tōkyō. He won a prize at a national-level contest while he was studying architecture at T—University and drew the attention of everyone in his field. After he graduated, his supervising professor strongly advised him to enter graduate school, but the sudden death of his father forced him to return home.
‘His father had left the Nakamura family a great fortune. Having inherited the money together with his brother Kōjirō, Seiji proceeded to build a mansion of his own design on Tsunojima and basically retired there.
‘…His wife Kazue—her maiden name was Hanabusa—had been his childhood friend during his time in Usa. They say their parents had arranged for the two to be married early on. They married around the time Seiji left for Tsunojima.’
‘Did he do any architectural work after that?’
‘A little, but Kō said Seiji mostly did it for his own entertainment. He only took on requests that interested him, and then only when he felt like it. He had a peculiar love for designing the most bizarre buildings. But those buildings were loved in turn by other people with unusual tastes. Many clients came from afar to the island. But Seiji had been refusing basically all requests for the last ten years and he seldom left his island.’
‘Quite a character.’
‘Kō himself is a bit strange too, studying Buddhism as a hobby, but even he agrees his brother was odd. Then again, I got the impression the two didn’t get along very well.
‘Anyway, the Kitamura couple was also living in the mansion on Tsunojima. The husband did odd jobs around the house and piloted the motorboat that connected the island to the mainland. His wife did all the housekeeping. And then we have that gardener. His name was Yoshikawa Sei’ichi and he lived in Ajimu. He would come over once a month and stay several days. He happened to have arrived on the island three days before the fire. And that’s it for my introduction to the cast of characters.
‘Now for the circumstances of the case. Four bodies were discovered in total. They had been burnt black because of the fire, so forensics had quite some trouble with them. They eventually discovered the following facts.’
The Kitamura couple had died in their bedroom with their heads bashed in. The murder weapon was very likely the axe found in the same room. Both bodies showed signs of having been tied with rope. The estimated
‘No, it’s very interesting.’
Shimada’s eyes shone in amusement and he reached for his cup.
‘Truly interesting. Another look at the Tsunojima incident. I do think that case needs more consideration. Conan, what do you know about it?’
‘I only know what I read in the newspapers about it.’
‘So I’d better tell you what I know first.’
‘Please do.’
‘You know the outline of the case, I assume? It happened in September of last year. Location: the house known as the Blue Mansion on Tsunojima. The four victims were Nakamura Seiji, his wife Kazue and the servant couple. The gardener disappeared. The fire that broke out after the murders destroyed the mansion. The murderer has not been caught.’
‘I believe the police had their eyes set on the gardener as the murderer?’
‘Yes, but there was no conclusive evidence. I think he was considered suspicious simply because he’d disappeared. And now for the details of the case—.’
Shimada spoke in a low voice.
‘First, I have to tell you more about the master of the mansion, Nakamura Seiji. He was three years older than Kō, so he was forty-six at the time. He’d retired by then, but he used to be a genius architect, highly regarded by those in the know.’
Nakamura Seiji was the first child of the Nakamuras, a family of considerable means living in Usa in the Ōita prefecture. After graduating from high school, Seiji moved on his own to Tōkyō. He won a prize at a national-level contest while he was studying architecture at T—University and drew the attention of everyone in his field. After he graduated, his supervising professor strongly advised him to enter graduate school, but the sudden death of his father forced him to return home.
‘His father had left the Nakamura family a great fortune. Having inherited the money together with his brother Kōjirō, Seiji proceeded to build a mansion of his own design on Tsunojima and basically retired there.
‘…His wife Kazue—her maiden name was Hanabusa—had been his childhood friend during his time in Usa. They say their parents had arranged for the two to be married early on. They married around the time Seiji left for Tsunojima.’
‘Did he do any architectural work after that?’
‘A little, but Kō said Seiji mostly did it for his own entertainment. He only took on requests that interested him, and then only when he felt like it. He had a peculiar love for designing the most bizarre buildings. But those buildings were loved in turn by other people with unusual tastes. Many clients came from afar to the island. But Seiji had been refusing basically all requests for the last ten years and he seldom left his island.’
‘Quite a character.’
‘Kō himself is a bit strange too, studying Buddhism as a hobby, but even he agrees his brother was odd. Then again, I got the impression the two didn’t get along very well.
‘Anyway, the Kitamura couple was also living in the mansion on Tsunojima. The husband did odd jobs around the house and piloted the motorboat that connected the island to the mainland. His wife did all the housekeeping. And then we have that gardener. His name was Yoshikawa Sei’ichi and he lived in Ajimu. He would come over once a month and stay several days. He happened to have arrived on the island three days before the fire. And that’s it for my introduction to the cast of characters.
‘Now for the circumstances of the case. Four bodies were discovered in total. They had been burnt black because of the fire, so forensics had quite some trouble with them. They eventually discovered the following facts.’
The Kitamura couple had died in their bedroom with their heads bashed in. The murder weapon was very likely the axe found in the same room. Both bodies showed signs of having been tied with rope. The estimated
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