Rules and Elaborations

Welcome to this new game! (Yes, another one in a relative short amount of time, because why not, I'm bored.)

The game will be told through the eyes of Ushiromiya Battler. Ushiromiya Battler is the detective - that is, his narration and point of view are completely reliable.

Unlike my previous games, this will be a traditional gameboard. In other words, red truths and blue truths will be handled in a traditional way. With one exception -- no shotgunning. Also, you are perfectly within your right to submit whatever blue your wish, but be aware that I can simply choose to not respond to it if I see another issue with your theory that needs to be explained. (Then again, is that not how it's always worked?) Still - this game will give quite a bit more leeway in terms of theorizing (an intentional choice, given that I've realized that my previous games often led to people running out of ideas fairly soon, so I've decided to try and go for something else this time). Still -- that doesn't mean you should necessarily expect wordplay here. I will do my best to still be as fair as I possibly can.

So, to start off with, a few guarantees:

There is only one culprit.
The culprit is the one who kills.
Suicide and/or accidental deaths are out of the question.
There are no accomplices allowed.
An accomplice is someone willingly assisting the culprit in the execution of the murders. (This would include lying on the culprit's behalf, whatever their reasons might be.)

The story will have meta-breaks, but those will be clearly marked and only used for the sake of giving more details about the situation to the player.

Also -- the win condition this time around is just the howdunnit. The other two are reachable in my mind but only reaching the howdunnit will be sufficient.

<1>

"Reunion"

...It was strange. To be back after all those years. Not in an awkward way, though. No, actually - it was the exact opposite. Everyone welcomed me back with open arms. People I hadn't spoken to in a long, long time. People I barely even remembered.

But they were my family. And after all that time, the fact that I could still say that without a tinge of nervousness or embarrassment or even shame in my chest... it felt good.

I took a deep breath. The smell of the ocean filled my nostrils.

"...See, I knew this would happen. Even as you're just lying on the beach, you're trying to show off." A hand playfully hit my shoulder.

"Showing off? Sorry to disappoint you, dear sister," I said, turning to look at the woman sitting at my side, "but I just look that good in a suit, y'know?"

"I know that that's not true." She chuckled. My sister Ange did always enjoy teasing me. She was two years older than me and what you'd call a class-act. A generally quiet and seemingly serious exterior hid a childish soul. A true Hollywood princess, I guess. And yeah. That included the part about her secretly knowing martial arts and being better than you in literally everything.

"Jessica, back me up here!" I said to the girl that was with us, looking over the sea's gentle waves.

"Back, up? Sure, I can do that." She responded nonchalantly, before getting up and quickly moving closer to where I was lying.

"W-Wait, what are you-- No, st--!" Before I could do anything, it was too late. In an instant, she'd picked up my entire body, and I found myself over her head, being supported only by her two strong hands. "J-Jessica! W-Wait! Let's negotiate! Is this about your massive tits?! I didn't mean it, okay?! Your tits are tiny! The tiniest I've ever se--!"

Insert sound effect worthy of getting dropped head-first in a heap of sand here.

"Just as you requested, master. Your back is now facing the sun." I couldn't see her, but Jessica always had this way of being absolutely smug about things if she absolutely had to be. And in her eyes, smugness was an absolute must whenever dealing with me. "Shall I prop thy buttocks up as well, oh great overlord?"

"No, I'm good..." I said meekly.

"Oh, dear, master. You seem to be having some trouble communicating. Is it the sand? Could you repeat that?" Jessica said.

"I heard him." Ange now spoke. "I believe he said -- 'prop it up and kick it'!"

I rolled over, very arguably defeated. "I concede defeat, ladies." I then proceeded to spit out the sand in my mouth, as the dignified gentleman I was.

"It's really sometimes easy to forget we're related, Battler." Jessica, seemingly reminded that she was, in fact, my cousin, sighed.

"...Bit of a shame that Aunt Eva and her branch couldn't have made it. I was looking forward to hearing more about George's college work." Ange mused.

"Aw, c'mon, Ange. No need to act like a complete adult around us. I mean, sure, we are all individuals of the highest prestige--"

"Hah!" Jessica laughed.

"--and you might be the oldest one here, but remember. You're 21."

"...Taking an interest in someone's studies in heresy now?" Ange raised her eyebrow.

"It's adult stuff, is what it is!" I said. And I said it more for my sake than anything, given that Ange and Jessica were the only ones I'd get to hang out. After all, we all had one thing in common -- we weren't terribly interested in the adults' discussion.


"The boy who could never grow up..." Jessica sighed. "Well, in any case. I guess it IS good to see you again. These annual conferences are the only chance I get to see you guys."

Ange smiled. "It's good to see you all as well. Family is important, after all." Then, as if she remembered something, she added: "By the way, how is your dad? I mean, being suddenly declared the family Head couldn't have been easy for him."

Jessica nodded. "Well, nobody could've really predicted Grandpa would just give his position up. Dad's been taking the job really seriously. Seems a bit more stressed than usual, but that's no surprise. Holing himself up on this island all day..." she sighed. "...Well. Still. He's happy, I think. And, y'know, if he's happy, mom's happy. And that's all I can really ask for, isn't it...?" She coughed nervously. "...Anyways. What about your parents?"

Ange's smile did not fade at the topic change. "Quite well. They've successfully paid off the last of their debts. The company's seeing an overall good turnover for this year. Before we know it, we'll be back in full swing."

I put my hand on my chin. "Overall, from what I've heard, all of the Ushiromiya family is starting to come back to the top. The business uncle Krauss took over has been kicking as over the past few months. They're calling him the new gamps, aren't they? Aunt Eva and Rosa have both been pretty successful as well."

"Aunt Rosa's firm has managed to score a pretty big fashion show. Or so she's told me, at least." Ange said.

"Good for her. Well, all of us, hihi." I noted, lying back down to my original position, having finally freed my suit off of all the sand. I knew that, despite the success, the family conference will ultimately devolve into bickering, but I rationalized it in my head by saying it was something all reach siblings had to deal with. I closed my eyes, shielding them from the sun above. "...Oh, right. I've been meaning to ask -- who's that Furudo girl?"

"Furudo Erika, you mean...? I have no idea." Jessica shrugged. "Grandpa let her come over for some reason. Who she is and why she's here, she wouldn't say."

"Well, the more the merrier, I guess." I smiled.

"You just say that because you think she's cute." Ange clicked her tongue.

Before I could protest, Jessica added: "Not even the new maids could quench your thirst, could they, Battler? Dear God..."

"What were their names again? Asune and... Sanon. They're new here, aren't they? What happened to the previous help?"

"They left shortly after dad became the head. The only one that stayed behind was Genji." Jessica said.

"So, that's how it is, huh...?" I yawned.

"Uh-oh. He's about to fall asleep." Ange pointed out.

"Battler really is like a burger." Jessica pointed out. "You gotta make sure he keeps being turned on both sides so he doesn't go bad under a sun like this."

"That's r-- Wait, no. No, no, no, no--!"

Insert sound effect worthy of getting dropped head-first in a heap of sand yet again here.

"...What's that?" The blonde woman's deep blue eyes look at you with strange interest. "You're thinking that this isn't how you remember things being? Hoooh. How interesting. It seems you're someone from another fragment. Or perhaps you're the one remembering things wrong...?"

The woman grins.

"Either way -- whether you like it or not -- this IS how things are.

The people on the island are:

Kinzo [The former family head]
Kruss & Natsuhi [Kinzo's eldest son and his wife]
Jessica [Their daughter]
Rudolf & Kyrie [Kinzo's younger son and his wife]
Battler, Ange [Rudolf and Kyrie's children]
Rosa [Kinzo's youngest child]
Erika [Mysterious visitor]
Asune, Sanon, Genji [Servants]

Naturally, one of these 13 people is the culprit. Well. Sort of. After all, Battler is not the culprit."

The woman looks at you, as if hoping you could add something to the conversation. "Well? What do you think? I hope I didn't bore you too much. You know how it is. A game needs set-up before the killings start."

Killings...?

"Oh, come now, don't play dumb with me. You mean to tell me of all this culprit talk you still don't get it?" She leans in, just inches away from your face. "People are gonna die reeeeeeaaaal soon. But not that soon.

First -- more set-up. Again, my apologies.

But I'll make it worth the wait."

She grins from ear to ear.

"Oh, I'm gonna make it worth the wait..."

The woman begins to cackle, as in caught in some strange delirium.

We made our way from the beach to the family mansion. I looked up. Despite it being a relatively nice day, the wind was a bit strong. "Hopefully it won't rain..." I said quietly as we stepped into the main hall.

"...Can't believe that painting's still there." I said, eyeing the large portrait hung up in the middle of the hall. It depicted a woman confidently sitting in a chair. Her knowing gaze and mysterious smile would've given the chills to anyone that dared to gaze upon it for too long.

In front of the portrait was a strange engraving of sorts:

_______________________________________________

Beware, Child of Man -- for this is my land.

You wish to walk in my footsteps, you say?
Foolish human. Only misery awaits the likes of you here.
My magic? It is out of your reach!

Buried in the deep core of this island,
I bathe in the lake of knowledge.
I am free -- and the grand power of 'magic'
Is bestowed upon me.

You wish to be me?
You wish to be powerful?

Then take my golden pistol and pull its trigger.
Etch its bullet deep into another mortal's heart.
Let their blood seep onto the weak ground you stand on,
And let the sin seep into yours.

Kill the Fake King, next. No less will do.
After all, how could you expect to face me,
The witch of these woods,
The ruler of Rokkenjima,
If you are not used to killing masters?

You will then catch my interest.
I will send my best.
Will they catch you? Or one of the ones you care for?
It matters not. Another shall perish. No exceptions.
You've made your choice, have you not?!

...Ah. But fear not. I am a merciful witch, after all.
One last chance, you shall be given.
Accept? The road will be untraveled.
Refuse? The path will be stained with the blood of the innocent.

You will remain.

And you will be

Alone.

_______________________________________________

"...What a weird fuckin' epitapth." I said, shuddering. "Did gramps really put this here?"

"He put this up years and years ago." Ange said simply. "...I think it happened shortly before you left?"

"Gross." I crossed my arms. "...Who is that woman, anyway?"

"Beatrice." Jessica explained. "...Or, if you want it put differently -- grandmother. In her more youthful days, of course."

My eyes widened. "...I didn't even recognize her."

"After her death, grandpa kinda... lost his marbles and put all of... this up. He eventually managed to pull himself together, but he still refused to remove either the painting of the epitapth."

"...I actually seem to remember your parents being mad at him for not removing them. Kinda happened out of nowhere, now that I think about it. Both'd been up for well over a few months by that point..."

Jessica shrugged. "Ask them, I guess."

"It's just... really creepy. I mean... witches? Seriously?"

"Just as skeptical as you are, I assure you." Jessica smiled. "But grandpa is grandpa, y'know?"

"...Oh? I look similar to her? Why, thank you for the complement! To be ascended to the title of witch so soon -- I wouldn't have dreamed of it! Hahaha!

...Why had Kinzo chosen to put his deceased lover up like this and given her such an engraving?

Well, I have guesses of my own. But that's not really relevant to the matter, I'd say.

...

My, my, you're persistent.

Well. If you ask me, the matter's quite simple.

It's because, in his own little way, Kinzo knew. Knew that his family was cursed. And in a way, perhaps, he realized that only a blood of a witch coursing through his line could justify it all. Naturally, he was the type of man to never consider for a second that his own blood was that of a demon.

But, oh well.

What do I know, really?

That woman is no me. And she was no witch."

<2>

"Setting the Pieces"

"...Dammit. I lost again." I said, burying my head in the palms of my hands. Kyrie was going four for four. I thought I could trick her out with a few gambits in speed chess, but as it turned out -- I was just that predictable.

"Like it or not, you're quite easy to read, Battler." she chuckled. "And here I was, under the impression you knew how to play!"

"Ouch. That one actually stung." I said, smiling. "Rematch?"

"There's only so many times I can play before I lose interest entirely, I'm afraid. You've played a good game, but it's clear you're not going to surpass me anytime soon, I'm afraid." She concluded, leaning back in her chair.

I looked to the other side of the parlor. Dad was on the phone with Aunt Eva, it as far as I could tell. I had been paying attention to the chess games up until that point, so I understood very little of what was actually being said.

"...Yeah. Yeah, that's what she said.

[...]

I know. Yeah - yeah, I know. It's weird. Doesn't even make any sense. But it seems like the old geezer might not be as cruel as we thought.

[...]

...Heh. Yeah. As if he'd agree to just let it go.

[...]

Yeah, you could. But you're not here, so it'll be up to me, Kyrie and Rosa. And Rosa isn't exactly one to twist anyone's arm, is she...?

[...]

Right. Yeah, I'll get back to you. Later."

He hung up.

"...Sorry about that." He finally said. "What've you been up to?"

"Winning. Or, in Battler's case, losing." Kyrie yawned. "...In any case, by the look in your eyes, Rudolf, there's something you want to talk to me about?"

"Well - yeah, actually. It's about--"

"Please. Not in front of Battler." Kyrie said simply before looking over to me, the person casually interrupting their chance to do some planning on some probably devious shit (TM).

So, I shrugged. "Sure, no problem." Slid my hands in my pockets and quietly left the room.

Once again, I'd found myself in the main hall, staring at the bizarre portrait. I was no art expert, but there was something in it that made even me admit that there was some value to it. You'd have never seen me actually hang something like that in my living room, though.

"...Battler." A deep voice spoke up behind it. Its source unmistakable. I turned and faced the tall figure of the former Ushiromiya family head. One would've trembled at the sight of the man after hearing all the rumors. But instead of the renown stern face that could see through you in a manner of moments-- a far more relaxed mood radiated off of the old man's eyes.

"Oh. Gramps. Hi." I said to him.

He smiled. "...Quite beautiful, isn't she?" He moved next to me, and we both found ourselves staring at the little exhibit. "I commissioned it from a Spanish artist. The eyes and the face have the element that reminds one of Japanese art, but the brushstrokes and the overall technique behind it give it all away."

"...What kind of woman was she? Grandmother, I mean. She died before I was born, didn't she...?" I knew it was a bit of a touchy issue, but I asked anyway.

Kinzo's smile did not fade. "Miracle."

"Er, sorry?"

"That woman. She was a miracle. There's simply no other way to put it. Everything she ever did -- it was like magic. She was... without a doubt, the light of my life. When she passed..." he stopped, as if something had suddenly pricked his heart. "...Well. You can imagine how it was when she passed."

"...Yeah. Yeah, I can." But still, something didn't quite make sense. "...Why the engraving, though?"

"It's something she had written prior to her death. Obviously, being a poet wasn't exactly a daytime job for her. And she knew that. But she wanted for everyone who steps on Rokkenjima to know that there is indeed a form of magic on this island. And I, frankly, agree."

I was tempted to say that there was no such thing as magic, but I figured I should let the old man have the moment. Especially since, knowing me, I would've pointed out that it didn't exactly instill the kind of "wonder" magic should. Then again, perhaps grandmother had found brutal deaths wonderous in its own right. Didn't exactly make it any less creepy, though.

"...Ah! Kinzo! There you are!" Suddenly, a female voice reached my earshot. It belong to the ever-elusive Furudo Erika. I was surprised she knew the old man so well that they were on a first-name basis. Just who was she...?

"...Erika. Good day. I trust your room is satisfactory?" He continued to stare at the portrait, despite the short woman's arrival.

"Indeed. I'm very thankful for you going out of your way for me like you have. Truly, I am in your debt" She gave a polite bow and a smile fitting for a lady. "...You must be Battler, are you not?"

"That, I am. Pleased to meet you." I said, reaching my hand out to her.

"Does one shake hands of ladies?" Her polite smile turned into a mischievous one. "My, my. How inappropriate. But then again -- given one of your 'outbursts' from earlier, I shouldn't be surprised. You do like getting physical as soon as you can, don't you...?"

She was referring to me attempting to grope one of the maids shortly upon my arrival on the island.

Not one of my proudest moments, admittedly.

Erika's attention slowly shifted to the portrait. "...Ah. Lady Ushiromiya in all her splendor, I see! Truly, quite a sight. Although, I would've imagined something like a western dress to be more fitting of a woman of such standing. But no matter. If she is to be a witch, she is to dance freely on our human tradition, is she not? To mock us from above and cackle as we all dance like fools to her illusion."

"Looks like grandma has some stiff competition over here in the poetry department!" I said, unable to resist grinning.

"My former English teacher would've no doubt called you a scoundrel and a charlatan upon such jests." She said, in an accent that I can only hope was meant to be a British one.

"Oh? You're not in school? Could've fooled me, heh." I added. "How old are you, anyway?"

"Breaking basic manners once more, Battler. Tsk-tsk! Honestly, did they even bother raising him?" she turned in Kinzo's direction.

"You would recall," he chuckled, "that he's been somewhat away from the family's influence."

"And how fine he turned out." Erika observed.

I figured it was as good a time as any. "...So, if I might ask, why are you here? I mean, no offense, but everyone else seems to be just as surprised at seeing a guest like yourself on a family conference."

"Oh, I assure you - my business here should be of no concern to you. After all, it's already been completed!" She shrugged. "I'm now doomed to waste time wandering around here. If nothing else, to give credit where credit is due, the books I found in the library are quite fascinating."

"...Eh? Already done? But you couldn't have been here for more than a few hours!" I said.

"Perhaps you should take that as a hint as to why I'm here...? Hihihi." She laughed rather coldly. Overall, I'd say she wasn't exactly fond of me, despite the nature of the conversation being kept in a relatively good mood. "But really. It's not something you of all people should worry about. It really only affects--"

"Now. Erika. Please." Kinzo smiled. "You've just said it yourself. This isn't a matter Battler should be involved with."

"...Of course, m'lord."

"Don't call me that." Kinzo finally turned to face her.

"What does one call a man who owns his own little slice of paradise? Especially one supposedly harboring the Emerald Pearl?"

"Emerald what...?" Once again, I found myself unable to follow a conversation properly.

"Oh? You don't know?" Erika asked, glancing over at Kinzo. I suppose she was waiting for some kind of sign that she was forbidden from sharing what she was about to share with me. Since grandpa ended up never giving such a sign, she proceeded. "Sometime during World War 1, this island had been owned by a man calling himself 'The Baron'. The man was quite wealthy. Partially because of inheritance. But risky and ultimately successful investments in major leading industries at the time were what led him to the top. Some say the Emperor himself at the time paid a visit to this island in hopes of getting the Baron to assist in the war, finance-wise.

It is said that before he died, he hid a treasure he simply called 'The Emerald Pearl' somewhere on the island. Nobody knows what it looks like, or how much it's worth. It's just something that was pulled from the man's journals. Naturally, nobody's found it as of yet. Well - as far as the world knows, at least."

I could've sworn Kinzo's grin widened ever so slightly on that last remark.

I whistled. "Cool. Well, not that we're really in need of treasures, given everything."

"True enough." she admitted. "...In any case. Kinzo. As I've said, my business here is finished. But while I'm here, there are a few other matters I'd like to get to while I have your undivided attention, if possible?"

"I expected as much." And just like that, the smile faded.

Erika's did not. "Don't look at me like that. You're the one who hired me."

"True enough, unfortunately. True enough." The old man noted, and the two walked off.

It hadn't been even two hours since lunch, and I'd already found myself hungry. Figuring it might be a good time to apologize to the maids for the... way I'd mishandled them, I decided to pay a visit to the kitchen.

To my pleasant surprise, both of the maids were indeed there.

"...Oh. Battler-sama." The white-haired maid, Sanon, said. And despite her best efforts, her voice failed to hide the displeasure.

"Is there anything we can help you with?" The other maid, Asune, asked me. She was in the middle of cooking something. I thought about asking what on Earth she could be cooking given that lunch was already over, but then I recalled that the servants had their meals separately . The alternate possibility being, of course, that they knew that my stomach was rumbling and, being the kind maids that they were, prepared accordingly.

Alas. It was not meant to be.

"I just, uh... thought I should apologize for what I did earlier. It was wrong of me." I said, scratching the back of my head. "I guess I just kinda have a bad sense of humor, y'know?"

"You didn't have to tell us that, Master Battler." Sanon giggled. "...But very well. Apology accepted." Asune merely nodded her head, clearly amused after noticing the clear amount of embarrassment on my face.

"Is that all?" Sanon said, jumping to one of the other pots at the sound of the egg timer on the other side of the counter.

"Was wondering if I could ask you some questions about the island. I mean, I imagine you've been here longer than me, so..."

"Sorry, dunno much." Sanon admitted. "Asune's been here way longer than me. You're better off asking her about that sort of stuff."

"Just don't let it be about the Emerald Pearl, please." Asune herself said. "It's getting pretty tiring to explain to every person that asks that I don't know much about it and that it's just a legend."

"Aha, relax. I figured as much." I said. "I was actually more wondering about one person in particular -- Furudo-san. Do you know anything about her? Why's she here?"

The two maids exchanged glances.

"Sorry..." Sanon told me.

"...But we're not allowed to disclose such information." Asune smiled. "Order of the former family head. I'm sure you understand."

"Is that all?" Sanon asked.

"W-Well... I mean... There is one last thing, uh..." I began, stuttering. "I'm afraid I might be, uh... A bit hungry."

"It is no issue, Battler-sama." The head servant, Genji, told me as he walked into the room. "There are some leftovers. I'll prepare them straight away."

"Thank you." I bowed politely. Genji, the person that has been on the island for as long as grandfather, was essentially the perfect servant. He truly lived up to his name. Still - I was surprised that a man of his age decided to stick around for so long. However, I simply reminded myself that I knew next to nothing about him as a person and that he probably had his reasons in the long run. So, I didn't pry.

I took the leftovers and quickly made my way out of the kitchen.

As I explored the mansion, I happened to walk by the parlor door. I decided to take a peek. Instead of mom and dad, the people inside were Rosa and Natsuhi. They were sitting next to each other, examining what looked to be a photograph of some kind. Out the two of them, Natsuhi seemed to be under minor distress.

"...See?" she told Rosa. "You can't tell me they don't look like the two of them!"

"Come now, Natsuhi... I admit, there are some... similarities, but honestly? You're going too far with this. I'm starting to think the rumors are getting to you a bit."

"It's... no, it's not just..." Natsuhi started to plead, but quickly seemed to give up. "I... I don't know. I guess I'm just under stress. Krauss' approach to being the new family head... I'm proud of him, but--"

"--I understand." Rosa put her hand on Natsuhi's shoulder. "I do."

"...I'm sorry I'm so weak." Natsuhi could only say after a long stretch of silence. Seeing her like that -- I wanted to just step in and say something comforting. But on the other hand, given her general demeanor, I realized she would've been more hurt if anyone else saw her the way she was at the time.

So I just continued to watch for a little longer.

"You're not weak. Given everything that's happened - you're the last person I'd call weak. You've been a supportive housewife and a good mother. Anyone who demands more is being plain unreasonable." Rosa told her. "How could anyone ask more of you - when you've given everything you have?"

"Rosa..."

"This family's been through a lot. So much that we sometimes forget we're supposed to -- well -- BE a family. But we are. No matter what, that'll never change. And that does count for something, doesn't it?"

Silence.

"...Heh." Natsuhi laughed quietly. "I didn't... think this conversation would get so melodramatic."

"Well, we could talk about something else, if you'd like?" Rosa offered.

"No, it's... I guess I'm just scared. I always am, in a way. These family conferences never help." Natsuhi admitted. "...I'm scared that nothing really changes. That no matter how much we try, things just keep on repeating. I'm starting to see a lot of it in people, and... and..." She sighed. "...No. No, I have to be more hopeful than this."

Rosa chuckled. "I guess that fear does explain why you found this photograph to be so frightening."

Natsuhi looked at it once more. "Heh. I guess it is." She sighed again. "...It'll be okay. I'll be okay. We'll all be okay."

"We will." Rosa concluded.

Knowing it was only a matter of time before I was caught, and feeling quite embarrassed listening over an exchange like that, I quietly left.

"...Oh. Battler." Ange glanced over in my direction as I approached her and Jessica in the rose garden in front of the mansion.

"Man, where have you been? I went looking for you ages ago and couldn't find you!" Jessica said, lightly punching my shoulder.

It still hurt.

"Sorry. Just kinda been running around. Possibly crapping in the bathroom, too." I said, grinning like an idiot over my own 'shit' joke.

"<Jesus Christ.>" Thankfully, the amount of respect Ange lost for me per joke was slightly lower that day. Mainly because she was probably aware she would end up killing me in a blind fit of rage otherwise. "...In any case. How're you feeling, Battler?"

"I'm... I'm fine, thanks. Overall feeling pretty good today." I said. She was worried about me, understandably. Given the fact that this was my first major 'outing' in a while. "Don't worry, geez. I'm surrounded by people who'll come to my aid should anything go wrong, no? Hihi."

"Well, you won't be when you end up going to sleep. And that--"

"--It's fine. Really." I reassured her. We were all sleeping over in the mansion. I ended up having a room all to myself. Which meant that I would be completely unmonitored for a few hours.

"Um... what, uh, are you guys talking about?" Jessica was quite obviously confused. Two people talking about things the third doesn't know much about was starting to emerge as a strange pattern of some sort.

"Heh. Don't worry about it." I told her. "Everything's gonna be just fine."

Aaaaaand it wasn't.

Night fell. Dinner came and went. Nothing of note happened except for the fact that Uncle Krauss didn't attend. He hadn't attended lunch, either. Natsuhi explained that he was simply busy, but I wasn't being convinced. After everyone started to go along their separate business, I decided to try and pay him a visit in his room, where he was doing his work.

I knocked on the door once.

Then the second time.

And then -- the door opened, to my surprise. I'm sure why I'd been subconsciously expecting it not to open, in retrospect. I suppose reading all those mystery novels in my spare time had left me somewhat paranoid.

"...Ah." Uncle Krauss emerged from the door. "Battler-kun? Is there something wrong?"

"Uh, no." I said. "I was just getting a bit worried, given that you didn't show up for lunch or dinner and was wondering if everything was okay.

Krauss grinned. "...I see. Interesting. Well -- I'm quite fine. I had the maids bring me a plate up here."

"Work that bad, huh?" I asked.

He nodded. "Without a doubt."

Silence.

Awkwardness.

"...Um. So, yeah. Uh. Good to, uh, know everything's fine!" I declared, ready to just escape the conversation like a mature person.

"...Battler-kun." Krauss, however, stopped me. "This is the first time you're here in years."

"Yeah. Yeah, it is."

Silence again.

Then, he laughed. "...It's funny, really. To think that I share the same irrational fears as my wife. I suppose it can't be helped. This island does that to you after a while." He leaned against the doorframe. "It's cursed, you know. This place. Father will tell you that there is a source of magic here -- and there just might be. But none of it's good, trust me. We, the Ushiromiya family... We all wear masks. We appear to be something we're not. We're all wolves in sheep's clothing. All it takes is something to set us off and we become the worst monsters imaginable. You've been away for a while. I don't know what you've seen so far or what you think you've seen. But it's only a matter of time. Run, boy. Run from us as fast as you can. You can still make it."

"I'm... I'm sorry, I don't understand."

"...And I hope, for your sake, you never have to."

And with that, he retreated back to his study.

I was starting to get light-headed and decided to go and get some sleep.

"...Very well. All the pieces are now in place." The witch tells you, spreading her arms. "Now then, are you prepared to witness the deaths of all these people? Or perhaps there is a fleeting glimmer of hope in you that's at least banking on some of them surviving? Well. We'll certainly see, won't we? After all, what is worse? Witnessing the deaths of the people you cherish and living the rest of your days, knowing that all your good memories will forever be sullied with that moment of witnessing their dead, cold corpse? Or simply cutting right to the chase and dying with them? *cacklecacklecackle*"

This woman, you decide, truly is a witch of some sort. But then again, was there ever even room to question it?

________________________________

All of a sudden, the room becomes blurry to you. Despite the fact that you've been sitting this entire time, you find yourself losing balance. Soon, you find yourself in what looks to be a dark room.

You hear a voice...

"D-Damn them... Urk... Argh..." A cough. "Why... did it end like this...? What did I do wrong...? What did HE do wrong...? Why did they just... stab him like that...? He was... always good to them... wasn't he...?"

It's a woman.

You can feel her pain.

Something huts.

"So why... did... that happen...? Why am... I... hiding... in a place like this now? Why... am I going to die here?"

You hear voices in the distance.

"Find the Baroness! We'll bury her next to him! Find her, dammit! If you don't, then burn the entire damn mansion to the ground! Hell - burn it anyway! Leave nothing behind!"

She woman hears it too.

She lets out a silent whimper. "This was... not the future... you'd promised me... Ack... Dammit... Haaa... I'm bleeding... Hah... You told me... That this island... That we would always be on this island..."

"Hey! I hear something from over there!"

"So... Even though you're gone... Even though I'm about to die... I won't let you... Walk out on that promise... You got it? No matter what... I'll... We'll..."

Light begins filling the room. The voices on the outside are excited, knowing that they've probably found the woman.

"...We'll meet again."

________________________________

Suddenly, a slap. You're back in that room with the witch.

"Don't doze off on me." she orders. "I don't know what you were seeing, but I would suggest doing your best to keep your consciousness to here. I am a cruel witch. But the darkness out there is far worse at times. Because regardless of what cruelty I might hide, I assure you -- the evil that men do is far worse. Rokkenjima. This Rokkenjima, I mean. It's one of cruelty. Understand that and understand that well, if you hope to have a chance of defeating me. These humans... deserve no redemption."

You're unable to say anything.

"...Right then. Let's begin properly, shall we?"

<3>

"The Alibi Problem"

I awoke to find myself in the darkness of my room. I was sweating. "Must've been a nightmare." I concluded. I rolled around in my bed for a while. Couldn't get comfortable anymore. "Damn it..." I sighed, and sat myself at the edge of my bed. I happened to glance out my window. Rain.

It was then that I noticed.

In the darkness of the room - sitting in a chair placed in the corner - I could see someone. Someone was in my room. I pinched myself. Squinted, just to be sure. I considered it might've been Ange, trying to look after me. I considered I was still just half-asleep and getting scared over nothing. I considered I also might be dreaming.

But it was no dream.

The person spoke: "Nightmare?" The voice was female, but in my drowsy state and overall state of panic that was creeping in, my mind couldn't associate it with anyone I knew, even if it had belonged to an acquaintance.

"...Who's there?" I asked.

"The witch of the island." The person said calmly.

"Right. And I'm a tanned fuckboy. We can all dream." I said, slowly rising up. "Who are you?"

"I told you. The witch of the island." The woman(?) giggled.

"What do you want, oh witch?"

"I've come to see if you've remembered anything of your past life, of course." Another giggle. "To see if you remember me. If there's still hope."

"Past life? What are you talking about?" I asked her, evidently still confused.

"You have scar on your chest. A scar whose shape fits a blade of a knife penetrating your chest and lungs." She said, still perfectly calm.

"...How do you know that? Who are you?" I demanded.

"Perhaps I merely took a peek while you were asleep. Or perhaps you have that scar for a reason. Who knows? Either way, it doesn't really matter. It's clear you don't remember." She sighed. "And, given how it's all turned out the last time, chances are it'll all just end in tragedy again."

"...What?"

"Do you need me to spell it out? You and me... We'll probably be... killed tonight."

And then it happened.

A loud noise echoed through the mansion.

A gunshot. No doubt about it.

I jumped to my feet. "What the hell was that?!" And without even thinking, ran outside of my room. I happened to glance at my wristwatch. 1:15 AM. I also happened to pass through a clock in the hallway. The times matched.

As I got to the stairway, thinking that the shot came from somewhere downstairs or upstairs (it was pretty hard to tell), I ran into Ange and Jessica. "You heard it too?" Ange asked. I could only nod. "We were downstairs when it happened." she began to explain, "By the sound of it, it'd come from somewhere upstairs."

And so, we moved up.

We then saw Rosa and Natsuhi, standing in front of the door to Krauss' room. Natsuhi was excitedly pounding at the door. "Darling...? Darling?! Darling, is everything okay?!" she practically screamed.

But no response came from the other side.

"We were just about to pay Krauss a visit when we heard it." Rosa told us. "There's no doubt that... whatever it was, it came from his room."

"Darling?! Answer me!" Natsuhi continued to bang on the door.

Footsteps formed behind us. Mom, dad and Genji were ascending the stairs.

"What on Earth was that?!" Dad asked, quite panicked. I suppose it made sense. Being someone who was no stranger to guns - he would've had no trouble identifying something like a gunshot.

"I don't think it's hard to deduce, given the commotion." Kyrie pointed out.

More footsteps behind us. This time, it was Erika and the two maids. "...What's all this commotion about?" Erika was the first of them to speak.

"Is Master okay?" Asune asked.

"Darling! Darling, please open the door!" Natsuhi wasn't letting up. A feeling of panic was beginning to seep in amongst us. Natsuhi then tried to open the door herself but it simply wasn't budging.

I decided to give it a try. No dice. It was locked.

"Do you have a master key?" Ange asked the maids.

The two of them shook their heads. "N-No. I mean, we do have master keys, but they don't open this room."

"Alright then. Guess we're doing this the hard way, dear brother." Dad concluded. "Genji, Battler! A hand?"

The two of us nodded and began helping him break down the door. After three solid strikes -- bam. The door came tumbling down.

And inside... lying on the floor... was Krauss' body. A stream of blood had poured down his mouth. A big splotch of it on his chest as well. Even from that distance, it wasn't hard to tell that he was dead. Natsuhi immediately ran over to him. Pleading. Beginning him to open his eyes.

"D-Dad... No... No...!" Jessica herself was just as devastated. "Why...? What... happened...?!"

"Everyone, be on your guard." Kyrie advised us. "The culprit could still be in the room."

"Then, I'll find the bastard!" Dad declared and began to frantically search around the room. I decided to re-focus my efforts to something else. The only window to the room was right across the door. I decided to check it. It was locked. By the looks of it, the only way to do it was from the inside too. The locks on it were a bit old and harder to move, so it didn't look like any string trick would've sufficed there.

Dad began searching the closet. Then, under the bed. Then, between the shelves. But with each look, he couldn't find anything worthwhile. I decided to take a look at the dressing drawer. And on it, I found a key. I took it and presented it to Asune.

"...Hey. This key..."

"It's... It's the key to the room." she admitted. "It's the only one that could've unlocked this door..."

"Dammit... Dammit, there's nobody here!" Dad finally had to admit.

Just as I'd suspected. This was...

A locked room murder.

"Alea iacta est!" The witch declares. "Oooh... I can already see it in your eyes! The theories! The speculation! All the little tricks forming in your head! Oooh, I love it! And I'll love crushing them all to bits later down the line! Kyahahahaha!"

You find yourself unmoved by her threats.

"First things first. Ushiromiya Krauss is dead. The cause of his death was a gunshot wound to the chest! The door to his room was indeed locked when Natsuhi attempted to open it.

...Hm? What's that? You assumed as much? Well then. I look forward to seeing all the futile attempts to explain this. And trust me, I know the ones you'll suggest. This isn't my first rodeo, after all. I could give so many reds to deny all of them right from the start. But where's the fun in that?!

Ahahahahaha!

But fear not. I know what you think. 'This mystery is boring! It's easy! I've seen this already!' You're right. Let's make it more interesting...!"

Last edited at 17/03/18(Sat)14:10:04

We all gathered in the parlor to discuss what happened.

"I suppose we should discuss the matter of alibis." Erika got straight to the point. "When did the shot occur again?"

"1:15 AM." I said. "I know because I checked the time."

Erika nodded. "Alright, then. Let's establish a timeline then. Where was everyone?"

"As I said," Rosa began, "Natsuhi and me were close to the door when it happened. The two of us were pretty much together throughout the day. I mean, there were a few times when we were apart, sure -- but from midnight onwards, we were together the entire time."

Natsuhi confirmed as much.

"Alright. Then next would be me and the maids." Erika continued. "From about 11 PM to the time of the gunshot, we were in the servants' room playing cards. I can confirm none of us left each other's vicinity."

"Next up is me and Jessica, then." Ange said. "We were in my room. Just like Rosa, I can't say we were together ALL the time, but I can definitely confirm we were together from 11:30 PM onwards."

Jessica nodded.

"Kyrie, Genji and I were in the parlor. We invited Genji to have some tea with us, and he accepted. We must've been together from... oh, about midnight to the gunshot."

Both Kyrie and Genji confirmed as much.

“As for Kinzo… well, I personally find it very unlikely he’d do something like this.” Erika said simply. “But if nobody’s seen him, then I guess he’s a valid suspect.” She then finally turned her attention to me. "What about you, Battler?"

"Well, I mean -- I went to sleep at around 9. I... heh, I can't really say I have an alibi."

"Th-Then it was you!" Natsuhi jumped to her feet. "You killed my husband!"

"N-Now wait just a moment!" I demanded. "Look. When I woke up, someone was in the room with me, okay? It was a woman! She said that... she was saying something about us dying!"

"...An intruder?" Ange suggested.

"A likely story!" Natsuhi had no intention of letting up. "There's no chance of there being an extra person on the island! You're the only one without an alibi and now you're trying to cover for yourself! Admit it! You killed him!"

"I would suggest you calm down, Natsuhi. Because even without an alibi, it's hard to think of Battler is the culprit. Consider the situation, please." Kyrie interrupted. "Recall that you were in front of the door when the shot occurred. Obviously then, nobody could've left through the door without you noticing. The window was locked from the inside. There was nobody hiding in the room. The key to the room was inside. And Battler managed to meet up with all of us to break down the door. How, pray tell, do you propose he did this?"

"W-Well, that's..." Natsuhi seemed to have been at a bit of a loss.

The discussion, it seemed, had ended in a stalemate.

"...This concludes the events of the first murder." The witch finally speaks. "...I know. You're still not pleased, are you? My, my. How bloodthirsty all these endless games must've made you! Kyahahaha! No matter! I guarantee by the end of all this you'll be nothing but a shambling corpse, riddled by your own bullets!

And really, even if you manage to form some semblance of a theory, right from the beginning you're faced with a problem of the person Battler saw in his room! Kihihi!

That's right... this mystery... will prove to be more challenging that you believe it to be right now...!"

<4>

"The Dreadful Study"

Once the commotion died down, we all ended up spreading out again. Not a wise decision, given that there was a killer on the loose, but it was tough to just sit in a single room and do nothing. Only Erika and I stayed behind.

"...Should we not go inform Kinzo? I imagine he would be interested in knowing the family head has passed away." Erika suggested. I had to agree.

The two of us began making our way up the stairs. Gramps' study was all the way on the top floor. It was the only room there, in fact.

It was as if we were going up on the second floor that I saw them. It was a person, their face covered by a mask, their hair covered by a hat, and their body hidden by a long overcoat. Upon realizing we'd noticed them, they broke out into a sprint up the stairs.

"Erika--"

"--I saw him too! Let's go!"

We gave chase. We followed him up through all the floors, never losing sight of him. It was only when we reached the top floor that the stranger took a hard right.

And when we made it to the top of the stairs -- the hallway was empty.

The hallway itself was laid out in a way where, once you reached the top of the stairs, you were met with a dead end your left. To the right was a small hallway -- key word being 'small'. The only door was to your left side as you walked down it - and it was the door to Kinzo's study. The rest of it was a dead end. It didn't even have a window.

"Where... did...?" I asked, realizing that the stranger had somehow vanished.

"...Hmph." Erika said. "Isn't it obvious? The only place they could've gone to. Kinzo's study." She approached the door and attempted to turn the knob. "...Locked. Aah. That's right. It's this door." She knocked. "Kinzo? You in there?" No response. Another knock. "Kinzo...?" Silence. "...Battler. Shall we have a repeat of Krauss' room? Come. I'll help you break it down."

I was a bit worried over just breaking down the door like that. It would've been far smarter to go and get everyone, but -- if the stranger really did get into gramps' study, then he could've been in danger. So, I went along with it.

One, two, three.

And just like Krauss' situation, the door was broken down.

It should come as no surprise that we did find Kinzo there. And he was lying on his back, dead. A knife still sticking out of his chest.

"D... Dammit, no! No! You bastard! You goddamn bastaaaaard!" I yelled at the culprit, who must've still been hiding the room. Erika followed the same train of thought and began searching with me. The study itself consisted of the main quarters, a bedroom and a bathroom. We searched all three rooms. On the bathroom floor, I happened to spot something. It wasn't a person. Far from it -- it was necklace. One depicting a flying horse. I took it, just to be certain. But aside from it, I didn't find anyone hiding. Erika didn't seem to have much more luck than me. I checked all the windows. All were shut tight and locked.

I decided to check grandpa's corpse. He really was dead. Searching his pockets got me a key. "I imagine it's to this study." Erika said.

"God... dammit!" I finally said, realizing that this was probably another locked room.

"...Relax, though. The door to Kinzo's study has an auto-lock in place. In other words, this isn't nearly as complicated as it could be."

Still. My mind wasn't focused on solving the locked room as much as it was focused on the fact that my grandfather was dead.

"Why... did this happen...?!" Is all I could say in the end.

"And thus, the second murder occurs! Naturally – Ushiromiya Kinzo is dead! The cause of his death was a knife wound to the chest! And while Battler has himself stated as much, I'll say it in red: There is nobody hiding in the study! Aside from Erika, Battler and Kinzo's corpse, no other human exists in the study!

...Hoh. Another simple one, you say? Well then. I'm looking forward to seeing how your reasoning develops, indeed! Kihihihihihiahahahahaha!"

Just like before, you sense that there is more than meets the eye with this mystery.

It was then that I noticed some papers scattered around the ground, behind the desk. I decided to take a look. Most of them were business-related documents.

"Is it really okay to simply shuffle through a dead man's private documents?" Erika asked, peering over my shoulder.

"Well, might as well at this point. It might hold some clues as to why this happened..." I began to search through. But really - none of them seemed to be of particular importance, unfortunately. "Damn..." I was almost prepared to give up, when I happened to come across a piece of paper seemingly torn out from a notebook.

It read:

I've finally found it. 'The Emerald Pearl'. Never in my wildest dreams could I have a imagined such a treasure. I will make the preparations to ensure it never falls into the wrong hands. However, should you be reading this and you are not me -- then the chances are high that I am dead. If you ARE indeed reading this through perfectly legitimate means, then know that you have been blessed, for I have chosen you to know about this island's greatest secret.

To get to the Pearl, you need t

The rest of the paper was torn.

"...Gramps found the pearl, it seems." I concluded.

"And given what happened here - chances are the culprit did, as well. This was something that wasn't supposed to be given or shown to anybody unless he died." Erika said.

"...I figured as much myself."

I sighed. Two deaths in such a short amount of time.

And I had a feeling that the storm raging outside was telling a tale of our doom.

"...Let's get out of here and get the others. They... have to know about this." I suggested. Erika agreed.

"Ah, but before that... Don't you think we should... preserve the scene?" Erika suggested. "And make sure that the crime scene... is S E A L E D U P P R O P E R L Y ?" The strange excitement she had as she pulled out a roll of duct tape was quite something to see.

"Where'd you get that?" I asked.

"A girl always comes prepared." she said, quickly putting some duct tape on the windows.

Despite having to break it down, we fairly soon found that the door was still perfectly functioning. Upon closing it from the outside, a satisfying click was given. I tried to open it -- locked. "<Good.>" Erika said, taking a piece of duct tape and putting it above the doorknob - between the door and the frame. "...And there we go. The room is now perfectly sealed!"

It took a while to gather everyone, since we all seemed to be scattered about, but we eventually succeeded. And we were both gathered in front of the office to Kinzo's study. Erika and I checked the seal -- it was still in place. The door was also locked.

"<Good.>" Erika said once more. "Now, then, Battler--"

"I know, I know." I pulled out the key I'd taken off of Kinzo's corpse and unlocked the door. As I opened it, Erika's seal was broken. We all entered and...

...It was gone.

Grandfather's corpse was gone.

"Im... Im... Impossibleeeeee!" Erika declared frantically. We quickly checked the seals on the windows. They were still in place as well. I broke all of them and looked outside. Specifically, I was interested if the corpse could've been thrown out the window. But even the darkness and the rain, I could tell there was nothing down below. We checked the room again. There was nobody hiding. The corpse had just... vanished. There wasn't even blood on the floor, given that the knife had still been in him. Meaning that the culprit could've transported the body without leaving a trail hinting as to how and where they could've taken the body.

"But... But it was... it was here! It was right here dammit! I... I know what I saw!" I insisted.

"I can confirm Battler's story. Kinzo really was here and he really was dead. I... I can't explain how he could've disappeared at this moment, but a rational explanation must exist!"

Everyone looked at each other. I could see doubt in their eyes. It seemed that once again, I was talking about people magically disappearing. But it was true, dammit! I knew what I saw...!

"I... I don't...!" The world around me was beginning to get dizzy. Was I losing my mind? In the end... two for two... I witnessed an impossibility.

And before I knew it, I had passed out.

"...Aah. Once again, that look in your eyes. Good. You have ideas. Very good." The witch giggles. "I wonder if you'll manage to survive this battle... I sure would like to see you try! After all – I guarantee that Erika's seals on the windows and the door were unbroken from the time she set them to the time she and Battler re-entered the room!

That's right... I've made sure to make this study... a living hell for you!

Do your worst... if you can even bring yourself to fight!" The witch declares.

However, before you can even do anything, the darkness from before ends up overtaking you yet again.

_____________________________

You find yourself in the mansion parlor. It’s empty. But it's also noticeably different. The decorations are completely different than the ones you've seen in the story.

You can't move. But you can hear voices coming from somewhere in the mansion.

"What the hell happened here?!"

"Jesus, that blood! Are they... are they dead?!"

"...Where is she?"

"Find her! Find her this instant!"

________________________________

Another slap, bringing you back. "Hey! What did I JUST say about losing your consciousness?! Ugh, I swear, you people never listen...

In any case, let's continue with the game, shall we?"

Last edited at 17/03/18(Sat)11:21:31

<5>

"The Perils of Paranoia"

When I came to, I was in my room. Sanon and Asune were next to me. I felt sick. My breathing felt weird.

"...Ah! You came to!" Sanon declared, a legitimate look of relief on her face. "For a moment there, we thought the culprit had poisoned you or something! We weren't sure what to do, really..."

"Ngh... How long have I been out?" I asked.

"Three hours." Asune told me. "You looked like you were dealing with quite a bit of a fever there."

"We were getting a bit squeamish ourselves just by looking at you, honestly." Sanon laughed awkwardly. "Um, we changed you while you were out because of all the sweat. Kyrie-sama told us it was okay, but--"

"--It's fine." I said, still unable to get up from bed.

"...If I might ask, um." Asune began. "Is this... a regular thing? Your sister wasn't surprised when it happened and, well, we saw the scar on your chest, so--"

"...Yeah. It's kinda a regular thing, I guess." I said, closing my eyes. I really could've done with some more sleep but I was feeling too sick to get any. "If you really have to know -- a few years ago, I got in an accident. I don't remember much about it. I just remember waking up in the hospital and mom and dad telling me that my lung had been punctured and damaged to hell. During that time, a hospital mishap also happened. And I ended up getting the wrong medication, which ended up, in turn, damaging my metabolism beyond repair. Ever since then, I was to be put under constant supervision, and watched over by either a nurse or a family member. The truth is... this family conference... isn't just me coming back to the family or something like that. I never left it. I just couldn't come because of my health. I... I'm ruined, in a lot of ways. Even this much was a huge risk, and..."

"...Battler-sama." Sanon spoke gently to me. Much different than how she treated me earlier. "It's all okay. You should've told us sooner. We'll make sure to take good care of you."

"I... thank you." Is all I could bring myself to say.

I didn't know where to go from there. "...Is everyone else alright?"

Asune nodded. "All quiet on the western front! Well - at least we’re pretty sure it is. Me and Sanon have been pretty much here the entire time. People have come to check in and everything seemed fine at the time. If anything happened, I have no doubt someone wouldn’t have come to tell us if something was up."

"I see. That's... That's good..." I said, letting out a faint grunt. My chest hurt a bit. "Hey... you guys have been around this mansion for a while. You're the next best thing when it comes to grandfather and Krauss' business. Is there anyone you think might've had a reason to kill them...?"

The two maids thought about it, but ultimately shrugged hopelessly. "I haven't been here long, as I told you." Sanon said. "And Asune know some things about the island, but not things people outside haven't heard of already. Mostly rumors."

"...I see." I said. "...Well, what about... The Emerald Pearl? You avoided the question earlier. I know you don't believe in it. But what have you heard?"

"Well," Asune began, "I know that it was the treasure of some guy called 'The Baron'. I know he was rich overall. I know he died a pretty terrible death."

"...Huh? What happened to him?"

"Well, from what I've heard, The Baron had refused to help financially support Japan's involvement in World War 1. So, rumors say that the Emperor decided to hire assassins to come over to his property in the middle of the night and kill him in retaliation. He was hoping a raid on the property would also turn up the Emerald Pearl.

The assassins came, shot the head servant and stabbed The Baron in the chest, killing him instantly. They then cut his head off as proof of his death. The only remaining person on the property was The Baroness. She ran and hid in the mansion. The assassins searched for her -- and ultimately found her.

By the time the authorities showed up, it was too late. They found the two bodies in the parlor and desperately tried to save the woman. The Baroness'... had simply vanished off the island. Her body turned up a few hours later, though, in the middle of a city that was kilometers away from Rokkenjima. Nobody could explain how she'd ended up there. Or why.

Legend has it, though, that before she died, she made a promise to her husband. That they would both be reborn sometime in the future. And that they would meet again."

"...I see. That's... That's a sad story." It's the only thing I could really say.

My chest still hurt.

The door to my room creaked open. It was Kyrie. “…Ah. You’re awake. Feeling a bit better?”

I coughed. “Yeah. Yeah, I am.”

She sighed. “I told you this wasn’t a good idea. For better or for worse, as much as I’d like it to be otherwise, you’re still in no condition for trips like these.”

“I’ll live.” I assured her.

“You better.” She said jokingly, but oddly enough didn’t smile. I realized something wasn’t right. “Listen, Battler…”

“What happened?”

A moment of silence. Hesitation on her part.

“…It’s Ange. She’s disappeared.”

She began to explain.

“After what happened, we decided it was best if we all stuck together. Natsuhi, Jessica, Rosa and Erika, unfortunately, found your behavior to be too suspicious. So, they chose not to spend hold up with us. Thankfully, Genji was on our side, if nothing else. The four of us – me, Genji, Ange and Rudolf - gathered in the dining room. We were scared that moving you any more would hurt you, so we left you with the maids. We figured we could trust them. And now that you’re awake, I suppose we made the right choice.

…Anyway. As we were all in the dining room, Ange at one point decided that she had to go to her room. She remembered she brought along some of your meds and having some on-hand if anything went wrong just made sense. So, we sent Genji to go with her.

This is what Genji says happened:

They entered the room together and Genji locked the door behind them. As a safety precaution, of course. Ange began searching through her things. She asked Genji to go and check the bathroom and make sure nobody was there. And also to check the medicine cabinet and get whatever he could. Another wise decision, given that there was a chance the culprit could fail to finish the job and we manage to actually save someone.

So. He did as he was told. It took him less than a minute.

But by the time he walked out – Ange was gone. Not a trace of her. He went and check the door. It was also locked. He searched the room - again, nothing. He says he went straight to us and told us what'd happened. We've spent practically an hour searching the mansion for her at this point. Nothing. Zilch. I guess you can understand how this is all troublesome. Not only the fact that we can't find her, but the fact she supposedly just disappeared like that...”

“…That's not necessarily an issue, you know.” I said. “She could’ve just walked out and locked the door behind her, all using her own key. I mean, it was her room…”

Kyrie shook her head. “She’d handed the key over to Genji. You know how she is. Bothering with that stuff is just too much of a pain.”

“…The windows?”

“Locked. I told you – nothing was out of place.” Kyrie said simply.

“…Isn’t it obvious, then? Genji’s just lying about everything. If she couldn’t have left on her own, then she couldn’t have very well just disappeared by magic.” I quickly concluded.

“Our thoughts exactly. However, the others in the mansion disapprove of putting him under some kind of supervision. And obviously tying him up seems to be out of the question. A foolish move, if you ask me. But they’re going for option C.”

“Option C…?”

Last edited at 17/03/18(Sat)15:18:05

“It’s all a bunch of lies!” Natsuhi declared, pointing at me. I finally managed to get up and make my way downstairs to the parlor, where everyone had gathered. But just barely. Sanon and Asune practically carried me down. Honestly, I wasn’t sure if the trip was worth it, considering that instead of relief that I was still alive, I was met with accusatory glances. “Since the beginning of the night, something’s been up with your entire damn family! First, you two –“ she said, pointing to mom and dad, “- were clearly scheming something earlier in the day! Oh, yes! I’ve heard about that! Then, Battler ends up being the only one without an alibi for my husband’s death! Then, he just so happens to be the one to discover Father’s corpse-“

“-In his defense.” Erika interjected. “It was my idea that we visit him. He just followed along.”

“Then you’re just as suspicious as he is, goddammit!” Natsuhi angrily determined. “Because then, you’re telling me the corpse just happened to disappear. Why? What would anyone need with Father’s corpse after he’d died?! And to top the whole performance off – he passes out! And now,” she scoffed, “now you’re telling me your daughter just so happened to disappear? Nonsense. This is all just a diversion!”

“You’re talking nonsense, Natsuhi.” Kyrie said bluntly.

“Oh, yeah? And what are your alibis for when she was up there? Ah – why do I even ask? You’re all in it together! It’s obvious you’ll just make something up! Once we tie up Genji like you want us to, you’ll just shoot us all in the back! This is all a ploy to get us to turn against each other!”

“If it is, it’s working quite splendidly, if I may point out.” Erika said, leaning back in her chair.

“…In all fairness, Natsuhi.” Rosa said, seemingly in our defense. “I’m not sure why they’d need an alibi for when Ange disappeared if she was in on it as well. Which would make a total of five people on your suspects list. But even if you wanted to talk alibi for that – I mean, not like we had one. Because you were so convinced Battler was the culprit and was being watched by the maids, we all let our hair down and moved around quite a few times. We’re in no better position than they are when it comes to that question.”

“This is the part where one might suggest that the maids are in on it too and are covering for Battler, who was never really out to begin with – and that all of this is further masquerading for us to relax when we’re inevitably left alone with him later.” Erika shrugged.

Judging by Natsuhi’s expression, she wasn’t sure if she was being supported or mocked.

“We’re not covering for anyone!” Asune shouted defiantly at her mistress. “Battler-sama was really out the entire time and we were doing the best we can to watch over him!”

“All of the mysteries can be explained if he’s the culprit, though!” Natsuhi exclaimed.

“…Now, there, she has a point.” Erika giggled. “Well, it works better in a ‘Battler + accomplice’ theory. Krauss’ death – your accomplice entered Krauss’ room, shot him, then hid somewhere inside. When the room search happened – a search performed by Rudolf and you, if I might remind you – you could’ve simply lied about there being nobody there. It’s also interesting how you were the first to find the key, Battler.”

“That’s…!” I wanted to object, but the fatigue at that point was just too much to handle. I could do nothing but listen.

“Kinzo’s murder. I will admit that we both saw a figure walking up the stairs. That was your accomplice. When they ran, they made it to the top floor and used Kinzo’s key to enter the study. The door auto-locked, and they used what little time they had to plant the key on Kinzo’s body. Afterwards, they hid. When the room was searched – by you and me – you pulled the same trick. You simply lied about there being nobody there!”

“You’re wrong…” I protested, albeit somewhat pathetically.


“Once we sealed the room up, it’s simple. Your accomplice simply got out from their hiding place, opened one of the windows I’d sealed, and threw the body outside. They then simply left the room through the same means. When we re-entered the room, the seal on the door was undisturbed. And of course it was – the culprit had never used it. Then, while we were all in shock that the body was gone, you proceeded to open all of the windows. You will probably claim it was to check if Kinzo’s body was underneath the window after being thrown out by the culprit or some nonsense like that. But in reality, it was to break all the seals and mask the fact that one of the seals on the windows was actually broken the moment we’d walked in!”

“Lies!” I exclaimed. “All lies!”

“Fourth mystery. Ange’s disappearance. Well, it isn’t even a mystery, is it? If we assume you’d bribed the maids, all you had to do was get a master key from them and lock the door behind her when she left!”

“That’s not how it happened!” Sanon objected.

“You’re the one piling on accomplice fantasies, I’d say.” Kyrlie smiled sarcastically.

Erika, on the other hand, was grinning from ear to ear. “Do you have an alternative explanation, then? You’re an intelligent woman, Kyrie. Surely, everything I’ve just said must’ve crossed our mind at some point! Tell me! Do you not concede it’s possible?! Well, everyone?! What do you think?! This level of reasoning is possible for Furudo Erika!”

“I don’t concede!” Kyrie said sharply. “And I never will! Battler’s my son! And I know him well enough to say confidently he’s no killer!”

Erika’s face turned into a nightmarish grimace of joy. “Of course you would. Because you see, Kyrie, I’m an intelligent woman myself! And another thought crossed my mind – the same one that crossed Natsuhi’s! That perhaps – just perhaps – you ARE all in on it. And that your motherly denial is nothing more than covering for a monster! Of perhaps you’re the mastermind? Hm, who knows?”

“Battler being the culprit is the only thing that makes any sense! No – the only thing that makes any sense is that you’re all a pack of wolves!” Natushi reaffirmed.

“B-Battler…” Jessica looked at me in disbelief. Was she really buying into it as well?

“I bet Eva’s in on its as well. Isn’t she? Isn’t she?! Of course she would be. This is revenge for making Krauss the heir directly, isn’t it?! This is a scheme to try and steal this family’s inheritance! By the end of the day, you thought of killing me as well, didn’t you?!” Natshui was in a frenzy. There was no other way to describe it.

“Natsuhi…” Even Rosa, who was probably agreeing with her but wasn’t saying it out loud, was realizing she was getting out of control.

Without any warning, she jumped for one of the antique shotguns hanging on the wall. Elegantly, she spun around and pointed its barrel directly at me.

“Aunt Natsuhi… Please… I didn’t…” My chest was hurting like hell.

“I’ve had just about enough of your lies!” She screamed. “I’ve lost my husband, my future, and I’m sure as hell not gonna let you take my-“

She didn’t get to finish that sentence. Jessica’s kick had already connected with her hands, causing her to drop the shotgun. Thankfully, the safety way on.

“Jessica…” Natsuhi said in disbelief, glancing over her daughter.

“…I’m not going to just stand there and watch you become a murderer.” She told her. And without a proper answer to that, Natsuhi simply went to the couch, and slumped over. “I won’t let you die.” She whispered.

“I’ll be fine.” Jessica smiled. Then turned over to us. “No matter what you might say, the fact of the matter is Erika’s explanation makes perfect sense, given how things stand. Can you give a rebuttal or alternate theory?”

We couldn’t.

“…Then, please understand when I ask you to just leave us alone. This doesn’t have to get more bloody than it already is.” A moment of silence. “…Please. My dad’s dead. Grandfather’s dead. Please. Don’t make me watch more of my family die.”

We did as had been asked of us without much further objection.

At that point, I wonder if it was really and truly too late for us?

Last edited at 17/03/18(Sat)14:00:57

“…It’s at this point that I must make an exception to my rule. Just this once, for a moment, we’ll leave the safety of Rokkenjima and Battler’s perspective. I want to show you something. Don’t worry. I won’t be doing this to show you something like a magical scene. What you will see is absolutely real. I want you to know that.”

She leans in closer, once more just inches away from your face.

“I’ve been practicing this one for a looooong time. I really… really hope… this is the one that breaks you.”

The witch giggles. Her smile is nothing short of mischievous. At the snap of her fingers, the reality and the room you’re in disappear, and you find yourself…

…On a rooftop.

You look around, trying to get your bearings. You’re in the middle of a city. You can hear cars moving. Sirens. The bright lights. You walk to the edge. You can see people moving. They look like ants from where you’re standing.

You turn around to face the witch. And at her feet – you realize that there’s a person lying on the floor. You see blood. You see it slowly oozing out of an injury they have on their head. You step closer.

You realize who it is.

“The time now is the roughly the same as the one that was on Rokkenjima in that last scene. And I’m not talking about just timezones – I mean, as we stand here, the scene you’ve just seen is playing out on Rokkenjima. The city we are in is, quite obviously, not on Rokkenjima. Rokkenjima is not a part of this city. This city is roughly a 100 kilometers away from Rokkenjima.

This person is Ushiromiya Ange. Ushiromiya Ange is dead. The cause of her death was blunt force trauma.

To put it simply – Ushiromiya Ange is no longer on Rokkenjima! Her corpse is currently on this rooftop! Her corpse will remain here until the game’s suspension!

…Do you get it? Are you beginning to understand what’s happened?

I took Battler’s precious little sister all the way from him and gave her a terrible, horrible, monstrous death… and I did it off-screen! Kyahahahaha! Can you imagine? That subconscious pain only a brother who shares a true connection to his sister could feel? Can you imagine that feeling of knowing she’s dead – but choosing to live in foolishness and simply hope that your gut instinct is wrong? Can you? Well, well? Can you? Can you?!”

You stare at her, unsure of what to say.

The witch regains her composure. “In any case… This is all I wanted to show you.”

The witch snaps her fingers, and you’re both sent back to that dreadful room. “Naturally, what I’ve just shown you is the objective truth. After all, what fun – what mystery – would there be if I hadn’t?

You seem surprised. I know. I should’ve made a bigger spectacle about it, shouldn’t I’ve…?

But you got the point. If I showed too much on this one, you might get too heated up to solve it first. And what fun is that supposed to be? The idea isn’t to make you scared. Well, not too much. The idea is to make you believe that you can do it and then crush that hope inch by inch. Aah, but maybe that’s just my overconfidence talking…? We’ve yet to see… *cacklecacklecackle*

We’re reaching the end. I do hope you’ve been thinking about these problems. For your own sake, above all.”

<6>

"Resignation"

‘Ange is dead.’

The three words I refused to say out loud. I refused to acknowledge it. But regardless of how much I tried to resist them, they kept ringing in my mind. That’s right… I knew. Somehow, I knew. After all, she wasn’t the type to just leave all of a sudden. And she wasn’t the type to go and disappear on us. And given everything that’s happened – given the murderer on the loose and the fact that outside in the storm there was nothing to be found…

What else was I to think?

I wanted to accuse Genji. Get him to tell him what he’d done to her. But would attacking him achieve anything? Was my only line of reasoning actually correct? After all, if one were to follow logic alone, everything Erika had said was absolutely and undeniably true. Both of the murders could’ve easily been explained with my involvement. I knew I had done nothing wrong, of course. But would it have been a difference in the long run? The testimony of the accused is hardly solid proof.

I wondered if Genji was in a similar position. Or if I’d just been ignoring the obvious because I was too caught up in my own bullshit and was letting a potential murderer of my own sister get away?

I couldn’t tell anymore at that point.

For years, I’d been hold up in a small room, isolated from the rest of the world. Told it was for my own good. Every walk they would let me have around the facility felt like I was a dog being let out to play in the back yard. For so damn long, it all felt like I just… wasn’t living. That I was stuck. That I would always be stuck.

I thought that this conference would be a chance to finally prove myself wrong.

And look what had happened.

Of course… maybe me being there had absolutely no influence over the culprit’s plans. Maybe all of this would’ve happened no matter what? But, even so… I imagine it would’ve been easier. Hearing that my family had all been killed instead of having to witness it all. Chances are, I would’ve ended up giving up on life. And I would’ve turned into an empty husk. But even that, in the long run, is far easier. Isn’t that what some people are after? An excuse to simply stare at a wall and just let time slip by?

…Or maybe I’ve got it wrong. Maybe people are struggling against just that? Maybe that’s what my life over the past few years had been? Maybe that’s what had led me to become so cynical deep down?

For so long, I felt like I was slipping away from my own body.

When all was said and done… was I really worthy to be ‘me’?

Without so much as a word, I made my way out of the mansion. I’d told mom and dad I was just going to the bathroom. I still felt weak. I could barely walk. The storm outside was only getting worse by the minute. Yet, the cold rain felt like a good place to be in.

What else was I to do at that point?

Something felt like it was coming to an end. We were all on a train that was about to derail and there was nothing we could do to stop it. Maybe that way of thinking was wrong. Perhaps it was just my exhausted and traumatized mind continuing to beat me down.

‘Ange is dead.’

‘Battler is the culprit.’

‘There is an alternate personality within Ushiromiya Battler. Hence, why he can perceive himself to be innocent and guilty at the time time.’

‘Battler lied in his narration.’

‘Battler could’ve pulled it off by himself. No accomplices necessary.’

“Ngh… shut up… Just stop… Just… Please…”

Slumped over near one of the path of roses in the garden. My legs had finally given out. Water seeped into my suit. Breathing was still just as heavy. Vision even blurrier.

“You’ll catch a cold in this weather.” Someone was next to me. I looked in their direction. Judging by the voice itself, it was the same person from before. The person that was in my room at the time of Krauss’ murder. Once again, due to the darkness, the rain and my horrible vision, I couldn’t make out who it was.

“…Who are you?” I asked.

“The witch of Rokkenjima.” She said calmly.

“You said that before. And I’m still not buying into your shit.”

“Then who do you think I am?”

“By logic alone, you can’t be one of the 13 people.”

“Oh? And if I told you an outsider doesn’t exist?” She giggled.

“Then I say…” I was getting dizzy again. The world was starting to spin. “Then I say… you’re full of…” I was passing out. “…Aw, shit.”

And then – blackness.

I awoke to the sound of squeaking. I was sitting down, but I could feel I was moving. Or, rather, that I was being moved. I was in a wheelchair. As to what exactly was going on and where I was going – it was hard to tell. As best I could tell, I was being moved through a dark corridor. It was cold. I could feel a cool breeze touching my face. I could smell rain. It was obvious I wasn’t that far from the surface.

“What’s… going on…?” I asked.

“This is a rescue mission.” The voice from earlier spoke up behind me. Guess I found out who was pushing me.

“Rescue mission, huh? From… what?”

“The same fate as before awaits those at the mansion. It is inescapable. This island is nothing but a loop of tragedies. I’ve chosen to spare you of the misery.”

“I don’t… I understand.” It was then that I noticed that something was in my hands. It was a torn photograph. A pretty old one, judging by how grained it was. In the photograph… was me, though. Even though I had no memory of such a photograph ever being taken. I looked older, too… “What the hell is—“

Suddenly, the ground shook violently. The person pushing me grabbed me tight by the shoulders and pushed me down inside the wheelchair. I think she(?) was making sure I don’t fall out of it. After about half a minute or so, the shaking stopped.

“…What was that?” I asked.

No response.

“Hey. Answer me. What was that…?!”

“Earlier…” the voice began to explain, “I said that the two of us will die. Since then, I realized that’s not a fate we deserve. So – I chose to save us. What happens to the rest… Well. In all honesty, that’s’ no concern of mine. And really, should it be any of yours? Your sister is gone. Half of your family believes you to be a murderer. The other half has kept you locked up for most of your life. Was it care? Or were you just an inconvenience? What was really left for you back there, anyway?”

I couldn’t respond.

“It’s okay. You’re safe.” She concluded, pushing me off into the darkness.

<Tea Party>

“<The End.>” The witch tells you. “Now then… are you prepared? I hope you are. I very much doubt you’ll be able to just walk out of here otherwise.

Do your worst! *cacklecacklecackle*”

Last edited at 17/03/18(Sat)15:01:21

Let's just walk right in then.
This one's probably the most predictable one to start with. But hey, somebody's gotta do it.

Krauss' murder:
The locked room: The culprit locked the door from the outside. They then discreetly placed the key inside after the discovery, just before Battler found it.

Now the obvious objection is that there were already two people in front of the door, so the culprit couldn't just have walked out like that, so I'll add this for the sake of completeness:

The murder happened quite a while before 1:15, so just leaving through the door unseen was possible. A gun was manipulated to go off near the crime scene to give the culprit an alibi at the time everyone showed up. Alternatively, something (like a recording) was used to give the wrong impression of a gunshot.

>>20299
The Ange on Rokkenjima is not the same Ange as the one that died from blunt force trauma., unless you'd care to explain how she managed to travel 100 KM away from Rokkenjima during the time everyone was on the island.

Furthermore, since someone had to have killed Ange, and suicides/accidental deaths are not allowed, I claim that Imposter!Ange killed the real Ange prior to the start of the game, and took her place on the island.

Last edited at 17/03/20(Mon)17:22:16

For a moment, you could swear that in the place of this woman stands a figure similar in both complexion and stature - but fundementally different, somehow. But the moment fades quickly, and you're left only wondering where such a thought originated from.

>>20330
"Well, come now. I admit it's a rather uninteresting part of the overall ordeal, but do give me some credit. The key to Krauss' room was not placed in it after the door was broken down! Fret not, I'm sure you'll get it soon enough." You get the feeling the witch was sincere when claiming the part to be uninteresting. "Now, onto more important things. The sound heard by everyone was caused by the murder weapon! The weapon in question was fired only once during the course of the story! That should, I think, end your fantasies of fake gunshots, should it not?"

>>20331
"Such mistrust! Tsk, tsk. Where would the fun be if the solution was something as simple as that? The person on the rooftop was the same person perceived as and referred to as Ushiromiya Ange at earlier points in the story! In other words, I've simplified things. You don't have to worry your head about whether or not that was the true or fake Ange or if I've made some wordplay about the names or something of the sort. All that matters is - this person WAS on Rokkenjima, now they're on some rooftop far, far away!"

Last edited at 17/03/21(Tue)11:35:18

>>20299
Regarding Krauss's death and locked room, there's a couple of things I'd like to get out of the way.

First, the key found in Krauss's room is the only means of locking and unlocking the door from the outside.

Second, the culprit was hiding inside the room at the time the door was broken down. Battler and Rudolf's investigation was either incomplete or Rudolf is unwillingly assisting in the murders.

Last edited at 17/03/21(Tue)11:54:35

Krauss locked the door himself. He was then killed by a gun-trap that wasn't found by Rudolf, or which Rudolf kept quiet about for whatever reason.

>>20334
Once more, the image of the woman from before flashes before your eyes.

"I'll acknowledge it. The key found in Krauss's room is the only means of locking and unlocking the door from the outside.

As for your other issue - I remind you that one of the 13 characters listed at the start of the story must be the culprit. Every one of those 13 characters, save Kinzo, had gathered in front of the door after the gunshot. Therefore, how is it possible for the culprit to be hiding inside the room?

>>20335
"As for that approach - at the time of Krauss' death, the door to his room was unlocked. I was tempted to say something like "after Krauss' death, the culprit was the one to lock the door", but then you could argue that's referring to after discovery and I didn't want to deal with that headache."

Last edited at 17/03/21(Tue)12:18:13

Intriguing. So, since all still living people on the island managed to gather outside Krauss's room before the door was broken down, and it's been stated in red that suicide is out of the question...

The culprit was not in Krauss's room at the time of the gunshot that caused Krauss's death.

Also, since you edited your post...
The culprit locked the door after Krauss's death, but before the corpse's discovery. Since it's been made clear the key was not placed inside the room after the door was broken down, and the door was indeed locked when Natsuhi tried to open it, there exists some "Escape Route X" that Battler and Rudolf's investigation didn't reveal.

Last edited at 17/03/21(Tue)12:27:14

>>20337
The witch grins. "Au contraire, mon ami! The culprit was in the room at the time of the gunshot that killed Krauss! Of course, 'the room' referring to Krauss' room.

Your other point is one that must logically be true. The culprit locked the door sometime after Krauss' death but before the body's discovery. But alas, aside from the door and the window, there is no other way in or out of Krauss' room!"

Last edited at 17/03/21(Tue)12:32:08

Very well, since the key is the only means of locking or unlocking Krauss's door from the outside, this precludes the possibility of some "Device X" that can lock the door from the inside while the culprit is outside.

Ergo, the only method of escape the culprit had was to escape through the window.

>>20340
"Putting aside the still ever-present issue that everyone seemingly had an alibi at the time of the gunshot - let me remind you that Battler, the detective, was the person to examine the window and found it to be closed and locked. And I can assure you, that window can only be locked from inside the room!"

One more thing I'd like to confirm...
Since there is only one culprit, the culprit is the one who kills, and no suicides or accidental deaths are allowed, this means that the culprit is someone who is still alive at the story's end, thus eliminating Krauss, Kinzo, and Ange from suspicion. And of course, Battler is not the culprit.

Last edited at 17/03/21(Tue)13:04:48

>>20343
"I acknowledge it. The culprit cannot be Battler, Ange, Kinzo or Krauss, and must be alive at the time of the game's end."

Regarding the alibis for Krauss's murder. It's said that no one can lie on the culprit's behalf. Does this include lies of omission? (e.g. The culprit gives themselves a fake alibi, and the person(s) the culprit claimed to be with don't object for whatever reason).

Regarding the room's escape route. The culprit was in Krauss's room at the time of the gunshot. The room was locked after the murder, but before the corpse's discovery. The key was not placed in the room after the corpse's discovery, and the window cannot be locked from the outside. In that case, the culprit shot Krauss, locked the door, escaped through the window, then locked the window from the inside after the door was broken down, but before Battler examined it.

There exists no method by which the key to Krauss's room can be placed on the dressing drawer from outside the room.

This killer has no alibi
No matter what they say
At some time when they did not see
The culprit slipped away

The window was then left unlocked
And Battler failed to see
He really deserves to be mocked
His view not trustworthy

But then, he is reliable
So this we cannot say
So maybe, perhaps viable
there was another way

This Battler isn't really him
Please say it is not so
Because that would be rather dim
he puts on quite the show

>>20345
"If the culprit had simply lied about having an alibi with person X, person X not pointing out that lie would make them an accomplice. In addition, had the culprit left person X's company in the span of time they'd confirmed each other's alibi for, person X would have definitely said as much. " The witch coughed. "God, what a shitty red. But you get the gist, right? Nobody could've just lied or gone along with the culprit making up an alibi, and nobody could've just failed to mention the interval of time the culprit was conveniently missing for.

Moving on!

Battler was the first person to examine the window after the door was broken down!

As for your last blue - I refuse to answer it, given that I did place that key there from outside. With magic, of course!"

>>20346
"The narrator and the detective is the one and only Ushiromiya Battler! Straight-up lying to you ruins the fun, does it nooooot?!"

>>20299
Hmm. Alibis are looking pretty solid the way this has been presented. However, let's confirm one more thing...

Natsuhi and Rosa definitely would have noticed if anyone exited Krauss's room at the time everyone heard the gunshot.

Last edited at 17/03/21(Tue)16:20:36

>>20348
I acknowledge it. Natsuhi and Rosa definitely would have noticed if someone came out through the door at the time everyone heard the gunshot.

There's an impostor on the island. This impostor has an alibi, but that frees somebody up from the list to hide in Krauss's room.

>>20350
"At no point in the game are there more than 13 people - 13 human bodies - on the island! Of course this could technically be exploited given that Ange disappears, giving room for a +1, but seeing as how it's the last crime, I'd say it denies the idea of your impostor well enough, wouldn't you say?"

>>20299
There are two other ways around the alibi situation I can think of.

The sound heard by everyone was caused by the murder weapon. The weapon in question was fired only once during the course of the story. However, prior to the start of the story, someone used the murder weapon to fire a blank, and they recorded that sound and played it back at the time Battler perceived as 1:1.5

Alternately, Krauss was shot prior to the start of the game. The Krauss Battler meets is either dying or an impostor. The murder weapon was then fired again at the time Battler perceived as 1:15.

>>20352
"Really caught up on that recording thing aren't ya? Well, apologies - but the gunshot heard was no recording. In addition, the person Battler had spoken to and was assumed to be Krauss was indeed Krauss! And it was his body that was found in the room!"

Just to confirm, I hope you understand: "Dead" and "death" and all logical variations thereof refer to the point where all of a person's physical metabolic processes have ceased, as opposed to death of personality, wounded beyond point of saving, and similar.

>>20354
"I acknowledge it. 'Dead' and 'death' and all logical variations thereof refer to the point where all of a person's physical metabolic processes have ceased, as opposed to death of personality, wounded beyond point of saving, and similar. No dirty tricks to be found there."

Requesting confirmation: The culprit was in Krauss's room at the time everyone heard the gunshot. The gunshot everyone heard was the same gunshot that killed Krauss.

Last edited at 17/03/22(Wed)09:10:10

Actually, hold on a second...

The gunshot everyone heard did not kill Krauss. Krauss was killed with a different gun, probably with a silencer attached. But wait... wasn't the gunshot everyone heard caused by the murder weapon? Yes, but not the one that murdered Krauss. Using Method X, the culprit managed to use this gun to produce a gunshot. It was then used later to bludgeon Ange to death, thus satisfying the "murder weapon" and "only fired once during the course of the story" conditions.

Last edited at 17/03/22(Wed)10:17:32

The image of the familiar figure, at long last, fades completely into the depths of your subconsciousness, and you're left entirely with the woman that initiated this entire twisted ordeal.

>>20356
"For the first request - I naturally refuse." she says, without much hesitation. "After all, consider your situation." she gestures over to the chessboard between you. "The problem at this stage is figuring out which of the two things are questionable - the alibi or the gunshot. Answering your request would solve half the problem and give you a pretty big advantage of me. And we simply can't have that, can we? As for your other request, I'd say it ties into the theory you presented afterwards, so I think I'll just deal with them both at once..."

>>20357
"The gunshot heard by everyone was caused by the murder weapon that killed Krauss - and only Krauss! I think that, coupled with my previous reds, makes your theory fall apart quite nicely, wouldn't you agree, old sport?"

Last edited at 17/03/22(Wed)10:54:27

>>20299
I'll say it again. The gunshot that killed Krauss shot him before the story began. Somehow, Krauss survived long enough to talk to Battler, and died sometime after due to the gunshot wound. This satisfies the "weapon used to kill Krauss, and only Krauss, was fired only once during the course of the story." condition.

Last edited at 17/03/22(Wed)11:13:22

>>20359
Your blue takes aim, fires...

...And stops inches away from the witch's face.

"Now we're getting interesting. Sure. I'll allow it! For now, at least.

But you understand the ridiculous proposition, do you not? Krauss wouldn't have exactly just done nothing for essentially over a day with a gunshot wound in him. It's something he definitely would've noticed, no matter how hard the culprit might've tried.

And what about the locked room?

And what about the actual gunshot heard?"

You get the feeling that you should tread carefully now...

Ridiculous as it may be, let's run with this for a moment...
The culprit was in the room at the time of the gunshot that killed Krauss! Of course, 'the room' referring to Krauss' room.
If the gunshot that (eventually) killed Krauss took place before the story, then there should be no problem with this...
The gunshot people heard was caused by Device X, firing the gun a second time. The culprit managed to place the key in the room after locking it from the outside by using Method X to place the key on the dresser. Perhaps a hole in the wall or ceiling would suffice.

As for how Krauss could have been shot and not mentioned anything...
Krauss was actually shot a long time ago. The culprit was unknown at the time. He survived, but they couldn't remove the bullet fragments from his chest. Ever since then, those bullet fragments have been a ticking time bomb, waiting to go off. On the day of the conference, the fragments finally nicked something important, leading to his death.
So as not to make this reliant on coincidence, we'll say that the culprit possessed some way of manipulating the fragments, perhaps by putting Krauss through a great deal of stress, beating him up, or some Method X that I haven't thought of yet.

Last edited at 17/03/22(Wed)11:52:33

>>20362
Your blue steak expands, shakes violently -- and then shatters in front of the woman's face.

And yet...

"<Well done!> Granted, I'm not a fan of your overuse of 'Method X', but pushing and demanding any further than this would be silly semantics at this point. The mechanics of the murder were figured out and that's good enough for me. Don't think I'll let it slide on other occasions, though.

Indeed - Krauss was shot a long, long time ago. He survived, but the bullet could not be successfully extracted from his chest at the time, and was thus, as you say, a ticking time bomb. The rest of the logic develops from there. Regarding how his death came to pass... well, that's not relevant to disproving my existence, so I won't pressure you with that either, for the time being. As for the gunshot - your 'device' can be found in the story, if you care enough to find it. As for the key - I would've honestly accepted any explanation. That was only in play as long as you didn't hit the heart of the problem.

Thus, the first murder is solved." The witch cackles. Despite all that taunting from before, she seems... almost delighted you'd solved the riddle. How bizarre.

Something also still seems amiss, but... you can't tell what it is at the moment. It's probably best to just continue on as she suggests.

Last edited at 17/03/22(Wed)12:01:26

Moving on to Kinzo's locked room for the time being...
Erika's seals are not absolute. There's another route in and out of the room that she failed to find.

No one but the culprit would have moved Kinzo's corpse.

>>20363

The culprit is Erika.

She was brought to the island to care for Krauss' gunshot wound. The reason he was in his room all day was he was recovering from surgery. However, she used the opportunity to dislodge fragments or otherwise create complications that led to his death.

She confirmed his death prior to playing cards with the maids, locking the door on the way out and getting the key on the dresser using the string-under-the-door method. She set the gun to go off using the egg timer.

Kinzo was playing the witch in Battler's room for some different plot that he was planning to use Erika for but that Erika altered without his knowledge. Due to that, she was able to catch him as he tried to sneak back to his study in disguise. While Battler and Erika were delayed outside, he quickly stashed his disguise, but in the bathroom encountered a variation of a spring-loaded knife trap Erika had set in anticipation, likely using the necklace.

The body was removed while Erika was supposedly helping to gather people. This was done by using the fact that the bottom half of the door could move without disturbing the top half.

It is admitted that her group does not have airtight alibis for the time of Ange's death. She used a master key she'd pickpocketed from one of the maids to hide in Ange's room, anticipating she'd come for medicine. When Ange was alone she struck, killing her and tossing her out the window before locking it and leaving the room, locking it behind her.

Outside, she tied Ange's body to a large balloon and released it, allowing the strong winds mentioned to carry it to a city on the mainland a few hours later.

Erika is Battler's long-lost sister. Ange was killed out of jealousy, and she made him the culprit in her theories to drive a wedge between him and his family. She was in her mother's (not Kyrie's) womb when Krauss was initially shot.

>>20364
"I'm having some trouble determining what you mean by 'absolute'. They are absolute in the sense that, they cannot be broken or secretly replaced to be considered 'unbroken'. For the time being, I have to consider the point of whether or not it was the culprit that moved the body irrelevant, until you can give me a theory that would require me to conclusively confirm or deny it. As it stands, neither assertion contributes to a theory of how it could've been done."

>>20365

"Ushiromiya Kinzo was not killed by a trap or any such remote-activated device.

Kinzo was not the person Battler saw in his room.

I mean... seriously. Don't think even Kinzo could've pulled that one off.

Battler had Erika in his sights from the time they discovered Kinzo's corpse to the time he passed out.

Neither Genji, Sanon or Asune gave, lost, or had their master keys stolen from them during the course of the game."

Last edited at 17/03/22(Wed)15:49:48

There's a secret room on the top floor connected to both the hallway and Kinzo's study. (sorta hinted at by the general layout of the top floor, lack of a window in the hallway and Kinzo's note- which suggests a secret hiding place)

I hope I won't have to elaborate to get that one denied.

>>20367
"There are no secret passages between Kinzo's study and the hallway. And for that matter, there are no secret passages leading in or out of Kinzo's study to begin with."

[Edited because I realized that I accidentally said that there were no passages between the study and the hallway. Considering there's the door, that's pretty wrong. Whoops.]

Last edited at 17/03/23(Thu)03:26:16

That still leaves the possibility of a secret room in the hallway that isn't connected to Kinzo's study.

The culprit killed Kinzo and learned about this.

They then fled there after being spotted, causing Battler and Erika to assume they ran into the study.

After the inspection, the culprit simply re-entered through the door without breaking the seal. The door was actually still damaged from when it was broken down - so they could just take it off its hinges or something, leaving the seal on the other side of the frame intact. They removed Kinzo and restored the door to a decent state afterwards.

Without Battler noticing, someone managed to move Kinzo's body before Erika sealed the room. For obvious reasons, this takes place after the red that states Ushiromiya Kinzo is dead! The cause of his death was a knife wound to the chest! There is nobody hiding in the study! Aside from Erika, Battler and Kinzo's corpse, no other human exists in the study!

Last edited at 17/03/22(Wed)22:02:56

>>20369
"I don't need to deny the theory on the hidden room for the time being. Let's be more simple than that. The structural damage to the door was minor. It is still impossible to remove it from its hinges from the outside!"

>>20370
"Kinzo's body was still in the study when Battler and Erika left!"

Hoh? If that's the case, contradict this, if you can.
Kinzo's body was still in the study when Battler and Erika returned.

>>20372
"I'll take that action.

Kinzo's body was NOT in the study when Battler and Erika returned!"

>>20299
If that's the case, there was at least one entrance/exit from the study that Erika's duct tape seals failed to cover, either accidentally or intentionally.

Last edited at 17/03/23(Thu)10:50:16

>>20374
"Erika's seals covered all of the entrances and exits leading from or to the study."

Last edited at 17/03/23(Thu)12:10:31

Aside from Erika, Battler and Kinzo's corpse, no other human exists in the study!

I can't help but notice there's no comma between Battler and Kinzo; therefore, Battler and Kinzo's corpse refer to the same human body.

On that note, this is likely a minor semantics issue, but since no other human exists in the study,Kinzo's corpse could have easily disappeared if there was an animal in the study. For example, there could have been an anaconda in the study that swallowed Kinzo after Battler and Erika left, but before they returned, all without breaking the seals. The anaconda could have been in one of the rooms Erika checked, so for whatever reason, she failed to notice or mention its presence.

>>20376
"A... A... Ana..."

The witch looks at you - amazed, simply put.

"Pfft... Pfffthahahahahahaha!

An anaconda! I love it! I loveitIloveitIloveitIloveiiiiit! Beautiful! Simply beautiful! Kyahahahahaha! It's so good!

...You're getting creative. I'm starting to like that. But the joke's, in the end, on you, I'm afraid, since there were no animals in the study when Battler and Erika left. Or at any point afterwards, for that matter. I would just flat-out wipe out all anacondas on the island, but if it means getting theories as entertaining as these -- it would be doing a disservice to the world!

And, of course - 'Kinzo's body' refers to the body of Ushiromiya Kinzo! Ushiromiya Battler is not Ushiromiya Kinzo!"

>>20299
>>20377
Kinzo's body was removed from the study indirectly. For example, there was a remote controlled vat of acid that spilled onto Kinzo and dissolved his body while Battler and Erika were gone.

>>20378
"You should be aware at this point that I won't just settle for 'direct' or 'indirect' moving. 'Method X' won't get you out of this one. Kinzo's body was not dissolved in acid. If you're going to think that level of crazy, I would suggest you first eliminate the options that should've left huge and obvious traces behind them. Such as - well - that one. Would save us both some time. Not that the method is on that level, just to be clear. But a suggestion."

It's possible to move a body through the study windows without breaking Erika's seals by carefully popping them off their tracks, then carefully replacing them afterwards.

>>20380
Your blue barely manages to get to the other side of the desk before being crushed to bits. "The windows cannot be popped off their tracks!" The witch giggles. "I wonder... with all these reds, am I tying the noose tighter around your neck... or mine...?"

>>20299
The glass can be removed from the window frame without breaking the seals.

>>20382
"Instead of arguing, how about I just show you?

These are the kind of windows in Kinzo's study!"

The culprit possessed a remote controlled robot which happened to be the cloaked figure Battler chased into the study. After the room was sealed, the culprit used the robot to cut Kinzo's body into tiny pieces and wash them down the bathtub drain.

Alternately, there was a man eating plant in the study, situated on a remote control cart. The cart was moved to Kinzo after Battler and Erika left, after which, the man eating plant ate Kinzo's corpse, and was moved back to its original position.

Last edited at 17/03/23(Thu)20:02:41

>>20299
In addition to the above, since I'm still waiting on a response...

The culprit stabbed Kinzo outside the study. Kinzo then rushed to the study, in hopes that he'd be safer there, but alas, the knife wound was lethal, and Kinzo died shortly after entering the room. With the autolock mechanism in place, that solves the first half of the locked room mystery.

>>20384
"The figure Battler and Erika saw running up the stairs was human! This fact did not change at any point. Now, to save your reasoning some time -- after Kinzo's death, his body was not damaged in any way. This includes being dissolved in acid, eaten by animals or plants, having his body parts torn up or anything else of the sort. If you still wish to proceed with this sort of line of reasoning because you think me not mentioning something specific is cause for suspicion - be my guest! But don't blame me if you end up chasing your tail in the end!"

>>20385
"I'm afraid you're fighting for a piece of the battlefield that was already yours to begin with. Recall the auto-lock. As Erika herself said in the story, with it, the locked room becomes quite simple, does it not?"

Last edited at 17/03/24(Fri)03:21:25

The corpse seen in the room was not Ushiromiya Kinzo's corpse.

Kinzo's corpse was moved into the bathroom or bedroom and concealed there. Erika lied about not finding Kinzo. The bathroom or bedroom or both do not count as being in the study.

>>20387
"The corpse seen in the room was Ushiromiya Kinzo's! And, just to be clear - the study consists of the main room, bathroom and bedroom!"

>>20386
The entire window frame, seals and all, was removed from the wall, then replaced before Battler and Erika returned

>>20389
The witch sighs. "None of the windows were removed from their frames. I might be a nasty witch, but I would've at least given you some leeway earlier when you suggested removing the glass or popping them off their tracks and accepted either of them as being close enough. I'm no nitpicker. Once the mechanics of a trick are figured out, the small details stop mattering to me."

The witch's eyes suddenly widen.

"N-Not that there is a trick, of course! This was all done by magic!"

there was no opening in the room with that Erica did not cover with duct tape, however, the killer made a brand-new opening in the room after Erika sealed the doors and windows, then covered up the new opening to where it was indistinguishable from the way it originally looked.

>>20391
"The only ways in and out of the study were the door and the windows. This fact changed at no point through the course of the game."

Last edited at 17/03/24(Fri)09:22:53

The corpse mover cut a hole in the door, around the lock and duct tape seal, so the door could be opened regardless of the seal's existence. After moving Kinzo's body, the mover then used super glue to get the door stuck back together.

>>20393
"No holes or additional passageways were made to the door."

Just to be clear, Kinzo's body could only have been removed from the study via the door, the windows, or with magic.

>>20395
"I think I will <refuse> to answer that one, for the time being. I've been getting a bit trigger-happy with these reds and you've been tootin' the same horn. If I say 'yes', you'll just pester me about ways I could've wordplayed and created a 'new window' or a 'new door that's still somehow just a single door'. If I say 'no', you'll continue to try and work around the red about no secret passages. I've confirmed that the only entrances and exits out of the room were the door and the window and that that fact changed at no point. This prevents any additional passageways being made. Likewise, I've confirmed that Kinzo's body was not damaged in any way after his death. In other words, he could've have exactly just melted. With the way your current line of reasoning is going, when you couple these facts together -- it would appear that Kinzo... had simply stopped existing!

Oooh, I wonder... Is that a hint I've just thrown in there? Or perhaps a subtle way to tell you to perhaps change your line of reasoning?

My, my... I must say, either way, that I'm surprised this little conundrum is giving you this much trouble! Pfft... Khyahahahahahaha!"

The study Battler and Erika returned to is not the same one they left from. The other study is identical, including duct tape seals that Erika could have placed before she and Battler entered the first study. The main difference between the rooms is the lack of Kinzo's corpse in the second.

Kinzo Ushiromiya came back to life and hid under the bed, so his corpse stopped existing. Erika lied about not finding him.

Sorry, it's already said that Kinzo's body was NOT in the study when Battler and Erika returned! It wasn't specifically restricted to his corpse.

Last edited at 17/03/24(Fri)14:52:11

>>20397
"I see we're going that route now. Well, I can see several ways in which a prolonged discussion could come out of this, so let's just... get rid of them all in one go! The door Erika had put her seals on was the exact same door Battler unlocked upon them returning. The windows Erika had put her seals on were the exact same ones Battler opened when checking if the body was outside. There is only one room in the mansion referred to as 'Kinzo's study'. Kinzo's study is located on the top floor of the mansion, as stated in the narration. And, just to be absolutely sure -- the room Battler and Erika had found Kinzo's body was, indeed, Kinzo's study! The room they returned to was, you guessed it - Kinzo's study!"

>>20398
>>20399
"Indeed, as pointed out, the blue is flawed. But I want to take this opportunity to make it clear that dead people can't come back to life."

There was a trap door underneath Kinzo. Kinzo fell through the trap door that led to a secret compartment that is considered "outside" the study, but the secret compartment is a dead end, so it doesn't technically break any reds. I say this because Let their blood seep onto the weak ground you stand on,

>>20401
"No such trapdoor or compartment exist. I... would give something that spans a wide arrange of possible things similar to this and deny it all in one go, but at this point I'm, uh, kinda running out of ideas on how to generalize this sort of stuff."

Shifting gears for a moment... The passageway that Battler and the mystery person are in at the end of the story runs underneath Rokkenjima all the way to the mainland. This passageway was how Ange made it to the mainland.

>>20403
"Indeed, it does seem like the second problem has given you more trouble than I thought. Well, then. The passageway in question did not lead to the mainland."

The culprit had a trained anaconda that carried Ange to the mainland.

>>20405
"How does that even work."

The culprit's a snake charmer? Idk.

Anyway, let's confirm a few things. At the moment Erika sealed the door, Kinzo was still in the room. When Battler and Erika left to gather everyone else, Erika never left his sight. At the moment Battler broke the seal on the door, Kinzo was no longer in the room.

>>20407
"I acknowledge all of these as the truth. In fact, I'm almost certain I've made almost all of these statements in red myself at one point or another."

Last edited at 17/03/25(Sat)16:08:49

"Kinzo" and "Kinzo's body" refer to two different humans. As in, "the body belongs to Kinzo, so he may do with it what he will." The real Kinzo is still dead, but this corpse was specially prepared beforehand so it wouldn't bleed out when creating this closed room scenario.

Just one more thing... The windows to Kinzo's study can only be locked or unlocked from the inside.

Last edited at 17/03/25(Sat)23:00:56

Kinzo is just a title that got passed on to someone after the two left the room.
Seeing how this invalidates most red any of the previously mentioned methods to make the body disappear can still be used.

>>20409
"'Kinzo' and 'Kinzo's corpse'/'Kinzo's body' do not refer to different things! 'Kinzo's body' refers to the body of Ushiromiya Kinzo and nobody else! And, naturally, the windows in the study can only be locked or unlocked from the inside."

>>20410
"'Kinzo' is not a title to be passed down to anyone. 'Kinzo' refers to the human Ushiromiya Kinzo and only Ushiromiya Kinzo. This fact changed at no point during the course of the game!

My, my, it's just as I'd said. This study really is turning out to be quite the hell for you..."

Battler holds the only key that can unlock Kinzo's door from the outside.

Last edited at 17/03/26(Sun)06:58:24

>>20412
"Battler holds the only key that can unlock Kinzo's door from the outside. To be absolutely specific - this is absolutely effective from the time he found it on Kinzo's body, to the time he used it to unlock the door after returning to the scene with Erika!"

Last edited at 17/03/26(Sun)07:01:59

Kinzo's corpse could have disappeared from the room without anyone opening the door.

>>20414
"Hey now, old buddy, ol' chum. You're overstepping your boundaries again, y'know. If I say 'yes', then you go back to those theories of secret passages or turn to ridiculous window-removing methods. If I say 'no', then then you'll probably turn to having me define silly things such as 'opening a door'. And I'm not interested in either of those games, do hope you understand. So - I refuse to respond. The blue itself hurts me in no way, even if true, given that you have no solid theory to show from it. And if false, your own theories will prove it wrong over time. For the time being, believe whatever you wish to believe.

I will say this much -- you've made things far more complicated for yourself than need be, honestly. But I guess that's half the fun of it all, eh? Kihihihyahahahaha!"

There is nobody hiding in the study! Aside from Erika, Battler and Kinzo's corpse, no other human exists in the study!

At the time this statement was made, there was still a whole post's worth of story between this red truth and the time Battler and Erika sealed the room.

Someone snuck into the room before Erika finished sealing the door and windows, and did so without Battler or Erika noticing. After all, we don't get any indication that Battler and Erika attempted to close the door before they left the study. Anyway, this person saw the seals on the windows, and correctly assumed that Erika would do the same with the door. Therefore, after Battler and Erika left, this person removed the door from the hinges from the inside because it's only been stated that the door cannot be removed from it's hinges from the outside. Then, (s)he left with Kinzo's corpse in tow, all without breaking the seal.

Last edited at 17/03/26(Sun)08:09:00

>>20416
"...I accept this explanation! Coupled with the earlier suggestion of there being a secret hiding place in the hallway, I give Kinzo's disappearance to you!"

The witch says, yet her smile does not disappear.

Odd.

Oh, well. Best not to dwell on it while you're ahead.

"...Now then. Third mystery! Ange's disappearance and teleportation!"

There's another master key or a copy of one of those the three servants hold.

Then she got tied to a balloon, as theorized earlier.

The culprit could not have personally accompanied Ange to the city. The distance involved was 100 km (approximately 60 miles), meaning it was a 200 km round trip. They only searched for Ange for about an hour, so for the culprit to place her body there personally, then make it back before people had a chance to become suspicious, (s)he would've had to been traveling at a constant speed of 200 kph (120 mph) in order to make it back before the search was over.

Last edited at 17/03/26(Sun)16:11:20

>>20418
"There are only three master keys on the island. They are handled by Genji, Asune and Sanon. As stated earlier, at no point were those keys stolen or given to another party. To make it crystal clear, a 'master key' refers to a key that can unlock and lock any and all doors in the mansion (this excludes the doors to Krauss' room and Kinzo's study). And, of course, no duplicate key of the key to Ange's room exists.

Now, onto the more interesting part of the problem. Ange was not carried to the mainland by a baloon. In addition, to save you some time - Ange's body was not carried over to the mainland by a jet, airplane, helicopter, submarine, boat, or any such transportational vehicle. To save you even more time - think about the storm itself. It wouldn't have been easy. I also find it important to point out that Rokkenjima itself isn't connected directly to the mainland. In other words, this would remove any chances for her simply being carried by a truck or something.

>>20419
"Your logic is sound. But I have no obligation to make any definitive response to it. After all, I'm a witch, am I not? All I had to do was touch her and the next thing she knew - she was right there on the rooftop!"

Last edited at 17/03/26(Sun)17:25:49

The culprit pushed Ange into a hurricane. The hurricane deposited her 100 km away.

>>20421
"That would've had to be some hurricane! ...But let me make it simple. There is no hurricane. The culprit did not use any aspect of the weather in any of the murders. The winds may have been strong and the rain heavy - but not to the point where a person just got sent so far away."

Last edited at 17/03/27(Mon)02:22:03

"km" refers to some obscure acronym/abbreviation other than kilometer.

>>20423
" 'km' refers to kilometers. There are no exceptions to this at any point during or after the story. Something like that would be cheap, even by my standards."

Requesting confirmation: Ange's body had only an approximate time span of three hours to go from Rokkenjima to the rooftop, 100km away.

>>20425
"I'm... not entirely sure what you mean. If you're referring to the idea that Ange had to disappear and show up on the roof in the time between Battler passing out and Battler waking up, the answer's yes. Ange's body had to get from Rokkenjima to the rooftop in the time from which Battler passed out to the time he woke up. And before you might suggest it, Battler WAS out for roughly three hours."

Sea turtles, mate.

Last edited at 17/03/27(Mon)16:47:52

>>20427
"That's... how does that even explain anything? How did the sea turtles get the body to the shore? And to the rooftop of this building? How did the culprit even get them to do anything...?! Magic might be the better option here, after all!

Either way, no sea turtles were involved here!"

Ange gave Genji the wrong key. Either she or the culprit still had her actual key.

Rokkenjima itself isn't connected to the mainland, but there's some other land/tunnel connection nearby.

>>20429
"The key Ange gave to Genji was the key to her room. Still thinking about secret passages, eh? Well, it's true that while there was a tunnel at the end of the story, no tunnel or path from Rokkenjima leads to the mainland, or another body of land that would lead to the mainland."

Ange made it to the mainland the same way the Baroness did. How did the Baroness do it? No flipping clue, as of yet.

Ange was carried to the mainland on horseback. The distance of water between Rokkenjima and the mainland wasn't explicitly stated, so it could be a measly 1% of that total distance, meaning the rest of the trip could easily be made by land.

>>20431
"I have no reason to confirm or deny, really. Neither option exposes the trick."

>>20433
"For the sake of the argument, let's say that the distance between Rokkenjima and the shore is the same as the one in the official games."

There's a wormhole on the island that allows transport to the mainland.

>>20435
"No wormholes exist on the island. And knowing how this usually goes, I should probably just flat out say that wormholes were in no way used in any of the crimes or otherwise."

The witch smiles, but the smile itself fades as quickly as it comes. She quietly sets the pipe she'd been smoking from up to that point on the table between you. She looks at you - and notice a distinct change. Both in her eyes and her voice.

"...Hrm. I really do have to wonder if it's worth waiting anymore. This little game isn't proceeding as it could've for you. At this rate, you will surely lose. And even if you don't... you're not the best candidate. Why shouldn't I make it easier for myself...?"

The witch appears to ponder.

"...You don't have a lot of time left, you know. Unlike what the faint traces of memory might suggest to you, this is no endless game. There is no stalemate. You either succeed soon or you don't. Time is your enemy. ...Hm? You look surprised. Did I not mention this? Dear me. At this age, who knows what other things I might end up forgetting...?

Oh, don't look at me like that. If I had told you to rush, you wouldn't have been able to focus properly. And I need you to be at your best. You need you to be at your best.

All of this will crumble soon enough. I really do have to wonder - will you make it to the gates of paradise or stumble and die?

Tick-tock.

Tick-tock."

Somehow, it really does feel like... the ground you're standing on is getting weaker. But it could be just your imagination acting on the witch's decietful words.

You must press on, you decide.

"Pfft... Ahahaha..." The witch laughs, with far less enthusiasm than before.

Hoh... This is quite the conundrum you have here. Perhaps it takes a witch to beat a witch...

Ushiromiya Ange was alive when she reached the rooftop 100km away from Rokkenjima. The culprit didn't cause her death until after she had reached the rooftop.

>>20437
"As before, I have no reason to confirm or deny, as the blue itself doesn't solve the central part of the trick. So believe whatever you wish! I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with...!"

I'm afraid I'm going to have to start questioning the logic here. According to the original story, we know that, by boat, it takes approximately 30 minutes to make it to Rokkenjima from the mainland. A quick check on Google says that the average speedboat's top speed today is 40 knots, or approximately 74 kph. Assuming the boat was moving at that speed to reach Rokkenjima, that means 37 out of the 100 km must have been on land.

This isn't a huge issue, except you denied the aid of transportational vehicles. Even if the entire journey were on land, the world record for running a 100m sprint is slightly less than 10 seconds, so being generous and allowing Ange to cover 100m in exactly 10 seconds still means she'd take about 2 hours and 48 minutes to run the full distance, and that's not even counting how long it would take her to reach the rooftop and get herself killed. (This theory assumes Ange received a letter from the killer telling her to go to that rooftop and wait for him/her, after which point she ran into Booby Trap X, because there's no way the killer could have run this distance with her and made it back before Battler woke up.) However, let's add swimming into the mix...

According to Wikipedia, the record for 100m freestyle swimming clocks in at 46.91 seconds. I'll be generous and say Ange can swim that distance in 50 seconds, even during the storm, and that she can maintain this rate of speed for the full 37km. So, that means 500 seconds per km, or roughly 5.14 hours to swim the full distance, and that's not even accounting for the distance she still needs to travel on land.

So, without the aid from transportational vehicles, just how is she supposed to cover that distance? She couldn't have been shot from a cannon or flung from a catapult, since the records for distance in those are about 1km in both cases. Rokkenjima isn't a floating island up 100km in the sky from which Ange could have been pushed to her death 100km below, since that would place the family in the thermosphere, meaning they'd all be dead anyway without the need for a murderer. Even if they could somehow survive that, Ange's corpse would have just burned up on reentry. I'll spare you the blue truth about "Ange was carried away by a pegasus because there was a pegasus on that necklace in Kinzo's bathroom," since that one's a little too crazy even for me. About the only thing I can think of is that the killer tied Ange to a 100km cable on a motorized spool, and had it pull her to the rooftop. Thus, she died from the blunt force trauma of all the bumps she'd naturally encounter along the way.

I'm just going to assume the culprit didn't go all Lord of the Rings and have Ange carried away by eagles or something.

Last edited at 17/03/30(Thu)19:28:43

>>20439
The witch, whose amusement had gone down significantly since the beginning of the game, had now seemed to show complete disinterest in your words. "...Therefore, you say, logic error? I see. I see... So, you deem my game impossible? Unfair? Illogical? Wrong? Oh, I see...

Then, perhaps..." She says, slowly standing up from her seat. "It is time to end this. I've had my doubts, but... I suppose this proves it, doesn't it...?

You're unworthy." She says, turning her back to you.

"Then again... I guess it was obvious from the start it would end like this. Yeah. It had to be him... Out of the two of you, he was always stronger..." She chuckles. "Oh, well. Let's finish this. If you are to accuse me of lying in red, of not knowing the solution to my own game... then... heh. Then you don't even want to play, do you? Then... this shouldn't hurt you at all, should it?"

She turns around...

...Revealing an antique pistol in her hand.

"You thought to bury me? Hoh.

No.

No, my friend. I'll be the one to bury you today.

Because the truth is?

Throughout the course of this discussion, you hadn't solved a damn thing.

Because you see, for Krauss' murder, you've completely ignored and forgotten the fact that Battler saw someone in his room - someone that still shouldn't have been able to appear there, given that everyone had alibis at the time!

For Kinzo's murder? Sorry. But your solution simply doesn't work. That was me handing it over to you out of pity. The truth is, the door to Kinzo's study was not removed from its hinges at any point!

As for Ange's murder... Well. You haven't solved that one, anyway. You haven't presented a theory on how she disappeared from her own room, nor how she ended up on that rooftop.

It's been fun.

But it's over now.

You lose.

Goodbye."

And with that, she pulls the trigger.

<8>

"Recall The End"

You awake to the touch of raindrops gently hitting your face. Then again, given their intensity, one could hardly call the sensation gentle. You open your eyes. It's night. Practically pitch-black at this point. You get up. What happened? You're not sure. By the looks of it, you ended up being... killed by the witch. Where had you ended up? You look around. It doesn't take you long to put the pieces together. You're in front of the Rokkenjima mansion. Or, well, what used to be it. All its windows were smashed, a part of the roof collapsed into itself, the front door was now on the ground, and a wall had completely fallen out, revealing a room it once covered. What the hell happened? Was this the result of that violent shaking that happened at the end of the story? ...Aah. That must be it. Because of the fact that the story is over, you must be on the gameboard. Why, though...? Looking around you, it really does appear as if something terrible had happened. Because it isn't just the mansion. A number of trees had fallen down, as well. It... doesn't look like a bomb had caused it, though. Nowhere can you see scorch marks or anything resembling fire damage. Odd. Hm. Maybe an understatement.

To your surprise, you're also given a chance to move around. Is this... a chance to investigate things yourself?

You decide not to question it. An answer to these riddles must exist, regardless of the witch's claims. You move through the rain and slip inside the mansion.

It's dark. And quiet. Almost too quiet. The generator must've got damaged in... the thing that happened. What used to be the main entrance hall was now something resembling a wreckage. It's there that you see it -- beneath some debris, you clearly see Natsuhi. Or, rather, her body. Honestly, by the look of it, doesn't look like she was murdered. She was... probably just caught up in the wreckage. Poor thing.

You move to exploring some of the other rooms, carefully paying attention to the ceiling. You don't want to have the same fate as Natsuhi. In most, you don't find much. Not because they're empty but because the debris is simply too big. Beneath some rocks, though, you notice pools of blood had emerged. More people had died. At this rate, though, it's impossible to tell who.

You decide to check the parlor. There, you find someone beneath a pile of debris. That is, someone's dead body. Judging by the hair color and the maid unfirom, it would've been Sanon. Her death was far more gruesome. While the cause was still the same - the ceiling falling apart - she by no means died due to the impact alone. One of the steel bars planted in its structure had bent while breaking off the rest of the ceiling, and pierced Sanon through her open mouth. After getting her body stuck, she must've tried calling for help.

Damn... You look away. This is far more horrific than you could've ever imagined. Was this... the culprit's doing? That destruction? Why? Why did they kill all these people? What was the goal? Why bother with the impossible crimes if they were just going to do... this?

The impossible crimes... It might be a good idea to examine the scenes - the ones you can, at least.

And almost my miracle, you find that Krauss' room and Kinzo's study were virtually undamaged.

You start with Krauss' room. Back then, the witch had said: "Krauss was shot a long, long time ago. He survived, but the bullet could not be successfully extracted from his chest at the time, and was thus, as you say, a ticking time bomb." In other words, she'd essentially confirmed your theory to be true. There was no other way, was there...? The trick itself worked, did it not? She never denied it, even during those last few moments. The only thing she wanted to know was - who was the person Battler saw in his room and how had he been able to see her given that everyone had an alibi?

You decide to look around the room as best you can. You inspect his chest. Back then, the narration had simply said a pool of blood had formed on his chest. It was the witch that had told you he was shot. And indeed, upon inspection, you don't see a bullet hole in his chest when inspecting - you merely see a scar. Years old. Does this confirm your theory, then...?

You're ultimately unable to find the gun, however. Did the culprit just secretly take it? Given that Battler and Rudolf were focused on searching the room for a human being, they could've potentially missed it at the time and the culprit simply took it later. But is that really the case?

You feel like there's still part of the culprit's plan you hadn't put together at the time. Something that would've explained what Battler saw.

As you search the room, you come across a book. 'Paradoxes', it says, generically. In a sense, it really is laughably appropriate. All of these murders were paradoxical in nature when looked superficially. For Krauss' murder, it appeared as if the culprit had to be in the room to kill him, and yet everyone had alibis. Kinzo's disappearance is obvious enough - a body disappearing from a room it couldn't have disappeared from. And Ange - well, it's sort of the opposite. A body appearing in a place it had no business being.

You flip through the book and randomly find yourself at the paradox known as the Ship of Theseus. In which a question is asked - can a ship that has its components changed completely still be considered the same thing? For example, if you had a ship and you changed a single plank - it's still logically the same ship, no? But over the years, what if you change so many planks that none of the material that was used to build the original ship is still in there? What happens then? Is it truly the same ship? What is it that makes it 'it'?

When you get down to it, human beings are a bit like that. Over time we change bit by bit. Sometimes we even manages to change ourselves completely. But in the end, we're still 'us'... aren't we?

You continue to flip through the book. You come across another one. The famous Dichotomy paradox. In which it's reasoned that in a certain amount of time, Achilles must pass half of the distance between him and the finish line. However, that would mean that at each point, because he's always travelling half of the distance to go, he'll never reach the finish line. Once again, an interesting connection with human beings. Some of us, no matter how much we try, can never reach our goals...

Another turn of the page. Ah, yes. The famous Grandfather paradox. If you traveled back in time and killed your grandfather before he met your grandmother, it would mean that your father was never born. If your father was never born, you were never born. But if you were never born, then you couldn't have possibly gone back in time to kill him. And yet, if you couldn't have killed him, that means he lived. If he lived, he your father was born. If your father was born, then you were born. And if you were born, then you went in time to kill your grandfather. So on and so forth. Until reality itself crumbles or something.

You close the book at put it back where you found it. It's clear you're not gonna find much else here.

You move to the second battlefield. The one that you've seemingly lost completely. Kinzo's study. First things first. The witch had never denied that the culprit had simply hidden in a secret room at the end of the hallway. So it's best to check out that first. You approach the wall, give it a push and...

Yes!

There is indeed a small room of some sort. But... it's barely a room. More like a compartment, really. It's got nothing in it. Literally nothing. But it's still big enough for someone to press themselves against the end of the compartment and shut the secret passage behind them. Thus, making it appear as if you disappeared if someone were to say, chase you.

Good. That solves that part of the problem, at least.

You then decide to examine the door. Obviously, the seals are no longer set. But there is something you feel like you should test out. Thatnkfully, it seems that after Battler had passed out, then put a little wedge in the door to make anyone be able to enter, even without a key. So, you enter the study. You then examine the windows, all laid out before you across the room. Indeed, all seals had been broken by Battler. But you should test out your door theory. First things first - you gently unlock the door from the inside and slightly open it. A gap small enough to ensure that the seal outside wouldn't be broken. You couldn't exactly remove the door from its hinges any other way. That's probably why the witch denied removing the hinges from the outside. You then proceed to take the door off its hinges and -- to your surprise -- it works. You then slip outside and attempt to put the door back and -- well, that's where the trouble happens. It just doesn't work. Technically, it might've been possible, but the culprit would've needed to be exceptionally strong and perfectly able to determine where the hinges should be placed from the outside, all while carefully paying attention to the seal and making sure it didn't break. It's.. quite the task. And after the 10th or so try, you give up. It just doens't work.

You move back to the study. Kinzo's body is still missing. Come to think of it, where had it even end up? The culprit could've, hypothetically, thrown him off into the sea, but... why? More importantly, though -- why did Kinzo's body even disappear to begin with? What was the culprit's goal with that one?

When faced a mystery, a several questions arise. Whodunnit. Who committed the crime? Howdunnit. How did the culprit commit the crime? And whydunnit. Why did the culprit commit the crime? Usually, though, people ignore the strange connection between the howdunnit and the whydunnit. Because the whydunnit goes beyond simple motivation for murder. When dealing with impossible crimes, one has to ask -- why did the culprit choose to do it this way? What did they have to gain?

One theory could be that the culprit was trying to terrify everyone. With the superstitions going around and the talks of witches and whatnot -- the culprit could've been trying to... weirdly make the crimes see occult-ish? ...But that doesn't work. Even though you could argue the murders vaguely follow the poem in the main hall - none of them talk about teleportation or disappearing bodies. And even if it had been about supersistion alone - who exactly was the fear meant to go to? The Ushiromiya family? The killer killed them all anyway. And only three people were killed in a mystery and bizarre way. To the outside world? Given the current state of the mansion, it's hard to really determine the kind of mysterious and bizarre circumstnaces behind the murders. Even if you could claim that's why Ange, for example, was killed in that manner, no observer would have access to the multiple red truths denying the many seemingly rational ways she could've gotten there.

Therefore, whatever the motive, it was more reasonable than that. And yet -- the crimes themselves are nonsensical once you take out the 'impossible for the sake of impossible' angle. Kinzo had even less reason to disappear. And Ange? Nobody on the island besides the culprit probably even knew that she died the way she did. So what the hell ? Why?

Why...?

...You decide to examine the study some more. But you find barely anything. The study itself is even neater than the time Battler and Erika found Kinzo's body. The culprit actually took the time to fix all the mess. To make it look as if Kinzo hadn't died to begin with... Again, though - why? What's the point?

What was the culprit's plan here...?

You desperately try to find something resembling a secret passage. Somewhere in the floor. But the floor, gives no indication of such a compartment or passage existing. You examine the walls in both the bedroom and the bathroom. Same deal. The ceiling? Nope, nothing wrong there. It really does look like the only feasable ways in and out of this room were the door and the windows. And given that both of those were inaccessible... Damn, yet again.

Defeated, you leave the study.

Ange's murder. Well, you never got that far into Ange's murder. But still. Just as much of a paradox. No usual means of transportation, no ability to swim, no way Rokkenjima could've been in the fucking ether... Just what hell happened?

As you walk through the mansion, pondering, you happen to see a few broken mirrors. But no matter how much you try, you can't catch a reflection of yourself.

You step outside. The rain appears to have stopped. Yet, the air's even colder.

Suddenly, you hear footsteps.

You turn around. Through the rose garden walks a figure. "...Ah." They say, a tone of amusement in their voice. It's a woman. As she gets closer to you, you realize. It's... it's the witch from before!

"...My, my. Are you the only one left?" She comments, giggling. "Don't worry. I'm not gonna hurt you. The game's over, after all. And if you're here, that must mean that you've lost against the game master. Kihihihi." She laughs enthusiastically. "...Huh? The witch you spoke with? Oh, no. That's not me. No, I'm just her piece, you see. As are you." You don't get it. The woman sighs. "Right now, you and I are the only humans alive on Rokkenjima. Naturally, we are both among the 13 people listed at the beginning of the game. Of course, we are not the same person." The witch sighs. "Aah... using the red like this and flat-out saying I'm human... oh, well. Doesn't really matter. You've lost, after all. There's no need to have a headache over that 'witch' business anymore. And no real reason to hold back on using as much red as I want. After all, the game IS over... It's only a matter of time before the game master scoops us all up, puts us in a nice drawer and lets us be forgotten forever. Me? I'm fine with that." She chuckles. "You're clearly not. But there's nothing you can do anymore. There's no escape from this island. Your ship, I'm afraid, has sailed.

It's just you and me.

So, how about it? Why don't we pass the time?

Fight me like you fought 'her'. If you win, I tell you who you are in your last moments. If you lose... well, if you lose, it'll be because time's run out on us. So be quick, would you?"

>>20299
Not a worthy opponent, huh? My time to shine....

*A gunshot is heard and a figure leaps down from the heavens. Could it be? Yes... It is them!*

Alright, Motherfuckers! Clearly we need a REAL FUCKIN' DETECTIVE IN HERE! Deducer of the seventh seal of the eighth dichotomy of KICKING WITCH ASS, I'm here to save all of your asses with the greatest deductive power known to man.

*The infamous Detective Moe "Crack-Shot" Gunner!*

Let's scrap all this murder mystery shit to begin with. Yeah, yeah. Not-Beato, I know what's going on here. The REAL CLUES? The cryptic ass shit and BATTLERS GODDAMN CLOTHES CHANGING MID STORY! White suit to red suit did you think I wouldn't notice? Well I did notice. And I mean, sure he probs just changed clothes but that wouldn't be very DESU OF THE CLUES WOULD IT. Besides let's look at this paradox stuff, and this thingy about cycles of tragedy and the time Battler got goddamn stabbed in the chest and how he's lacking an alibi and Ange teleporting and... Look, what I'm trying to get at is...

Time is being fucky to the max in this story.

Eh? What do I mean?

Let me break it down real ca$h money like.

Not all the events presented to us occur on the same timeline.

Timeline, of course, being a single time loop, or a single universes timeline or whatever time travel shiggy-diggy ya wanna run with.

How did Ange get off the island? She was never on the island to begin with... That timeline!

Heck... Let's go one further. What if, here me out...

The killer is Battler but not this Battler, the Battler from another time. Another universe. Another loop.

Or something like that.

Oh no, you might be saying. Detective! Detective! That's crazy.

Yes. It is.

But then you could have Battler's lack of alibi work and you could have a Battler on the island who is Battler but not Battler and ya know. Stuff.

Also, this really works with Natsuhi's talk about the photograph where two people look the same or something.

But lemme outline my main blues. I know, I know. No shotgunning. But this is the only way I can try and set it so that the main crux of my theory can't be weedled out of.

Repeat after me:

All events on the island occur on the same timeline.
Versions of a character on or from a different timeline would be considered different characters to their counterparts on the main timeline.
Time travel in any form doesn't exist in this gameboards universe.

And just for good measure, to hammer down another mystery this theory takes out:

The makeup of the cast of thirteen people on the island is consistent across every scene.

If this isn't true, I'll eat my hat! Or try and make a theory where someone isn't actually there and is just being talked to via the phone or something idunno!

>>20448

It was said in the book of Genisis, at the fine print, that once a king shall rise and bring forth a theory so dank that all the memes in the world would hail it. It was also written in the hidden and long-lost passages of the equally lost testaments that those that followed this fine print gathered around a man, a locksmith, called 'Van Fine'. A man of fair hair, good posture and a (reportedly) huge dick - he always known to preach of the great locked room solutions, even though nobody knew what in God's name locks were even supposed to be. It is said that he could turn a Queen to Carr at the mere touch, and that he once made ten Agatha Christies fall from the sky so as to feed the people. (Unfortunately, in the latter miracle, it happened to be the quite elderly Christie, whose editors stopped caring, and so the shoddy writing of repeating sentences, and seemingly irrelevant and uninteresting mysteries filled her pages, so the people weren't so happy about that one but whatever they understood nobody's perfect shit happens.)

It is also said, in these hidden and long lost testaments, that Van Fine reportedly claimed to be over his cocaine addiction, despite the fact that nearby journalists constantly hounded him and caught pictures of him trying to buy some off Roger, his dealer. That passage in particular is still debated among archeaologists and historians regarding whether or not the claim is legitimate. The general consencus is that 'it probably isn't, but listen we don't care'. Others suspect that the drug dealer Roger is merely an allegory for the temptations of man.

What was I talking about?

Oh, yeah.

Anyway, Van Fine came along one day and read to his students the fine print in the book of Genesis they were all reading from was not, in fact, the Bible book of Genesis, but rather the book of Genisys, the hot new reboot that totally makes sense given the established universe, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and a bunch of people you don't care about but are supposedly about people from the previous movies I don't know to be honest I wasn't paying much attention during that one.

Anyway.

As he revealed this glorious revalation, he mentiond that the prophecy was indeed true. And that upon doing so, the skies would split open above the dank theorizer, that the glorious maker himself will send two white doves to descend, one holding each end of a banner reading simply:

'Dude.

No.'

So sayeth the long lost testament written behind a McDonald's menu.

_________________________________

"Hey, hey!" The woman snaps her fingers in front of your face. "...You listening? You totally spaced out there. Anyway, as I was saying:

All events on the island occur on the same timeline.
Versions of a character on or from a different timeline would be considered different characters to their counterparts on the main timeline.
Time travel in any form doesn't exist in this gameboard's universe.
The makeup of the cast of thirteen people on the island is consistent across every scene.

I mean I knew you were getting desperate and all, but this was sumthin' else. Gotta hand it to ya!" The woman laughs.

It'll take more than a gunshot to finish me off. I should have known something was up when you acknowledged my blue without doing so in red. A mistake I won't make again. Let's start from the beginning then. An unknown person appears in Battler's room, while everyone supposedly has an alibi. Let's clear up the gunshot for now. The culprit fired the pistol in Battler's room.

>>20450
"You should've also known better than thinking eliminating conventional methods in a seemingly impossible crime would mean the end of all possible solutions. But well-said. Let's finish this!

No pistol (or any gun in general to be perfectly clear) was fired in Battler's room! The gunshot Battler had heard was the same one everyone else had heard! If you are going to suggest it originated somewhere else, keep in mind that both Natsuhi and Rosa heard it and were certain of its direction. Also take the time all the reds stated on the matter in general.

I have no intention of going easy on youuuuuuu...!"

The culprit was still in Battler's room when Battler heard the gunshot.

>>20452
"I see no point in answering. After all, regardless of the answer, it doesn't change the fact that you're forced to face the main crux of this entire problem -- the alibis! The issue isn't just 'what did the culprit do after Battler left the room', it's 'how did anyone get there in the first place, given that at the time nobody could've been theeeeeeereeeeee!' Unless you're going to suggest Kinzo in drag again. I seem to remember denying that, oddly enough. Kyahahahaha!"

Let's say it another way then. Battler was in his room from 9PM to 1:15AM. The earliest known alibi begins at 11PM, with the latest starting at 12AM. Therefore, the culprit was in Battler's room between 9PM and 12AM, then left. Battler fell asleep/unconscious without realizing it and woke up to the sound of the gunshot at 1:15AM. In other words...

The culprit was NOT in Battler's room at the time of the gunshot.

>>20454
"Let me slice through this in one go. The time Battler woke up at the beginning of Chapter 3 and found an intruder in his room was just moments before the gunshot. That is, just a bit before 1:15 AM. (I say 'a bit before' because, as you will recall, they had exchanged a few words.) You'll find no narrative tricks here."

Evidently, I never posted this one before. Thought I did.

Either Natsuhi, Rosa, or Ange is blind, meaning their respective partners could have easily tricked them into thinking they were with them at the time of the gunshot.

>>20456
"That's... odd. I have a weird memory of you suggesting something like that. Hm.

But anyway, no person on the island is blind, or happened to get blind through the course of the game."

Last edited at 17/03/31(Fri)15:09:47

Ah... There we go. It's so much more comfortable when I have a portrait on hand. Can't say I'm crazy about this new body, but it'll have to do for now. I'd just as soon not have to regenerate just to see if I can get a better one.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand. I know I said I wanted to tackle the alibi problem first, but something just came to me...

My thinking for how Ange could have gotten 100km away was getting me nowhere. My stumbling block was that Ange's body was not carried over to the mainland by a balloon, jet, airplane, helicopter, submarine, boat, or any such transportational vehicle. But what if Ange's body never traveled that distance at all? Here's my blue truth: The culprit didn't move Ange's body 100km from Rokkenjima, the culprit moved Rokkenjima 100km from Ange! Rokkenjima is, for all intents and purposes, a giant ship known as the Emerald Pearl. As for how Ange managed to make it out of the locked room? Battler was right, and Genji lied about the whole thing, making him the culprit. No need to overcomplicate this.

EDIT: There's something peculiar about this scene...
"Kyrie, Genji and I were in the parlor. We invited Genji to have some tea with us, and he accepted. We must've been together from... oh, about midnight to the gunshot."

Both Kyrie and Genji confirmed as much.

Everyone who talks about their alibis is mentioned by name, except this one. Process of elimination would lead one to believe Rudolf is the one speaking, but... Rudolf isn't the one talking here

P.S. Regarding your memory of my suggestion that one of the characters was blind, I'm thinking that might have been a post I edited just as you were responding, because as of my previous post, there were only two references to the word "blind" in this thread. My suggestion, and you mentioning a "blind fit of rage" during the story.

Last edited at 17/03/31(Fri)23:30:56

>>20458
".....Hoh. After all that searching around the maze, to get so close. Impressive. Perhaps that fall onto the gameboard managed to get those thought processes working...? Kihihihi.

Well. You got it. Sort of. The main concept, at least.

'The Emerald Pearl' is a secret massive infrastructure buried deep in the lower parts of Rokkenjima. One that would, you guessed it, allow Rokkenjima to lift up and fly upon activation! At the time of Ange's murder, Rokkenjima was flying over the city (which, at that point, was certainly not a 100km away). Ange's body was thrown off of it, and it landed on the rooftop. The island then circled back, and an hour and a half later, the distance was, as stated in red at the time, a 100km! The shaking and the subsequent destruction on the island at the end of the story is the result of the island badly landing!

Most of the people on the island never even knew that all of this was going on to begin with because they had barely stepped far away from the mansion, much less went to the shore! (The size of the island compared to the size of the mansion was so big that they wouldn't have experienced much turbulence, either.) The initial lift-off was not mentioned in the story because it occurred while Battler was unconscious. Most other people believed that the rumbling and quaking that was going on during lift-off was actually just the result of loud thunder and the storm in general!

This is the truth!

...Well, a part of it, at least. Don't be so cocky to think I'm just going to hand over Ange's death to you completely.

It actually took you long enough to suggested it, but I'm afraid that Genji's account of events (in other words, the events which he claimed happened when speaking to Kyrie and the others in regards to Ange's disappearance from the room) is completely true!

And as for your final point, the person speaking in the aforementioned paragraph is, indeed, Rudolf! "

Perhaps you should have shot me sooner. These new brain cells seem to be able to grasp your brand of crazy.

New blue truth regarding a whydunnit: The only ones we see Kinzo interact with is Battler and Erika. The reason the culprit led them to the body is so they'd be able to identify him. However, after the two left, the body was removed because no one else would recognize the corpse as Kinzo's.

>>20460
"Had the others seen the body Erika and Battler had found, they would have positively identified it as the body of Ushiromiya Kinzo! And, of course, the body Erika and Battler found was indeed that of Ushiromiya Kinzo!

I suppose when you get down to it, when thinking about this kind of whydunnit, you first have to consider what kind of person the culprit had to have been and what their overall objectives might've been (if they even had any true ones).

But silly me. That almost sounds like me trying to help you! ...We can't exactly have that, can we?"

The red states there are no accidental deaths. This includes the crash that killed almost everyone at the end. The culprit crashed the island on purpose. The purpose of the crazy murders earlier were to get everyone to run around like a bunch of chickens with their heads cut off, so no one would notice the island was being flown about for the express purpose of crashing it. The idea being that it's better this family dies with the island then for the Emerald Pearl to fall into the wrong hands.

>>20462
"That's all well and good but recall that the win condition is merely the howdunnit. And, if I might point out, this particular 'why' doesn't exactly contribute to understanding the culprit's actions, much less the illusions that hid them!

Either way -- no reason to confirm nor deny. You know the drill at this point, I'm sure."

Last edited at 17/04/01(Sat)14:34:27

If I can understand the "why," I can begin to understand the "who," and once I know the who, everything else starts falling into place.

Anyway, The culprit was able to go to Battler's room without breaking his/her alibi, because the people (s)he was with at the time were right outside the door, in on what they thought was a prank. When the gun went off in Krauss's room, they didn't think the one who went into Battler's room had anything to do with it, so they confirmed the alibi without a second thought.

On that note, if the above turns out to be true, Jessica and Ange were the pair involved in the above prank, since their alibi statement doesn't place them in a specific location.

Last edited at 17/04/01(Sat)22:44:49

>>20465
"Motives can always be stretched and made to fit. And while it's possible to figure out given all the hints in the story, the dots to connect are quite scattered about. And even once you connect them, you'll still be left with alternatives and other possible explanations. That's usually why in most mystery novels, it's the first two questions - the whodunnit and the howdunnit - that are figured out first. Then, that conclusion is checked with the story as a way to figure out if a whydunnit could be worked out.

The reason the question of motive was brought up to begin with was more in regards to understanding why a certain crime happened, not why the overall incident occurred. It's a line of thinking that may not really bring you to the culprit or the answer to the trick itself, but rather open up different interpretations, if that makes sense.

But still. You don't have to take my word for it. Ultimately your choice. But you should assume that I will have no responsibility to respond to any blues in regards to a motive.

Onto your theory:

Had the culprit done something like you suggest, the people who were with them would've definitely been considered accomplices for hiding something like that, regardless of their intentions or thoughts on the matter! Or, to turn it around, the person that would've claimed to have been with the culprit would've definitely said something like you suggest happened!"

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)06:08:07

Regarding the alibi, is this applicable? Van Dine's 20th, subsection d: It is forbidden to use a dummy figure to create an alibi.

Regarding the crash at the end, the deaths that happened here can be considered murders as well, and thus any body Battler can positively identify is not the culprit. Admittedly, this would only definitively remove Natsuhi from the list, since the identification of Sanon sounded she could only be identified by the hair and clothes, which should be easy enough to fake.

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)09:25:19

>>20468
"While it should be obvious that a giant flying island probably isn't quite Van Dine's or Knox's brand of tea, this one I can easily acknowledge. It is forbidden to use a dummy figure to create an alibi.

As for your second request..."

The woman stops, smiles, and suddenly begins... giggling?

"Pffft... Yeah-- Pfthihihi... Yeah-- Pftahahahaha... Yeah, okay. Okay. Sorry about that. No problem. I'll even make it clear in red. Nobody that died in the aftermath of the island's crash can be the culprit. I'll throw in a bonus! Natsuhi is dead. Sanon is dead. Neither of them can, therefore, be the culprit!"

It appears we are still alive. Thanks for taking that bullet for me.

Let's be thorough with that dummy figure.
There is a person with a body that can be in two places at once. Something like formerly conjoined twins that still only count as one body or something weird like that.

Alternatively, human-like robots are actually a thing and the culprit used one.
Now that we're in this floating paradise, we have to let loose a little, right?

Thank you. Just wanted to make sure the description of the wreckage wasn't taking place solely in Meta Space.

Anyway, revising my previous blue. Both the culprit and the person(s) providing the alibi were in Battler's room at the same time, ergo, they can legitimately confirm that the exact location of the culprit wasn't in Krauss's room.

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)12:22:52

>>20470
"The looser you get, the tigther I'll make the noose.

There is no person on the island that has a body that can be in two places at the same time.
Two people cannot be considered as having the same body.
No such thing as human-like robots exist. This includes androids, holograms, AI and anything even remotely similar.
The person Battler saw in his room was definitely a human being!
No person on the island would mistake someone that wasn't human as a human, regardless of how life-like they might appear. Nobody would intentionally acknowledge one as one, either!"

>>20472
"I'll never allow it. The only people in the room at the time were Battler and the other human!"

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)12:27:30

The culprit changed a few clocks to make his/her alibi provider(s) think they were with them at a different time than what they were.

No person on the island would mistake someone that wasn't human as a human, regardless of how life-like they might appear. Nobody would intentionally acknowledge one as one, either! This includes people seen in a mirror.

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)12:43:50

>>20473
"No clocks were tampered with during the course of the entire game!

And even so, your logic simply doesn't hold up, does iiit? Surely, everyone would remember the people who were with them when they heard the gunshot and ran uuuup?!

As for your other idea... I'm not sure I understand. If I said it did, it would mean a person denied their own existence just by looking in a mirror. If, on the other hand, you mean to suggest the culprit used some sort of mirror trick that made someone believe the culprit was in the room with them at the time of their supposed alibi when they actually weren't -- apologies, but that simply isn't the case."

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)12:40:07

The culprit was able to construct a false alibi by claiming they were with a person who had no alibi. The person without an alibi went along with it because they didn't want people to know they had no alibi. This makes them, not an accomplice, but an accessory.

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)12:47:31

>>20475
"My apologies once again, but such a scenario WOULD indeed make the person in question an accomplice!

Kihihi... And to think, I was under the impression you'd see through this trick right away...!"

The alibi only works up to the time of the gunshot. After that, the culprit could have went into Battler's room without their alibi noticing. How did they get into the room before the gunshot though? There was a second gunshot that Battler didn't hear.

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)12:53:05

>>20477
"There was only one gunshot during the course of the game! In addition, nothing merely resembling or something that could be potentially mistaken for a gunshot occurred, either!"

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)12:58:18

One group heard the gunshot later than the others.
Even sound needs time to travel.
The culprit was able to return there before they heard it.

>>20479
"Everyone heard the gunshot at the same time."

The culprit hypnotized someone into thinking (s)he was with them the whole time.

Alternately, it wasn't the culprit who was in Battler's room, thus if anyone provides a false alibi to that intruder, they wouldn't be considered an accomplice.

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)14:23:33

>>20481
"I acknowledge it!

The person who came to visit Battler was not the culprit! Their alibi was faked (by someone or a group of people -- the culprit is not one of these people). The visitor rejoined with their respective group during the commotion that occurred after the gunshot and pretended as if they'd been with them since the beginning. The other party did not tell the others about the visitor's actions because, after Battler stated someone had been in his room, they immediately knew that it was the visitor and thus, that they had an alibi for the time of the shooting anyway. After all, the visitor had informed the other party that they would be going to Battler's room to 'play a prank on him'. Therefore, in the end, they had no reason to suspect the visitor of being the culprit. Naturally, the person or persons covering for the visitor are not accomplices, as their actions did not help the culprit's own plot at the time!

With this, I declare Krauss' murder to be solved in its entirety!

...I could say something more, but...

Let's not ruin the surprise just yet.

One more to go!"

Excellent. Mind you, however, there's actually two howdunnits left to solve. Or did you forget about Ange disappearing from the locked room?

Now then, you denied the concept of removing the study door from its hinges. However, my blue truth regarding the corpse mover entering the room after Battler broke in, but before Erika sealed it still stands.

>>20483
"Hooh... My memory isn't what it used to be, I'm afraid. I guess I just got too excited over you discovering the exciting part of that murder.

In any case, I have no need to deny your blue until you tell me what would've hypothetically occured afterwards in that scenario."

The duct tape was placed "above the doorknob - between the door and the frame."

This refers to the seal having been placed on a chain lock, ala Dawn of the Golden Witch. The corpse mover simply manipulated the lock using a coat hanger or something.

One more thing, these meta breaks? Not as meta as you'd have me believe. Showing me Ange's corpse on the rooftop, you simply flew the Emerald Pearl back to the scene of the crime after all was said and done. Furthermore, there's something odd about the way you laughed when I asked you to confirm that the corpses Battler identified weren't culprits. Not only that, but your red didn't mention anything about Battler being the one to confirm their deaths. But then, I remembered... Your narrative said I was the one to find their bodies, yet I have amnesia. I am not Ushiromiya Battler, I am the culprit. Although, I clearly have no memory of this.

Last edited at 17/04/02(Sun)22:45:44

>>20485
"You will find no wordplay here. The duct tape was not placed on a chain lock. It is as the narration says - it was placed between the doorframe and the door itself! Kinzo's study has no chain lock!

>>20486
"I'm afraid not.

The meta-scenes truly were just that. It would be pointless of me to trick you there when the game master went out of her way to tell you it was a meta-scene with an objective point of view.

But hey. I won't let that spoil the fun. You are right about one thing.

The game is over. This is no longer a part of the story's main events. Therefore, the narrator does not have to be Ushiromiya Battler.

The two of us are the only humans left alive.

I am the person that visited Battler.

Battler is no longer on this island.

The culprit could not have died or left the island in this time, either.

So, congratulations! Through sheer process of simple elimination --

You're right!

T H E

C U L P R I T

I S

Y O U !

Kyahahahahaha!

Oh...? You don't remember?

Tsk-tsk. Might be explained by that head injury you got yourself from the crash. But no worries. I've promised to tell you who you are, haven't I...?

...As soon as you solve the last of the problems."

Last edited at 17/04/03(Mon)12:04:19

Amnesia sucks. You can respond to this one or not, since it doesn't really solve anything, but Battler is still alive; however, as you said, he's no longer on this island.

Back to the matter at hand, the duct tape's adhesive was stuck to the door and the doorframe. It was not wedged between the door and doorframe like Eva's receipt.

Last edited at 17/04/03(Mon)12:39:26

>>20488
"Why spoil all surprises...?

In any case. I can already see this could turn into you trying to get into technicalities with me right down to me having to define what a door is, so let's just cut it all out in one, once and for all.

The seal on the door would've been broken had the door opened in any way between the time it was set by Erika and the time she and Battler returned with the others. And hey, I'm feeling extra generous, so let's put you away from all these pesky dark woods. The positioning of the seal did not affect the culprit's actions in the slightest! Or should I have said 'your actions'...? Kihihi!"

Based on the Ship of Theseus information I picked up, I must have had access to a teleportation device of some kind. Before I could use it on myself, I had to test it on Kinzo to make sure it didn't mess up his molecular configuration, and after that finished, I tested it on Ange to make sure it worked on someone living.

>>20490
"This is some small bomb-tier shit right there, son! I love it! The culprit had no access to, nor did they use any sort of teleporation device. That applies for teleporting in general!"

Last edited at 17/04/03(Mon)14:57:12

Since you were so kind as to define the technicalities regarding the door, the seals on the windows would have been broken had the windows been opened in any way, shape, or form.

Actually, let me try this. Kinzo won't be born for another several years. Except, that can't happen now because Krauss is dead. That's right, I claim Kinzo was erased from existence via grandfather paradox.

Last edited at 17/04/03(Mon)17:15:55

>>20492
"The seals on the windows would have been broken had the windows been opened in any way, shape, or form.

And no -- Kinzo was not erased from existence by the grandfather paradox. Or erased from existence to begin with. His body still exists and is on the island."

At least one seal was placed much later than the others.

>>20494
"All of the seals were placed at roughly the same time by Erika, at the point stated in the story."

Someone changed the boundaries of what is considered Kinzo's study by building an additional wall.

>>20496
"Hoh. It's interesting that for a mystery featuring a flying island, this is the part where I, of all people, step in and question probability.

Firstly, the culprit would've had no time to build an entire wall. But even beyond that - there's a ridiculous amount of issues. One - the culprit would've needed to be in the room at some point after Battler and Erika left to build it. How would they have left? Barricated themself in with Kinzo? In that case, how did everyone manage to gather in the study upon Erika and Battler's return? Nobody was missing then, I assure you. If you're going to suggest something like - 'they built a wall and created a separate room, and in this seperate room was a secret passage that led to another part of the mansion' or something, it's still not possible because it would mean that a secret passage existed at some point in Kinzo's study, which, given the reds, I will not allow...!"

>>20497

...Kinzo's study is also the control center of the flying island. As part of takeoff procedure, the floor slides to a different position, likely either up or down. At that point it is part of the 'control room.' This can be accessed through other means than 'Kinzo's study.' The culprit then removed Kinzo's body and sent the floor back to its original position.

This is starting to seem unlikely, but I feel inclined to make it work if you leave it like that.

The "wall" already existed then. The culprit just moved it into position and added the final touches.
Afterwards, once they were no longer considered to be inside Kinzo's study, they just dug (or punched) their way through another wall to get out.
This way there was no secret passage in Kinzo's study at any point.

>>20498
"This... isn't the case, but given everything solved up to this point, the theories suggested, I feel like at this point it would feel as if this is turning into a guessing game. Not to mention that through denying theories that aren't the case, I've made the mystery into more of a wordplay than anything else.

So, I give Kinzo's study over to you.

The culprit never had to even enter Kinzo's study to get rid of Kinzo's body.

There are two rooms - shall we call them room A and room B. They are entirely identical in appearance - that of what you would believe is Kinzo's study, with one exception. One has the controls to the Emerald Pearl, as assumed. Let's say that's room A. The rooms are both located on the top floor, next to each other, but only one of them is visible and accessible at the time. By 'visible and accessible', I mean that it can be entered through the windows or doors. In such a state, the 'visible and accessible' room is considered Kinzo's study.

There exists a switch in the hidden room at the end of the corridor, which , when flipped, pushes the currently visible room to the side. But in a way in which the two opposite walls - the ones that have the door and the windows - stay in their place. The rest - the ceiling, the floor and the two remaining walls to the side - move. The other room is then brought into position and becomes visible and accessible - and is therefore 'Kinzo's study'. The room that was pushed no longer has any doors nor windows nor any other way of leaving it, aside from being pushed back into the position and becoming Kinzo's study once more.

In other words - this is what happened. When Battler and Erika showed up, Kinzo was in Room A. When they left, the culprit flipped the switch from the outside, causing Room A to shift to the side, and in its place came Room B. Room B, obviously, did not have Kinzo's corpse in it. But Room B became Kinzo's study. Therefore - Kinzo's body was no longer in Kinzo's study! The seals, in addition, were also undisturbed, given that the walls having the windows and the door remained in place. Room A stopped being Kinzo's study. Because there is no direct or hidden link between the rooms A and B, the red regarding there being no secret passages remains in place. Because room B takes place of room A and is 'accessible', and in place of where Kinzo's study should be - and can be accessed through the door to Kinzo's study and the windows to Kinzo's study -- it becomes Kinzo's study! Room A, not having any of these conditions, can thus no longer be considered Kinzo's study.

This is the extent of Paradox of Theseus' ship.

Because of the fact that it has been realized (in my opinion, at least) that some sort of trick involving changing the conditions of the room, I see no need to torture you anymore. Our time left is short, anyway.

...Therefore, there is only one mystery remaining!"

Last edited at 17/04/05(Wed)03:55:52

Ange hid herself somewhere in the room that Genji didn't check. Either that, or she moved to a spot he'd already checked before he could get to her original hiding spot. After Genji unlocked the door and left, Ange hightailed it out of there.

>>20506
"There was nowhere in the room Ange could've hidden, in any manner, in which she wouldn't have been found by Genji! This includes the scenario in which she could've moved to a spot he'd already checked!

>>20507

Ange fell through a triggered trap door in her room, dying on impact with the rooftop below.

>>20508
"This time, let's not play around. There are no other ways outside or inside of Ange's room besides the door and the windows. The door was locked. The windows were locked. The windows can only be locked from the inside of the room. Genji did not lock them. To avoid making you think I pulled the same trick twice - Ange's room was not redefined at any point. Ange's room is a room inside the mansion. There are no special mechanisms in place here and no special mechanisms aided in Ange's disappearance!

>>20509


Then I am Asune. The alibis given for taking care of Battler said "pretty much" the whole time. Using the master key I opened the door to Ange's room and either pushed her out the window and locked out behind her before leaving, or lured her out and killed her elsewhere. Either way the body was then dumped off the island.

>>20510
"Asune and Sanon really were with Battler the entire time while he was unconscious!"

>>20511

The definition of 'locked' in the case of this door only states that the lock was engaged, not that it was performing its function. It had been tampered with previously such that it would appear locked but the door would still open. This was done by someone who was definitely in the room prior to then, per narration. Jessica.

>>20512
"The door was not tampered with in any way. It was performing the function a door would when 'locked'. In other words, it could not be opened without using a key to unlock it first!"

The door needn't be closed in order to lock it. As long as it's not a dead bolt, it's possible to lock the door before it closes, then close the door, with no one being the wiser.

Also, the door can be locked without using a key.

>>20514
"The door had to be closed to be locked and a key had to be used to lock it!"

_____________________________

New thread: >>20515

Mainly because I bothered to type out the epilogue to this and it's turning out to be long as shit.

Continue to post your theories there, as per usual.

Last edited at 17/04/05(Wed)14:35:04