"Haha, no way that's happening!" Shuichi Hayashi said with a laugh. "Just yesterday, Yukiko cursed me, saying my future girlfriend's bound to be some hideous monster."
"Is that so?" Reiko said, her fist clenching tightly, yanking the leash in her hand.
Wangcai yelped in surprise, immediately dropping to the ground and covering its eyes with its paws.
"Besides, I'm not dating in high school," Shuichi continued, nudging his sister to keep walking and giving the suddenly spooked dog a light kick. "If I'm gonna find a girlfriend, it'll be in college at the earliest."
"Is that true, Onii-chan?" Reiko asked, seeking confirmation.
"Of course it's true. Getting a girlfriend in high school is just asking for bad luck," Shuichi said with a complicated smile, his mind drifting to memories of his past life.
Back then, as a student at a prestigious high school, he'd ignored the teachers' and school's strict warnings and started dating. Sure enough, it didn't take long for them to get caught. At school, he faced lectures from teachers; at home, scoldings from his parents.
What stung most was how the girl threw him under the bus, telling the teachers and both sets of parents that he had lured her into the relationship. Never mind that she'd been the one to write him a love letter first!
What followed was a whirlwind of writing apologies, calling in parents, and signing pledges. After that, Shuichi didn't date again—not even after he started working.
Ironically, his parents later grew anxious, constantly pushing him to go on blind dates. But the scars from his youth weren't so easily healed. Until his parents passed away in his previous life, Shuichi had never married.
Lost in these memories, Shuichi didn't notice Reiko excitedly waving her small fist.
By the time he snapped back to reality, she was already urging him, "Onii-chan, let's go! It'll get too hot by noon."
With a big dog like Wangcai, they couldn't take the subway or bus. Shuichi suggested a taxi, but Reiko insisted on walking.
Luckily, Mihama Amusement Park wasn't far, so Shuichi agreed with a nod.
Along the way, Reiko was all smiles, shedding her usual "little adult" demeanor. Seeing her so happy warmed Shuichi's heart. He made a mental note to take his cousin out more on weekends, if only to stop her from nitpicking his flaws at home.
As they passed through Mihama's commercial street, Reiko craved ice cream, so Shuichi led her toward a nearby dessert shop.
But as they walked, they noticed a crowd gathered in front of an office building, pointing and murmuring at something above.
The siblings looked up and saw a person perched on the edge of the building's rooftop, their upper body leaning dangerously outward, swaying as if they might fall at any moment.
"Onii-chan!" Reiko gasped, clutching Shuichi's arm tightly.
"Don't be scared, it's okay," Shuichi reassured her. "Most people who climb up like that don't actually want to jump…"
Before he could finish, the figure plummeted.
Shuichi quickly pulled Reiko into his arms, covering her eyes.
Three seconds later, a sickening thud echoed as a young man's body hit the ground in front of the building. His limbs were twisted unnaturally, his head a gruesome mess from landing first.
"Woof! Woof!" Wangcai barked frantically at the horrific scene.
Pulling the dog back, Shuichi added, "What I said doesn't apply in Japan."
As a country with a high suicide rate, when people here climbed up to jump, they usually meant it.
Reiko huddled in her brother's arms like a frightened quail, her voice trembling. "Onii-chan, is he… dead?"
"Dead as can be…"
Shuichi's words trailed off as he noticed something odd. At the rooftop edge where the man had been, a thin thread seemed to float in the air. "That's strange. There wasn't anything there when he jumped, was there?"
"What did you say, Onii-chan?" Reiko asked, not quite catching his words.
At that moment, several figures appeared at the rooftop edge, peering down. From their uniforms, they looked like the building's security guards.
"Come on, let's check the rooftop," Shuichi said, tugging Wangcai and keeping Reiko's eyes covered as he led her into the building.
Once inside, he finally let go of her.
"Why are we going to the rooftop, Onii-chan?" Reiko asked, puzzled, her gaze drifting curiously toward the building's entrance, where she tried to catch a glimpse of the fallen man.
Shuichi moved to cover her eyes again.
"Onii-chan!" she huffed, exasperated. "Mom and Dad sometimes bring case files home from the prosecutor's office. I've seen plenty of murder scenes."
"This isn't like a murder case!" Shuichi said firmly, pulling her toward the elevator. "People who jump look gruesome. You'll have nightmares."
The building had ten floors. The siblings took the elevator to the top, then wandered around, searching for the stairs to the rooftop.
"Woof! Woof!" Wangcai suddenly barked again. Reiko quickly clamped its mouth shut—office buildings weren't the street, and loud noises weren't allowed.
Shuichi followed the dog's gaze to the end of the hallway, where a half-open window caught his attention. On the glass were three or four small red dots.
Without Wangcai's keen nose, they might have overlooked them entirely.
"Onii-chan, is that blood?" Reiko asked softly after examining the spots.
"Yeah, it's blood. And it looks fresh, too," Shuichi said, pushing the window open and leaning out to inspect. The droplets were indeed on the outside of the glass.
He glanced down at the building's entrance below, where the young man's body lay.
"This is the tenth floor," Reiko said, frowning. "His blood couldn't have splattered up here."
"Which means he was already injured before he fell," Shuichi said gravely. "When he dropped, either the wind or his movements caused the blood to hit the outside of this glass."
"Onii-chan, you don't think someone pushed him, do you?" Reiko said, then immediately shook her head. "No, we were watching from below. There was no one behind him."
"You stay here and make sure no one touches these bloodstains," Shuichi instructed. "Wangcai, protect Reiko!"
"Woof!" The dog puffed out its chest and barked in agreement.
Reiko nodded obediently. Though curious about the rooftop, as a prosecutor's daughter, she knew the importance of preserving evidence. If this was a homicide, these bloodstains could be key to convicting a killer.
After circling the hallway, Shuichi finally found the stairs to the rooftop. The security door was already open. He stepped onto the roof—and spotted a familiar face…
(End of Chapter)
-------------------------------------
Support me on Patreon — Unlock Advanced Chapters!
[[email protected]/TripleCrown07