After dinner, Ran pulled Sonoko into the kitchen to wash dishes, starting a conversation.
"Huh?!" Sonoko's face fell with disappointment, turning to Ayako. "Sis, you were right."
Ran looked at the sisters, confused by their exchange.
"Tsuneo's quite an interesting guy," Ayako said with a smile, resuming dish cleanup.
Earlier, when Tsuneo and Conan chased after Ran, the sharp older sister had warned Sonoko in the kitchen.
Ayako thought Tsuneo was carefree, unpretentious, and far more interested in the Matsusaka beef in the fridge than in Sonoko.
"No big deal. Besides Tsuneo, there's still Ota!" Sonoko, undeterred, shifted her target.
She came to this mountain villa for a super romantic love story—how could she give up so easily?
Conan, carrying water glasses, walked in on Sonoko's meltdown, his face full of exasperation.
Ota Katsumi? The kind of guy who'd hold your hand today and end up sunk in Tokyo Bay tomorrow.
"Thanks, Conan-kun," Ayako said gently, patting his head and taking the tray to wash the glasses, staying silent on her sister's antics.
"Wait, Sonoko!" Ran tried to stop her, but Sonoko was already gone.
"Ran, help me make tea for everyone," Ayako said with a smile.
"Okay."
…
"Where's Takahashi and Chikako?" Ayako asked, emerging from the kitchen with Ran, tea tray in hand, noticing the two missing.
Ota Katsumi, smoking by the window, said glumly, "Chikako felt unwell and went to rest. Hasn't come down."
"Takahashi went to fix the roof after dinner."
"Is Chikako okay?" Ayako asked, concerned.
"She'll be fine after a nap. Who cares?" Ota waved it off, tossing his cigarette butt out the window.
Clearly, he wasn't fond of the successful, haughty scriptwriter.
"Is it because of that Atsuko-neechan?" Conan sensed a connection to the deceased film club member.
Since Ayako mentioned Atsuko, Chikako's mood had been off.
Ayako sighed. "Atsuko took her own life two years ago. She was part of our film club."
"One day, she hanged herself in the clubroom."
"We haven't met much since then."
"I invited them to this reunion, so let's not bring up Atsuko, okay, Conan-kun?" She crouched, gently patting his head.
"Okay." Conan nodded, glancing at Tsuneo playing cards with cinematographer Kakutani.
Keep an eye out, mechanic! That's how you pat a kid's head properly!
"Nice magic trick, Tsuneo!" Kakutani, camera in hand, nodded approvingly.
"Alright, one more!" Tsuneo, thrilled his video-learned tricks were a hit, showed off a flashy card cut.
The performance drew Sonoko, Ayako, Ran, and Conan to the table, sipping tea and watching.
"Yo, Takahashi, roof fixed?" Ota, leaning against the wall, glanced at Tsuneo before calling to the chubby figure on the second-floor ladder.
"Yup, all good!" Takahashi nodded with a smile, descending.
Then he glanced out the window, rushed to the balcony, and shouted, "Who—who are you?!"
His yell grabbed everyone's attention.
"What's up?" Ota looked up.
"Someone's by the window down there!" Takahashi said, turning to the group, panicked.
By the window…
Ota joined the others, peering out the opposite window.
Suddenly, a bandaged figure in black, holding a wide-eyed Chikako—limp as a corpse in its cloak—flashed past outside.
The sight spooked everyone.
Ran, seeing the bandaged freak from the bridge again, screamed.
"Chikako!" Kakutani snapped out of it first, rushing to the window, opening it, and looking around, but the figure was gone.
"Call the police!" Conan shouted, leaping out the window to chase into the forest.
"Takahashi, Kakutani, let's go! Everyone else, stay inside!" Ota led the charge out of the villa.
…
"The phone line's cut, and there's no cell signal…" Ayako said, glancing at Tsuneo, who sat calmly at the table.
Chikako was taken, her fate unknown, and everyone was on edge. What was with this guy?
"Ran, this is your card, right?" Tsuneo pulled an Ace of Hearts from the deck.
"Tsuneo, seriously? Now? It's that bandaged freak from the bridge!" Ran said, frantic.
It appeared like a ghost and snatched a living person—terrifying!
"This mountain only has our villa, occasionally hosting guests. No one else lives here," Ayako said, recalling Ran's earlier story. They'd brushed it off as a lost hiker.
"Wait!" Sonoko's expression turned serious.
All eyes turned to her.
"Maybe it's… a ghost from this mountain…" she said.
"Sonoko, stop!" Ran covered her mouth, breathing hard to calm her racing heart.
"So, Ace of Hearts or not?" Tsuneo asked.
"Tsuneo!"
…
About ten minutes later, the three men returned with Conan, bringing horrific news: Chikako had been dismembered.
Her limbs and head were chopped off, a gruesome scene.
They confirmed the suspension bridge to the mountain's base was also cut.
Things were getting complicated. They'd have to wait for daylight to take a detour down.
…
"Conan, can we sleep in the same room tonight?" Ran knocked on Tsuneo and Conan's door.
Sonoko had Ayako, but Ran needed someone too. She was terrified of ghosts.
Though busy discussing the case with Tsuneo, Conan couldn't refuse Ran. In 0.01 seconds, the detective ditched Tsuneo, heading to Ran's room. They even shared a bed.
"Guess I'll switch rooms too," Tsuneo said with a grin, turning off the light, opening the door across the hall, and flopping onto the bed.
(End of Chapter)
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