Chapter 272: The Assassin’s Bounty
"The emissary of the cursed mask… Could it be the Cursed Mask's Cold-Blooded Murder Case?"
Coming back to his senses, Fujino took a deep breath and glanced at the letter in his hand, his eyes narrowing slightly.
Human memory is like a compressed file—only when you need it does your brain start digging through the clues to pull it up.
He didn't have a strong impression of this case, so it wasn't until he saw the signature "Emissary of the Cursed Mask" that he pieced it together and dredged up the memory.
In his recollection, there was a hit-and-run case from twenty years ago he'd investigated. The real culprit turned out to be Suou Akako. Back then, she was at the height of her fame and, to avoid the scandal of a car accident tarnishing her reputation, she pinned the blame on her female assistant. Then, she brutally murdered her and staged it as a suicide out of guilt.
After that, she kept exploiting the assistant's legacy, propping up the assistant's son, Aikawa Fuyuya, as a celebrity to milk whatever value was left from that mother-son duo.
Later, she founded the Red Society, putting on charity concerts and events, using orphans from traffic accidents to tug at people's heartstrings. All the donations? Straight into her own pocket.
But not long ago, Aikawa finally uncovered the truth.
To avenge his mother and expose this old hag's ugly true face, he planned to deliver some classic Mihua-style justice to Suou Akako at tomorrow night's gathering.
And that threatening letter signed "Emissary of the Cursed Mask"? It was sent by someone who didn't want to see genuinely kind-hearted people manipulated by her schemes.
Sure, this time Fujino didn't lose anything directly—he even made a cool million yen out of it.
But thinking about those exploited kids, his expression darkened bit by bit.
"New assassin job detected—please check it out!"
Hearing that, Fujino casually opened the system interface, and a glowing mission screen popped up in front of him:
**[Assassin Job: The Hypocritical Philanthropist]**
**Mission Summary:** A fake philanthropist who loves collecting cursed masks has spent fifteen years pocketing charity funds under the guise of goodwill. She's used orphanage kids to win sympathy, leaving countless children who should've gotten treatment crippled or dead.
—Rip off that hypocritical mask! The world's already dark—why not make it a little darker?
**Objective:** Assassinate Suou Akako (by any means necessary)
**Reward:** 1,000,000 yen · 100 Assassin Skill Points
"Rip off the hypocritical mask… That's a little dramatic, huh?"
Fujino stared at the mission, chuckling to himself.
A million yen to take out one person?
Kinda cheap…
Then again, Suou Akako's worth probably isn't much more than that.
"Guess the system gets me after all."
Fujino accepted the mission.
Sure, the system could be a bit of a jerk sometimes, but it came through when it mattered.
If it wasn't even gonna leave her a shred of pitiful redemption, then fine—so be it.
No going back? No problem. This messed-up, dark world doesn't need saving anyway.
The only way to catch a glimpse of light is to dive deeper into the darkness.
Fujino's expression calmed, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. A faint murderous intent started radiating from him.
Looks like he's playing the bad guy this time.
---
The next day, winter rolled in again.
The sky over Tokyo's suburbs was thick with frosty air, snow piling up along the roadsides. Bare black trees creaked in the cold wind.
Fujino, dressed in his usual suit, drove his Ford Taurus down the highway toward Suou Akako's countryside villa.
Haihara Ai sat in her designated passenger seat, one hand propping up her cheek, gazing out at the snowy scenery.
She was decked out in a black gothic lolita outfit—long skirt trailing down, tea-colored curls framing her face, giving off a cool, aristocratic vibe.
She'd won it a while back when she went shopping with Miyano Akemi and scored an Izu travel voucher.
She'd always found it a little embarrassing and never wore it… until today's gathering, when she reluctantly put it on.
Truth be told, Fujino hadn't planned on bringing Haihara along.
Tonight might get messy—bloody, even—and having someone tagging along could complicate things.
But… if he did bring her, she could serve as a witness when the time came.
And no, he definitely wasn't just dying to see her in that gothic lolita getup.
---
After passing through the suburbs, a countryside villa estate came into view.
It was a European-style place, built with red brick and white wood.
A big archway cut through the middle, with the main entrance unusually split on either side.
The road led right up to the estate's grand gate—talk about flashy.
From the entrance, you could see a courtyard paved with blue bricks, a tall lamppost standing in the center, topped with an intricate iron angel statue.
Fujino parked the car smoothly in the courtyard.
As the two stepped out, they noticed a man nearby snapping photos of the surroundings with a camera.
He wore a black coat and a blue scarf, with short black hair and a square, authoritative face.
Then he seemed to spot them, turned around, lifted his camera, and clicked the shutter.
"?!"
Haihara Ai flinched like a startled chick, instinctively ducking behind Fujino.
"You must be Detective Fujino, right?"
The man walked over and greeted them. "I'm Katagiri Masaki, a photographer."
"Oh, Mr. Katagiri."
Fujino nodded back, glancing at Haihara and instantly knowing why she'd reacted like that.
After a beat, he turned to Katagiri. "Hey, could you delete that photo you just took? She's not a fan of being photographed."
"Oh, my bad…"
Katagiri realized snapping a random picture might've been rude.
He scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "I just thought this little lady was so cute, and she matched the scenery perfectly, so I couldn't help myself… I'll delete it now."
"Cute?"
Haihara tilted her head, looking a bit puzzled.
She glanced down at her outfit, not really seeing what was so cute about it.
"Very cute," Fujino said with a light laugh. "Ai, that outfit suits you."
"Mm…"
Haihara's cheeks flushed, and she dipped her head with a small hum.
Just then, another car rolled into the estate.
Out stepped a man named Matsudaira Mamoru, a well-known baseball player with dark skin and an orange casual jacket.
From his looks, you'd peg him at thirty or forty—maybe on par with Katagiri—but he was actually just twenty-four.
Following him was a cool, pale-skinned beauty in a teal coat, with long straight black hair, a blue scarf, and a detached air about her.
Her name was Nagara Haruka, a fairly famous tarot card reader.
The moment she arrived, she had this mysterious vibe going on—perfect for a medium or fortune-teller type.
She scanned the area, her calm face showing a hint of unease as she stared at the villa's rooftop. "Ever since we got here, I've had a bad feeling… Something big's gonna happen tonight. Maybe even someone's gonna die."
"No way…"
Matsudaira, a self-proclaimed fanboy of her fortune-telling, hesitated.
"It's not just the villa…"
Nagara turned her gaze to Fujino. "I sense something even worse from Detective Fujino… Something heavier than this place."
"From me?"
Fujino raised an eyebrow, though inside he was quietly impressed. This fortune-teller had some skills.
If there was any real danger tonight…
Well, it'd probably be him, the guy planning a murder.
"Hm?"
Haihara glanced at Fujino too.
She'd seen this fortune-teller on TV before.
She wasn't big on believing in that stuff, but the woman was freakishly accurate.
"That's right."
Nagara nodded, pulling a tarot card from her pocket and handing it to Fujino.
Fujino took it. The card was mostly gray-black, with a menacing eight-legged spider sporting a skull-like face.
It reminded him of that spider that hypnotized him last time.
Wonder if there's a connection…
He studied the card, then looked at Nagara curiously. "What's the spider mean?"
"The spider represents chaos and fear—the opposite of life. Caution, calculation, solitude, and dread."
Nagara gave him a deep look. "In my deck, it usually means death, change, destruction, or collapse."
"So, a bad card, huh?"
Fujino grinned, meeting her eyes. "Funny, I don't see how that fits me."
"True, I'm a little puzzled by this reading too. There's no such thing as an absolutely bad card in tarot."
Nagara looked away, thinking it over. "For you, Detective Fujino, I'd say it points to untapped potential deep inside."
"Is that so…"
Fujino kept his cool, though his eyes narrowed slightly.
This fortune-teller was sharper than she seemed.
She reminded him of Koizumi Akako for some reason.
A tarot reader in the Conan-verse…
Definitely something special.
"Alright, let's not just stand around out here," Katagiri cut in, steering the conversation away from the mystical turn it was taking. "Since everyone's here, how about we head inside?"
Right as he finished speaking, the villa's right-side door swung open.
A young, cute maid in a red uniform with short brown hair stepped out. "Welcome, everyone!"
Then the left-side door opened too, and another young, cute maid in an identical red uniform stepped out. "Welcome, everyone!"
"…"
Fujino rubbed his chin, looking back and forth between the two girls, intrigued.
He remembered these two were twins—Shimokasa Honami and Shimokasa Minaho.
Rumor had it they didn't just dress alike in their maid outfits; their voices, looks, tones—even their measurements—were identical.
After staring for a bit, Fujino's eyes started to ache.
Yep, totally identical.
It was almost creepy.
Even with his sharp senses, he couldn't spot a single difference.
Rich people sure know how to have fun—twin maids who look exactly the same? Next-level.
"…"
Meanwhile, Haihara shot him a suspicious side-eye.
She'd noticed him staring at the twins for a while now.
Fujino… He doesn't have a thing for this type, does he?
Twin sisters?
Ai blinked, sinking into thought.
"Mr. Fujino, please enter through the east gate," the left Shimokasa said.
"Mr. Katagiri, Mr. Matsudaira, and Ms. Nagara, please use the west gate," the right Shimokasa said in the exact same tone.
"We're splitting up?" Matsudaira glanced between the two, confused. "Why's that?"
"The villa's divided into east and west wings. Guests staying in the west wing enter through the west gate," the right Shimokasa explained.
"And those in the east wing go through the east gate," the left Shimokasa added.
"If you don't follow the rules here, it'll bring bad luck," the twins said in unison, flashing mischievous, eerie grins. "Because this is… the mansion of the cursed mask!"
As if on cue, a flock of crows cawed loudly and burst into flight from the mansion's roof, their cries pairing perfectly with the twins' creepy smiles. It gave off a weird, spooky vibe.
The others swallowed hard.
Fujino? He wasn't fazed.
Hilarious—he wasn't scared at all.
The scariest thing here tonight might just be him.
Yep… being the bad guy definitely feels different.
---
Following Shimokasa, Fujino and Haihara entered the mansion through the left gate.
The interior had a bizarre, eerie vibe—hard to pin down, but unsettling. Creepy masks hung everywhere, giving off a chilling atmosphere.
Fujino already knew what was up, but he still asked Shimokasa, "Hey, are you and the other girl sisters?"
"Yep," she nodded. "We're twins—no distinction between us yet. I'm Shimokasa Honami, in charge of the east side. The west side's handled by Minaho."
"Got it."
Fujino nodded, finally figuring out which Shimokasa this one was.
"Masks?"
Haihara stopped in front of a particularly weird one, tilting her head up to study it curiously.
"Ms. Suou loves collecting masks," Honami said, walking over. "These are just a small part of her collection."
"Didn't know Ms. Suou was into this kind of thing…"
Fujino played along, his eyes drifting to the masks around the room.
A house full of masks—fitting for Suou Akako, really.
She'd been wearing her own fake mask of hypocrisy for fifteen years, after all.
And no one outside had ever caught on…
(End of Chapter)