Chapter 43: A Look in the Eyes, Confirmed: They're About to Be Murdered

"By the way, Sonoko, among the guests today… is there anyone with their face wrapped in bandages?"

As soon as they entered the villa, Ran, still unsettled by what she'd just seen, immediately asked Sonoko.

"Wrapped in bandages?"

Sonoko looked surprised for a moment.

After thinking for a bit, she finally replied, "No one who came today is injured, Ran. Why are you asking?"

"I just saw someone with their face covered in bandages running to the back of the villa from the suspension bridge."

"You must've seen wrong."

Sonoko waved her hand impatiently. "It was probably just a stray cat or dog. There are wild animals in this forest, after all."

"I didn't see wrong!"

Ran frowned and then turned her gaze to Fujino. "Fujino-senpai, didn't you also see that weird person in a black cloak just now?"

Fujino nodded. "Yeah, just now on the bridge, the two of us saw a suspicious person run to the back of this villa."

"Well, that's odd… could it be…?!"

Suddenly, Sonoko's tone changed dramatically. "Ran, could that guy you saw… be the Grim Reaper in Black?!"

"The Grim Reaper in Black?!"

"That's right!"

Sonoko put on a serious expression as she explained, "Legend has it that there was once a man wearing a black cloak who died in these woods. And whenever a beautiful young girl visits this forest, he will…"

"He will…"

Ran gulped nervously, staring at Sonoko intently.

"He will jump out and drag the girl back to his cabin to eat her alive!"

"Ahhh!"

"Hahaha!"

Seeing the terrified expression on Ran's face, a mischievous grin spread across Sonoko's lips.

By the time Ran realized she'd been tricked, she could only glare at Sonoko with an aggrieved pout. "Seriously, Sonoko! How can you scare me at a time like this?!"

"Sorry, sorry. I just wanted to see what fearless Ran looks like when she's scared."

Still chuckling, Sonoko waved her hand dismissively, then started pondering the "bandaged weirdo" Ran had mentioned. "But yeah… that part about the bandaged guy is kinda strange."

"Forget it, forget it. We're here to have fun, no need to dwell on weird things."

Sonoko's little brain wasn't about to waste time figuring out who or what that 'bandaged freak' was, so she quickly put the thought aside.

Then she called out to Ran and Fujino, "Your rooms are on the second floor. Go put your luggage away—everyone else has been resting all afternoon already."

"But with so many rooms, which two are ours?"

The three of them walked up to the second floor via the staircase. Ran looked at the rows of doors in the hallway, clearly unsure.

Meanwhile, Fujino frowned slightly, his expression thoughtful.

If his memory served him right, that bandaged freak was supposed to be hiding in one of these rooms upstairs.

In the original plot, it was because Ran had carelessly opened a random door that she was attacked by that guy.

Maybe… he could use this opportunity to bait the bandaged killer out.

Suppressing his thoughts for now, Fujino walked forward and began pushing open doors one by one along the hallway.

The first room he opened had a guy with a perfectly parted middle hairline who looked like he'd been practicing that hairstyle for two and a half years.

Fujino glanced around the room, then calmly closed the door again.

The second room had an honest-looking chubby guy sitting inside. However, his physique was unexpectedly stocky, a sharp contrast to his otherwise naive face.

Fujino gave him a long, meaningful look before closing the door again.

As for the last room… inside was a guy who looked like some shady delinquent, holding a pair of skimpy briefs in one hand, and smoking in the other.

Seeing that half-naked young man in front of him, Fujino's scalp instantly tingled.

Shaking his head, he quietly closed that door as well.

Finally, he found two empty guest rooms and called out to Ran, "Ran, these two empty ones should be the guest rooms Sonoko arranged for us."

At that moment, Conan, standing off to the side, gave Fujino a look of pure speechlessness.

"Couldn't that guy have knocked before opening people's doors?"

Fujino noticed Conan's gaze and the corner of his mouth curled slightly. He then turned to Ran, who was about to take Conan into one of the guest rooms. "Ran, why don't we let Conan stay in my room tonight?"

As he spoke, he gave Ran a meaningful glance.

Ran instantly understood, recalling their earlier conversation about Conan being a troubled child who needed psychological attention. She caught Fujino's hidden meaning immediately.

With a small smile, she agreed, "Alright then, Conan will be in your care tonight, Fujino-senpai!"

"Ah?"

Seeing the mutual understanding between Fujino and Ran, Conan was completely baffled.

Before he could even react, he'd already been grabbed by Fujino.

Fujino reached out and ruffled Conan's hair like a puppy, giving a meaningful chuckle. "Conan, you like hanging out with me, don't you?"

"Looks like we'll be spending some quality time together tonight, huh?"

"Uh… hahaha…"

This bastard is doing this on purpose!

Definitely!

...

Outside, the sky gradually darkened, and strong winds howled like a storm was about to descend.

After unpacking their luggage, everyone who had come to the villa gathered in the living room downstairs.

Seated around the dining table, Sonoko began introducing the others to Ran and Fujino.

Just as Fujino remembered, these people were all former university classmates from the same film club.

The middle-part guy sitting opposite him was named Hiroki Sumitani, an editor for a movie magazine, with two and a half years of hairstyling experience.

The chubby guy sitting diagonally across was Takahashi Ryoichi, currently working for a food company. Although his face looked soft and pudgy, his build was surprisingly solid.

Lastly, the sleazy-looking guy smoking in his underwear was named Masaru Ota, a car salesman.

One glance, and it was obvious—bad news.

"And here's my big sister. Back in college, she was in charge of costume design."

Sonoko then pointed to a gentle-looking woman with a soft smile on her face—Ayako—adding mischievously, "By the way, she's currently looking for a husband!"

"Geez, Sonoko…"

Ayako narrowed her eyes and smiled politely, "Don't go around saying weird things like that."

"Hehe~"

Sonoko giggled, then pointed at the short-haired woman seated diagonally across from Fujino. "And finally, this is Miss Chikako Ikeda. She used to be the director and screenwriter for our film club—and she was even the club president!"

"Nice to meet you."

"Wait—is she the screenwriter for 'The Blue Kingdom' that's showing in theaters right now?!"

Ran looked curiously at Chikako Ikeda as she introduced herself.

The Blue Kingdom—a film that had become an instant hit upon release, sweeping awards and praise everywhere.

Naturally, Chikako Ikeda had gained a fair amount of fame as its screenwriter.

Even Ran had heard of her.

"That's right!"

Ayako smiled and nodded. "That was one of Chikako's works from her university days—it's also the piece that helped her debut in the film industry!"

"Alright, alright, no need to bring up ancient history."

Chikako waved her hand awkwardly, and soon the old classmates began catching up, chatting and laughing with each other.

That was until Ayako, her warm smile faltering, suddenly brought up a girl they'd known in college named Dunzi (墩子). The mood instantly shifted.

"Stop bringing up Dunzi already!"

Chikako suddenly slammed her hand on the table, her voice sharp with anger.

Everyone around the table turned in shock, staring at her.

Even Fujino was startled by the sudden outburst, temporarily abandoning his plot to fish out the bandaged killer as he turned his gaze toward her.

Yep.

Judging by that reaction… she's definitely about to die.

(End of chapter)