02x09 - The Silenced Children

[bunniefuu]

Just what did I get dragged into?

My father grew up as the eldest son in a major company,

but he threw away his status and went out on his own,

and now runs a traditional Japanese restaurant.

Then, one day...

Dad brought up something really weird.

Otonashi Family Inheritance Assignment Documents

Rion, I'd like you to do this in my place.

Dad said something about wanting to show that he feels remorse for his crime.

He must know something specific about Mom's incident.

Otonashi Family Inheritance Assignment Documents

If you're able to get priority on the inheritance,

you can spend it however you'd like.

The fact that I have someone in my family who was a victim in a m*rder,

the fact that I have to somehow explain how my grandfather was behind it,

and the ungodly amount of inheritance... None of this makes sense.

Also, I definitely came underdressed...

Well, everyone...

Thanks for gathering here today.

I'm sure you're all

quite wary of me, and you may be wondering, "Who the hell are you?"

But please, just think about this.

I'm the one who's the most inconvenienced by this.

I'm a complete outsider here,

yet I've been asked to take on this bizarre role,

and I've taken time out of my day to come all this way.

You might say that I could've just said no,

but could I really say no to President Otonashi's request?

He really wants me to rank all of you...

Of course, the one I rank the lowest will resent me.

Who knows what they might do in retaliation?

Come, now. None of us would do anything rash.

Our father wouldn't let us get away with that.

But I'd rather you not come for me after he passes, either.

Right now, the president is quite well,

so it'd be unfavorable if I didn't do what I asked.

No matter how this goes, it's a lose-lose situation for me.

So why did my grandfather choose you, Iwanaga-san?

Did you two not do a background check on me?

I attempted to,

but all the trusted investigation companies declined.

Based on that, it's very obvious that you're special.

In my case, my nephew was coincidentally in the same club as you in high school.

His name is Amachi Manabu. Does that ring a bell?

Oh? He was related to the president?

He told me to avoid making an enemy of you at all costs.

Anyway, rumors had apparently spread about me without my knowledge,

and President Otonashi took a liking to me.

That aside, I don't want any resentment from anyone for fulfilling this role.

Kuro-senpai here is not my assistant.

He has been my boyfriend ever since high school.

Boyfriend?

My boyfriend and I are staying at this lovely hotel.

Naturally, we'd like to enjoy our time here.

The bath in the room we're staying in is huge,

so we can get in together, he can "wash his fingers" in my vag*na,

and who knows where that might lead—

I do beg your pardon. I've made my desires a bit too public.

But I'm sure none of you

want to be constantly jumping at shadows until tomorrow, correct?

Yes. And I'd rather not have our relationships turn sour.

In that case, I propose an alliance.

An alliance?

What's being requested of you

is that you explain how

President Otonashi k*lled Otonashi Sumi-san twenty-three years ago.

So let's work together to come up with

an answer that the president will be satisfied with.

All of you can discuss how you want to split up the inheritance,

you'll decide the order that best meets your desires,

and we'll report a ranking to the president.

We'll decide the ranking depending on how much you've all contributed...

Actually, it'd be a hassle to have to hear three separate answers from each of you.

I shall take my leave for about an hour.

Until then, please discuss my proposal.

Is this proposal something Dad came up with, or was it Miss Iwanaga herself?

I doubt she'd do something the president didn't wish for.

But she honestly seems like she wouldn't have a problem doing that.

At the same time, her proposal isn't a bad idea.

It makes sense.

And how do you feel about the inheritance?

There are parts of his assets, as well as rights,

that I'd personally like to have.

If I'm guaranteed those,

I don't care where I rank in this assignment.

What about Kaoruko-neesan?

Kaoruko didn't seem very fond of the idea of only you and

Ryoma-san benefiting from this.

Since you've taken over the group, the president is very fond of you.

He's also very fond of Ryoma-san,

who decided to have the courage to go the exact opposite route.

On the other hand, Kaoruko seems to feel that her father doesn't love her very much.

She seems unable to stand the fact that this might give you two

an upper hand in the inheritance.

Nee-san just wants the satisfaction of winning against my brother and me.

What does Ryoma-san think about the inheritance?

There's no point in asking my brother about that.

He'd say a huge inheritance will just lead to trouble,

so if Rion has anything she wants, she should just get as much as she'd like.

Uncle, if you understand my father that well, why do you two still not get along?

It's because I understand him.

Nii-san always does things I don't like.

If the eldest brother gives up his inheritance,

or if any of us get a disproportionate share,

everyone would be suspicious.

There will even be those who think this was all my doing.

The amount of trouble I'll have to go through to avoid that...

I'm sure Nii-san is quite pleased that he gets to stay true to himself.

Er, sorry about this...

Oh, this isn't your fault, Rion.

It's just your father.

Then why don't we rank Uncle Koya first so Aunt Kaoruko can regain her dignity,

and the two of you can decide how to split the inheritance? Would that be best?

I honestly don't care where I rank.

That's fine with me, since it'll probably satisfy Kaoruko.

And you, Susumu-san?

It's much easier than arguing over whose answer is the best.

It's not like I want to fight over this inheritance to begin with.

Then I guess we've decided.

Yes.

Right.

What a peculiar predicament.

Such a large sum of money is at stake, yet everything was decided so peacefully.

I mean...

Did this assignment have an answer to begin with?

If Grandfather is the culprit and wants to repent by bringing his crime to light,

then it'd be quickest if he just told us how he k*lled her.

So why in the world would he make us think about it?

Do you think this assignment has another purpose?

Grandfather knows something very special and can bring it all to light right now.

Perhaps he's trying to make us realize that.

That's what my father suggested.

Even if we go along with Miss Iwanaga's proposal,

there are still a number of questions.

Nah, you're overthinking this.

President Otonashi is indeed involved with Sumi-san's death.

But he doesn't think you'd believe him if he told you how he k*lled her...

So he just wanted his children to figure out how he did it.

Can we really believe that, thought?

There is an answer.

If you all seek out the truth, you'll eventually reach it.

But there's nothing suspicious about my father.

Is that so?

For example, when the incident occurred,

there was President Otonashi and those he didn't want any suspicion to fall upon.

Isn't it suspicious that Ryoma-san, Kaoruko-san, Susumu-san,

and Koya-san all had alibis at the time?

It's as though they're all being protected.

Don't you think the only one capable of that at the time was President Otonashi?

The incident happened twenty-three years ago, on February th at around PM.

Sumi-san was at the time.

Okamoto Osteopathic Clinic

She had gone to an independently-run massage clinic.

It was a fully private service she received once a month to relax.

She didn't even have a car take her to and from.

And on her way back, she was att*cked by someone.

Thief!

Someone! That man—

Someone catch that man wearing black! He went toward the station!

When the residents went down to check after hearing her scream,

Sumi-san was already dead.

Her body was still warm, so it was determined that the incident had just occurred.

The cause of death was hemorrhagic shock caused by

two s*ab wounds near her heart.

They don't know who the Kn*fe belonged to,

and they weren't able to detect any fingerprints.

Sumi-san had a habit of walking around with quite a bit of cash.

She always had over a million yen in her wallet,

and all of her bills had been taken from that wallet.

Burglary and m*rder.

At first glance, it seems to be a simple crime.

The suspect tried to take her money and was met with resistance,

so he ended up stabbing her to death.

But the investigation came to an immediate standstill

because there was no further evidence.

The police figured it was very likely a burglary and m*rder,

but considered the possibility that it was actually a m*rder

made to look like a burglary and m*rder,

since Sumi-san had many people who resented her for her work, as well.

Her family and Koya-san also had possible motives.

All of you knew that Sumi-san went to the massage clinic once a month,

so it would've been possible that you planned to ambush her on her way home.

She was against Kaoruko-san's marriage to Koya-san,

and she was against Ryoma-san and Susumu-san's desired careers.

President Otonashi felt distress from his children

and thought the group was in danger.

There was a reason for all of you to think that Sumi-san was in the way.

At the time, my brother and I thought it'd be better

if our mother was gone countless times.

I could never get into her good graces.

She even threatened me saying that she'd crush the company

I'd started if I didn't break up with Kaoruko.

Of course one might consider murdering her.

But because all of you had alibis,

you were immediately cleared of suspicion.

President Otonashi was in another prefecture,

and around PM, he was in a meeting with over ten people.

Ryoma-san and Susumu-san were at the group HQ,

which was an hour's drive from the scene of the incident,

and were spotted arguing there around the time of the incident.

We were both young back then.

I was in my twenties, and Nii-san had just entered his thirties.

Nii-san had been training as a cook at a famous restaurant in secret to our mother,

but that was exposed, and he was made to come to the office,

making him overly stressed.

I was only given work as my brother's assistant, and it made me annoyed.

My brother was forced to do this work, while I wanted to do this work.

Of course we fought over trivial things.

Yes. It seems as though many around you knew that you two didn't get along,

but you two hadn't really fought at the office prior,

so you ended up with a clear alibi.

It may be coincidental, but quite well done.

The Silenced Children

During the incident, Koya-san was also out visiting business partners,

and was in the middle of negotiations, so he couldn't leave.

I was at the time.

I had no connections, so people turned me down all the time.

My daily routine was to forcefully negotiate as much as I could.

Yes, and that's why you have such a strong alibi.

If you easily backed down in negotiations,

you may have gotten time to go to the scene of the crime.

You should always do your best at your job.

Kaoruko-san had hurt her left leg,

so she had canceled her plans for the day and was at Koya-san's condo by herself.

Apparently, Kaoruko had taken quite a tumble in front of the condo that afternoon.

She was resting in the room, but the swelling in her leg got worse that evening,

so I took her to the hospital that night.

We found out that her left tibia was fractured,

and she was hospitalized that night.

And because of her accident, Kaoruko-san was cleared of suspicion.

There was no way she could att*ck Sumi-san and k*ll her with that leg.

What good fortune for her.

Otonashi Family Inheritance Assignment Documents

Iwanaga-san.

Just what are you trying to say?

My grandfather was looking for the right moment when everyone else had an alibi,

and k*lled my grandmother then?

Isn't that a bit malicious to say?

Everyone but Aunt Kaoruko knew about my grandfather's m*rder plot,

and deliberately made sure they had an alibi at the time of the crime.

That's what I'm hearing from you.

Oh, I'd never do anything so distasteful.

I did indeed propose an alliance,

but despite your claims of selflessness, I never thought it'd be resolved so quickly.

The inheritance is worth a large sum, and it also involves how the group is run.

And Kaoruko-san and Ryoma-san, who are both part of this matter, are not present,

so I thought you'd want to give it more time.

It's as though you've settled this matter before

any of your personal inconveniences came up.

This alliance goes against President Otonashi's wishes,

so if there were no apprehensions, I figured things would go earnestly.

It could be you all had alibis coincidentally.

But at the time of the incident,

Ryoma-san, Susumu-san, Koya-san,

and President Otonashi could have been conspiring together,

so they made sure each alibi stuck.

Kaoruko-san wasn't informed about any of this, so she almost didn't have an alibi.

Wouldn't that interpretation be much more entertaining?

I have no interest in the inheritance.

My uncles have decided that

my grandfather would not do anything irrational regarding the inheritance,

and that it would be better for them

to go along with your plan than to bicker amongst family.

And yet, you have the nerve to mock this and call it entertaining?

You truly lack any taste!

If the four including my grandfather are indeed accomplices,

there's no point to either this alliance or the assignment!

Because my uncles would know that my grandfather is an accomplice.

Correct. I do not believe that they are all accomplices.

President Otonashi denies that, as well.

But the president did say that

the crime should get the proper punishment.

Is Dad trying to get me to confess?

Is that the purpose of this assignment?

Uncle?

Huh?

I can't say.

Even preparing for a m*rder would be considered a crime.

Very well. I'll admit it.

Twenty-three years ago, my brother and I came up with a plan to k*ll our mother.

Mother was k*lled while we were still planning, so we never carried it out.

With my dad? But you two haven't been on good terms for over thirty years!

You were even arguing on the day of the m*rder!

It's because they get along so terribly

that no one would suspect they were accomplices.

But their interests fundamentally aligned.

So you've seen through everything, after all.

On the day of the crime,

you two were arguing so loudly that others noticed.

That's why you had a solid alibi.

But what if you were actually accomplices just acting like you were arguing?

For example, if you two were alone arguing in a meeting room,

perhaps everyone around you just heard voices and noises from outside.

Or you could've played something recorded prior,

I don't want to do this.

and acted like you were fighting

even though only one of you was in the room,

You don't understand anything, Nii-san!

What do you mean by that?

making people think you were both there.

You've always been like this!

In the meantime, the other carries out the m*rder.

Yes. That's how our alibis worked out.

Nii-san.

What do you want? Why'd you call me here?

I figured you're the only one I could ask to do this.

At this rate, our futures, as well as the group's, will be ruined.

So we're going to k*ll Mom.

All you need to do is help me come up with our alibis.

I'll do all the dirty work.

So you have a plan...

Overall, the plan was as you described it.

But we needed a few more tricks to make sure no one else suspected.

Wait, are they fighting?

I thought their relationship had gotten worse lately, but...

Uh, someone should probably stop them.

It wasn't unusual for my brother and me to fight at the office,

so even if some people realized we were fighting in a room,

it'd be better to stay out of it.

That's the atmosphere we were trying to create.

Chief Otonashi, it's awful!

The president...

That was the day that our mother was m*rder*d,

and that was the fight that became our alibi twenty-three years ago on February th.

Have you ever suspected that it was President Otonashi who committed the m*rder?

Yes, but Dad had an alibi,

and there were no signs that he hired anyone to carry out the k*lling.

That's why our mother's death was just considered a burglary and m*rder.

And now, this assignment.

If our father isn't the m*rder*r,

I can't help but feel like he wanted us to confess

that my brother and I plotted the m*rder in the past,

and atone for our crime.

Nii-san might've realized it, as well.

Perhaps he sent Rion here to let her know of his crime

and try to atone for it in some way.

Wait, are you saying...

that you and my father kept acting like you hated each other

so no one would suspect that you were accomplices this whole time?

Don't get the wrong idea. I do hate my brother.

Nii-san threw aside the job I wanted and went off to do his own thing.

Even though he was always better at this job than I was.

I always felt inferior next to him...

But I feel a bit better now.

I'm grateful that I was given the opportunity to confess this.

Now, how about Koya-san and Kaoruko-san?

Did you also plot to m*rder Otonashi Sumi-san?

The timing of Kaoruko-san's injury is far too convenient,

so I tried to come up with this false alibi.

The afternoon of the day of the m*rder,

Kaoruko-san purposely fell in front of people,

and acted like she'd hurt her leg.

At that point, she hadn't really hurt herself, let alone broken anything.

She then left the condo that evening,

and m*rder*d Sumi-san, making it look like a burglary.

After that, she returned to the condo and fractured her leg herself.

That's how she made it look like she had actually fractured her leg that afternoon,

to make people believe she couldn't have committed the m*rder.

That's quite the imagination.

My leg hurt just hearing that.

But even if she had hidden her face,

there's no way she wouldn't recognize her own daughter.

We know from Sumi-san's final screams that the suspect was a man.

She said, "Someone catch that man in black!"

But were those screams truly from Sumi-san?

I don't think the residents in the area knew what Sumi-san sounded like.

What if, in order to make people think the culprit was a man,

Kaoruko-san acted like Sumi-san and

screamed near her corpse to make sure people heard?

That's far too risky a plot.

If one of the residents had immediately come out after hearing the screams,

Kaoruko would've been found.

Indeed.

I mean, if you plotted a m*rder in a residential area,

you'd have to make sure the victim couldn't speak when the m*rder happened,

and the m*rder*r would probably make sure

there was no evidence left before leaving the scene.

But...

This is your golden opportunity.

According to Susumu-san, this might be your chance to feel a bit better.

Very well, I'll come clean. It's the opposite.

It's not that Kaoruko broke her leg, and then the m*rder was committed.

She broke her leg, and it messed up our m*rder plot.

Kaoruko and I were indeed plotting her mother's m*rder.

We even plotted to m*rder her on her way home from her massage,

just like Susumu-san and Ryoma-san.

That was the only time she was ever alone.

And on that day, we were going to carry out our plot.

We did indeed plan to mislead the time she broke her leg, as you said.

On the day of the incident, in order to fabricate my alibi,

I had been running around, negotiating all day,

and returned to the condo that night.

Kaoruko should've already carried out the m*rder at that point.

Kaoruko?

Koya-san, I'm sorry.

I messed up...

Kaoruko!

When I made it look like I fell this afternoon, I apparently really broke my leg.

I'm such a fool!

Even if I can still ambush her, I can't run after her like this!

There was no way I could k*ll her and run.

We found out about her mother's death at the hospital I took Kaoruko to.

Someone had k*lled her.

If this was providence from the heavens, it definitely felt eerie.

I thought that maybe President Otonashi had figured out our plot

and decided to carry it out earlier, but we just went on living our lives,

knowing we had been spared.

And then this assignment happened.

We wondered if he was trying to get us to confess our past sins, as well.

Kaoruko has been scared ever since, so I had to be the one to show up.

But I never dreamed that Ryoma-san and Susumu-san had also planned to m*rder her.

Perhaps the president also felt as though he didn't have much time left

and wanted to square away his past.

Maybe he wanted us to confess our sins to lighten the burden on our backs.

Well, Miss Iwanaga?

The sins of the successors have come to light.

We can end this farce now, can't we?

But it's not over.

I have no interest in what you all were doing at the time, or hearing you repent.

It's already past the statute of limitations, and it's not fundamentally the issue at hand.

How did President Otonashi k*ll Otonashi Sumi-san at the time?

That's the answer he would like to hear.

All of your sins are trivial.

Then why in the world

did you have us all admit that we plotted to m*rder our mother?

You were all so concerned with how you were going to conceal your crimes,

you didn't prepare for the actual answer, did you?

I'm certain that Rion-san couldn't concentrate with all

the secrets that were in the air.

That's why I figured, if that wasn't taken care of first, we couldn't get started.

I was chosen to judge this, so I must make sure this task is carried out properly.

President Otonashi wants his past success that

stemmed from someone else's death to be corrected.

Success sometimes harms people and leads them to their own destruction.

That's why it was necessary to correct the past.

Now, then...

There is an answer as to how President Otonashi k*lled Sumi-san.

Please think carefully.

To be continued