I nodded. “Up until now, there have been seven Masquerade victims total. All of them beautiful women. Partially because of that, whenever he kills one, it riles up the public and monopolizes the media conversation. However, no matter how many permutations he comes up with and no matter how brutal the killings are, they gradually start to lose their novelty.”
“People still do get pretty worked up over it I guess,” Yamaji said. “But there is a slight sense of ‘This again.’”
I nodded to acknowledge him and continued, “But then we come to Reina Myoko. She wasn’t just beautiful, she was also incredibly enigmatic. She was mysterious even in high school, and one of her mysteries is why she refused to leave behind any photos of herself. It’s also strange that she owned a luxury car but didn’t have a driver’s license. All this has riled up my suspicions and made me think about new possibilities. Dr. Higano has suggested Masquerade was a collector, that the act of killing a new, different kind of woman satisfied him sexually. However, I find it more convincing that—” I paused for a beat. “—he was biding his time and finding the victim who’d have the biggest splash with the public. What do you think?”
There probably would’ve been plenty of splash if he’d kept killing the same kind of woman over and over again. But I felt like Masquerade’s methods hooked the public, providing endless opportunities for discussion—What kind of hot chick would he pick next? Which body part would he take with him?
Not to mention the fact that Reina Myoko was his latest victim?
The world would find out quickly how different she was from the others, and it would pique their interest.
I thought Masquerade must be going for that effect.
Dr. Higano covered his eyes and nodded deeply. “I see,” he said. “So this is connected to your previous comment—that Reina would have been a convenient victim for Masquerade? Masquerade is selecting and killing remarkable individuals as the world desires.”
“Exactly. This is why Masquerade differs from a traditional serial killer who operates on sexual desire. He almost seems like an intellectual who’s totally lost it, who’s making decisions based solely on how he can most influence society rather than any personal desires. He’s basically a terrorist at his purest essence. At least that’s what I think.”
Dr. Higano re-opened his eyes, impressed. “Brilliant. No one has suggested that he’s a terrorist before. Incredibly interesting theory. However, and I don’t mean to quibble, but what do you think he’s trying to accomplish by killing these beautiful women? Killing women on Odaiba without getting caught is far more difficult than setting off a bomb in a crowded area. If he’s operating out of political beliefs, his approach is the highest risk, smallest reward.”
He had a point.
“Ooh ooh, let me!” From shotgun, Erika’s hand shot up in high spirits. “I just realized something. Okay, so, I really don’t think such a weird guy who kills people is acting based on his political beliefs.”
“But then you do agree with me that he’s operating out of sexual desire?” Dr. Higano asked.
“Maybe he’s something like an athlete?” she countered.
I furrowed my brow with confusion.
“Yuri, you’re making a super serious face right now,” she remarked. “But I swear I have a point. Like, there are people who can run the 100-meter dash in under eight seconds, right? That’s amazing, but it’s not super helpful around the house. But they’re so talented they could win a gold medal and their name would go down in history, and that alone gets them to train like crazy. See?”
“So what you’re trying to say then,” I murmured, summarizing her main point, “is that he kills people because he’s good at killing people.”
What was going on? Her logic was, to be perfectly honest, ridiculous.
But I had to admit it made some sense.
Say Masquerade’s crimes were, as I thought, a sort of terrorism. As Dr. Higano said, a terrorist wouldn’t normally choose Masquerade’s methods of murder.
However, if he’d chosen to kill in this way because of his talents as a killer, that would solve the mystery. He was such a skilled killer that there would be nothing preventing him from putting it into action.
“I’m…not so sure,” I hesitated.
The logic remained ridiculous.
We’d never understand Masquerade’s intentions from conjecture alone.
Dr. Higano saw me frown and smiled encouragingly. “Whatever the case, we can’t let ourselves get down. A criminal who keeps killing so recklessly will eventually be caught. No matter how good a serial killer he is. That much I’m sure of. And I think the one to catch him will be someone like you, who’s completely obsessed with him.”
Yamaji stepped on the brake. I looked out the window of the slowing vehicle and saw the familiar concrete walls of the Patchwork Fortress.
“Here we go,” Yamaji said and crunched his lollipop. “That’s all the time we have for your deduction dreams right now, Princess. Time to solve the case that’s right in front of our noses. One step at a time, that’s the way to get to Masquerade.”
“Got it!” I said, trying to pump myself up.
For now, I decided to forget the fact that Masquerade might be related to the Reina Myoko case. I needed to investigate without anything clouding my mind.
I had to focus on solving the riddle of my mysterious classmate.
Yamaji’s vintage Toyota Crown threaded through the opening in the rugged gate and pulled into the parking lot. I unbuckled my seatbelt and opened the door, and Dr. Higano followed me out in his white coat.
I paused. “You’re bringing that thing with you?”
Dr. Higano had his glass puzzle cube in one hand. “Yes, I find it easier to think if I have something to do with my hands. And I guess it’s also a kind of superstition. I’ve solved a number of cases fairly quickly when I have it with me.”
He spun the cubes in his long, bony fingers. For some reason the smooth movements of his fingers were captivating.
“Shall we?” Dr. Higano said. Strangely, he smiled brightly, like a blossoming flower. “Let’s pull this case apart, and expose it for what it is.”