Chapter 9 Chapter nine
"Ah Wei..." A faint call came back to my consciousness.Then came the incessant coughing. "A Wei, answer me... Where are you? Where are you? A Wei."
It's not English but Japanese.That nostalgic voice that reminded me of my mother brought tears to my eyes. "Stella" I ran towards the central hall where the voice came from. "Stella, I'll be right there. Stella, Stella!"
The door of Room 101 opened.Jets shot out of the black chimney.The windows of her room also appeared to have shattered from the blast of the storm.Stella, who took refuge in the corridor, leaned against the door of Room 110 opposite and coughed.Maybe she was hit by the smoke just now, and her face and chest were blackened.
"Stella, are you okay?"
"Ah Wei, what happened?" Tears glistened on her dark face, which kept coughing.Maybe it was too much impact?She looked empty and fell into my arms. "What is this... what happened?"
"I don't know, but it looks like a gas station exploded—"
Ah, I exclaimed.Perhaps it was the reflexive force of the arm holding Stella, and she shrank back in pain.
"What, what's the matter? Ah Wei, what's the matter?"
"Kate..."
"what?"
"Kate is over there, in the garage..."
"What did you say?"
"Sitting in the white luggage cart...started the engine...to get us out of here...she sat in the cab and waited for us."
"Garage—could it be—" Maybe he was trying to force himself to accept the fact?Stella also deliberately stated the fact that there is no need to think about it. "It's right next to the gas station?"
"Could it be...Could it be that Kate was in the explosion just now—?"
Stella looked at me steadily.As if begging me not to continue.
"How... how?"
Holding the steering wheel of the luggage cart, the face of "Her Royal Highness" with a brave and cute smile came to my mind so vividly that it was almost cruel.I don't know if it was because of the smoke blowing from all directions, but my eyes were filled with tears.
The cold water like a waterfall suddenly sprayed down from the top of my head, and it suddenly woke me up.The automatic sprinkler system in the facility sensed the heat and activated.I can't help being a little angry, is the sensor passivated?The reaction is too slow, right?
"Anyway, anyway, we have to escape from here." I took Stella's hand. "Let's get out of the building, the fire may spread this way."
Stella and I supported each other and hurried to the back door of the dormitory area.I know that it is faster and safer to go outside from the staff dormitory area, but subconsciously I still try my best to avoid seeing the remains of the "poets".Wet from the automatic sprinklers, we finally made it to the back door.As soon as we opened the door, although we smelled a little bit of burnt smell, the refreshing air immediately enveloped our whole body.I really wanted to rush straight ahead, but the front was blocked by the barbed wire surrounding the swamp.
We evacuated to the basketball court directly across from the building and the scene of the fire.Black smoke rose from the opposite side of the "school" into the sky.The red monster jumped over the roof of the building, trying to attack us.The flames danced like fish caught ashore.It doesn't look like the fire is showing signs of abating at all.
"What will become of us?" Stella muttered as if in a dream, her wet black hair sticking to her cheek. "...What will it look like?"
I can't answer her.I regret my powerlessness, but there is really nothing I can do.I remember seeing a fire extinguisher somewhere in the building, but trying to fight that massive flame on my own was pretty foolhardy.If anyone can help - I'm startled at the thought.
"Stella... Where is Howard?"
"Huh?" She stopped suddenly as she was about to brush the hair off her eyelids.Maybe it was captured by an ominous premonition?Her voice was shaking. "Where... I don't know. Isn't he in his room?"
"It doesn't seem to be there. I knocked on the door several times just now to call him, um, but no one responded. Didn't he come to your room?"
"Howard why—" Maybe it was the coughing that caused the chest pain?She frowned. "It's okay if everyone came together, but why did he come to my room alone?"
"I don't mean anything else. So, where did he go..."
Maybe "Neutral" couldn't bear the thought of blaming himself for shooting Mrs. Cotton, and staggered out of the building without knowing how to live the rest of his life.Maybe his sudden behavior just saved him from being sucked into the blast.It would be nice if that was the case.No, it must be so.Because, with such a commotion, it is impossible for him to remain in the building.Whether it's room 105 or something else.Even if he fell asleep, he should be awakened by the rumbling sound enough to shake the ground, and he would jump up from the bed.
In other words, the one who became the victim in the explosion just now was... "Stella, I'm sorry, can you wait for me here?"
"where are you going?"
"I'm going to check on the condition of the garage."
"I'll go as well."
We passed the entrance of the building and tried to walk in the direction of the garage.For the sake of safety, of course we keep enough distance from the flames and black smoke, and go around far away.
The garage burned like paper, a huge orange flame.From time to time, pillar-like shadows can be seen faintly from the gaps in the flames.The outlines of the saloon and the luggage cart disappeared altogether.You don't need to look at the wreckage scattered around to know that the car has been blown to nothing.
"Really..." Stella grabbed my arm while squeezing her nose. "Is Kate really there...?"
I couldn't even nod my head, sobbing helplessly against Stella.
No lunch or dinner today...and that was the first thing that came to my mind when it started to get dark around me.In the past, I always felt that Mrs. Cotton's cooking was unbearable, but now my mood is that if there is still a chance, I will enjoy it with joy.If God could "reset" Mrs. Cotton's death, I would do anything.For the first time in my life, I prayed so seriously.Of course, it also includes the deaths of "retainers", "poets" and "Her Royal Highness".If what happened today can be repeated, then what is there to care about? At night, the smoke from the garage area still showed no sign of dissipating.It looked as if the gray ones were painted on the dark sky with a brush, but there were few red flames coming out. I went back inside the building through the back door over the staff quarters area.I went to the house supervisor's room No. 115 to have a look. Unexpectedly, he was careless and forgot to lock the door, so I took blankets and mats from his room.By the way, I found some drinks and snacks, so Stella and I shared the food to moisten our throats and quench our thirst.She and I were wrapped in blankets and lay on the lawn waiting for dawn.The fire seemed to be completely stopped, but it was still smoking.I think it would be wiser not to stay in "school" tonight. "Absolutely, absolutely together——" I don't know if I have a cold, Stella huddled in the blanket and still clings to me, saying in a nasal voice full of sorrow. "We absolutely need to get out of here alive together." "of course." "I'm going back to Paris, to the apartment where my parents are waiting for me. Then I'm going to live peacefully with my family as usual. Right?" "Yes, of course." "Will Ah Wei go back to Kobe?" "I will go back, and go back safely." "Nothing to worry about, right? Neither of us will be fine." "Yeah, nothing to worry about." "Hey." "Ok." "It's a good thing that we can go home safely, but from now on we have to separate the two places. I'm in Paris, and Ah Wei is in Kobe." "We'll meet again someday." "That's true. But I don't like that one day, I want to be with you forever." "Stella." "I want to be with you, Wei. Hey, pick me up when you grow up, pick me up in Paris, and then take me to Kobe." "Stella." "Will you promise me?" "I promise you." "Really. Promise me, promise me." "I promise." "Would you like to be with me forever?" "We'll be together. When we grow up, we'll get married, shall we?" "We'll get married. Well, when we grow up, we'll be husband and wife, always, always. Peacefully. Forever...forever." Stella and I didn't bother to say these words again and again like talking in sleep.That's what keeps us going today through the shock of total change in the world in one day.
Woke up suddenly, the sky was already bright, and the surroundings became bright.It was past seven o'clock in the morning.Today's weather is also unbearably good, and there are thin noodles like smoke curling up into the transparent blue sky everywhere.Even the paradise-like weather could not erase the fact that the hellish events of the previous day were definitely not a dream. I looked to the side, and Stella was wrapped in a blanket, using a cushion as a pillow, and was still in a deep sleep.I got up quietly so as not to wake her up.I walked past the front door of the "school" toward where the garage would have been. There was no familiar object left at the scene.Everything was charred black and melted.Sinister soot covered the ruins.I think the scattered things should be the wreckage of cars and luggage carts, but I really can't imagine their original shape. Has "Her Royal Highness" been blown away like this?I don't want to imagine it, but there is a smell like burnt protein all around, scratching my lungs mercilessly. Fighting back my headache and nausea, I watched "School".Maybe thanks to automatic sprinklers?The building wasn't completely burned, but it was charred everywhere.The classroom closest to the gas station was particularly badly damaged. The walls were gone, and the room, which had been reduced to water-soaked soot, was completely exposed.The library barely kept its walls, but it was also scorched everywhere, and most of the window panes were broken. The window of Stella's room, Room 101, is open.Maybe it's because I want to escape from the smog, and I don't have any desire to close the window at all?Of course the whole glass shattered.Room 102 next door and Room 103 of the "Retainer" may also have been hit by the storm, and the window panes are cracked or chipped here and there, but the walls have not suffered much damage.The rooms opposite from room 104 narrowly escaped the disaster because of the distance from the gas station, and the window panes were unharmed. Under the window of Room 103 are the remains of "retainers".The white sheet covering it was blown away and stuck to the wall of the building.He should have been lying on his stomach yesterday, but now he is slightly leaning against the building, lying sideways.It may have been blown by the blast.The cloudy eyes of the dead body happened to be angled to look at me steadily.I originally wanted to go to the "neutral" room in room 105, but because I met the eyes of the "retainers", I lost all strength. I turned around and went back to where the gas station was.Maybe there's still some tinder left?There was thin smoke everywhere.The original equipment is of course gone.What the hell happened yesterday?The leaked gasoline must have ignited and caused the explosion, but I don't understand how there are fireworks in this kind of place? Somewhere among the charred ruins was the remains of "Her Royal Highness".should have.However, no matter how hard I looked, I couldn't find anything that looked human.Just thinking about the significance of this incident, I felt an almost crazy sense of sadness and despair, and I couldn't help but look away.Just at this time. I spotted him.He walked on the only road with wilderness on the left and right, and walked slowly towards the "school".That figure.After a while, I could clearly see the red curly hair and glasses, and the white clothes that kept shaking at the hem.It was Mr. "Master" Baggins.He staggered with extreme fatigue and came back alone, without seeing the "principal".On this point, the conjecture of "Her Royal Highness" is correct. I walk towards him slowly.Just in front of the entrance of the "school", I met the "dominant".It looked like I stepped up to greet him.Incredibly, I didn't feel any fear.Maybe at this time, I have lost my attachment to my own life. The "house supervisor" looked over my shoulder, fixedly looking at the burnt garage and gas station, with an unlit cigarette dangling from the corner of his mouth.The cigarette had probably been in his mouth for a long time, and the whole stick had bent off. "If you're looking for your lighter—" I unconsciously said these words. "It's in the library." "Really? Thank you." With his usual indifferent expression, he opened the entrance door with cracked glass.The shards of glass that had been stuck on the door frame fell to the ground along this momentum, and cracked with a clanging sound.I followed the "house warden" in the half-destroyed "school". "Woo—" Walking through the library where glass shards were scattered, the "Housemaster" who wandered around the round table for a while shrugged. "Where's the lighter?" "The back—" I withdrew the hand I was about to reach out.There was no golden lighter under that chair.I guess it may have been changed by the storm, but there is really no sign of that. "It's really weird, I did see one that fell over there yesterday." "Humph!" The "house supervisor" no longer pursued the matter of the lighter, and came to the corridor.Perhaps to use the fire to light a cigarette?He made a gesture to enter the restaurant, but stopped abruptly.He still maintained an attitude of not being in a hurry, but he quickened his pace and walked in the direction of the central hall.There were, of course, the remains of The Poet and Mrs. Cotton. "Oh, what a great job." Facing the two murdered corpses, the "house warden" showed no signs of timidity, nor the slightest hint of surprise.It even seems to have been expected to happen. "What happened? Just tell me what you know, and explain it to me in order." He asked without looking back, and I started gushing into the back of his white coat.I started with the discovery of Bill lying outside the building, and the discovery of a small pistol under his body; the return to the central hall to find Kenneth "The Poet" stabbed to death; Mrs. Cotton who called the police; Kate who was in the car who was planning to go round with Dr. Seward, that explosion happened and so on.However, I did not mention the reasoning assumptions published by individuals, including myself, and just calmly stated the facts of what I witnessed. "—I see." The "house warden" with his hands in his white coat pockets turned his head and looked at me. "I see." "What happened to Dr. Seward?" "Walk back like me. The car ran out of gas halfway, and we walked back all night. She rested more frequently along the way, and as a result, she took a long distance." "Really?" "Why am I lying. It will all be clear when she gets back here. What are you worried about?" "I'm worried whether the doctor will be killed now and be abandoned on the way?" "Killed? By whom?" "You, Mr. Baggins." Hearing this sentence, it was myself who was afraid, and the "house supervisor" looked like a fool. "Hey, why did I kill her?" "I don't know the motive. But at least you killed Bill, didn't you?" The cigarette shaking at the corner of his mouth stopped, and the "house supervisor" glared at me. "I just said there was this pistol under Bill's body." I pulled the pistol from my hip pocket and waved it in front of his eyes.Thinking about it, he really had no defense against such an approach, but maybe I was too excited to care so much at all. "Is this one of Mr. Baggins's?" "You know you got quite a lot." The "Dorm Supervisor" still admitted straightforwardly. "So that's it. There's this thing under Bill's body. I know, but can I be concluded that I'm a criminal based on this alone?" "The real scene where Bill was killed was in the library." Without thinking too much, I put the pistol back into my pocket and told the reasoning of "Her Royal Highness" yesterday. "The murder weapon was a Latin dictionary. In order to disguise the accidental death, you threw Beard's body out of the library window and moved it to the dormitory area. You put his body on the ground and tried to adjust his posture. At that moment, the pistol slipped from your pocket, but you didn't realize it." "That's right." The "Dorm Supervisor" breathed out.Started to play the game of shaking the cigarette with the corner of the mouth again. "I found out later, and I also thought of this possibility. But I didn't have time to go back and get it. Is that so? It's really in that place?" "So, Mr. Baggins, you admit it? Admit that you killed Bill? And Lou Bennett?" "You mean, Killu Bennett—" For some reason, the "Housemaster" smiled happily. "I did it too?" "I saw it the morning before yesterday, over there behind the barbed wire fence. It was about four o'clock in the morning. I don't know what happened, but in retrospect, I think you took Lou Bennett's body Feed the crocodiles in the swamp." "You're right." The "Dorm Supervisor" admitted happily. "If it is more correct, I cut Lou Bennett's body into several pieces in the bathroom of my room, and then discarded the pieces of meat in the swamp through the barbed wire. It seems very simple to say, But, that was a heavy labor beyond my imagination, and I don't want to do it a second time." "Mr. Baggins, you are not joking, are you?" "Well, what do you say?" "Are you laughing at me? How could you admit that you killed Buergenlu Bennett so simply? Or, because I am a child, you despise—" "Hey, I did move Bill's body from the library to the outside of the dormitory area. I admit it, but I never said I killed Bill." "Eh...how could—" "Similarly, I did dismember Lu Bennett's body and feed it to the crocodiles. This is also true. I admit it, but I didn't kill Lu Bennett." "How is it possible... But, but—?" "This is a fact." "I don't believe it. If you didn't kill them, why bother disposing of the bodies of the victims?" "Because someone has to do it." He still had a smile on his face, but the color in his eyes was inexplicably sad. "However, there is no one else suitable for this job besides me. So I did. It is not the first time that this kind of trouble has happened." "How is it possible...how is it possible—" My head seems to be clearly abnormal today.I thought of an unexplainable thing. "Could it be that even Dennis Ludlow, as you said, couldn't adapt to the environment here and returned to his family...?" "Ah, do you know what happened to Dennis? Well, it's a matter of course. We didn't deliberately ask other people to keep quiet. Yes, that's right. Dennis was not sent back to his family. He died here. Deal with it I belonged to his dead body too. But—" The Housemaster interrupted my questioning by prodding me with the cigarette he had taken from his mouth. "I didn't kill him." "What's going on here..." In fact, it should be very simple to insist that he is lying, but I really can't think like this, my head is in a mess. "What exactly is going on?" "You mentioned it just now, Ah Wei." The "house supervisor" pointed at Mrs. Cotton's body lying behind him with a thumbs up. "You said she refused to call the police from the beginning to the end, do you know why?" "have no idea." "It's simple. We can't call the police here because it's an illegal facility that doesn't have any recognition from the government. It's a den of criminals from the very beginning." "How is it possible... how could there be such a ridiculous thing?" A chill-like uneasiness surged from the bottom of my abdomen. "Impossible, because we were all sent here to be cared for with the consent of our families." "Even with the consent of the family members—" I don't know if it's a psychological effect, but I think the eyes of the "house supervisor" hidden under the glasses seem to have a tinge of pity. "That's also the consent of family members who desperately want to get rid of your troubles." "Get out of... trouble?" "Your family and Dr. Seward have the same strong relationship. That's why this facility exists. The doctor took you in to use you for research purposes. On the other hand, your family wanted to ask the doctor to take you in. Provided some funds. After that, they will not interfere at all. This is the agreement between the two parties, even if you are here in the wild." What is this man talking about?Is he crazy?out of trouble?Why do mom and dad do this?What good would they do by kicking me out of the house?It would be a different matter if you can get a sum of money by handing over your son to someone else, but they still provide funds to Dr. Seward?How can there be such a stupid thing? "What the hell is here—" I have a lot of things I want to ask, but I decided to start with a question that has been in my mind for a while. "What research is it that brings us together here?" "Research?" The "Dorm Supervisor" returned to his usual indifferent expression, as if he hated the fact that he was alive. "That's what I said on the surface, so I also use this statement. In fact, it's not that great. Everything is just a kind of self-satisfaction of Mr. Doctor with an abnormal head." "Head is out of order... Do you mean Dr. Seward?" "She's not a doctor." "What did you say?" "It's just that she wants us to call her that, to satisfy her. She didn't even go to college, she's just a psychology fanatic." "A fanatic...?" "That's why no formal scholar is willing to work with her. She feels very sorry, so she desperately tries to find a way to make the society recognize her research, even at the expense of such a huge amount of money." "The cost of taking care of us is indeed quite a lot, isn't it?" "Your living expenses are limited. If you know how much Deborah spent on this project, you will pass out. But you must be able to understand the current currency value of this country. Just—" "Take your right hand out of your pocket and point to the ceiling. "It would be a big deal to find this building and modify it, plus the props in it, but the TV and the car in the reception room cost the most money." TV and car...?The TV may have been tweaked a bit to not pick up sound waves, but I don't think it would cost much.Plus the car, what on earth is going to cost that much money?Aren't the three vehicles all the ubiquitous SUVs, sedans, and luggage carts?But at present I do not have the leeway to ask these questions in detail.The successive exposures of the "school" and Dr. Seward's true face are enough to amaze and astonish me. "Unfortunately, Deborah has nothing but money, and she inherited a huge amount of money from her parents, and then spent it on this hobby, which is like a waste of money." I think it takes a long time to remember that Deborah is Dr. Seward. "To be fair, that's all. Over the past year, Deborah's research—accurately, what she calls her own research—has been fruitful. I can roughly agree with this. Her theory itself is not worth mentioning. , but all that research produced an unexpected by-product." "by-product?" "A monster that no one expected." "monster……" I can't help but startled. The voice of the "poet" echoed in my mind. (There's something sinister about it.) (Something evil inhabits here.) "Is that... is that the serial murderer?" "Yes. Killed Dennis, killed Bill, killed Kenneth as a sacrifice, and then blew up Kate to death. I think Howard probably ended up in the same way." "You mean he was killed too?" "I can bet you that there must be a corpse in Room 105. Howard never showed up after such a big explosion, so there is only one possibility, he has no breath." "But, maybe he couldn't bear the shock of shooting Mrs. Cotton, and ran outside in a moment of excitement—" "If that's the case, I should meet him on the way back here. Am I right? Because there is only one way to the nearest town." "However, Howard's house is locked. How is the prisoner..." "Then no prisoner can use the most legitimate reason to enter his room, kill him, snatch the key from his hand, lock it and escape. That's all it takes." "Is this just your speculation?" "Shall we go and see, then? You said the door was locked, didn't you? Maybe you can see through the window." "What if the curtains are drawn?" "At that time, let's break the glass and go in to have a look? This is an extraordinary period, and we use extraordinary measures. Deborah should not be able to say anything." As a result, the "Housemaster" did not need to break the window pane of Room 105.The curtains of the room are drawn, and the situation inside can be seen from the window. Howard is lying on the bed with something wrapped around his neck.Obviously, he is dead. "am I right?" After entering the "school" through the back door of the dormitory area, the "house supervisor" returned to the central hall.I just followed him mechanically. "In the end... who did this kind of thing?" "Hi, hello." Maybe he wanted to use the gas stove to light a cigarette? The "House Supervisor" made a gesture to go to the dining room, but now he stopped and looked back at me. "Don't say you haven't found it yet." "What's up?" "I mean when Bill was killed. He was killed in the library, and there was a murder weapon there. Aren't you the one who made that claim? When the criminal committed the crime, the only ones in the library were the three who had published the subject." One of the first team, and me. Didn't I? I didn't kill, and the rest of Kenneth and Bill were killed, and all that's left is—" "Liar..." I wanted to roar out, but I only made a weak sound like a flute. "This... this is a lie. How could Stella? How could—" "I was still in the library when Bill was killed, and I saw it with my own eyes. I saw it all. She hit poor Bill on the head with a Latin dictionary." "How come... No, wait a minute. If this is true, Kenneth should have been there at the time. He should know who killed this." "That's right, Kenneth saw it too." The "house supervisor" showed no signs of timidity at all. "That's why he was also murdered because he was a witness to the murder. He was killed to keep his mouth shut." "But... but Kenneth never said a word about it, he never said Stella was the prisoner—" "Maybe Kenneth has his own considerations?" The "house supervisor" glanced at the wheelchair and walked towards the dormitory area. "follow me." "do what?" "I'll show you the evidence." He came to room 101.The room remained the same as Stella, who was almost engulfed in smoke, escaped.So of course the door is open. "A Wei, have you ever entered this room?" "Only one time." "You have seen)—" He strode into Stella's room and opened the storage cabinet under the simple kitchen. "Is it here?" "I've only seen it once—" "Isn't that clear?" He took a step back, raised his chin, was there something missing.It was indeed missing, something for cooking - a kitchen knife. "According to what you just said, you confirmed that Stella and Kate were in this room when Bill fell outside and died? You just asked them to call Mrs. Cotton. They met Howard in the dining room and took Mrs. Cotton away. Take it outside. At this time, everyone must think that Kenneth should also go outside together? In fact, not at all." My body couldn't suppress the natural response of shaking. "We have no way of knowing the order in which they went to the entrance, but one thing is certain. Kenneth in a wheelchair is at the back, and Stella is with him, although only for a short time, of course , you should know why, right?" "how is this possible……" "So she started. She let Howard and Kate, who were leading Mrs. Cotton out of the entrance, go first, and used the gap to stab Kenneth in the neck who was a step behind everyone and was still in the central hall with a kitchen knife." "But...how could...?" "Maybe she didn't report Stella, but Kenneth is like a ticking time bomb to her, and she must not let him live." "I don't believe it. To put it bluntly, wouldn't it be strange to say that she killed Bill? The whole thing is unreasonable, because Stella was publishing a topic in the library at the time, and you and Kenneth were there. Isn't it? Then why Stella Rafi had to kill Bill at that time? She knew she would be witnessed by you and Kenneth. Even if she wanted to kill, she should have chosen the time and place, why—" "That's because—" "Dorm Supervisor" was speechless for the first time, and he threw away the deformed cigarette. "It's hard to explain, it's just—" "only?" "I can only say this, because Stella lost her rationality in an instant at that time, and she couldn't bear Bill who didn't want to go along with her anymore." "fantasy?" "In the past, she killed Dennis for the same reason." "What's the meaning?" "Dennis has always refused to go along with Stella's fantasies, and was killed in the end. On the other hand, in fact, Bill has never been able to accept Stella's fantasies before you came here, and he was mentally unstable. But because I got closer to Kate, I managed to survive." "Closer to Kate?" I think of a wonderful scene, is it the day before yesterday?What happened in the restaurant.At that time, "Her Royal Highness" and I almost missed lunch and ran through the restaurant together. At that time, "Retainers" showed me an inexplicably intimate expression that almost didn't match the atmosphere of the scene.I don't know the reason, but I think it may be that he mistakenly thought that I should have been sent by Stella, and I had switched to the "Her Royal Highness" faction.In other words, maybe he thought he had an extra partner and was relieved.This thought came to my mind. "Of course, Kate is the same in terms of wanting to share her fantasies with everyone. But she doesn't want to force others to accept her point of view like Stella, so it should be easier to get along with her? However, Bill is mentally Maybe he has reached the limit of his patience, or maybe he knows what Stella did to Dennis. So, when he knew that Lu Bennett was missing, he was the first to suspect Stella and question her. Right in front of me and Kenneth's face, the agitated Bill made it very clear that he would disown her, saying that he didn't want to go along with her fantasies anymore. Stella's anger was serious at the time, so Bill was killed." "On the spot?" "On the spot. Stella, whose most important fantasy point of view was completely denied, lost control to that extent." "In that case, why didn't she kill the witnesses in the library?" "Because Kenneth escaped in no time. Of course Stella is eyeing him and plans to deal with him in the future. I think she is waiting for an opportunity?" "Why, she killed Kenneth, but didn't want to stop you, who is also a witness?" "If she does that, it is she who loses." "……What did you say" "Stella knows very well who is responsible for her aftermath. I think she probably learned from Dennis's incident? So, the night before yesterday, technically speaking, it was already yesterday. Lou Bennett, he was the first to come to me for help." Ah, I figured it out.The night before—wasn't that why Stella came to my room?I remember it was almost twelve o'clock when she left my room, stating her dissatisfaction with the life of "school".Had she met Lou Bennett in the corridor on her way back to her room? "At night, Lu sensed Stella walking in the corridor, so he walked out of his room, caught Stella, and then he may also declare that he will never go along with Stella's fantasies, and will never be you. partner. When Stella heard that, she got so mad that she strangled Lou Bennett. That's how it went." "You mean, she went to find you to deal with the aftermath?" "In Stella's perception, that's my mission. It feels like, you helped me with Dennis last time, so please this time too, she looks so relaxed and alive—" The dormitory supervisor" suddenly tilted his head in a childish manner that was almost never seen before, and put a cigarette in his mouth. "Does she know?" "what do you know?" "My weakness." "weakness?" “刚才我不是说过吗？这个设施并不是一个可以光明正大的地方，若果史黛拉的所作所为被知道的话，当然会遭到人权团体的批评，甚至肯能受到刑事方面的刑罚。史黛拉和你们的家人所签订的契约内容一定和这个国家的法律有所抵触，因为这算是一种人口买卖。” “人口……买卖？” “是的。这里时一个荒凉的地方，但是黛波拉好像不这么认为，她说为了自己的研究，她需要你们，还有你们家人的协助，她的认知是这样的。所以，万一她知道这里发生杀人事件的话——” “应该会报警吧？” “不，我怀疑她不会这样做，我想她反倒可能会觉得很困扰吧？也许会每天悲叹自己重要的研究受到阻挠。无论，我不想看到黛波拉这样伤脑筋，那就是我的弱点，史黛拉非常清楚。所以她才敢那样颐指气使吧？” “请等一下这么说来，席华德博士完全不知道之前发生的杀人事件？” “当然。到目前为止，她都相信丹尼斯和路·贝尼特时从这里逃走的。” “你为什么要为席华德博士做到这种地步——” 我发现自己问了一个很没礼貌的问题，赶紧住嘴，因为只要把“舍监”和“校长”的关系拿来换成我跟史黛拉的互动就一目了然了。 我突然领悟到了他为了索爱的女人而一再犯下罪行。可是，他在迫于无奈的情况下，这样做，一定几乎无法招架心中强烈的罪恶感。所以，他在无意识的情况下动了些小手脚，好把罪行指向自己。总有一天被曝光的方向。也就是说，姑且不说他自己有没有自觉，“舍监”心里是抱着毁灭的期望的。关于这一点也没有证据可以显示。那就是它在处理路·贝尼特尸体的时候。我目击到那个现场，当然是在偶然的情况下，但是要不是他刻意选择那个位置的话，我就不可能发生那种偶然了，不是吗？如果他只是单纯地想处理尸体的话，大可以到离“学校”建筑物比较远的地方去就好了。因为铁丝网是一直延伸到遥远的额彼方的。然而，他却刻意选择距离宿舍那么近的地方来遗弃尸体，为什么？一定是他在无意识当中希望某个人会目击到那个场面。也就是说，他迫切地希望借着自己的罪行曝光的契机，脱离目前的境遇。就算换来的是身败名裂也在所不惜。 “可是……我不懂。如果你说的都是真的，那么杀死凯特和霍华德的人也是史黛拉了？” "of course." “但是她的动机何在？” “她杀人的动机只有一个，因为自己的幻想的观点，遭到别人的抗拒。” “你一直说，幻想、幻想，到底是什么意思？我不知道霍华德是怎样，但是凯特只是想开车载着大家逃出而已，为什么……” etc.我突然想到一个可能性，背部不禁蹿过一股寒意。 ，如果说史黛拉对“王妃殿下”产生杀意的话动机可能只有一个，那就是嫉妒。在得到必须开车离开的结论之前，我跟王妃殿下两个人几次在图书室和'电话亭'之间来回走动。如果说我们经过中央大厅时，在101房的史黛拉想偷看的话，那时很容易的——看到一直牵着彼此的手行动的“王妃殿下”跟我。 "so." “啊？”迫切地希望这只是个人自恋的想法的我顿时回过神来“所以什么？” “最享受黛波拉的研究恩惠的人是史黛拉。这里时个乐园，至少对史黛拉而言是。” “我实在搞不懂你的意思。” “你只要仔细地回想柯顿太太被射杀的时候，就知道了。” “柯顿太太……？” “你认为是谁杀了她？” “是霍华德呀。因为是他拿着手枪的。我亲眼看到，他把枪口抵在她额头上，然后扣下扳机。我亲眼看到了。不止我，大家都看到了。” “也许。射杀柯顿太太的确实是霍华德，但是，让他扣下扳机的究竟是什么呢？” “是霍华德自己扣下扳机的啊，不是吗？” “柯顿太太当时企图破坏她的幻想。对史黛拉而言，那个女人是乐园的破坏者。” 我猛然一惊。乐园的破坏者——我发现自己理所当然似的把这个字眼转换成“异教徒”来想。可为什么，我自己都不了解自己了。我陷入一种好像被某种东西附身一样的错觉，全身冒着令人不快得冷汗。 “史黛拉大概是无法忍受，杀了吧！杀了这个女人——她心中一定这样诅咒着，而霍华德无法抗拒她这个念力。” “你所说的，太支离破碎了。” “不，是非常合理的。因为霍华德也同样拥有幻想被破坏的痛苦，虽然没有史黛拉那么极端。为了缓和自己的痛苦，他扣下了扳机。在背后驱使他这么做的是对史黛拉的，对她本身的幻想的妄想。” “又是幻想？够了吧？这个字眼我已经听腻了。姑且不说这个了，如果这个设施对史黛拉而言是这么重要的他又怎么会做出将车库连同坐在轿车里的凯特一起炸掉的粗暴行为——” 这时，某样东西跃入我眼帘。“……难道——” 我们现在是在101房里。毋庸置疑是史黛拉的房间。我的视线无法离开窗户。窗玻璃是开着的，而且也颇了。跟其他房间一样承受了暴风的摧残—— “阿卫，怎么了？” 我默默地慢慢地关上窗户。关上本来位于内测的窗玻璃，玻璃并没有破。虽然有些裂痕，但是并没有破损。另一方面，也就是窗户在关起来时位于外的玻璃就惨不忍睹了，两者形成极端地对比。 “原来如此。”不用我说明，“舍监”好像就已经了解我想说什么了。他把头从窗户探出去，确认隔壁的102房的窗户是什么状况，然后点点头。“原来如此啊。也就是说，当车库和加油站爆炸时这里的窗户一开始是打开的——” That's right.之前我一直认为史黛拉是在听到爆炸声之后大吃一惊，为了确认发生了什么事情而打开窗的，然而事实并非如此。这扇窗打一开始就是打开的，目的是好让她在加油站洒上汽油，点上火之后，还可以急急地赶回这个房间。 我想，史黛拉发现我跟“王妃殿下”手牵手走过中央大厅之后，便一直监视我们吧？当我们前往车库时，她也一定躲在阴暗处偷听我们的对话。在避开留下坐下轿车里的“王妃殿下”，沿着草坪走向宿舍区的后门的我之后，史黛拉便前往图书室捡起“舍监”落在里面的打火机。然后她去洒了汽油，打开房间的窗户，做好万全的准备，她将汽油一路撒到最极限之处，以作为导火线，然后点了火。之后她急急地从窗户跳进自己的房间。整个过程就是这样。 “可是，这也得是前提是史黛拉就是犯人。我们才能断定窗户是为了这个目的而开的。也许她只是为了吸取新鲜的空气——” “舍监”住了嘴，吸了吸鼻子。“喂，你有没有闻到什么味道？这是——焦臭味啊。” “是外面的味道随着风飘进来的，因为到处都还残留有火种。” “不，不是。这是从那边飘过来的。” “舍监”从101房走到走廊上，我也跟了上去。 “确实是有味道，来自餐厅那边的味道——” 正当“舍监”要穿过中央大厅时，想起一个尖叫声。不知道是谁的声音，也许是我发出来的。 持续地尖叫声和怒吼声交错在一起，纠缠扭动的影子交错在一起，突然，“舍监”拖着长长的呻吟声，身体往旁比一倾，当他倒在走廊上时，刚刚一直含在他口中的，没有点火的香烟掉落了。 她的手中握着可能是从餐厅里拿来的满是血迹的切肉菜刀。衣服和脸上都沾满了血水。看到史黛拉这个模样，在我脑海中盘旋的竟然是荒谬绝伦的愚蠢焦躁情绪——喂喂，为什么会有菜刀这种东西出现在这里？ “学校”需要这种东西吗？ 柯顿太太根本没让我们吃过用肉做的料理呀！Isn't that weird?
No lunch or dinner today...and that was the first thing that came to my mind when it started to get dark around me.In the past, I always felt that Mrs. Cotton's cooking was unbearable, but now my mood is that if there is still a chance, I will enjoy it with joy.If God could "reset" Mrs. Cotton's death, I would do anything.For the first time in my life, I prayed so seriously.Of course, it also includes the deaths of "retainers", "poets" and "Her Royal Highness".If what happened today can be repeated, then what is there to care about? At night, the smoke from the garage area still showed no sign of dissipating.It looked as if the gray ones were painted on the dark sky with a brush, but there were few red flames coming out. I went back inside the building through the back door over the staff quarters area.I went to the house supervisor's room No. 115 to have a look. Unexpectedly, he was careless and forgot to lock the door, so I took blankets and mats from his room.By the way, I found some drinks and snacks, so Stella and I shared the food to moisten our throats and quench our thirst.She and I were wrapped in blankets and lay on the lawn waiting for dawn.The fire seemed to be completely stopped, but it was still smoking.I think it would be wiser not to stay in "school" tonight. "Absolutely, absolutely together——" I don't know if I have a cold, Stella huddled in the blanket and still clings to me, saying in a nasal voice full of sorrow. "We absolutely need to get out of here alive together." "of course." "I'm going back to Paris, to the apartment where my parents are waiting for me. Then I'm going to live peacefully with my family as usual. Right?" "Yes, of course." "Will Ah Wei go back to Kobe?" "I will go back, and go back safely." "Nothing to worry about, right? Neither of us will be fine." "Yeah, nothing to worry about." "Hey." "Ok." "It's a good thing that we can go home safely, but from now on we have to separate the two places. I'm in Paris, and Ah Wei is in Kobe." "We'll meet again someday." "That's true. But I don't like that one day, I want to be with you forever." "Stella." "I want to be with you, Wei. Hey, pick me up when you grow up, pick me up in Paris, and then take me to Kobe." "Stella." "Will you promise me?" "I promise you." "Really. Promise me, promise me." "I promise." "Would you like to be with me forever?" "We'll be together. When we grow up, we'll get married, shall we?" "We'll get married. Well, when we grow up, we'll be husband and wife, always, always. Peacefully. Forever...forever." Stella and I didn't bother to say these words again and again like talking in sleep.That's what keeps us going today through the shock of total change in the world in one day.
Woke up suddenly, the sky was already bright, and the surroundings became bright.It was past seven o'clock in the morning.Today's weather is also unbearably good, and there are thin noodles like smoke curling up into the transparent blue sky everywhere.Even the paradise-like weather could not erase the fact that the hellish events of the previous day were definitely not a dream. I looked to the side, and Stella was wrapped in a blanket, using a cushion as a pillow, and was still in a deep sleep.I got up quietly so as not to wake her up.I walked past the front door of the "school" toward where the garage would have been. There was no familiar object left at the scene.Everything was charred black and melted.Sinister soot covered the ruins.I think the scattered things should be the wreckage of cars and luggage carts, but I really can't imagine their original shape. Has "Her Royal Highness" been blown away like this?I don't want to imagine it, but there is a smell like burnt protein all around, scratching my lungs mercilessly. Fighting back my headache and nausea, I watched "School".Maybe thanks to automatic sprinklers?The building wasn't completely burned, but it was charred everywhere.The classroom closest to the gas station was particularly badly damaged. The walls were gone, and the room, which had been reduced to water-soaked soot, was completely exposed.The library barely kept its walls, but it was also scorched everywhere, and most of the window panes were broken. The window of Stella's room, Room 101, is open.Maybe it's because I want to escape from the smog, and I don't have any desire to close the window at all?Of course the whole glass shattered.Room 102 next door and Room 103 of the "Retainer" may also have been hit by the storm, and the window panes are cracked or chipped here and there, but the walls have not suffered much damage.The rooms opposite from room 104 narrowly escaped the disaster because of the distance from the gas station, and the window panes were unharmed. Under the window of Room 103 are the remains of "retainers".The white sheet covering it was blown away and stuck to the wall of the building.He should have been lying on his stomach yesterday, but now he is slightly leaning against the building, lying sideways.It may have been blown by the blast.The cloudy eyes of the dead body happened to be angled to look at me steadily.I originally wanted to go to the "neutral" room in room 105, but because I met the eyes of the "retainers", I lost all strength. I turned around and went back to where the gas station was.Maybe there's still some tinder left?There was thin smoke everywhere.The original equipment is of course gone.What the hell happened yesterday?The leaked gasoline must have ignited and caused the explosion, but I don't understand how there are fireworks in this kind of place? Somewhere among the charred ruins was the remains of "Her Royal Highness".should have.However, no matter how hard I looked, I couldn't find anything that looked human.Just thinking about the significance of this incident, I felt an almost crazy sense of sadness and despair, and I couldn't help but look away.Just at this time. I spotted him.He walked on the only road with wilderness on the left and right, and walked slowly towards the "school".That figure.After a while, I could clearly see the red curly hair and glasses, and the white clothes that kept shaking at the hem.It was Mr. "Master" Baggins.He staggered with extreme fatigue and came back alone, without seeing the "principal".On this point, the conjecture of "Her Royal Highness" is correct. I walk towards him slowly.Just in front of the entrance of the "school", I met the "dominant".It looked like I stepped up to greet him.Incredibly, I didn't feel any fear.Maybe at this time, I have lost my attachment to my own life. The "house supervisor" looked over my shoulder, fixedly looking at the burnt garage and gas station, with an unlit cigarette dangling from the corner of his mouth.The cigarette had probably been in his mouth for a long time, and the whole stick had bent off. "If you're looking for your lighter—" I unconsciously said these words. "It's in the library." "Really? Thank you." With his usual indifferent expression, he opened the entrance door with cracked glass.The shards of glass that had been stuck on the door frame fell to the ground along this momentum, and cracked with a clanging sound.I followed the "house warden" in the half-destroyed "school". "Woo—" Walking through the library where glass shards were scattered, the "Housemaster" who wandered around the round table for a while shrugged. "Where's the lighter?" "The back—" I withdrew the hand I was about to reach out.There was no golden lighter under that chair.I guess it may have been changed by the storm, but there is really no sign of that. "It's really weird, I did see one that fell over there yesterday." "Humph!" The "house supervisor" no longer pursued the matter of the lighter, and came to the corridor.Perhaps to use the fire to light a cigarette?He made a gesture to enter the restaurant, but stopped abruptly.He still maintained an attitude of not being in a hurry, but he quickened his pace and walked in the direction of the central hall.There were, of course, the remains of The Poet and Mrs. Cotton. "Oh, what a great job." Facing the two murdered corpses, the "house warden" showed no signs of timidity, nor the slightest hint of surprise.It even seems to have been expected to happen. "What happened? Just tell me what you know, and explain it to me in order." He asked without looking back, and I started gushing into the back of his white coat.I started with the discovery of Bill lying outside the building, and the discovery of a small pistol under his body; the return to the central hall to find Kenneth "The Poet" stabbed to death; Mrs. Cotton who called the police; Kate who was in the car who was planning to go round with Dr. Seward, that explosion happened and so on.However, I did not mention the reasoning assumptions published by individuals, including myself, and just calmly stated the facts of what I witnessed. "—I see." The "house warden" with his hands in his white coat pockets turned his head and looked at me. "I see." "What happened to Dr. Seward?" "Walk back like me. The car ran out of gas halfway, and we walked back all night. She rested more frequently along the way, and as a result, she took a long distance." "Really?" "Why am I lying. It will all be clear when she gets back here. What are you worried about?" "I'm worried whether the doctor will be killed now and be abandoned on the way?" "Killed? By whom?" "You, Mr. Baggins." Hearing this sentence, it was myself who was afraid, and the "house supervisor" looked like a fool. "Hey, why did I kill her?" "I don't know the motive. But at least you killed Bill, didn't you?" The cigarette shaking at the corner of his mouth stopped, and the "house supervisor" glared at me. "I just said there was this pistol under Bill's body." I pulled the pistol from my hip pocket and waved it in front of his eyes.Thinking about it, he really had no defense against such an approach, but maybe I was too excited to care so much at all. "Is this one of Mr. Baggins's?" "You know you got quite a lot." The "Dorm Supervisor" still admitted straightforwardly. "So that's it. There's this thing under Bill's body. I know, but can I be concluded that I'm a criminal based on this alone?" "The real scene where Bill was killed was in the library." Without thinking too much, I put the pistol back into my pocket and told the reasoning of "Her Royal Highness" yesterday. "The murder weapon was a Latin dictionary. In order to disguise the accidental death, you threw Beard's body out of the library window and moved it to the dormitory area. You put his body on the ground and tried to adjust his posture. At that moment, the pistol slipped from your pocket, but you didn't realize it." "That's right." The "Dorm Supervisor" breathed out.Started to play the game of shaking the cigarette with the corner of the mouth again. "I found out later, and I also thought of this possibility. But I didn't have time to go back and get it. Is that so? It's really in that place?" "So, Mr. Baggins, you admit it? Admit that you killed Bill? And Lou Bennett?" "You mean, Killu Bennett—" For some reason, the "Housemaster" smiled happily. "I did it too?" "I saw it the morning before yesterday, over there behind the barbed wire fence. It was about four o'clock in the morning. I don't know what happened, but in retrospect, I think you took Lou Bennett's body Feed the crocodiles in the swamp." "You're right." The "Dorm Supervisor" admitted happily. "If it is more correct, I cut Lou Bennett's body into several pieces in the bathroom of my room, and then discarded the pieces of meat in the swamp through the barbed wire. It seems very simple to say, But, that was a heavy labor beyond my imagination, and I don't want to do it a second time." "Mr. Baggins, you are not joking, are you?" "Well, what do you say?" "Are you laughing at me? How could you admit that you killed Buergenlu Bennett so simply? Or, because I am a child, you despise—" "Hey, I did move Bill's body from the library to the outside of the dormitory area. I admit it, but I never said I killed Bill." "Eh...how could—" "Similarly, I did dismember Lu Bennett's body and feed it to the crocodiles. This is also true. I admit it, but I didn't kill Lu Bennett." "How is it possible... But, but—?" "This is a fact." "I don't believe it. If you didn't kill them, why bother disposing of the bodies of the victims?" "Because someone has to do it." He still had a smile on his face, but the color in his eyes was inexplicably sad. "However, there is no one else suitable for this job besides me. So I did. It is not the first time that this kind of trouble has happened." "How is it possible...how is it possible—" My head seems to be clearly abnormal today.I thought of an unexplainable thing. "Could it be that even Dennis Ludlow, as you said, couldn't adapt to the environment here and returned to his family...?" "Ah, do you know what happened to Dennis? Well, it's a matter of course. We didn't deliberately ask other people to keep quiet. Yes, that's right. Dennis was not sent back to his family. He died here. Deal with it I belonged to his dead body too. But—" The Housemaster interrupted my questioning by prodding me with the cigarette he had taken from his mouth. "I didn't kill him." "What's going on here..." In fact, it should be very simple to insist that he is lying, but I really can't think like this, my head is in a mess. "What exactly is going on?" "You mentioned it just now, Ah Wei." The "house supervisor" pointed at Mrs. Cotton's body lying behind him with a thumbs up. "You said she refused to call the police from the beginning to the end, do you know why?" "have no idea." "It's simple. We can't call the police here because it's an illegal facility that doesn't have any recognition from the government. It's a den of criminals from the very beginning." "How is it possible... how could there be such a ridiculous thing?" A chill-like uneasiness surged from the bottom of my abdomen. "Impossible, because we were all sent here to be cared for with the consent of our families." "Even with the consent of the family members—" I don't know if it's a psychological effect, but I think the eyes of the "house supervisor" hidden under the glasses seem to have a tinge of pity. "That's also the consent of family members who desperately want to get rid of your troubles." "Get out of... trouble?" "Your family and Dr. Seward have the same strong relationship. That's why this facility exists. The doctor took you in to use you for research purposes. On the other hand, your family wanted to ask the doctor to take you in. Provided some funds. After that, they will not interfere at all. This is the agreement between the two parties, even if you are here in the wild." What is this man talking about?Is he crazy?out of trouble?Why do mom and dad do this?What good would they do by kicking me out of the house?It would be a different matter if you can get a sum of money by handing over your son to someone else, but they still provide funds to Dr. Seward?How can there be such a stupid thing? "What the hell is here—" I have a lot of things I want to ask, but I decided to start with a question that has been in my mind for a while. "What research is it that brings us together here?" "Research?" The "Dorm Supervisor" returned to his usual indifferent expression, as if he hated the fact that he was alive. "That's what I said on the surface, so I also use this statement. In fact, it's not that great. Everything is just a kind of self-satisfaction of Mr. Doctor with an abnormal head." "Head is out of order... Do you mean Dr. Seward?" "She's not a doctor." "What did you say?" "It's just that she wants us to call her that, to satisfy her. She didn't even go to college, she's just a psychology fanatic." "A fanatic...?" "That's why no formal scholar is willing to work with her. She feels very sorry, so she desperately tries to find a way to make the society recognize her research, even at the expense of such a huge amount of money." "The cost of taking care of us is indeed quite a lot, isn't it?" "Your living expenses are limited. If you know how much Deborah spent on this project, you will pass out. But you must be able to understand the current currency value of this country. Just—" "Take your right hand out of your pocket and point to the ceiling. "It would be a big deal to find this building and modify it, plus the props in it, but the TV and the car in the reception room cost the most money." TV and car...?The TV may have been tweaked a bit to not pick up sound waves, but I don't think it would cost much.Plus the car, what on earth is going to cost that much money?Aren't the three vehicles all the ubiquitous SUVs, sedans, and luggage carts?But at present I do not have the leeway to ask these questions in detail.The successive exposures of the "school" and Dr. Seward's true face are enough to amaze and astonish me. "Unfortunately, Deborah has nothing but money, and she inherited a huge amount of money from her parents, and then spent it on this hobby, which is like a waste of money." I think it takes a long time to remember that Deborah is Dr. Seward. "To be fair, that's all. Over the past year, Deborah's research—accurately, what she calls her own research—has been fruitful. I can roughly agree with this. Her theory itself is not worth mentioning. , but all that research produced an unexpected by-product." "by-product?" "A monster that no one expected." "monster……" I can't help but startled. The voice of the "poet" echoed in my mind. (There's something sinister about it.) (Something evil inhabits here.) "Is that... is that the serial murderer?" "Yes. Killed Dennis, killed Bill, killed Kenneth as a sacrifice, and then blew up Kate to death. I think Howard probably ended up in the same way." "You mean he was killed too?" "I can bet you that there must be a corpse in Room 105. Howard never showed up after such a big explosion, so there is only one possibility, he has no breath." "But, maybe he couldn't bear the shock of shooting Mrs. Cotton, and ran outside in a moment of excitement—" "If that's the case, I should meet him on the way back here. Am I right? Because there is only one way to the nearest town." "However, Howard's house is locked. How is the prisoner..." "Then no prisoner can use the most legitimate reason to enter his room, kill him, snatch the key from his hand, lock it and escape. That's all it takes." "Is this just your speculation?" "Shall we go and see, then? You said the door was locked, didn't you? Maybe you can see through the window." "What if the curtains are drawn?" "At that time, let's break the glass and go in to have a look? This is an extraordinary period, and we use extraordinary measures. Deborah should not be able to say anything." As a result, the "Housemaster" did not need to break the window pane of Room 105.The curtains of the room are drawn, and the situation inside can be seen from the window. Howard is lying on the bed with something wrapped around his neck.Obviously, he is dead. "am I right?" After entering the "school" through the back door of the dormitory area, the "house supervisor" returned to the central hall.I just followed him mechanically. "In the end... who did this kind of thing?" "Hi, hello." Maybe he wanted to use the gas stove to light a cigarette? The "House Supervisor" made a gesture to go to the dining room, but now he stopped and looked back at me. "Don't say you haven't found it yet." "What's up?" "I mean when Bill was killed. He was killed in the library, and there was a murder weapon there. Aren't you the one who made that claim? When the criminal committed the crime, the only ones in the library were the three who had published the subject." One of the first team, and me. Didn't I? I didn't kill, and the rest of Kenneth and Bill were killed, and all that's left is—" "Liar..." I wanted to roar out, but I only made a weak sound like a flute. "This... this is a lie. How could Stella? How could—" "I was still in the library when Bill was killed, and I saw it with my own eyes. I saw it all. She hit poor Bill on the head with a Latin dictionary." "How come... No, wait a minute. If this is true, Kenneth should have been there at the time. He should know who killed this." "That's right, Kenneth saw it too." The "house supervisor" showed no signs of timidity at all. "That's why he was also murdered because he was a witness to the murder. He was killed to keep his mouth shut." "But... but Kenneth never said a word about it, he never said Stella was the prisoner—" "Maybe Kenneth has his own considerations?" The "house supervisor" glanced at the wheelchair and walked towards the dormitory area. "follow me." "do what?" "I'll show you the evidence." He came to room 101.The room remained the same as Stella, who was almost engulfed in smoke, escaped.So of course the door is open. "A Wei, have you ever entered this room?" "Only one time." "You have seen)—" He strode into Stella's room and opened the storage cabinet under the simple kitchen. "Is it here?" "I've only seen it once—" "Isn't that clear?" He took a step back, raised his chin, was there something missing.It was indeed missing, something for cooking - a kitchen knife. "According to what you just said, you confirmed that Stella and Kate were in this room when Bill fell outside and died? You just asked them to call Mrs. Cotton. They met Howard in the dining room and took Mrs. Cotton away. Take it outside. At this time, everyone must think that Kenneth should also go outside together? In fact, not at all." My body couldn't suppress the natural response of shaking. "We have no way of knowing the order in which they went to the entrance, but one thing is certain. Kenneth in a wheelchair is at the back, and Stella is with him, although only for a short time, of course , you should know why, right?" "how is this possible……" "So she started. She let Howard and Kate, who were leading Mrs. Cotton out of the entrance, go first, and used the gap to stab Kenneth in the neck who was a step behind everyone and was still in the central hall with a kitchen knife." "But...how could...?" "Maybe she didn't report Stella, but Kenneth is like a ticking time bomb to her, and she must not let him live." "I don't believe it. To put it bluntly, wouldn't it be strange to say that she killed Bill? The whole thing is unreasonable, because Stella was publishing a topic in the library at the time, and you and Kenneth were there. Isn't it? Then why Stella Rafi had to kill Bill at that time? She knew she would be witnessed by you and Kenneth. Even if she wanted to kill, she should have chosen the time and place, why—" "That's because—" "Dorm Supervisor" was speechless for the first time, and he threw away the deformed cigarette. "It's hard to explain, it's just—" "only?" "I can only say this, because Stella lost her rationality in an instant at that time, and she couldn't bear Bill who didn't want to go along with her anymore." "fantasy?" "In the past, she killed Dennis for the same reason." "What's the meaning?" "Dennis has always refused to go along with Stella's fantasies, and was killed in the end. On the other hand, in fact, Bill has never been able to accept Stella's fantasies before you came here, and he was mentally unstable. But because I got closer to Kate, I managed to survive." "Closer to Kate?" I think of a wonderful scene, is it the day before yesterday?What happened in the restaurant.At that time, "Her Royal Highness" and I almost missed lunch and ran through the restaurant together. At that time, "Retainers" showed me an inexplicably intimate expression that almost didn't match the atmosphere of the scene.I don't know the reason, but I think it may be that he mistakenly thought that I should have been sent by Stella, and I had switched to the "Her Royal Highness" faction.In other words, maybe he thought he had an extra partner and was relieved.This thought came to my mind. "Of course, Kate is the same in terms of wanting to share her fantasies with everyone. But she doesn't want to force others to accept her point of view like Stella, so it should be easier to get along with her? However, Bill is mentally Maybe he has reached the limit of his patience, or maybe he knows what Stella did to Dennis. So, when he knew that Lu Bennett was missing, he was the first to suspect Stella and question her. Right in front of me and Kenneth's face, the agitated Bill made it very clear that he would disown her, saying that he didn't want to go along with her fantasies anymore. Stella's anger was serious at the time, so Bill was killed." "On the spot?" "On the spot. Stella, whose most important fantasy point of view was completely denied, lost control to that extent." "In that case, why didn't she kill the witnesses in the library?" "Because Kenneth escaped in no time. Of course Stella is eyeing him and plans to deal with him in the future. I think she is waiting for an opportunity?" "Why, she killed Kenneth, but didn't want to stop you, who is also a witness?" "If she does that, it is she who loses." "……What did you say" "Stella knows very well who is responsible for her aftermath. I think she probably learned from Dennis's incident? So, the night before yesterday, technically speaking, it was already yesterday. Lou Bennett, he was the first to come to me for help." Ah, I figured it out.The night before—wasn't that why Stella came to my room?I remember it was almost twelve o'clock when she left my room, stating her dissatisfaction with the life of "school".Had she met Lou Bennett in the corridor on her way back to her room? "At night, Lu sensed Stella walking in the corridor, so he walked out of his room, caught Stella, and then he may also declare that he will never go along with Stella's fantasies, and will never be you. partner. When Stella heard that, she got so mad that she strangled Lou Bennett. That's how it went." "You mean, she went to find you to deal with the aftermath?" "In Stella's perception, that's my mission. It feels like, you helped me with Dennis last time, so please this time too, she looks so relaxed and alive—" The dormitory supervisor" suddenly tilted his head in a childish manner that was almost never seen before, and put a cigarette in his mouth. "Does she know?" "what do you know?" "My weakness." "weakness?" “刚才我不是说过吗？这个设施并不是一个可以光明正大的地方，若果史黛拉的所作所为被知道的话，当然会遭到人权团体的批评，甚至肯能受到刑事方面的刑罚。史黛拉和你们的家人所签订的契约内容一定和这个国家的法律有所抵触，因为这算是一种人口买卖。” “人口……买卖？” “是的。这里时一个荒凉的地方，但是黛波拉好像不这么认为，她说为了自己的研究，她需要你们，还有你们家人的协助，她的认知是这样的。所以，万一她知道这里发生杀人事件的话——” “应该会报警吧？” “不，我怀疑她不会这样做，我想她反倒可能会觉得很困扰吧？也许会每天悲叹自己重要的研究受到阻挠。无论，我不想看到黛波拉这样伤脑筋，那就是我的弱点，史黛拉非常清楚。所以她才敢那样颐指气使吧？” “请等一下这么说来，席华德博士完全不知道之前发生的杀人事件？” “当然。到目前为止，她都相信丹尼斯和路·贝尼特时从这里逃走的。” “你为什么要为席华德博士做到这种地步——” 我发现自己问了一个很没礼貌的问题，赶紧住嘴，因为只要把“舍监”和“校长”的关系拿来换成我跟史黛拉的互动就一目了然了。 我突然领悟到了他为了索爱的女人而一再犯下罪行。可是，他在迫于无奈的情况下，这样做，一定几乎无法招架心中强烈的罪恶感。所以，他在无意识的情况下动了些小手脚，好把罪行指向自己。总有一天被曝光的方向。也就是说，姑且不说他自己有没有自觉，“舍监”心里是抱着毁灭的期望的。关于这一点也没有证据可以显示。那就是它在处理路·贝尼特尸体的时候。我目击到那个现场，当然是在偶然的情况下，但是要不是他刻意选择那个位置的话，我就不可能发生那种偶然了，不是吗？如果他只是单纯地想处理尸体的话，大可以到离“学校”建筑物比较远的地方去就好了。因为铁丝网是一直延伸到遥远的额彼方的。然而，他却刻意选择距离宿舍那么近的地方来遗弃尸体，为什么？一定是他在无意识当中希望某个人会目击到那个场面。也就是说，他迫切地希望借着自己的罪行曝光的契机，脱离目前的境遇。就算换来的是身败名裂也在所不惜。 “可是……我不懂。如果你说的都是真的，那么杀死凯特和霍华德的人也是史黛拉了？” "of course." “但是她的动机何在？” “她杀人的动机只有一个，因为自己的幻想的观点，遭到别人的抗拒。” “你一直说，幻想、幻想，到底是什么意思？我不知道霍华德是怎样，但是凯特只是想开车载着大家逃出而已，为什么……” etc.我突然想到一个可能性，背部不禁蹿过一股寒意。 ，如果说史黛拉对“王妃殿下”产生杀意的话动机可能只有一个，那就是嫉妒。在得到必须开车离开的结论之前，我跟王妃殿下两个人几次在图书室和'电话亭'之间来回走动。如果说我们经过中央大厅时，在101房的史黛拉想偷看的话，那时很容易的——看到一直牵着彼此的手行动的“王妃殿下”跟我。 "so." “啊？”迫切地希望这只是个人自恋的想法的我顿时回过神来“所以什么？” “最享受黛波拉的研究恩惠的人是史黛拉。这里时个乐园，至少对史黛拉而言是。” “我实在搞不懂你的意思。” “你只要仔细地回想柯顿太太被射杀的时候，就知道了。” “柯顿太太……？” “你认为是谁杀了她？” “是霍华德呀。因为是他拿着手枪的。我亲眼看到，他把枪口抵在她额头上，然后扣下扳机。我亲眼看到了。不止我，大家都看到了。” “也许。射杀柯顿太太的确实是霍华德，但是，让他扣下扳机的究竟是什么呢？” “是霍华德自己扣下扳机的啊，不是吗？” “柯顿太太当时企图破坏她的幻想。对史黛拉而言，那个女人是乐园的破坏者。” 我猛然一惊。乐园的破坏者——我发现自己理所当然似的把这个字眼转换成“异教徒”来想。可为什么，我自己都不了解自己了。我陷入一种好像被某种东西附身一样的错觉，全身冒着令人不快得冷汗。 “史黛拉大概是无法忍受，杀了吧！杀了这个女人——她心中一定这样诅咒着，而霍华德无法抗拒她这个念力。” “你所说的，太支离破碎了。” “不，是非常合理的。因为霍华德也同样拥有幻想被破坏的痛苦，虽然没有史黛拉那么极端。为了缓和自己的痛苦，他扣下了扳机。在背后驱使他这么做的是对史黛拉的，对她本身的幻想的妄想。” “又是幻想？够了吧？这个字眼我已经听腻了。姑且不说这个了，如果这个设施对史黛拉而言是这么重要的他又怎么会做出将车库连同坐在轿车里的凯特一起炸掉的粗暴行为——” 这时，某样东西跃入我眼帘。“……难道——” 我们现在是在101房里。毋庸置疑是史黛拉的房间。我的视线无法离开窗户。窗玻璃是开着的，而且也颇了。跟其他房间一样承受了暴风的摧残—— “阿卫，怎么了？” 我默默地慢慢地关上窗户。关上本来位于内测的窗玻璃，玻璃并没有破。虽然有些裂痕，但是并没有破损。另一方面，也就是窗户在关起来时位于外的玻璃就惨不忍睹了，两者形成极端地对比。 “原来如此。”不用我说明，“舍监”好像就已经了解我想说什么了。他把头从窗户探出去，确认隔壁的102房的窗户是什么状况，然后点点头。“原来如此啊。也就是说，当车库和加油站爆炸时这里的窗户一开始是打开的——” That's right.之前我一直认为史黛拉是在听到爆炸声之后大吃一惊，为了确认发生了什么事情而打开窗的，然而事实并非如此。这扇窗打一开始就是打开的，目的是好让她在加油站洒上汽油，点上火之后，还可以急急地赶回这个房间。 我想，史黛拉发现我跟“王妃殿下”手牵手走过中央大厅之后，便一直监视我们吧？当我们前往车库时，她也一定躲在阴暗处偷听我们的对话。在避开留下坐下轿车里的“王妃殿下”，沿着草坪走向宿舍区的后门的我之后，史黛拉便前往图书室捡起“舍监”落在里面的打火机。然后她去洒了汽油，打开房间的窗户，做好万全的准备，她将汽油一路撒到最极限之处，以作为导火线，然后点了火。之后她急急地从窗户跳进自己的房间。整个过程就是这样。 “可是，这也得是前提是史黛拉就是犯人。我们才能断定窗户是为了这个目的而开的。也许她只是为了吸取新鲜的空气——” “舍监”住了嘴，吸了吸鼻子。“喂，你有没有闻到什么味道？这是——焦臭味啊。” “是外面的味道随着风飘进来的，因为到处都还残留有火种。” “不，不是。这是从那边飘过来的。” “舍监”从101房走到走廊上，我也跟了上去。 “确实是有味道，来自餐厅那边的味道——” 正当“舍监”要穿过中央大厅时，想起一个尖叫声。不知道是谁的声音，也许是我发出来的。 持续地尖叫声和怒吼声交错在一起，纠缠扭动的影子交错在一起，突然，“舍监”拖着长长的呻吟声，身体往旁比一倾，当他倒在走廊上时，刚刚一直含在他口中的，没有点火的香烟掉落了。 她的手中握着可能是从餐厅里拿来的满是血迹的切肉菜刀。衣服和脸上都沾满了血水。看到史黛拉这个模样，在我脑海中盘旋的竟然是荒谬绝伦的愚蠢焦躁情绪——喂喂，为什么会有菜刀这种东西出现在这里？ “学校”需要这种东西吗？ 柯顿太太根本没让我们吃过用肉做的料理呀！Isn't that weird?