Chapter 4

It was a split-second decision.

Logically I probably should have attempted an escape. That was the obviously smart decision.

However, my instincts screamed that it was the wrong decision to make. While I wasn’t locked inside like the victim and could exit much more easily, I still had the feeling that it would be too late.

And there was another thing.

The identity of the killer was right in front of me, a solution I never would have expected.

Precept No. 2: Ascertain the truth.

That also swayed my decision.

A maw of ethereal darkness opened up in front of me.

Even if I tried escaping, I wasn’t confident I wasn’t going to just end up like Angelika.

So instead of escaping, I took the opposite action.

I chose not to run away from the truth, but to leap straight into the beast’s mouth—

I could feel physical darkness closing up on me, a slight pressure, and then… silence.

Stifling silence that made my ears ring.

There was no pain or wetness and my body felt intact.

Or maybe I just died and went to the afterlife; the place did greatly resemble the Great Swamp my Naturist parents told me about.

Rather than darkness, it was more like a space made of the color black. I could faintly see despite the lack of light, so it wasn’t quite like getting trapped inside the belly of a beast, either.

Where was this, then?

Even the ground at my feet felt like it wasn’t really there. I tried waving my arms in the dark mist, but couldn’t feel anything. As far as I could see there was no exit or anything else.

…What have I done?

There was no use panicking just yet. Even if I found myself in a place like this, not all hope was lost. For now, I took a few hesitant steps forward.

As I did this, I soon found something horrible.

No, what I found was a single answer.

“Angelika…?”

I only saw a police sketch before, but there was no doubt—the decapitated head I saw on the ground belonged to none other than the murdered bride herself.

I flinched. I was no stranger to gore and violence, and indeed seeing her horrified-looking, lifeless face in front of me along with that horribly mangled neck was a shock, but that alone didn’t deter me.

It was the fact that it was here at all.

“I… solved it?”

Ridiculous.

As well as impossible.

I somehow stumbled, no, jumped into the solution after agonizing over it so much.

But I actually did. I found it.

Whatever this place meant, the conclusion was obvious.

This curse, this dark beast, triggered mere moments after Angelika locked herself within the Sunset Room. With her head bitten off, this locked-room murder was created.

Just like always, I got to the solution in the end.

Now, the only question was whether this was my end.

*

Since staying in place wouldn’t make anything happen, I decided to keep walking. I briefly hesitated, but decided to not take the head with me. I didn’t really feel like walking around with a decapitated head as if this was some horror story. Even if it technically was important evidence.

Besides, I didn’t know what else was lying in wait.

It was also possible that the “beast” that gobbled me up would finish me off at some point. A head was one thing, but I doubted the intent was to let me come inside unharmed…

Before long, I noticed something else on the ground.

A dead bird.

“Seriously?” I mumbled.

Was this the bird from the boy’s story? It could be, but not necessarily.

If the hungry beast fed every Double Noon, then it no doubt had many such meals.

It probably didn’t get many chances to eat humans, though. After all, the Sunset Room was likely never used during a Double Noon. It seemed like Angelika simply had some really bad luck.

How long was this thing here, right under people’s noses, feasting without anyone the wiser?

Right, instead of marveling at this clearly supernatural phenomenon, I started worrying about the finer details. Typical of me.

But wasn’t this exactly what I wanted?

Not another boring murder with a stupid solution, but something simple yet fresh?

The fact I was at risk also got my blood pumping. Whether I was going to remain stuck here just like the head or face some sort of horrible beast remained to be seen.

I kept walking for some minutes, seeing many other dead things—mostly swarms upon swarms of insects, though there was one other grossly butchered human. It was hard to tell how long this thing was going on.

Hearing a sudden noise from within the darkness, I tensed up.

“Who’s there?” I called.

In this odd, mist-like darkness, I couldn’t see more than a few steps ahead. Therefore, what emerged from the darkness almost made me jump.

A human figure.

More importantly, it was alive.

“Who are you?” I spat at the black-clad figure.

It was pretty much the exact kind of person I would’ve expected to meet at this sort of place. The figure was clad in a black, dirty robe adorned with strange symbols sewn into the cloth with silver lines.

Almost like a dark version of the Archpriest.

The man’s eyes were sunken, his thinning hair was silver, his skin pale and his bloodshot eyes had a sickly hue.

Noticing me, he pointed with a bony finger and began speaking.

—However, I couldn’t understand a word.

*

“Who are you?” I insisted again. “Speak clearly!”

The man, looking confused as well, repeated his words.

A foreign language. I was bilingual, but that didn’t help me here. Based on the sounds, it was likely some language or dialect from up north Snaden or so. Plus, I had another sneaking suspicion.

“You’re a member of the Plunge of Midnight, aren’t you?”

It felt almost clichéd, the way he looked. If not for the circumstances behind our meeting, I’d have scoffed at it as a mere costume and red herring.

“And if I’m not mistaken… you’re not from my time, either.”

That one was a bit more of a leap.

However, going through this place and seeing everything… the first evidence was obviously the head. Already more than a day passed and it still looked as fresh as if newly decapitated.

But that wasn’t all; there was the bird as well. If it was the same one that the boy witnessed, that meant it remained in that state for more than two years.

In which case… what about this man?

According to the Archpriest, the Decantos Church was built on top of a former site of the cult. And that was more than 100 years ago.

Everything about this situation was ridiculous anyway, so what’s another one for the pile?

“You’ve cast some sort of curse and waited here for an entire century?”

The man did respond, but just like before, I couldn’t understand him. But even if I couldn’t understand his words, the mannerisms of men did not change much in a century.

His lips curled and he emitted a hoarse, scratchy voice.

He was laughing at me from the bottom of his heart.

Following this, he continued to gesture and speak excitedly. While I couldn’t understand a single word, I had to imagine he was acting out all those various cliches.

Was he explaining his evil plan? Giving exposition about the mechanism behind this space? Telling me his history and the endless time he spent here? He might’ve even inserted a comment about how lonely he was, or maybe he was just praising the Midnight or whatever.

At the same time, I could feel the space around us shake—and something halfway between a growl and laughter erupt as well.

This was the identity of the unbelievable curse, as well as the culprit behind this crime.

So there was no need to understand anything else.

Royal Police, Precepts No. 1 and No.2.

Protect the innocent, and ascertain the truth.

Which means that only one remained…

Royal Police, Precept No. 3.

Administer justice.

Inspector Danik, Prime Special Investigator of the Royal Police. Some people would often say jokingly I was nothing but a dreamer with my head in the clouds, but they were wrong.

As a senior in the force, I had a duty to uphold.

Inaudibly, quickly and efficiently, I drew my blade within the darkness. Even though there was no light, the well-polished sword still gleamed.

This really was a laughable position for a detective. I practically stumbled upon the solution, but at least I knew who the culprit was.

Kill the villain, slay the beast, end the incident.

Was that logic simple enough for me?

“I’ll take your head,” I announced to the man I couldn’t understand, rushing forward with my sword raised. Around us, a beast of darkness roared.