A/N: Hey everyone! Hope you are all having a good day.

In case you are interested, a YouTuber, Jed Delacruz, has reacted to a couple of my fanfics. For some reason, when I copy and paste the links, Fanfic won't let me paste them entirely, so if you want to check him out, I think you'd have to search him up.

I am thinking of starting a YouTube channel of my own someday, where I post videos of writing tips. But that is merely a thought, and unless I am fully confident, I won't do anything just yet. Anyway, here's Chapter 17!


Chapter 17: Final Deductions

To say dinner was a quiet meal would be an understatement. It was almost as if even the snowstorm outside toned down a bit. The only sounds to be heard were the occasional clink of silverware or glasses. Nobody acknowledged each other, although glances kept going back and forth all the time. Glances of anger, suspicion, and fear. Once in a while, someone would briefly look at the empty chair where Fumiko sat last night. Although no one spoke, we all knew that we had the same thoughts. Someone seated among us was a killer. The question was...who?

Turning to Kofuki, who was on my right, I whispered, "Here."

She raised an eyebrow, but her eyes widened in understanding when I covertly passed her small silver case underneath the table. However, instead of a "thank you", all I got were two narrowed eyes with a look that could send me six feet below the ground. Discreetly making sure the tablecloth hid her "contraband holder", Kofuki opened it before snapping it back shut.

"You took my cigarettes?!" she hissed as quietly as she could.

"Hey, I replaced them with breath mints, if you haven't noticed," I whispered back, with an equal look of annoyance.

"I don't want any of your toothpaste shit."

"It's not toothpaste! And it's a thousand times better than your breath smelling like tar!" I snapped. "Do you know how suspicious people will get? I'd be surprised if any of them aren't already."

"The only thing that's suspicious is how much whispering you two are doing," came Mirja's blunt voice.

Kofuki and I jerked our heads away from each other to see that everyone was now looking at us. So much for trying to be quiet and discreet. Tiling my chin up slightly, I could only try to pretend the awkward affair never happened and cleared my throat.

"Nagata Ryosei, more coffee if you please."

"Of course, m'lady."


"Hiyori-sama? What are you doing?"

Seated at the library's writing desk, I stared into the mirror in front of me, my eyes meeting Sanae's. "A list of clues so far."

Kanami, who was peering over my shoulder, took the pen I offered to her and added her own record. "I think those are it—at least, the ones that raise eyebrows. All our puzzle pieces are now in place."

I nodded my head in agreement. "The gears in our brains"—as I heard Sergeant Tanaka comment once—were starting to turn in the heads of Kanami and I, as we mentally went over the facts and looked at our notes.

1) The evening before the crime. I became groggy very early—even though I had three cups of coffee earlier. Enough to normally keep me awake and alert. Kanami was also abnormally sleepy.

2) The morning when we found Fumiko's body. Was the door locked from the inside or the outside? The scratches on the key suggest it was done inside. Then, who was the mysterious X who left out through the window? Did such an escape occur at all?

3) A chance remark that I said that morning after we discovered Fumiko's diary.

4) The 11/9 attacks. Kiyoka's former senpai was killed. Mihono lost her hearing in her left ear. Mirja mentioned something about losing a few high school friends. Were the three of them the only ones who personally lost someone or something on November 9? If so, which of them was more likely to be hungry for revenge? Why did Kiyoka and Mihono, in particular, try to initially hide how they were affected by the terrorist attacks?

5) The time of death. Could we really be sure that it was 11:00? Was it earlier? Or later?

6) What about the manner of Fumiko's death? She was hanged by a noose. Why did Fumiko not try to defend herself? She had aradama strength and definitely could've stood a chance against one or two people.

7) What is the explanation for Chie's strange behaviour? Is she defending herself on instinct...or possibly someone else? Does she indeed know more than she has told us?

8) "Defence"

9) A bottle thrown from a window

10) A small silver case

11) A window casement stay

12) Sleeping medication

13) A mirror

Sanae had approached the writing desk and looked over at our list. Her expression became more baffled than ever as if the words on the page were written in another language.

"I don't understand," she spluttered. "A mirror? Defence? What do those have to do with this?"

I would have replied to her, but at that moment, I could feel my phone vibrate. With a little exclamation, I beamed at the glowing screen.

"Finally, I got a message from Director Maniwa! She's sent me the files of the 11/9 attacks."

"This shall surely advance things," Kanami said.

However, both she and Sanae were surprised to see me only skimming quickly through most of it. "Hiyori-chan, what are you looking for?"

"The obituaries," I answered, shortly. "Ah, here we go."

The photos depicting the faces of the deceased seemed to be never-ending. Each time I scrolled to a new page, another would always follow. Face after face after face... Some elderly, most of them young. Men, women, and young Tojis alike. Some Tojis I recognized, but many I didn't. These were the last photos of the victims, all smiling and radiant. Photos presented by their mourning families and friends. A gallery of people who defined the events of November 9 in its earliest hours, and would continue to do so for generations.

"There's Koike-san," Sanae pointed out.

I didn't know her personally, but I recognized her well enough from seeing her in the school hallways of the Heijou Institute, during my time there as a student. There was something so depressing about the familiar face of Saaya and all the other Tojis. In all the schools of the Five Traditions were now countless empty desks and shoe lockers, never to be used again. Toji students who had dreams for the future, who should've gone to university, got their dream jobs, maybe even started families of their own...

The student who'd take the same train as you... The student always asking to borrow your pencil... The student who'd make the class laugh with her corny jokes...

All of them were gone...

For the next hour, the three of us sat on the library's camelback sofas and just looked at the obituaries, reading each and every name. My eyebrows creased before taking my pen and adding to our list of notes: 14) Wallpaper on Mirja's laptop

Leaning against the sofa, Kanami sighed, "I think we finally now know just who committed this crime."

I nodded. "When one thinks about it carefully, it's so obvious."

"Can one of you please explain to me what's going on?" Sanae exclaimed. "You both know who killed Fumiko-sama?"

Kanami and I both nodded our heads. "I think I can speak for Kanami and I that we've known it subconsciously for some time."

"So, who was it?" Sanae demanded, showing signs of impatience.

"Let's gather the Akabane Sword Team in the drawing-room," Kanami said. "All shall be revealed at last."


A/N: Sorry that this chapter is shorter than usual. The next chapter will be the final one and the big reveal. Who do you all think was the murderer?