"The old man said the first victim was right here, and this is the only place with a survivor." Hiru looked at the small courtyard before him, rubbed his chin, then turned to Giyu. "But apparently only one woman remains in the house now. Is it really wise for the two of us to pay a visit this late?"
Giyu pondered for a moment before nodding. "It's not wise."
"Any ideas?"
"Go to another house." Giyu observed Hiru's expression, seeing no sign of him moving before speaking. "Investigate the skeletal remains. The empty room."
"Guess that's our only option. Can you examine human remains?"
Giyu shook his head.
"Then I'll investigate the bones. You check the empty rooms. Meet back here afterward. If you spot a demon, make some noise—the other team will rush to support. Sound good?"
"Alright." Giyu nodded. After a moment's hesitation, he suddenly pressed his hand on Hiru's shoulder. "Be punctual. I won't be able to find you."
Hiru: ...
Noticing Hiru's hand reaching for his sword hilt, Giyu swiftly backed away. "See you tomorrow morning!"
"Where's the introversion in this guy? That Sabito never tells the truth..." Hiru clicked his tongue, frowning. "The body's probably at the Security Bureau. Going through official channels will be a pain... Hmm, sneaking in it is."
No time to waste. Hiru suppressed his aura, located the Security Bureau, and scaled the wall. Though he sometimes loathed his demon nature, he had to admit—when it came to locating corpses, a demon's sense of smell was ridiculously effective.
"Ugh—this stinks. I feel sick." Hiru clutched his nose, his face contorted in disgust. "I bet I'm the first demon ever to be repulsed by flesh and blood, huh?"
Effortlessly breaking the lock with his demon-ized Kinoe, Hiru entered the room. Suppressing his nausea, he carefully examined the corpse, paying particular attention to the mutilated parts.
"The missing face is a knife wound. The severed limbs look like they were cut cleanly before being torn off," Hiru noted as he inspected the body. "No obvious bite marks anywhere... Not a demon? Or maybe a demon skilled at concealment, or one with ritualistic tendencies? Or just human revenge?"
Hiru examined several other corpses, all showing identical patterns. "No breakthrough clues... Better review the case investigation records again.
Where are these things kept anyway? A special archive room or some office? Seriously... Having to search through every single one is such a pain."
...
Meanwhile, Giyu quietly approached the courtyard where the death had reportedly occurred. With nimble movements, he scaled the wall, carefully examining the interior for any traces while ensuring he left none behind. There were no signs of struggle, no evidence of ransacking, the furniture was intact, and the floor...
Giyu crouched down to inspect closely.
"Drag marks..." Giyu frowned, slowly following the trail forward.
The trail ended in scattered bloodstains, outlined with white human-shaped patterns—clearly where the body had been found, and this pattern repeated in every house.
Giyu's frown deepened. If a demon were responsible, there should be more evidence—at least signs of struggle. He must have missed something.
Retracing his steps, he searched every corner again. Finally, his gaze settled on a white powder beside a teapot. After a slight frown, Giyu hurried to the next house, then the next.
Sure enough, white powder was scattered beside the kettle in every single one.
[What is this?]
Giyu bent down, bringing his face close to the white powder. He sniffed it lightly. After a moment, he straightened up expressionlessly and began searching for something to collect the powder.
As for identifying it by smell...
[Indeed, the teacher's nose is impossible to replicate.]
Giyu thought to himself, nodding to his own conclusion.
After collecting the suspicious white powder from every house in turn, Giyu returned to the rendezvous point with seven or eight small paper packets. Seeing that Hiru hadn't returned yet, he found a corner from which he could monitor the house where the sole survivor resided and crouched down.
But whether he hadn't hidden well enough or this family was overly alert, Giyu had been crouched there less than fifteen minutes when a beautiful woman emerged from the house. She walked straight toward him, finally stopping directly before him.
Giyu: ...?
He gripped his sword hilt, lowering his gaze to the woman.
Her features were exquisite, her figure graceful. Even crouched on the eaves, Giyu could catch the faint, elusive scent emanating from her.
"You must be the samurai here to investigate?" she asked, her beauty breathtaking. "Actually, I have some clues. Would you care to come inside for a moment and hear what I have to say?"
Giyu merely stared at her expressionlessly, offering no reply. He felt lightheaded, for the only women he'd ever been close to were his sister and Makomo. Her intimate manner made him profoundly uncomfortable.
After five minutes of this standoff, her smile widened. "Hello? Did you hear me?"
Giyu simply averted his gaze, still silent. Yet if one looked closely, his ears were flushed crimson.
[Hiru once said, if I don't know how to respond, just ignore it. That way, you'll be seen as aloof rather than disliked.] Giyu's eyes fixed on the distant end of the street. [So I just need to ignore her... but... why do I feel so lightheaded?]
Seeing no response, the woman lowered her head, her expression turning cold, though her voice remained gentle. "It seems I was too forward..."
"Why are you chatting with a beauty while I'm investigating the body? Care to explain?" Holding a notebook, Hiru eyed Giyu suspiciously as he crouched on the eaves. But soon, he abandoned his thoughts, raised a hand to signal Giyu to be quiet, and turned to the woman. "Never mind. You'd better not speak. So, who are you?"
"Didn't the two samurai come here to investigate the matter at my residence?"
"Oh, you're the survivor." Hiru nodded, studying the woman for a moment before speaking. "Though this might touch on painful memories, do you have any leads regarding the tragedy at your home? We'll assist you."
"Truthfully, I do have some clues..." The woman's expression grew sorrowful. "But the officials refuse to believe my account."
"I'll consider whether to hear your story based on the circumstances." Hiru remained unmoved. "Go on."
"It's a long story. Perhaps the two samurai gentlemen could come to my home..."
"Men and women should not touch each other," Hiru took a step back, avoiding the woman's outstretched hand. "Besides, at this hour, it seems rather suspicious for a woman who's just endured such a tragedy to warmly invite two strangers into her home, wouldn't you agree?
What's more puzzling is that, according to my investigation, the families who encountered danger all seem to have purchased embroidery from you?
If I hadn't confirmed you weren't a demon, I'd have thought the mission was complete."
Giyu felt the scene before him begin to blur, but upon hearing this, he shook his head forcefully and focused his attention to ask, "How can one confirm it?"
"You can't learn it—I was born with this sight." Hiru waved dismissively, turning to the woman. "So... shall we hear the suspect's own account?"
The woman's smile grew even more alluring. "Actually, I noticed you both the moment you were reading the notice at dusk."