Kiyomi Ruri left her workplace, thinking about her grand plan and the bright future that came with it. There was a slightly sinister smile on her face, and she felt ecstatic as she rushed into her house in less than twenty seconds.

She shouted, "I'm back!" and kicked off her shiny round-toed shoes as she continued to run towards her room. Kiyomi Kako, who was watching a prime time drama in the living room, turned around in confusion and asked, "Why are you back so late? Did you have a study session with Nanahara-kun? I left some food for you in the kitchen, just heat it up yourself."

"I've already eaten!" Kiyomi Ruri replied as she rushed up the stairs. At home, she didn't have to worry about being ladylike and ran like a wild boar charging forward.

She couldn't wait to start the investigation and embark on her path as "Ruri the Detective."

"Wait, come back!"

Before Kiyomi Ruri could embark on her "detective path," she encountered a formidable obstacle. She couldn't ignore her mother's words, so she abruptly stopped and said discontentedly, "What else is it, Mom? I'm busy right now."

Kiyomi Kako didn't care whether she was busy or not. After all, she hadn't seen her daughter busy with anything serious all these years. She directly asked, "Did you have dinner with Nanahara-kun?"

"Yes, you...you told me to thank him, right? So, I cooked dinner for him," Kiyomi Ruri didn't want her family to interfere with her personal affairs. She quickly came up with an excuse, "I can't say it. If I do, Mom won't let me investigate the case, and everything will be ruined. I'm just one step away from becoming 'Ruri the Detective'!"

Kiyomi Kako was surprised, "You cooked dinner?"

Kiyomi Ruri proudly hummed twice, "Yes, I did. And it was super delicious, like a feast fit for a king."

"Really rare." Although Kiyomi Kako didn't believe that her eldest daughter could cook well, she was still pleased. She thought that her daughter had finally started taking care of others and had grown up a bit. Her voice involuntarily softened, "I've prepared the bathwater, go take a bath and rest."

"Okay, Mom." Kiyomi Ruri thought for a moment and immediately said, "Nanahara just moved here, and he's not familiar with the area. I want to take him around town in the next few days. What do you think?"

"Go ahead, it's fine if you come back later. Just be careful and stay safe." Kiyomi Kako didn't object. Nanahara Takeshi was academically excellent, gentle in nature, and had good personal qualities. If he could influence her foolish daughter, she would immediately go back to her hometown and thank him.

Two heads were better than one, and three heads could still be negotiated. It wasn't a bother anyway.

Kiyomi Ruri succeeded in her scheme and obtained the time to participate in the investigation. She immediately shouted, "Thank you, Mom!" and rushed upstairs without even bothering to take a bath. She dove straight into her room and excitedly started reading the briefing on the case.

......

This case wasn't particularly complicated.

Nineteen days ago, around 10:10 PM, in the northern part of Bonko Town, a man named Matsuchi Yūto was stabbed in front of his own house, receiving multiple critical wounds to his chest, abdomen, and neck.

When he was attacked, his wife, Matsuchi Yuki, who was waiting for him to come home from work, was alarmed and quickly opened the door to check. She found her husband lying in a pool of blood at the doorstep and was immediately shocked. Instinctively, she shouted for help and tried her best to apply pressure to the neck wound to stop the bleeding. There were multiple wounds, but the one on the neck was the most severe and bleeding profusely.

According to her testimony, at that moment, her mind went blank, and she was solely focused on applying pressure to her husband's wound. She didn't notice anything else and only remembered her husband grabbing her hand as he was dying, as if he wanted to say something to her but couldn't speak. In just a few seconds, his consciousness became fuzzy, and he struggled to raise his hand, pointing to the sky before his arm fell limp, completely unresponsive.

By the time the neighbors who heard her cries for help arrived, they were all dumbfounded at the sight of the blood-soaked scene.

Once they regained their senses, someone called an ambulance and the police, someone tried to save the already deceased Matsuchi Yūto, and others searched the area in hopes of finding the assailant. However, their efforts were in vain. The killer was cunning, clearly premeditated the crime, and left no traces, not even a single drop of blood. How they managed to escape remained a mystery.

A murder was not a small case, so the Hirayano Police Station immediately set up an Investigation Headquarters and dedicated all their efforts to finding the killer. The only clue they had was that the victim pointed to the sky when he was on the brink of death. They suspected that the killer's name might contain words like "night," "sky," "stars," "clouds," "moon," or "bird."

However, after investigating everyone who knew Matsuchi Yūto for a week, including homophones, pen names, stage names, nicknames, and aliases, they couldn't find anyone with a motive or any suspicious details.

This lead didn't pan out, and their only clue proved to be ineffective. The Investigation Headquarters resorted to the most basic method of elimination. They compiled a list of over seventy people who had recent contact with Matsuchi Yūto and systematically investigated their motives and alibis. Despite their efforts for nearly a week, they couldn't find a single person with reasonable suspicion.

The atmosphere at the Investigation Headquarters became heavy. The case seemed simple on the surface but was actually difficult to solve. As they continued to investigate, they found themselves without any leads.

After multiple meetings and discussions, they shifted their suspicion back to Matsuchi Yuki. They suspected that she had killed her husband since she was the first to discover the crime scene and was covered in his blood. The clue of pointing to the sky was also provided by her alone, and it seemed like she was misleading the police investigation.

She became the prime suspect!

It can be hard to make great work when its stolen from "pawread dot com".

The Investigation Headquarters began their third round of questioning in the vicinity of the Matsuchi household, thoroughly exploring whether Matsuchi Yuki had a motive to commit murder and if their marital relationship was not as harmonious as it seemed. They even conducted covert searches of the Matsuchi residence, hoping to find a murder weapon or any other evidence. This caused a stir among the locals, and rumors began to spread. Some even brought local myths and legends into the discussion. There was a Shinto shrine in the area that worshipped a demon called "Yasha," and some residents suspected that Matsuchi Yūto had been cursed by someone, causing the Yasha to descend from the sky and stab him to death.

Although it sounded absurd, it was difficult to argue against it since Japan had not completely abandoned its superstitious beliefs. The local legend stated that the Yasha was a powerful monster that resided in the Bonko River. It used to fly through the night sky, attacking local residents or travelers, and sometimes even abducted entire cows, sheep, or capsized boats. As a result, the locals built a shrine to appease the Yasha, praying that it would no longer harm people, similar to paying protection money to the mafia.

Over time, another urban legend called the "Curse of Yasha" emerged in the area.

According to the legend, if you harbored strong hatred towards someone, you could write their name on a piece of paper and hide it beneath the boundary stone of the shrine. This would directly curse the person. If your hatred was strong enough and the promised price was high, the Yasha would kill the person you wanted dead.

Now, due to Matsuchi Yūto's strange actions before his death (leaked during police questioning), some people connected his cause of death with the local legend. Many people believed it, and the street was abuzz with discussions. Even some unscrupulous tabloids joined in, spreading all sorts of nonsense.

With all the chaos and confusion, the prestigious Hirayano family, who had a long history and many influential members, became furious. They believed that this case severely affected the family's reputation. They firmly believed that it was impossible for a married daughter of the Hirayano family to kill her husband, and she shouldn't be frequently mentioned in the gossip tabloids. They demanded an explanation from the police station, which forced Gotō Yasushi to intervene and provide an explanation to the Hirayano family.

This case was different from the Minamimachi District Referendum case. The Hirayano family had produced politicians and had numerous business connections. They had the wealth and power to make a fuss, unlike Tominaga Yōsuke's case, which didn't even have a proper victim. It had been left unresolved for a long time.

Therefore, an explanation was necessary. Whether Matsuchi Yuki was the killer or someone else, it didn't matter. They had to find the culprit.

......

Under the desk lamp, Kiyomi Ruri carefully read through the briefing report and took notes. She looked like an excellent assistant to a detective, and in the end, she bit the end of her pen and fell into deep thought, completely focused.

First of all, the initial judgment of the police seemed correct. Matsuchi Yūto's briefcase, wallet, watch, and wedding ring were all present at the crime scene. The killer wasn't after money or any possessions. From the autopsy report, it was evident that the killer was ruthless and aimed for vital areas. Even after Matsuchi Yūto fell to the ground, the killer continued to stab him. The intention to kill was strong. There shouldn't be any problem in suspecting someone among his acquaintances.

However, based on the briefing report, Matsuchi Yūto was gentle in nature, had a good temper, and had a clean record. He had never held a grudge against anyone, and even if he had minor conflicts with others at work, it never reached the point of murder. The police hadn't found any motive that made sense...

Secondly, according to the data provided in mystery novels, 72.8% of murder cases are committed by acquaintances. Among them, 22.21% are husbands killing wives, and 20.65% are wives killing husbands. Combined, over half of the cases involve the closest people. Matsuchi Yuki indeed had a high suspicion.

However, there was still no evidence to prove that Matsuchi Yuki killed her husband.

According to the testimonies of the neighbors, Matsuchi Yuki had a gentle and elegant nature. She was kind-hearted and always willing to help others. Almost all the neighbors who knew her didn't believe that she could kill her husband.

No one even believed that she would harm animals.

Lastly, if Matsuchi Yuki was innocent and her testimony was reliable, what did it mean when the victim pointed to the sky before his death?

When a person is attacked and only has a breath left, their instinct is to identify their attacker. There shouldn't be any problem with that. However, the police had already thoroughly investigated everyone with names containing words like "night," "sky," or "stars" among Matsuchi Yūto's acquaintances, and they couldn't find anyone with any suspicion. So, what did he want to convey?

It couldn't be that a demon descended from the sky, killed him, and flew away, right?

This was too bizarre, and it was the biggest mystery of the case...