Not a detective

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Asakawa Riku continued:

"Do you remember saying that the world you created originally had no monsters or superpowered individuals, and that it was a supernatural phenomenon that arose suddenly and uncontrollably?"

"Hmm..." She nodded. "I did say that."

When did this change occur?

"...Yes, three years ago..."

Shii Asukai looked up in surprise.

She didn't pay much attention to these things originally. The world she created was just an ordinary, unremarkable Tokyo, Japan, with no demons or monsters.

At that time, the so-called Onmyoji, the so-called monsters, the so-called folk gods, the so-called superpowered individuals, the so-called bloodline inheritance, and the so-called Non-World Inspection Department did not exist.

They all emerge little by little, then continue to evolve, starting from history and the past, gradually changing.

When I came to my senses, it had turned into this state, as if the level of high magic here had been continuously raised, as if something was gradually expanding in combat power.

Although the world's setting was altered by some force, it at least did not escape her control.

No matter what kind of supernatural ability she possessed, it was impossible to break through the highest authority of a "writer"—that was always her belief.

So she basically let things take their course and didn't manage them. Even if this strange supernatural setting would interfere with the stability of the world, wasn't that more interesting?

But it wasn't until Asakawa Riku pointed this out that Asukai Shi realized that the two points in time, "three years ago" and "three years ago," seemed to have a striking similarity.

"This is the influence of [the readers], and it's also one aspect."

Asakawa Riku explained, “Only they have the ability to bypass your ‘writer’ privileges and change the world’s settings without your knowledge. This world originally didn’t have these supernatural things. I’ve been searching for them since childhood, but I’ve never heard of them. I’m already very powerful as a Nue, so why didn’t I even notice the existence of supernatural forces? Because they didn’t exist back then. It wasn’t until I went to high school that monsters and superpowers suddenly appeared like a spring… So, timing is very important.”

“Time point… three years ago…” Asukai Shi finally realized the anomaly of that time point: “That is—when you [entered high school]!”

"Yes, if we look at it from the other side, we can conclude that the reader's gaze was cast here from that moment on, and that we were seen for the first time."

He looked up at the sky, as if to meet that gaze:

"After I entered high school, I met Chizuko-senpai. She talked to me about yokai, and we had a debate. At first, I didn't believe in the existence of yokai, but she said I had zero inspiration. It turned out she was right; yokai do exist in this world. But it was probably the readers who influenced it, because they found a world with yokai more interesting and more in line with the story's narrative. So the balance was broken from then on, and the number of strange beings and superpowered individuals in this world increased, all to cater to the ideas and interests of the readers. For example, Chizuko-senpai initially told me that Onmyoji couldn't use magic and could only manipulate the power of shikigami. But later, they could perform hand seals and cast spells, and now they've even become the jinchūriki of the wind god. This world may not have had a department to regulate superpowers at first, but now the setting of the Non-World Inspection Department has been gradually developed and perfected. All of this is the subtle transformation of the worldview by the readers. They only need an idea, and our world will change according to their intentions. That's what the readers are all about."

At this point, Asukai Shi also vaguely guessed the truth of the matter.

But the more he thought about it, the more terrified he became: "Could it be..."

My lips were trembling. The answer to this mystery was too absurd, too terrifying, simply incomprehensible.

"Yes, if our world were a book, the first page the reader would see would be the page from when I entered high school."

Let's turn back to the first page.

—In his previous life, he encountered an unfortunate accident before the college entrance examination. When he woke up, he found himself in this seemingly parallel world. The good thing was that he was given a second chance to live. The bad thing was that this parallel world had no literary works for him to learn from. Asakawa Riku spent sixteen years of his life calling the system, and then it was time to enter high school again.

"What would a reader think of when they first see this sentence?"

"If you encountered an unfortunate accident in your past life and were transported here, then [your life in your past life must have ended; you must have died before you were transported here]."

“Every reader will feel this way, and so the world is changed, and even if there was no death before, it must now be subject to the modification of consciousness.”

"Lu Chuanqian, who was lying in a vegetative state on his hospital bed, was killed by a reader's slight, unconscious thought."

"[Blue text: The real murderer is [the reader]]."

Winter of Man: Chapter Twenty-Eight - The Road to a Perfect Ending

"how so……"

Asukai Shi almost collapsed and sat on the ground.

She had considered many possibilities, imagined countless enemies and adversaries, but she never expected that the real culprit was both far away and right in front of her.

A mere glance from a higher-dimensional being would be enough to kill Lu Chuanqian silently, without them even realizing it.

This feeling of powerlessness is the most despairing.

No, it shouldn't be like this.

Asuji instinctively wanted to refute this absurd theory. What kind of reasoning is this? How could there be such an irrational "real culprit" in this world?

However, she discovered that none of the "red words" she knew could refute Asakawa Riku's statement.

Indeed, a single thought from the reader could easily kill Lu Chuanqian; there was no need to worry about the secret room, and no trace would be left behind.

So she wanted to take up the "golden sword"—

"First, the criminal must be someone who appeared at the beginning of the story, but not someone whose thoughts the reader can follow."

The reader has been present since the beginning of the story and has been a constant presence throughout the book.

A reader may be able to trace their own thoughts, but a reader is a group, and each person's thoughts will be different, so it cannot be considered a complete tracing.

Second, detectives cannot use supernatural or bizarre detective methods.

Detective Riku Asakawa did not use supernatural or bizarre detective methods, nor did he seek help from Suezuki Shinonome or Chizuko; instead, he uncovered the truth of the incident on his own.

As for the multi-dimensional world and the existence of the "reader," these are theories that can be derived from the real world.

"Third, there must be no more than one secret room or passageway at the crime scene."

There were no secret rooms or passageways at the crime scene.

[The Reader] killed him from the "upper level," just like how Chizuko used the Tsuchigumo case as an example at the beginning, taking away the student's data labels from above the blackboard.

"Fourth, when committing a crime, one must not use poisons that have not yet been invented, or devices that require profound scientific explanation."

There were no poisons or scientific devices present.

Fifth, no Chinese people who know martial arts are allowed to appear in the story.

There are no martial artists.

"Sixth, detectives must not rely on chance or irresponsible intuition to solve cases."

Riku Asakawa's discovery was not accidental, nor was it a flash of inspiration; rather, it was the result of years of accumulation and observation.

"7. Detectives must not become criminals."

Riku Asakawa is not the murderer.

"8. Detectives must not solve cases based on clues in the novel that have not been given to the reader."

All the necessary clues are mentioned to the reader beforehand, including the structure of multiple worlds, the author's ability to modify reality, and the exploration of hints about motivations.

This also includes the initial clue hidden on the first page of the book.

"Nine, the detective's foolish friend, such as Watson, must tell the reader his judgments without reservation; this person's intelligence must be slightly below the average level of the reader."

Asukai Shi told Asakawa Riku everything she knew, and only when the last clue was added could the deduction stand.

"10. If there are twins or people who look very similar in the novel, the reader must be informed in advance."

The fact that Asukai Shi and Chizuko look alike, or more accurately, that Chizuko looks alike with Xu Qishi, is not a useless clue.

This is very likely due to the subconscious influence of Asakawa Riku, suggesting the possibility that consciousness may interfere with reality.

...

Asukai Shi was astonished to find that her sword had no effect whatsoever.

I can't cut off that reasoning, I can't cut off Asakawa Riku's last blue text.

Even going out is impossible.

Riku Asakawa's reasoning passed the test of the "Ten Commandments of Knox," in other words, her golden sword could not possibly affect the higher-level "readers."

The girl could only lower her head helplessly. The red barrier was instantly breached, vanishing along with the golden sword, leaving only that helpless, slender figure.

"What am I supposed to do about this...?"

Shinobu Asukai originally thought that if she could deduce the truth of the murder case and find the real culprit, she could take revenge.

He could also tell Xu Qishi the truth, atone for his mistakes, settle the karmic debt, and end everything.

But unexpectedly, the truth was so devastating.

The real culprit is someone of such a high position that they don't even have the chance to touch or see the "readers." Conversely, if a "reader" expresses any dissatisfaction...

Any character could be killed at a glance.

It was like throwing a stone into the sky; it would only fall and hit her. Asukai Shi didn't know what to do and just hung her head in silence.

...If I had known, it might have been better not to know the truth at all.

"The most frustrating thing is probably murder without malice."

Asakawa Rikuya sighed and shook his head: "[Readers] couldn't possibly have any ill intentions towards Rikuya Asakawa. It was just a small misunderstanding caused by a series of coincidences. But the existence of higher dimensions means that even a single breath can make a butterfly sway unsteadily, as if a hurricane had swept by. They probably didn't even realize it was their own influence, and that's how this tragedy inexplicably occurred."

In this case, no one was at fault, not even the real culprit.

"When most people see a transmigrator, they subconsciously assume that the original body is dead. This is an intuitive trap that is hard to avoid falling into. Even I, who have personally experienced it, once thought that my previous life had died after an accident. Not to mention the readers who joined halfway through and did not know anything about what happened before. So, we can't blame them."

It was an accident, but an unfortunate one.

This is why we need to mention the "motive." It is precisely because the "reader" has no motive to kill Lu Chuanqian, or even any connection to it, that this mystery is so difficult to solve.

But what's most frustrating is, even if the truth is revealed, what then?

From an emotional standpoint, one cannot seek revenge against a murderer who has no malicious intent; from a logical standpoint... it is also impossible.

"Go back."

After a long silence, Shii Asukai suddenly spoke.

“I will heal your body and erase the things they shouldn’t remember. Go back and live a good life with them. Thank you… for helping me uncover the truth.”

She gave a wry smile of relief, but in any case, it was a way to put an end to the biggest confusion in her heart.

Asakawa Riku finally heard the long-awaited news of his release from prison, but he stood there and didn't leave:

"how about you?"

“I’ll stay here.” Asuya Shi shook her head, refusing his invitation: “The mistake I made hasn’t been resolved, and I can’t possibly tell Xu Qishi about this. This despairing truth would completely break her already fragile heart. Since it can’t be resolved, I’ll lock myself here as punishment.”

It seems she is prepared to remain forever in this void.

However, Asakawa Riku went a step further: "What if I could solve it?"

"what?"

Asukai Shi, holding little hope, sneered, "Do you think you can rush up and take down [The Reader]?"

“No.” Asakawa Riku shook his head: “I can’t do it, and as I said, the readers are not wrong. They cannot seek revenge or be punished.”

"Then what you are saying is..."

"I can save Lu Chuanqian. As long as Lu Chuanqian is revived, all problems will be solved."

"...!"

His words made Uta Asu's eyes widen: "Are you telling the truth... No, that's impossible!"

She immediately denied it, saying, "Although I can reverse time in the world of the book, it's a world within a book, and I can't interfere with time in the real world. If I could, I would have saved him long ago. Just like you said, the 'readers' are observers; once their observations are established, they absolutely cannot be changed. Lu Chuanqian is already dead; that's what they saw..."

"Everything you said is correct."

Asakawa Riku nodded. Asukai Shi was indeed very clever, making so many connections in an instant.

As long as the readers continue to observe, no plan can take effect; as long as they firmly believe in something, no fact can be changed.

However, there was only one last option left.

The last one, a path that can bring happiness to everyone, leads to a perfect ending:

"Now, I am speaking to the readers."

He suddenly turned this way.

It turned to "us".

"I beg you, do not subscribe to the next chapter."

Winter of Man: D0N7_R3@d

"What……"

Asukai Shi was stunned: "Will this... really work?"