Chapter 3 - Prologue 3
After returning to the station and reporting the outline of the case to the Chief and Division Chief, the commissioned medical examiner's autopsy, the family's identification of the body, and interviews were conducted one after another. The direct cause of death was, as it appeared, a cerebral contusion caused by a strong blow to the head against a stone. The opinion was that it was nearly instantaneous.
According to the family's testimony, the victim, Yoshimi, had left his home in Kitami by car on the night of Thursday, June 8, to take photos of the up and down night express "Okhotsk" and freight trains passing the site in the late night and early morning. Friday, June 9, was apparently his compensatory day off because he had worked that Sunday.
He had apparently come to take photos many times before, so he originally had knowledge of the area. He should have naturally had his camera with him, so it was certain that someone had stolen it. Regarding this point, they decided to coordinate with the Theft Unit, have the family contact them later with the model of the stolen camera, and check pawn shops and the like.
However, Nishida suspected that if the perpetrator was interested in the camera itself and not necessarily for the purpose of cashing it in, the investigation would likely be difficult. He thought the possibility that the person at the same location during that time frame was someone with the "same hobby" was by no means low. Furthermore, they checked the fingerprints collected from the abandoned items and the victim's clothes, but at least no one with a prior record was confirmed.
Nishida and the others had been busy until night that day, but by 7:00 PM, they finally had the leeway to go out for dinner. On this day, everyone, including Komura who was originally off-duty, had no choice but to come in, so except for Sawada who was left behind as a contact person, everyone went out to the usual diner and was finally able to take a breather amidst the chaos.
"Kakarichou, the scene was right near that Jomon Tunnel, wasn't it?"
As usual, Yoshimura, a fast eater, spoke to Nishida with a toothpick in one hand.
"Seems so. Because of the curves and the forest, the entrance to the tunnel wasn't clearly visible, but according to the maintenance workers, the scene was about 200 meters from the tunnel."
"Then, don't you think the victim saw a ghost or a fireball or something, got scared, and tripped?"
He was likely half-joking, but to Nishida, it sounded like Yoshimura was partially serious.
"Yoshimura! Since it's that Jomon Tunnel, I can't say such a thing is entirely impossible, but we're police, not spirit mediums..."
Kurosu responded with a wry smile.
"Do you guys know the ghost stories about Jomon Tunnel too?"
Nishida asked his subordinates as part of the conversation, since he himself hadn't known.
As it turned out, everyone except Nishida—Takeshita, Komura, Yoshimura (of course), Kurosu, and Ooba—knew them. According to Yoshimura, Sawada, who had stayed behind, also knew. Nishida was once again surprised by the fame of the Jomon Tunnel.
"However, whether ghost stories are real or not is one thing, but for a person from Kitami like the victim, it's only natural to know these stories... It's not entirely impossible that he mistook something for a ghost, got surprised, and fell," Takeshita muttered.
Now that he mentioned it, that was certainly a possibility and a sufficiently plausible speculation. Nishida felt he needed to take that point into full consideration as he poured tea down his throat.
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The next day, forensics confirmed that the substance attached to the tip of the shoe matched the fibers of the bark of the tree root, and Nishida and the others gained conviction that the cause of the fall was indeed tripping over the tree root. However, whether that was the victim tripping on his own or some kind of "influence" by the person who stole the camera, they were unable to reach a conclusion, just as they had thought at the scene. While the probability was higher for an accident than a crime...
On the other hand, in such a case, if they could pull him in on a "separate matter" such as theft or embezzlement of lost property, an interrogation regarding Yoshimi's death would be possible, but that depended on whether he got caught in the Theft Unit's net, and at the same time, that possibility was by no means high. Although Engaru Station rarely encountered "big" cases, the question of whether this would become a big case was left to the resolution of a small theft case.
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Three days had passed since the incident, but as Nishida had feared, there was no progress at all regarding the theft.
"I guess this case will end without it being clear whether it was a crime or not..."
Only three days had passed, but Nishida was thinking he had to prepare for the possibility of it ending in ambiguity. This was because in these types of cases, if the motive was "money," they would move quite early in most cases. Of course, there were exceptions... However, Nishida and the investigation team did not even imagine at this time that in about four days from the occurrence, they would move directly on the main case of Yoshimi's death itself, rather than a separate matter involving theft.
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The afternoon of June 13. While Nishida and Division Chief Sawai were discussing the investigation policy,
"Kachou! Kakarichou! I've got some interesting information about the Yoshimi case!"
Yoshimura, who had returned from outside duty, raised his voice as soon as he entered the room with Kurosu, who had been accompanying him.
"What, did you find something out?"
Sawai stood up from his chair as if in a hurry.
"Well, yeah... It's not that big of a deal, though..."
Yoshimura replied as if slightly intimidated by the Division Chief's momentum.
"Just tell us, whatever it is," Nishida prompted quietly, seeing Yoshimura's expression.
"Kakarichou. Just before this case, we talked about the ghost stories of Jomon Tunnel, right? Actually, that story about it 'appearing lately' is something I heard from the Taisho (T/N: master) of the small restaurant-izakaya I frequent. And just now, I happened to run into that Taisho in town. Apparently, the source of that story was a JR driver who often comes to the shop..."
At that moment, Division Chief Sawai suddenly cut in.
"Wait a minute, what's this Jomon Tunnel story?"
Sawai hadn't been involved in the Jomon Tunnel conversation at all until now, so it was only natural he couldn't follow the development. However, after hearing the explanation from Yoshimura and Nishida, it seemed he had known about the ghost stories of Jomon Tunnel themselves from before, and having quickly grasped the situation, Yoshimura resumed his story.
"So, about those supernatural phenomena, it seems the stories started because drivers have been frequently witnessing 'fireballs' or some kind of luminous phenomena on the Ikutahara side of the Jomon Tunnel while driving lately."
"Fireballs, huh... Regardless, how does that relate to the Yoshimi case?"
The Division Chief's doubt was reasonable. Nishida was about to say the same thing, but the Division Chief beat him to it.
"Now, don't be in such a hurry. There's more to it."
Saying this, despite telling others not to hurry, Yoshimura hurriedly took off his suit jacket, placed it on the desk, and continued his story.
"While the drivers are making a fuss about fireballs and luminous phenomena, there's apparently one veteran driver who's been saying from the start, 'That's not it.'"
"What on earth does that mean?"
This time, Nishida asked Yoshimura before the Division Chief could.
Yoshimura gave a slight smirk but began to explain.
"That veteran driver apparently witnessed mysterious phenomena at the Jomon Tunnel many times when he was young, but the luminous color of the fireballs back then is completely different from the ones lately. He's saying, 'Those are probably artificial lights from a flashlight or something.'"
"In other words, that person is saying the cause of the ghost and fireball commotion is the work of a 'living human being.'"
Sawai said this while looking at Yoshimura's face, then continued.
"In conclusion, what you want to say is that the source of that light might have some kind of connection to the person who stole the camera in this case? Is that it?"
"Bingo! Exactly! It wouldn't be strange if there was a chronological connection between the recent luminous phenomena and this case, right? Besides, since that Yoshimi case, apparently no one has seen the luminous object."
Ignoring Yoshimura, who spoke happily,
"Is it true that no one has seen it?" Nishida asked hurriedly.
"Yes. It seems that what was frequently witnessed hasn't appeared since then," Kurosu answered calmly in his place.
Nishida thought "Bingo" was a bit much for Yoshimura, who was already thirty, but indeed, if the ghost stories and this case, and the eyewitness accounts were true, there might be a connection depending on how one thought about it. If they had grasped a lead for the investigation from absurd rumors of supernatural phenomena, it was quite a feat.
"Kachou. This might actually be something. It might be better to go and listen properly once."
"You're right... Just as Nishida says, it might be better to re-examine it properly. Nishida! Will you go with Yoshimura, or will you leave it to Yoshimura and Kurosu? What do you want to do?"
The Division Chief supported Nishida's judgment and then asked him.
"I should probably go as well, but since Kurosu was also listening with Yoshimura, wouldn't it be fine for the three of us to go?"
"Alright, I'll leave it to Nishida."
The Division Chief said this and rotated his neck as if his shoulders were stiff.
"Then I'll make the appointment, is that alright?"
Nishida nodded silently a few times to Yoshimura, who had received the Division Chief's statement.