712 - The Outcast Writer of a Martial Arts Visual Novel

"Never turn away from someone in need." This was the spirit of the martial artists I idolized, the protagonists of the novels I've written. Even if I'm not a hero, as a writer who tells their stories, there's a code of conduct I must follow. Having drawn my sword, I decided to see it through to the end. "The question is, how far do I go?" I took a moment to assess the situation around me. "A scholar returning home to hang himself." "Click, click. He must have made a drastic decision out of despairing over his circumstances." "It happens from time to time. Friends who devoted their lives to studying, only to hit the harsh wall of reality and lose the will to live." "Indeed, someone I knew died that way." "It's nice to see the renowned detective's deduction skills at work. Now, we just need to take care of the body." Murmurs of sympathy and disappointment were everywhere. The atmosphere suggested it was a closed case. If it was a suicide, there was nothing more to discuss. A small detective show wouldn't hurt my reputation. Alright, let's calmly weigh the situation. To what extent should I involve myself in this incident? How far should I go for the deceased? How much can I accomplish with my abilities? How far should Detective Kang Yoon Ho go? I reached a conclusion easily. Yes, if I’m going to do this anyway... "It's a murder case." Might as well put on a grand detective show. --- "A murder case?!" "Are you saying the despondent scholar didn’t hang himself in that cabin?" "Right! We saw him hanging! How is it a murder case?!" The situation clearly seemed like a suicide, so it was natural for them to stir when it turned out to be a murder. "It's a murder case." I proclaimed this firmly, like a detective who refused to compromise on the truth. "But why? What's your reasoning?!" It's no fun if I reveal the answer right away. Smirking with the mischievous glee of one holding secret knowledge, I addressed the crowd. "Because there are things that should be there but aren't, and things that shouldn't be there but are." What I needed to do was put on a deduction show that satisfied everyone. I had to ignite their curiosity with the problem. "Things that should be there?" "And shouldn't be there...?" Puzzled expressions flitted across their faces. But I had no intention of giving them the answer. "Why does everyone assume it's a suicide?" Let's guide them to slowly eliminate the wrong answers. Keep them yearning for that one correct answer. "It's because the scholar supposedly hanged himself." Based on the circumstances, it's a perfectly logical conclusion. To move forward, I need to refute this. Yet, it's difficult to challenge such thorough circumstances. Is there a way to check this perfect scenario as an incorrect answer? "Current investigative methods rely on circumstances. When searching for culprits, it's not the evidence but who fits the circumstantial profile that's prioritized." There was. For those gathered here, there was a familiar means to easily refute it. "Huh? Wh-what?!" "Are you quoting something Detective Kang Yoon Ho said?" "This man! Those are the words of Jegal Seol Rok!" When Jegal Seol Rok was questioned about why he went to such lengths for training. Words he spoke to Gang Yoon Ho. It was the reason for his sleuthing career. "Many people fail to see the evidence right in front of them and rely on circumstances to draw conclusions. The dead remain unjust, and the perpetrator sleeps soundly." I sighed lightly. Just like Jegal Seol Rok in my novel, laughing at this unreasonable world. I was Detective Kang Yoon Ho. But in this moment, to the crowd, I must have appeared as the real Jegal Seol Rok. The gleam in the people's eyes changed. They weren’t mere spectators of a deduction show anymore, but immersed characters within the narrative. "What have we missed?" One character, engrossed in the case, asked me. "A cabin with just a bed and a hanging body. Isn’t it odd? If it were a suicide at the door, something should be there." I gestured, redirecting their eyes not at me, but toward the cabin. A spacious cabin, though the ship was luxurious, it wasn't akin to a cruise ship that had everything. Naturally, the cabin had only a bed and some hanging luggage. "Something that should be there isn't?" Everything seemed present, but what was missing? You can’t find what you don’t see. Unless your thoughts reach that far, you wouldn’t search for it. Thus, I opened their eyes to it. "A stepping stool! If he hanged himself, shouldn’t his feet not touch the ground?" "...!" From the bed, it was quite a distance to the door. Without the aid of some object, it was impossible to hang oneself. Before the startled expressions faded, I swiftly brought up the next piece of evidence. "The cause of death was asphyxiation. He was certainly suffocated by a rope, easy to assume as a suicide, but there's something that shouldn’t be there." "What is it?!" "When a person hangs themselves, where would the rope around the neck exert the most pressure?" Given that gravity pulls down, where would it apply the greatest force? To aid their understanding, I deliberately bent my head and grabbed my neck. "Of course, the front of the neck!" Correct. However, the evidence... "The marks on this body are clearer on the back and sides, as if someone strangled him with a rope." "My goodness!" Additionally, had the rope been used for hanging, it would naturally create a diagonal mark as it traveled upward at the back of the neck. There was no need to provide more information than that. The distinct markings I pointed out on the body served as sufficient evidence. "Truly, this is just how Jegal Seol Rok would do it! It's the voice of ghosts!" "Yes! The one who sees the voice of ghosts!" Not one who hears the voices of the dead through countless training and sharp intuition, but one who sees them. That was Jegal Seol Rok's trait. "Even with countless eyes present, only he sees what others cannot. Isn’t he rightly the one who sees the voice of the ghosts?" "Hah! Huff! Hah! Huff!" "Why are you behaving like that?" "I-I’m so incredibly thrilled! If I die now, call it the handiwork of Jegal Seol Rok!" "If I were to die now, I'd have Detective Kang take another look at the body!" "What an honor!" Let's keep it restrained from turning into a situation with two corpses. The response to the detective show is certainly enthusiastic. The scene had quickly turned into a frenzy of excitement. Now, it was time to wrap things up. "The perpetrator tried desperately to hide the truth. But the absence of something that should be there, and the presence of something that shouldn’t, reveals the truth." With a quick glance at the grim scene, I allowed anger to simmer, curling one side of my mouth like a detective who had solved a trivial puzzle. The perp’s efforts had blinded everyone else. But with this black-haired detective present, their attempts were in vain. "This incident is a murder disguised as suicide." I declared it to everyone, the perpetrator’s efforts now for naught. "To observe countless traces and derive evidence... This is the mark of a famed detective, Jegal Seol Rok. No, wait!!!" "A detective indeed!" It was an echo far grander than what a simple detective show usually warrants. --- "Then who, who is the culprit?" I have no idea. How would I know? Identifying a murder and finding the murderer are entirely different matters. 'This is about as far as my deduction can go right now.' My skills for detective work are limited to this point. I mustn't reveal my limitations. The image of Detective Kang Yoon Ho shouldn’t be tarnished in the eyes of these people. What to do... I can't say I don't know. I can't tell them it's a problem that's impossible to solve right now. I need to devise a way to bow out without disappointing them. After pondering briefly, the solution hit me. "I am the murderer. I am the murderer." Immersing myself, I took on the guise of my deductive persona. "What?! Detective Kang is claiming to be the murderer?" "Silence! Anyone can see Detective Kang is deep in thought!" "I-I've heard of this before! The black-haired detective mimics the mindset of the murderer to catch them!" "They say he's caught countless killers with this method!" I can count them on one hand. My intentionally spread rumors are gaining embellishment, it seems. No matter. Right now, what mattered wasn’t the deduction or the rumors. I launched into an earnest performance. "Murder committed, disguised as suicide. Yet there wasn’t much time... Why is that?!" With no regard for the onlookers, absorbed in the deduction, I became an eccentric detective. My very demeanor became a fascinating spectacle to the crowd. "Gasp!" My current appearance was something akin to that of a madman. Like an actor onstage unaware of the audience, continuing the deduction as if I couldn't see them. It must be an intriguing sensation. Though I am a person of this reality, it must feel like they're peering into another world as they watched me. As I immersed myself in deduction, they immersed themselves in observing me. Though I’m not a brilliant detective solving the case on the spot, I'm a mesmerizer capable of enchanting all beneath the stage with a deduction show. "Hahaha! Yes, that's it!" Every act must eventually draw to a close, so with a good-natured laugh, I announced the finale. "Detective Kang? What, what's this about?!" There's no need to converse with the audience as the ending scrolls signaled the closure. With a satisfied smile, I dashed out of the scene. "I've seen all there is to see. I'll be waiting in the captain's quarters! Ensure nobody enters the scene!" Without the need for additional time spent, I ran towards the captain’s quarters. Though the conclusion of this sudden detective show was abrupt, it didn’t matter. "Just like Jegal Seol Rok!" TGloWlBtWUkwZWhUWHNtSC9RL1BObmRHaHljSGJPZUhrbmxSVy9ua2FuYW1uT3dpVCtncEdTbnJWK1RyYytzMg "He must've found a clue about the culprit!" "The famed detective for sure!!!" Everyone knew the significance of this ending. It wasn't a masterpiece of detective work but an amateur-level deduction at best. Yet, there’s more to what I can do than mere detection. 'An exit that looks more dignified than shouting "I don't know who the culprit is."' I filled the gaps with performance and quick thinking, an entirely perfect strategic retreat that no one would ever suspect.