Prologue

Red. Blood red. Stench. The smell of iron. A lifeless body rests elegantly on the pure white wall. The blood dripping off the corpse gave the wall a deep red hue, almost like a painting. Nobody could believe their eyes. A dead person right in front of them. A life so delicate just snuffed out right in front of their noses. Nobody could make a noise, not even a tiny squeak.

Naoe Higashino slams his fists on the floor as he kneels in front of the corpse. The deceased was someone he knew. Someone he probably cared about. Tears dripped down from his face and onto his hand, diluting the blood that had already dried up on his hand. Fear, grief, anxiety, anger, confusion all rushed into his mind at once. He didn’t know what was happening. Nobody knew what had happened. This wasn’t possible.

The door was locked twice. The key lock and the chain lock were both secure before they entered the room. The only window in that room was also safely secured. There was no way to enter or exit the room. Absolutely impossible for a human. It must have been suicide. Right? Not quite. That’s the most puzzling bit. The corpse was laden with injuries caused by four arrows each pointing to a different direction. However, any traces of the murder weapon could not be found anywhere in the room. No one could possibly impale themselves to death with arrows. It must have been murder.

Murder? It can’t be. I already ruled that out the moment it was established that this is a perfect sealed room. How could someone just teleport in or out of the room? Naoe thought as he desperately tries to make sense of the impossible.

The evidences directly contradicts each other, no conclusions could be drawn.

Naoe had personally confirmed the death of the body by checking his pulse. His extensive knowledge about the process of rigor mortis had confirmed that death occurred three hours ago, making the time of death at roughly 3am today.

This crime is impossible. It made no sense. No one could have done it yet someone must have done it. What is actually happening? Naoe grabbed his hair in frustration. There were many inconsistencies in this case that puzzled him.

Firstly, the locked room. The key lock itself is insufficient in creating the locked room. Even if the door is locked, it will not be a locked room as the murderer could simply bring the key out of the room and lock the door from the outside. The solid evidence which created this locked room however is the chain lock. Naoe himself had already tested the chain lock. The gap created by the door opening is too small, so small that not even a finger could get through, clearly implying that the chain lock could not have been locked from the outside. This conclusively proves that this is a sealed room. Which then begs the question. Why lock both the key lock and the chain lock?

Secondly, the murder weapon and cause of death. A quick examination of the body can lead to the conclusion that the murder weapon is a crossbow or a simple bow and arrow. However, what was puzzling was all the arrows sticking into the corpse's body are all pointing in different directions. Did the murderer shoot at the victim from different directions? For what purpose? Even curiouser was the fact that the murder weapon is missing.

Lastly, the room itself. The crime scene is no doubt the victim's room. However, the location of the body is only located inside one part of the room. The design of this room is extremely peculiar. Its too big to be called a room. There is an extension within this room which is separated by another door.

Naoe stared at the door inside the room. It was closed. Naoe tried to open the door. It was locked.

"Are you sure you should be doing that? Wouldn't you dirty the crime scene with your fingerprints?" A girl about the same age as Naoe started to speak out.

Naoe nodded in agreement. She was right, the crime scene cannot be disturbed. However much he wants to leave the room be, he cannot. There were strong feelings of suspicion which compels him to act. Whatever lies behind the door holds the key to this mystery. After all, the murderer could have hidden himself or herself in that room.

Naoe patted his shirt, especially the area around his right shoulder, and took three steps back.

"Would you mind aiding me in searching the room?" Naoe spoke as he rushed into the door.

Nothing happened. The door was stubbornly secure. Naoe tried again, and again until finally the door busted open.

Instinctively, he grabbed his nose. The smell of blood started to waft out of the smaller room.

Shit

Naoe rushed in. The sight that befell upon his eyes left him in shock. He wanted to let out a scream but he couldn't. He was petrified.

"What's wrong, Naoe?"

"Don't come in! There's another body here."

In the corner of the room lay a teenage boy sprawled on the floor with the same arrow wounds as the victim outside. Blood stained the floor. The same stench of death filled the room.

"Check the room. There has to be clues!" Naoe yelled as he ran towards the body.

The girl that accompanied Naoe immediately went to check under the bed, which was located inside the room. Nothing.

She continued to search the bed to find something of importance. Suddenly, a glimmer of light caught her attention. She extended her arms and tried to feel for them.

"Oh my god." She collapsed in shock.

Naoe jerked his head back to see what she held in her hands. On it rests two keys. The key to the room and the key to this extension. It was a locked room within a locked room. This has to be the work of the devil.

How did it come to this. It was supposed to be just a simple school trip.

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