LGHTNOVELBOOK Episode 3 - "I Haven't Killed Anyone, You Know?"
Episode 3: “I Haven’t Killed Anyone, You Know?”
Ten minutes later.
After moving to the neighboring room, Duanmu Liang sat on the soft sofa cushion, trying his best to maintain a straight posture while desperately attempting to ignore the corpse lying on the floor behind him.
“Landlord-san, do you prefer coffee or tea?” Miyagi-san’s voice called out from the kitchen.
“Ah… I’ll take tea.”
To be honest, he was nearly sick of coffee. A change in taste would be better.
“Is that so.”
Miyagi-san carried two cups of tea to the living room, courteously placing the steaming cup in front of Duanmu, then naturally took a seat across from him.
She seemed to have just bathed, her slightly curled long hair cascading softly over her shoulders, strands shimmering with moisture under the lights.
She had changed out of her coat, now wearing a loose home t-shirt. The black and white patterned hem fell just above her knees, leaving her long legs exposed. The revealed expanse of snow-white skin glowed with an ivory-like luster.
This was his first time interacting with her at such close proximity.
Even with her bare face after bathing, her features were strikingly proper and eye-catching. The usual Miyagi-san must surely attract attention wherever she goes.
…
Duanmu Liang stared straight at the clear tea in his cup, hesitating to touch it.
Miyagi-san raised her teacup and took a small sip. Seeming to notice someone’s hesitation, she spoke with a smile.
“Please don’t worry, Landlord-san. I haven’t put any strange drugs in it.”
“…”
Duanmu Liang placed the teacup at the edge of the table and seriously gazed at the woman before him.
Her slender fingers gripping the teacup handle had bright nail polish that sparkled under the fluorescent light.
“Miyagi-san… no, Miyagi Aki, could you tell me your plans going forward?”
“What do you mean?” Miyagi Aki asked with a smile.
“For example, that peephole in the wall?”
“I didn’t make that.”
Duanmu Liang looked around the room, not finding anything that “looked like a murder weapon” as he replied.
“It’s ‘inherited’ from the previous landlord, my uncle. Today was the first time it came in handy. Also…”
He clasped his hands together, supporting his chin.
“Though it might be my imagination, but the smell in the room isn’t very pleasant.”
“Ah, about that, once we’re done dealing with it, I’ll use air freshener…”
“Even if you can’t smell it, it’s psychologically difficult to accept, that’s what I think.”
“Mm, it certainly isn’t ordinary germaphobia. So, I wanted to ask Landlord-san… could I stay with you tonight?”
Despite being a beautiful and sexy older sister making an ambiguous request to spend the night together, Duanmu Liang, a high school boy in his youth, calmly refused.
“No.”
“Then, how about other rooms? After all, there’s no one else living here, there are many empty spaces, right?”
After a moment of silence.
“…Please pay first.”
Miyagi Aki placed an envelope containing cash in Duanmu Liang’s outstretched palm.
“Well then, where should I begin… let me start with the conclusion.”
Her gaze passed over the boy in front of her, fixing on the corpse on the floor.
“I haven’t killed anyone.”
*
…It doesn’t seem like she’s lying.
That was Duanmu Liang’s intuition.
“Then, what’s the deal with this corpse?”
Miyagi Aki’s finger lightly tapped her chin, as if remembering.
“…I picked it up.”
“That’s not something you just casually pick up and bring home!”
He couldn’t help but retort.
“Oh my… but I saw him abandoned by the roadside, with no one paying attention, looking so pitiful…”
“Don’t talk about it like picking up a kitten in a cardboard box!”
“But you see, I found this corpse in an alley near Amazu Manor. If someone else discovered it and called the police, it would be troublesome for you as the landlord, wouldn’t it?”
Miyagi Aki placed both hands on the table, showing a serious expression.
“If people found out there was a murder case nearby, tenants would be scared away by the security conditions. So, I did this for Landlord-san’s sake!”
“It’s fine, even without a murder case, this place hardly gets any tenants anyway.”
He tilted his head back, looking at the incandescent light hanging from the ceiling, letting out a long breath.
“My question is, why did you bring the corpse home? This seems ‘abnormal’ to me, you just need to explain the reason for this abnormality. I don’t care about motives, nor do I think they have any meaning… just tell me the reason.”
“If you were somehow forced to bring this corpse home—though I can’t imagine such a possibility, but as long as it’s reasonable, I can be convinced.”
“That’s…”
Miyagi-san tilted her head, looking at him uncomprehendingly.
“Because it’s already happened, hasn’t it? Even from the perspective of your own interests, I would help you.”
“For example—”
His voice deepened.
“If you like corpses… or something like that.”
The atmosphere in the room suddenly grew silent.
*
“I don’t have necrophilia, nor do I like dead people.”
Miyagi Aki answered softly.
Her tone was unexpectedly serious.
“I apologize, Miyagi-san, that was just an example, I didn’t mean anything by it.”
“However, I did drag that corpse back from the scene. It was heavier than I expected. If you want to know the reason…”
Her finger lightly tapped the table surface once.
“I just wanted to understand how he died.”
A barely perceptible fire flickered in Miyagi-san’s eyes.
“If the police treated this as the crime scene and took the victim away, I wouldn’t be able to access the corpse so easily, that’s what I thought.”
…
Duanmu Liang stood up from his seat.
“Landlord-san, what are you…”
Miyagi Aki looked up in confusion.
“I hope you achieve your wish soon. I’m going to call the police.”
He turned to leave.
“Wait!”
Aki grabbed the boy’s pant leg.
“Wait a minute! I’ll be arrested!”
“Didn’t you say you didn’t kill anyone? Just moving a corpse isn’t a crime. The police officers will just scold you a bit, right?”
“But no one would believe that! My fingerprints are all over the corpse now, and I’m the only witness at the scene! Besides, who would bring home a corpse that has nothing to do with them?!”
…So you do understand.
Duanmu Liang sighed.
“Just as the police wouldn’t believe you, I can’t believe your explanation either.”
…Actually, he found it quite believable.
However, since this person might be a pervert or someone obsessive, it would be better to keep his distance.
“I was joking! Everything I said just now was a joke—at least, please let me finish what I have to say?”