The Last Sound

Chapter 10: The Last Sound

Lin Xinyi quickly suppressed this subtle sense of incongruity.

Meanwhile, the great detective Kudo Shinichi's interest in Lin Xinyi grew even stronger:

"Mr. Lin Xinyi, your investigative experience seems quite extensive."

"You must have solved many cases before, right?"

"I'm very interested in this method of deduction that utilizes forensic knowledge."

"If you have time, could you tell me more about your experiences solving cases?"

"..."

He sounded even more like he was interrogating a suspect than Inspector Megure had earlier, constantly asking Lin Xinyi questions he simply couldn't answer.

Lin Xinyi remained silent.

He automatically blocked out the noise around him and then looked around to observe:

Inspector Megure was directing the police officers on site to begin wrapping things up. The onlookers were still discussing the brilliant deduction they had just witnessed, clearly not having had enough.

Officer Komatsu was slowly packing up the forensic investigation kit, while Kudo Shinichi was still relentlessly pestering Lin Xinyi, this mysterious "rival," with questions.

A grand show had ended.

But it seemed everyone had forgotten the main character of this show—the deceased.

Gradually, Lin Xinyi's gaze once again fixed on the body lying alone on the white plastic sheet, a body that didn't even retain a complete human form.

"Hmm?"

Kudo Shinichi quickly noticed Lin Xinyi's gaze.

He couldn't help but feel a little surprised:

Lin Xinyi was actually focusing on the body with that intense look again.

Could there be some unrevealed clue on the body?

He had already lost the first round by being a step behind Lin Xinyi in discovering the cause of the dismemberment.

If there were other clues on the body that he, a famous detective who prided himself on being a disciple of Sherlock Holmes, had completely missed, that would be a complete and utter defeat.

"What is it, Mr. Lin?"

"Have you found something else?"

Kudo Shinichi's tone became a little subtle, even tense.

Lin Xinyi didn't answer directly but turned to glance at him.

The young detective's face was full of drive.

It was as if an athlete who had just finished an intense competition was filled with anticipation for the next event.

But this wasn't a competition...

"Kudo,"

After a moment of contemplation, Lin Xinyi finally spoke:

"I haven't found any new clues on the body."

"However, besides clues for solving the case, what else can you understand from a body?"

"Uh? This..."

Kudo Shinichi was slightly stunned:

If not clues for solving the case, what else could he see?

Was this a deduction test Lin Xinyi had set for him?

He immediately became interested, and his bright eyes stared directly at the body.

"Sigh..." Lin Xinyi shook his head helplessly:

Looking at the deceased with the eyes used to solve a riddle wouldn't reveal that answer.

As expected, after a moment of thought, Kudo Shinichi still couldn't solve this "riddle."

He observed and thought, unconsciously rubbing his chin, almost rubbing his well-defined chin raw, but he couldn't utter a single word.

"Um..."

It was Miss Mouri Ran beside them who hesitantly broke the silence.

Driven by the innate sensibility of a young girl, she seemed to unconsciously participate in solving this "riddle":

"It must have been very painful."

"Oh?" Lin Xinyi looked over, surprised.

And Kudo Shinichi also turned to look at his childhood friend, somewhat confused, "Painful, what do you mean?"

"I mean..."

Ran mustered her courage and looked at the deceased on the ground.

"The victim, this woman, she must have been in so much pain."

"She died three hours ago, which was around two in the morning."

"Why would someone choose to commit suicide at 2 AM, when most people are asleep?"

"And look at her clothes—she's wearing pajamas."

To Kudo Shinichi's surprise, Ran articulated a deduction that he, the great detective, couldn't have come up with:

"It must be because she was in too much pain."

"She probably hadn't decided to commit suicide at first. Wearing pajamas suggests she just wanted to go to sleep."

"But the pain made it impossible for her to sleep."

"She might have lain awake in bed, thinking for a very long time, but ultimately, the pain overwhelmed her."

Ran slowly clenched her fists.

She completely empathized with the nameless deceased, this stranger:

"Eventually, she couldn't bear it anymore."

"She didn't have the courage to live in this world, to face the pressures it put on her."

"So, in the dead of night, she quietly left her home alone and went to the deserted Teimuzu River."

"She might have stood there alone in the boundless darkness, thinking for a long time."

"But in the end, the darkness swallowed her."

At this point, Ran's voice had grown somber:

"If someone had noticed her leaving in time, if someone had offered her a helping hand…"

"Perhaps the outcome wouldn't be like this."

"Exactly."

Lin Xinyi gave her an appreciative look:

"The victim was in great pain, and the suffering she faced before her death was more terrifying than we can imagine."

"Because drowning is one of the most painful ways to die."

"A person who drowns experiences about a minute of respiratory distress before completely losing consciousness. During this time, a large amount of cold water is inhaled into the lungs, and every breath causes pain in the lungs as if being cut by a thousand knives."

"And I also noticed just now when I pried open the victim's hand…"

"There were faint rope marks on the area between the victim's thumb and forefinger."

"Between the thumb and forefinger?"

Kudo Shinichi looked at his own hand, somewhat puzzled:

"How could there be rope marks in such a place?"

"There were clearly no signs of binding on the victim's wrists, and even if someone were to bind hands, they wouldn't bind them there."

"Because those weren't rope marks from binding at all."

Lin Xinyi extended his hands, spread his thumbs, and then moved them downwards toward his waist.

He pretended there was an invisible rope tied around his waist, then hooked his thumbs into the "rope" and his waist, gripping the "rope" with the area between his thumb and forefinger, and pulled down forcefully.

"So that's what it was…"

Mouri Ran reacted faster than Kudo Shinichi once again:

"Those were ligature marks left by the victim trying to untie the rope around her waist."

"Because in the last moments of her life, she regretted it."

"She wanted to live, to return to this world."

"So she tried desperately to reach out and untie the rope around her waist that was tied to a heavy object, but…"

"But she realized it too late; by then, it was all over," Lin Xinyi said in a heavy tone. "Her muscles had already begun to cramp from the cold water, and her consciousness gradually faded as her breathing stopped."

"Even that rope, which would normally be easy to get free from, couldn't be untied in that situation."

"And so, in that intense pain, the victim couldn't even clearly grasp the rope."

Saying this, Lin Xinyi let go of the non-existent rope.

He pressed his hands tightly to his chest, his body trembling slightly, as if a furnace of hot coals burned fiercely within his chest:

"The victim, having entered the stage of losing consciousness, could no longer think of survival."

"She began, instinctively, to try to cover the most painful areas of her chest and lungs with her hands—perhaps, this external pressure might alleviate some of her pain."

"But it had no effect at all. Her hands remained tightly pressed against her chest, clenched into fists amidst the severe pain and spasms."

"Thus, we can now see that the victim's arms are in a clenched-fist position, and several cuts on her arms align perfectly with several cuts on her chest, forming a continuous line."

Lin Xinyi remained with his hands covering his chest, fists clenched, reconstructing the victim's final posture before her death.

"Her consciousness was completely extinguished, and her life came to an end."

"And her final struggle before death further loosened the rope, allowing her body to break free from its restraints under the force of the current and eventually float to the surface."

"Hoo~"

Lin Xinyi let out a long sigh:

"That was the last sound the deceased left behind."

"So that's how it was…"

Kudo Shinichi pondered for a moment, his brow slightly furrowed.

He found the answer to this mystery somewhat difficult to accept:

Indeed, the pajamas could indicate that the deceased's suicide was likely an impulsive act, and the rope marks on her hand could show that she had tried to save herself before death.

But what was the significance of all that?

These irrelevant details only provided a more elaborate reconstruction of the woman's death; they didn't help solve the case itself at all!

Though somewhat moved, Kudo Shinichi was more confused.

Seeing his reaction, Lin Xinyi thought for a moment, then turned directly to Mouri Ran.

"Miss Mouri, I've found that you seem to have more talent than Kudo to become a top forensic scientist."

"Huh? M-me?"

Mouri Ran's mouth parted slightly in surprise.

She had been praised for being beautiful, gentle, and highly skilled in martial arts, but never for having any talent in criminal investigation.

"Mr. Lin, please don't joke."

"My deductive abilities are far inferior to Shinichi's. How could I possibly become a renowned forensic scientist?"

Mouri Ran said, a little embarrassed.

"No, you misunderstand. Forensic science is different from detective work."

"Forensic scientists don't need innate deductive abilities; those are things that can be compensated for with experience and knowledge."

"What's most needed to become a renowned forensic scientist is empathy for the deceased."

Lin Xinyi said very seriously:

"For a forensic scientist, examining bodies and investigating cases is just a very ordinary daily routine."

"This work isn't interesting; in fact, it can be quite tedious and dull."

"And monotony inevitably leads to negligence, while dullness often cools enthusiasm."

"So, throughout a long career, only those who can truly feel the pain of the deceased can genuinely feel the responsibility on their shoulders and speak for every deceased person with the utmost patience."

"Miss Mouri Ran, you happen to possess this ability."

At this point, the air quietly became still.

Mouri Ran didn't become conceited from the praise; instead, Lin Xinyi's words once again stirred her empathy for the deceased.

This gentleness seemed to be an innate ability of hers.

And Kudo Shinichi, he too, quietly fell silent.

"The ability to feel the pain of the deceased, huh?"

Vaguely, it seemed the famous detective had learned something.