[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-literary-master-of-tokyo":3,"chapter-literary-master-of-tokyo-literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-232":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Literary Master of Tokyo",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2355081,4607,"Chapter 232: Stalking and Murderous Intent","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-232",232,"\u003Cp>After saying goodbye to Kawai Shinta, Akiwara Yuto returned to his luxury apartment and curled up in his study to think about his next work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He took out some paper, pondered for a while, and wrote down the names Soji Shimada and Ayatsuji Yukito.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soji Shimada is known as the pioneer of the \"New Orthodox School\" of mystery and is even called the \"God of Japanese Mystery\" by some fanatical fans.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His masterpiece is undoubtedly *The Tokyo Zodiac Murders*.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this book, the murderer kills five people to assemble six corpses, then uses the rumors of Azoth to deceive the world, making people believe there are six corpses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because the trick was so different from all the orthodox works of that time, it left many readers feeling shocked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, this work is not without its flaws, namely that the explanation for human nature or the motive for murder is too \"far-fetched.\" But compared to the trick itself, it is merely a minor flaw that does not obscure the brilliance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides Soji Shimada, there is Ayatsuji Yukito, who is known as the \"Grandmaster of the New Orthodox School.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His *House* series is well-known, and his book *The Decagon House Murders* is highly praised by many critics, who call it a masterpiece that should be ranked at the highest level in any mystery evaluation system.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This book adopts a \"snowbound villa\" narrative: a deceased architect, a mysterious mansion, uneasy outsiders, and the unknown past of the mansion's owner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Accompanied by the frantic chiming of clocks, people inside the house die one by one, while those outside remain completely unaware.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the story develops, the speculation about the murderer, the past of the mansion owner's parents, the ghosts in the house, and the mysterious poems all fill the reader with curiosity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe I should just choose between *The Tokyo Zodiac Murders* and *The Decagon House Murders*.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto thought for half a day, then suddenly realized a problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both of these authors' masterpieces are long novels. If he uses a long-form work again, will he repeat the mistake of *The Invisible Guest* and make some critics and readers lose patience with him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He rubbed his chin and realized it was highly likely; for newspaper serialization, it is better not to use a long-form work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if so, what excellent orthodox short story series would be suitable for publication?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stood up, stared at Dongjingwan outside the floor-to-ceiling window, thought for a full five minutes, and then remembered the name of a writer—Edogawa Ranpo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Edogawa Ranpo is known as the \"Father of Detective Mystery\" and, along with Seicho Matsumoto and Seishi Yokomizo, is one of the \"Three Great Peaks of Japanese Mystery Literature.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pioneered the Japanese \"Orthodox\" detective genre, allowing Japanese local detective fiction to officially take a different path from Western detective fiction, and was a national writer of Japan at the time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His works contain a large number of short mystery stories.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, looking at the era of creation, would it be a bit too early?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But some of his techniques do not seem outdated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, in his past life, it was because many writers borrowed and imitated his techniques after he became famous that his tricks were criticized as outdated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in this world, no one has been able to imitate his works.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The currently popular orthodox style is still mostly close to the locked-room mystery-solving style of Western detective fiction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Akiwara Yuto frowned and thought for a while, then decided to prepare in two ways.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>First, serialize some of Edogawa Ranpo's short story collections in the newspaper to test the market and the reaction of critics, and then directly publish the standalone books of *The Decagon House Murders* or *The Tokyo Zodiac Murders*.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having made his decision, he sat back at his desk, took a pen, and wrote a title on the paper—*The D-Slope Murder Case*.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately after, he began to write furiously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>……\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the same time, at the Literature Force of the University of Tokyo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Toyama Miho had just finished her afternoon classes and was heading home with a friend.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But just as she was leaving, a male teaching assistant stopped her and handed her an envelope, \"Toyama-san, this is your mail.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After saying this, he left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Toyama Miho said \"thank you\" to the assistant and opened the envelope on the spot.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the moment she opened the envelope and saw the contents, she showed a joyful expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A short story she had submitted earlier had been accepted by a monthly magazine from a medium-sized publisher.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the letter, the other party said they would settle her manuscript fee at the end of this month.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as she was thinking, a crisp voice suddenly rang out to her right.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Toyama-chan, aren't you going home?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Toyama Miho turned her head and found it was her newly met classmate and friend, Nagaoka Eriko, so she smiled and said, \"Let's go.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two followed the crowd out of the classroom and walked toward the train station.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As they walked, they chatted about a recent case.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A woman was stabbed three times and died after trying to break up with her boyfriend, but after the latter was arrested by the police, he produced a psychiatric certificate issued by a hospital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nagaoka Eriko turned to the side and asked Toyama Miho, \"What do you think about that matter?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Toyama Miho pondered for a while and replied, \"It's probably hard to get a heavy sentence.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nagaoka Eriko sighed and said with dissatisfaction, \"This is truly a terrible law.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because it is deeply influenced by Western justice, the Japanese judicial circle has been increasing the protection of human rights for criminals. Not only that, it has even reached an extreme point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a murderer who can be confirmed as mentally ill, it is probably even harder to pass a heavy sentence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This matter originally had nothing to do with the two of them, but it happened to occur around their campus, which is why it drew their attention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After walking for 20 minutes, the two arrived at the station. Nagaoka Eriko waved her hand, said \"take care on the way,\" and parted ways with Toyama Miho.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Toyama Miho also smiled and nodded in farewell, then swiped her card and walked into the gate in the opposite direction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But what she didn't know was that a man wearing a peaked cap and a mask had been following behind her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Toyama Miho board the train and leave, the man took a notebook out of his pocket, recorded the time and location, and then turned and left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Akiwara Yuto were there, he would discover that this man was none other than Onuki Masakazu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>……\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Onuki Masakazu left the train station, then took a bus and returned to his current residence—a \"cardboard house\" built with rags and sticks in the depths of a park.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He lifted the cloth, walked in, and opened a cardboard box to check the \"murder weapon\" inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After discovering nothing was missing, he breathed a sigh of relief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pulled the cloth open a little, and by the light of a street lamp, began to organize his plan in his notebook.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whether this plan succeeds is related to whether he can take revenge on his enemy, namely \"Akiwara Yuto.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After that press conference of Akiwara Yuto, many critics and commentators interpreted his work one after another and recognized the \"murderous intent\" in his work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He did not deny that, out of hatred for his parents, he had indeed had this thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he only wrote it in his work and did not intend to actually carry it out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, once he committed murder, his life would inevitably be ruined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, the current situation is not much different—*Tokyo Youth* quickly distanced itself, his parents moved to the countryside out of fear, and no publisher dared to accept his manuscripts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It can be said that his literary career has already died prematurely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although he can still do odd jobs to maintain his life, is he still \"alive\" like this?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under this mentality, Onuki Masakazu decided to let Akiwara Yuto taste his own feelings, so he sent him a death threat letter, aiming to make the other party live in constant fear!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But to his surprise, besides hiring two bodyguards, Akiwara Yuto seemed to have no reaction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not only did he continue to attend public events, but he also purchased a luxurious high-end apartment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Onuki Masakazu looked at Akiwara Yuto, who was focused on by the flashlights, and his inner jealousy swelled, and his \"murderous intent\" grew stronger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He could not tolerate that the other party did not feel afraid at all, and even lived so comfortably!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Driven by this mentality, he decided to plan a real action.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a mystery writer, Onuki Masakazu had all kinds of murder tricks in his mind, but the realization of these tricks, without exception, required the victim and the murderer to have a certain interpersonal relationship so that he could approach the other party.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he himself can only be considered a \"homeless person\" living by odd jobs, and it is impossible for him to have any connection with the other party.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unless he can start with the people around him to gain an opportunity to approach the other party.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Driven by this thought, he began to investigate Akiwara Yuto by various means and discovered that he would come to the University of Tokyo every so often.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With this information, he discovered a person who had a connection with Akiwara Yuto, namely Toyama Miho.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This made the hatred in Onuki Masakazu's heart even heavier; after all, in that incident in modern mystery literature, it was Akiwara Yuto who awarded the prize to the other party, which led to the subsequent series of consequences.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had to think of a good way to take revenge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But before that, he still had to find a way to get a psychiatric certificate!\u003C\u002Fp>",1663,"2026-06-21T03:58:02.196Z",1,"Gemini 3.1 Flash Lite","c72bd6b89bed361ed8ff0c49d096d4165e626f2a91e52eb83fab79e572aade5c","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-233","literary-master-of-tokyo-chapter-231",334,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fliterary-master-of-tokyo-cover.jpg"]