A Study of Cryptography

### Other Title

*The Detective Story of Clinical Criminologist Hideo Himura: A Study of Cryptography*

## Collection Information

### Series

*The Detective Story of Clinical Criminologist Hideo Himura*

### ISBN

ISBN 978-4-04-101257-4

***A Study of Cryptography*** (密室の研究, *Misshitsu no Kenkyū*) is a self-selected collection of Japanese short stories by Alice Arisugawa in his Himura Hideo series.

## Plot Overviews

"**Jabberwocky**" (ジャバウォッキー, *Jabawokkī*)

     From *The English Garden Mystery*

Alice and Himura receive a phone call from Issei Yamaoki, a forerunner in uttering mysterious works like poetry, and tells them that he shall perform a big feat soon. To stop it, Himura and Alice struggle with his enigmatic words.

"**The English Garden Mystery**" (英国庭園の謎, *Igirisu Teien no Nazo*)

     From *The English Garden Mystery*

While playing a game of solving mysterious ciphertexts like symbolic poems and searching for treasures, the questioner, Hayato Midorikawa, is killed in a study with his own English garden. Alice and Himura attempt to crack the code and solve the case.

"**The Man who Whispers the Code**" (暗号を撒く男, *Angō o Maku Otoko*)

     From *The Persian Cat Mystery*

A man who lived alone in a large house was killed. The incident itself was simple and the criminal was immediately arrested, but there were some puzzling things in the house. A cartoon-style angelfish doormat with a sense that does not match the house, a vase that contained nothing, a black bag which is not usually put in the corridor, two scissors on the table in the living room, a pair of *kokeshi* dolls, and a broken arrow in the bedroom. The small items were scattered all over the house as if they were ciphers that seemed to have been done by the victim himself. What did he do this for?

"**The Tragedy of Y**" (あるYの悲劇, *Aru Wai no Higeki*)

     From *The Swiss Watch Mystery*

A guitarist from a four-member indie band was beaten up at his home with his guitar. He was still breathing when he was found by a fellow band member and also his childhood friend; he was desperately trying to convey something by writing a "Y" on the wall with his own blood. The discoverer testifies that the victim gave a name before leaving the message: "Yamamoto", which, incidentally, was the victim's own last name.

"**Unparalleled Divine Moment**" (比類のない神々しいような瞬間, *Hirui no Nai Kōgōshī Yōna Shunkan*)

     From *The White Rabbit Runs Away*

When the calendar was about to enter the 21st century, Hatsune Uejima, a critic who appears on television, was murdered in his office apartment. The first to discover him were his secretary Naoya Kinjō and his editor Masako Īboshi. The cause of the death was blood loss due to a stab, but there was a dying message written in blood that could be read as "1011", which the victim most probably wrote. Meanwhile, Hideo Himura visits people concerned about a person named Akashi, but he did not find any. Alas, Himura's last case of the 20th century was carried over to the 21st century without solving it. A few months after the incident, a homeless man was found dead. His name was Akashi Takao, and, for some reason, he died holding a new ¥1,000 bill.

## References

1. ↑ 作家アリスシリーズ — Wikipedia (Japanese)
2. ↑ 英国庭園の謎（有栖川有栖）: まほろば漫遊記 — Mahoroba Man'yū-ki (Japanese)
3. ↑ 有栖川有栖「火村英生（作家アリス）シリーズ」『スイス時計の謎』あらすじとほんのりネタバレ感想 — I Want to Solve All Mysteries (Japanese)
4. ↑ 有栖川有栖「火村英生（作家アリス）シリーズ」『白い兎が逃げる』あらすじとほんのりネタバレ感想 | 謎はすべて解きたい — I Want to Solve All Mysteries (Japanese)