Benizome Hot Springs Murder Case

* Anime
* Manga

The **Benizome Hot Springs Murder Case** is a murder case that occurred at the Benizome Hot Springs.

It is the third main case in the *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* series.

## Overview

After Ron Kamonohashi wins a trip for two to the Benizome Hot Springs in a supermarket lottery, he and Totomaru Isshiki travel there to spend a few days at the inn's annex. Besides them, there are only four more guests: Sachiko, her husband, Michiyo, and Amamiya. Amamiya is also at the hot springs because she won the lottery.

Among the annex's staff is Spitz Feier, BLUE's tracking instructor who has come to Japan to find out whether the rumor that Ron is illegally solving cases is true.

At 10 p.m. the day of Ron, Toto, and Amamiya's arrival, Sachiko and her husband quarrel and she even demands a divorce. After she calms down, she heads to the women's bath while her husband, Ron, Toto, and Michiyo remain in the lounge to play *The Game of Life* until 2 a.m. Amamiya goes to bed right before Sachiko leaves for the hot spring.

The next morning, an employee finds Sachiko's corpse floating in the women's bath; the abundance of red leaves in the hot spring reminds the scene of crime of the Benizome legend about girls who were sacrificed to the river which then turned red. Amamiya confirms her death and estimates that she died sometime between midnight and 2 a.m. Because Amamiya was the only one not in the lounge at the time of Sachiko's death, she becomes the prime suspect.

## History

In England, BLUE's vice principal gathers Aimee Emmerich and various other staff members such as John Grizzly, Spitz Feier, and Fin Fennec to inform them that Ron has apparently resumed his detective work although he is no longer licensed to investigate any cases after he was expelled five years ago. Emmerich orders that Ron should be investigated to confirm the rumor. Spitz volunteers and is sent to Japan.

In Japan, Toto hurries to Ron's aid. He believes that BLUE is after his life, but Ron only needs him to pay for his groceries because the cashier does not allow him to open a tab. Toto pays, and Ron receives a lottery ticket and wins a weekend trip to the Benizome Hot Springs for two people.

Sometime later, they head to the Benizome Annex where they are greeted and checked in by Spitz. Afterward, they go to the men's bath where Toto notices Ron's "96"-scar. Ron tells him that he was once badly wounded, and, strangely, only this scar remained. He also tells Toto about the legend surrounding Benizome which he read in a pamphlet their taxi driver handed him: To keep the nearby river from overflowing, young girls would be sacrificed to the water which would then be dyed red.

After the bath, they have lunch in the Crimson Room and play ping-pong. Their ball is thrown out of the window and lands in the river. They try to retrieve it, but cannot find it anymore. Having waded in the freezing cold water, Toto and Ron return to the men's bath to warm themselves up. Amamiya accidentally runs into the bath and quickly leaves when she realizes her mistake. They later find her getting drunk in the Crimson Room, but she retreats to her bedroom after overhearing Sachiko asking her husband for a divorce during a quarrel and tearfully telling her that she should not get a divorce. Sachiko leaves as well as she wants to take a bath in the hot springs.

Ron then asks the remaining guests—Michiyo and Sachiko's husband—whether they would like to play *The Game of Life* with him and Toto. They agree and they play until 2 a.m. The next morning at breakfast, a staff member arrives and announces that she has found a corpse floating in the women's bath.

Toto, Ron, and Amamiya hurry to the crime scene and identify the corpse as Sachiko. Suspicion quickly falls on Amamiya who is the only one without an alibi during the estimated time of death. However, Ron declares that Amamiya is most definitely not the culprit and that he will prove it— or, rather, he announces Toto's declaration to prove Amamiya's innocence. Ron also speaks out "Toto's" deduction that Amamiya cannot be the murderer as the murder has been modelled after the Benizome legend of which she has no knowledge because she did not receive a pamphlet detailing it.

Michiyo testifies that she saw white mist rising from the river after dinner, and Ron finds the lost ping-pong ball in a dam that was created by the heavy rain the day before yesterday with leaves, branches, and a rain gutter. Toto and Ron also find a bathmat at the crime scene. Afterward, Amamiya reluctantly thanks Toto for saving her earlier and leaves the investigation to him because she has not been full cleared of the crime yet. She also adds that she cannot believe the ridiculous things that keep happening to her and reminds Toto and Ron about yesterday's embarrassing run-in. Hearing this, Ron solves the case.

The local police arrives, and Toto and Ron return to their room shortly afterward. They discuss the case there, and Spitz tries to spy on them with a stethoscope, but Ron notices him and punches against the wall to hurt his ears and stop his snooping.

After Ron tells Toto his deduction, they gather everyone in the women's bath where Toto reveals what happened: The husband switched the curtains of the men's and women's bath to get access to the women's bath. He used two rain gutters to replace the bath's hot water with the river's ice-cold water and covered the entrance to the hot spring with a bathmat to let Sachiko fall into the freezing water. He knew of her weak heart and that the heat shock, which she would experience because of the temperature difference, would kill her.

The husband confesses to the murder and that he killed his wife to be with his affair partner, Michiyo. Michiyo, disgusted by his actions, does not want to have anything to do with him anymore though, and Toto yells at the husband for having stolen his wife's life. A moment later, he realizes that Ron did not pressure the culprit like usual and sees Ron getting dragged away by Spitz.

Totomaru follows them into the forest. Spitz has tied up Ron and hung him from a tree, and when Totomaru joins them, he reveals that he is an instructor at BLUE and was sent to find out whether Ron is doing any detective work. Spitz promises that he will make sure Ron's punishment is lightened if he confesses, but Ron sees through his ruse: Spitz actually sought him out because he needs his help. Spitz admits this and asks for his help to find his missing brother. Ron declines because he does not fully trust Spitz, but Toto tries to persuade him to change his mind. Touched by Toto's effort, Spitz tells them that he will do his very best to gain their trust before he leaves. Ron remarks that Spitz and his skills may come in handy in the future and looks forward to working him to death.

## References

1. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 3, pages 6-9
2. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 3, page 15
3. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 3, pages 18-20
4. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 3, page 9-11
5. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 3, pages 2-5
6. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 3, pages 21-30
7. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 3, pages 2-31
8. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 4, pages 3-31