Plateau Auberge Serial Murders Case

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* Tom Sasaoka
* Bill Clark

The **Plateau Auberge Serial Murders Case** is a serial murder case that happened at the Auberge Reunion.

It is the 14th main case in the *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* series.

## Overview

Eight people from around the world were invited to the Auberge Reunion for a dinner: Ron Kamonohashi, Totomaru Isshiki, Mia Costa, Karen Lily, Tiger Dan, Lenny Gardner, Tom Sasaoka, and Bill Clark.

Mia was invited by her aunt who lives in Japan. It is unknown who invited the others. Furthermore, Ron's invitation was sent seventeen years ago and is addressed to the manager of the Maison du Kamonohashi who was his maternal grandfather at that time. The menu and an emerald were included in the envelope.

Only Shusuke Sakai, a hired chef, is working at the Auberge Reunion. He has not met the auberge's owner yet.

The morning after the dinner, Gardner is found dead in his room with an ice pick lodged in his chest and covered and surrounded by various flowers, namely bellflower, tiger lily, and cosmos. Lily and Dan heard a weird rupturing noise from his room beforehand. An emerald was found next to his corpse. Gardner died in pain about three or four hours before he was found. The ground under Gardner's room is also all torn up as if someone tried to erase their footprints; the culprit could not have entered through the window though as it is locked. Furthermore, the dinner's menu was taped to Gardner's bedroom door, and there is a bloodstain in front of the door.

Furthermore, the guests and Sakai were trapped and isolated on the plateau where the auberge is located: There is no cell reception, the landline does not work, the mountain road is closed off due to a landslide, and the nearby ropeway station is out of service.

### Further murders

The next day, Sasaoka's corpse is found in the bathroom. He was stabbed with a knife through the chest and placed in the bath whose water was turned red with food coloring. He was killed around 9 a.m. Less than an hour later, Sakai finds Clark dead and covered in extinguishing foam in the wine cellar; the fire extinguisher was taken from the hallway. Unlike the others, Clark was strangulated.

The dinner's menu was taped to the bathroom door and to the door of the wine cellar.

## History

After Ron receives an invitation for a dinner at the Auberge Reunion, he tells Totomaru about it later that day. They immediately head to the auberge to find out why the invitation which was sent seventeen years ago arrived now and to return the emerald included in the envelope.

On the way, they meet Tiger Dan and Lenny Gardner who are also headed to the auberge. When they arrive, they are greeted by Shusuke Sakai. Shortly afterward, Mia Costa arrives as well.

At six o'clock, dinner is served. There is only a single round table for all eight guests. Ron, Toto, Dan, Mia, Gardner, Tom Sasaoka, Bill Clark, and Karen Lily are also joined by a teddy bear. Sakai serves four courses: an edible flower salad, lobster soup, fresh fish steamed with white wine and served with a foam garnish, and three kinds of roasted wild game. The dessert is a cake made with chestnut mousse. Lily, Sasaoka, Dan, Gardner, and Clark display discomfort at the sight of every course. Gardner says that he should not have driven his truck on "that day" and that he should not have come to the auberge.

The next morning, Dan and Lily hear a strange noise from Gardner's room. They and Sakai knock on his door, but Gardner does not respond. When Toto and Ron join them, Lily picks the door's lock. Inside the room, they find Gardner's corpse.

The remaining guests arrive, and Totomaru and Ron begin to investigate the crime scene. Ron notices that the ground under the window is all torn up, and Toto asks Clark to examine the corpse. Clark states that Gardner must have died about three or four hours ago. Afterward, the guests and Sakai find out that they have been cut off from the outside world and are stranded and trapped on the auberge's plateau.

Sasaoka tries to escape, but Ron can catch him. The taxi driver confesses to Ron and Toto that, seventeen years ago, he worked as a smuggler on the side and was contacted by a man who looked just like Ron to drive a man and a pregnant woman to a hospital in London; the man he drove was later found dead in the Thames. The requester had treated Sasaoka to a dinner which consisted of the exact same dishes that were served the day before in the auberge.

Later, Lily screams and informs the others that when she walked past the bathroom door, she saw that the menu has been taped on it as well. As the door is unlocked, Totomaru and Ron take a look inside and find Sasaoka's corpse.

After examining the body and crime scene, Toto and Ron gather everyone in the dining room to ask them about their alibis at the time of Sasaoka's murder. Everyone was either in their room or in the kitchen. Thus, no one has an alibi.

Toto then reveals that Gardner's and Sasaoka's murders were modelled after dishes from yesterday's dinner: Gardner was covered in flowers (the edible flower salad), and Sasaoka was placed in red-colored water (the lobster soup). However, while Mia and Sakai do not know the meaning behind the dishes, Sasaoka and Gardner knew it—and so do Clark, Lily, and Dan.

Ron persuades them to confess, and the three admit to having been hired by the man with a crescent moon mark seventeen years ago like Sasaoka was. They were all treated to the same meal, hired to do something in connection to the murder of Jim Gore, and paid with emeralds. Gardner and Mia's mother were involved as well. The Jim Gore Murder Case is regarded as the work of the M. Family.

Afterward, Lily, Dan, and Clark grow suspicious of Ron as every other guest is connected to the Jim Gore Murder Case and he resembles the crescent moon man; thus, they suspect him to be the murderer. Totomaru reminds them that Ron was with him at the time of Sasaoka's murder and that he was only a child seventeen years ago.

Then, Totomaru, Ron, Lily, and Mia decide to look through the locked rooms to see whether someone is hiding in them. Clark and Dan decide to rest instead. After checking all vacant rooms, Lily and Mia retreat to their own rooms, and Ron and Totomaru find a room they have not searched yet. It is a storage room; there, they find an emerald, a framed picture of Ron's father, and a recorder. The recorder starts to play a voice recording of Ron receiving a lockpicking lesson from his father—Eliot Moriarty. This unlocks Ron's memories and he remembers having been taught all about crime by his father until he was six. Remembering that he is a Moriarty frustrates Ron and he does not know anymore which he is.

A moment later, Sakai comes to the storage room and tells Ron and Toto that he found Clark's corpse covered in extinguishing foam in the wine cellar. Because Ron is currently preoccupied with his inner conflict and cannot investigate, Toto decides to step up and declares that he will catch the murderer.

Toto examines Clark's corpse. He notes that it is still warm and that the extinguishing foam is yet another reference to one of yesterday's dishes (fresh fish steamed with white wine and served with a foam garnish). He also notices that, curiously, Clark was strangulated and not stabbed like Sasaoka and Gardner.

On Toto's request, Sakai tells him that he was cooking in the kitchen to relax and found the corpse when he wanted to get some wine for a dish. Toto then inquires what everyone was doing at the time of the murder: Mia was writing in her journal, Lily tried to connect to the internet in vain, and Dan worked on a lawsuit. Because they were all alone, none of them has an alibi. Afterward, Totomaru tells Mia, Sakai, Lily, and Dan to wait in the dining room while he and Ron investigate.

While Ron and Toto walk through the auberge, Ron declares that this is the last case he will ever solve as he cannot continue to be a detective if he is a Moriarty and was trained to be a criminal for six years. He also says that, because the case is strongly connected to the M. Family, one of the invitees may work for them. He then advises Totomaru to return to the crime scene whenever he gets lost with a case—he needs this piece of information as he will work on cases alone from now on again.

They re-examine Clark's crime scene first, and Ron wonders why the culprit risked using the fire extinguisher from the hallway and did not take one of the wines instead. Especially considering that newer fire extinguishers contain powder not foam. Next, they return to the first crime scene where they discover a bloodstain on the carpet in front of Gardner's door. Inside the room, Totomaru points out how similar the flowers covering Gardner look to the ones from the edible flower salad.

Because the flowers on the crime scene were likely taken from the garden, they go outside to check on the flowerbed. Indeed, some flowers have been plucked, and Ron and Toto keep wondering why the murderer has been so fixated to mimic the food. Then, Lily hurries through the garden because she wants to walk down the mountain. Mia, Dan, and Sakai follow her.

When Lily is about to walk past a sign saying "Beware of landslides ahead!", Mia and Dan tell her to stop because she could start a landslide. Toto asks Lily why she would do something so reckless, and she replies that she does not want to be shot and reminds him that she heard an explosive sound from Gardner's room when he died. She believes the culprit fired a bullet as a threat and accuses Ron of carrying a hidden gun.

Ron then solves the case and declares that, after seventeen years, a "Judas" was revealed at this last supper.

Everyone gathers in the dining hall, and Toto reveals the reason why the crime scenes were modelled after the dinner's dishes and the culprit: Gardner was stabbed in front of his room, not inside it. With the last of his strength, he was able to lock himself in his room and grab an "oniyuri" before he collapsed. The culprit saw this through the window; because of that, footprints were below it. To cover up Gardner's dying message, they took flowers from the garden and put them in a balloon from the storage room which they slipped under the door and inflated. The balloon exploded, covered Gardner in flowers and made the crime scene look like the edible flower salad; the balloon explosion was the exploding sound Lily and Dan heard. Afterward, the murderer continued basing the crime scenes on the dishes.

Gardner did not speak Japanese. The flower he grabbed before his death is called "oniyuri" in Japanese—and "tiger lily" in English. Because Lily could have easily picked the lock of Gardner's room and removed the flower from his hands, Gardner could have only meant Tiger Dan.

Dan objects to the accusation, and Ron lays out more reasons why Dan is the murderer: Clark was covered with extinguishing foam and not with wine although he was killed in the wine cellar because Sakai was in the kitchen at that time and the culprit could not get a corkscrew. They also could not break a bottle as they would inevitably get wine on their clothes and they had no more clean clothes after getting drenched and having to change when they struggled against Sasaoka in the bath. Thus, the murderer had to risk getting the fire extinguisher from the hallway. Because the culprit is someone who does not have many extra clothes and Mia brought a lot of clothes, she cannot be it. And because the culprit has to be someone able to read the fire extinguisher's label and Lily cannot read Japanese, it cannot not be her either. Sakai could not be the killer as well because he could have easily gotten a corkscrew from the kitchen. Therefore, only Dan can be the murderer.

Dan confesses and says that he killed so many people to reawaken Ron's Moriarty roots; Ron still has a criminal's heart and it allowed him to replicate Dan's criminal state of mind and solve the case. Ron tells him that he indeed decided to cease doing detective work. Dan is thrilled to know his method worked because many in the M. Family opposed his endeavor. He adds that he also wanted to use this opportunity to eliminate everyone involved in the Jim Gore Murder Case because the M. Family leaves no trace of its activities; for example, everyone connected to the Shibuya Revelation Serial Murders Case was eliminated as well. He sent out the invitations and told a made-up story to make the others confess to their crimes. Dan then keeps telling Ron that he has always been a Moriarty and a criminal and will always be one.

Ron freezes up, and Toto tells him to get a grip because he noticed that Dan is lying but cannot see through his "colossal lie"; Ron could though. However, Ron does not know what Toto means, and Toto says it is weird that Dan wants to kill everyone involved in the Jim Gore Murder Case—after all, the M. Family only eliminate those who failed them and that crime seventeen years ago was a success! Dan is impressed that Toto noticed this and tells him that, from the M. Family's perspective, that case was a failure because Gore was supposed to be kidnapped, not murdered; they wanted to use him and his research to gain great wealth. Eliot made a mistake—and he was purged for it.

Then, Dan takes out his gun and points it at Mia and Lily. This triggers a long forgotten memory in Ron: When he was little, he watched his father getting gunned down by the M. Family's henchmen. He also remembers that his father told him to pursue his own path and that he should not care about being a Moriarty or a Holmes. Ron regains his resolve and confronts Dan: The reason why those involved in the Jim Gore Murder Case were not eliminated seventeen years ago is that Eliot outwitted the M. Family; the M. Family did not know about their involvement until recently. Furthermore, Ron deduces that Gore must still be alive because he thought it was odd that Gore was first brought to a hospital, then to the warehouse: Gore was switched with a dummy corpse in the rear garden. This is exactly something his father, who would always make sure that nobody got hurt, would do; Eliot would have neither handed Gore over to the M. Family or murdered him.

Dan confirms that Eliot threw a body from the morgue in the Thames and let Gore escape who went on to live under a false name in Switzerland. Only recently, the M. Family found out about what truly transpired that day. Ron then starts to laugh and tells Dan that his plan to convince him to stop doing detective work has failed. The shock of seeing Dan pointing his gun at Lily and Mia made him remember the last of his sealed memories, and Ron is now more determined than ever to use his intellect against the M. Family. Of course, he cannot do any investigations on his own due to the Bloody Field Trip Case, but he has a partner for that. Toto affirms this and tells Dan that he will arrest him and orders him to drop the gun. Dan does not comply though; after all, he now has to get rid of everyone to make sure "he" does not find out he disclosed info about Ron's father.

The next moment, the teddy bear on Mia's lap starts to move—its eyes narrow and its mouth opens—and talk: It addresses "Uncle Tiger" and says that it has been an amusing show. The voice adds that he is a very busy man and has no time for such things. Nevertheless, he introduces himself to Ron as the M. Family's eldest son Mylo Moriarty. Mylo says he intended to watch everything silently but decided to reveal himself after Dan's plan failed. Then, Ron orders Lily, Mia, and Sakai to cover their ears so that they do not hear more about the M. Family and tells Mylo that he has to let them go; he knows he has that authority.

Mylo praises Ron for having deduced his position so quickly, though he adds that, unfortunately, he has to eliminate Lily, Sakai, and Mia because this is the M. Family's etiquette. Totomaru protests because Mia is still a child and Sakai uninvolved and says that Mylo should not underestimate the Japanese police. To Totomaru's shock and surprise, Mylo remarks that Toto is like Sherlock Holmes' "trusty companion" and informs him that the only reason he is still alive is because he has allowed him to live.

Ron's body suddenly starts to fail him; he starts to shake and sweat and sinks to his knees. Still, he confronts Mylo about keeping him alive simply to toy with him and giving him the Kill on Sight ability. Seeing Ron like this, Mylo concludes that it must be a side effect of the medication Ron is taking to counter Kill on Sight: The medication redirects Ron's murderous intent to his innards; the effects will get worse with every dose until he eventually succumbs to them. Ron replies that this does not matter and that Mylo should cure him if he does not want him to die. However, Mylo clarifies that he does not particularly care if Ron dies. Still, because Ron resisted Dan's poor attempt to convert him, he gives him a reward: The person who modified Ron's body after the Bloody Field Trip Case is indeed a member of the M. Family—and is currently a spy at BLUE. Afterward, Mylo sets off the bomb planted in the Auberge Reunion for the main dish: three types of roast game.

The auberge, being largely built of wood, quickly catches fire. When Sakai and Lily try to flee, Dan shoots them in the legs before he picks up Mylo's teddy bear and escapes. Toto orders Mia to flee from a hole in the wall while he carries Lily and Sakai outside. He then tells her to drag them as far away from the building as possible before running back inside to get Ron who lies immobile on the ground due to the medication's side effects. Totomaru helps him up, but the fire has spread and there is no way out anymore. They resignate to their fate; right afterward, Spitz arrives with a helicopter and saves them. BLUE received a set of coordinates from an anonymous tipster, and Spitz was sent out because he was closest to the location. Because of that, he could save Toto and Ron on time.

With BLUE's help, Mia, Lily, and Sakai go into top secret protection to ensure their safety after hearing of the M. Family.

## Trivia

* After the release of Chapter 42, a poll to guess the culprit from among the four suspects—Mia Costa, Karen Lily, Tiger Dan, and Shusuke Sakai—was opened. Five participants who have guessed correctly will receive a signed canvas of the Chapter 38 cover. The poll ran from Nov. 14 to Nov. 27, 2021. The overwhelming majority voted for Mia, though the culprit ended up being Dan.

Event announcementThe suspectsFrom top to bottom: Shusuke Sakai, Karen Lily, Mia Costa, Tiger Dan.
## References

1. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, page 15
2. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, pages 3-4
3. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, page 4
4. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, pages 6-7
5. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, pages 13-14
6. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, pages 28-29
7. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 42, page 16
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, page 27
9. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 39, page 7
10. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 39, page 5
11. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 42, page 15
12. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 39, pages 7-9
13. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 40, pages 3-6
14. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 42, page 10
15. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 41, pages 19-20
16. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 42, page 14
17. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 42, page 5
18. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 39, page 19
19. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 41, page 19
20. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, pages 3-7
21. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, pages 9-14
22. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, page 14
23. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, pages 16-17
24. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, pages 20-24
25. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, page 25
26. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 38, pages 27-29
27. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 39, pages 3-9
28. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 39, pages 10-16
29. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 39, pages 18-19
30. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 40, pages 3-17
31. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 41, pages 3-22
32. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 42, pages 3-22
33. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 43, pages 4-20
34. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 44, pages 3-21
35. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 45, pages 3-20
36. ↑ Plateau Auberge Serial Murders Poll: The suspects — Akira Amano on Twitter
37. ↑ Plateau Auberge Serial Murders Poll: The prize — Akira Amano on Twitter
38. ↑ *Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective* manga; Chapter 43, page 14