Linden House Murder

***Linden House Murder*** (菩提樹荘の殺人, *Bodaiju-sō no Satsujin*), also officially entitled ***Mord im Lindenhaumhaus***, is a collection of Japanese short stories by Alice Arisugawa in his Himura Hideo series.

## Plot Overviews

"**Apollo's Knife**" (アポロンのナイフ, *Aporon no Naifu*)

     (First published on *Ōrusuiri*, November 2010 issue)

Tokyo is shaken with a murder incident, considered to be committed by a handsome high school student known as "Apollo". The police are able to place him under custody, but he eventually escapes. Now missing, "Apollo" is believed to have committed another two incidents after two people were killed in Osaka. The police then show Alice a photograph of "Apollo". During their search, Alice encounters and converses with a young man, whom he later realises to resemble "Apollo". Did "Apollo" come to Osaka and cause the incident?

"**Laugh at the Hina-ningyō**" (雛人形を笑え, *Hina-ningyō o Warae*)

     (First published on *Tsundoku!* volume 1, Bungeishunjū extra, April 2013 issue)

Mevina Yazono of the young *manzai* duo Hina-Ningyō, which is rising in popularity, is found dead while taking a strange pose at home. The victim is part of the second iteration of the *manzai* duo, formed originally with Obina and the first Mevina during their high school days. Yazono was also partnered with another to form a *manzai* duo, but it was dissolved upon amicable terms; Yazono would later become partnered with Obina, forming the current iteration of Hina-Ningyō. While accompanying Himura to talk to the people concerned, Alice remembers meeting Obina, Yazono's partner. It so happened that the latter was present at the scene when Yazono had first performed *manzai* before.

Hina-Ningyō's manager, Obina's friend, the first Mevina, Yazono's previous friend, and everyone else's alibi seem to have been proven. Moreover, because of the sudden incident that happened at the site, Himura thinks that there is no possibility to carry out further elaborate work. When the criminal was unable to be narrowed down, Himura picks up an old seat that was in Alice's room and nails it to a page. It was also the moment when the criminal is ascertained without reasoning.

"**Detective, Blue Era**" (探偵、青の時代, *Tantei, Ao no Jidai*)

     (First published on *Ōrusuiri 2012*, December 2011 issue)

Alice, who happens to meet an acquaintance from college, asks him, who was in the same department as Himura, to hear about what happened to her when she was a detective.

Himura, who had bad socialising skills, once participated in a drinking party called the study group. One rainy day, the members gathered and arrived gradually. While waiting for the arrival of Himura (who was late), there were two people who came by car and made a confession to the members of the group. Though majority of the group had an impression that it was not a big deal, if one were to hear of Himura's inference and sense of justice, it would be better to go to the police. Hence, the members decided to keep the incident to be a secret. Just then, a drenched Himura arrives with no umbrella, saying that a traffic accident had occurred while en route to the place.

"**Linden House Murder**" (菩提樹荘の殺人, *Bodaiju-sō no Satsujin*)

     (First published on *Bungeishunjū extra*, September 2013 issue)

A talent-cum-counselor who was popular for anti-ageing was killed at the base of a linden tree at his house. The discoverer is the sister of the man's manager. At the time of discovery, the victim had his clothes stripped off, with his upper body stuck into a pond by the linden tree. It is also said that the victim's clothes were floating in the pond without being taken away. The suspects include the discoverer's sister, a secretary, a (former) girlfriend, and four others. The alibi is established for everyone, but each of them seems to have had a point of thinking about the man. In addition, it can be seen that the man had an unpleasant behavior to leave a picture of his encounter with his lover. The police drain the pond and looked to the bottom of the pond, finding a waterproof case wrapped in vinyl, a key ring that belonged to the victim, and a model gun. The inside of the vinyl was covered with the victim's blood.

## See Also

* "Apollo's Knife": The episode adaptation from the drama based on the eponymous short story from this collection.
* "Detective, Blue Era": The episode adaptation from *Another Story* based on the eponymous short story from this collection.

## Notes

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 German: *lit.* "Linden House Murder"

## References

1. ↑ 作家アリスシリーズ — Wikipedia (Japanese)
2. ↑ 有栖川有栖「火村英生（作家アリス）シリーズ」『菩提樹荘の殺人』あらすじとほんのりネタバレ感想 — I Want to Solve All Mysteries (Japanese)