"The Rice Flower TV Murder Case!?""A mystery novelist is also a top-tier detective!""Fastest police resolution in recent history!""Mystery Novelist's Shocking Deduction Live On Air!""Debut TV Appearance Solves Real Murder!"
The story had exploded overnight.After the live broadcast on Mihua TV the night before, news of the case became a hot topic by morning.
Headlines dominated morning tabloids, and even professional mystery publications put it on their front page.Hayashi Yoshiki also noticed — mildly.
When he saw many headlines describing him with the label "mystery novelist", he immediately guessed it was a PR move by Futaba Publishing.
Not that he minded.In fact, that was exactly what he wanted.
In a world where detectives held high prestige, any increase in fame could only benefit him — whether as a detective, a writer, or... something more.
"Let's continue today's testing."
Hayashi opened the Death Note and tore off a blank page. The texture of the paper wasn't remarkable — it felt like a high-quality notebook. Easy to tear, the edges were clean and smooth.
He uncapped his pen and began writing:
"At 10:47 a.m. on March 28, he arrives at 3-chome-16, Beika-cho, and stays in front of Kawano Sushi for 15 minutes before leaving.""Then at 10:08 p.m. on April 16, he dies of stab wounds."
The Death Note allows prewriting the cause and timeline of death first. As long as the correct name is later appended, it remains valid.
Hayashi neatly folded the page and tore it along the crease — splitting the content in half.
"Tearing a page still preserves the note's power.""You can't write a person's name across multiple pages. But if it's front and back of the same sheet, it works — even with the surname on one side and the first name on the other."
That's the rule stated in the notebook.
But… what if you tear a single sheet and write the surname on the left piece and the first name on the right?
To test that, Hayashi wrote 冨沢 (Tomizawa) on the left half, and 智也 (Tomoya) on the right, then aligned the pieces to simulate the full name "冨沢智也".
He waited. Watched the time. Grabbed his coat and left.
Outside, the March weather was still cool, but sunny and pleasant.The residential streets of Beika moved at their usual, relaxed pace.
Hayashi walked to a local café he frequented.
"One Chiaro Latte, please.""Coming right up."
The rich aroma of light-roasted coffee and milk reminded him: "Chiaro" meant "light-colored" in Italian.
Sitting on a bench, he sipped slowly and checked the time: 10:51.
No sign of Tomoya Tomizawa.
"So that doesn't work."
Even if it was one sheet torn in two, writing the name in separate parts invalidated the effect.
"If I glued the halves together… maybe. But that would defeat the whole point of this test."
Hayashi crossed out the prior entry and began drafting a new one. So many scenarios needed testing.
Just as he was finishing—
Ring-ring-ring!The public phone beside him rang.
He glanced at his watch. 11:03.
He smiled.
Miyazak Michiko"On March 28 at 11:03:09, she suddenly decided to call the public telephone booth near Kawano Sushi at 3-chome-16, Beika-cho, and hung up after 30 seconds."
The name "Miyazak Michiko" was written in romanized Japanese.
This time, he was testing whether names written in foreign languages, such as English, would still be valid.
Success.
Hayashi deduced that if the writer believed the translated name was accurate — consciously or subconsciously — the Death Note accepted it.
"I'll have to test this more… but if it's true, learning minority languages may be very useful."
The more obscure the language, the safer the name.
Just then, his phone buzzed.
Caller ID: Yamagishi Ei.
He answered.
"Hello? Mr. Yamagishi."
But the voice on the other end was not the agent — it was distinctly feminine and familiar.
"Good afternoon, Teacher Hayashi. This is Okino Yoko."
"Ms. Yoko?"
"Yes..." Her voice was sweet, but weary. "I saw the news last night. I never imagined something so terrifying could happen... but you handled it beautifully. Like a real detective."
"Thank you. But you sound a bit shaken. Is there something I can do for you?"
"…Actually, I wanted to ask: do you know any reliable detectives?"
"A detective?"
"Yes. Lately, I've felt like someone's been following me. And I think they might've even snuck into my apartment…"
Her voice trembled with fear. As a public figure, she was always cautious — but now she was clearly scared.
"I got your number from Mr. Yamagishi. I didn't know who else to trust."
Hayashi's tone turned soft.
"Stalking and trespassing? I understand. Actually, I do know someone who might help. I'll text you his office address."
"Really? Thank you so much, Teacher Hayashi!"