Akiro moistened his lips nervously. “I am sorry to have to show
such things to you, ” he said. “But, as you can see, these are no
ordinary murders.”
“Necromancy?” said Yohaku, his voice barely audible.
Akiro nodded once. “The trace emanations from the corpses were
extremely strong. The strongest I have yet encountered. There is
great power at work behind this. Very great power.”
“And you have no… what do you call them? Leads?”
“None whatsoever, Sensei. There were no witnesses. No one has
yet come forth who can supply any information. I am deeply, deeply
troubled by this. To date, all the killings have taken place on the
Ginza. The victims were all young women and, so far as we know,
prostitutes. Nothing more is known about them. Each day brings a
new murder. Each corpse looks similar. Brutally savaged, partially
consumed. No man could have done this. Certainly, no ordinary
man. As yet, no word of these killings has reached the media. We
have tried to keep it from them, but there is already talk on the
streets and within a day or two at most, it will most certainly be
made public and I fear that there will be a panic.”
Yohaku nodded gravely.
“I am sorry to trouble you with this, Sensei, but—”
“No, it is quite all right, ” Yohaku interrupted him. “I completely
understand your position. You have done the right thing.
Necromancy is a very serious matter. ” He glanced down at the
photographs again, then gathered them together and handed them
back to Akiro. “Is it possible for me to see the actual remains?”
“Yes, Sensei, of course. I can arrange it at your convenience.”
“In the face of such a thing as this, there can be no thought for
convenience, ” said Yohaku, rising smoothly to his feet. “We will
leave at once.”
The luxurious and thoroughly western atmosphere of the office
was a marked contrast to the stark beauty and simplicity of
Yohaku’s dwelling, but then Fugisawa was not calling on a
venerable mage. The man whom he was calling on was venerated,
but in a different way and by an entirely different class of people.