The Meiji Guillotine Murders by Bryan Karetnyk and Futaro Yamada

Author:Bryan Karetnyk and Futaro Yamada
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pushkin Press
Published: 2023-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

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The following night, a strange ceremony took place on Takebezaka. Two empty rickshaws were positioned in front of Magobei Akamatsu’s house, and opposite them three braziers were lit. The body of Sagen Tagusari, having been conveyed to the Imperial Prosecuting Office already, was brought back and laid there. Except for his face, his whole body was covered in green bamboo leaves.

A series of stools had been set up along one side of the hill, and on these sat the assorted grandees of the Imperial Prosecuting Office in all their finery, their faces grave and austere. They were joined by old Manabe and his daughter, as well as Kawaji. The gradient was so exceedingly gentle that it was not at all uncomfortable sitting there, but the snow had of course melted and was now replaced by mud.

On the opposite side, five rasotsu sat cross-legged on a straw mat, holding their instruments in their laps.

Beside Kazuki in his suikan stood Akamatsu, dumbfounded by the spectacle before him—and most of all by the sight of a golden-haired, blue-eyed miko bathed in the light of the fires.

Since the Imperial Prosecuting Office was at a loss to explain the curious events of the previous night, the miko had been called in to summon the spirit of the deceased and solve the mystery.

The large kaen-daiko rang out, struck by Sergeant Onimaru. The other four then joined in, calling forth the strange, eerie strains of the kagura music.

Awariya, asobihasutomo, mōsanu, asakurani,

Amatsukami, kunitsukami, orimashimase…

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