Pathway to Japanese Literature
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| Original Title | 殺人行者 |
|---|---|
| Author | 村山 槐多 |
| Genre | Detective & Mystery |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | A painter’s nocturnal wanderings through shadowed Tokyo alleys lead him to a disheveled stranger—a man of haunting pallor and unsettling magnetism. Drawn by curiosity, the painter shelters the stranger, who unravels a harrowing tale: once a wealthy archaeologist, he recounts his idyllic marriage to Toyoko and their fateful retreat to a remote mountain villa. There, he stumbles upon an ancient underground labyrinth, encountering Nomiya Koutarou—a hypnotic figure from his youth now commanding a bandit cult known as the “Murderous Ascetics.” Under Nomiya’s sinister influence, the archaeologist descends into madness, compelled to commit unspeakable acts, including the murder of his beloved wife. Though he eventually breaks free from the trance, society brands him a deranged outcast. His confession ends abruptly, leaving the painter haunted by unresolved dread. Days later, news of the man’s violent death surfaces—a dagger through the heart, bearing the cult’s signature—hinting that darkness still prowls beyond the city’s lamplit streets. |
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