Pathway to Japanese Literature
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Detective Drama: The Masked ManAuthor: Hirabayashi Hatsunosuke
See Author Details Here：Wiki (Hirabayashi Hatsunosuke)
| Original Title | 探偵戯曲 仮面の男 |
|---|---|
| Author | 平林 初之輔 |
| Genre | Detective & Mystery |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | In the glittering world of Tokyo’s elite, nouveau-riche tycoon Kensaku Aoki and his ambitious wife Hisako devise a scandalous ploy to elevate their social standing: Kensaku will masquerade as the infamous "Masked Thief" during their lavish garden party, staging a fake robbery to captivate gossip columns. Unbeknownst to them, their charade collides with the real Masked Thief—a shadowy figure who targets the wealthy to redistribute their excess to the poor. As Detective Ashida races to unmask the thief, tensions escalate when cryptic letters arrive, taunting both law enforcement and press. Amidst the chaos, Kazuo Higashima, a respected newspaper editor and secret architect of the heists, navigates a double life fueled by a decade-old vendetta against society’s greed. The party erupts into pandemonium as identities blur, stolen jewels vanish, and moral lines dissolve. With detectives scrambling and guests scrutinized, the truth hides in plain sight—a reckoning for wealth’s corrupting power and a man’s quest for poetic justice. Will Ashida’s pursuit of order prevail, or will Higashima’s crusade expose deeper fractures in a world where masks conceal more than faces? |
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