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| Original Title | お勢登場 |
|---|---|
| Author | 江戸川 乱歩 |
| Genre | Detective & Mystery |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | In a quiet household shadowed by illness and betrayal, Kakutaro, a terminally ill man, clings to fragile hope. Aware of his wife Osei’s infidelity, he tolerates her absences out of pity for her impoverished lover and fear of leaving their young son orphaned. His brother Kakujiro urges him to confront her, but Kakutaro’s resignation deepens as his health fades. Osei exploits his passivity, weaving lies under the guise of visiting her ailing father while indulging in secret trysts. A rare moment of joy arises when Kakutaro plays hide-and-seek with his son and neighborhood children, losing himself in laughter and storytelling. But tragedy strikes when he becomes trapped in an antique chest during the game, his weakened body unable to escape. As suffocation tightens its grip, Osei returns home, hears his desperate cries, and—in a chilling act of calculation—chooses not to save him. Her cold resolve masks a darker ambition, leaving Kakutaro’s fate suspended between accident and malice, while unanswered questions linger about guilt, survival, and the haunting legacy of choices made in shadows. |