Gokumon Prep School
Moroi Ren Prep School Student (Humanities)
Moroi Ren was murdered at Gokumon Prep School,
but the shadow of the Puppeteer from Hell, Takatou Youichi, loomed over it.
He's targeting the Gokumon Prep School retreat!
What kind of trap is he going to lay there?!
The Case File of Young Kindaichi Returns
The Prison Prep School Murder Case
The Prison Prep School Murder Case!
We're really going deep into the mountains.
The retreat is even deeper in.
Murakami Souta
They're gonna shut us up in a prison-like place and make us study 'til we drop.
Another tunnel.
The Puppeteer from Hell... Takatou Youichi.
He calls what he does "criminal artistry".
He's a lunatic who enjoys creating "perfect crimes"
by turning ordinary people into murderers.
If his sights are set on Gokumon Prep School,
I'll do whatever I can to be a part of that retreat.
Takatou Youichi...
What kind of trap are you going to set at the retreat?
Everyone, you're going to split up into two buildings, Moonlight and Sunlight.
Moonlight? Sunlight? What the heck is that?
It's in the pamphlet!
Humanities is in Sunlight, Science is in Moonlight.
I'm Humanities, so Sunlight... How about you?
Moonlight. I'm in Science.
What the hell?! Then we're gonna be separated?
And you're Sunlight too, huh?
Enami Yurika Prep School Student (Humanities)
I'm Enami Yurika, Humanities, same as you.
I-I'm Kindaichi Hajime.
I see! So we'll be together, huh?
What did you come here for?!
W-What are you doing?! Sheesh!
You're funny!
Quiet!
Some of you are here for the first time, so we'll introduce ourselves.
I'm the head instructor, Ujie Takayuki.
Ujie Takayuki Head Instructor
I'm in charge of the physical chemistry class at Moonlight.
And this is...
Itsukushima Ranko Deputy Head Instructor
Deputy Head Instructor Itsukushima Ranko, in charge of Japanese and literature.
This is Akao Ichiyou, the English instructor at Sunlight.
Akao Ichiyou Instructor
I'm Akao.
He only joined Gokumon Prep just recently, but I hear he's an awesome teacher.
His face is badly burned or something.
He smiled?
Does this man know me?
And one more person.
Akechi Kengo-sensei.
T-There he is!
Akechi-san is a teacher?!
As the god of entrance exams, prep school teacher Akechi-sensei
is responsible for many students getting into first-class universities.
I'm Akechi Kengo, in charge of mathematics at Moonlight.
Moonlight, the same as me?!
He's dreamy!
I'm glad I went with Science!
Is it okay for a cop to lie about his resume?
It's no lie.
In my college days, I worked as a part-time instructor at a famous prep school.
It's true that I became known as the "god of entrance exams".
I pulled strings from back then to arrange this without revealing my real job.
The guy never fails to be arrogant!
Why do you have such a large pack? Show me what's inside!
Hey!
Video games, snacks, manga...
Even this!
Oh, t-that's...
Dummy...
It's all getting confiscated.
That includes your phone and cash.
And this.
A change of clothes is a no-no, too?!
For safety's sake, only certain apparel is allowed.
For safety's sake?
In the past, the retreat has been so strict,
there have been students who escaped and impulsively attempted suicide.
Now we have a system in which dangerous or unnecessary things are prohibited.
This really is a prison!
All right, Moonlight students, it's time to go.
Miyuki!
See you, Hajime-chan.
We can use these to contact each other.
Gotcha.
Inspector Kenmochi is working on the Moroi Ren murder.
He'll contact me if there are any developments.
Okay. For now, leave Sunlight to me.
Miyuki's on your side, so take care of her.
Come on, Sunlight's moving out, too.
Why am I so anxious?
Akechi's got Miyuki covered.
Hey, how far are we goin'?
The Sunlight building's this deep in the woods?
Hama Akiko Prep School Student (Humanities)
I hear it's in the middle of the forest so the students can't escape so easily.
But despite all the strictures, there are fugitives every year.
I hear one guy wandered around the maze-y paths all night and never came back.
Konoe Motohiko Prep School Student (Science)
I can finally see it. Moonlight Manor.
It really does look like a prison.
It was a sanatorium, but Ujie-sensei converted it to this bleak mansion.
I guess it's easier to focus on studying this way.
Word is that Ujie-sensei made this, too.
Moonlight Mansion
That stone relief is the only beautiful thing here.
The way the sunlight reflects off of it suits the name "Moonlight" perfectly.
Sunlight Mansion
We made it! So this is Sunlight Mansion...
Moonlight Mansion is downriver.
Moonlight Mansion?
How about slipping out at night and paying Miyuki a visit?
Impossible! It's a one-hour hike from Sunlight Mansion to Moonlight Mansion.
And if you get lost at night, you're totally screwed.
I see...
Can the chatter. We're meeting in the first-floor cafeteria in three minutes.
Shikibu Seiko Prep School Student (Humanities)
The schedule's down to the minute. If you're late, everyone is punished.
Science Group 2:00 PM
Put your shoes in plastic bags in the lockers.
Put your belongings in a bag and drop it off in your assigned room.
Class begins in ten minutes.
Kaidou Hitomi Prep School Student (Science)
All right. I wonder who'll be put in solitary first.
Solitary?
We call the private study room "solitary".
Kirisawa Tooru Prep School Student (Science)
Why the jitters, Kirisawa?
Oh, I see. You actually stand a good chance of being thrown into solitary.
Kirisawa-kun, I'm putting you in the private study room.
There it is! Solitary!
W-Why, Ujie-sensei?!
Given your current grades, all we can do is have you quit this school.
N-No! My parents are incredibly strict!
I-I-If you kick me out of this school, t-they might disinherit me!
That's why you'll be working on a special curriculum in the study room.
You'll take your meals alone here, too.
A key?!
That's solitary for you!
Humanities Group 2:30 PM
Here in Sunlight Mansion, each class is 55 minutes long.
There's a 15-minute break between classes to use the restroom or review.
That's no kind of break!
Be satisfied with the morning walk to feel refreshed.
It's hard to stimulate the frontal cortex when you're in the same room all day,
so you'll move to a different room for each class.
Time is strictly observed. You mustn't be even one minute late.
W-We really are being imprisoned for three days!
Now, please proceed to the classroom on the third floor.
Dammit! That just leaves dinner as the only thing to look forward to!
Classroom C Science Group 3:40 PM
Next I'll explain this equation.
Akechi-san is cool as a teacher, too!
Science Group 7:00 PM
So after dinner, there's a one-hour walk from 7:00 PM...
Hurry up! Everyone's already here!
Moonlight Mansion
Beautiful! It's all lit up!
It's past the time we're supposed to meet, but Ujie-sensei isn't here yet.
We've got another class after the walk, so we can't be late for that...
Oh, hello. Come on, let's start the walk.
First, everyone hold on to this rope.
Rope?
Yes. We'll be walking through a pitch black forest for one hour.
Believe me, you don't want to get separated, so hold on tight.
To increase your study performance, taking walks is essential.
Moving your legs gets the blood circulating and that activates the brain.
Deep darkness... I just hope nothing happens.
What was that?!
Are you okay, Nanase-san?
If you're scared, we could hold hands?
But...
I wouldn't.
Before long, Konoe wouldn't be satisfied with just holding hands.
You're nasty, Kaidou.
Huh? Then you're nice?
The difference is you're two-faced, only nice on the outside.
All six of us are partners in crime.
Oh, or is it five now?
K-Kaidou!
I-It's nothing!
We're talking about a game.
A game?
Yeah, just a game. Right?
The Case File of Young Kindaichi Returns
Humanities Group 7:30 PM
What?! You're tellin' me this is dinner?!
It's like a pack of space food.
Where's my jumbo hamburger steak?! My extra-large helping of curry?!
If I could at least get back my confiscated corn soup...
Kujiragi Daisuke Prep School Student (Humanities)
I can't take it anymore!
Nakayashiki Manabu Prep School Student (Humanities)
But this makes sense as studying food, Kujiragi.
Rich food makes too much blood go to the stomach and not enough to the brain.
This is a well thought-out menu that promotes good digestion and concentration.
Shut up, Nakayashiki! I'm sick of this retreat!
That's taking irritation to another level, Kujiragi.
You're actually scared, aren't you, after Moroi-kun was killed like that?
This school is cursed, don't you think?
By you-know-who's ghost.
You-know-who's ghost? Who are you talking about?
Screw this!
Science Group 8:00 PM
We're back.
8:00 on the dot. Somehow, we got back safely.
Humanities Group Midnight
Hello? Miyuki? How are things at Moonlight Mansion?
Okay. Nothing's happened especially, but something is bothering me...
Something's bothering you?
Yeah. What Kaidou-san said to Konoe-kun.
That six of them are "partners in crime".
Six of them are partners in crime?
But she said now the number is five.
Six people have become five. What does it mean?
And also...
This school is cursed, don't you think?
By you-know-who's ghost.
What happened at Gokumon Prep School?
Even before Moroi was murdered, who...?
"Who killed Cock Robin?"
"I, said the Sparrow..."
So, let my artistic crime begin at last...
Dance, marionette, to the Dance of Death.
Humanities Group 12:06 PM
All right, this ends the Japanese class.
Pick up your lunch and bottle of tea from the cafeteria,
then go to the second floor for a 30-minute lunch before returning to class.
Lunch is just an energy bar?!
It's good when you're on a diet.
Eww. This is the tea?
Huh? Enami-san, you're throwing away your tea?
And so, when one mole of a substance is burned away completely,
Science Group 1:15 PM
the resulting value of heat released is called the heat of combustion.
Huh? The chalk disappeared.
Sorry, Konoe-kun, but would you get some more chalk from the hallway locker?
Sure.
Yeesh. Get your own damn chalk!
Let's see... Here we go.
The relationship between the mole, which represents a substance, and mass...
He's taking too long just to get chalk.
I'll see what he's doing.
Okay.
Clearly, Konoe-kun did get the chalk.
But he's not here.
Akechi-sensei, where's Konoe-kun?
I haven't seen him. Maybe he returned to his own room on the second floor.
No, the stairs are locked so he couldn't have gotten off the first floor here.
Let's look for him over there.
It seems he's not here.
Then another breakout...
Breakout?
We get them every year. Students who can't take the pressure and flee.
I'm sure he'll come back on the verge of tears. All we can do is wait and see.
Well, it's already 2:15.
Time for your lesson, Akechi-sensei.
Humanities Group 2:15 PM
Well, let's read a passage from The Tale of the Bamboo-Cutter.
U-Um, Itsukushima-sensei, could I go to the restroom?
Make it quick.
I-I will.
I wonder what's wrong with Enami-san.
The stress probably upset her stomach. She has allergies, too.
The story begins with, "Long ago, there lived an old bamboo-cutter."
As Japan's oldest folk story, it set the standard.
Enami-san is taking ages...
First, the modern translation...
Why do I have a bad feeling?
"Who killed Cock Robin?"
"I, said the Sparrow..."
The Case File of Young Kindaichi Returns
The Tale of the Bamboo-Cutter, combustion, the DNA helix model...
The contents of the class resemble the series of strange murders.
A murderer at Sunlight Mansion and Moonlight Mansion.
Who is the murdering Sparrow that took his cue from the Mother Goose poem?
The Case File of Young Kindaichi Returns! The Prison Prep School Murder Case, File 3!
The Prison Prep School Murder Case
Puppeteer from Hell, I swear I'll solve the mysteries that you've set up!
I swear it in the name of my grandfather!