Phantom Thief of Heart!but conan

Chapter 836 Requiem

"Jin's curse?"

Conan didn't expect to hear such a word from Genzaburo's mouth. He frowned and looked down at the Shitara family tree he had compiled in the notebook.

Indeed, the three people who had died were all closely related to this precious violin. Almost as soon as it entered the family, the shadow of death hung over their heads.

But should this be described as a curse?
Xian Sanlang glanced at the little boy and the boy following behind him, silently put out his cigarette, and yawned sleepily.

He has been in a very low mood. I don’t know whether he is unwilling to talk about this topic or he is exhausted due to lack of sleep.

"Hey, my brother's health is like this, it's okay to talk to outsiders like you." Shitara Gensaburo sighed, took out another cigarette and put it in his mouth, without lighting it, he talked about the past of this piano, "Aren't you curious? Such an expensive treasure has been kept at home for 30 years and no one has ever played it. Although there are no famous performers in our family now, at least we all make a living in this industry."

After learning about their family situation, Conan nodded.

This is true. Almost everyone in the Shitara family is engaged in music-related industries. The deceased Shitara Kanto and Shitara Eimi were violinists themselves.

"It's because of the curse of the violin." Shitara Gensaburo said vaguely, "Take me for example. Actually, I used to play the violin, but unfortunately I got tendonitis, which kept coming back and couldn't be cured. It affected my playing technique and control, so I had to switch to being a conductor. I was forced to change my career at that age, but it made me suffer for a long time."

"Is it related to this piano?"

"Yes. Back then, after my second brother died, I was going to Europe to participate in an orchestra audition, so I asked my eldest brother to borrow this guitar, wanting to practice hard and make a stunning appearance with it. As soon as I touched it, I became obsessed with it, practicing day and night without paying any attention to my own condition. It was as if I had forgotten my fatigue and all my worries..."

When Shitara Gensaburo said this, his hands tapping on the table couldn't help but spasm a few times, as if he was recalling that wonderful magical moment, and a smile appeared on the corners of his mouth.

"Then, you suffered from tenosynovitis?" Conan's eyes twitched twice, and he resisted the urge to complain.

What kind of curse is this? Isn't it just that it's a rare opportunity to come across a good piano and you forget everything else?
"Yes, in just one month, I developed tenosynovitis. The inflammation was so severe that cysts and fluid accumulation appeared. I had to undergo surgery to restore the function of my hand. Naturally, I missed the selection and my hand became disabled." The smile faded from his lips, and Shitara Gensaburo waved his hand listlessly.

Conan wanted to euphemistically ask if it was possible that you really had never touched any good pianos, but he restrained himself for a while and continued to ask with the pen: "So, the piano was sealed for this reason?"

"Part of the reason. It's not just me. When Jiangren was 18, he wanted to take his qin to an international competition. He had no problems with rehearsals, but the strings would break when he was in the actual competition. This happened three or four times over and over again. Not only did he not get a place, but rumors that were unfavorable to the family also spread. Later, Yongmei also borrowed the qin and wanted to take it to a TV station for a public performance, which would not only show her ability, but also make the qin look good. But before the show started, she suddenly had a high fever and was too sick to stand up. She was rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment..."

Genzoro's tone of voice still carries his usual arrogance and casualness, but he still can't suppress the gloomy and depressing feeling of the content.

Behind all these inexplicable setbacks, this world-famous harp was not only of no benefit to the family, but also stepped on the accelerator on their downward slope, accelerating the decline of the Shitara family.

Tang Ze, who was following behind with his hands in his pockets and listening to their conversation, raised his eyelids, glanced at Shitara Gensaburo whose emotions were surging, and nodded secretly in his heart.

Ever since the death of Shitara Danjiro, their family has been experiencing some strange things.

Neither Shitara Eimi nor Shitara Kyouto was killed by Haga Kyosuke, but both of them died on Choichiro's birthday in the same way as Shitara Danjiro thirty years ago.

If it weren't for the fact that the culprit, Shitara Choichiro, who should have died last, was rapidly weakening and the doctor judged that he had only half a year to live at most, this made Haga Kyosuke a little anxious. Tang Ze felt that maybe Haga Kyosuke didn't need to take any action at all and could just stand by and watch, and these people would die on their own.

"In short, these weird things happened one after another. We thought they were nonsense at first, but later, even the toughest brother had to accept the fact and sealed it in the warehouse and never took it out again." Shitara Gensaburo seemed to finally lose control of his emotions. He took out a match and lit a cigarette. "Two years ago, because it was my eldest brother's 70th birthday and his wife divorced him, we decided to take out the guitar to change the atmosphere at home..."

I don’t know if he remembered the circumstances of his wife’s death, but Shitara Gensaburo took a deep puff of his cigarette and stopped talking.

Even if he didn't say it, they knew what was going to happen next.

Then, Shitara Eimi, who was about to play it, fell down the stairs and hit the back of her head. The following year, Shitara Jiangren, who was also about to play it, fell to his death...

Shitara Gensaburo did not speak again. Tangze and Conan looked at each other in silence, not knowing what to say.

The atmosphere was a little dull for a while.

Shitara Gensaburo stood up, obviously not wanting to continue answering their questions.

"If you still have questions, you should wait until tomorrow to ask Big Brother at the banquet." He waved his hand and walked into the inner room. "I can only say that this zither probably really doesn't want to stay in our house. Protect that girl Lian Xi well. Although I think she is not good enough, she is the only third generation in our family after all."

He left with a staggering step. Considering that he was also a sixty-year-old man with gray hair, his back looked particularly lonely and depressed, like the silhouette of the entire Shitara family.

To date, Genzaburo has no children, Choichiro's only son died leaving behind only a daughter, and Danjiro's son Kyosuke Hata is in his early 30s and has not yet married or had children. The once prosperous musical family has now become a third generation with only one girl left to support the family.

Seeing such a scene, have these greedy people who went against their conscience and allowed their loved ones to bleed to the point of being on the verge of death and eventually die from their injuries regretted their obsessed behavior thirty years ago?

But it's no use regretting. Over the years, they have never even expressed any remorse to the real victim, Yuga Kyosuke. Instead, out of guilty conscience, they allowed him to be taken away to be raised by his mother's family. It's too late to talk about karma now.

"In the end, we still have to ask the head of the family himself?" Conan pointed at the name on the notebook, feeling a little helpless.

Thirty years have passed, and the head of the family, who was once young and strong, is now an old man in his seventies who can hardly even step out of the door.

Even if something really vile had happened in the past and it had been concealed until today, he must have intended to take it to the grave, so it would not be easy to find out what had happened.

Tang Ze touched his chin and gave some different answers.

"According to the information we have collected, thirty years ago, on the night of the robbery, the servants were not in the main building because it was too late, and the butler went to bed early because of his old age. Apart from the deceased Shitara Danjiro, there were actually only five people who were the real witnesses of the whole case."

"...and these five people just appeared in the curse mentioned by Genzoro." Conan's mind worked quickly and he immediately understood what Tang Ze wanted to say.

Tang Ze nodded, and followed him out of the messy room where music scores were flying everywhere and clothes were scattered all over the place, and whispered, "I have seen people who are very unlucky, and I have also seen some people with 'strange physiques'. Perhaps, people's luck really varies. The Shitara family really has no luck to rise again, and this may really be fate. But normal people, no matter how unlucky they are, rarely blame their bad luck on the so-called 'curse'. This family is so firm in their belief in the existence of the curse that they even put this extremely expensive treasure in the warehouse to collect dust. This itself is suspicious enough."

"Do you think they are guilty?" Conan hit the nail on the head.

"Then tell me, since the violin is so incompatible with them, to the point where they would either die or get injured if they use it, why do they insist on holding on to the violin? Can't they just sell it? Is this the only famous violin in the world?" Tang Ze shrugged and gave his opinion.

"Your idea is that this piano was obtained from an illegal source, so they feel guilty, but at the same time they are unwilling to sell the piano to others..." Conan touched his chin and fell into deep thought.

Yes, why don’t you want to sell the piano?

Just as Tang Ze said, this is indeed a peerless violin, but there is more than one violin in the world. If a famous craftsman sells it and buys another one that suits his taste, wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?
Could it be because this is a gift from his dead brother?

This thought briefly popped up in Conan's mind, but was immediately denied.

If they were really so loyal and righteous, Yuga Kyosuke would not have the last name Yuga.

It is possible that he simply coveted the wealth that came to him for free, but this kind of excessive obsession, to the point of wanting to take it out and play with it again at the age of 70, seems to have exceeded normal possessiveness...

"Something is not right. There must be something fishy behind the death of Danjiro."

Conan walked down from the third floor of the annex where Genzaburo was with a stern face. When he passed by the piano room, he suddenly looked up as if he remembered something. "By the way, where is Mr. Yuga? Didn't he come out much today?"

----

"Uncle Kyosuke, why haven't you come back yet?" Shitara Renxi looked at the time and couldn't help but complain to the person on the other end of the phone, "You agreed to come back to correct the sound, and to help me check how the practice is going..."

Since returning with that strange pianist yesterday, Kyosuke Hanega has not been seen until lunch time today, which makes Renki Shitara feel uneasy.

Today is Grandpa’s birthday party, and it’s also time for her to perform.

The shadow of the curse weighs on her head. Her father has been dead for a year, her mother returned to her own home after the divorce and rarely interacts with her. One of her grandparents is in poor health and the other is mentally ill. Yuga Kyosuke is the only relative she is close to at home.

She felt particularly uneasy because she hadn't seen him the whole day before the performance.

"Don't worry, I will be there before the banquet starts." Yuga Kyosuke lowered his eyes and watched Asai Narimi place the violin case in front of him.

The heavy violin case made a dull thud as it rested on the wooden tabletop, causing the thin layer of tears that had accumulated in his eyes to fall down, run down his cheeks, and fall onto the violin case.

"I will definitely be there." As if he was making a promise or muttering to himself, Kyosuke Hanega repeated this, and without waiting for Renki Shitara's reply, he hung up the phone.

He was afraid that his emotions would get completely out of control and ruin the carefully applied makeup on his face.

Asai Narumi politely lowered his eyes, not looking directly at Yuga Kyosuke's broken tears. He waited until the person opposite him wiped his face and sorted out his emotions before he raised his head again as if nothing had happened.

"We have already answered your last question. As you have seen yourself, they are all like this, bound by this treasure, and have become earthbound spirits, the ghosts of desire. Your father just trusted his relatives too much and didn't think of hiding anything. It's not his fault that he is kind and sentimental."

Yuga Kyosuke did not answer, but opened the violin case and stared at the dust-free Stradivarius inside the box.

"This guitar is exactly the same as the one in real life, you know. If you want, I can let my companions..."

"No need." Yuga Kyosuke took a deep breath, buttoned up his clothes, and stood up holding the violin case. "I won't use a fake violin to play tricks."

In that case, what is the difference between him and those minions of desire?

If my uncle had told my father honestly when he became greedy, although it was impossible to give it to him directly, if he just wanted to borrow it for use, would my father still refuse?
They have already become complete evil spirits for having such terrible thoughts. If they hesitate any further, they will only prolong the pain.

Thinking of the images that he saw in that "treasure house" that recorded past events, Yuga Kyosuke closed his eyes completely.

When he opened his eyes again, the last trace of tenderness in his eyes had disappeared. He held his head high and strode out of the room.

——Yes, he disappeared for a whole day after wandering in the hall of his relatives, but in fact he never left the gate of Shitara family.

After all, these guys who can only hold on to their family’s wealth are all “earthbound spirits” here and don’t need to go anywhere else.

"I should go and make a break for it. And thank you, Mr. Chengshi."

"No need. Please allow me to offer my blessing for tonight's feast."

So, when Renki Shitara, who had changed into her formal performance clothes, received tonight's program list, her expression became completely dull.

"What's wrong, Ms. Renxi?" Maori Kogoro, who had also changed into a formal suit, immediately approached attentively, "Do you feel anything wrong?"

Mao Lilan, who was prepared, raised her hand accurately without even raising her head, and poked her father in the back with her elbow to prevent him from getting too close to Shitara Renki, who was wearing a one-shoulder dress.

"Uncle, why would he prepare this song..." Shitara Renxi's expression was hard to describe, "No wonder he hid from us for a whole day..."

If Yuga Kyosuke showed up at home earlier, the elders who love to emphasize rules and customs would probably scold his uncle...

Mao Lilan took a closer look out of curiosity, and saw that on this simple handwritten program, after Yuga Kyosuke's name was Mozart's Requiem in D minor K.626.

This is the unfinished mourning song Mozart wrote for himself, commonly known as "Requiem Mass".

"What's wrong? Is this piece of music not good?" Mao Lilan, who had some knowledge of music, blinked. "Is it because this piece of music is not suitable to be played on an old man's birthday?"

Indeed, this kind of memorial song is usually reserved for memorial services or funerals. Playing it on an old man's birthday may seem a bit disruptive.

"It's not appropriate, but not because of this." Shitara Renki's face was almost wrinkled. "It's a tradition in our family that on the night a family member dies, the family members play this song to express their condolences."

"It's nothing to pull it once." Tang Ze held up his chin and couldn't help complaining, "Two years ago and last year, some people were lost before the banquet started. This can really be considered a regular program, right?"

Upon hearing this, the few people who were originally surrounding Renxi Shitara couldn't help but look at Tang Ze, with expressions that were hard to describe.

Listen, listen, is this human language?
Isn't this just saying that every year someone in your family dies on their birthday, and it's time this year too...

But then again, is it really necessary for your family to hold this birthday party? Every time you hold a party, someone dies first to liven up the atmosphere. I'm really afraid that if the old man lives a few more years, it won't be a matter of the old sending off the young, but the old sending off the entire family.

There are only so many people left in the Shitara family, not enough for him to do it several times.

"Uh..." Shitara Renxi was aware of the complaints from the guests she invited about the banquet, and she touched her nose in embarrassment, "I also suggested it, but Grandpa refused to listen to me. However, Grandpa's health is really not good this year. The doctor said that it would be difficult for him to hold on until next year, and we don't want to go against his wishes..."

Conan looked at the simple program list with her hanging palm, and then his mouth twitched.

Why is there still "Moonlight"? Asai Narimi has completely given up pretending, right?

As a few people gathered together and whispered, a noise came from the direction of the hall.

Renki Shitara, who had already finished putting on her makeup, quickly got up and walked out of the room. She found that it was Genzoro who was standing on the stairs and almost slipped down the stairs. He was supported in time by several servants and made some noise.

Shitara Renki hurried over to check, but Shitara Gensaburo, who almost followed in the footsteps of his wife, didn't care about the people around him and just pointed at the person standing at the door with trembling hands.

"Second brother, it's my second brother, my second brother is back..."

Shitara Renxi looked in the direction of his finger, and saw that the person standing in front of the double doors of the banquet hall was Kyosuke Yuga, who was wearing a full set of formal suits, with his hair carefully groomed and his beard shaved clean. He was standing there straight, and for a moment he looked very unfamiliar.

Yuga Kyosuke hugged the violin case tightly in his hand, curled the corners of his mouth, and said nothing.

(End of this chapter)