bookrandom Chapter 1320 The Hymn of Redemption
Chapter 1320 The Hymn of Redemption
Chapter 1320 A Hymn of Redemption
"The repertoire is basically the same as the official performance, and you can choose your own seats, isn't that great?"
"Is this also a special channel for you as a developer representative?"
"Actually, it's alright. It's not just a few of us. Most concerts have previews, reserved for the media, industry professionals, and a few specially invited audience members—it's a semi-public screening process. But Mr. Domoto's concert is an opening ceremony, so it's a bit special, and there's no way to buy tickets for a preview—"
After passing through the bustling entrance, Shinichi Kudo listened absentmindedly to Sonoko Suzuki and Ran Mouri chatting hand in hand, his attention still focused on observing the venue's passageways and silently calculating reasonable fire escape routes in his mind.
It wasn't that he had paranoia; it was just that he hadn't observed any movement from the criminals, nor had he received any feedback from the Phantom Thieves, leaving him unsure whether there would be any more dangerous situations today, and he felt uncertain.
The most optimistic view is that the murderer has achieved his goal by killing those four people. He has now basically confirmed the murderer's identity. Once the performance is officially over, with Akiba Reiko's testimony, it will be easy to lock down the real culprit. The real fear is that the murderer's purpose is far more than that.
In this respect, his judgment is consistent with that of Hattori Heiji.
If the murderer really wanted to avenge Hikaru Soma, there was no need to wait until this year, until now.
Judging from the fact that these four deceased individuals got Soma Hikaru drunk, causing him to fall off a cliff, it's easy to see that they were a small group with a rather immoral lifestyle and who acted recklessly.
After confirming with the First Investigation Division, his suspicions were confirmed. The four individuals had participated in a college concert a year ago, but drank and made merry before the performance, almost causing them to be late and perform poorly, resulting in a severe reprimand from Domoto Kazuki.
If this criminal could plant a bomb at Domoto Academy, he could have easily killed these four people if he wanted a pretext. This year marks Soma Hikaru's third death anniversary.
No matter how you look at it, there are probably other motives behind this series of murders.
As he was pondering his thoughts, Sonoko Suzuki, who was leading the way, called out in surprise. The loud noise immediately drew his attention back.
"Yusuke! You're here so early!" Letting go of her best friend's hand, Sonoko Suzuki ran quickly forward. "Long time no see! And you too, so many art salons have invited you but you never come—"
Standing in front of the passageway leading upstairs was none other than Yusuke Kitagawa, dressed in a magnificent kimono.
As a national treasure-level painter, Kisaragi Hōsui would have received Domoto's invitation even without Suzuki Sonoko's connections. Sonoko was pleasantly surprised to see him come running over on his own.
Shinichi Kudo stared at Yusuke Kitagawa for a while, then glanced at Karasawa out of the corner of his eye.
Although this wasn't the first time Tang Ze had met Kitagawa Yusuke, ever since he had developed some suspicions about Tang Ze, he couldn't help but pay attention to Tang Ze's reactions whenever he had any interaction with members of the Phantom Thieves.
Then he saw a clear scrutinizing expression on Tang Ze's face, as if they were indeed not familiar with each other.
What was Tang Ze scrutinizing? He was, of course, scrutinizing Kaito Kuroba's condition.
This wasn't the first time Kuroba Kaito had used this identity in front of Tang Ze, and Tang Ze wasn't questioning whether he was acting well or not. Aside from the times when he needed to switch identities, Kuroba Kaito would occasionally use this identity to enter and exit certain places on his own. This was a tacit understanding between the two of them in building this identity: as long as they didn't run into trouble and get caught, they would do whatever was convenient.
However, since Kitagawa Yusuke wasn't acting alone today and was going to meet up with Kisaragi Mine later, Tang Ze couldn't help but want to observe how this guy was putting on an act.
And as it turns out, the ethereal and beautiful "electric wave" style is the most beloved style of all the imposters who have to be careful when playing their roles. This carefree attitude of being able to curse whomever they want is simply captivating.
Looking at Suzuki Sonoko rushing straight towards him, Kuroba Kaito revealed a gentle smile: "The salon, I've been there once or twice, but I found that I was basically not full, so I became too lazy to go."
Sonoko Suzuki, who had already grabbed his sleeve, couldn't help but stiffen her expression a little as she tried to explain, "Uh, generally speaking, these kinds of places are for communication, so they don't provide much food—"
You really can't blame them for organizing salons.
An art salon is similar in format to an afternoon tea party, usually held in the afternoon or after a formal dinner. After all, keeping people for a proper meal would be a banquet. At such gatherings, the organizers typically only prepare elegant tea breaks. Someone like Yusuke Kitagawa, who barges in with a plate of cake as a disruptive force, would have been kicked out if not for his reputation.
Kaito Kuroba blinked and quickly glanced at the others following behind Sonoko Suzuki: "So it seems that Mr. Moriya is quite polite."
His mention of Teiji Moriya caused not only Sonoko Suzuki, but also the rest of the group who had witnessed what Yusuke Kitagawa had done at the tea party to lose their composure.
"Moriya, it seems he likes baking, so he likes to prepare a lot of food. He's an exception, I guess." Only Sonoko Suzuki, out of consideration for their relationship, stubbornly continued the conversation.
"That's a good hobby, and it's worth promoting." Kaito Kuroba said this so directly, as if he couldn't understand the language at all.
"Ha—" Sonoko Suzuki rubbed her forehead, deciding to convince herself, "Forget it, now that Master Kisaragi is here, it's okay if you don't participate in those activities, it's okay—"
"Yes, teacher is very good." Kuroba Kaito then smiled and exchanged a quick glance with Tang Ze, both looking away with satisfaction.
What Sonoko Suzuki was saying at that moment was actually the real reason why Yusuke Kitagawa rarely socialized. Having Mineki's protection was already more beneficial than cultivating other relationships; there was no need for that.
Tang Ze's decision to choose Ruyue Fengshui as his target for extortion without hesitation was based on this consideration.
The value of this aspect was vividly demonstrated to everyone before the rehearsal began.
Yusuke Kitagawa, dressed in ordinary clothes, may be an unremarkable student, but when he wears this unique haori, hand-dyed by Mineki Kisaragi, he becomes the embodiment of Mineki Kisaragi.
As they walked into the concert hall, everyone, whether they knew him or not, including Genya Domoto, the organizer and planner, came over to greet Yusuke Kitagawa.
Whether people understand classical music or not is one thing, but if you come over and don't exchange business cards or tell each other your names, then you're being impolite.
This caused a lot of people to come and go around his seat. In order not to disturb other people's seat selection and viewing, he moved to a seat in the back row by himself. Shinichi Kudo, who really wanted to say a few words to him, was squeezed so much that he couldn't even get close.
As Shinichi Kudo kept looking back, he noticed that at the very back of the stands, in a dimly lit corner, there was an old man with silver hair. He squinted and studied him for a while before confirming that the man was Fu and Takumi.
Feeling alert, Shinichi Kudo couldn't help but turn around to check on the performers participating in the rehearsal. Finding that no one was missing, he couldn't help but let out a strange "Huh?"
Reiko Akiba is in good spirits; no one is showing any unusual behavior, which is almost too peaceful.
Fortunately, there weren't many people watching the preview, and soon it quieted down on Kitagawa Yusuke's side.
Soon, the lights in the theater gradually went out, and the formal rehearsal began.
Akiba Reiko, dressed in a simple yet elaborate white dress with her hair tied up high, walked onto the stage.
Reiko Akiba, standing on the stage, exuded a completely different aura than usual. She was dignified and upright, and the white fabric she wore reflected the lights as if it were emitting a faint glow. Under the spotlight, she resembled a noble goddess statue, making people want to hold their breath.
What was even more different from the rehearsal was that Chigusa Lala, dressed in a navy blue dress, was now following behind her on stage.
Her overall makeup and styling now match Chigusa Lala's sweet appearance. Standing a little further back, she didn't steal the spotlight from the lead singer Akiba Reiko in front, but she was equally impossible to ignore.
Domoto Kazuki sat down in front of the organ, and Yamane Shion, dressed in a black tuxedo, also took her place. The rehearsal officially began.
The magnificent and beautiful tone of the organ once again echoed in the room. Yamane Shion lowered her eyes and looked at the famous organ at the side of her neck, then raised her wrist.
The first two sections alone were enough to elicit quiet gasps of amazement from Ran Mouri and the others sitting to the side of Shinichi Kudo.
It's different, so different. Today, Yamane Shion is like a completely different person. Not only is there no trace of timidity on her, but paired with that dignified and simple black dress, she exudes an aura that is impossible to ignore.
With her mind completely emptied and focused, Akiba Reiko began to speak amidst this grand and sacred melody.
The opening song, which the group had been unable to see in its entirety during rehearsals, was finally presented in its complete form.
"Ave, Maria, gratia plena————"
This piece, "Ave Maria," was composed by the French Romantic composer Gounod, who superimposed his own melody onto Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier No. 1.
The prelude to the Prelude and Fugue in major key was completed using traditional Catholic prayers, which roughly translate to expressions of praise and respect for the Virgin Mary, such as "Hail Mary, you are full of grace, the Lord is with you."
To be fair, this coincides with the romantic musical inclinations that Shinichi Kudo mentioned when he talked to Reiko Akiba earlier. No wonder that even without Kanade Kawabe's participation, Ikki Domoto still insisted on having Reiko Akiba as the lead vocalist.
Reiko Akiba's powerful, clear, and penetrating voice, combined with the church instrument like the pipe organ, made this hymn, prepared for the choir, incredibly powerful and captivating, even with only two soprano singers performing together.
As Ran Mouri listened to the group's collaboration, her eyes widened, and she couldn't help but raise her hand to cover her lips.
Reiko Akiba is a very typical bel canto soprano. Her singing timbre is very different from her speaking timbre. It wasn't so obvious when I heard her speak before, but now, when I hear her actually standing on the stage singing, the more I listen, the more familiar Ran Mouri feels with this voice.
As she listened, her gaze couldn't help but drift towards Shinichi Kudo, only to find that Shinichi Kudo was also turning his head to look at her.
Their eyes met, then they immediately looked away.
In the dark stands, the two people's faces flushed almost imperceptibly.
Shinichi Kudo's face flushed for a moment, and once the heat on his face subsided, he suddenly recalled the argument he had mentioned earlier in the second year of junior high school. Thinking about the time, his gaze flickered as he looked at Reiko Akiba again.
When they were in the second year of junior high school, that was three years ago.
At that time, they must have encountered Akiba Reiko, who had lost Soma Hikaru and was singing alone by the river.
So, that song —
Behind the stands, in the darkness, neither Kyosuke Haga nor Narumi Asai made a sound as they quietly moved to Kaito Kuroba's side.
Yuga Kyosuke raised his hand and silently made the sign of the cross in front of his chest, then turned his head precisely to look at Fu and Takumi sitting in the far corner.
Sitting alone, Pu Hejiang calmly gazed at the brightly lit stage, the light reflecting off his glasses, obscuring his expression at a glance.
However, Haga Kyosuke is willing to believe that the expression on that face at this moment should be one of remorse and regret.
What's done is done, but at least things haven't reached a dead end yet.
"Wow, that's really amazing. I didn't even notice it during rehearsals. There's definitely a reason why Mr. Domoto values Ms. Yamane so much."
"Miss Akiba, I'm speechless with amazement! Your performance was absolutely perfect!"
After a two-hour rehearsal, the group walked along the corridor outside the concert hall exit, all looking excited.
Classical music is difficult to understand, but the addition of human voices changes everything.
Many people may not understand the difference between a world-class pianist and an ordinary pianist, but they can certainly sense the difference between a top soprano and an ordinary singer.
The sheer power of the soundscape, the overwhelming sense of narrative, and the cleansing, solemn beauty of religious songs—it's a pure beauty that can be appreciated even without understanding the lyrics.
As Shinichi Kudo listened to the conversation, he caught a glimpse of someone walking out of the other exit out of the corner of his eye.
After the initial rehearsal, the limited time before the official performance must be given to the sound engineers and stage set-up staff to quickly adjust and resolve any minor issues that occurred during the rehearsal. Naturally, the singers and musicians do not need to participate, so it is perfectly normal for them to walk around outside the concert hall at this time.
After confirming that it was Akiba Reiko, he couldn't help but want to go over and talk to her.
Let's talk about the chance encounter three years ago, and also about the opportunity she should never have missed.
For some, this performance represents a golden opportunity to soar to new heights and showcase themselves; for others, it is an irreplaceable release to make up for past shortcomings.
Akiba Reiko's dedication to this performance must be driven by some bittersweet longing that is closely related to Soma Hikaru and cannot be easily shared with others.
If you want miracles to happen, if you want divine signs to appear, if you want God's mercy as these hymns and spirituals sing of—then it must be today.