Poisonous Lies: Prince of Tennis

A murder has taken place in Apartment 1802 of Tokyo's Babylon Tower.

According to information from the landlord, the female victim was named Asuka Shirauta, the manager of the cat cafe downstairs in Babylon Tower, and the male victim was named Egami Junichi. The police initially concluded that the two had died in a murder-suicide, a type of case that is not uncommon.

Sanada Genichiro takes on the case with his troublesome junior, Kirihara Akaya, who's been giving him headaches since middle school. But he soon discovers that the case is not so simple: fingerprints on the doorknob that belong to neither victim, a vicious assault from several years ago, a miniature camera hidden in a corner of the room, Asuka Shirauta's complicated social connections, and a novel she wrote before her death that seems to carry a special meaning.

The building's residents have crossed paths with Sanada before, but he soon discovers that they're nothing like he remembers: the womanizing rich playboy Atobe Keigo, the violent plastic surgeon Shishido Ryo, the meek and repressed pianist Ootori Chotaro, the voyeuristic data maniac Inui Sadaharu, and the editor Fuji Shusuke, whose relationship with the others is unclear...

It seems they're all hiding a secret together.

All villains or all angels?

Hurt each other or save each other?

"Deliver my soul from the sword, my darling from the power of the dog.", Psalm 22:20

1. This story isn't mainly about pairings, but it contains a small amount of Tezuka/Fuji and BG elements, as well as some disturbing and dark content. Please don't read if that's not your thing, or if you have strict moral standards.

2. The mystery is simple and easy to guess. The focus is on the story behind it. An ensemble cast of adults, girls helping girls, no rivalry over men.

3. The male and female characters' stories alternate. Each male character gets one chapter of narration. I love every character from The Prince of Tennis and don't intend to disparage any of them. If you feel that I'm making any of them look bad, please read to the end. That said, nobody is perfect, and every character has flaws and shortcomings. Please don't read if that's not your thing.

4. A few original characters. Please bear with me.

Your favorites and comments are what keep me writing!

Characters:

Male characters:

Detectives:

Sanada Genichiro: Police inspector, serves as a detective in this story

Kirihara Akaya: Police officer, serves as a detective in this story

Suspects:

Atobe Keigo: Owner of an apartment on the 20th floor, vice president of the Atobe Group

Shishido Ryo: Tenant in 1901, plastic surgeon at a Tokyo hospital

Ootori Chotaro: Tenant in 1801, pianist

Akutagawa Jiro: Resident of 1902, owner of units 1801, 1802, 1803, 1804, 1901, 1902, 1903, and 1904, professional landlord

Fuji Shusuke: Owner of 1703, fiction editor

Inui Sadaharu: Tenant in 1804, programmer at Shinjou Tech, a subsidiary of the Atobe Group

Egami Junichi: Male victim

Female characters:

Asuka Shirauta: 29 years old, cat cafe manager, female victim, tenant in 1802

Tsukishiro Soran (Akutagawa Soran): 29 years old, cat cafe manager

Atobe Mori (Igarashi Mori): 29 years old, head of the Igarashi family, designer

Premise: Deliver my soul from the sword.