I, Aki Tomoya, will not be a simp.

"Then please find as many clues as possible!"

The lead detective said helplessly, because based on his experience, the way the body was buried was probably enough to determine it was a homicide.

However, the key is how many clues and evidence can be found for such a skeletal corpse. Otherwise, even if they want to investigate, they can only search aimlessly. In that case, it would be better to just leave it there, not investigate it, and go and deal with other cases.

After explaining the situation, the detective left to wait for news from UDI.

In the autopsy room, all that remained were the members of the Sancheng team, who were there to examine the remains.

"This is the first time I've seen a skeletonized corpse, but it seems you won't be so easy to deal with..."

After noticing Mikoto Misumi's gaze, Aki Tomoya realized that this job was not so easy.

Tokai Rin Yuko's expression didn't seem particularly relaxed either.

As for Kube Rokuro, who had just arrived at UDI, he was also completely bewildered, but he looked somewhat eager to try, and he seemed to be trying to deduce something from the corpse.

"I've probably handled over a hundred cases of skeletonized corpses, but I can only pinpoint the cause of death in fewer than ten of them!"

In other words, the cause of death can be determined in less than 10% of skeletal remains.

"Last year, there were 119 unidentified corpses in Nishimushino, including 15 skeletonized corpses, and only the cause of death could be determined in two of them!"

Therefore, there are still many difficulties in examining a skeletonized corpse.

The skeleton was intact, but mostly skeletal. Such a body was arranged according to the anatomical structure of the human skeleton, followed by the examination record.

"The total length of the skeleton is 171.5cm... The skull is intact and smooth, with normal color... No skull fracture was found, but black discharge was visible in the cranial cavity..."

"Yes."

She wrote down Mikoto Misumi's complete statement, then raised her camera and took a picture of the skull.

Kube Rokuro watched from the side, taking notes on what the medical students, who were also recording things here, were doing.

The skeletonized corpse was far more shocking than any ordinary corpse.

Most of it turned to bones, but not all of it did; decay is a process.

The skeleton that was brought here is something that most people could not bear.

At the beginning, Kube Rokuro also tried to avoid having his eyes on the skeleton.

"No well-formed soft tissue was visible in the neck, and the area around the cervical spine was covered with black filth..."

The number of places where the remains were covered in mud was unknown. The remains were not washed before being brought to the police's attention because UDI had been assigned to handle the case, and the original appearance had to be preserved to avoid destroying any unknown or unseen clues.

Check, then record and take photos.

At the same time, the bones must be carefully washed piece by piece to remove the black grime and determine which parts are dirt and which are useful.

"After rinsing away the waste, the hyoid bone was found to have detached from the articular surface, with no fracture present..."

First, the skull was rinsed to find not only the hyoid bone but also a bone fragment.

"A piece of bone suspected to be from the thyroid cartilage or cricoid cartilage..."

"Yes."

This process will continue gradually.

No fractures were found in any of the cervical vertebrae...

Then there were no abnormalities in the sternoclavicular joints on both sides.

The fracture was not discovered until the middle and lower part of the sternum was examined.

"Transverse fracture of the middle and lower part of the sternum..."

After recording the fracture sites one by one, and finally after completely washing the remains, some of the remains were found to be black, indicating that they had been burned.

Some bones, such as wrist bones, metacarpal bones, phalanges, and metatarsals, have also been lost.

When performing gender identification, observation is made above the pubic bone.

"The pubic angle is V-shaped, with an angle of approximately 70 degrees. The right marginal angle is approximately 145 degrees, and the left marginal angle is approximately 150 degrees..."

The pubic angle differs between sexes; it is generally V-shaped in males and U-shaped in females.

The angle of the pubic bone in men is approximately 70 to 75 degrees, while in women it is approximately 90 to 110 degrees.

"Based on the characteristics of the pubic angle, the deceased was determined to be male."

According to Mikoto Misumi's assessment, the skeleton that has been delivered is male.

As for age, there are specific standards and scoring methods to infer it.

Determining whether a corpse is skeletal, based on its gender, age, height, or whether it is a skeletonized corpse, involves a great deal of knowledge.

After a series of tedious tests and inferences, the final conclusion can be reached.

Male, approximately 44 to 48 years old, and between 1.73 and 1.8 meters tall.

These are just some of the clues to help determine the identity of the remains and to investigate the recorded missing persons. However, whether they can be found depends on how many clues are available.

They spent the entire afternoon working around the skeleton.

"Let's see if we can find anything else in those tissues that are suspected to be from the stomach or liver..."

Mikoto Misumi sighed as she spoke.

Chapter 272 Cause of Death (2/4)

Examine the unidentified skeleton that was brought in, and find as much as you can.

Gender, age, and height are things that can be determined by examining bones.

Then, inferences were drawn from the fractures found above, followed by the discovery of tissues suspected to be from the stomach and liver, with the hope of finding something useful.

DNA was extracted and preserved from the remaining tissue that was not yet fully decomposed.

There is one more thing to do: determine the time of death.

Out of curiosity, Aki Tomoya specifically asked Misumi Mikoto how to judge a skeleton that has already turned to skeletal form.

"These are remains that have been buried. The process of decomposition depends on factors such as the ambient temperature, insect activity, burial conditions and depth... and then we need to look at the experience summarized from past experiments and cases by scholars to make a judgment."

In short, many conditions need to be taken into account.

Like this skeleton, most of it is skeletal, it was directly buried without a coffin, and the thoracic and abdominal organs are saponified and unformed. Then, we need to combine the conditions of the site, environmental factors, and so on to make a series of inferences.

Finally, Mikoto Misumi compared past experiments by American and Japanese scholars with many other cases, and combined this with the on-site situation to conclude that the body had been buried for more than six months.

As for the cause of death, we will have to wait for Tokai Rin Yuko to complete the examination before taking a comprehensive assessment.

After recording the process of examining the remains, Aki Tomo didn't do anything else. Instead, he talked to the newcomer, Kube Rokuro, about UDI, mostly about their work and what they, as recorders, were supposed to do.

Perhaps because they both wore glasses, or perhaps because they were both medical students, Aki Tomoya had a good impression of Kube Rokuro upon their first meeting.

There were still many things the other party didn't understand, and Aki Tomoya explained as much as he could.

"But no matter how much I say, you should get used to it after a while, Kube-kun."

After all that talk, you get used to everything after doing it for a while.

As a recorder, the job itself is not too complicated.

"Aki-kun, did you come here because you plan to pursue a career in forensic medicine?"

Rokuro Kube seemed quite interested in the fact that a University of Tokyo student like Tomoya Aki would be working part-time here.

He comes from a family of doctors; several of his brothers also studied medicine, and his father was a professor.

Born into such a family, Rokuro Kube was well aware of what the name Higashi-Dali-San meant.

It's hard to understand why someone would give up a bright future to come to Japan, a place where forensic medicine is difficult to cultivate.

"It's because it's related to my major, not for the reason you're thinking of."

Aki Tomoya laughed and gave a casual explanation.

Then, out of curiosity, he asked Kube Rokuro, "Putting me aside, why did you come to UDI, Kube-kun?"

Aki Tomo didn't feel there was anything wrong with UDI.

Anatomy, pathological examination, and laboratories are all closely related.

At school, he was in the pathology classroom; outside, he was at UDI.

"I... my intention is clinical work, so I'm just doing this part-time."

Kube Rokuro adjusted his glasses.

Unlike Aki Tomoya, who had thought everything through, Kube Rokuro submitted his application for a leave of absence during his first year at medical school.

“Unlike An Yi, I took the exam three times and only got into a third-rate medical university.”

Perhaps because they were both medical students, or perhaps because he was moved by what Aki Tomoya had shown, Kube Rokuro said in a slightly self-deprecating voice.

He said he wanted to pursue a career in clinical medicine, but even he himself didn't know what the point was of spending three years getting into a third-rate medical university.

Upon hearing this, Aki Tomoya raised an eyebrow. He had taken the exam three times, which meant he had repeated two years.

Sure enough, this person in front of me doesn't seem like someone who's short of money.

"A third-rate medical university, but since it's a medical university, it's still much better than the average person."