紅色ダイヤRed Diamond

Read a sample in Japanese

What you'll learn

The story introduces Toshio, a prodigy detective and his assistant. They receive a cryptic letter predicting a theft. Soon after, Toshio's uncle reports that his red diamond has been stolen. Toshio investigates, finding a cipher in a newspaper clipping, which he decodes using Morse code. The message taunts him. Later, the detective retrieves the diamond from the culprit's hiding place and sets a trap for the unexpected culprit.

Key vocabulary

Grammar points you'll meet

• ～てしまう N4Indicates completion or regret about an action.
  三年たたぬうちに、それらの学問に通じてしまいました。
• ～ておく N4To do something in advance.
  警察へは届けてないが、お前一人で探偵できるか？
• ～はずだ N3Indicates expectation or belief that something should be true.
  それくらいのことは僕が言わないでも分かるはずだよ。
• ～ように N3Indicates purpose, hope, or manner.
  何か大事件があってくれればよいと思っていました。

Cultural notes

• 探偵小説 (Mystery Novels)The uncle in the story is a fan of detective novels, which were popular in Japan from the early 20th century. The genre known as 'tantei shousetsu' often features brilliant detectives solving puzzles.
• 電信符号 (Morse Code)In the story, the cipher uses a substitution based on Morse code's dots and dashes ('ton' and 'tsu'). Morse code was widely used for telegraphy in Japan.
• 柔道 (Judo)The narrator is a judo black belt. Judo, a modern martial art, was founded in Tokyo in 1882.

Try a comprehension question

Topics & grammar

Short Storychildrenmysteryscienceintelligenceheartwarmingsuspensefulaozora bunko〜はずですsupposed to / should be〜ておくdo in advance〜てしまうended up (regret)ようにso that / in order to