What a strange dream! The city was engulfed in a wave of random murders (musabetsu satsujin, 無差別殺人), and when my doorbell rang it was not the murderer (satsujinhan, 殺人犯), as I'd feared, but a high police official come to coax me out of retirement (taishoku, 退職) and put my detective skills to work. The police, he frankly admitted, were helpless without me. Detective skills? Well, as a child I'd dreamed of being a private detective (tantei, 探偵). Often in my dreams I am one.

Well, here's a mystery (nazo, 謎) for me to solve: Where am I? In bed, I can see that, but it's not my bed . . . What could have happened? Footsteps! Brisk, no-nonsense footsteps — a woman's, I think . . . "Nurse!" Her uniform (seifuku, 制服) is unmistakable. So I'm in a hospital. "Nurse — where am I? How did I get here? What . . . " I break off? in embarrassment (tōwaku shite hanashi wo yameru, 当惑して話をやめる). I've been speaking English. Did I think I was back in England? Why should I have? What's going on in my head?

"I'm sorry," I mumble, switching to Japanese. "I'm a little confused (konran shite imasu, 混乱しています). What happened to me? Why am I here?"