"Opera House: The New Murder" is the first case arc in the Light Novel Series of The Kindaichi Case Files.
Hajime and Miyuki are invited once again to Uta Island by Kazuma Kurosawa, owner of the Opera House Hotel and (as is revealed in this case) a former legendary theater director, for a commemorative opening performance by his former theater troupe to celebrate the opening of the new Opera House built after the old one was demolished, as thanks for resolving the earlier incident (as seen in the first case of the manga). As soon as they hit land, however, tensions between Kurosawa's old troupe quickly emerge as the scars from a past tragedy around Kurosawa's deceased daughter surface...and for Hajime, history repeats itself when a killer calling himself the Phantom of the Opera commits a bizarre murder in the newly built theater, targeting the troupe's members one by one.
Tropes include:
- Ascended Extra: Owner Kurosawa goes from a relatively minor suspect character in the first Opera House case to a more major role, with his backstory fleshed out and his relationship with his theater troupe being a major focus of the case.
- Call-Back: Kurosawa's daughter, who was briefly touched upon in the first Opera House murders, has her death be a major focal point in this case as the main source of tension between the opera troupe and the hotel staff.
- Falling Chandelier of Doom: This time around, Kurosawa installed a chandelier in the new Opera House for his Phantom of the Opera renditions. The killer uses this to kill the first intended target via falling onto said target.
- History Repeats: Hajime is once again thrust into a serial murder in the Opera House hotel wherein 'the Phantom of the Opera' is targeting a group of actors as revenge for the death of a girl who committed suicide because of their actions. The first death is even caused by a falling light fixture!
