Chapter 578: 【Beautiful Girl Detective Akashiterika!】A Morning in the Old Imperial City, Several Days Later

【Beautiful Girl Detective Akashiterika!】A Morning in the Old Imperial City, Several Days Later

* * *

“…”

Akashiterika opened her eyes slightly.

A plain ceiling came into her blurry vision.

There’s a simple magic lamp attached, not a chandelier.

It’s a common one, used by ordinary Old Imperial City residents, similar in shape to a bare light bulb.

“…”

She quickly sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes.

The surroundings are still dim.

It’s early morning.

“…”

And then, Akashiterika looked up at the corner of the ceiling.

It’s clean, with no dust or stains, because she cleaned it the other day.

Normally… you wouldn’t have many opportunities to clean the corner of the ceiling.

But Akashiterika, the other day, as soon as she returned to her office, which had been empty for a while, brought out a stepladder from the storage room, and cleaned that spot first.

Because that was… a bed.

A strange… weird… peculiar?

Custom… habit… practice…?

…Of—

Her precious friend, who disappeared a few days ago.

“.………..”

Perhaps… she might suddenly come back.

Thinking that, Akashiterika looks up at the corner of the ceiling every morning when she wakes up.

But there’s nothing there today, either.

There’s no black cocoon stuck there.

To begin with… the sight of a black cocoon forming in the corner of the ceiling when you wake up in the morning, with a girl sleeping inside… is absurd, unrealistic, and fantastical, even in this fantasy-filled world.

No, rather than fantasy, it might be closer to horror…

Anyway, it’s more normal for there to be nothing there.

Therefore, now… she even feels like those few months she spent living with Emi were a dream or an illusion.

And that made her sad… Akashiterika sighed softly.

The sound was immediately drowned out by the pouring rain—the sound announcing the slightly early arrival of winter in the Old Imperial City.

Today is also bad weather, as she can tell even without opening the curtains.

It’s been raining ever since that day, although the intensity varies.

It’s really depressing.

“…Alright!”

But she can’t just stay in bed forever.

Akashiterika lives alone.

Unlike at her parents’ house, there are no servants here to take care of her every need.

She has to move.

Akashiterika got out of bed, went to the window, and forcefully opened the curtains.

The rain today is really heavy.

She can’t even see the Ruinomiyako Canal, which should be nearby, because of the rain.

The orange light of the street lamps flickers faintly, barely asserting its existence.

Glaring at the scene, Akashiterika turned around and started getting ready.

Today, she’s expecting her first visitor since she was discharged from the hospital.

That visitor’s name is Munodes.

That detective is coming to report on the search for Akashiterika’s friend… Emi Rune.

* * *

“Calling off… the search!?”

Akashiterika, hearing the news, involuntarily shouted, slammed her hand on the table, leaned forward, and glared at Detective Munodes, who was sitting sloppily in the guest chair across from her.

“Well, you see… that’s right…”

Detective Munodes, intimidated by her intensity, broke out in a cold sweat, and frantically wiped his face with a handkerchief.

The tea in the “three” cups on the table… which she had accidentally prepared too many of… is shaking.

“You see, Akashiterika-chan, it’s been raining every day, right? The water level in the sewer has risen, and it’s too dangerous to continue the search… Even with my dad’s influence, we can’t spare any more officers…”

Detective Munodes, averting his eyes apologetically, said that to Akashiterika.

“…………”

Akashiterika looked down and bit her lip.

A heavy silence filled the office.

“…W-We couldn’t find Emi-chan. The only clue we found… is this.”

Detective Munodes, unable to bear the silence any longer, was the first to speak.

Saying that, he rummaged through his bag, took something out, and showed it to Akashiterika.

“Ah…!!”

Akashiterika, seeing it, widened her eyes.

She recognized it.

What Detective Munodes spread out before her… is the jacket Akashiterika lent to Emi!

“This is the only evidence we found… It’s tattered, isn’t it…? I’m afraid… but Emi-chan is probably…”

Detective Munodes, slowly choosing his words, but with a clear sense of certainty, spoke to Akashiterika, who snatched the jacket and stared at it intently.

“…………”

But his words didn’t reach Akashiterika.

She continued to observe the jacket Emi was wearing.

As Detective Munodes said, it’s quite tattered.

There are holes, frays, and cuts all over it.

And most importantly, there’s a large tear in the front, where the fabric is completely ripped.

It’s no longer wearable.

“…………”

Akashiterika continued to stare at the jacket intently… and then, after a while, she gently placed it beside her chair.

And then, for some reason… she suddenly started tearing her own sweater, which she was wearing over her shirt, with all her might!

She’s a reincarnated person with divine protection!

She has enough strength to do that!

“A-Akashiterika-chan!?”

Detective Munodes was taken aback by Akashiterika’s sudden, seemingly outrageous action!

But Akashiterika, not minding his reaction, compared her torn sweater to the jacket, the piece of evidence…

And then, she abruptly looked up!

With a big smile on her face!

She shouted!

“Emi… IS ALIVE!!”

…She declared!

“Th-That’s impossible, isn’t it!?”

Detective Munodes was greatly surprised by her statement, and immediately denied it!

“Emi-chan was engulfed in the flames of the explosion caused by that ancient weapon’s attack! There’s no way she could have survived…”

“SHE CAN!!”

“How!?”

“Because… she’s Emi!!”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Akashiterika, puffing out her chest proudly, answered that, and then looked down at the jacket.

“Look closely, Detective Munodes… There are no burn marks on this jacket! That means that Emi’s… ‘special ability to produce jet-black something’… must have protected her from the explosion!”

“Guh…!”

Detective Munodes groaned.

Certainly, that might be true.

…But!

“Even so! Emi-chan fell into the sewer! She must have been tossed around in the dark, airless rapids, and hit the walls and stones many times! There’s no way she could have survived…”

“SHE CAN!!”

“How!?”

“Because… she’s Emi!!”

Akashiterika, puffing out her chest proudly, answered that, and then looked down at the jacket.

“Look closely, Detective Munodes… This jacket, although it has cuts and tears here and there… there are no bloodstains! That means that Emi’s sturdy body wasn’t even scratched from hitting the stones and walls!”

“Gunu…!”

Detective Munodes groaned.

Certainly, that might also be true.

…But!

“Even so! Surely, she can’t avoid being suffocated…”

“SHE CAN!!”

“How!?”

“Because… she’s Emi!!”

Akashiterika, puffing out her chest proudly, answered that, and then looked down at the jacket.

“Look closely, Detective Munodes… The largest tear on this jacket! It’s… the same shape as the tear I just made on my sweater! That means that this tear… must have been made when Emi tore it herself! Then why did Emi tear her jacket? Because she was uncomfortable with the feeling of the wet jacket! That means she must have escaped from the current at some point and reached dry land! This tear is the best proof that she’s alive!”

“GUNUU…!”

Detective Munodes groaned.

Certainly, that might also be true.

…But!

“All of that… all of that… is just conjecture, Akashiterika-chan!!”

Detective Munodes stood up and shouted!

“No bloodstains!? It was washed away by the water!! The same tear shape!? It’s a coincidence!! Emi-chan is definitely dead!! If she’s alive… why hasn’t she come back to this office!?”

Detective Munodes continued to shout, his face red with anger… and lastly, he stated the decisive counter-evidence.

That’s right… Emi hasn’t come back to Akashiterika.

If Akashiterika is right, Emi should be here right now, drinking tea with her usual sullen face, and finishing all the snacks.

But that’s not the case.

That’s why Emi is dead.

Detective Munodes has to convince Akashiterika of that!

But…!

“There must be a reason.”

Akashiterika, calmly taking a sip of tea, smiled.

“Emi… probably has a lot of things… she can’t tell other people… She’s that kind of girl.”

“What reason!?”

“I don’t know.”

“YOU DON’T KNOW!?”

Akashiterika smiled wryly.

“I regret it a little. I didn’t want Emi to change her attitude towards me, so I kept my origins a secret. That’s why I didn’t ask her about her circumstances… I thought that was fair. But if this was going to happen… I should have asked her more about herself. She would have stayed with me… even if she knew my origins… She must have been… that kind of girl…”

“…Akashiterika-chan, let me say one thing.”

After a moment of silence, Detective Munodes sat back down in his chair, and with an unusually serious expression, he looked at Akashiterika.

“You’ve been a little strange lately. The Akashiterika-chan I know is a fair, beautiful girl detective who makes judgments based on decisive evidence. But everything you’ve been saying so far is just conjecture, heavily biased by your desire for ‘Emi-chan to be alive’. Isn’t that undesirable… as a detective?”

“…Perhaps.”

Akashiterika, placing her cup on the saucer, smiled and acknowledged Detective Munodes’ words.

But Detective Munodes, seeing Akashiterika’s smile…

…Shuddered.

That smile… is, in this country’s terms, an “old-fashioned” smile of royalty or nobility.

A smile devoid of emotion.

That smile doesn’t mean “goodwill”.

It’s a clear… “rejection”.

“But that’s only natural, isn’t it? I’m a beautiful girl detective. But… I’m also Emi-chan’s friend.”

And Akashiterika looked down at the table.

“I’ll continue to wait. For her to pay her friendship fee… Always checking gourmet information, and…”

There, shaking, are “three” cups of tea.

“…Always preparing one extra cup of tea.”

From then on, Akashiterika just kept drinking her tea, and didn’t say another word.

Detective Munodes dejectedly left Akashiterika’s office… and disappeared into the pouring rain of the Old Imperial City.