Not a detective

Page 28

“You did use me, that’s true, and I hate being deceived and used, that’s also true. But your revenge eliminated an even worse villain and saved the students trapped in the cellar, all just to free yourself from being bullied, and that’s something I support. The actions were wrong, but I don’t hate the purpose… I understand now, senior. You’re not a good person, but you’re not a completely bad person either. You’re just that complicated, which is why it’s so difficult for me.”

"I……"

Chizuko lowered her head and murmured to herself. She didn't know what to say. Perhaps she had never really sorted out these thoughts herself.

Seeing her silence, Asakawa Riku began rummaging through his schoolbag, seemingly searching for something:

"By the way, senior, do you know how I found out that Takahiro Uemura, Yoshihiko Arimura, Tetsuji Sugino... they are all members of the mystery club?"

"...Wasn't it supposed to be something you asked around?" Chizuko paused for a moment.

She realized that her plan was not as foolproof as she had imagined. In fact, if Asakawa had just asked around, she would have quickly found out that the "murderous love letter incident" did not exist at all. She was good at talking about it on paper, but when she put it into practice, she found herself to be surprisingly clumsy and revealed many flaws.

"Yes, I asked around, but I asked the student council."

Asakawa Riku smiled, finally taking the paper out of his bag. It was neatly folded, and when he unfolded it—

That's an application form for joining a club, a standard template.

The name "Asakawa Riku" is written at the top, and the club name is "Mystery Club".

Not only did it bear the student council's seal, but it also had the signature of "Principal Komiya," who served as the advisor. It took a lot of effort to persuade the lady. Asakawa Riku used his own experience to explain that he had been in the mystery club for so long without disappearing, and that it was just an absurd rumor. In addition, the news of the missing students being found came out, which finally made her nod in agreement.

Now, there is only one empty space left on this paper, which is the signature permission of the "President of the Mystery Club".

"Why...why...Asakawa-san...I don't understand."

Chizuko stared with wide, round eyes as she trembled as she took the paper.

As long as she signs, Asakawa Riku will become a member of the mystery club.

"Don't get it wet. If the student council doesn't acknowledge it, I'll have to make another trip."

"But I really used you, pushed you into dangerous situations, and turned you into a murderer!"

"Don't shout so loudly, senior. Haven't you learned your lesson yet? Someone else is going to hear you."

"me……"

How could Chizuko possibly sign her name with peace of mind?

She knew she had done something wrong, so she was tormented by guilt. Asakawa-kun not only didn't beat her up, but why did she even join the mystery club?

"Am I a vile spider?"

“You’re a wicked spider, aren’t you?” Asakawa Riku said. “If I had to say, maybe spider rice balls are just really delicious, even a mountain child would fall for them.”

"What kind of absurd reason is that...! It's just ordinary home-cooked food..."

"Actually, in this incident, I also discovered my true nature... I'm not a bad person, nor am I a purely good person."

Asakawa Riku finally became serious: "Although I enjoy the feeling of being a hero of justice and I like to save people from danger and deal with villains, this incident is different from all the situations I have encountered before. During those seven days, I didn't have much expectation for the battle. Instead, I was full of curiosity about solving the mystery and finding clues. I enjoyed the feeling of piecing together the puzzle piece by piece. When all the events came together and the truth came out, I felt an unprecedented sense of exhilaration. Perhaps this is what I wanted."

Chizuko still looked incredulous: "So... you like deduction, you like the feeling of being a detective?"

"Not entirely. I just wanted to satisfy my curiosity... I'm not sure either. Who can fully understand their own thoughts? If it were so easy for people to analyze and heal themselves, then that Spider Woman wouldn't have fallen from her pathological state to that point. So, I might be on the verge of falling too."

Asakawa Riku smiled and said, "Even though I know spiders are dangerous, I still want to go in and take a look. Just consider it as me walking into your web, senpai?"

The paper, missing a signature, was handed over again. Chizuko gritted her teeth, holding back her tears.

"Don't make it sound like a marriage proposal...!"

That piece of paper was clearly just an application for a club, but at this moment it looked a lot like an application for marriage.

Upon hearing this, Asakawa Riku slapped his thigh and burst into laughter: "Haha, there's absolutely no atmosphere like that, okay? I'm afraid we'll never become a couple. How can two people who know each other's wicked nature develop romantic feelings? Besides, I don't like flat-chested little brats like you. You should at least be taller and bigger..."

Perhaps knowing that the other party had wronged him, this guy took the opportunity of confessing to speak even more recklessly.

"I'll sign!" Chizuko, as if provoked by something, snatched the paper and quickly signed her name.

Her handwriting is beautiful.

"It's supposed to be a touching moment, but you say such vulgar things. Asakawa-san is really annoying. I'll never like you."

"Each each other."

The two shook hands again, and this time, the girl in front of them felt more "human".

—It seems the spider was unknowingly exorcised by the exorcism.

"Then let's consider it a mutually beneficial relationship, senior. Like this incident, you can use me as you please. But at the same time, I will use you to satisfy my curiosity, to encounter all sorts of incredible events, and to understand the truth about monsters and the supernatural world."

On this ordinary night, Asakawa Riku and Kazamatsuri Chizuko signed a "mutually beneficial" alliance.

"That's settled then."

Originally determined to become an ordinary student, he once again stepped into the dangerous yet alluring spider web after experiencing the extraordinary "Spring of the Earth Spider".

------

This chapter is a two-in-one update. That's all for today's update. Tomorrow we'll move directly into the summer arc!

I wonder what everyone thinks of this volume? Feel free to post and comment, share your thoughts, and I'll read them all!

This is my first time trying this kind of subject matter. Regardless of the results, I had a lot of fun writing it. Thank you all for your support, and I hope you'll continue reading. I believe my summer chapter will be even more exciting!

I won't give up, and neither can you!

Snow Maiden's Summer: Chapter One - A Midsummer Visit

Riku Asakawa rode his bicycle along the road.

The scorching sun beat down on the asphalt road, and the smell of burning asphalt made people feel dizzy. There were fewer pedestrians on the street, perhaps because we had moved to the suburbs.

This area is administratively part of Tokyo, but it's completely different from the bustling metropolis it's known for.

Vast plains and fields stretched out before him, with dense mountains in the distance. Occasionally, a few bumpy vans and trucks would pass by, and he had arrived in the countryside.

Asakawa Riku parked his car by the roadside to rest, took out a mineral water bottle and drank the last bit down, then wiped the sweat from the back of his neck.

He could, of course, pedal the bicycle as fast as a whirlwind, or simply abandon it and run, but that would defeat the purpose of cycling.

I put the empty bottle in the basket, glanced at the navigation map on my phone, and set off again.

Asakawa Riku was heading towards the mountains, which were located in a remote and desolate place. There was a little-known shrine in the mountains, and although the journey was long, the incense offerings never ceased.

He came at the invitation, but the mountain seemed to possess an incredible magic, drawing him there.

"It's so hot..."

Unable to resist uttering a complaint, it was only through this intense heat that Asakawa Riku truly realized what was happening.

Summer is here.

...

The first semester of high school went by faster than I expected. I didn't feel any sense of maladjustment at all; everything seemed to fly by.

Apart from the turmoil during the start of the school year, Asakawa Riku lived the "ordinary high school student" life he wanted.

He made two or three friends in class, but not many, and they weren't very close. His academic performance was good, and he ranked in the top of the grade in the final exam.

He secretly hoped that something like the "Spring of the Earth Spider" would happen again, so much so that when he opened the shoe cabinet one time and saw a love letter inside, his heart raced for a long time, and he was so excited that he couldn't speak.

But when she secretly opened the letter, she discovered that it was just an ordinary love letter, inviting him to meet her on the rooftop after school.

It was a female classmate from the next class who put it in his shoe cabinet, so after school, Asakawa Riku went to the rooftop to sincerely apologize to her and politely declined her advances.

After that, when he went to the mystery club's activity room, he was loudly mocked by Chizuko-senpai, who said that he was more excited when he saw a love letter than when he saw a girl confessing her love.

"Could it be that her fetish is that of a spider woman?" she said.

Asakawa Riku warned her fiercely not to use monsters to monitor and stalk her anymore. Although Chizuko-senpai verbally agreed, she always felt that Chizuko would never learn her lesson.

By the way, how is Chizuko-senpai doing now?

There wasn't the happy ending of reconciliation and making dumplings that I had imagined, nor was there a scene of everyone hugging and crying after the misunderstanding was cleared up.

The news of the student disappearance case quickly spread throughout the high school, and everyone learned that the real culprit was not Chizuko; she had been framed.

Furthermore, it's important that Asakawa Riku spent a semester in the mystery club, proving that the curse doesn't exist, the mystery club isn't a strange den of evil, and that the girl wasn't a witch.

However, Chizuko's situation will not improve immediately.

Interpersonal relationships have a kind of "inertia." If someone gets used to not interacting with you, it becomes difficult to break the ice suddenly. People who have wronged her or gossiped about her behind her back will feel guilty and embarrassed when they meet her again, and will run away even more. Even though some people have taken the initiative to make friends with Chizuko, the whole atmosphere is somewhat fake.

At first glance, all I see are awkward smiles.

Asakawa Riku once asked her how she viewed the current situation, but unexpectedly, Chizuko-senpai didn't seem to care much.

"It's alright. Maybe I've figured it out. I didn't make those efforts for their approval. I wanted to prove something to myself. Now I have my own place to live, and other people's opinions don't matter to me as much. These things will fade away with time."

She said that since she was satisfied with the current situation, Asakawa Riku was happy for her.

He pressed for an answer, asking, "What is your current place of residence?" But the other person just smiled and didn't answer, saying that Asakawa Riku should try to deduce it himself.

In short, the semester ended in a rather uneventful manner. Chizuko still brought her lunchbox every day, and she no longer charged her for it.

They would gather in the activity room every afternoon after school, sometimes chatting and joking, sometimes quietly reading their books, clearly used to each other's company.

And so summer vacation arrived.

During the last club activity before summer vacation, Chizuko-senpai formally extended an invitation to Asakawa Riku:

"Asakawa-kun, this summer, my father and I both hope that you can come to our shrine. Of course, you can choose the date."

"So it's just to attract business for your own company." Asakawa Riku teased as always, "I thought it was so formal because you were going to confess to me."

But Chizuko-senpai was no pushover either, and she chuckled, "It's not impossible, Father might just be testing whether you're good enough to be his son-in-law."

"If it's a son-in-law who lives with his wife's family, then I can refuse."

Asakawa Riku thought for a moment, then said, "Okay, I understand. I'll go back and decide on a time, and I'll send it to you later."

In fact, given their mutual understanding, there was no need for further words; they already understood each other's intentions with just the first sentence.

In the spring, the two made a pact of "mutual benefit". Chizuko could use Asakawa Riku's power, and Asakawa Riku would use this opportunity to glimpse the truth of the supernatural world. It was a win-win situation for both of them. Asakawa Riku had been interested in these things since he was a child, and after pursuing them for so long, he finally got what he wanted.

Asakawa Riku helped her solve the "murderous love letter incident," so now it's time for her to repay the favor.

"Asakawa-kun, don't worry, this summer trip will definitely not disappoint you."

As Chizuko-senpai left, the hem of her uniform skirt billowed in a beautiful arc, and her smile was hidden behind her fingers, giving her an air of mystery.

Perhaps that's why she attracts Asakawa Riku; he always feels that she holds more secrets than what he currently knows.

Shrine... Yokai... Onmyoji... Shikigami...

How amazing will the things we learn today be?

Driven by his surging curiosity, Asakawa Riku unconsciously sped up his bicycle. He turned the last corner and saw the girl in the shadows at the foot of the mountain.

Beneath the light red torii gate, Chizuko-senpai stood there, waiting for his arrival in the sweltering heat of midsummer.

Summer of the Snow Woman: Chapter Two - Welcoming the Fox

"I thought you would come to greet me dressed as a shrine maiden."

Asakawa Riku came down, pushing his bicycle, and greeted Chizuko-senpai.

The girl in front of him chuckled: "I'm not a priestess, I'm the future god."

She looked like a little fox today.

He was just up to Asakawa Riku's shoulder in height, wearing a white fox mask with red patterns and holding his head up. The little fox on the mask had a long nose and three black whiskers painted on each side of his cheek.

The mask wasn't one of those plastic ones sold at street stalls; it was clearly a high-end piece made of solid wood. She was wearing a yukata, the pale pink skirt hem printed with white morning glory patterns edged in gold, making her look like a child who had gotten lost from her parents while hiking, someone you'd want to take her to the loudspeaker to find her.

Does she usually dress like this at home? Asakawa Riku rarely has the chance to see Chizuko-senpai's casual clothes, so it feels strangely novel.

"God Lord..."

Asakawa Riku remembered her explanation: shrine maidens and shrine priests are professions that serve the gods. In the religious beliefs here, ordinary people cannot directly convey their wishes and thoughts to the gods, so priests like shrine maidens and shrine priests are needed to convey the will between the gods and mortals. Simply put, it's equivalent to the work of a "priest."

"The main duties of a shrine maiden are to pray for worshippers, sell sacred gifts and amulets, clean the shrine, and carry out maintenance and repairs."

Chizuko removed her mask and tried to fix the fox's face to the right side of her head. The rope seemed to be very thin, like a kite string, so it took her some effort.

"Our family's shrine isn't very big; we only employ three shrine maidens. Usually, one takes turns on duty while the other two rest. My mother mainly oversees the shrine's maintenance. Asakawa-kun, the pay is pretty good, and the work isn't too strenuous. If you're short on cash, you can come and work for us!"

"Fine, don't try to trick me into wearing a shrine maiden outfit." Asakawa Riku replied expressionlessly.

His part-time job at the detective agency was more than enough to cover his living expenses, and he even managed to save some money.