Early April in other parts of Japan is the perfect time to enjoy cherry blossoms, but in the central part of Hokkaido in Hirarano, the "Sakura Front" is still far away, and the cherry trees remain bare, without a single bud, depriving the high school freshmen of the chance to start a new phase of their lives amidst a shower of cherry blossoms.
This is somewhat regrettable and disappointing, given that this is a classic scene in manga, but now Kiyomi Liuli has no time to care about these romantic notions, busy with her beautiful, large eyes carefully scrutinizing each new student that passes by in a corner of the school courtyard.
Just one more person to find.
With one more person, she could kick off the long-planned club recruitment activities, showing everyone the charm of "deductive reasoning," ensnaring them into it, making them unable to extricate themselves, and ultimately, reverently kissing her round-toe leather shoes beneath her school uniform pleated skirt, becoming a part of the Deductive Reasoning Research Society.
And she, Miss Kiyomi Liuli, would become the first president of Private Ikuei High School's Deductive Reasoning Research Society, leaving a legacy for centuries, with even students ten or twenty years later admiringly mentioning her name.
Now she was just one person away from reaching her goal!
Anxiously searching, she was almost ready to clasp hands in prayer to the deity when her eyes lit up, spotting a first-year student casually carrying his backpack through the courtyard towards the school gate.
The male student was about 1.75 meters tall, which was relatively tall among the freshmen, but he had a slender figure and did not appear to be strong. His face was refined, making him quite the pretty boy.
A student like him would most likely not join sweaty clubs like the baseball or Kendo Club. Even if he had been a member of a sports club in junior high school, he was probably not a first-string player. He might have been picking up balls and sitting on the bench for three years, already disillusioned and completely disappointed with competitive sports.
He was the one!
Kiyomi Liuli didn't have many options left. The last member had yet to be found, and the activities could not commence. The guys she had "invited" were probably growing impatient, each clamoring to leave. Even if this new student had been a muscular man, she would have figured out a way to bring him back to make up the numbers, let alone someone who looked like a suitable subordinate.
Without hesitation, she darted over and grabbed the male student, her delicate face breaking into a sweet smile, "Excuse me, do you know what deductive reasoning is?"
......
Nanahara Takeshi had not expected to be grabbed by a girl while walking along. He looked around in confusion to see a fellow first-year student wearing a white shirt with a red ribbon tied at the collar, a light yellow cardigan over it, and a black pleated sailor skirt that fell below the knees, paired with white bubble socks and brown-black round-toe leather shoes.
The standard girls' school uniform at Private Ikuei High School—it looked quite nice, simple but not plain, fitting his aesthetic perfectly.
The girl was pretty too, with shoulder-length hair, willow brows, pink lips, apricot-shaped eyes, white and neat teeth, jet-black pupils, and a melon-seed face that made her look delicate and charming. What attracted attention the most was her skin, which was exceptionally fine, like polished jade, tempting one to reach out and feel its smoothness.
As the saying goes, a fair complexion hides many flaws, and this girl was far from unattractive, which made her appear even more beautiful. Her figure was not particularly remarkable, still in the early stage of development and a bit flat, but she was only a first-year, so there was potential for the future; it wasn't a shortcoming.
Even with Nanahara Takeshi's experience of living two lifetimes, he could rate this JK a 90. However, he had seen many people and didn't care much about others' appearances. Moreover, based on his experience, a pretty girl who grabs you out of the blue is either trying to pull you into a trap or use you as a laborer—most likely there's no good in it.
But he didn't pull away. He didn't like getting into physical altercations with others, so he casually responded, "I know it."
"You don't need to know, let me give you a brief introduction! Deductive reasoning is an organic combination of fact and logic, a science that arranges many facts into an uninterrupted chain of events and arrives at a correct conclusion. It is in..."
Kiyomi Liuli had asked, but that was only to start the conversation. Surprised that the boy actually knew about it, she stopped in the middle and exclaimed, "You know about deductive reasoning?"
Nanahara Takeshi nodded, "Yes, I told you I know it, and you even quoted Sherlock Holmes' definition of deductive reasoning from the novels. Is there a problem?"
"Uh... no, no problem."
Kiyomi Liuli instinctively answered, then her heart leaped with joy, her gaze on Nanahara Takeshi changing.
Deductive reasoning arrived in Japan only in the late '80s or started to gain some attention in the mystery novel world around that time, ushering a shift in style from societal to authentic mysteries. Now, it was only 1991, and most high school students probably hadn't even heard the term "deductive reasoning." Yet this male student could accurately point out that Sherlock Holmes had provided a definition for deductive reasoning in his stories...
This was clearly someone who shared her interests!
Perhaps this guy could become a core member of the new club, even a candidate for an officer!
She immediately perked up, bowed earnestly, and implored, "Since you share the same passion, I beg you to join my, no, our Deductive Reasoning Research Society, please!"
She had made up her mind that even if this male student refused, she would try her best to convince him to become her subordinate. However, contrary to her expectations, Nanahara Takeshi didn't seem to refuse. Instead, his eyes lit up, and he asked with interest, "What are the benefits of joining your club?"
Kiyomi Liuli was taken aback, puzzled, "Benefits... what benefits?"
Sharing the same ideals, studying deductive reasoning together, enhancing logic and thinking skills, enjoying the thrill of solving puzzles—weren't those the greatest benefits? What more could one need?
"Back in junior high, I never saw anyone ask to join a club like this!"
With a thumb twirling idle circles between his index and middle fingers, Takeshi Nanahara smiled like a man hawking illegal drugs in a hushed tone, "Recruitment season hasn't even started, and you're already rushing over here to poach people. Are you afraid your new club won't attract enough members? If I join, I should be doing you a favor. It's only reasonable for you to share some of the funds you get from the student council with me, right?"
What kind of nonsense is that?!
Liuli Kiyomi was stunned. She couldn't believe this guy actually wanted money!
She replied incredulously, "The club's budget is for organizing activities, not for personal use. That would be embezzlement, wouldn't it?"
Takeshi Nanahara's interest faded, and he turned to leave. "Then go find someone else."
Idiot, who would work for you without money these days!
Liuli Kiyomi had no one else to turn to. How could she possibly let him go? She hurriedly stopped him, pleading, "Fellow student, since you also enjoy deduction..."
"I'm not interested in deduction," Takeshi Nanahara cut her off bluntly.
"But you clearly know about deductive reasoning. If you're not interested, why bother to learn about it?"
He moved past her, completely indifferent, "Knowing something and liking it are two different things. I know what carrots are, but I don't like eating them."
Liuli Kiyomi refused to let him go, persisting as she followed, "Even if you don't like it, studying it wouldn't hurt. Maybe you'll become a detective in the future. If you master deductive reasoning, you could easily find the criminal. Maybe you could even become a famous detective, admired by others. Wouldn't that be great?"
But Takeshi Nanahara still wasn't persuaded; he wouldn't waste his time without payment and kept walking, speaking indifferently, "Studying it is useless. In the future, with surveillance cameras everywhere, you'll know immediately who the criminal is—no need for deduction. Evidence can be gained through DNA; if you don't have DNA, figuring out whodunit is pointless. Therefore, deduction will soon lose most of its practicality, becoming nothing but a mere intellectual game. So, I'm not interested. For the sake of the future, I advise you not to waste too much time on it."
Liuli Kiyomi frowned; she finally understood the problem. This kid was a heretic from the tech-camp!
She wasn't afraid of the tech-camp. She had defeated several of them in debates. Excitedly following him, she argued, "How can you say that? You may not know this, but although surveillance technology was invented at the end of the 19th century, it has always had significant flaws. It's too inconvenient to store data.
Let's not even mention video tapes. Just take hard drives, for instance. A 100MB hard drive costs around 30,000 yen, and that much money can't even store ten minutes of video. How could that be widely adopted by the general public? The police department couldn't possibly afford it, so how could they install surveillance everywhere?"
Catching her breath, she pointed out the absurdities in Takeshi Nanahara's words, "As for the DNA tests you mentioned, you probably only read about that term in magazines, right?
The cost of that technology is so high, it's practically not feasible. A single test can cost thousands of US dollars. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and local police headquarters can't afford such expenses. And currently, only Tokyo has the capability for DNA testing. You can't expect the police to send everything to Tokyo for investigation. That's completely impractical. Therefore, reasoning is very useful, and a crucial tool for maintaining public order and ensuring national safety. How can you not value it, how can you not spend time on research?!"
Liuli Kiyomi grew more and more confident as she spoke, believing her arguments to be convincing and uncontestable, upholding the dignity of the reasoning camp. This guy in front of her should just concede defeat, return to the right path, and become a champion of the reasoning camp.
But things once again went against her expectations. Takeshi Nanahara was unmoved, shrugging off her words, "It will get cheaper in the future. Everyone will be able to afford surveillance cameras, and the government will install them everywhere, which will be incredibly irritating. DNA tests will only cost a few dollars each; the police won't care about such a trivial amount. They'll be only too happy to send even dirt from the crime scene for testing."
This was wishful thinking. Liuli Kiyomi retorted loudly, "That's impossible. Even if what you say comes true, that would be something a hundred years from now. Reasoning is still very important today!"
Takeshi Nanahara had no desire to argue further. He shrugged and said, "Think whatever you want. Anyway, I'm not joining your dead-end club."
"You…"
Liuli Kiyomi didn't expect him to be so pig-headed, so stubbornly resistant. Finally angered, she narrowed her eyes, ready to fiercely scold this ingrate, when suddenly a plump girl came running over, shouting from a distance, "Liuli, haven't you found the last person? Those guys are getting impatient and want to leave. Yutaro can barely hold them back."
Liuli Kiyomi quickly replied, "I've found him. I'm convincing him to join the activity. Give me a little more time."
The chubby girl came closer, her gaze circling Takeshi Nanahara; then, seizing him matter-of-factly, she flashed a simple and friendly smile, "Fellow student, no need to hesitate any longer. Our Liuli has been planning this game for a long time. It's really fun, and you'll definitely like it. Let's hurry!"
As she spoke, she also winked at her friend. Liuli Kiyomi got the hint—they were only short of one person. Whether this kid liked it or not, whether he was a heretic, they just needed to get him back as a body for the head count. There was no need for further waste of words.
She also reached out and grabbed Takeshi Nanahara, mustering strange strength to tug him in a different direction, saying, "That's right, my friend. Words are like the wind, weak and unsubstantial. Come and join our activity, and you will surely change your mind!"
It was the perfect opportunity to let this tech camp heretic experience the allure of the reasoning camp!
As long as this kid took part in the activity, he would surely be captivated by the charm of deduction and return to the right path!