Kiyomi Liuli had spent the entire day doing nothing but eating her lunchbox, breathing through the first three chapters of "The First Beauty Detective Liuli Morse Collection" in one go. She read it over and over again, each time more satisfied than the last, until finally, she clutched the hardcover notebook tightly against her flat chest, brimming with contentment—she was determined to become a woman like that, a perfect blend of beauty and intelligence, who could solve cases and seek justice for the wronged.
Of course, getting to curse Nanahara Takeshi in the book—no, cursing Nanahara Watson—also left her in a very pleasant mood.
A great book, indeed, filled with both delight and revenge!
"Liuli, see you Monday." As Kiyomi Liuli was basking in her delight, chubby Sawada Yuko called out at the classroom door before leaving, alongside the equally chubby Tsuda Yutaro—who had played the "corpse" in yesterday's event, and was Sawada Yuko's childhood friend.
"See you next week."
Kiyomi Liuli snapped back to reality and realized that the classroom was bustling; it was already time to leave school. The student on cleaning duty was wildly swinging a broom around, so she packed up her bag to leave. Just as she reached the staircase, she ran into Nanahara Takeshi.
"Oh, what a coincidence, going home together?" Nanahara Takeshi greeted her with a smile, as if nothing had happened.
Kiyomi Liuli felt a surge of anger, her nostrils flared with hot breath, and her chest heaved for a moment. She dropped her eyelids and didn't bother with him, heading straight down to the shoe lockers.
After changing her shoes, she left with her bag, while Nanahara Takeshi followed a few steps behind. She still didn't engage with him, showing no intention of walking together—he wasn't her friend anymore, unless he sincerely apologized. Otherwise, if she spoke another word to him, she'd be a dog!
As she was about to reach the train station, a rickety black sedan zoomed past, then skidded to a stop with a painful groan from the engine, swiftly reversing back to them, its rear end shooting out a puff of black smoke with a "bang."
She couldn't help but glance back and saw that two men in suits had stepped out of the car—the same two detectives from yesterday's "Potted Plant Corpse Case"—who were now politely greeting Nanahara Takeshi.
A thought struck her—could there be another case?
Suddenly, she found it hard to walk away and squatted down, pretending to tie her shoelaces while straining her ears to eavesdrop.
...
The two detectives, one tall and strong, the other short and thin.
The tall, muscular one had a frank personality; his name was Okuno Yasuharu; the short, slim one seemed somewhat introverted and quiet—his name was Hidaka Tsukasa.
They weren't there specifically for Nanahara Takeshi, although they were indeed interested in him—Nanahara Takeshi's "Perception Find-Person Skill" had left a lasting impression on them yesterday, but they hadn't had time to talk to him properly due to their duties, and he and Kiyomi Liuli had left first.
But as it happened, on their way back to the station after finishing their tasks today, they spotted Nanahara Takeshi, who was leisurely strolling, and promptly stopped to greet him.
"What a coincidence, little master Nanahara, just got off school?" Okuno politely asked as he exited the car.
Nanahara Takeshi was also a bit surprised to see the two detectives and a bit speechless, "That, Officer Okuno, I'm not a little monk..."
Okuno's expression turned slightly awkward, not sure how to address a spiritual medium, so he resorted to calling him a little monk—after all, both mediums and monks were religious figures, so using the same naming system should be fine, right?
He apologized, "That's really rude of me, I'm not very familiar with religious matters, ignorant indeed. How should I address you properly?"
"I'm not a religious figure either; you can just call me Nanahara." Nanahara Takeshi wasn't interested in dwelling on such trivialities with the two detectives and quickly asked, "Is there something you need?"
Okuno and Hidaka weren't just there for greetings. After exchanging a glance, it was Okuno who began speaking, "We came across a rather strange case today, and since we happened to run into Nanahara... Nanahara the find-person expert on the street, we wanted to hear your take on it."
Nanahara Takeshi was indifferent. Chatting wouldn't cost him a dime, and he didn't mind building a good relationship with the two detectives, immediately replying, "I see, then please tell me the details."
"Here's what happened..." Okuno Yasuharu started to recount the odd case they had encountered that day.
Around two o'clock last night, a guy who had just finished drinking and singing karaoke with colleagues was relieving himself by a roadside power pole when he faintly heard angry curses, sobbing, and screams.
Drunk as he was, he initially thought it was his imagination, but being obstinate—he wanted to listen more closely, convinced it was all in his head. The more he listened, the more real it seemed, so out of curiosity, he climbed the pole to peek into the yard, and through the window, he saw someone tied to a chair, drenched in blood and apparently having just undergone severe torture.
He was scared "Ah!" and quickly alerted those inside. The lights immediately went out, and sounds came from the door as if someone was about to rush out.
The blur who was still partly lucid crawled and tumbled his way to the Police Box without even daring to look back—he genuinely tumbled all the way there, covering himself in mud, and nearly shattered the glass door as he burst into the Police Box.
The Police Box, shocked by the report, estimated that a violent burglary might have occurred. The three officers on duty, fully equipped and armed, rushed back to the crime scene with the reporter, and then...
"What happened next?" Kiyomi Liuli couldn't hold back and asked; she had crept closer while tying her shoelaces, unknowingly joining the conversation.