Not a detective

Page 1

Not a Detective Author: Lights Lie

For the past sixteen years since Asakawa Riku traveled to Tokyo, he has been searching for traces of extraordinary power.

But this world has no system, no magic, no spiritual energy, and no way to cultivate immortality.

Disappointed, he decided to give up and start living as an ordinary high school student from today onwards, when he encountered his first strange event.

Monsters, evil spirits, malevolent spirits, impossible crimes, murderers beyond imagination, unsolvable ultimate locked rooms... From this day on, a series of bizarre events unfold around him.

Beside him are a spirit medium girl who claims to control the power of shikigami, and a detective girl who claims to use superpowers to solve cases.

Tsuchigumo no Spring: Chapter 1 My Encounter with Chizuko Was Like Helping an Old Lady Cross the Street

When Asakawa Riku entered his first year of high school, it was spring of that year.

Having gotten used to starting school in September, he was still not quite used to stepping into the school gates in April.

Only when he saw the cherry blossom petals falling from above did he truly feel as if he had traveled to this country.

In his previous life, he encountered an unfortunate accident before the college entrance examination. When he woke up, he found himself in this seemingly parallel world. The good thing was that he was given a second chance to live. The bad thing was that this parallel world had no literary works for him to learn from. Asakawa Riku spent sixteen years of his life calling the system, and then it was time to enter high school again.

"Study hard, get into university, and then think about going back to China to work."

Asakawa Riku listened to the principal's speech at the opening ceremony and suddenly decided on his future plans.

He didn't find anything special about this world. Tokyo's housing prices had long since skyrocketed, sports games were a thing of the past, and cryptocurrencies had already passed their peak.

Not to mention the settings of demons, monsters, psychic abilities, and superhumans, Asakawa Riku felt that this was not the type of work.

Fortunately, he hasn't forgotten Chinese. With his bilingualism in Japanese and his academic qualifications, he should be able to find a good job back in his hometown, enough to support himself.

Hello everyone, I am—

After being assigned to a class, he introduced himself with a smile.

His handsome and refreshing face immediately attracted the interest of the girls in the class, and Asakawa Riku's humorous jokes also won the favor of the boys. He quickly found a backup for his friend.

He thought it wouldn't be bad to just be an ordinary "handsome guy in Tokyo".

But this life plan was shattered on the first day of school.

He found a love letter tucked inside his shoe cabinet in the entrance hall of the school building.

The pink letter paper was carefully wrapped, but Asakawa Riku couldn't lie and say it smelled sweet, because his shoes were still in front of him.

"First day?"

Asakawa Riku found it somewhat unbelievable.

He wasn't unfamiliar with receiving love letters; he had been confessed to quite a few times during his three years of junior high school.

"If it's that face, you'll immediately know why. I'm so envious!" That's what his friend said at the time. Asakawa Riku himself knew that most girls said things like, "He may be a bit cold and aloof, but I fell in love with him the moment I saw his face." He rejected them all.

It's not that Asakawa Riku is some noble person who values ​​"inner beauty"; he's quite superficial.

He prefers mature women with large breasts, not young kids like middle schoolers.

Oh dear, that's too superficial.

Asakawa Riku temporarily abandoned his plan to change his shoes and go home, and instead opened the envelope in his hand.

"Are you in trouble?"

Before the dismantling was finished, a sound came from behind.

Asakawa Riku looked back and saw what actually appeared to be "a little kid like a middle school student".

The white shirt was tied with a bow at the collar, over which was a light yellow thin sweater, and below that was a plaid sailor skirt that hung down to the knees, white bubble socks, and black round-toed leather shoes.

The school uniform is quite nice. If it weren't for the fact that it's on those short legs, Asakawa Riku would probably be around 1.80 meters tall. He'd probably be 30 centimeters shorter.

Of course, this impolite thought would not be expressed.

He looked back to make sure the other person was talking to him.

"Excuse me?"

Although it was after school, most students were out doing club activities, and the freshmen were mostly excitedly touring around. There were very few people like him who didn't fit in.

Judging from his uniform, this guy is also a high school student; this school doesn't have an affiliated junior high school.

"Hey, are you in trouble?" The girl smiled sweetly, like a little angel about to help an old lady cross the street.

"……should not."

Asakawa Riku hesitated for a moment before answering.

Although he broke the record for "freshman receiving love letter the fastest", this was not a troublesome matter.

The next second, her little finger, hidden in her sleeve, came out, and following her finger, Asakawa Riku saw the troublesome thing.

I will kill you in seven days.

On the pink love letter paper, there was a crime warning written.

...

Asakawa Riku anticipated that the gods would send him to this world so that he would experience a unique career like the other protagonists, but he never expected it to happen on this day.

"Please use."

"Thank you." He clasped his hands together, expressing his gratitude for the teacup that had been offered to him.

After meeting in the entryway, the girl pulled him into the student activity room under the pretext that "I can help you solve this problem."

The space was narrow and cramped, but it was quite tidy. Apart from a blackboard that had been wiped clean, there was only a bookcase crammed full behind it.

Riku Asakawa took a sip of tea.

"...!"

The flavor was surprisingly rich and mellow.

It looked like just mass-produced barley tea from a shopping mall, but the other person's tea-making skills seemed to be higher than expected.

Asakawa Riku didn't show his surprise. He looked up at the girl who was intently studying the letter and asked:

What should I call you?

"Wind Sacrifice to a Thousand Cranes".

"...Is it a 'persona'?"

"It's my real name."

The girl put down the letter and smiled; this was probably not the first time she had encountered such a question.

This name is a bit beyond common sense; it really sounds like a character that would only appear in an anime.

“My family’s shrine is in the forest to the north, the Kazamatsuri Shrine.”

She presented evidence that was difficult to verify, so President Lu of Asakawa couldn't very well pull out his phone and check it on a map right then and there, and could only nod in agreement.

"Kazamatsuri-kun, is that so? I'll visit you when I have the chance. I'm Asakawa Riku."

A polite remark that is almost impossible to keep.

“You’re a senior, you should use honorifics.” Chizuko seemed quite satisfied, and she emphasized, “It should be Kazamatsuri-senpai.”

Asakawa Riku couldn't help but take another look. This short girl was a senior student, which he found a little hard to accept.

He noticed that the bow on the other person's collar was yellow. He initially thought it was a decoration to match the sweater, but then he remembered that the girls in his class also had similar bows.

They are red.

"Red for first grade, yellow for second grade, and green for third grade. We call them 'traffic lights'."

Chizuko noticed Asakawa Riku's gaze. Perhaps because she had never been wary of being stared at for chests, she unfortunately guessed Asakawa Riku's thoughts correctly:

"Not bad observation skills, you have the potential to be a detective?"

"So, what brings you here, senior?"

Asakawa Riku compromised on the form of address, deciding to make a quick decision and escape as soon as possible.

However, for this senior student, this seemed to be just the beginning of the story.

She solemnly flipped the blackboard over and said excitedly:

"Asakawa-san, let me introduce myself again. I am Kazamatsuri Chizuko, a second-year student, and the president and only member of the school's mystery club."

"If I can help you resolve this crisis of the 'murderous love letter incident,' please join the mystery club and become my assistant!"

Earth Spider Spring: Chapter Two - Dusk is the catalyst for the monster's appearance.

The blackboard had the words "Mystery Club" written in large characters, and Chizuko-senpai's chalk handwriting was very beautiful.

Asakawa Riku felt that the fact that the sign was written behind the blackboard instead of by the door must be a trap.

"You're the murderer."

He pondered for a moment, then pointed to the letter on the table and said, "This is what you slipped in, and then you reappeared to propose the terms of this deal."

"Oh?" Chizuko asked with a gentle smile.

Asakawa Riku continued, "It's a trick you used to attract club members, isn't it? The 'murder threat' was meant to pique interest, which fits the style of the mystery club perfectly. The mystery club only has one person, so it's probably facing the risk of being disbanded. You set up this mystery yourself, and then solved it yourself, so you can naturally gain new members to join the club."

He actually had another reason he didn't mention: Kazamatsuri Chizuko's background.

She claims to be from a "shrine," but I've already seen her charlatanry and mystification at fortune-telling stalls; it's nothing to brag about.

"Well done, Asakawa-kun! You explained both the method and the motive. You're a qualified prospective member now!"

“I never said I wanted to join.”

"But, but oh, I guessed wrong."

Chizuko shook her head: "The detective is the murderer. This is an old-fashioned plot that even third-rate mystery novels dare not use easily these days."

Asakawa Riku frowned: "Where's the evidence?"

He had long suspected this guy was the murderer, and had even forgotten the principle of who should bear the burden of proof.

But Chizuko didn't seem to care. She had already prepared her explanation: "'The motive of a club disbandment crisis' doesn't exist. My father is friends with the principal of this school. Besides, I only occupy the smallest activity room and don't need any funding, so the student council can't cause me any trouble. Even if I'm the only one for three years, the reasoning club won't be disbanded."

Asakawa Riku considered her explanation carefully, then looked up again.

The twilight glow seeped through the cracks in the window frame, illuminating the girl's hair with its pinkish hue from the cherry blossoms, making the two or three stray strands that were sticking out particularly noticeable.

Chizuko-senpai is indeed a beautiful girl with delicate features, white and straight teeth, and dark and bright eyes. Her petite face is very cute, and her student-style bob haircut reaches just to her neck. Her most obvious feature is her exceptionally good skin, which is fair, delicate, and looks very smooth. You might even feel an urge to rub her cheeks.

If it weren't for her unfortunate figure, Lu Qing might have fallen for her.

But he was certain of one thing.

The “crisis of abolishing departments” is certainly not a reasonable motive.

This girl is good-looking enough to debut as an idol. Asakawa Riku knows what boys her age think. Anyone who pursues her will definitely not find the mystery club too troublesome.

Why do I have to join?

"Asakawa-san, you haven't joined any other clubs yet, have you?"

"Of course, it's my first day of school, and I haven't decided yet."

Although Asakawa Riku said that, he actually had no intention of joining the club.

He had nothing to do with a passionate or touching youth; he just wanted to study hard and make up for the regrets of his university life in his previous life.

This school supports the homecoming program, so if he doesn't participate in clubs, he can arrange his tutoring schedule and give himself a fulfilling high school experience.

"So, Asakawa-san, you don't like mystery novels? Have you ever read any?"

Chizuko kept pressing for answers.

“Just a normal level of liking, not to the point where I’m willing to spend a lot of time on it.” Asakawa Riku shrugged. “Besides, what can a high school student’s reasoning do? Can they really encounter any cases? Even if they do, in the end they’ll just hand it over to the police. Modern society has cameras and criminal investigation science. It’s not like we’re Detective Conan.”

Yes, the world also has "Detective Conan". Asakawa Riku's childhood copying plan was shattered by the books in the bookstore.

"Well... well, it's not as exaggerated as Conan, but the mystery club is really fun, you know?"

Chizuko dodged the question with a smile, showing no sign of being disheartened by Asakawa Riku's rejection.