Not a detective

Page 2

In short, I regret to decline.

Asakawa Riku put it more plainly, standing up: "Even if this letter wasn't written by you, senior, it's probably just some bored guy's malicious joke."

He didn't even take the letter with him as he prepared to leave the activity room.

He considered school bullying a trivial matter and didn't even want to investigate the reasons behind it.

He wouldn't hesitate to fight back in a direct confrontation, but he wouldn't bother with anything that involved backstabbing.

At that moment, Chizuko's voice rang out from behind:

"The murder-foreshadowing love letter incident happened a year ago, part of a series of cases that occurred at this school."

"There were a total of 7 victims, including 4 boys and 3 girls. Without exception, they were all freshmen in the first year of high school at the time."

"Just like you, they received these 'love letters' in different ways on their first day of school. When they opened them, they found a murderer's premonition to kill them."

"Some people think love letters are a joke, dismiss them, and throw them away; others are terrified and report them to their teachers and parents."

"But no matter how they dealt with it, the result was the same: seven days later, all of them disappeared."

"The school and parents searched for a long time without any results, and even when they called the police, the police were helpless."

"Their disappearance was like a 'divine vanishing,' leaving no trace. Even after using a large number of surveillance cameras to search continuously, there were no results."

"A year later, he still hasn't returned."

"Asakawa-kun, you may not have heard of this incident. Because the disappearance of seven students had such a terrible impact that it was feared to cause panic, all related reports were suppressed. Only the students and teachers at the school at the time knew about the rumors. But if you search the alleys and street corners near our school, you can still see those missing person notices from back then."

"The law stipulates that a person is considered dead only after seven years of being missing, and they have remained missing until today."

"Asakawa-san, from what I've observed, you're the only one who received a love letter like this this year."

"This means that the murderer from back then has reappeared, which also means that you have been targeted by him and will be in great danger."

"Asakawa-san, in order to save you from this predicament and to uncover the truth behind the incident a year ago, I think it's necessary for you to join the mystery club, isn't it?"

After listening to this long-winded explanation, Asakawa Riku turned around.

At dusk, at the hour of twilight, the sun set below the horizon, leaving only the last rays of light in the sky, bathing the entire world in cherry blossom hues.

That was the radiance reflected from the cherry blossoms on campus, so dreamlike it was almost unreal, like something out of the human world.

The wind made the curtains in the activity room flutter, and the loose wooden frames and glass collided with each other, making an unsettling sound.

All the light shone on the girl's face.

The first time I felt that cute face was "wicked," smiling, with his hand on his chin, staring at Asakawa Riku.

The hair wasn't moving; that's right, it hadn't been blown at all since the beginning.

Behind her, there was a huge ghost huddled under the ceiling, struggling to squeeze in and block the view of her philandering.

Tsuchigumo no Spring: Chapter 3 - Ordinary High School Students Won't Encounter Serial Murders

"That is--"

Asakawa Riku pointed in that direction.

"Oh? Can you see it?"

Chizuko's eyes lit up, and she almost climbed onto the table: "That's great! Aside from Dad, this is the first time I've met someone with such strong intuition. To what extent can you see? Can you see phantoms, limbs, facial features, or even the texture of skin and the patterns on her body? She's a ghost, you know. When did you discover your talent?"

"and many more."

Asakawa Riku had a headache from her rapid-fire questions. He frowned and slowly walked over.

"The students who joined the club before all said that this place has a creepy and eerie feeling. They felt cold and restless after staying for more than ten minutes, and even had nightmares after going back. Over time, they all quit the club, and strange rumors spread that no one wanted to come... Honestly, I didn't do anything. It's just that they're not used to it."

Chizuko was still muttering to herself.

Asakawa Riku brushed past her, his body passing by the enormous ghostly monster, which seemed to dodge to the side.

Snapped……!

He reached out and caught an object in flight.

It was a baseball, still slowly spinning in the large palm. The impact hadn't been completely dissipated; it only stopped after hitting something as solid as a copper wall.

“That’s what I meant,” Asakawa Riku explained.

His hand was only centimeters away from Chizuko's hair; if he hadn't stopped it, it would probably have hit the back of her head.

"Ah...sorry, sorry! That's our ball!"

The activity room was on the third floor of the school building, and boys wearing baseball uniforms ran over from downstairs.

Asakawa Riku looked down at him, his tone calm and without any hint of reproach, and said, "You might hit someone, so please be careful."

The baseball club boys clasped their hands together again in apology:

"sorry Sorry!"

Asakawa Riku released his grip, letting the baseball fall freely, and turned his head.

Chizuko looked at him in surprise: "Asakawa-kun, how...how did you find out?"

It seems that they are more curious about this than about her own safety.

Asakawa Riku explained truthfully, "I heard the sound of the wind, looked back, saw the trajectory of the ball, and then came over and caught it."

Chizuko's expression became even more puzzled: "This... is something an ordinary person could do?"

She glanced back and estimated that the baseball field was at least a hundred meters away from the school building. Hearing the wind was already quite an exaggeration. To anticipate something flying over three or four seconds in advance and even be able to see the trajectory of the baseball with the naked eye was something that only Superman could do at such a distance!

"It's just simple exercise; anyone can do it."

Asakawa Riku gave a dismissive look: "It's just catching a ball. I can't catch a bullet in flight, what's so surprising?"

This explanation seemed acceptable to Chizuko, yet it also sounded a bit strange.

"Were you a member of the baseball team in junior high?" She tilted her head.

"It doesn't require any baseball knowledge, it's just about reaching out and catching it."

Chizuko leaned very close, staring intently at Asakawa Riku, as if she could see something if she strained her eyes.

The boy wasn't particularly robust, and the muscle definition on his arms was only average. He didn't have the exaggerated features of a bodybuilder; instead, he was rather tall and thin. When the two were very close, Chizuko had to strain to look up... well, he was like a pretty boy in the traditional sense, yes, that kind of guy.

"You only saw the baseball flying towards you?"

"What else is there?"

"That's it."

She was disappointed. The boy in front of her was just an ordinary person who "lacked inspiration." During their conversation, he didn't even notice the ghost's presence.

It was just a misunderstanding.

"Well then, if there are no other questions, I'll take my leave."

Asakawa Riku waited for a while, then visibly grew impatient. He had reached his limit in his tolerance of the obligations between senior and junior, and said goodbye again.

"Wait, what about the 'murder threat love letter'?"

Chizuko was startled and almost forgot the important matter. She thought that after hearing those words, the other party would feel scared and panicked.

"I'm sorry to trouble you with this, but you don't need to investigate this matter any further. Since I'm the only target of this warning, I'll find a way to handle it myself."

When Asakawa Riku left this time, he took the pink letter with him: "If what you said about the case from a year ago is true, shouldn't I go to the police to protect myself now?"

...

Actually, he didn't go to the police station; after leaving the school, he went home.

This was a white lie. Asakawa Riku didn't want that short senior to still worry about him, and he needed to give her a reason not to keep bothering him.

As for that seemingly dangerous case, he could have easily protected himself without calling the police or reporting it to the school.

Classes, studies, and that's how it goes.

This is a country with gun control, and as long as there is no threat of that magnitude, Asakawa Riku has ways to deal with it.

He doesn't think he has as much hatred as the Prime Minister.

I've decided to be an ordinary high school student, so from day one, I won't cause any trouble or attract attention.

"But... a ghost?"

Asakawa Riku suddenly muttered to himself, not unaware that Chizuko seemed to have said something strange earlier.

For a moment, he really thought that the short senior had some kind of superpower.

But he quickly dismissed the idea.

"If he really is a psychic, there's no way he couldn't dodge the baseball from behind."

Asakawa Riku smiled. Even an ordinary person like him could tell that a true psychic would have already deflected it in a much cooler way.

It seems like it's just a case of chuunibyou (middle school syndrome). Poor thing, not only is his physical development stuck in the second year of junior high, but his mental age is too?

We mourn for him.

Sure enough, there are no supernatural powers here. Just like the original Earth, it's just a boring world.

"I had already decided to be a normal student, and honestly, it all happened so easily..."

Asakawa Riku felt ashamed of the expectation that had arisen in his heart, and he quickly suppressed it, trying not to recall his embarrassing history from junior high school.

It has been confirmed that this is not some extraordinary world.

Looking up, I see my home. When I chose the school, I used distance as the criterion, so I can walk to and from school, which is very convenient.

"I am back."

He took out his key and opened the door, but little did he know that what he was about to face was only the beginning of a series of events.

At this point, there are six days and six hours left before Asakawa Riku faces the murder threat and love letter incident.

The Spring of the Earth Spider: Chapter Four - The standard setup for the protagonist is deceased parents.

Asakawa Riku has living parents in this world.

He didn't have his soul transmigrate into someone else's body; he was born normally in a hospital as a baby.

His name in his previous life was the reverse of the name in this life, and he adapted quickly, even feeling that it was an arrangement of fate.

After being reincarnated, he retained his memories. From the time he started to speak and crawl, he worked very hard in his acting and did not show too many abnormalities. At most, his kindergarten teacher commented that he was a little precocious and did not like to interact with children his own age.

At the time, he also thought that "if I showed any abnormalities, I might be captured and studied by some mysterious organization."

Whether this concern is true or not, Asakawa Riku successfully passed through his childhood, and his parents have been alive and well during this period.

It might sound a bit unfilial to say that, but he really didn't have much affection for his parents in this life. After all, it's not easy for one person to have two sets of parents.

But after all, the other party had raised him, so he still had basic respect for them.

Asakawa Riku said this because he drew this conclusion:

—Although he transmigrated, he is not the male protagonist of the novel.

There was no system, no special power, and he had never encountered any strange events from childhood to adulthood.

That's all fine. The most important thing is that he has both parents, owns a house, and has no sisters.

"The evidence is conclusive."

As usual, Asakawa Riku was lost in thought. He opened the door and changed the words that were about to come out to him: "I'm back."

I was stunned as soon as I entered the door.

Before me were large and small suitcases, and anxious-looking parents who were changing their shoes in the entryway.

They stared at Asakawa Riku for a moment, and remained so for a while.

"Your mother and I are going on a trip for a while."

Finally, the father broke the silence, and the mother nodded in agreement.

Asakawa Riku stared at the excessive number of suitcases, feeling that the two men were on the run from debt.

Where is my suitcase?