Romantic Troubles of Duanmu-kun

Asami Yuko, seventeen years old, was a current high school girl attending Yuihara Private High School; simultaneously, she was an officially recognized consulting detective.

Just like the great detective Holmes in Conan Doyle’s writing, who had reached an agreement and cooperation with Scotland Yard (London Metropolitan Police); she, as a detective, maintained quite close connections with the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.

In today’s modern society where crime rates are rising in various countries, when encountering certain troublesome criminals or cases of an abnormal nature, Japanese police would choose to employ individuals with special talents, or those who possessed networks in certain fields, as consultants for cases.

In Japan’s past, such a profession that could only appear in detective novels naturally did not exist, but since “a certain” major incident (Note 1) in the new century, the result had caused a crisis of public trust in the Japanese government, represented by the police department, and even led to the departure and resignation of several members of the National Public Safety Commission—

(Note 1: First mentioned in Volume 1, Episode 14)

As one of the “aftershocks” of this incident, consulting detectives who could function more conveniently than government organizations in certain aspects became an important force in dealing with abnormal crimes. They came from various social strata, symbolizing intricate power relationships. The oddly behaving, quirky high school girl before him was one of these experts.

“This detective thing… is it real?”

The Novelist poured the remaining coffee from the ceramic cup into his stomach.

“Mm-hmm.”

Asami-senpai finally stopped torturing the cake with her spoon and began shoveling large spoonfuls of cream into her mouth.

Furthermore, according to Senpai, her identity differed from other consulting detectives, as she had a hereditary form of cooperation with high-ranking police officials. With permission from important figures, Asami Yuko, though not officially on the roster, received tremendous support from the police in terms of personnel, resources, intelligence mobilization, arrest authority, and communication with other government departments.

“Then, earlier…”

“Whether it was going to that Thick-Brows place, or just now attending the suicide gathering, reliable police detectives were following behind all along. They’ve been handling the aftermath work as well.”

Oh, truly worthy of professionals. Everything was watertight. Both sides were. It was probably too difficult for an ordinary male high school student to notice their traces?

However, if it were a certain female with equal or far superior abilities… No, better not think about her here; it would likely become quite troublesome.

Quietly observing Senpai who was valiantly battling with a large chunk of cream, the Novelist’s gaze fell upon the girl, sinking into contemplation.

In his view, Senpai’s attitude was quite peculiar.

…How to put it, unexpectedly frank.

He had thought she would conceal something, but just now she had spilled everything at once. Previously, she wouldn’t say a word, maintaining that mysterious attitude.

The Novelist thought for a moment, then frankly asked.

“Senpai…”

He voiced his doubt.

“Why are you telling me all this?”

If one is confused about something, they should actively ask others. This approach maximizes the avoidance of unnecessary misunderstandings and possible later regrets.

Reservations, shyness, excessive caution, unnecessary concerns—these should be cast aside at such times.

…

A massive question mark appeared over Asami Yuko’s head—if this were in an anime, such a scene would likely appear. The girl stared at him with a strange look.

“Because… you’re Assistant-kun.”

“And what about before?”

“You were Bad Assistant-kun (provisional).”

…That sounds like some unreliable invention by an alien princess.

“Is that so? I feel like there must be other reasons…”

The Novelist remarked casually.

After all, it was just intuition.

—That’s right, the intuition of a famous detective’s assistant.

“No, this won’t do.”

Asami-senpai, with white traces at the corners of her mouth, furrowed her delicate eyebrows and spoke seriously.

“As an assistant, you shouldn’t casually doubt the detective’s intentions! Even if I did conceal something, it would certainly be so that the truth of the case could come to light in the end—”

“So you did conceal something?”

“…”

The girl sighed, putting down her spoon. Her shoulders slumped limply. The bangs on her forehead drooped lifelessly. Asami Yuko’s demeanor fully conveyed the description of “dejected.”

“…Assistant-kun is right.”

Senpai spoke with a tone of regret, yet somewhat indignantly.

“The reason I could speak about the investigation report and my identity without any reservations is because the investigation into this incident might stop here.”

“…”

The Novelist cautiously chose not to respond.

“After all, without confirming whether that program from an unknown person is truly a crime announcement, we can’t commit a large police force for an extended period. And also…”

Most crucially, even though Asami Yuko had used her authority and influence to have the police focus their efforts on searching for the true culprit behind this series of events, they still hadn’t found any clues.

Even if everyone could agree that there was someone pulling the strings, at this stage they couldn’t catch the perpetrator’s slip-ups. That person was very cautious in their approach and quite skillful in their methods. Currently, they hadn’t left any suspicious traces worth investigating.

Moreover, there were differences of opinion within the police. Those who believed the consecutive mass suicides were merely coincidental trends and fashions rather than malicious crimes—such people were not few.

They believed the most important task at hand was to maintain social order, cooperate with other government departments to stabilize the situation, demonstrate the police’s ability to reassure citizens, rather than mobilizing forces to search for non-existent criminals, causing public anxiety and spreading online rumors.

The result of going to great lengths and taking initiative was merely catching a few minor figures, and that was already the limit.

This morning, Yayoi had mentioned that the police’s attitude toward the incident was changing. This must be the reason!

“We already… can’t hold out until the afternoon two days from now. And even then, we might not be able to catch that person…”

Asami-senpai rested her chin on the table, her long hair covering her cheeks as they rolled back and forth on the table surface. The girl’s throat emitted a cat-like “gurgling” sound.

Having received his answer, the Novelist relaxed as he called the server for the bill while speaking to Asami Yuko.

“Let’s go to the newly opened mall on the street and relax a bit! Afterward, I’ll take you home.”

“…Okay. Just drop me off at the subway station to Sakuradamon…”

Detective-san replied listlessly.