3 bar menu

V10 Story III – Part 01

Everyone has their own idea of relaxation.

What’s a source of calm for one person might be a stress trigger for another.

So, what about you? What does relaxation mean to you?

For the mouse, it seems to be about mental stability.

It has accepted that unusual events are just part of its daily routine.

For the mouse, relaxation seems to involve the smooth resolution of events.

Now, what about me? What does relaxation mean for me?

It’s an environment where entertainment is consistently available.

I always need some comforting, like painkiller, water, or air.

Just breathing is tough. I’m not allowed to sleep.

This pain is something others will never truly understand.

Now, the charade is reaching its end. It could go on forever if you wish, but eventually, I’ll get tired. We all do, at some point.

Anyway, I’m starting to get a bit bored. Unfortunately, this is nothing but a charade.

Watch, yawn, play around, and laugh.

I think I’ll wreak things a bit.

I received a message from Yuina, informing me that she had finished moving.

In the photos enclosed with the letter, she was smiling brightly. She had a hot pot party with her new colleagues recently. She invited Aya, me, Nanami, Yusuke, and Mayuzumi to her new place.

She was settling into her new life well and doing great.

On the other hand, Mayuzumi’s mood had plummeted to rock bottom.

I gazed at the couch in front of me. Today, she was dressed in an outfit resembling a crow, adorned with black feathers.

Mayuzumi’s eyes were closed. Unmoving, she looked like a corpse. She had gone beyond being simply in a bad mood and switched off her emotions altogether. On the contrary, I was in a good mood.

I could even feel heat in my hands as I cleaned the floor. The office was getting tidier by the minute.

Never before had I experienced such peaceful days. It almost seemed unnatural.

Riiiiiiing.

Just when I thought nothing would happen, the office phone rang. A case, most likely. I let out a sigh. It was about time we got one.

I turned my gaze to Mayuzumi, but she didn’t move. She didn’t even open her eyes. Reluctantly, I put the rag down and stood up.

Approaching the phone, I picked up the receiver, pressed it to my ear, and opened my mouth as I always did.

“Mayuzumi Psychic Detective Agency.”

“Hello. Nice to meet you. You sound well.”

Contradictory words tore through my ears. The vermilion voice laughed gratingly.

I felt the illusion of a wet tongue thrust into my ear. All the hair on my body stood on end. However, I couldn’t quite put the discomfort I felt into words. I had no idea how to respond to the voice.

But against my will, my mouth moved automatically. Before I knew it, I gave an indifferent reply.

“What can I do for you?”

“I’ll drop by today. Prepare a warm welcome. I have a case for you. Be ready.”

Clatter. Bzzt.

The call ended. I stared blankly at the receiver in my hand.

Severe nausea welled up. Dizziness hit me, and I staggered. My heart pounded so much it hurt. But I couldn’t remember what had shocked me.

The call was just a moment ago. I gawked at the phone, and suspicion crept into my mind.

It felt like there wasn’t enough pain. There was no familiar dull pain I had been accustomed to.

But so what? I couldn’t even find the answer to that question.

Swallowing the uneasiness, I put the receiver back down and turned to Mayuzumi.

She didn’t move. Like a piece of decor imitating a corpse.

“Mayu-san, we have a client coming,” I said. “I don’t know who it is or what it’s about, but they said to be ready. I wonder what that was about.”

“Be ready, huh? Quite the incomprehensible words,” Mayuzumi replied in a low voice. “What is there to be ready for when there’s nothing particularly terrifying? How absurd. I haven’t prepared for anything at all.”

She immediately closed her mouth. It was almost as if she never spoke at all. Mayuzumi once again became completely still. Perplexed, I sat down on the opposite couch.

I wanted to say something, but the words wouldn’t come. I felt like a child who couldn’t properly explain what I saw in my nightmare. Unfounded anxiety stirred my chest. Agonizing minutes ticked by. Just as I had grown tired of waiting, the doorbell rang.

I hurried toward the entrance and opened the door.

“We have been waiting for you. Are… you…”

In front of me stood a figure in red.

The woman was wearing a cocktail dress that exposed her shoulders. The flashy design was ridiculously conspicuous. She even had a hat with feathers on her head. Tipping her hat, she twisted her lips softly. Speckled duck feathers swayed.

“Well, how do I look?”

“Ridiculous. Could you drop it?”

Bang!

I closed the door. I stood stock still in a daze.

Agonizing minutes ticked by. Just as I had grown tired of waiting, the doorbell rang. I hurried toward the entrance and opened the door.

“We have been waiting for you. Are you the one who called?”

A woman in a red turtleneck stood there. Her slender legs looked perfect in orange-colored skinny jeans. Draping her white fur coat on her arm, the woman smiled gently.

“Hello. I’m the one who made the call.”

I bowed and invited her into the office.

“Weird things have been happening around the daughter of an acquaintance of mine. I’m worried about her. She’s mentioned that she knows both of you. Would you consider being with her during these times?” the woman asked anxiously.

Mayuzumi, however, remained unresponsive with closed eyes. She had absolutely no motivation whatsoever. Yet, the woman appeared unruffled by this, maintaining perfect conduct as she delicately sipped her coffee. Her lips held a gentle curve. Like the portrait of Mona Lisa, her expression was ambiguous.

An unexplainable fear settled within me, though I didn’t know exactly why. There was nothing overtly suspicious about the client.

“You said she knows us. May I know the girl’s name?”

“Her name is Yagase Kotori, a former student of the burned down Reisen Girls’ Academy.”

My breath caught. It felt like someone just struck me on the head.

I recalled her silhouette on the staircase—light brown hair cascading down her back, a hairband exposing her forehead that made her look younger, and a chillingly cold expression.

Sharp eyes locked onto us, followed by a voice dripping with hatred.

“Serves you right.”

Kotori had cast aside the fingers that Shizuki cherished, and lambasted her. My attempts to arrange a meeting following the cat incident were met with rejection from both relatives and the girl herself. We had not heard from her since.

What was the survivor of the cat incident doing right now?

“After the incident, Kotori-san transferred to a boarding school. A sister school to Reisen Girls’ Academy. However, she’s exhibiting problematic behaviors and is currently staying in a privately run facility under the guise of ‘temporary rest.'”

I bit my lip. The cat incident stemmed from Kotori and her friends escaping the academy, and the subsequent murder marked a tragic turn in their fates.

Nevertheless, Kotori had found herself back in a similar setting. Stuffed into a new cage, she was entangled in strange phenomena once more.

“I trust you will go and see her, yes, Odagiri-kun?”

Suddenly, the woman’s tone shifted, and her vague expression changed. She flashed an unsettling, feral smile.

“You’re going, aren’t you?” she said. “Now that you know, you can’t turn your back. That’s just the kind of person you are. You no longer have the option to look away from this. Truly sad. Even animals would find it less likely to fall into a trap.”

Then, her expression shifted again. Concealing her animosity, she donned the mask of the Mona Lisa.

“That poor girl must be scared,” she said gently. “Please, help her.” Clutching her coat, she bowed deeply.

My eyes shifted to Mayuzumi. I needed to go see Kotori, and I knew she wouldn’t agree with it. We hadn’t even been told what exactly was happening around Kotori.

Mayuzumi does not take action unless it’s for her own amusement.

“Very well. I will take the case.”

“…Pardon?”

For a moment, I couldn’t understand the words she just said. Mayuzumi had risen from the couch.

Crossing her legs, she settled into the chair. Her long skirt, adorned with fur, fluttered gently. Her legs, wrapped in black stockings, brushed the floor several times.

“Take me to where she’s currently staying,” she said listlessly.

“Um, Mayu-san. Why are you taking the case?” I hastily asked.

Mayuzumi cocked her head. Her red lips parted, revealing a mouth as dark as the abyss.

“No big reason. I simply decided to take it. Is there anything wrong with that?”

An intense chill ran down my spine. Something was wrong, like we were making a fatal mistake. My head pounded, and my vision wobbled.

“A child died in an accident a week ago,” the scarlet woman said. “Since then, Kotori’s been reading to that dead child.”

Mayuzumi’s lips twisted, and my vision steadied. Listening to the lady’s story, I gave a nod.

Mayuzumi was plagued by extreme boredom. I could see her taking a case as trivial as this one.

“Very well. I will take the case.”

It sounded as if she was saying it for the first time.

I nodded, feeling a bit uneasy. At the same time, a heavy, icy fear stabbed at my chest.

An awful feeling settled in my gut.