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V12 Story III – Part 04

I stood silently beside Yusuke. He straightened himself, shifting gears. With a slight drop of his shoulders, he turned to me, a brightness returning to his face.

“All right, next year I have to graduate. The tuition is getting ridiculous. Oh man, I’ll be in the same year as my juniors. I hate it. I feel like that one kid is gonna cry.”

“Make sure you actually attend school next year. Spring is almost here. It’s a good season for a fresh start.”

“Before that, you should come visit the Minase household. Sarasa and Choubi want to see you.”

“Really? Ah, I miss them! Are they doing well?”

Hearing the familiar names, Yusuke’s face lit up. Shirayuki and Yusuke started chatting. I turned my face to the side. Yukihito was still sitting in front of the grave. I knelt beside him. He was staring at the ashes of the burned incense.

“She’s really dead, isn’t she?” he whispered gravely.

“Yeah.”

“Aya-san too.”

Yukihito turned to me, his large eyes staring intently. I extended my left arm. He trembled as he reached out and cautiously took my hand.

Was he hoping for something to happen? But nothing did. This was my arm. Aya was already dead. Yukihito’s face twisted in sorrow.

“Shirayuki-sama cried for a long time… because she couldn’t protect Aya.”

“I figured. She might not show it to me, but she’s that kind of person.”

I looked up to see Shirayuki smiling. Since she had stroked my left hand in silence, she hadn’t said anything about Aya. She probably didn’t want to hurt me.

“Aya-san was a good person,” Yukihito mumbled. “When I came over, she always smiled brightly and helped me a lot during the god incident. When I heard she died, I couldn’t believe it.”

He gripped my left hand tightly. He lowered his head and bit his lip.

“I can’t cry,” he said painfully. “Why is that? I can’t cry at all. Isn’t that weird?”

“Not at all. Don’t worry about it. Just because you can’t cry doesn’t mean you’re not sad. Everyone understands that. Aya wouldn’t want you to cry.”

I ruffled Yukihito’s hair with my right hand and pulled him up with my left. He nodded and stood beside me. Yusuke and Shirayuki had stopped talking and were watching us. They exchanged glances.

“Odagiri-san. The clan head and I were talking about buying a kotatsu.”

“I’ve heard of kotatsu but never used one. It sounds intriguing.”

“Let’s buy a kotatsu, put some mandarins on it, and laze around watching TV. Let’s bring Sarasa and Choubi too, and of course, that little gremlin. I don’t think Mayu-san will come, but Asato… not sure about him either. If he does, it’ll be like a monster movie starring him and the clan head. I don’t think I wanna see that.” Yusuke turned his gaze skyward, then smiled brightly. “We’ll have it at your apartment, Odagiri-san. So let’s wrap this up quickly. Just like always.”

Holding her fan tight, Shirayuki gave a big nod. Yukihito, still holding my hand, looked at everyone, then quickly straightened himself.

“I-I’ll train hard too!”

“Too late. You’re not gonna make it,” Yusuke said.

I couldn’t help but laugh. The whole exchange hit me in a funny way. I felt bad for Yukihito, but I laughed so hard my stomach hurt. Tears flowed from my eyes.

“Um, Odagiri-san? Don’t you think you’re laughing a bit too much?”

“Haha, yeah, maybe I am.”

I had killed people, lost friends, and lost my left hand. I had witnessed countless senseless deaths and seen the worst of humanity. I had lost so much, but some things still remained.

Before me stood people who, as if it were the most natural thing, told me to come back. They were like a single spider’s thread hanging over the abyss I had fallen into.

“Don’t forget, Mr. Odagiri.”

“Hmm? What do you mean?”

I stifled my laughter and turned to face Shirayuki. She closed and opened her fan, then began writing. Holding her glossy black hair from tossing in the wind, she turned the fan toward me.

“You saved Mr. Yusuke, Miss Maihime, Mr. Kugutsu, and I. To us, you were like a spider’s thread hanging in hell.”

But I had destroyed many things too. If I hadn’t brought the fox back, Hirugao wouldn’t have died. Aya died protecting me. How many people had I sacrificed?

As if sensing what I was about to say, Shirayuki shook her head.

“I know what you want to say.” But still, she smiled, and wrote more. “The ones you desperately saved are now taking action for your sake. Please remember that, no matter what happens from now on…”

She gripped my left hand tight. Then she closed her eyes as if in prayer and opened her fan.

“That what you have gained remains. Not everything breaks.”

Shirayuki smiled. Her powerful words left me in awe, and I could only nod.

In that moment, I found the answer I had long been seeking.

“I see. I get it now.”

This was everything Odagiri Tsutomu had built throughout his imperfect life. And all those irreplaceable connections had started with her.

“Shirayuki-san, it seems I’ve been overthinking things.”

“Overthinking? About what?” Shirayuki tilted her head curiously.

I stroked her porcelain cheek with utmost affection. She quickly turned red.

Nodding, I turned to everyone present. “I’m heading back. I have to.”

To the person whose question I couldn’t answer and whose gaze I had avoided.

To Mayuzumi Azaka.

The most horrible girl I knew.

It’s a bit late, but I’d like to talk about Mayuzumi Azaka.

The girl I spent my time with.

Arrogant, cold-hearted, and a picky eater. She always carries a red parasol and dresses in Gothic Lolita fashion.

She laughs at death, revels in misery, and desires tragedy. And she’s always eating chocolate.

I’ll say it as many times as needed: she is the worst, most despicable creature I’ve ever known.

A monster in her actions, but just a girl in body. Incredibly powerful, yet incredibly fragile.

I’ve spent my time with this girl of contradictions.

Those days were far from wonderful. In fact, they were filled with suffering.

I lost count of how many times she pushed me into the pits of despair. Her desire for tragedy made me witness grisly incidents. I’ve genuinely wished to escape from her.

Mayuzumi Azaka’s existence is both beautiful and grotesque. She is the lowest of the low.

But back then, she actually held my hand. On a distant spring day, at the top of a hill, with countless cherry blossom petals swirling around.

Oh, there’s one more thing I haven’t mentioned.

She is, always and in every respect, devilishly lovely.

That is everything I know about the person named Mayuzumi Azaka.

I stopped the words forming in my mind.

Standing before the office door, I exhaled deeply. The sky was still painted a pale pink, casting a melancholic glow. Steeling myself, I grasped the doorknob and twisted it, feeling its coldness even through my leather gloves.

Click.

As I opened the door, sweet air poured out. The office’s air conditioning was perfectly regulated. As always, the dim hallway was filled with silence. Asato should be lounging in one of the rooms, but there was no sound. I proceeded down the surreal hallway.

As I walked, I reflected on everything that had happened. I had come across numerous cases in this office. Many of them turned worse because of my deceit and hypocrisy. A lot of people died.

But some things remained. Things that I had obtained after endless struggles.

Odagiri Tsutomu had lived his life that way. He couldn’t live any other way.

Every time people I knew got caught up in trouble, I desperately tried to help.

This time was no different. If I let go now, I would regret it for the rest of my life.

Just like when I saved Asato, or when I demanded the scarlet woman take my legs instead, if there were no other options, I could only flounder about.

Mayuzumi Azaka said there was no need to do so. And I ignored her advice and acted on my own.

Everything was as usual. And most of all, I loved this fucked-up life. No matter how abnormal this place was, I had lived here. All those days had started with Mayuzumi Azaka. From the day she held my hand, I had been involved in bizarre incidents.

There was a faint light up ahead. Soon, the living room would come into view.

I shortened my strides, walking slowly and carefully.

Mayuzumi Azaka said she offered no salvation. She said she didn’t remember saving anyone.

But she had certainly saved my life. She saved my life, but she didn’t save my mind. She didn’t interfere with my way of living or my struggles. Because of that, I could remain the same.

I could keep on being the worthless person that I was. As a result, Odagiri Tsutomu became a hypocrite. I couldn’t help but put my life on the line to save even the worst and most awful girl I knew.

On that day, on a hill where beautiful cherry blossoms flittering wildly, Mayuzumi Azaka held the hand of a person she didn’t care about.

I don’t try to understand her. She doesn’t listen to me.

She says that’s fine. I wish she would stop.

We’ll never be in agreement. We’re like parallel lines, never crossing.

Nevertheless, we always stood close, side by side. Now and forever.

I closed my eyes and stepped into the living room. Then I opened my eyes.

“…What?”

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I almost dropped the bag Maihime had handed me. My body started trembling uncontrollably. Staring blankly at the disaster in front of me, I managed to squeeze out my voice.

“…Mayu-san?”

Colors filled my view. In front of me, like a field of flowers, lay a multitude of wrapping papers. Ribbons and empty boxes were strewn about. Without anyone to tidy up, the living room had turned into a dizzying mountain of paper. A thick, sweet scent hung in the air.

How long would it take to clean this up? My earlier sentimentality vanished completely.

I quickly searched for the culprit. But I didn’t need to look around. She was lying on the leather couch, as always. Mayuzumi was wearing an extravagant dress adorned with many laces today too. Her headdress featured a distinctive eyeball accessory.

Mayuzumi looked at me, her languid eyes blinking.

Then, as if it were the most natural thing, she said, “Welcome back, Odagiri-kun.”

I closed my mouth, stopping the barrage of gripes rising up my throat.

Heaving a sigh, I replied, “It’s good to be back, Mayu-san.”

And so, the office’s sole employee, Odagiri Tsutomu, returned to the Mayuzumi Psychic Detective Agency.