*
"There is nothing inexplicable in this world." *The young detective raised his glass toward him from across the distance. The amber liquid rippled with beautiful glints of light under the lamp, even the ice cubes in the glass shimmered in the tipsy atmosphere. Everything was so harmonious, yet it felt somewhat eerie because, despite the detective being clearly alone, there sat an untouched glass of whiskey on the table opposite him.
I came here tonight and met you. It's as simple as that—just like one plus one equals two, or the sun rising in the east and setting in the west, or the ebb and flow of the tides. It is both a fact and destiny.
"It's that simple." The Alien Detective said, draining the wine in his hand in one gulp.
"So, sir, are you going to take me away from here?" The man sitting opposite the Alien Detective smiled, a smile lighter and more delicate than snow falling into one's palm.
Taking away a curse, a long-dead spirit, an unknown danger..
"I can't take that much with me." The Alien Detective interrupted, setting down his wine glass. One of his hands rested on the table while the other sat on his knee, tapping along to the tavern's music.
"The crux of the matter is your mindset." The Alien Detective's gaze was piercing; despite his seemingly nonchalant attitude, one could still sense a hint of seriousness within it.
Whether you want to leave or stay, whether you want to walk through walls or fly through the sky, whether you want cake or a glass of whiskey first..
This is all your problem; don't go dumping it all on me.
You really are a strange one.
Thank you, you are quite the oddball yourself.
After speaking, the two looked at each other and burst into laughter.
"So, in your eyes, perhaps there is no difference between us?" His eyes curved with laughter, reminding the Alien Detective of the moon from his hometown.
"Why do you always have so many tedious questions? You're already dead; why does a dead person still have so many concerns?" The Alien Detective complained loudly, completely unconcerned that, in the eyes of others, talking to thin air was a bizarre and creepy act of madness.
"If you are like this, so shall I be! The birds will come and peck us all to nothingness." *
Alien Detective Notes
*
After Kisaragi Chiyo finished writing the first story and confirmed that the word order and vocabulary were correct, she sent the manuscript via email to the editor, half an hour later, she received a message from them.
[A wonderful story, not inferior to Oboro Asagiri's debut work at all.. no, it should be said that it is even more outstanding than the last one.]
[Oboro-sensei is progressing so rapidly; as your editor, I am truly happy to be able to read your work at the earliest possible moment.]
[But I have one question: why did Oboro Asagiri choose to use "Alien Detective Notes" as the title for this book? I thought you would continue the more straightforward naming style used for your debut work, "Yashiro Ghost Stories."]
"Yashiro Ghost Stories" was Kisaragi Chiyo's debut work. At that time, he had never considered pursuing a career in writing; the reason he had the plan to submit work to a publishing house was partly thanks to the advice and help of three friends. Furthermore, most of the stories in the work were things Kisaragi Chiyo learned from his friends, with only a small portion being his own personal experiences.
And through a visit to a friend, the protagonist 'I' also came into contact with the other side of this world.
A world that seemed far removed from humanity, yet was intricately connected to it by countless threads.
A world belonging to the yokai.
And Oboro Asagiri was the pen name Kisaragi Chiyo used when she first submitted her work.
[It's probably because the protagonist's setting in this volume is different from the previous one.] After thinking for a moment, Kisaragi Chiyo typed out this sentence.
In Yashiro Ghost Stories, the 'I' is mostly a bystander, whereas the Alien Detective appears as a firsthand participant in a series of stories.
The Alien Detective is strange and misunderstood; because he can see the other side of the world, he often behaves in ways that are difficult for others to comprehend.. Perhaps being misunderstood as a lunatic or something similar is a common occurrence for the Alien Detective, but that might be too harsh a term, so rather than calling it the notes of a lunatic detective, I would rather think of the detective as an alien.
It was precisely because of this that the Alien Detective's actions were not understood by the humans of this planet. Only because of this could he act so naturally and reasonably when doing things outside the bounds of order and normalcy..]
After Kisaragi Chiyo sent that long paragraph, she received a reply from the editor on the other end in less than a few minutes. Judging by the spacing and the speed of the response, Kisaragi Chiyo thought that the other party must have been sitting by the computer waiting for her.
[I see! Thank you, Oboro-sensei, for your explanation; it has helped me understand the character of the Alien Detective much better. If you don't mind, please allow me to include these words in the epilogue of the story!]
After replying with a simple "Okay," Kisaragi Chiyo logged off and closed the computer. Having finished the manuscript for the first story, he had quite a bit of time before the next deadline to search for inspiration for a new story.
“So, who should be the next target?” Kisaragi Chiyo curled her knees, leaning her back against the solid, hard wooden boards of the wardrobe. The scent of wood emanating from the wardrobe, mixed with a hint of stale, long-unseen sunlight, made her feel at peace.
Pale, slender fingers brushed lightly across the pages of the notebook as Kisaragi Chiyo lowered his eyes, experiencing a rare moment of indecision.
Just then, his phone suddenly rang, a message popped up at the very top of the screen.
It was a message from a junior he hadn't been in contact with for quite some time.
[Iijima: Senior Kisaragi, please do me a favor TT]
Author's Note:
----------------------
*There is nothing in this world that is truly inexplicable. Kyogokudo
*I am thus, so shall you be! The birds will fly in and peck us all to nothingness. "Fenzhou Ji"
*Iijima Ritsu is a character in the manga "Hyakki Yagyo Sho"
Thank you, little angels, for the collections! Mwah everyone 030
Chapter 15
Iijima Ritsu's full name is Iijima Ritsu. He is a junior fellow student of Kisaragi Chiyo by two years, both of them studied for their doctorates in folklore under the same professor.
As for that professor, Kisaragi Chiyo was no longer willing to recall him; he had long since successfully graduated under his demonic mentor, while the poor junior was still suffering through the torment of rewriting his thesis every few days.
At first, the two of them were merely acquaintances, existing at a level of social interaction that was half-hearted and superficial. However, through the shared experiences they went through later, the two, despite being two years apart in age, gradually became familiar with one another. This, combined with the fact that they had both confessed the shared experience of having to dress as girls during their childhood due to their physical constitutions, allowed the two, who already possessed supernatural sight, to quickly become friends.
[Kisaragi Chiyo: What's wrong? Just so you know, I can't help you with any requests to ask the teacher for mercy.]
[Iijima: It's not because of that this time..]
[Kisaragi Chiyo: So?]
[Iijima: My grandfather lent some books to an old friend in Tokyo. That family said they were moving recently, while they were clearing out their storage, they found the borrowed books. Based on a note inside one of them, they called to notify me to go and pick the books up tomorrow..]
[Iijima: But I am in Ishigakijima right now..]
As everyone knows, Ishigakijima is more than two thousand kilometers away from Tokyo. Furthermore, since Iijima Ritsu is currently participating in an activity with the professor under the pretext of a folklore investigation, the probability of him appearing in Tokyo tomorrow is zero.
[Kisaragi.. Understood, I'll go in your place tomorrow.]
[Iijima: Thank you so much!!]
[Iijima: I'll definitely bring you a souvenir when I come back!]
After saying those words, Iijima Ritsu went offline. Kisaragi Chiyo guessed that the other person had probably been caught up in more hard labor by their teacher, so she simply let the topic rest there. After tidying up her notebook, she stood up and pushed open the wardrobe door.
Once she entered a working state, it was easy to lose track of time. Kisaragi Chiyo watched as the setting sun dyed the entire room a golden hue; looking out from the window, all she could see was the sea.
Under the setting sun, the sea looked as if it were burning, its various intense colors naturally blended together and smeared across an invisible, boundless canvas. The distance between the sky and the sea was completely blurred, merging into a single, seamless whole at this very moment.
I thought you wouldn't like the sunlight.
Kisaragi Chiyo pushed open the glass door of the room's balcony, the scent of the sea breeze instantly brushed against her face from afar. Looking down, this villa was built on a cliff overlooking the sea, below were black reefs that were constantly being battered by waves day and night. Their shapes were so strange they could not even be described as resembling anything specific, yet upon closer inspection, they felt no different from any other reefs elsewhere.
The same silence, dull and sharp.
"I wouldn't call it dislike." Hara Kenji stood at the edge of the railing and reached out his hand, as a slightly chilly wind wound its way through his palm.
He tilted his face upward, the setting sun reflected in his dark purple eyes. He stood silently in the sunset, in his trance, he had the illusion that he himself was being burned.
That might not have been an illusion.
"Perhaps the phototaxis once present in human blood hasn't completely disappeared yet." As Hara Kenji spoke these words, a faint smile curled at the corners of his lips. He lowered his eyes, no longer looking at the sun as it gradually sank into the sea.
"That's a very interesting way to put it." Kisaragi Chiyo leaned against the railing. He was still wearing that oversized black haori, which made him look like a butterfly about to take flight as the wind caught it.
Kisaragi Chiyo didn't pay any mind to that. He looked down at the shadow on the ground, which showed only his own silhouette, felt that, given his personality, he was likely ill-suited for work such as being a spiritual mentor.
When it came to providing guidance, his other friend was even more professional and skilled.
"We are going out for a trip tomorrow," Kisaragi Chiyo said, naturally assuming that Hara Kenji would be accompanying him.
After hearing Kisaragi Chiyo's words, Hara Kenji slowly turned his head. Looking at the other man's matter-of-fact expression, he suddenly found it quite amusing.
From her decisive refusal of his request to her eventual acceptance, it didn't even take a single minute of preparation time.
Hara Kenji thought Kisaragi Chiyo's attitude toward him should have been one of caution and vigilance; not like now, treating him as just an ordinary, harmless roommate.
One had to realize that ghosts were, after all, different species, types like himself, who had lost their memories, were especially prone to accidentally slipping toward the brink of losing control.
But another point that couldn't be denied was that Hara Kenji was amused by Kisaragi Chiyo's attitude.
Even if her personality was naturally indifferent to these things, or perhaps she simply felt she had nothing to fear.
“I want to read the novels you write.” Hara Kenji suddenly brought up the subject. After all, he had caught a glimpse of the inspirational settings Kisaragi Chiyo had recorded in her notebook. Estimating the contents, he figured he should occupy a significant portion of the writing; as an important character appearing in the very first story, he should at least receive some preferential treatment, shouldn't he?
A sudden sense of anticipation welled up in Hara Kenji's heart; he was incredibly curious about how Kisaragi Chiyo viewed him.
Kisaragi Chiyo: ".."
"By the way, isn't it dinner time?" Kisaragi Chiyo fell silent for a moment, then, like a dazed robot rebooting after a power outage, she completely ignored Hara Kenji's sparkling eyes and slowly turned her face away.
Are you trying to change the subject?
I haven't had lunch, my stomach is already growling incessantly.
Are you completely ignoring me because you don't want to answer me?
What should we have for dinner? It would be wonderful if I could have sukiyaki after working for most of the day.
Don't just start ordering food so naturally..
Sukiyaki, sukiyaki, I really want to eat the fried tofu in sukiyaki.
“..”
*
In short, Kisaragi Chiyo still managed to have sukiyaki with fried tofu for dinner that day, just as he had hoped.
Steaming mist rose continuously from the hot sukiyaki pot, blurring Kisaragi Chiyo's face and making it difficult for her to clearly see the expression on Hara Kenji's face as he sat opposite her.
“Itadakimasu.”
Kisaragi Chiyo pressed her hands together in a prayer gesture before picking up her chopsticks. She looked at the steaming sukiyaki pot before her; the cute shiitake mushrooms had been cut with very standard and beautiful cross-shaped patterns, the square tofu had been pan-fried to a golden brown on both sides, looking mouthwatering in the boiling, dark broth. In addition to that were the standard sukiyaki ingredients: Wagyu beef, fubukuro, radish, crown daisy, konnyaku knots.
In front of Hara Kenji, however, there was only a cup of black tea.
"Aren't you going to eat?" Kisaragi Chiyo looked up. Sitting opposite him, the Long-haired Wraith rested his chin on one hand, his black hair spreading behind him like soft seaweed. Even through the mist, Kisaragi Chiyo could feel those dark purple eyes staring intently at her.
"No.." Upon hearing Kisaragi Chiyo's question, Hara Kenji suddenly laughed. His beautiful dark purple eyes curved into a perfect arc, a meaningful smile appeared on his pale, handsome face. His thin lips moved as he uttered words that were incomprehensible, yet carried a hint of unease.
Perhaps you understand delayed gratification?