Kirinomiya-senpai Cannot Solve The Mystery - Chapter 3

Chapter ３

I couldn’t sleep much last night after seeing a dead body in such a state, and I had no appetite.

I walked along with her, in a daze from the lack of sleep.

Kirinomiya-senpai doesn’t know when to give up.

Just like yesterday, after class, we changed into our Eirin Academy school uniforms and made our way through the shopping district to the academy.

It was perfectly obvious that I was going to be taken to Eirin again today, but I still asked her about it anyway.

[What’s the plan for today?]

[For now, let’s first talk to the home economics teacher who was the last one to talk to Amase Ayano. She’s certainly the culprit.]

Even though yesterday, you were saying that the person who discovered the corpse first was suspicious.

Then she marched into the school with the same dignity as yesterday and opened the door to the staff room with a nonchalant look on her face. She called out to the teacher sitting at the front of the room and asked her to call the home economics teacher.

After waiting for a while, a calm-looking woman with glasses came towards her.

She had a slim figure and her hair was tied back in a bun.

As I recall, yesterday Inspector Sakisaka had told me that the home economics teacher was named ‘Ashida’.

The woman who came out was young and could have been mistaken for a student if she wasn’t wearing a suit.

[Um, you guys, what class were you in?]

Ashida-sensei asked us in a gentle manner.

It’s natural that she wouldn’t recognize us.

Kirinomiya-senpai didn’t answer the question, but instead asked in a clear voice.

[We are friends of Amase Ayano. That’s why, for this case, we absolutely want to find the culprit.]

Kirinomiya-senpai, stunningly tells a brazen lie.

Now because the person herself really believes what she said and says it with upright eyes, most other people wouldn’t suspect her.

When Kirinomiya-senpai assured her, Ashida-sensei lowered her eyes with a meek expression, and said with her voice trembling.

[That’s right, it’s absolutely unforgivable right, such a thing. Not only taking the life of an innocent student, but also to cut off their head, it’s just too cruel…]

Then, perhaps feeling sick, Ashida-sensei held her mouth and crouched down on the spot.

[Are you okay?]

When I called out to her, she dizzily put her hand on a nearby shelf and leaned against the wall of the staff room.

[Yes, I’m fine. I’m sorry, it’s just a little hard to remember.]

As she said, she looked pale. She looked considerably exhausted.

To have a student killed at school, and to be found in such an atrocious state, is an event most normal teachers would never experience. And if she was the last one to talk to the student, she might have heard rumors about her.

Kirinomiya-senpai pressed her with a blank expression.

[I want to ask you about the last time you saw Amase Ayano.]

I added softly from the side.

[I’m sure the police have already asked you many times, so I apologize.]

After being interviewed thoroughly yesterday, I know firsthand how hard it is to tell the same story over and over again.

When we asked her, she answered in a choked voice with tears in her eyes.

[That’s, right… I already talked to the police but… really, it was just as usual.]

[As usual?]

[Yes. Amase-san came to submit her home economics project. It was on the theme of children’s clothing, and she said she finally finished it.]

That’s what Sakisaka-san told us, too.

[It seems there were some other students who had detention, right?]

[If they didn’t turn in their assignments, they would basically get no practical skill points. Particularly, the students who scored poorly on their written examinations, were doing their best.]

Surprised by hearing that, I asked her more questions.

[However, I’ve heard that this school is relatively loose regarding the grades of students.]

It is well known that the students at Eirin are not very dedicated to their studies. Detention and working hard for assignments didn’t seem to fit the image of Eirin students.

She replied with a look that said, “How could you not know that?”

[It’s true that we have a liberal school culture, but there is no mercy for students who get failing grades. If you get less than thirty points in the overall evaluation given every semester, you will be forced to stay in school and not graduate. If you get a failing grade on a written exam, the only way to overturn it is to somehow raise your grade through internal examinations such as practical skills and class attitude, so students with no other choice but to submit their assignments were desperate.]

I see, even students who don’t usually study seriously would certainly want to avoid staying in school. That’s why they were so desperate for the practical assignments.

[When you met Amase-san, did she really seem no different at all? As if someone had threatened her, or said something unnatural to her.]

Hearing that, she shook her head as if it was outrageous.

[No, really as usual, she just smiled brightly, bringing the assignment to the staff room, saying she had finally completed it.]

I asked her casually.

[By the way at that time, was Ashida-sensei with someone else?]

[Yes, it was the staff room, so there were many other teachers there.]

[That day after school, were you in the staff room the whole day?]

From the end of class, I was here until 8 o’clock in the evening.]

This means that she has an alibi, at least for the last time she talked to Amase Ayano and the time of her death.

[In any case, there was no sign of any change in Amase-san, and if there was, I did not notice it at all.]

Kirinomiya-senpai tilted her head as if thinking for a moment, and then said.

[Amase Ayano, what kind of person was she?]

Ashida-sensei lowered her eyebrows in annoyance, as if she was in fact uncomfortable with the question.

[Aren’t you friends of Amase-san…]

This is bad. If they found out that we were students from another school, there would be trouble. Before she became more suspicious of us, I tried to desperately explain to her.

[Um, we want to know what impression Sensei had of Amase-san! Look, after all the impression of a student and teacher would be different! It might give us some sort of a lead!]

She still had a troubled look on her face, but she answered.

[She was a very nice girl. I only talked to her a little in home economics class, but she was bright, cute, and took good care of her friends. I think she was liked by everyone. She could be a little noisy in class, but it wasn’t that serious.]

[Were there any events that left a lasting impression on you?]

She was puzzled for a moment by the question, and then spoke as if she remembered.

[It’s very personal.]

[If it’s not a problem with you.]

[Amase-san was in her second year, when I made a mistake in class, and was teased by a male student so I was a little depressed. That time, Amase-san gave me a candy.]

[Candy?]

She narrowed her eyes and nodded happily.

[Yes, I said I wasn’t that worried about it. It was just that one thing, but I had made a lot of mistakes before, so there were various times I felt depressed…so I was very encouraged.]

I see, I can’t tell until I get the impressions of some other people, but at least Ashida-sensei has a good impression of Amase Ayano.

Perhaps remembering that moment, her eyes filled up with tears. She took out a handkerchief from her clothes and held the corners of her eyes. It was a beautiful handkerchief with a cherry blossom pattern.

When she calmed down a bit, I asked her a question about the main purpose of our visit today.

[By the way, would you mind showing us the assignments Amase-san made?]

Ashida-sensei shook her head.

[The police took it yesterday because they thought it might be evidence, so it’s not here now.]

[Is that so…]

When we were disappointed, Ashida-sensei told us the characteristics of Amase Ayano’s assignment in order to at least try to convey its appearance.

[I don’t have the actual dress, so I’m not sure how to describe it… but it was a very pretty dress with pink gingham checks. The embroidery was very delicate, careful, and beautiful. Each piece of embroidery was even and aligned as if it was sewn by machine. I was surprised because I honestly didn’t think sewing was Amase-san’s forte.]

[Why did you think sewing wasn’t her forte?]

[While in class, she was making very little progress. So I was on the edge of my seat wondering if she would ever finish it. The day before yesterday was the deadline, so some of the students were in detention. But after the incident, it was too late…]

Then she stopped speaking, as if she had realized something.

[What’s the matter?]

[Ah, no. It’s not anything interesting.]

[Whatever it might be, please tell us.]

[No, it’s just that most of the students who stayed behind to complete their assignments were working in the home economics room.]

That’s what Inspector Sakisaka had told me yesterday.

It is true that no normal student would be willing to go to a dark and cold storeroom.

[Amase-san was in the storage shed, right?]

[Yeah, that’s what the police said, that she was in a storage shed.]

Kirinomiya-senpai also posed a series of questions with great interest.

[Is that a place that even a student could easily get into?]

[I don’t know the details, but I heard that the shed used to be a storeroom or rather a clubroom for the literature club or some other club.]

[It was a club room?]

No wonder, I had the impression that it was not a storage room but rather a room used on a regular basis.

[I thought hardly anyone used the club after it was discontinued, but it seems the lock was broken.]

[The lock was broken?]

Sensei nodded her head in agreement.

[That’s why, there were students who came and went without permission.]

In other words, it would have been easy for any person to sneak in.

[But I really wondered why she was in that place. I thought that since Amase-san was good friends with Sudo-san and Asano-san, who were in the same class, she would be working with them. If she went there alone, she must have been in a very bad situation…]

I try to imagine the situation at the time.

If she was with someone in a place that other students don’t usually use, she might have been summoned for being threatened with some kind of weakness of hers. Or maybe they were there to talk about something they didn’t want a third party to hear. She might have been meeting with her boyfriend, who was hiding the fact that they were dating.

We thanked her and left the staff room.

As I walked down the blank corridor, I tried to put together the story I had just heard in my head.

There were still a lot of missing pieces, but I felt like I was starting to get an outline.

Suddenly, I thought it was quiet, and when I looked next to me, Kirinomiya-senpai was visibly disappointed for some reason.

[What’s wrong?]

[I was sure that teacher was the culprit…Maybe, I was wrong?]

Happy and depressed, what a hectic person.

[I don’t know for sure yet, but according to Ashida-sensei, she was in the staff room after school the day before yesterday all the way until eight o’clock when she went home, so she has an alibi for that time. The estimated time of death of Amase-san was six o’clock the night before the last. It would be possible for her to leave for a few minutes to go to the bathroom on the way, but it would be difficult for her to come back after mutilating the body.]

Kirinomiya-senpai muttered unwillingly, as if she were a shell of a person.

[Then who the heck is the culprit…Is it the cleaning lady after all?]

Who is the culprit? Even if we don’t know that, I wonder what kind of person he is.

I was slowly swallowed up in a wave of thoughts. Gradually, Kirinomiya-senpai’s voice fades into the distance, and the pieces of the case go round and round in my head.

I hadn’t noticed it myself, but it seems that I have a tendency to lose track of what people are saying when I start thinking. It seems that when I’m thinking about a case, I often don’t respond to people when they talk to me.

On my way down the stairs, I found a line of pictures drawn by students on the landing.

[That.]

I stopped and looked up at the pictures on the wall.

Because there was a name I knew.

[That’s Amase-san’s painting isn’t it.]

It seemed to be the work of Amase Ayano’s class. This space seems to be a little like an art exhibition.

I didn’t know if it was a clue to the case, but I stared and observed her paintings.

The theme was nature, I suppose. Like her, the students around her painted pictures of forests and flowers, and the green ones stood out.

Amase-san’s painting was simple, as if there was a narrow path between many straight trees, leading to a place that had not yet been seen. Frankly speaking, I thought it was a waste of time. It has an atmosphere that could be improved by more careful painting, but I felt it was lacking.

Perhaps it was because the colors were unevenly applied and overflowing, giving the work a feeling that it was finished very quickly. I remembered Ashida-sensei’s story and was a little puzzled. The home economics assignment she had turned in was as detailed and elaborate as if it had been made by a machine. Even if she had been serious about the home economics assignment because it was for her promotion, I wondered if the same person would have drawn such a messy picture.

Come to think of it, Kirinomiya-senpai had said something yesterday.

Remembering the events of yesterday, I muttered to myself.

[Senpai’s deduction wasn’t entirely out of place.]

When I said that, Kirinomiya-senpai’s face lit up with happiness.

[That’s right! After all, that cleaner is the suspicious one!]

[Or rather, Amase-san, why didn’t you attach the button back?]

[Button?]

Kirinomiya-senpai seemed to have forgotten all about the button.

The expression on her face told me that she didn’t care about that stuff.

[Didn’t you say it yesterday. That it was a hassle.]

[Yes, I suppose I did. Buttons are a pain to put on. Especially, if you don’t have a sewing kit nearby.]

[Uh-huh?]

[Amase Ayano was apparently in detention to turn in her home economics project.]

[That’s right.]

[If so, then it’s a different story. Normally, since you have a needle and thread, wouldn’t you think of attaching a button that came off while you were at it? On the contrary, it would be unnatural not to.]

Kirinomiya-senpai didn’t quite get it.  She twisted her head to the side with an unclear face.

[Didn’t the button come off when she struggled with the killer?]

I denied her words.

[The button was in the pocket of her uniform. I can’t imagine that the culprit would go to the trouble of putting a button that had come off in her pocket. It must have come off before, and Amase-san put it in her own pocket so she wouldn’t lose it.]

Kirinomiya-senpai pouted.

[Then maybe, she forgot about the button?]

[Maybe so, but aren’t such things surprisingly bothersome? It’s not a problem if it’s an infrequently used item of clothing, but if it’s a uniform you wear every day, it’s too much.]

She looked at me as if to say, “Is that so?” Kirinomiya-senpai doesn’t seem to have many buttons that come off her clothes. I’m talking about what it’s like to be someone who has buttons come off, but that’s just an image from their viewpoint.

[Well, I guess I simply forgot about the buttons coming off.]

I lowered my voice and muttered a groan.

[Or perhaps, was it impossible to attach back?]

[Impossible to attach back…]

Then, Kirinomiya-senpai, whose expression had been half-hearted until a moment ago, shone with sparkling eyes again

[The mystery that wanders in the deep darkness, This Kirinomiya Saika will…]

I stopped her mid-sentence as she tried to deliver her signature line, which was always full of mystery.

[That’s fine and all.]

Kirinomiya-senpai’s eyes are sparkling. This usually happens when she is about to come up with something ridiculous.

[That is to say when the button came off, Amase Ayano was already dead!]

[Yes?]

This time it was my turn to look confused.

[This is a trick to disguise the time of death! The Amase Ayano who appeared after the button was removed, was a fake!?]

I was surprised and denied her words.

[No, no, no, I don’t think so at all. I’m sure that the time of death was after school the day before yesterday, and before that, it seems that Amase-san came to school as usual. If a proper autopsy is done, it will give a more accurate time.]

I decided to stop my tsukkomis. No matter how much time I have, it’s not enough to keep up with Kirinomiya-senpai’s stray deductions. Let’s move on to another appropriate topic quickly.

{TN: Tsukkomi= act of pointing out something stupid.}

[Another curious question would be, why was she the only one in detention in that storage shed?]

[Wasn’t it because she wanted to concentrate on her work?]

It was true that if she wanted to concentrate on her work, she would have done it alone in a place where she wouldn’t have been disturbed by anyone.

However, completing assignments in a storage room in silence and solitude doesn’t fit the image of Amase Ayano that I heard about.

[You heard what the teacher said, right? This assignment, there were some people from Amase-san’s class who hadn’t finished it yet, and she would be working on it with her close friends in the home economics room. Then as usual, she would be with her friends…]

I stopped speaking at that point and continued, feeling sorry for her.

[Ah, I’m sorry, Kirinomiya-senpai may not understand this, but normally, when you do this, you do it with your friends.]

Kirinomiya-senpai lightly punched me in the stomach.

[Don’t worry about unnecessary things. It’s true that female students are always in groups. It’s unnatural when you think about it. Whether it’s playing catch in physical education, choosing seats on the bus for out-of-school excursions, or circling printouts, schoolgirls are likely to get together with their close friends. It’s probably more unnatural to do something as tedious as submitting home economics assignments by yourself.]

[By the way, how would you usually go about it, Kirinomiya-senpai?]

[I do everything by myself though?]

I thought it would be the case, but it was a bit disheartening to hear him answer so calmly.

I have not known Kirinomiya-senpai that long either. But no matter how many times I think about it, I’ve never seen Kirinomiya-senpai with any of her friends on campus.

It’s not that she isn’t liked. In fact, there are probably more people who look at her with admiration. Even if you want to get to know her, it’s hard to get close to her, I guess.

She’s an eccentric person, and she’s extremely rich, so unless there’s a very special opportunity, she’s probably not in an atmosphere where you can talk to her openly.

I’ve witnessed a few people calculatingly approaching Kirinomiya-senpai for her family background or money. Nevertheless, Kirinomiya-senpai completely refuses to acknowledge the existence of anything that does not interest her. Therefore, no matter how persistent a person is, he or she will drop out after a week.

I stared at her dignified profile.

Due to her complicated family situation, she may not have had many people she could trust.

[…Do you not feel lonely?]

[Not really, I’ve never felt discomfort.]

[Is that so.]

If she didn’t mind, that was fine, but I felt a little pity for her.