Chapter 17 - 3.3

Chapter 17: Chapter 3.3

How to use a three-billion-yen family treasure

"Not here, either..."

"Nope, guess not. Let's move on."

Feeling a little dejected, Saikawa and I left the sit-down restaurant we'd been searching and headed for the next location.

At the moment, we were walking around the ship on a search. Instead of Siesta's legacy, we were looking for Natsunagi herself.

"Dammit. So cheating isn't gonna cut it, huh?"

"I'm using my left eye, so I really don't think we could have missed anything, but..."

"Yeah...you're right." My fingernails bit into my palms. If the pain stimulated my brain, so much the better.

I was thinking about the message on that bookmark. The criminal had demanded that we give them Siesta's legacy if we wanted to save Natsunagi's life.

But we had no idea what that legacy was. The previous day, Charlie had told us only that something along those lines apparently existed, and we didn't yet know what it was, specifically. Charlie also hadn't known...and I doubted the criminal did, either. That was why they'd taken Natsunagi hostage and was trying to make us find it for them.

That said, we'd learned one thing from this situation.

"The criminal behind this is definitely a member of SPES, correct?" Saikawa asked.

"If they're asking for the ace detective's legacy, that's plenty of circumstantial evidence."

The day before, when I was talking with Charlie, she'd mentioned the possibility that SPES might be after Siesta's legacy. After this kidnapping incident, I was sure of it.

SPES was afraid of the seed Siesta had sown here, and they'd concealed themselves on this cruise ship to nip it in the bud. However, they hadn't been able to find the actual object. Since we were also on board and connected to the affair, the enemy had lost patience and tried to shake us up.

"Unfortunately, we don't have a clue what it is, either..."

So instead of searching for Siesta's legacy, we'd switched to looking for Natsunagi instead. We went around every public facility in the ship, trying to locate her. We even used Saikawa's left eye to search the cabins and other places we couldn't just walk into.

"This is the next one, isn't it?"

Our next stop was a big theater. They were going to perform a musical there that evening, and at this hour of the afternoon, a rehearsal was underway. Technically, no one was allowed inside, but we managed to use Saikawa's authority to get in anyway.

"Well? See anything?"

From her position in the very last row of the theater, Saikawa scanned the whole place. Her left eye could see through the eye patch, beneath the floor, and beyond the doors; it saw everything. If the criminal or Natsunagi happened to be in this theater, Saikawa would be able to find them instantly.

And the result was—

"Nothing. Natsunagi isn't here." "...Okay."

If Saikawa said so, then that was that. There were still a lot of rooms we hadn't searched, though. We had to act fast, before something happened that we couldn't fix. Read latest chapters at novelhall.com Only

"Saikawa, let's go. We're running out of time."

"...Um, Kimizuka. Could you calm down a little, please?"

"We can't afford to relax. We have to find Natsunagi fast, or else—" "Kimizuka!" As I tried to turn on my heel, Saikawa grabbed my right arm.

"Kimizuka, that look in your eyes is scaring me." She was gazing at me.

For the first time, I realized there was such a thing as a gentle wry smile. "I'm always like this," I retorted.

"That's a lie. You're normally much kinder. Lies don't work on me." Saikawa said, releasing me. "Besides, I'm sorry. Using my left eye takes... quite a bit out of me."

"...It does? Sorry about that."

That hadn't even occurred to me. If that was the case, I'd probably been pushing her a bit too hard. I closed my eyes and massaged the center of my brow, trying to reduce my anxiety.

"It's all right; calm down. Your hands squeeze. Your shoulders roll. Your breathing is rhythmic. Close your eyes, take a deep breath, then exhale. Your blood circulates. When you open your eyes, your cloudy vision will be clear."

"What was that about?"

"It's like my magic charm. I use it to calm myself down before concerts, when I'm so nervous, I worry my heart will explode. Why don't we sit down for a minute?"

I agreed to Saikawa's suggestion, and we lowered ourselves into seats in the empty house. On the stage, they were running a rehearsal for The Phantom of the Opera.

"I'm sorry I'm causing so much trouble. Pathetic, huh?" I muttered. I wasn't living up to my role as the older one here.

"Pathetic? Did you mean you, Kimizuka?"

"Well, I am, aren't I? When I heard Natsunagi was gone, I completely lost it...and then I started working you like a dog. I didn't even think about how it might affect you physically."

If Siesta had been alive, she would have let me have it. Assistant fail. She

probably would have fired me on the spot. I'd never be able to face her. "Heh-heh. You do say some funny things, Kimizuka."

"...I'm pretty sure I'm not brave enough to crack jokes in a situation like this."

But Saikawa was giggling, her petite body rocking with genuine amusement. "Kimizuka, you're acting so apologetic for not meeting other people's expectations, but—"

She broke off for a moment, drew a deep breath, and then:

"—I wasn't expecting all that much from you in the first place!" She pointed at me, looking triumphant.

"...Did you just roast me?"

That didn't seem right. I'd thought Saikawa and I had a pretty good, trusting relationship.

"Oh, honestly! That's not what I meant." Saikawa turned her palms up and shook her head dramatically. "That's the trouble with you, Kimizuka. You don't understand anything."

She really is making fun of me, isn't she?

"Listen, when I said 'I wasn't expecting all that much from you,' I meant it in a good way."

"Do you think you can get away with insulting people as long as you 'meant it in a good way'?"

"Regardless."

Hey, answer my question. Ugh, middle schoolers.

"I was the same way, you see."

"...The same?" I remembered my conversation with Natsunagi the day before.

"Like you, I couldn't live on my own, either."

"I couldn't live on my own." When I heard those words, something clicked in my mind.

"For me, it was my parents, and for you, it was Siesta. We both had people we couldn't afford to lose, no matter what."

And then we did.

"Once I lost the North Star of my life, I began to obsess over past promises...and then I very nearly did something I could never take back."

Past promises; irredeemable mistakes.

I couldn't ignore how this was connected to me. If I'd been in her shoes,

there was no telling what I would have done. That was how important Siesta had been to me.

"But then I got a big shock. The one who saved me was you, someone who should've been like me...and Nagisa."

"I see. So that's why you..."

"Yes. You and Nagisa, who were as incomplete as I was, tried to save me. You put yourselves in my place and encouraged me to move forward. That was why I was able to take your hands so easily."

This was what had been going through her mind in her dressing room, after the attack at the concert—when she'd made the choice to put down her gun and take our hands instead. I really didn't know anything... I was an incomplete person, and a disappointment besides.

Apparently, my papier-maché facade hadn't worked on Saikawa's left eye. "I am really sorry, but I don't expect any more than I have to from you,

Kimizuka. So please don't be any more considerate of me than you have to be. After all, that's the sort of friendship we have, isn't it?"

Gently, Saikawa removed the patch from her left eye. In that blue, there were no calculations, sympathy, or deceit—no impurities at all. The color was endlessly deep and clear.

"Yeah, that's fine. It's best that way."

When I heard that, my grip tightened on the gun again. But I still had things to ask him, so I gritted my teeth and hung on.

"Then what about Natsunagi?! What does killing her get you?!"

It was the life of a single girl. For a terrorist organization that had even created pseudohumans like this guy, there was no point in going after—

"That is also simple: This girl has the blood of the ace detective in her." "...!"

My mind reeled.

Had I been right? Was it true?

SPES's main target wasn't me or Saikawa—it was Natsunagi. Not only that, but they were only after her because she had Siesta's heart...

"Don't worry. I won't kill her so easily."

"You won't kill her...easily?" That didn't make me feel any better at all.

"Yes. After all, she holds that ace detective's heart. Human experimentation, I suppose you could call it. From the tips of her toes to each individual strand of her hair—it is worth examining her in detail, don't you think?"

Chameleon's eyes narrowed in a sly grin, and the tip of his grotesque tongue crawled over Natsunagi's cheek.

"—No!" Natsunagi arched backward, but the long, snakelike tongue wouldn't let her go.

I could see the agony on her face, above the dark ocean, in the grip of the tongue that stretched over the ship's side.

"Let her go, you bastard!"

This time, I really did turn the gun on Chameleon. All I had to do was pull the trigger, and I'd put a bullet right between his eyes.

"As I said, you should calm yourself a little. If you do, this girl will plunge headfirst into the ocean. It's night. You'll have no way to save her."

"Rgh..."

Yeah, I know. You don't have to tell me.

And yet my impulses wouldn't stop trying to overrule my rational brain. I held down my right hand with my shaking left hand—otherwise, it might just pull the trigger on its own.

"Now then, make your choice, if you would. Will you save this girl's life, or the lives of the many passengers on this ship? Those are your only options."

The choices he presented me with were the ugliest ones in the world. If I rescued Natsunagi, so many other lives would be lost.

If I saved them, Natsunagi would be experimented on, then killed.

There's no way I can make that choice.

But unless I did, both worst-case scenarios were bound to become reality at once... Plus, I knew these guys. No matter which one I chose, there was no guarantee that they'd keep their end of the bargain. That was how it had been during Saikawa's incident. That was the kind of group SPES was.

Then, right from the start, my choices were— "Kimizuka."

Suddenly, a voice called to me. "Shoot me."

Even in the darkness, her expression was as dignified as a solitary white

flower blooming proudly on the brink of a cliff. "What are you talking about, Natsunagi?"

In the coils of the tongue, Natsunagi could only take shallow breaths, but still, she kept her gaze fixed on me, trying to make sure I knew what she thought.

"It's easy, isn't it? Think of the greater good. Or, what, have you lost your basic math skills?"

"...Since when were you so utilitarian? That's not like you."

"Really? Maybe not. Still, under these circumstances, what we need isn't my passion, but the ace detective's logic."

"You're an ace detective, too, remember?" "No, I'm not. I'm nobody. I'm just a fake." "That's not—!"

"Kimizuka." Natsunagi said my name again. "When you said I didn't have to be anybody's replacement—it made me happy. Thank you." She actually seemed to be smiling faintly.

If I shot Natsunagi now, the enemy would lose his hostage. After that, he'd probably try to sink this ship, passengers and all, but I'd keep him from doing that, even if it killed me. As long as he wasn't holding Natsunagi hostage, I could fire at will. Even if I couldn't hope for total victory, I might be able to manage half a victory and take him out with me.

That meant she was right.

Natsunagi's decision that I should shoot her was unassailably correct. It was the right call.

In that case. What I needed to do was— "Kimizuka."

Natsunagi called my name, one more time. "Shoot."

In that moment...a long-ago memory flickered through my mind.

It was the image of a white-haired girl, facing a vicious enemy all alone without telling me.

She'd never hesitated to sacrifice herself. It hadn't scared her. She was the sort of person who mistook self-sacrifice for the right choice. That's why,

back then, I'd completely ripped her a new one. Even now, I had a vivid memory of her face. I'd never seen her look so stunned before.

As I remembered that scene...I thought, Yeah, it's the same.

Right now, Natsunagi was exactly like she had been. And so I was sure, right now...

In that moment, when I heard what Natsunagi said, I decided on the choice I should make.

"—I don't care if it's the right call."

I could see Natsunagi's eyes widen slightly.

"Did you say you were nobody?" I took a step toward her.

Naturally, Chameleon was wary, and he made a move as if he was initiating some sort of attack—but a moment sooner, I'd aimed my gun right between his eyes.

"...Yes. All I can do is copy how some other person lived. I'm just a fake.

I'm nobody."

"Is that right? Then you should be glad." I took one more step toward Natsunagi. "If you're nobody yet, that means you can become anybody you want."

If you don't know how to fly, let someone teach you how to beat your wings.

If you don't know how to live, just walk beside someone.

You spent almost eighteen years lying in bed. Running the hundred-meter dash will be way more exhilarating for you than it is for most people. This world has so much for you to enjoy and discover. From now on, you can be anybody.

"That's why I'm doing this."

I pointed the muzzle of my gun at Natsunagi.

"...My, my, we can't have that. I intend to take this girl back to our hideout and enlist her cooperation with our experiments, you know. I can't have her getting killed yet."

With a fake-looking smile on his face, Chameleon said his sickening nonsense.

But this guy had made a huge miscalculation. Not that he had any way of

knowing.

On that pitch-black night, she'd made a promise to me. "Nagisa Natsunagi can't die before I do."

Sorry, but that was the deal.

I took aim and shot clear through the tongue Chameleon had wrapped around Natsunagi.

"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

Chameleon gave a snarling roar, and the tongue was sliced cleanly in two in a spray of blood.

Natsunagi plunged toward the dark ocean—but... "Nagisaaaa!"

...just before she hit the black water, a small boat with a mat in it slid under her.

"Apologies for the delay!"

Yes, Saikawa. That blue eye still shone in the darkness, and it was definitely worth three billion yen.