Not a detective

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He admitted that he couldn't compete with them in terms of intellect, but when it came to competitiveness, he would never easily admit defeat.

"It's not over yet."

"Oh? I've hit the 'culprit' and the 'method'! If you're not willing to admit defeat, you're not acting like a senior, you're acting like a child!"

Asukai Shi tilted her head and smiled.

“You only said ‘I win if I can figure out a riddle you can’t guess,’ but you didn’t say ‘this game only has one round,’ right?”

Asakawa Riku calmly looked back, unaffected by the other person's joking mockery, remaining remarkably composed:

"A puzzle has more than one form and more than one solution."

He picked up the notebook again and tore off a new page.

"Ready for the next move?"

"Wait, let's continue tomorrow."

Asuji suddenly said.

"Ok?"

Asakawa Riku's hand froze in mid-air. He was all set to write when he was suddenly interrupted, leaving him with a sense of utter frustration.

"Halftime break. Rest for one night, and continue after school tomorrow."

Asukai Shi smiled and said, "Continuous mental thinking can be tiring, even for seniors. You need to prepare well and give me a puzzle that satisfies me. I'm looking forward to it."

Asakawa Riku thought for a moment and seemed to have no reason to refute it. If things continued like this, it would be too late, and it wouldn't be good for the girl to go home so late.

"Ok."

Tamamo no Spring: Chapter Twelve - Casual Chat During Meal

"Is there someone who looks a lot like me?"

Chizuko sipped her soup slowly, then suddenly looked up, her eyes filled with alertness: "Do you have a photo?"

Asakawa Riku took out his phone, intending to search for it, but then remembered that there were no photos of that guy online.

And it was impossible to take a picture of him in person, so he could only shake his head and say, "It's Shi Asukai, that young writer."

"Ah... I quite like her books."

As a fan of mystery novels, Chizuko couldn't possibly have been unaware of this name.

Her expression seemed to become complicated.

"Why did she come to this school and say she wanted to join the mystery club?"

"I do not know."

This is also a strange question from Asakawa Riku.

"It's a pity I've graduated, otherwise I really wanted to go and meet her in person, using the excuse of getting an autograph..."

Chizuko murmured, "If it were anyone else, it might have been just a casual remark, but with her drive, she might actually be able to do it."

Asakawa Riku quickly interrupted her: "Aren't you busy with your studies? Why did you come back?"

Yes, since Chizuko entered university, I've had fewer and fewer opportunities to see her, and it's rare for us all to get together for a meal like today.

Although they lived together, she often stayed out all night for several days at a time, actually spending her time in the school library, seemingly studying exceptionally hard.

Asakawa Riku was also puzzled. Although he had never been to university, he shouldn't have been that busy, and it wasn't an exam week for him to study. How could he have gotten to this point?

Chizuko simply said that she wanted to complete her undergraduate courses and credits ahead of schedule, preparing herself for postgraduate entrance exams or even doctoral studies.

...Are all Onmyoji this intrigued? Asakawa Riku was surprised. He had thought that his senior was just trying to get a certificate and then go home to inherit the shrine, but he didn't expect her to plan to continue her studies.

In our line of work, knowledge is power—Chizuko said.

She believes that today's Onmyoji are too focused on tradition and rituals. The more they follow the rules, the easier it is for them to be eliminated by the times. Little do they know that the Onmyoji of the past never stopped learning and improving. Only by constantly refining themselves and keeping up with the times can the entire industry be innovated and have the possibility of shining again when the mystery of the modern era is weakened.

I never expected her to be such a thoughtful person; Chizuko's ideas were surprisingly mature.

...You clearly have such lofty ambitions, so why did you come back to the mystery club? That's what Asakawa Riku meant. He didn't want this wolf girl's vengeful heart to grow again.

"She bullied my dear sister—"

Chizuko was interrupted by Yukie, who was sitting across the table, with a reproachful tone.

"elder sister!"

Yukie was still wearing her school uniform and hadn't changed out. Her eyes seemed a little red and swollen, indicating that she was very concerned about her exam results and hadn't won the bet.

Actually, she was already very impressive to get second place, but she was just a little inferior, and she encountered Asukai Shi, who was as strong as a monster.

“It’s alright.” Asakawa Riku turned his head and looked at her gently. “You’re already very good. You can join the mystery club anytime you want. I welcome you.”

"Do not."

Xuehui put down her chopsticks, still fuming with resentment, but said, "Brother, I'm willing to accept defeat... If I'm going to win, I have to win fair and square."

She said earnestly:

"I'm thinking of joining the student council. I guess I'm not good enough at studying yet. It's not too late to take on the challenge when I'm really good enough!"

...Actually, I'm graduating soon too.

But seeing Yukie's stubbornness, I couldn't bring myself to say it.

Actually, it's pretty good that she got into the student council. After all, the student council at this school is very beneficial for future development. I hope she has a bright future.

Besides, Yukie is a good girl; she wouldn't suddenly disband the mystery club with a single document.

For some reason, I remembered what Xingyu had done.

"And she even beat you, Asakawa-kun. You're clearly my excellent club member and junior. I don't understand how you lost to her."

"Bad girl" Chizuko suddenly chimed in, shaking her head:

"That red and blue word game is actually very simple, especially for the person who sets the questions. They can win by simply changing their mindset."

That must be true for her.

Chizuko is a master strategist; she is a natural-born "criminal" and an expert in committing crimes, and she is indeed adept at this kind of thing.

If she were to set the questions, they might actually stump Uta Asukai.

But Asakawa Riku didn't want to ask for outside help. Like Yukie, he was willing to accept defeat and wanted to win on his own.

If you ask Chizuko-senpai for help and then take the finished problem back to Asukai Shi, you might as well just lose.

So he changed the subject:

"How did we get to this? Weren't we talking about that writer who looks a lot like you? You didn't actually dress up to tease me, did you? Have you been busy with this lately?"

I feel like she might be capable of doing it.

However, Chizuko shook her head and denied it:

"How could that be? I'm not that bored. Only a detective would do something like that. They look a lot alike... I don't know, but my parents have a very good relationship."

The implication is that Akihisa Kazamatsuri and his wife likely don't have any illegitimate daughters...

Asakawa Riku was still puzzled as to why they looked so alike: "Could they not be biological sisters, but perhaps cousins? Aren't you from the same family?"

Chizuko shook her head again:

“It’s not like those great Onmyoji clans in Kyoto. The Kazamatsuri family has long since declined, leaving only my branch, with no other branches. A few months ago, last winter, at the Ise Grand Shrine, my father passed on the title of Kazamatsuri clan head to me through a ceremony, including the theoretical position of the head priest. Actually, he’s been looking forward to retiring for a long time…”

So that's how it is. Asakawa Riku finally understood why the old man wasn't present during the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons and the subsequent riot by the believers last winter.

So she went to hold the succession ceremony. I didn't expect Chizuko to have realized her dream so early. She is now the new god. No wonder she can bring down the power of the "wind god".

But this still didn't answer his question: who exactly is "Asuka-i Shi" and what is her relationship with Chizuko?

She is Chinese. Could she be a descendant of the Fengji clan who fled to the mainland after being persecuted in ancient times?

Or, to put it another way, the Kazamatsuri clan are Onmyoji who inherited some kind of Feng Shui technique from China.

Can't figure it out.

"I'm full, you can continue eating."

Asakawa Riku stood up, still puzzled.

He still needs to come up with a good "scarlet letter puzzle" tonight to deal with the "second round" of Asukai Shi's game with him.

Just then, a fresh idea popped into my head.

But before returning to his room, he suddenly turned around and asked one last question—

"Senior, do you know any famous monsters related to foxes?"

"...Why do you ask that?"

Tamamo no Spring: Chapter Thirteen, Second Mystery

[Case Description: A dismembered body was found in a locked room, but the murderer and the murder weapon have vanished.]

The next day, they reunited in the mystery club's activity room.

Asuji Shi leaned forward: "Still the same riddle?"

“Yes.” Asakawa Riku smiled and picked up the red pen: “But there’s one condition.”

[Red text: None of the three witnesses had physical disabilities or were wearing prosthetics, making it impossible for them to have concealed the murder weapon inside their bodies.]

"In other words... the answer from last time has been sealed off..."

A solemn expression appeared on her face.

This is the "multiple solutions" model, which is also the model that tests the author's ability to structure a story and the detective's ability to solve problems. To make the same mystery appear in multiple logical solutions, and each solution approach the problem from a different angle, requires not only meticulous thinking, but also a wide range of knowledge and a boundless imagination.

The previous solution to the "prosthetic limb murder" case no longer works. Asakawa Riku wonders if Asukai Shi will be able to provide an answer so quickly in the face of the new problem.

The girl in front of me quickly entered a state of deep thought, lifting her legs and placing them on the chair.

She sat with an uncouth posture, her black stockings covering half of her calves, revealing her fair and rounded thighs, seemingly unconcerned about exposing her underwear.

She just kept her eyes closed and muttered to herself.

"...The murderer could still be the doctor, just using a different method, or it could be two other people..."

Asakawa Riku waited quietly, without disturbing her train of thought.

Actually, he also felt that the riddle he had given was too outrageous, so it was completely understandable if Asukai Shi couldn't solve it.

Even if the other party says "it doesn't count," he has to admit that the extent to which he does so is merely to test the limits of this "genius."

For a moment, silence fell over the surroundings, and the air in the entire activity room seemed to stand still.

Just a few minutes later, Asuji Shi opened her beautiful peach blossom eyes.

[Blue text: Is there anything wrong with the door lock?]

...Are they planning to use the door lock as a breakthrough point again?

Asakawa Riku didn't think; he already had the answer ready:

[Red text: Inspection revealed that the door lock was not damaged.]

It's different from last time.

I thought those red words would be enough to deter Uta Asukai, but to my surprise, her gaze didn't falter; instead, it only intensified:

[Blue text: Does this mean that such a lock is strong enough to be opened using general mechanical means such as cards, wires, or fishing lines?]

"...cannot be explained."

Asakawa Riku was silent for two seconds before putting down the red pen in his hand.

He couldn't write it down.

"Senior, have you already realized the traps in this game?"

Asukai Shi laughed, resting her soft cheek on her hand, making one want to reach out and pinch it: "In the real world, the appearance of an ordinary door lock doesn't necessarily mean that the murderer escaped from here. But in this game, if the murderer didn't escape from here, they will definitely reinforce the door to the very end. Conversely, if the door isn't reinforced to the very end and the corresponding red text isn't written, it means that the murderer definitely escaped from here. It's a perfect world without any interfering factors."

"...that is, the detective utopia you mentioned, which has removed the 'late-stage Quinn problem'."

Asakawa Riku understood what she meant.