Not a detective

Page 10

The afternoon classes ended quickly, and Asakawa Riku arrived at the door of the mystery club's activity room once again.

When he pushed open the door, [at this time, there were still three days and eight hours left before Asakawa Riku faced the murder-predicting love letter incident].

Chizuko-senpai arrived a little late today, and Asakawa Riku, as a temporary member, was turned away at the door.

He then realized that he didn't even know who the detective club's instructor was, so the option of getting a spare key was out of the question, and he could only wait foolishly at the door.

Ten minutes later, Chizuko-senpai came down the corridor:

"Yo?"

"President——"

"Asakawa-san, it's not that I'm late, it's that you're early."

Pre-emptive strike.

She smiled and used her seniority without any restraint, speaking in the tone of a senior figure in a sports club:

"It seems you're really looking forward to the mystery club."

"I'm so sorry for being so enthusiastic about club activities, president."

Asakawa Riku rolled his eyes as Chizuko used a key to open the door to the activity room.

In April, the weather hadn't started to get hot yet, but the enclosed room was still a bit stuffy.

He walked to the window and opened it. The cool breeze brought some relief.

"Did I mention that the murderer might have escaped through the window?"

He forgot whether he had brought up the possibility.

Looking out the window, this thought suddenly popped into his head: the activity room was on the third floor, about ten meters high, so he could easily jump down from that height.

Even for an untrained ordinary person, going down from here would at most result in a fall and injury; as long as their head doesn't hit the ground, it wouldn't be fatal, and it would be even easier with the help of ropes and tools.

Most of the residential houses here are single-story detached houses, with a maximum height of two or three stories. If there is a high school, there are very few students living in high-rise apartments.

If parents don't see their child leave the house, it's possible that the child wasn't taken out the front door, but rather through a window by a criminal.

"That's certainly possible, but I've heard that most of the victims' rooms had their windows closed, and the windows could only be locked from the inside. It was a true locked room. Even if the perpetrator could figure out a way to break the window, it doesn't explain why the security cameras next to the residential area didn't detect any suspicious people or vehicles."

Chizuko quickly deflected the attack: "These details are just things I didn't write in my investigation notes. The Metropolitan Police Department isn't just sitting around doing nothing. The detectives in the special task force are all elites. They had already considered most of the possibilities back then. If it weren't truly unsolvable, this wouldn't have become a cold case that has lasted for a year."

Asakawa Riku nodded. He wasn't discouraged or disappointed. Instead, he continued to gaze out the window, seemingly still deep in thought.

Meanwhile, Chizuko was making tea.

Her tea ceremony skills are superb; her movements are standard and elegant, and her focused and serious expression makes it seem as if she is doing something very important. It is clear that she has undergone rigorous training.

She used to drink alone, but only these past few days has she been able to use a second teacup.

The tea was served on the table; it seemed like they were using a different type of tea leaf today.

"Asakawa-kun, let's continue yesterday's topic. How much information have you found about the [Tsuchigumo]?"

"Then I'll begin."

Asakawa Riku sat up straight, took out his phone, and looked at the memos he had written.

The Spring of the Earth Spider: Chapter Seventeen - Asakawa Riku's Investigation Notes

What is a soil spider?

In the Nihon Shoki, the official history of the Yamato court, the Tsuchigumo people were a discriminated-against ethnic group. The book says that in the latter half of the third century and into the fourth century, when the Yamato court began to conquer the whole country, local chieftains emerged one after another. However, in remote areas such as deep mountains, some people still lived by hunting or fishing.

They still live the life of the Jomon period and maintain the beliefs of the Jomon period. Calling them "primitive people" is a bit of an overstatement, so let's just call them "natives".

The monsters that the vengeful spirits of these indigenous people transformed into after their deaths are called "earth spiders".

The earth spider is enormous; judging from the images found online, it should be the size of three or four adult men. Its eight legs, fangs, and bristles are all deadly weapons.

It would be the size that would scare spider-phobes to the point of fainting; to put it simply, it would be like a boss that appears in a Souls-like game.

It is said that earth spiders often appear in the mountains and are also known as "mountain spiders". They are ferocious and often tie up people they see with spider silk and take them back to their cave dwellings to eat.

Having read this far, Asakawa Riku could roughly understand the reason for the appearance of this monster. It was probably a product of the demonization of the indigenous barbarian tribes who were at odds with the Yamato court.

They were also called "Kuni-no-Ki", "Yakashi-no-Ki", or "Yama no Saeki" or "Yo no Saeki", all derogatory terms that described these savages as having long arms and legs like spiders, and thick legs. They would shout loudly in the wilderness and worship the national god (local god). Compared to the imperial court and powerful clans who worshipped the heavenly god, their ethnic status was lower.

The religious community relentlessly suppressed these indigenous people who refused to submit to the government's control, eventually transforming them into such monsters.

That's all the information Asakawa Riku has gathered.

...

"You're working very hard, Asakawa-kun."

Chizuko clapped her hands and praised sincerely.

But soon, she changed the subject: "However, Asakawa-kun, your understanding of Tsuchigumo seems to lean more towards folklore than yokai studies."

“Hmm.” Asakawa Riku did not deny it. He was more interested in “the origin of this legend” than “what kind of monster the Tsuchigumo is.”

After all, he didn't believe in the existence of monsters.

"I thought you were implying, President, that there was a group of primitive people living deep in the mountains who had kidnapped those students."

“Primitive people wouldn’t write love letters, would they?” Chizuko chuckled.

This was definitely not the correct answer.

Does Chizuko really believe that the yokai is the culprit?

"Does a ground spider know how to write love letters?"

Chizuko did not answer immediately. She turned around, took out several books from the bookshelf behind her, and piled them heavily on the table.

Although the cover is old, it seems to be well-maintained with no dust, so it won't affect the tea.

"Since Asakawa-san has put so much effort into gathering information, I'll just add a few details."

"The Tsuchigumo is a very famous monster. Legends about Tsuchigumo can be found all over the country. Just like you said, it symbolizes the history of local leaders taming hunting peoples and turning them into agricultural peoples. For example, such a story is recorded in Mr. Takahashi Mushimaro's book, Hitachi Province Folklore."

"Once upon a time, there was a people called Kunisu, who lived in caves dug in the earth. They would hide in the caves when people came and come out when people left. They would often come out to steal or kill when the farmers were not paying attention. At this time, there was a man named Kurosaka Mikoto who came up with a way to eliminate the earth spiders. He blocked the cave entrances with thorns when the earth spiders went out, and then chased after them with cavalry. As a result, the earth spiders were all tripped by the thorns and were eventually wiped out."

"For example, there's another story. After the famous Minamoto no Yorimitsu killed Shuten-dōji, he fell ill and was bedridden. A strange monk, seven feet tall, appeared and tried to tie Yorimitsu up with a rope. Yorimitsu killed the monk with his sword, and the monk escaped. The next day, he and the Four Heavenly Kings followed the trail of blood and found a giant spider, four feet long, which was a monster called Tsuchigumo. After Yorimitsu and the Four Heavenly Kings killed Tsuchigumo with an iron skewer, he quickly recovered from his illness. The sword was thus named 'Kujira-giri' (Spider Cutter)."

"Both stories feature the appearance and death of the earth spider."

"But [monsters are immortal]. As long as they are established as the basis of ghost stories and passed down as part of the plot, monsters can keep coming back to life."

Chizuko smiled mysteriously and slapped her hand on the blackboard. The words "Tsuchigumo" that she had written yesterday were still there, as if they had come back to life.

Thin white chalk lines, like its net, have already been spread out.

Riku Asakawa asked: "Is the prisoner a soil spider?"

Chizuko replied, "The culprit is Tsuchigumo."

"Only the Earth Spider could pull off such an incredible feat. With eight legs, it was able to kidnap seven victims in seven different locations at the same time—that's one example!"

She slammed her hand on the blackboard, making a loud noise, as if her hand didn't hurt.

Indeed, if the earth spider were to spit out its silk and attack from eight directions, it could solve the problems of time and the scale of the crime.

"The earth spider can descend from the ceiling and silently carry away the victim without damaging the structure of the sealed room; this is the second point!"

Following the direction she pointed, Asakawa Riku saw the seven student files that had been posted on the blackboard, all of which were circled in chalk as a symbol of the "secret room".

The students' rooms, which should have been a safe haven for them, were breached by unknown methods... No, I see.

He understood what Chizuko meant. The circle on the blackboard appeared to be a perfect circle without any gaps or holes, but in reality—

A circle is a two-dimensional pattern.

“Just like this.” Asakawa Riku slowly reached out, like the mechanical arm of a claw machine, and took one of the papers from above: “You can successfully take it away.”

This is Hirata Airi's file, and he pasted it back.

A locked room that cannot be solved in a two-dimensional plane can be easily solved from another dimension. Just take it out in the air, and add the "Z-axis" that was not considered before.

The spider's silk hung from the ceiling, catching its prey.

"But even if the locked room is cracked, the police can't possibly find no trace at all, like security cameras or something, right?"

Chizuko smiled as if she had anticipated Asakawa Riku's question: "Asakawa-kun, can you see yokai?"

"I see."

"Yes, just like you, ordinary people can't see monsters, and cameras can't capture them either. As long as the victim is wrapped in the silk of the earth spider and tainted with too much of the monster's aura, they will be blocked from the sight of the mortal world. In this way, the mystery of the disappearance of the gods will be solved. This is the third point!"

Chizuko crossed her arms and confidently raised her head: "Based on the above three points, the reasoning is complete. I believe the culprit is [Tsuchigumo]."

Spring of the Earth Spider: Chapter Eighteen - Becoming Bait

After the explanation, Asakawa Riku finally understood Chizuko-senpai's reasoning.

Her reasoning was flawless; if the culprit was Tsuchigumo, it would solve the three major difficulties of the case: the scale of the crime, the locked-room mystery, and the mysterious disappearance.

The earth spider used its eight legs to release spider silk, reaching towards the homes of the seven victims, descending from the ceiling, and capturing the unsuspecting students.

Before they could even cry for help, they were already wrapped in cocoons and then transported away by air.

The camera only monitors the road surface, not the sky. If the earth spider pulls away its silk, it will be impossible for it to be seen, let alone ordinary people who cannot see monsters at all.

A criminal who can't be seen... isn't that cheating? No wonder the Metropolitan Police Department's elites have given up.

Her reasoning was flawless, indeed, but only on the premise that "monsters exist."

...But if the monsters don't exist, how can we explain it? This time, even Asakawa Riku, who considered himself resolute, couldn't convince himself.

Could there be a Spider-Man in this world who roams the skies above Tokyo and abducts seven students?

Even Riku Asakawa couldn't shoot spider silk from his wrist and sway between skyscrapers.

...

"Asakawa-kun, you're starting to waver, aren't you?"

Chizuko leaned close, observing Asakawa Riku's expression with a grin, and said provocatively, "But that's good too. The more you believe, the higher your inspiration will be."

She said, "You will see the real monster someday."

Are monsters created because of belief, and do they only appear in the human eye because of belief?

Asakawa Riku didn't know whether he should be grateful for his materialistic beliefs, but deep down he really wanted to see non-human, bizarre things.

He raised his head and looked directly into Chizuko's eyes:

"So this also means that the Earth Spider can't kidnap me, right?"

Remember the assessment of him as "zero inspiration" and "you can't see monsters, and monsters can't affect you"? When the spider silk hangs down, will he still get entangled?

"Yes, Asakawa-kun, that's why I wasn't as worried about you as I was a few days ago, because I knew you were unlikely to be in any trouble."

Chizuko smiled frankly: "The Tsuchigumo has its eye on the worst possible target. It probably didn't expect that this time, the victim won't be the one it preys on, did it?"

It turned out to be the case.

Riku Asakawa understood why Chizuko-senpai had seemed so anxious just two days ago, even going so far as to wait outside the classroom to try and get him into the mystery club.

The change in attitude stemmed from the test that day where he was indifferent to the monsters. Since he wouldn't be harmed by the Earth Spider, he could leisurely keep the mystery to himself.

"Then why continue investigating this incident? Can't it be over already?"

Asakawa Riku asked matter-of-factly.

He was the only victim targeted this year. The earth spider handed him a love letter, a mark of predation, a lure for its disappearance.

If he, the victim, is alright, then this year will be peaceful, and there's no need to worry anymore; just pretend nothing happened.

He said, "You can't report things like 'the culprit is Tsuchigumo' to the police, so even if it's the truth, it's meaningless."

Having been kidnapped by such a ferocious monster for a year, and given the story's claim that earth spiders eat people, those seven students are likely already dead.

There is no longer any need to save them.

"I will avenge them."

Chizuko said seriously.

She is warm-hearted and kind, a kind senior. Even though it was none of her business and she could have walked away as if she didn't know, she still insisted on pulling Asakawa Riku into the mystery club to protect him and explained so much to him. Even after knowing that Asakawa Riku would be alright, she still did not forget the victims from last year and wanted to seek justice for them.