Sword Art Online Alternative – Clover’s Regret Chapter 1

Ho-ho-ho, happy holidays everyone! You know what that means? A holiday translation update! And what better translation to publish than the first chapter of Clover's Regret (for those who forgot this was even a thing, see here.) that had been stuck in editing h.e.l.l for half a year, since the holidays finally gave us the respite to finish up the editing. Especially since one chapter of this story is like 1/4 of an entire book. 

Clover's Regret is a series which rather heavily capitalises on j.a.panese culture, including tons of yokai-that-I-never-even-heard-about, various j.a.panese sweets and food (this chapter kinda made me hungry...), and various cultural references. Also, expect some j.a.panese puns and even riddles-that-required-leaving-the-original-text-for-the-discussion-to-make-sense for good measure. So, whoever is interested in all of that stuff will find this series a blast... and those who don't... well, you have my condolences for all the j.a.panese stuff you'll have to go through.

Because of the variety of cultural references (as well as the size of this chapter...), we have ended up with a ton of translation notes. To reduce the number of notes, we've decided to refrain from explaining all the various yokai and foods, as well as other things that I would have normally left a note for. However, we've also decided to have a poll to gauge our readerbase's interest in translation notes. The poll will be available on the side bar and will be open till around February. So, please share your opinion if you're interested in continuing the series!

For those interested in future releases of the series, the story seems to have finished its serialisation on the Dengeki Bunko MAGAZINE and has been compiled in its entirety as a single tankoubon volume, thus it seems that the series has been finished in j.a.pan. The volume consists of the three chapters serialised on the magazine, as well as an additional final chapter. Each chapter is about as big as this one, thus they will take time to translate. And seeing as the series isn't progressing anymore, we will probably not be in a hurry to catch up to the j.a.panese side. As such, expect long breaks between releases, as we'll probably only get around to it when we have considerable free time.

Bold text marks the use of boutens (dots beside the text that are used for emphasis) in the raw. We also make great use of furigana for both when the original text used it and for explaining j.a.panese text when we had to keep it in the translation for the discussion to make sense (or to show the puns that would be lost in the translation otherwise). Remember that the big text at the bottom is supposed to be the meaning of the phrase, while the little ruby text above it supposed to be how the text is read. Parentheses covering a paragraph seems to be the author's way to denote the character's monologue/thoughts. Unlike for AGGO, we did not bother marking out the Engrish in the text for this series, as the author of this series has much fewer issues with overuse of Engrish.

Any feedback is appreciated.
 

Raws: SAO Scans Project
Translation: Gsimenas
Editing: ZeHaffen, OmegaVesko, Lockman

N/A

Index

Chapter 2

A matsuribayashi(1) could be heard in the distance.

The high-pitched flutes, the light tsuzumi, and the elegant koto(2) together formed a merry racket.

Although that tumu

lt should sound bustling while up close, it sounded somewhat lonesome from afar.

n.o.body knew where that sound came from.

It was known as the Phantom Orchestra.

It would disappear if you left the area, but it would not feel like it was close even if you were to go further in.

It’s not like it came from beyond the sky, or from the depths of the earth. Though if you planned on searching for the origin of the sound, you’d end up with going around in circles.

You could hear a sound, but could not see where it came from; the orchestra continued playing in the distance as if it were trying to deceive those looking for it.

Sitting down on the dark stone steps leading to a deserted shrine, Nayuta, dressed as a miko, absent-mindedly listened to the sound.

She felt like she had experienced something similar in the distant past.

Alone, in a dark place, tired, and at a loss——

Perhaps the majority of people, without much thought, had dreams of a time like this when they were kids.

Sitting on the steps of a gloomy shrine, gazing down at the road below that no one walked on, and carefully listening to the matsuribayashi.

Bamboo gra.s.s rustling in a thicket, a countable number of stars twinkling in the night sky, when you feel that someone is tapping on your shoulder yet there’s no one there when you turn around——

This dream of hers was interrupted by the ring of an e-mail.

A message from her friend was displayed on the floating console.

【Yahou. Nayu-san, whatcha doing?】

Nayuta cast her eyes down and, for a few moments, closed them. This switch-like action was a habit when changing her behaviour.

After a short sigh, she quickly began composing her reply.

【Investigating the 《Phantom Orchestra》. I don’t know the requirements for starting the quest, so I am trying stuff out.】

Barely any time had pa.s.sed before the next message came.

【Oh that…… the one where you〝hear the sound of an orchestra but can’t find it〟 and 〝when you make an offering, you hear a cry, so that’s probably one of the triggers for it〟, right? 】

【Yes, that one. Is there any other info?】

【It’s probably more like a rumour of dubious origin than info, but—— seeing as nothing has happened even three days after implementation, it may be that you need some special key-item for it. Wanna postpone that one and work on a different quest together? It seems you can get a nice katana out of《Kagome, Kagome》(3), but it’s rated eight on a scariness scale, so it might be a bit too much for me alone —— 】

【All right. Let’s meet up.】

【Thanks! Nayu-san, you’re so cool! So, I’ll be waiting at the bakeneko tea house.】

After the message exchange ended, Nayuta stood up from the stone steps.

With her long, black hair and the sleeves of her miko costume gently floating, the girl jumped down.

Unlike reality, there was barely any impact when she landed; she felt as though her body was as light as a feather.

This did not mean that all the avatars would have the same feeling. Nayuta’s cla.s.s, the 《Battle Miko》, had a special trait of excelling at jumping. On top of that, she had also acquired the《Unparalleled Jump》 skill, an advanced form of the ha.s.soutobi(4), thus her body was especially light.

On the other hand, as she focused on the lightness of her equipment set, this narrowed her choice of equipment, and thus had the drawbacks of weakening her defence and shortening her reach.

For the majority of Battle Mikos, the standard was to make use of the easy-to-use halberds that benefited from cla.s.s specialty weapon bonuses and choose heavy equipment to compensate for their low strength, rather than work on their special jump trait.

Although this made it pleasant to move, even the tiniest bit of negligence could lead to fatal wounds, thus such a character build was even called peaky by game guides, as the player would be best off avoiding damage entirely.

Nayuta proceeded along a deserted country road, illuminated by moonlight, at a speed that made it seem like she was sliding on the road.

Looking to the side, the ears of rice swayed like a wave as a gust of wind brushed the rice fields.

The refreshing rustling sound blended with the subtle and profound orchestra.

The fluttering of the flute, the drums faithfully beating the rhythm, the dignified and elegant koto—— although each of them was overflowing with bustle and energy, their melody still seemed somewhat melancholic.

Gazing at the rice fields on this moonlit night, she noticed something peculiar while on her way to the teleport point.

A small hokora(5), where a dōsojin was enshrined, that she had not noticed before when pa.s.sing by.

The roof was only as high as her waist, and the stone statue inside was appropriately small.

At its facade, a letter had been offered. 

(This shouldn’t have been here when I came through…… does that mean that the offering was a switch for it——?)

She hesitated to take the offering, but the chance of it being some kind of hint was high.

Once she took it into her hands and unfolded it, she saw some characters messily written on it with a brush.

《I wanna eat some botamochi》

Just a single line.

As it was so excessively simplistic, she ended up checking the back of the paper.

At a loss, Nayuta looked at the stone statue in the hokora.

On it, the sorrowful, tear-stained face of a still-very-young child was engraved.
 

§

The j.a.panese VRMMO 《Asuka Empire》’s new event, the 《Hundred and Eight Apparitions》——

This large-scale event, held to commemorate the creation of a new district called “Ayakashi Bystreet”(6), would introduce a hundred and eight different scenarios, both large- and small-scaled, over the course of approximately a year.

For the game boasting a scale that was second only to 《ALfheim Online》 in the domestic market but suffering a stagnation in userbase growth, this was an update with its dignity literally at stake.

Since the spread of the World SeedThe Seed, creating a FullDive-supporting virtual world became so easy that not only companies but even individuals themselves could build such worlds, thus the number of playable t.i.tles skyrocketed.

At the same time, this encouraged existing users to spread to other games, and some insignificant games that were no longer able to maintain a playerbase were forced to suspend their service.

This concerned even a game as as large-scaled as 《Asuka Empire》, thus this event focused on both the creators and the players.

The 《Hundred and Eight Apparitions》 would literally incorporate a hundred and eight quests. These hundred and eight quests would consist of “The Hundred Tales” , “The Seven Wonders” and a “Finale” slated for the end; among them, “The Hundred Tales” would consist of user-generated quests made using 《The Seed》.

For this event, about 8-10 of the numerous quests created by individuals would be chosen each month and incorporated after the creators received a remuneration—— in short, it was a user-made scenario contest.

At first, this selection was criticised as “a last resort to ensure an increase in the number of quests”, but boosted by a tremendous The Seed fad, when it came time to review results, there were so many masterpieces collected that the selection took unexpectedly long.

The game’s management had called out to students of various vocational schools and clubs to partic.i.p.ate and a lot of them applied, taking it on as their graduation work or a test-of-skills challenge for their summer holidays.

It was difficult to create a new game, with its own system, environment and setting included, from scratch in a short time, but if it was based on 《Asuka Empire》’s system, it would eliminate a lot of required labour, allowing them to focus on working purely on the scenario, visuals and audio.

To the applicants, the sense of a 〝cultural festival haunted house〟, open to a very large audience, was very strong.

As for 《The Seven Wonders》 that were unrelated to the contest, they’re tie-up quests for all the different types of enterprises that specialised in confectionery, fashion, soft drinks, figures and so on; it was a collaboration that not only involved having the products of the companies appear in the quests, but it even involved items that appeared in the game being sold in real life.

It has only been three months since this festive merrymaking with the future of the companies at stake, but at the present moment, it was enjoying a favourable reception that exceeded the game company’s goals.

Unlike 《Sword Art OnlineSAO》, which led to thousands of deaths and had to suspend its service, or 《ALfheim OnlineALO》, which had to change its management company due to a case of human experimentation coming to light, or 《Gun Gale OnlineGGO》, where the criminal act, known as the Death Gun incident, that lead to several victims occurred, Asuka Empire had yet to have any such scandals since its service had begun. This credibility was highly valued at the moment.

“……Though, you know. It’s not like this event is getting high praise. After all, ain’t it basically nothing but horror? With movies, seeing one or two of them is one thing, but seeing a hundred and eight horror movies in a row is just a pain. There are tons of horror comedy-type quests, but they even have comedy-feigning surprises like the 《Subjugation of a Tiger on the Folding Screen》.

“……I haven’t cleared it yet, but I’ve heard that it’s like a scene of pandemonium.”

At a corner of the amamidokoro(7)/bakeneko tea house, Nayuta listened to the endless complaints from Koyomi, her ninja friend that she had met up with.

The mentioned 《Subjugation of a Tiger on the Folding Screen》was based on the tonchibanashi(8) of how a young priest was given this unreasonable demand from the shogun: “Subjugate the tiger on this folding screen”, to which he responded: “Then, please drive that tiger out of the folding screen.”(9)

In this quest, set in a western-style house from the Taisho era, the early stages had a gentle build-up as if it were a funny story—— but, in the middle stages, the tiger on the folding screen really did come out and start slaughtering the area’s NPCs in succession; a violent course of events.

The player was then forced to subjugate the tiger hiding in the western-style house, but if they made the slightest mistake, they would end up discovering the gory corpses of the NPCs one after another, and furthermore, the tiger was basically set to be “so strong that you can’t win against it by fighting”; a panic horror quest where you could only run around trying to escape, to say nothing of fighting against it.

The quest clearing requirement was to lure the tiger into a trap and return it to the folding screen, but the majority of challengers were forced to fully realise the dread of a large carnivore, and some even became unable to eat meat for a while.

The chillingly realistic blood and guts, the cerebrospinal fluid leaking out of the broken bones, and other fine details were all depicted without omitting anything, while the cries and screams of the NPCs that kept dying due to fatal wounds spiced things up; it’s said that it unfolded into a nasty h.e.l.l that had no relation to the charming tonchibanashi.

“……Though, I've heard that the quest had some revisions made to it, as could be expected——”

“……It only added the option to switch pixelation on or off, and upped the scariness level from five to seven. Oh, and it began a rental service for a 《corpse sensor》 as a measure against heart attacks, but the fee is three hundred yen per day, what a rip-off……! That’s no longer an apparition, but a gut splatter!? And what’s more, compared to the stress caused, the reward is shabby and…… Nayu-san, here, say ‘ah’.”

Whether it was because she wanted to cool down or because she wanted to avoid letting her memories of clearing the quest resurface, Koyomi abruptly held a toothpick with some warabimochi up to Nayuta’s mouth.

Although feeling slightly uncomfortable about being fed, Nayuta obediently opened her mouth.

Compared to warabimochi in the real world, the faint sweetness, the scent of soy flour, and the exquisite, spongy texture were all well reproduced.

“……Mmhmm…… So, the 《Kagome, Kagome》 that we’re planning to do is rated eight on the scariness scale, making it scarier than the tiger subjugation, right? Are you going to be okay?”

Koyomi frowned explicitly. Due to her ever-changing expression and childish face, as well as being a hundred and forty cm tall, she looked to be very young, but she was actually a working adult and older than Nayuta.

“About that, you see, the problem is….. Just that the management’s scariness scale criteria are relatively sloppy and, from what I’ve seen in the reviews, it’s not splatter-scale scary, so I thought that I might have better compatibility for it—— And also, the reward for clearing the quest is a shin.o.bi katana named 《Empty AirKokū》, which I hear is especially effective against spirit-type enemies, so I wanna hold onto it for the upcoming quests. Nayu-san, I’m begging you! Help me out! You’re OK with scary stuff, right!?”

It wasn’t like she was trying to be calm. But, whether she had better resistance than other people or was simply insensitive to such things, she had no memory of feeling “scared” during this event.

On the other hand, during a previous quest, Koyomi shrieked so loud when she was chased around by a skeleton warrior that it almost seemed as though her scream went into ultrasound.

As her friend, Nayuta felt very uneasy about sending her off to a scary spot on her own.

“Of course, I do not mind helping, but…… I have a one-sided character build, so my worth as an a.s.set is questionable. You are not going to invite anyone else to help?” 

Koyomi cackled.

“Oh you and your jokes again. Nayu-san, you know that you’re the strongest person among my friends? Oh, and the recommended level for that quest ain’t that high. I should be able to clear it on my own, but it’s rumoured to be scary…… so I don’t really wanna go to a haunted house like that on my own, and it would be hard to cling to someone at the scary bits if I bring my good-for-nothing friends along, while you, Nayu-san, always give the impression of coolness, so I feel like I can rely on you…… right? I beg you!”

“All right. I want a weapon for ghosts too, so I look forward to working with you.”

She had no intention of declining the request from the start. They had a mutual give-and-take relationship as well.

“Thanks! Nayu-san, I love that you’re so simple! Alright, say ‘ah’.”

Smiling from ear to ear, Koyomi presented another piece of warabimochi to Nayuta’s mouth.

“……Oh no, it’s not like you bought me over with warabimochi…… Oh, would you like your mamekan?”

Nayuta scooped up the agar jelly and peas with her wooden spoon and presented it to Koyomi’s mouth.

And the girl bit into the spoon in a flash.

“Mmm! Tasty!”

“…… Glad to hear it.”

As the situation took a turn that made it hard to tell which of them was older, Nayuta once again looked around the shop.

This bakeneko tea house was a popular shop at Ayakashi Bystreet, but the confined store had barely any customers.

This did not mean that the store was not thriving; a clone shop system that prevented excess congestion had been introduced to a large number of shops in this district in order to maintain the appropriate atmosphere.

Although it appeared as if there were one store, its interior was actually copied and split into several stores.

As customers that came in one after another would be transferred to different stores, it ensured that no matter when somebody came in, they would never see congestion. If someone had an appointment, they could operate their friend list at the front of the shop and enter the same room as their friends.

It wasn’t all that rare for people to pay an additional fee to make a reservation and have online meetings rather than offline ones.

As a large congestion of people would spoil the haunted house atmosphere, a large number of quests in this event had a applied a policy limiting the number of partic.i.p.ating players.

As such, the quests were split into four categories.

The 《Tests of Courage》: these allowed only one person to challenge them by themselves.

The 《Fellow Travellers》: these allowed encountering only party members that joined the quest together.

The 《Encounters》: these could a.s.sign a limited number of people within range to an area where other players were already present.

And, the 《Universals》: these had no limits on the number of partic.i.p.ants and, theoretically, could even allow all players to gather in one place.

A majority of the stores in Ayakashi Bystreet were categorised under 《Encounters》 to prevent lines.

The 《Subjugation of a Tiger on the Folding Screen》 that implanted a trauma in Koyomi was an example of the 《Tests of Courage》 meant for a single person; the 《Phantom Orchestra》 that Nayuta had been investigating just a while ago and the 《Kagome, Kagome》 that they planned to challenge were examples of 《Fellow Travellers》 that only allowed party members to partic.i.p.ate.

Because of this system, it was rather unlikely to b.u.mp into someone in restaurants even if you were both regular customers, unless you were trying to meet up with them.

On the other hand, perhaps because there seemed to be few customers, there were cases of relationships forming between two unacquainted players who just happened to be present in the store at the same time.

Nayuta and Koyomi, too, got acquainted only two months ago, when this bakeneko tea house had just opened. 

The impetus behind this was the fact that the nekomata clerk mistook their orders and carried Nayuta’s mamekan to Koyomi, and Koyomi’s warabimochi to Nayuta.

This wasn’t a simple mistake; it seemed that it was an action programmed to occur at a fixed probability as a character trait for the nekomata.

Even later on, the same phenomenon happened now and then, and had practically become an obligatory event in the store.

The nekomata clerks, who would simply incline their head in confusion without apologising and feign ignorance each time this happened, were showgirls wearing cat ears—— of course not, they were a group of actual, bipedal cats.

A black cat, a Calico, a tabby cat, a Russian Blue, Scottish Fold, and a Munchkin - a collection of various breeds was a.s.sembled and they looked lovely in their matching happi coats(10), but they were basically unsocial and, on a whim, frequently idled from work and dozed off. Occasionally, they even jumped onto the customers’ laps, looking as if they owned the place.

Without saying a single word, they only did their waiter duties of taking and bringing the orders, but there were dubious eyewitness reports that there was a mature hermit-like Norwegian silently making wagashi(11) in the kitchen.

Due to the fact that there was no concern for cat allergies in virtual s.p.a.ce, there were fairly many customers visiting the store for these cats.

Nayuta and Koyomi, too, visited it for their respective cats, and since they hit off well, they started frequently forming a party.

The sliding door opened with a clatter, and a new customer walked in.

The receptionist black cat rushed through, pa.s.sing by Nayuta and Koyomi.

“Excuse me, I would like to enquire for the way——”

The person who entered was an elderly priest dressed as a traveller.

He was wearing a braided hat on his head, gaiters on his feet, and had a monk staff in his hand, in other words, you could say he was wearing the initial equipment for a monk.

He could later specialise, choosing between a Warrior Monk and Sinful Monk if he chose the warrior path, or a Mendicant Priest and High Priest if he chose the spell-user path, but compared to the stars, the samurai and ninja, the somewhat plain impression that monks gave could not be denied. And on top of that, he had the appearance of an old man, which was quite rare due to player age bias.

In 《Asuka Empire》, the character’s appearance generally reflected the person’s actual appearance, as the AmuSphere performs a scan of the player’s body when registering a character.

Your appearance could be changed to some degree, and it was possible to change how the clothes fit your figure, but it was difficult to change age and gender.

In the recent years, in order to promote VRMMOs for the elderly generation, “sleeper train trips”, “mountain climbing”, “fishing”, “rural life” and other interactive types of content with few game elements had gained popularity. The majority of the elderly drifted to such games, while those who joined games where battles were the main element still formed a minority.

Even though they could compensate for the physical handicap with equipment or stats, nothing could be done about reflexes. And in the majority of cases, reflexes were the key to determining victory or defeat.

The elderly priest, slowly taking his braided hat off, gave an impression of being really simple. Fitting his role all too well, he looked like he was playing a supporting role in a historical drama rather than being a game player.

The black cat wearing a happi coat was fixedly looking up at the elderly priest right beside it.

Looking down and a bit confused, the elderly priest began speaking.

“……A cat……? Umm…… I…… Excuse me, do you understand what I am saying? I’m a bit——”

Koyomi stood up without a moment’s delay.

“Ojii-chan, those little ones are unmanned AI, so they can’t make such a complicated response! Where do you wanna go? If it’s some place I know, I could guide you there.”

Her self-a.s.sured personality that allowed her to help people even in a game was the target of the shy Nayuta’s respect.

Nayuta also turned her eyes towards the elderly priest.

“Is it your first time at Ayakashi Bystreet? This district should have a warp zone midway down the street …… So, if your destination is a registered establishment, you should be able to use the navigation feature; could it be that your destination is not registered?”

Being called by two young girls, the elderly priest was at a loss for words as if he were surprised, but it seemed that he soon recalled that this s.p.a.ce was different from reality.

The elderly priest smiled and gave a bow, then stepped up to Nayuta and Koyomi’s table.

“Oh, you have my thanks. My name is Yanagi. Just as you have noticed, I am still a beginner…… I am looking for the detective office named 《Mitsuba’s Detective Agency》 that should be in this neighbourhood; would you happen to know anything about it?”

“Ah, I am Nayuta. And this shin.o.bi is Koyomi-san…… Umm….. A detective office, you say?”

Asking again, Nayuta reflexively exchanged glances with Koyomi.

“Koyomi-san, do you know it?”

“Hmm, first time I’ve heard of it…… Detective offices sound like they come from a different world….. Ojii-chan, are you sure that this is really something related to Asuka Empire here?”

With the spread of 《The Seed》, numerous games, including tiny-scaled works, continued to be produced even now. Among them, there should of course be some that had detectives, but in 《Asuka Empire》, whose selling point is a j.a.panese-style world, such an occupation did not exist system-wise.

“Yes, it should be. Although it is mostly done in the form of a hobby…… Excuse me, it seems you have no knowledge of it……”

As the elderly priest was about to leave, Koyomi called him to a stop in a hurry.

“Wait wait! It’s not like we don’t happen to know anything! If it’s not registered on the nav, there’s only one place in the neighbourhood where an individual could get a place for a thing like this——”

“……Well, thinking about it normally, it has to be that place, right.”

The same place came to Nayuta’s mind right away.

The back street of Ayakashi Bystreet, nicknamed “Twilight Street”——

It was a dubious area where, compared to the main street, the price for renting a store was exceptionally cheap, and a lot of individuals could open their preferred establishments regardless of whether they were commercial or not.

A shopping district where street stalls would be lined up on festival days—— was what the game management had in mind, but with the horror elements in mind, it instead became a chaotic neighbourhood that seemed more like the black market.

Due to the large number of stores, which, to make matters worse, frequently changed, not only were each and every one of them not registered on the navigation, but there were plenty of stores dealing in strange goods and services.

“……Ojii-chan, this office that you spoke of, could it be located on 《Twilight Street》?”

“That is exactly right. Though I thought that this was the place……”

The elderly priest smiled broadly as if he were relieved.

Koyomi jumped from her chair.

“Alright! So, Nayu-san, shall we show him the way for a bit before our quest?”

“Okay. I have no objections.

As a matter of fact, it was a place rather hard to navigate for beginners. It would be faster to show the way rather than explain it.

The two stood up from their seats, and chose the payment option from the console.

The nekomata clerk skillfully finished processing the bill for the service with its antique register while its branched tail swayed carefreely.

Even if you, say, left the store without asking for the accounting, the payment would just be taken from the deposit, so it was just a matter of mood. Above all, once the accounting was done, you could get a piece of candy. During campaigns, you could also get lottery tickets and, with luck, you could get a rare piece of equipment as a prize.

“Oh, right….. Clerk-san, could I get some 《botamochi》 for takeout?”

While looking at the bewitching coat of fur on the round, black cat handling the register, Nayuta recalled the event at the hokora some time ago.

That was probably a demand for an offering.

The black cat, as round as a botamochi, nodded and took out some botamochi wrapped in bamboo gra.s.s leaves from a strange outlet, fashioned in the form of a cat’s mouth, by the counter.

Having received the botamochi, Nayuta moved it to her kit bag through her console.

“Hmm? Your afternoon snacks?

“Oh no, this is an offering. Since I might need it for a quest.”

Seen off by the happi coat-wearing nekomata waving its paws, the party left the store.

As they began walking, the elderly priest bowed down.

“I am humbly sorry for interrupting you when you were busy——”

“Oh come now, it’s no problem. The place is kinda hard for a new person to navigate, after all!”

Koyomi’s response was incredibly cheerful.

Nayuta, who did not possess the same skills in the art of conversation, spoke up in a stubbornly refined manner.

“Investigating the 《Twilight Street》 was part of the Hundred and Eight Apparitions tutorial quest. After release, it became an area where users could rent stores—— The office that you are looking for is mixed in among those, I believe.”

“Hahaa, I see…… The person who introduced me to the game told me〝It’s probably a hard place to navigate, so if you’d like, I can have an acquaintance show you around〟, but I thought I could manage somehow anyway—— However, it seems I was naive. Meeting such a kind person as yourself has been a great help.”

Koyomi laughed out loud.

“Hey. Nayu-san, you’re so kind, huh. If I were a man, I’d definitely make you my wife. Actually, I want to be the wife…… Hey, just marry me already. And support me with your ability to make a living…… I don’t wanna go to work on Monday and beyond…… I’ve had enough of being buried in a crowded train with my height……”

Koyomi’s forced voice gradually became quiet.

Nayuta, who had already grown accustomed to handling this, brushed the hair of the girl below as if she were a child.

“What are you saying to a student. You are a good girl, so please be a proper working adult.”

“But you know…… our company is filled with nothing but married pops and grandpas, so we have no girls or boys….. I’ve been doing my best for a year now, but none of it is any fun…… and we work like mules at the end of the fiscal year; I’m getting the feeling that you’re my sole comfort right now, Nayu-san…… Hey, let’s get married already? Nayu-san, a wedding dress would really suit you.”

Her repet.i.tive, reckless remarks were indifferently turned aside by Nayuta.

“Hmm, true. I will consider it if you make over ten million a year.”

“Really!? I know that that’s a complete lie, but I feel like I can pull through for around a week with that one phrase! Life really does need dreams and hopes! Even if they’re just illusions with 0% chance of coming true!”

“……Koyomi-san, does that mean that you kind of like such things? It will be painful to watch at times though.

“Yeah. That’s love. Love, without a doubt. And it’s first love to boot.”

Hearing their odd exchange, the elderly priest burst into laughter.

“……Oh, excuse me. This is my first time in an online game, so I had no idea…… I see, I am starting to understand the reason why my grandchild enjoys this. After all, it is quite fascinating how you can freely create such relationships with other people.

Koyomi looked over her shoulder like a puppy.

“Oh, so you thought you’d start playing with your grandchild, Ojii-chan?”

“Well, that is not really…… Actually, that could be it. It… the circ.u.mstances are a bit complicated—— I have a task that I would like to request of the detective whom we are about to visit.”

The elderly priest stammered while giving a smile.

Thinking that it wasn’t nice to pry so much on a first meeting, Nayuta kept her mouth shut. If he wanted to talk about it he one day would, so she had no intention of prying too much.

Yanagi gave a light nod, as if he were apologising for troubling them.

Leading the elderly priest, Nayuta’s group left the back alley and went around to the back of the bakeneko tea house.

Although the night sky was dark, even spots with no light sources in the district were faintly bright, and there were no obstacles in the way.

It is said that Ayakashi Bystreet was based on the motif of the Edo(12) castle town. “Bystreet” was essentially a word that indicated a narrow road away from the main street, but Ayakashi Bystreet was apparently named as such in the sense of 〝a district away from the present world〟.

The district was so large that it made the word ‘bystreet’ sound like a lie; it was dotted with suspicious places like the Neck-Hanging Sakura, the Kappa Moat, and the Yomi(13) Tunnel.

Compared to Asuka Empire’s capital city, 《Kiyomihara》, based on the motif of the Asuka Kiyomihara Palace, as well as Heijou-kyō and Heian-kyō(14) from nearly the same period with their abundant Buddhism architecture and refined buildings of n.o.bles, this district was more plebian, and emphasis was placed on its ominousness.

Regardless of the time in real life, it was always night at Ayakashi Bystreet as the sun did not rise. At present, it was Sat.u.r.day afternoon, but the sky was immersed in darkness.

The stains on the wooden fences seemed like a human face that occasionally changed its expression.

It wasn’t rare for a white hand to spring up from the mud, the huge castle in the distance would never appear closer no matter what for some reason, a huge oni face appeared in the sky at times.

There was such an enormous number of apparition tricks here that if something went wrong and a 〝real〟 bizzare phenomenon occurred, it’s likely that no one would notice.

Greeting the noppera-bō that they pa.s.sed by, the three walked along the interstice between the old residences and halted in front of a small shrine.

To the sides of the torii(15), a pair of manekineko were sitting in the place of the komainu and fox.

Nicknamed the Neko-Inari(16)—— a G.o.d of cats of dubious lineage, the “Kedamahaku Neko no Mitama no Kami” was revered there, and some taiyaki was offered to him beside the offering box.

“Oh, are we making a stopover?”

“Oh no, this is our destination.”

Koyomi gave an impish smile to the bewildered Yanagi.

She entered through the torii, faced the hokora, bowed twice, clapped twice, and bowed twice again——

And when she turned around, a wide road that wasn’t there before stretched out straight forward on the other side of the torii.

Numerous orange lanterns in a row, gla.s.s bells painted in dazzling colours, and groups of carts with no sense of unity such as oden with takoyaki, cotton candy, ramen, and yoyo fishing.(17)

There were numerous customers coming and going among the miscellaneous stores lined up on the sides as if there were a heat haze.

Not only were there carts, there were also some small-scale businesses that were using the first floor of the buildings to the sides of the road as their stores. Its appearance, reminiscent of a Showa era shopping district, contained a mix of eeriness and liveliness that brought about a chaotic glamour.

Yanagi stared in wonder at this mysterious change that occurred instantaneously.

“What… is this……?”

Nayuta answered in a whisper.

“The interior of the torii is a teleport point. Two bows, two claps and two more bows is the switch for it, so use the same procedure when you want to return.”

It was said that, ordinarily, the proper worshipping etiquette was two bows, two claps and one more bow. In the case of the Neko-Inari, it seemed to be twonya bows, twonya claps, and twonya more bows, as it was a cat G.o.d.

The three continued to walk along Twilight Street, among such liveliness that it seemed like there was an ennichi(18) taking place.

The players going back and forth were rather varied: there were samurai, ninja, onmyouji, shirabyōshi(19), and so on, but there was no one particularly suspicious. However, stores to the side of the road, and the clerks working there, stood out with their strange ornaments and make-up that made them look like yōkai.

There were people wearing oni or kitsune masks, as well as genuine kitsune and rac.o.o.n dogs, who were still on the cute side, but there were also a number of characters that would make kids cry mixed in, including eccentric yōkai such as tenome and jorōgumo, fleeing soldiers with their guts exposed, and entirely black shadow men.

From among them, a strangely attractive, fuzzy keukegen hopped towards Koyomi and pulled on her hand.

“Ramen Keuke-ken” was written on the signboard of the store nearby.

With a bitter smile, Koyomi took back her hand.

“Ah, sorry sorry. I have other business today. I’ll see you around when I’m in the neighbourhood again.”

“……Don’t tell me that you are a regular here.”

“Yeah. It’s a store that always has hair in the soup…… Wait, would that be fur?”

A good-for-nothing, as usual.

The stores on Twilight Street were, in general, strange in some respects. Naturally, the frequent customers were rather strange too.

“Now then, where could the detective agency be, I wonder…… Hmm, let’s see let’s see…… Charms against apparitions here退魔札あり升?”

Like a child who had just learnt a word, Koyomi began reading the signs and banners in her field of view.

“升Masu(20) was used in the Showa era, right?”

Nayuta was hooked and shared her thoughts. Perhaps overwhelmed by the chaotic atmosphere, Yanagi just dumbfoundedly surveyed his surroundings and didn’t say much.

“Ah. Foot ma.s.sage.”

“Not really much point to that in a virtual s.p.a.ce, right.”

“Oooh, the horror standard, human flesh manjū.”

“Someone has poor taste.”

“Chocolat de Framboise.”

“That feels so out of place……”

“Adult video arcade.”

“……I am surprised this got permission from the management.”

“My mistake! It says kitsune video arcade.”

“That has me somewhat worried.”

“w.a.n.kok.u.manabe.”

“……A sub-variety of w.a.n.kosoba(21), perhaps?”

“Nyankosoba.”(22)

“What are these two doing so close together?”

“Mitsuba Detective Agency.”

“What would he be investigating in a pla…… Ah!”

“Cat G.o.d Faith Society.”

“Koyomi-san, please don’t just pa.s.s by like that. It’s here.”

Nayuta grabbed Koyomi, who was leading the way, by the nape like a cat and forced her to stop.

At the entrance so narrow that only one person alone could manage to squeeze through, an old wooden signboard was hanging in a sorry state.

The office in question seemed to be on the second floor. The path ahead was shrouded in total darkness, and steep stairs led above.

Yanagi displayed a smile of relief.

“Ah, this seems to be the place. That you very much, both of you. Alone, I would have had a very hard time reaching this place.”

“……Hm. Well, there is indeed a sign hanging here, but……”

“……Is this really the place?”

Looking up at the second floor, Nayuta and Koyomi noticed a hanged corpse slowly swaying on the other side of the window.

“……Another case of bad taste, hmm.” 

“Hmm, well, it might be linked to the district’s scenery management……”

The scene was not necessarily a reflection of the inside of the room. To create an appropriate atmosphere for Twilight Street, the ornaments on the windows facing outside were configured by the game’s management.

Though, if the tenant’s ornaments pa.s.sed the management’s inspection, the room’s state could be shown through the window as is. This guess could only be confirmed by actually stepping in.

“This is more suspicious than usual….. right, Nayu-san? Isn’t there a chance that once you step in, a secret quest will be activated before you can reach the detective office or something? Sending off a beginner elder like that is kinda——”

Nayuta replied to Koyomi’s worries with a nod.

“……Say, Yanagi-san. This might be rude but… you are still level 1, right?

“Yes. After all, I logged in for the first time today—— I even postponed the tutorial.”

Nayuta and Koyomi exchanged glances. They praised him for managing to reach the bakeneko tea house at this state.

“……This might be uncourteous, but shall we accompany you further if we do not interfere?”

A broad smile appeared on the elderly priest’s face.

“Why thank you, I have caused you so much trouble…… Again, I am greatly obliged for your kindness.”

With his hands pressed together, he gave a very deep bow. It seemed that he had cold feet.

With a nod, Nayuta swiftly stepped forward toward the dark stairs jammed in between the wooden walls.

Seeing her take the lead without hesitation, Koyomi, who was standing in the back, let out a sigh of admiration.

“Nayu-san, I think I’m falling in love with the way you’re being all manly like that……”

“The one in the back does not necessarily have the highest survival rate. Back attacks come from behind.”

“Oh, it’s not about survival rates…… You never think that 〝The dark is scary!〟 or something? In the first place, if we’re talking about survival rates, since Battle Mikos are a vanguard cla.s.s, shouldn’t they strengthen themselves with more metal protectors? It would be one thing if you were a magician-type Exorcist Miko, but you’re the only Battle Miko I know with such enormous b.o.o.bs and visible cleavage……”

“……It’s not visible. I am wearing my innerwear underneath, so please stop with the random s.e.xually hara.s.sing remarks. The size setting…… was just a mistake.”

When creating an account, your figure was influenced by the AmuSphere’s scan to some degree. She could have just wrapped a sarashi(23) around herself, but she did not get to that.

Partly because it was summertime and she was lightly dressed, she started the game without reading the exact numbers; she noticed the glances from her surroundings several days later.

To top it off, while she contemplated whether she should delete her account and start over, she had the luck to obtain a rare piece of equipment with a high evasion stat, the 《Shirahae no Kosode》(24), and so she became unable to delete her account without deleting the item.

Koyomi groaned.

“Even if you’re wearing innerwear…… That s.p.u.n.ky, fireproof, sportswear-like innerwear itself is generally thought of as s.e.xy on its own, you know? It makes your silhouette look quite impressive, you know?”

“You’re exaggerating. And isn’t that fire- or electricity-proof innerwear a standard piece of equipment for shin.o.bi-type people like you, Koyomi-san? Since I focus on speed and agility, I end up with such equipment and I can’t help it.”

Koyomi nudged at Nayuta’s back.

“About that! Nayu-san, if you’re focusing so much on speed, then why didn’t you become a shin.o.bi? Even though it’s a popular cla.s.s that’s the most nimble one in the game and has fair offensive abilities, according to cla.s.s charts. Battle Miko is a cla.s.s that people who think 〝Ninja have far too little armour, so they’re kinda……〟choose, you know?”

‘I have my reasons. I can’t say that I don’t, but I’m a bit embarra.s.sed.’ Nayuta whispered in response.

“Ehm…… I thought—— the hakama(25) looked cute.”

Koyomi hanged her head at once.

“……Sorry, I take back what I said about you being manly. You’re cute, Nayu-san. You look like a proper girl…… On the other hand, as I see nothing but stats and efficiency, my femininity level is awfully low……”

“……Oh no, my character build is suited for martial arts, so I am not very feminine——”

“Nuh-uh. You’re a girl no matter how I look at you…… After all, during battle, your bust jiggles so much…… it goes *tayuntayun*…… so much that I wonder whether it has a specialised visualising engine.”

“……Koyomi-san, seriously, stop with the frequent s.e.xual hara.s.sment with those indecent eyes of yours. It makes it hard to give a normal response.”

It seemed that something unpleasant had happened to her in real life.

Having arrived at the top of the stairs, Nayuta opened the wooden door blocking their path.

A very faint orange light reached the stairs.

Inside was a room larger than they had envisioned.

The ceiling was strangely high, slightly altering the stream of air and the echo of voices.

Directly opposite the open door sat a huge, bulky black cat.

It wasn’t of a normal size.

Its sitting height was easily over three metres, and coupled with the height of the ceiling, it gave off an intimidating aura.

Of course, it wasn’t an actual cat; it was an ornament that had a plump body twice as large as its head and was sitting in Zen meditation position; its forelegs were in the Dhyāna mudrā(26)and its hindlegs were in the lotus position(27), like a black Buddha statue so to speak.

The dim room with the statue looked more like the main temple building of a shrine rather than the second floor of a shopping street, and gave the illusion that they might have been transported by a warp zone.

The large, golden eyes did not particularly give the impression that it was full of love, neither did it give the slightest impression of strength to ward off the klesha(28), or the overambitious will to save the living, but the cat-like expression of cunningness was fully represented.

The halo behind it was styled as cat paw pads, the pedestal as a cat food can, and the lanterns hanging in the surroundings as b.a.l.l.s of wool; even those obsessed with details would find no oversights.

Nayuta and the others stood stupefied in front of the strange-looking seated figure that could be called a large, black cat Buddha statue.

“……Eh? What is… this?”

“Whoa…… Arigataya. Arigataya.”(29)

While Nayuta was bewildered and Koyomi paid her reverence at once, Yanagi found a sign in the darkness.

“To the right is the Cat G.o.d Faith Society, to the left is Mitsuba Detective Agency……It seems that this second floor branches out. This cat statue is probably an entrance objet d’art——”

Looking to the right and left, they saw the respective doors.

The door on the right had a carving of a cat with blazing, open eyes, while the door on the left had a small wooden tag hanging from it, the word 《Open》 written on it.

The door on the right went beyond adorable to being evidently ominous.

After casting down and closing her eyes, then taking a short pause, Nayuta knocked on the door to the left without hesitation.

“——The door’s not locked. Come in.”

The strangely clear voice of a young man came from inside.
 

§

Detectives were generally divided into two categories.

The first included those who only did the job for money, the so-called realist detectives.

The other were romantist detectives, who aspired to be the kind of detectives that appear in stories and thus chose this profession themselves.

The distinction was simple.

The former did not look like detectives. Aside from those in charge of advertising and business, most refrained from showing their faces and precisely handled affair investigation and background checks while hidden in the bustle of the town.

The latter started from the looks. Fine-tailored suits or splash-patterned kimonos, a custom-made stick and their favourite pipe——as long as it looked detective-ish, any prop worked. They were the people to emphasise that they were detectives starting from their appearance, and promote themselves by being conspicuous.

And, just as expected, the owner of the Mitsuba Detective Agency that appeared before Nayuta and the others was part of the 〝latter〟 to an overwhelming degree.

The white shirt, polar tie and vest were still understandable. Although there was no 〝detective〟 cla.s.s system-wise, such Western clothes were sold even in Kiyomihara.

However, even if they were easy to obtain, going so far as to have an inverness cape and deerstalker hanging on the wall made it look like nothing but an evident cosplay of the most famous detective in the world.

The bookshelves crammed with books, leaving no gaps, the gla.s.s shelves storing chemistry lab equipment, an old skeleton, and an antique gramophone were completely devoted to setting the atmosphere.

In the first place, as they were in-game, the ornamental books probably had blank pages. It was even questionable whether they could be taken out of the bookshelves.

The chemistry lab equipment was also meaningless of course, and as for the BGM coming from the gramophone, it was a net radio horse racing broadcast.

It seemed that favourite number nine: the bracket two, horse number two Nikukyūkaiser won Sat.u.r.day’s sixth race.

After confirming these results, the young detective switched off the gramophone-type radio in a good mood.

Under the light of the lamps, the owner of this room behind the mahogany desk, which gave off candy-like l.u.s.tre, displayed an elegant smile.

“Welcome to this office in the outskirts, dear guests. I am Detective Clevel. Do not mind the cat Buddha statue. It’s something that those guys from the Cat G.o.d Faith Society placed of their own accord. You really have to——know their character.”

Detective Clevel’s voice was as clear as a presenter’s.

He was slender but his face and figure weren’t half bad. His gaze, as if he were appraising his guests, was somehow reminiscent of a kitsune.

(……So there are people that give off the same aura as the disguised kitsune from “The Kitsune’s Wedding”……?) 

Nayuta thought back on the quest that she and Koyomi had cleared several days ago.

Although the disguised kitsune in the quest definitely wasn’t wearing Western clothes, he was a handsome young man who had eyes with long slits and a glamorous, slender face. 

A pushover for looks, Koyomi was blindly struck by him, but, unfortunately, he wasn’t Nayuta’s type, thus once she confirmed that he was the enemy, she carried out her judgement on him without hesitation and even received a combo bonus.

Having seen this, she was asked “……Nayu-san, do you have something against hunks……?” by Koyomi with a serious look on her face, but she did not particularly have a problem with that.

The detective named Clevel continued speaking in a smooth tone.

“Now then, Yanagi-san. As for your request, I understand the general details based on the email I received from your middleman just now. Seeing as you could not FullDive to your destination, I apologise that I could not show you the way, and I humbly regret it…… Though if you had contacted me directly, I could have sent someone to meet you at Kiyomihara.”

Yanagi, sitting on the antique sofa, hung his head with a bitter smile.

“Oh no, I wanted to go for a stroll anyway, so I planned to look around the game myself first. Though, I truly did not expect getting lost at this age. If these ladies had not helped me, I would probably still be lost at this time.”

With a triumphant look, Koyomi puffed out her chest.

“Well, you have to support each other in times of trouble! ……Ah, incidentally, I was also interested in the detective; if he were a fraud, I figured I had to stop him and, depending on the case, turn him over to the police……or something.”

In response to her rather rude and frank manner of speaking, the detective let out a chuckle.

“Calling me a fraud is harsh. Though, I understand your reasons for doubt. As a matter of fact—— the agency was approved by the game management as a 〝tourist enterprise〟 rather than a 〝detective enterprise〟. In RPGs, situations when the sign for a business states ‘bar’ when it’s actually a temporary employment agency can be encountered now and then, right? It’s something like that.” 

Nayuta inclined her head to the side. A detective enterprise in an online game was suspicious, but a tourist enterprise was quite suspicious as well.

“A tourist enterprise……? In a VRMMO you say?”

“Not what you expected? It’s quite popular among the English-speaking customers. Since a sightseeing trip to j.a.pan takes both time and money, there is of course a demand for experiencing the atmosphere cheaply through a j.a.panese-style game. The AmuSphere is excellent for that. Tasting gourmet food, soaking in a hot spring, getting worked up over ninja and admiring sakura——none of these are different from their real life equivalents. Why, it even allows 〝climbing mount Fuji with guaranteed good weather and no congestion〟, which is hard to do in real life. So, my job is to accompany my clients on the quests that they wish to go on as an interpreter and guide, or show them around towns, stores and all the famous places.”

A black, bipedal nekomata that appeared out of nowhere placed some black tea in front of Nayuta and the others. They seemed to be business-use bots identical to the ones at the bakeneko tea house.

While putting some cube sugar into his black tea, Clevel continued the chat that doubled as his self-introduction.

“My customers aren’t all foreigners. Some officials from domestic enterprises, though not numerous, occasionally come to me with requests. They are usually people who have absolutely no experience with games, but want to observe from the inside for their collaboration plans and advances on the game market——I get requests like that.”

Clevel’s gaze faced a corner of the wall. A poster from the maker of a famous drink announcing their collaboration for the 《Hundred and Eight Apparitions》was affixed to the wall there.

“For such clients, if asked, I handle a.n.a.lyses of the in-game market and fads, and offer suggestions. At this point, I go into the consultant field rather than a tourist or detective enterprise, but…… In a word, you could say that I act as a scapegoat to help officials from companies avoid responsibility. If their plans fail, they can put the blame on an outsider like me and save their reputation in the company.”

The working adult Koyomi gave a conspicuous, displeased expression.

“……Uwaa…… You’re blunt……”

The detective sneered carelessly.

“I’ve had clients with such a plan in mind; that’s the extent of my work. Of course, I refuse jobs that are too likely to fail. Now then…… As I have finished explaining what kind of place this is, let’s talk about Yanagi-san’s request.”

The detective changed his tone as he turned to Yanagi sitting on the sofa.

Yanagi responded with a meek nod.

“Based on the middleman’s letter, 〝I’d like to clear a certain new quest within a week〟is your request it seems, but——excuse me, I would like to confirm the payment first. That idiot seems to have made a mistake with the digits.”

Yanagi hurriedly shook his head.

“Oh no, I believe that it is correct. Two hundred thousand for the deposit, twenty thousand per man per day, and a million as a completion bonus for doing it within a week, so if you would like……” 

Nayuta could not believe her ears at that amount of money. Koyomi frowned reflexively.

“……Eh? Wha? Are you talking about in-game currency? You can’t really be talking about real money, right?” 

The detective sighed.

“We only deal in j.a.panese Yen and the Dollar. Yanagi-san——Excuse me but, are you serious? Of course, the price greatly depends on the content of the request, but there are almost no risks, unlike how the case is for detectives in the real world; it is basically safe. If it is just to help with quest clearing, the price per person per day is ten thousand, and the price for completion is at most fifty thousand. While it may be true that if it were a Seven Wonder-cla.s.s large-scale quest, it would require a decent deposit, but…… If I recall correctly, your request was the 《Phantom Orchestra》, right? Although no one has cleared it yet, if we believe the announcements from the game’s management, it should not be that difficult.”
 

Nayuta’s shoulders twitched.

(Ah. The Phantom Orchestra——)

She had attempted the quest just a short while ago.

As there were about two to three new quests implemented per week, it wasn’t strange that someone might be overwhelmed by the number of quests they wanted to do.

But, she could not understand Yanagi’s true motives behind wanting to clear a quest that did not have known drop items or a confirmed value so much that he took the trouble to request a detective for help.

As for the quests implemented this week, a clearing group has formed for the 《Forest of Werewolves》, which had a prior announcement to include rare items, thus the majority postponed the Phantom Orchestra which did not even have clear triggering requirements.

Yanagi gave a deep bow.

“I beg of you, please consider. It is true that it might seem like a large sum, but I have certain circ.u.mstances that compel me to clear it within a week no matter what the cost, even if I have to pay such a large sum——”

“Whoa whoa, what circ.u.mstances!? Is it normal to offer over a million yen just for clearing a quest?”

Koyomi shouted in a shrill voice, but Clevel held her back with his hands.

“Young lady, according to the rules here, the client doesn’t have to speak about what he doesn’t want to speak about——if there’s also a large payment involved, I will not force him to talk. I will just handle a job that is as sincere as the sum offered for it.”

“Yeah….. You sure talk cool, but in short, you mean 〝I have my eyes on the money〟 by that, right?”

Clevel took Koyomi’s unrelenting indication in stride with a faint smile.

“I won’t deny that. Money is a convenient scale for measuring how sincere and serious a person is. Above all——can you two really disregard the wish of this elder when he is willing to pay so much out of pocket to have it granted?”

“……More like, we want to teach the detective a wonderful proverb: 〝Every sweet offer has a catch〟 …… Ojii-chan, why are you in such a hurry? It’s not like there’s a time limit; you could just clear it at your own pace. You don’t need to pay such a suspicious detective any money; just say the word and we’ll help you free of charge.”

Nayuta, who had been carefully watching over the course of events, finally opened her mouth as well.

“I was just in the middle of investigating the 《Phantom Orchestra》. I have even found a hint regarding the requirements for triggering it, so if it goes well, we will probably clear it within a few days.”

Before the elderly priest could answer, the detective interjected.

“I see. That’s not a bad deal either—— As a matter of fact, Yanagi-san. I have an issue to resolve during the time of your request. It is somewhat related to my schedule being free, but my a.s.sistant, who is usually in charge of combat operations, will not be able to log in due to personal business until after the tenth. I planned to hire a temporary mercenary if the need arose, but if these ladies wish to a.s.sist you, then that is just what you needed.”

Koyomi stood up from the sofa at once.

“Ah! Your get-rich-quick scheme was about to crumble, so you planned to placate us!”

“Please let me finish. I’m not so worried about money—— Yanagi-san, let’s put our contract on hold till Monday. Instead, please try clearing the quest over today and tomorrow, the weekend, with these ladies. I will also accompany you and thus do some investigation beforehand, but I will not require payment for these two days. In the first place, if it is a simple quest that can be completed in just two days, I cannot accept such a large payment. If we are unable to clear the quest in two days—— please consider again whether you would like to enter a contract with me on Monday. And, in the event of a contract being formed, I will a.s.sist you with all I have for five days starting from Monday.”

The detective finished his speech and gave Nayuta and Koyomi an intelligent gaze.

“……And so, this is my compromise. After all, starting from Monday, you two will have either school or work, right? You’ll likely be unable to help Yanagi-shi during that time. In the end, there lies the reason why he wants to employ a detective like me. A talented man, capable of focusing on this quest twenty four hours per day, even if I have to refrain from sleep, to clear it by any possible means, as long as the client has the money——that is who I am.”

Unable to object, Koyomi groaned vexedly.

“Muu…… W-we can just clear it over the weekend! We can do it we can do it! No problem! Time attack, bring it! Let’s do it!(30)”

“……Indeed, we have no issue with it. Yanagi-san, you don’t mind us a.s.sisting you, do you?”

Nayuta’s tone was calm in comparison to Koyomi’s vigour, but the determination in her words could be said to be mostly the same.

Yanagi inclined his head as if he were troubled.

“Well, of course, this is just what I needed, but…… are you sure? To do something like this for me, a person you have just met……”

Nayuta nodded modestly.

“As I have said before, it is a quest that I am investigating as well. Even without you, Yanagi-san, I planned to clear it before long.”

She had absolutely no idea why this elder wanted to clear the 《Phantom Orchestra》.

But, at least he did not seem like a bad person; seeing his sincere expression, it was obvious that this was important to him.

Detective Clevel picked up the inverness cape and deerstalker hanging on the wall.

“With that settled, let’s move out at once. Nayuta, Koyomi, we have just met, but I’m looking forward to working with you. Let’s form a party now, you too, Yanagi-san.”

Operating their respective consoles, the group finished forming a party. Yanagi took a bit more time, but thanks to to Koyomi’s instructions from the side, the impromptu party was finished without a hitch.

The 《Phantom Orchestra》 that they were about to attempt fell under the 《Fellow Traveller》 category, which only allowed players to encounter party members. Thus, it was impossible to take on the quest with other people unless a party was formed at least temporarily.

(Yanagi-san is of course level 1. Thoug