Chapter 3 Chapter Three Zodiac Chamber of Secrets

By the time we got back to the dormitory it was 6pm and the sun had completely set. Before walking to my room, I met girls from other dormitories in the hallway.She stared wide-eyed when she saw Mistakiri and the boy in a suit and vest sleeping on my back. "Jie...the range of your hobbies has expanded recently." "Just pretend you didn't see it." I went into the room, put the fog cut on my back on the bed and told her to lie down.There are still shocking scars on her white neck, maybe she really almost died at that time, how pitiful... Rico looked around my room curiously.

"Oh...this is the girls' dormitory." "Don't look!" I kicked the stray clothes and underwear under the bed. "Okay." Rico sat down on the floor with a smile on his face. "After sister Wuqiri wakes up, I have many questions to ask you...but tell me one thing first, are you really Yujingling?" "Some people call me this way. If it's from this meaning, then the answer is YES. I don't remember what my real name is. I said before that my parents died very early, and I don't know when I got up. It's in the orphanage."

"Then who is the imperial mirror registered in the detective library?" "I." "But you... are you at level 30? This is a very remarkable thing, do you know it yourself?" "I know, it's for this reason that many people chase me around." "How old are you now?" "About twelve." "Huh? Wait, it doesn't seem right... How old were you when you registered in the detective library?" "About seven years old. In order to solve a certain incident, I needed a registration card from the detective library, so I went to register."

"That is to say, a seven-year-old child has risen to level 30 in just five years since he was twelve?" "To be precise, I already had three zeros when I was about nine years old." Is this the so-called genius... It took some people three years to finally rise to the first level, and some people solved the incident through self-directed and self-acted means to rise to the sixth level... It may be because Yu Jingling rose to level 30 in the blink of an eye after registration, and the Crime Victims Committee failed to grasp his identity.Having said that, the more important reason should be that he is very good at hiding.

"The cases I solved with Yu Jingling's name will be recorded in the detective library. I don't know who hid it and saw it." "Anyway, those people on the committee will definitely see it in the 'live broadcast' demonstration." "It has nothing to do with the committee." "Huh? But isn't the Detective Library secretly colluding with the Victims of Crime Relief Council?" "No, they didn't collude." "Fake, it must be fake, no matter how you think about it..." "The Detective Library, like its philosophy, adheres very closely to the principle of 'a database without thought'. It does not associate with any organization, thereby ensuring the neutrality of the recorded detectives."

"So, isn't it just talking about its concept?" "... who knows." Rico tilted his head with a smile. "Ah, you think it doesn't matter, you want to fool around casually, right?" "Hehe, I'm sorry, after all, I'm not interested in what the detective library is," Rico said with a childish smile. "At least there isn't a mutually beneficial relationship between the council and the library, and the council is using the library unilaterally, if anything." "……Is that right?" "Speaking of which, if the committee and the library really belong together, then wouldn't it be very unnatural that the files of the head of the committee, Immortal Emperor Xin, were all destroyed? The files of the others obviously remained."

"This is because... if the leader of a criminal organization can let others see his file at any time, it should be very detrimental to them." "Is that so? If they can tamper with the level or file information at will for their purposes, then why make the new Immortal Emperor the 'only one whose files were destroyed'? Isn't that too conspicuous?" "Ah, that's right..." "In other words, it can be considered that the committee has no right to interfere with the level of detectives and the contents of the archives. To be precise, I don't think the committee has thought about including the library from the very beginning. "Black Challenge" from a certain aspect It is a gambling show, so it must be guaranteed that the detectives called in the game are rated by some neutral organization. In this sense, for the committee, the position of the detective library must It is neutral, and we can't let the audience down by cracking down on fake games."

The fun for the audience of "Black Challenge" is probably watching real crimes. Of course, as a program, many places have also arranged it. "But this 'Challenge of Blackness' deliberately chose me as a detective, right? Can this be called neutral?" "It's not unfair to choose any detective as long as the limit of the expenditure range is not exceeded." "I still can't accept that." I threw twelve challenge books to the ground. "This game is related to the fate of Longzuo Temple, which is nothing at all. His value as a detective will not be affected by twelve pieces of paper."

"...You're partial to Mr. Ryuzoji, aren't you?" "Well, I respect him a lot." "Who are you helping, the committee or me?" "It's like a question asked by a couple." Rico smiled shyly and seemed to enjoy playing the couple.I know his smile is poisonous, it seems that if he is not careful, he will see God, and it feels terrible. "I believe you are at least not an enemy." "It's good that you can believe it." Rico smiled, and he seemed genuinely happy. As a level 30 detective, this young man is not at all proud of his brilliant achievements, he does whatever he wants, and is keen on solving mysteries... I thought he was such a person, but I don't know why he came here as an attendant of Longzou Temple. Work closest to the committee.There are too many mysteries about him, and there are many things I have to ask from him.

Just when I was thinking about where to ask, Wuqie sat up on the bed moaning.She coughed painfully. "Are you okay, sister Wuqie? Come on, drink some water, it really doesn't matter if you don't go to the hospital?" "Well... no problem." She answered me in a hoarse voice, and took a sip of water from the bottle.It looks like it's not just her throat, she's got bruises all over her body, but she's still trying to look strong. If I continued to act worried, it might hurt her self-esteem. I decided to continue the topic just now. "I'm going to interrogate him," I pointed to Rico, who was sitting respectfully. "Actually... he is Yu Jingling."

"I think so too." Wuqie said while rubbing his throat. "You knew already?" "I just feel suspicious. When sister-in-law introduced me, he only said that he was a friend, but for some reason he knew my name." "Maybe I got to know your face and name at Longzuo Temple?" Rico still refuted with a smile on his face. "Then you will at least be surprised when you see me. For the side of Longzuo Temple, I am the enemy they are currently looking for, and it should be impossible to appear in that place... However, anyway , I was sure that you are not an ordinary person after seeing your actions in the face of the killer." "In that case, there's no way to keep another hand. Although it may sound like an excuse, but after getting rid of those killers in the department store, I was going to confess my love, really." "Who knows if it's true," I squinted at Rico. "Speaking of which, why did you go to Mr. Ryuzoji?" "If I can't immerse myself in 'unbelievable' for a long time, I will turn into ashes and die." Rico smiled calmly. There is a very real feeling in his smile, which makes it impossible to take this as a joke. "That's why I sneaked into the castle of Ryuzoji Temple, which is the place where the mysteries are most concentrated in the world. However, although the number is impeccable, the nature is very bad, and it is simply suffocating." "Your mind is too good." "It seems that traveling around is more suitable for me than staying in one place. Somewhere in this world, there must be 'something mysterious' waiting for me." Rico smiled like a boy looking forward to summer vacation. A detective who purely pursues secrets—this is probably one of the ways of being a detective.Compared with some detectives who are bound by the idea of ​​protecting something or saving someone, he seems infinitely free and pure. "Does Mr. Longzuosi know that you are Yujingling?" "I think he didn't know about it when he hired me, and before yesterday, he only suspected that I might be Yu Jingling. And his doubts will surely turn into convictions today." "Why? Is Mr. Ryuzoji spying on us somewhere?" "No, I think some of the killers should be hired by Longzuo Temple." Li Ke said calmly. "Hey, why, why?" "Of course it was to kill me—to be precise, it should be to confirm whether I am Yu Jingling. From the results, all the killers survived safely, and they should report to Longzou Temple." "The information that 'Okage Spirit will appear at Meyura Station' should have also come from Ryuzoji Tsukishita." Kirikiri sat down on the edge of the bed and said. "Wait, wait a minute, what's going on? Why did Mr. Ryuzoji do this?" Kiritaki looked at my panic-stricken expression with an indifferent expression, and began to explain to me. "Everything was arranged in advance. First of all, Longzou Temple spread false information and arranged for the killers he hired to go to the destination. Of course, he did not tell these killers the truth. At the same time, he threw a strong-willed attack to Mrs. Jie Jie." "Black Challenge" created such a situation that you had to go to Meyura Station in order to solve the "Black Challenge". In this way, he found a reason to help Yume-sama Send Rico to Meyura Station in the name of the project. Of course, those killers will meet Rico." "It's getting more and more inexplicable. If this is the case, then the twelve challenge letters were a trap from the beginning, just to expose Yu Jingling's true identity?" Thinking about it this way, there is a deep meaning in the game that Longzhaosi played with me and asked me to choose between black and white envelopes. It was an experiment, to test whether I was a person who would do whatever it takes to achieve my goals... That is to say, when Yu Jingling wanted to kill those killers, Longzou Temple needed someone present to stop him. "In this way, I know why he put a person who has only been hired for half a year as a follower. Presumably he did this to expose my true identity." Rico seemed to be talking about something that had nothing to do with him. "Really... just because of you, I was tricked around, I didn't expect that all of this was a trap to force Yu Jingling to show up... However, those challenge letters are fake, I am really relieved. " I breathed a sigh of relief. "But the scary thing about Longzuoji is that it's not like that," Ricoeur said with a shrug. "Those challenge books are not fake, they are real things at a fair price. This is the reason why Longzou Temple is called a genius of parallel thinking and multitasking. He is good at repeating one thing at the same time and in parallel. things, and thus give them meaning.” "Uh... so the 'Black Challenge' has really started?" "That's it." ...my brain can no longer keep up with the rhythm. How many fuses has been ignited in Longzuo Temple, and he himself did not move a step, and a button in his hand can trigger a big explosion.It turned out to be such a terrible thing to be an enemy of the easy chair detective. "The 'Black Challenge' has just begun, and there is still a lot of time." Rico said with a leisurely smile. There are about 161 hours left. It can be said that there is still a lot of time, and it can also be said that there is not enough time. "By the way, Lico, do you know the content of this 'Black Challenge'?" Wuqie asked Lico with sharp eyes. Li Ke shook his head: "I am basically not allowed to enter his room when Longzuo Temple is working. Even if I watch him work from the side, I can't tell which one of the items he is processing in parallel is Regarding the 'Black Challenge'-" "Isn't there?" "Ok?" "Can't you tell the difference? You should be able to." "...It's hard to say." Rico smiled and tilted his head, as if playing stupid. "Just tell the truth, Rico," I pressed him. "Who are you helping?" "I don't know." Rico spread his hands and said. "What's not clear? Is there anything you don't know?" "Left or Right, A or B, Enemy or Friend—I don't know why the boundaries are drawn like this, and why I attribute myself to one side. Isn't it all the same? Just because I like to draw boundaries However, countless wars broke out in this world..." "Unfortunately, there is no time to talk about philosophy now. Rico, I need your help, you should be very clear, right?" "you need me?" "Need, please help me." "Then I have a condition." "Conditions—? Well, tell me." "Please give me a kiss." "--what?" "It's magic that works miracles." "Don't, stop joking." "Just a kiss on the face." "Kiss, kiss your face? Just kiss your face?" "Sister Jie, are you going to accept this condition?" "How, how can I accept it?" "It's a pity, then I'll go back." "Wait, wait a minute!" Liko was about to stand up, and I held him down. "Okay, okay, I see, you sit down, Rico." "Sister Jie, are you serious?" "Is there any way, isn't a kiss on the face just to say hello?" "Then don't look so forced on your face." Rico looked up at me and said. "Listen well, let me just say this, as for the magic kiss, it's only when the prince kisses the princess...I'm just..." "I know, it's just a joke," Rico raised his hands in a gesture of surrender. "I don't need any magic. I've been on Miss Knot's side from the very beginning." "You..." I really wanted to beat up the boy in front of me, but I held back.If I can't hold my breath, I lose. "First of all, to the question of whether I know the content of the 'Black Challenge', the answer is NO. I neither know the content nor the answer. Please think about it carefully. Long Zuoji has been suspecting that I am Yu Jingling. How could he possibly Let such a man know his secret?" "Then make it clear from the beginning." "Let me also tell you here by the way, I sneaked into Longzou Temple not only to pursue secrets, but in fact I have been investigating the Crime Victims Relief Committee." "—Why didn't you say this before?" Alas, it is really annoying. "Probably because I expect you to think of it yourself... let's not talk about it. This year, the number of people close to me has suddenly increased. They are all detectives sent by the committee. I learned that it is the new Immortal Emperor who wants to Win me over, and if I don't agree, they're going to kill me." It seems that the committee really intends to use Yujingling.Generally speaking, when you want to increase your combat effectiveness, you should naturally choose someone with a higher level. "So I sneaked into the castle of Ryuzoji Temple and investigated the committee's movements for a while. To be honest, if the committee can arouse my interest, I also have plans to join." "You are really a fool..." "I don't have any principles as a detective." Rico smiled narrowly, how could he say that himself. "It's just that the committee creates mysteries in the final analysis. Although I love mysteries, I don't want to come up with exam questions myself, so I lost interest in the committee. Compared with this, I want to be a member of the "Challenge of Black" call Detectives out to solve mysteries, but someone with three zeros seems to be having a hard time calling..." The higher the cost in "Black Challenge", the higher the level of the summoned detective.Therefore, in order to summon a level 30 detective, it must cost a considerable amount of money, but from a psychological point of view, the perpetrator basically would not spend such a large amount of money. "From the conclusion - I am willing to help Miss Jie to complete the 'Black Challenge'. I really want to solve the puzzle, please let me help you." "Oh, really, just say no at first!" I scratched my head and said. "I really don't know if you're being honest or not." "Miss Jie is really a simple person." He said innocently, and I hit him hard on the head—even though I imagined it, but in reality I held back. "All in all, please take care of me, it's really helpful to have you here." I reached out to shake Rico's hand, but he just grinned and didn't extend his hand. "……What's wrong?" "It's okay to accept me so easily?" "What else do you want to say?" "Miss Xiangzi doesn't seem to believe me that much." It's the turn of trouble here. Kirikiri still stared at Rico with sharp eyes, almost staring. "What's the matter, sister Wuqie, you don't believe in Rico?" "The new Immortal Emperor..." she whispered. "He can be anyone." Hearing what she said, I was shocked. A variant detective who is good at camouflage and makeup - Xinxiandi. "So that's it, are you wondering if I'm the new Immortal Emperor?" "I don't think it should be," I said without hesitation. "No matter how you look at it, Rico's stature is smaller, even smaller than Yukiri's sister. The Xinxian we saw at the Normanz Hotel is at least taller than me, no matter how brilliant he is. It's impossible to shrink yourself so small." "If it's the other way around to make yourself look bigger, then it's possible." Wuche retorted. "Maybe it's possible... But Rico is actually relatively small, so there's no point in doubting it." "No, what if Rico's appearance is the real one now, and the new fairy we saw in the hotel was in disguise? In fact, the new fairy who appeared in the hotel at that time was indeed in disguise." "Theoretically, it's possible." Rico didn't deny it. "If, if you say that, then I might be Xinxian in disguise." "Master Jiejie must be true." "Why so sure?" "...Because it's very soft." Wuqiri said without looking away. It turns out that she rushed over and hugged me yesterday to confirm my identity... "Lico, you should say a few words." "It's hard to say clearly. This is the proof of the so-called demon. No matter how much we discuss it, we can only get one answer, that is 'Rico may be the new Immortal Emperor, or he may not'." "You said some oblique words again, just say that it's not no." "No. I'm not the new Immortal Emperor." However, Yukiri's sharp eyes did not ease at all. "Sister Wuqie, don't you believe it?" "To be honest, I probably believe 60% of it." "That's a delicate number," Rico shrugged, laughing resignedly. "On what grounds?" "Voice. You haven't changed your voice yet, but the new Immortal Emperor is clearly the voice of an adult man." "That's right! No matter how good he is at dressing up, it's impossible to switch the voice before and after the voice change at will." ——No, the new Immortal Emperor might be able to do it, right? The thought crossed my mind, but I ignored it. "You trust me?" "Didn't you say that, from the beginning, I only believed in you 60%." "Then you two should shake hands to show friendship, just use 60% of your strength." Wuqie stretched out his hand reluctantly, Rico held her hand respectfully and smiled. "Okay, we are all good friends. By the way, shake hands with me too. It didn't happen just now." I held out my hand to Rico, and he responded honestly.His hand is as small as a girl's, and I don't think it is possible for this hand to belong to the new Immortal Emperor. "Okay, I can finally continue." I lined up the twelve challenge books on the ground. These challenges are all events that will happen in reality, and maybe a few of them have already happened. And we must resolve all twelve incidents. I stretched out the pointer, and continued talking to Rico, who was sitting upright on the ground, and Mistakiri, who was sitting on the edge of the bed like a commander. "To overcome this 'Black Challenge', it is absolutely too late for three people to act together. We need to investigate separately. Does anyone have any objections?" Rico and Wuqie nodded in agreement. "Fortunately, if three people divide it, the twelve incidents can be divided into four incidents for one person—" As I said that, I felt a little dizzy.Four incidents?It took my life to solve all of them before, but now I have to solve four at the same time by myself? "First of all, let's find out where the events are going to happen, and divide the events that are relatively close to each other into groups of four." "I have a question, teacher." "What's the problem, Liko?" "Actually, there is no need to go to every scene. As long as the incident occurs, we can learn all the basic information from the police. Can we take advantage of this and use the easy chair detective to handle the case better?" "Isn't that tantamount to waiting for the predicted crime to happen? This is absolutely impossible!" The challenge letter is also a crime notice. As long as the detectives use their brains, they can completely prevent problems before they happen. "But it's really impossible to solve all of them," Wuqie shook his head slowly. "Maybe I'll be tied up in one place for the rest of the time, like the hotel last time... this time it's a place like a luxury liner. Once I leave the sea, I probably won't be able to return on my own." "Well, um... that's true." "With this as a guide, it is better to group events based on the amount of expenses, rather than the location. Start grouping events with low expenses, and then it doesn't matter whether it is from high to low or from low to high, Choose whatever you want." "Then first arrange these challenge books according to the cost..." "I said, can you hurry up," Rico spread his hands impatiently. "If you leave it all to me, these incidents can be resolved within time." "Even if it's you, it's unlikely." "Yes." Rico's expression was still cheerful and lively. If it was him, maybe it really could. ... To be honest, including the Kirikiri family, both sides of this "Challenge of Blackness" are actually people with a level 30 detective level from the very beginning. Ryuzoji should have expected Rico, That is to say, Yu Jingling will join the battle as a detective, and the enemy in Longzoo Temple's imagination is not me, but Yu Jingling.No, maybe it's Kyoko Kirikiri, even though she's a newcomer so the rank numbers aren't huge, but they don't seem to think so. Thinking about it carefully, I was involved in this battle, which can only be described as running on the wrong set. Wouldn't it be better to just hand everything over to him... "Which incident is the most incredible?" Rico was like a puppy who got a toy, as if he was about to wag his tail at any time, and he picked out the challenge book with his eyes shining. "As expected, if two or three people are not killed, the mystery will have no depth. Is it more likely that the relatively expensive incident is a serial murder case? How to use this kind of murder weapon is a big point to watch, puff..." He became excited... Sure enough, it still didn't work. As a detective, he is not bound by anything and is completely free, but at the same time, he also lacks a sense of morality and justice.He is only interested in solving mysteries and uncovering the truth of mysterious events, and he doesn't care about the outcome of the events at all. You can't leave everything to him.But I don't have the talent to solve the incident. If he can give me a little bit of his talent, I will save people all over the world... "...I suddenly lost confidence." I put away the pointer and sat down on the ground. "My lord sister, the incident hasn't even started yet." "I know..." I am completely useless, I am really unwilling. But if I hang my head down now, I'm really useless. At least I'm going to look forward with my head held high. "Sister Wuqie, no matter what you say, I still think we should go to the scene to save people. This battle is related to the glory of the detective." "Master Yui..." Kirikiri looked at me uneasily. In her eyes, I probably looked like a poor student who tensed up before the exam, and I must have looked very pitiful. Even so, I still have to move on.I believe there is hope ahead for me. "I said, Master Jie, how about this," Wuqie said while touching the ends of the three-strand braid. "I also agree that everyone can solve the incident separately, but not everyone can solve it separately. How about me and Sister Jie as a pair? We are together... and I feel more at ease." The last sentence seemed difficult for her to say. I would only get in the way if I was in a group with Sister Wuqie——I wanted to say this, but hesitated. It suddenly occurred to me that the role of detective is indispensable in terms of the nature of the game in "Black Challenge".The detective this time is me, so the perpetrator is not allowed to hurt me. That's right, there is only one thing I can do, and that is to be your umbrella. "That's it, Sister Wuqie, you concentrate on reasoning, and leave it to me to collect evidence and bring down the murderer." "Am I alone?" Rico interjected. "You and us are responsible for splitting the incidents in half, that is, six on each side. In this way, you can solve two more puzzles than three people, how about it?" "That's fine." Rico said with a smile on his face, maybe he is actually quite simple. "Then I'll move on," I picked up the twelve challenge books. "About who is in charge of which challenge book..." "Every one looks very interesting, which is really embarrassing." "Lico, don't say anything interesting, or you will die." "I'm sorry," Rico apologized honestly. "But choosing and choosing will only waste time, why not assign them randomly?" "Well—well, that's true." Judging from these challenge letters alone, I don’t know what kind of events will happen. It seems meaningless to pick and choose at this time. "Then let me shuffle the cards." Rico grabbed the twelve challenge books and threw them over his head. Then-- "Hey!" He pulled out six darts from the folded suit on the floor like a conjurer, held them between his fingers, and threw all six darts with a wave of his hand. One of them passed by my eyes, and I subconsciously leaned back. Slap, slap, with the brisk sound, some of the darts were stabbed on the wall of the room, and some were stabbed on the ceiling, and each dart had a challenge book nailed to it, which was amazing.On closer inspection, one of them stabbed my coat on a hanger. "Ah - what are you doing!" "The letter of challenge that was stabbed is my responsibility." Rico didn't seem to hear what I said at all, and happily pulled out the darts one by one. I picked up all the challenge books scattered on the floor. I sat down next to Wuqie and looked at the six challenge books we were in charge of together with her. With the above expenses, the following detectives are called "Hey, Liko, we have something that suits you better, do you want to exchange it?" I'm talking about the challenge that cost the most.High overhead means that events can be tricky, which I would like to avoid as much as possible. But Rico shook his head. "Don't let me see such an interesting thing, uh uh..." Rico struggled to express his refusal. "If you want to exchange or not, no matter how much time you have, it's not enough time. Just decide like this, otherwise I can't restrain my desire anymore." Show him pictures of Stonehenge or the Pyramids and maybe he'll get excited, though he'd love to try it, but he doesn't have time for it right now. "Only this 500 million challenge book says 'ultimate chamber'," said Wuqie, still maintaining a calm attitude. "I don't know what a secret room with a cost of 500 million is like." "In other words, this kind of expenses are within the range of my level?" Although I know that 1.3 billion can summon double zero-level detectives, but I don't have any zeros, but I have to deal with 500 million cases? With 500 million yen, it is truly omnipotent. As long as you have money, you will even have a wide range of options for killing people.It would be fine if it was the perpetrator's own money, but in fact the money was generously offered by the Crime Victims Relief Council.Maybe this is the scary thing about "Black Challenge". "Now that the division of labor has been decided, I'll go back." Rico stood up holding the challenge book. "Are you going back?" "Yes, I can hardly wait for the moment when I open the door of the secret room." "By the way, where are you going back?" "Today I will go back to Longzuo Temple." "Huh? Aren't you and Mr. Ryuzoji equivalent to enemies? Will he let you in?" "Longzuo Temple is not so narrow-minded, and besides, I won't be so despicable, taking advantage of his unpreparedness to sneak up on him. Besides, I still have work to do over there." "Work?" "It is to receive information from the police and convey it to you, Miss Jie. This is my original job. If necessary, please contact me at any time, and I will pass the information to you." "You look like a spy. Would Ryuzoji-san give you the information in this case?" "You shouldn't worry about that, he's a fair man." There was really no room for doubt.If he just wanted to get rid of us, he could do it in any number of ways, and yet he demanded a duel with us.I think his excessive integrity is probably one of the reasons why he became the savior. "Then let's all work hard." "Well, please, Rico." We parted in front of the dormitory gate.