Chapter 3 Chapter 3 Sirius Observatory Murder Case 2

The high school I attended was a one-hundred and fifty-year-old girls' high school.This church school is a well-known aristocratic girls' school, but compared with before, the school's religious color has been much weaker. Now at most, the history of missionaries can only be glimpsed from the old brick school buildings and churches. In principle, part-time jobs are prohibited in schools.But as long as you apply to the school, most of them can get permission. However, I seem to be the first person to apply for a detective's license since the school was founded. Originally, detectives were not a profession or type of work. They could probably be said to be a kind of existence, or it should be said to be a kind of talent.So it's a little unclear if there's any point in applying to the school for a detective license.However, the nun who is the principal is very happy.It may be because for the nun, the so-called detective is not a kind of existence, nor is it a kind of talent, but gives her an impression similar to that of a volunteer.

All in all I'm the only detective in this high school.The school also allows me to wear a uniform to participate in formal activities. Considering the flexibility, I usually wear skirts instead of short skirts.Although it seemed to offend some of the seniors, my friends thought it was good. Since my detective work is my priority, I don't participate in club activities.However, detective work wasn't always available, so most of the time my life after school was no different than going home, just going straight back to the dormitory. Since I entered this school, I have been living a dormitory life.The four-and-a-half tatami-sized room includes a kitchen, bathroom, and toilet. It is a small single room, which is nothing more than the reality of aristocratic girls' schools.Although some students are envious of dormitory life, the rules here are actually stricter than that of ordinary families.

I found out that someone had dropped a black envelope into my personal mailbox in the dorm, in December, the winter of my freshman year in high school. There was neither a postage stamp nor an address on the B5-sized pitch-black envelope, but my name was printed in white letters on it, so the letter must have been addressed to me.I picked up the envelope and walked into the dormitory. "Ah, Jie, you're back." I met another girl living in the dormitory in the corridor. "What is this, is it a love letter again?" "How is that possible?" I smiled wryly and looked at the black envelope.From the looks of it, it's not really a love letter.If this is the case, then the person who sent this letter is really a weird person.

I have received love letters twice.One of them was a girl as small and exquisite as a squirrel. She was a member of the handicraft department in the class next door. Naturally, I rejected her, and I had no choice but to reject her.Even now, I still sometimes catch her looking at me from afar in the shadow of the school building.Another person sent me a very literary letter, but without the sender's name, so I don't know who it was.I am not continuing the investigation as a detective. I walked into my room and threw myself on my bed without taking off my coat.I rolled over on my back and opened the envelope while holding it up to the fluorescent light.

Inside was a post-it note and a black envelope with a small circle around it. All in all, I opened the note paper first and read it. power of attorney Dear Miss May Yujie: It's the end of the year and everything is busy. I wish you a prosperous business. I am Oe Yuen, the representative of a certain gentleman. In this letter, I sincerely hope that you can help my customers solve the problems they are currently facing. I cannot disclose the identity of the client here, please forgive me. The client had a premonition that something urgent was going to happen at his own "Sirius Observatory".

We will hold an interview at the following location, and after obtaining the consent of the client, we will formally report the detailed entrusted content to you. Gathering location: Kazaki Station Gathering time: December 12th at 3:00 pm In addition, the advance payment of 1 million yen, the reward of 1 million yen for successful commissioning, and other necessary funds have all been in place. We look forward to your visit then. Agent: Oe Yuen Although there are a few words of power of attorney written on the note, it gives people an elusive and wonderful impression. I wonder if it is because the name of the client and the content of the commission are not clearly stated.It has a sense of unreality that seems to be mischievous, but at the same time it does have a sense of realism that is serious.

It's been almost three years since I became a detective, and this is the first time I've received such a request, and the more I think about it, the more confused I get.As such, this commission aroused in me a curiosity unmatched by any previous incident. The memo is plain white paper, and the words on it are all generated by word processing software. If you check the font used, you should be able to figure out what software was used to generate it, and you can even find out the ink type and brand of the printer.But I always feel that there is no point in determining these. Anyway, I put the note aside and opened another black envelope.

Inside are folded black washi paper notes lined with white text written with a pen. declare to the detective Hear the Black Cry Location - Sirius Observatory, 30 million Murder weapon - scissors, 5 million The murder weapon - comatose drugs, 5 million Method - dismemberment, 80 million Total cost - 120 million Based on the above costs, call the following detectives rain in may "What is this?" I muttered to myself, turning the black sticky note over and over again.Things are getting more and more inexplicable. Judging from the words written on the paper, it seems that some unannounced contents of the commission were vaguely revealed.Is this some Lenovo game?Do you want me to guess what kind of commission it is?Having said that, what do the numbers written under these words mean?

Maybe this is a puzzle to test my detective skills. The client must want to test me.The other party deliberately asked the agent to intervene. From this point of view, for those detectives who are not useful, they must not even tell them the content of the commission, and just let them shut the door. It feels like something big is going to happen.The problem is that there are only a few days before the assembly time, and the day after tomorrow is the assembly day. It's easy to say that you can take a vacation as long as you submit an application to the school, but before that, can I solve this mystery...

Time is running out.I jumped out of bed and rushed out of the room, all the way back to school. There is an intelligence processing room in the school, where computers can be used freely.If you want to do some research, it should be faster to use the Internet there.By the way, I don't have a computer myself, and my phone doesn't have Internet access either. It only takes a few minutes to walk from the dormitory to the teaching building.In the teaching building, there were students who were doing club activities and students who were planning to go home. I ran all the way to the intelligence processing room and passed them.

In the intelligence processing room, several students were typing on the keyboard silently.I glanced at them and borrowed one of the computers. I first tried searching for "Sirius Observatory".Surprisingly, it was easy for me to understand its actual situation. The Sirius Observatory appears to be the personal observatory of a man named Ichiro Kibayanagi.It is said that Mr. Ya got rich overnight by operating the steel industry during the economic growth period after the war. After he stopped doing business when he was old, he spent all his wealth to build a personal observatory, where he lived in seclusion.When it comes to observatories, most people always get the impression that they are facilities owned by universities or research institutions, but I heard that people who are interested in observing celestial bodies or stars often build observatories for personal use, and the Sirius Observatory seems to be the same A product of hobbies. So, is this mysterious client actually Ichiro Kibaliu?If he had anything to do with the postwar steel industry, at least he might have been considered a big shot by all walks of life.The reason why the entrustment cannot be made public may be due to this reason. Regarding Yaliu Ichiro, I also did some investigations afterwards, but I didn't get any interesting information, and I didn't find any relevant records to prove that he was involved in any incidents in the past.The information that can be obtained from the Internet is indeed limited. I didn't have any other gains that day, so I went back to the dormitory like this. The next day, while I was in class, I was thinking about the entrusted matter.Although the final exam is not far away, I almost didn't listen to the content of the teacher's lecture.In a classroom full of classmates, I felt a sense of loneliness, as if I was the only one in another world. During the lunch break, I searched for information about Mr. Ya in the library.In the library of this school lie books that are older than those in the nearby library.However, in order to find key information, the short time of lunch break seems not enough.I decided to come back after school and retreat for now. In the afternoon class, I found that the scenery seen from the window was darker than usual, and the sky looked like it would snow at any time.The low pressure of winter is stuck in the east, and the cold wave of minus 40 degrees is approaching in the north. No wonder the lips are so dry.During the break, while applying lip balm, I stared blankly at the plans for tomorrow written down in my notebook.Tomorrow is the main event. After school, I finally got the information I wanted in the library.It is a monthly magazine for astronomy enthusiasts. In the back issue ten years ago, I found a text related to the Sirius Observatory. That was an article whose main content was accessing a personal observatory.The four-page article mentions the Sirius Observatory and is accompanied by photographs. I copied this article and took it back to the dormitory.As a preview material, I got quite valuable things.Regardless of whether it has anything to do with the entrustment, at least I got the information that I can pass the interview, and I feel it has this effect. That night, I prepared for tomorrow by packing my notebooks and materials, as well as a change of clothes just in case.The preview should also be impeccable.If there is anything to worry about, it is probably that the weather is not good. The weather forecast says that there will be snowstorms in some areas starting tomorrow. The next day, I asked for leave from school and went to Kagasaki Station. When I arrived at the station, there was already a light snowfall in the sky.Surrounded by a large dry field in winter, it may be due to the snow, although it is still daytime, the sky is very dark, and you can see the dim lights of the surrounding people. The time is two o'clock in the afternoon.Although it was an hour earlier than the agreed time, because there were only two buses in an hour, I left the dormitory early and arrived so early. At this deserted station, there were only two other people who got off the bus besides me. I decided to wait in the waiting room.The small room was just big enough for two benches side by side, and in the center of the room was a burning cylindrical fireplace.I immediately took a seat in front of the stove, and rubbed my cold hands. At this time, the two men who got off the bus with me to the platform just now walked into the waiting room. The two men sat on the bench in silence, each looked at the clock to confirm the time, and then began to look around.In this inaccessible station that seems to be at the end of the world, it is obviously unnatural that three people who are bored gather together. "Excuse me……" I was the first to speak.To be honest, I was a little scared.At that time, I was nothing more than a high school girl in a strange land surrounded by two men who had never met. "Which of you two is Mr. Oe Yuen?" I asked this timidly, and the two men responded at the same time, exchanged a probing look with each other, and looked at me again. "Hmm, so that's it, girl, are you a detective too?" The man with the neat seven-three-point hairstyle spoke first.He was dressed in a suit and a long trench coat, and his tie was tightly tied. He looked like an elite white-collar worker, but his appearance did not make people feel any personality.If this is a business district, then his figure would blend into the background in an instant, his appearance is so ordinary. "Don't look at me like this, I'm actually a detective too." He pointed to himself with his thumb. "Maybe you too?" He asked another man sitting across from him. The man wears sunglasses.Through the thin gray lenses, he could barely see his eyes moving.He has short hair and a lean build, wearing a black vest under a waterproof jacket and a dog tag around his neck.There was an extraordinary air about him. The man in the sunglasses nodded silently. "Three detectives came... and the agent hasn't shown up yet," said the man in a suit, arms folded, in a posturing tone. "Hey, what's going on?" My voice was trembling due to tension and fear. "Aren't I the only one who received the power of attorney?" "It seems that's the way it is." The man in the suit said that with a contemptuous smile. "It's still some time before the appointed time. How many people will come?" Is that so... Thinking about it carefully, I might not be the only detective called here.The same is true for the power of attorney, as long as the name part is changed, the content of the text will apply to everyone.Since the client wanted to test the detective, it would be more efficient to gather several people for the interview, so it might be better. The two men each began to think of ways to pass the time. The man in a suit was listening to something while wearing headphones, while flipping through a book of English conversation, he looked like a white-collar worker wasting time. At the same time, the man in sunglasses played with foreign coins in his hands, and from time to time he laughed as if he remembered something, which felt very scary. I couldn't stand the atmosphere, so I came out of the waiting room and planned to sit on the bench outside and wait. In the cold air, the exhaled breath turned into a cloud of white mist.The snow seems to be getting bigger and bigger.There was a thin film of snow on my hair, shoulders, and culottes, and if I hadn't brushed it off from time to time, I'm afraid I'd be turning into a snowman in no time. After about thirty minutes, the tram pulled into the platform. The only person who got off the tram and passed through the ticket gate was a middle-aged man.His face was flushed, his body was slightly fat, his coat was wrinkled, and his hair was unkempt.From the looks of it, it's hard to imagine him as that mysterious agent. Sure enough, the middle-aged man walked into the waiting room, and the three of them could be seen talking through the glass window.Finally, the middle-aged man came out alone and walked towards me. "Hmm, high school girl detective." The middle-aged man grinned and said. "I don't think it's appropriate to spend the most important girlhood in my life on an unrewarding job like a detective." The man reeked of alcohol and sat next to me.He must have been drunk in broad daylight. I quickly distanced myself from him and found a seat again. "Don't be so on guard." "Excuse me... are you also a detective?" "Do you think I look like anyone else?" The man opened his arms and said. At least as far as I'm concerned, you're just an ordinary drunk drunk. "Hey, it's no wonder you're suspicious. Who hasn't had it when they were young and vigorous, but their observation skills are insufficient. As a detective, it must be a bit like that." "Observation ability...is it?" "Let me do a trick for you." The man stared at me greedily. "You attended mass alone last Christmas, didn't you? But the boring hymns bored you, and you slipped out, bought a bunch of cakes, and ate them all in your dorm room, And scattered all over the ground, it seems that this Christmas is really lonely from beginning to end." "You, how did you know that!" I couldn't help but use a reproachful tone. Surprisingly, he was mostly right about what he said.The only difference is that at that time, because I didn't have much money, I couldn't buy a lot of cakes, so I only bought a chocolate cake and ate it. "Have you been staring at me somewhere?" "No, no, this is the so-called observation ability." The man said proudly. "First of all, judging from your uniform, you can tell that you are a student of that famous church school. One of the school's activities is to hold Christmas mass, which is not difficult to imagine. But I heard that the recent school rules are also very loose Now, presumably Mass is not mandatory, but voluntary, right?" "Then how did you know I was there alone?" "Did you change your shorts yourself? It should be for detective work. And even though today is not a day off, you didn't go to school, so you have to deal with the commission first. Since you are so keen on detective work, I think I can play with you on weekdays." I don’t have many friends, let alone a boyfriend. Especially on a special day like Christmas, most people are with people who are close to them. But you don’t have that relationship kind of people." - really meddling.Although he was right. "Basically, things like hymns are completely uninteresting. For you, it's simply unbearable, right? You kind of gave up on yourself and ran to buy cakes. You like sweets, which comes from your backpack The sweets and chocolates peeking out of it have told me." The man pointed at my back.Surprised, I took off the backpack and saw that the zipper had been opened a little, revealing the snacks I had brought. I suddenly felt very embarrassed, and quickly covered the snacks. "You live in a dorm, that's pretty obvious. If you're living with your family, there's no way your mother won't notice your wrinkled collar, your ruffled hems." Every time he pointed out my flaws, I felt humiliated and, at the same time, creepy.If he can see through my actions from such trivial information, then what else can I hide from him. ——Is this the detective? The first time I met a colleague, his ability completely shocked me.As a detective, I can't even compare to such a drunk uncle, and I even feel that way. "Don't you have a little respect for me?" The man took out a small whiskey bottle from his coat pocket and opened the lid. "Speaking of which, isn't it cold for you to wait in this kind of place, do you want to go in with uncle and me?" "Ah... no need, I'll just wait here." I flatly refused. The man almost spit out his half-drunk whiskey. "Ah... that's it. That's right, it's time soon, so it's better to wait here. I'm about to go in, I'm really old..." The middle-aged man staggered back to the waiting room, dragging a heavy-looking suitcase... The three o'clock assembly time is finally approaching. A white station wagon can be seen driving towards this side along the field path.It tore a gap in the gray snow scene and approached at a fast speed. The station wagon stopped in front of the station, and a man in a suit got off the driver's seat.The man noticed me first and walked towards me. "Are you waiting for Mr. Oe?" he asked. "Yes, you are?" "I'm from the taxi company. Mr. Ojiang told me to send you to the place he designated." Could it be that you can't even see an agent now? I'm starting to get uneasy about the prospect.And the weather is getting worse and worse, and the people traveling with me are uncles... "Please get in the car." Hearing what the driver said, I got into the station wagon.I sat in the backmost seat and put my backpack next to me to make it difficult for others to get close to me. The men in the waiting room of the station also noticed the station wagons, and they came over one after another.The man in the suit got into the car first, followed by the man in the sunglasses. Then the drunk uncle got into the car.Surprisingly, he didn't seem to be fussy about his position, sitting directly behind the driver's seat, with the trunk taking up a seat next to him. The driver came back and sat in the driver's seat. "Sorry, everyone, please wait a while before starting. Do you think it's cold in the car? How about some hot drinks?" The driver began to hand out the canned coffee he was holding in his arms to everyone.My body was as cold as it could get, so I gratefully took the coffee and cupped it in my hand. "Why wait a while?" the man in the suit asked. "Let's go quickly." "Because it's not yet three o'clock." "There's no one else in the station." "There is a tram that arrives at 2:58." The man in sunglasses whispered as if talking to himself. "It's impossible for someone else to come. Even if someone comes, he will be late." "Okay, okay, don't be so impatient, do you want to have a bite too?" The drunken uncle handed out the bottle. "I do not drink." The man in a suit pushed the bottle away, opened a can of coffee and drank it.Then he took a cigarette from his breast pocket and tried to light it. "Sorry, smoking is not allowed in the car," the driver said. "What did you say?" The man in a suit raised his voice impatiently, and reluctantly put away his cigarette.I watched the rowdy adults from the back seat, drinking coffee to warm myself up. Just then, the tram pulled into the platform. However, the passengers who got off the train could not be seen from outside the station, only the tram with two carriages was tightly covered by the station buildings. It was not long before the tram reappeared, galloping away through the snow. Who the hell got out of the car? When the hour hand was pointing to three o'clock, a girl appeared at the ticket gate. It was a petite and weak girl. — who is she? To me, she seemed transparent, perhaps because her lightly pigmented fair skin seemed to blend into the snowy landscape.Could it be a ghost... that is impossible.The neatly cut bangs above the eyes fluttered gently in the wind. This small movement is undoubtedly the proof that she really exists here. It might be fitting for her to stand quietly in this corner of this uninhabited, monotonous world, but as a detective who appears in front of us, it feels terribly out of place. As soon as she saw the station wagon, she ran towards this side in small steps, paying attention to the snow under her feet, carrying a black bag in both hands... Is she the fifth detective?It's unbelievable. I say this because what she was wearing—a lace blouse and a black blazer—was the middle school uniform of the school I went to.From the color of the ribbon on her chest, she was a first-year student. Standing beside the station wagon, she craned her neck to look into the car. It seemed that she couldn't see our side clearly from the outside. The driver got out of the station wagon. "Are you waiting for Mr. Ojiang?" He asked, and she nodded. "Please get in the car, we have been waiting for you." At the urging of the driver, she boarded the station wagon.There were already several passengers in the car, and she didn't show any surprise about it, but the other men were so surprised by the appearance of this little detective that they couldn't speak. I put my backpack away to make room for her.She didn't say anything, just sat in that position, holding the bag on her lap. "Then, the time has come, let's set off." The driver started the car.The station wagon, carrying five detectives, finally began to advance along a road that could not be turned back. Not to mention the shadows of people on the snow-covered mountain road, there are no shadows of buildings, and the station wagon climbs up such a mountain road. "Hey, I'm talking about you." I whispered to her next to me. "Do you understand what it means to be in this car?" She turned this way and made a movement that seemed to tilt her head slightly. "Are you a detective?" She nods. "Really? There are middle school student detectives in our school, I've never heard of it..." "Because I just came to my current school to study recently." She spoke for the first time. The big eyes stared at me as if they were observing me.Fair skin, slightly red cheeks due to the cold, as if blush was applied, very cute. "Ah, so it turns out that you transferred here... Anyway, even so, I didn't expect to accept the same commission as a middle school student detective from the same school... What a strange coincidence." "It is indeed a strange coincidence." The drunk uncle turned his head and said, as if he wanted to lean his whole body to our side. "Don't harass other girls when you're drunk, uncle. It's not fun for a detective to be invited to drink tea by the police, and it will also discredit the detective." The man in a suit cut in. "Really, there's nothing I can do about you. Brats, drunks, and gloomy guys... What's going on with this station wagon that looks like it's used to observe humans? Is it some kind of prank show?" "You can talk, young man." The drunk uncle suddenly looked serious. "Anyway, I'm a detective with twenty-five years of career. It's not as simple as looking drunk." "Oh, then look at this sober bar." The man in the suit grinned, and from the inner pocket of his jacket, he revealed a card with a photo that looked like a driver's license. Eigo Amino DSC number "367" "My name is Eigo Amino, and the classification number of the Detective Library is '367'——Uncle, how about you? Maybe it's not registered." "Hmph." The drunk uncle snickered.Afterwards, he reached into his pockets in various places on his body, as if he was rummaging around for something.Finally he found the card he was looking for, and flashed it in front of Amino. Inuzuka A DSC number "943" "Cert, number '943'...you...no, are you...level '3' with number '9'? Is this true?" "I won't make any fakes." The man named Inuzuka said, taking a sip of his wine. "No, I'm very sorry! I didn't expect your level to be so high... Please forgive my previous rude behavior!" Amino suddenly began to adopt a low profile. It feels like you can glimpse a corner of the ugly world of adults. Having said that, I never expected that the drunk uncle would be level "3".Although people cannot be judged by their appearance... "What's level '3'?" asked the girl next to me. "do not you know?" "Yeah." She narrowed her eyes. "Isn't that amazing?" "For us detectives, yes." I pulled my Detective Library registration card out of my wallet and showed her. May Yujie DSC number "888" "You don't have this kind of card?" "I registered before." She took the notebook out of her purse and pulled out the cards stuck inside. Kirito Kyoko DSC number "919" "Wow, you are number '9' too. A middle school student with number '9'...you really chose a cruel path." I said in surprise. Detectives registered in the detective library each have a numbered card. Detective Library - In this place, the intelligence files of some 65,000 detectives are sorted on shelves.The information of all registered detectives is disclosed to the public, and anyone can read it freely.If something bothers you, just make a trip to the Detective Library, where there are detectives for all situations and records of events. For detectives, all in all, there is a little advantage, that is, as long as they have registered in the detective library, they will be entrusted to come to their door, similar to a registered labor dispatch. It's just that "the detective library is just a database and has no consciousness of its own." Based on this concept, it does not undertake the business of introducing or recommending jobs. The data is made public, which means detectives lose their anonymity, but they don't make public the cases they're working on, so it's not a huge loss.Past records and parts related to personal information are also appropriately reserved and not fully disclosed. These data are assigned specific bookshelves in the form of files according to the unique classification method of the detective library. This is called DSC (Detective Shelf Classification, Detective Library Classification), which is the detective's classification number. DSC is represented by three digits.The first digit is the first division and indicates the type of detective this detective is good at.Take Amino's "367" as an example, that is "3".That said, he specializes in economic crimes -- cases of embezzlement and dereliction of duty. The number "9" of Inuzuka and Kirikiri means that they are good at dealing with murderers, which can be said to be a more eye-catching type for detectives.It's just that I heard that many detectives failed to complete the commission and were eliminated, and many detectives died in the line of duty. This number is like this. The next number in the middle is the second division.This is derived from the first division and represents a more granular type of expertise.Amino's is "6", so he should be better at dealing with commercial espionage cases.From his appearance, he might be very good at operating as a corporate spy himself. Next - "The last number indicates the level of the detective. Everyone starts from '9' at the beginning. Because you have just registered, so it is '9'. By getting recognition for your performance, the detective can make this detective The number is gradually decreasing. The level '3' is not easy to get, so the uncle is actually a very good detective despite his appearance. By the way, the highest level is '0'. 0 proves that this person is in this field Among them are masters." Detectives with a classification number of 0 are highly respected by their peers. They are called the zero-one family or zero-level. If you continue to accumulate performance from level "0", the number in the middle will become "0" indicating the comprehensive class.This is called the double zero level, and it can be said that as a detective, it is already at its peak, which is the so-called famous detective level. If it goes a step further, and the first number representing the first division also becomes "0" representing "comprehensive", then it will be called the 30th level, and it will surely become a legend and be recorded in the annals of history. The detective library has a history of about fifteen years, but it is said that only four detectives have received the "000" number. "That is to say, as long as you reach level zero, you will be recognized as a detective?" Kyoko Kirikiri asked. It's almost like a child who has found a treasure - her eyes are very pure. "Hey, that's right...but let me declare in advance that this is not an easy task. In fact, I also started working as a detective when I was about the same age as you, and I finally got to this point in the third year." "Show me that card." Amino forcibly snatched my card away. "What...you're still a high school student, you're already level '8'... no, but you still can't compare with me. What a pity, high school girl detective." Amino seemed very upset. "Where's the guy wearing sunglasses? Do you have a card?" Inuzuka asked the man wearing sunglasses.Still remaining silent, he took out the card from his pocket and showed it to the others. Dovetail Shiita DSC number "245" "W-what...level '5'... is actually higher than me..." Amino trembled all over. The number of grades is indeed a measure of a detective's ability, but I don't think it's good to be so superstitious like him. "Does that mean everyone has a card?" Swallowtail whispered. "When I wanted to submit a commission, I chose a detective who had registered in the detective library. This is not surprising." Inuzuka said with a big tongue. "It's just that if I were the entrusting party, I would try to find a zero level as much as possible..." "That's true. However, the other party may also have the mentality of giving it a try, so they found a few more of different levels." Amino said.For Inuzuka, he is completely respectful.Since he has the ability to compete with commercial espionage, his flexibility should be very strong. "Hmm...it's possible. After all, everyone's expertise is different. And the gentleman we're going to meet next seems to be a rather weird person." "Hey, do you know who the client is?" "That's right, a detective at my level can immediately know who the anonymous client is." "Who is the other party?" "Yagi Ichiro, this person is a bit famous in the underground society, he is a character. The place we are going now is the personal observatory he built. That's right, Mr. Driver." However the driver didn't answer anything.Is it because someone told him not to answer the question beforehand? "The Sirius Observatory was mentioned in the entrustment letter," said Amino. "What kind of place is that, if it's Mr. Inuzuka, he should know..." "Didn't you even investigate these things before you came here, young man. I can't help it. Let me tell you." Inuzuka didn't seem very reluctant, it seemed that he was completely coaxed by Amino. "The Sirius Observatory is in the shape of a pentagram when viewed from above. I heard that the pentagon in the center is a dome observatory for astronomical telescopes." Inuzuka said triumphantly, I have already investigated the contents he mentioned.就连我也能够简单地通过天文杂志上的新闻稿得知这些信息，所以其他的侦探可能也都是故意装作不知道吧。 “话说回来，天狼星是大犬座中的一等星，作为冬季大三角的其中一角很有名，是一颗非常明亮的星星。这颗星其实——” “其实？”网野附和道。 “看起来是一颗，实际上是两颗——它是有名的双星。” "What, what!" “特别明亮的那颗被称为天狼星A，较小的另一颗被称为天狼星B。天狼星B被天狼星A的光芒所掩盖，一直到天体望远镜发展到一定程度才被人们发现。” “给天文台起名叫做天狼星……难道说，建筑物也是双子楼结构？” “挺机灵的嘛，网野老弟。正是如此，天狼星天文台仿效这颗星星，是由大小两座星形建筑物组成的。较大的天狼星A是主楼，而较小的天狼星B作为门厅，是一栋独立的建筑物。单从这栋构造奇特的建筑物来看，就能知道主人是个非常古怪的人。” “不愧是等级'3'！没想到您事先就已经调查得这么详尽了。” “没错吧没错吧。”犬塚很满意地笑了起来。 这之后，他的夸夸其谈仍在继续。因为他所说的几乎都是天文杂志上有的内容，所以我只是眺望着车窗外一片雪白的景色，漫不经心地听着。 自旅行车出发以来大概已经过了一个多小时了吧。外面的雪势头越来越大，森林被染成了白色。狭窄的山道之中，堆满雪的树枝撑起了拱门，悬挂在头顶。 突然，旅行车在一个什么都没有的地方停下了。 “喂，司机，怎么了？” “我们到了。”司机回头说。 我察看了一下窗外。被重重树木包围的道路附近，找不到任何一栋建筑物。 “怎么一回事？别开玩笑了！”网野提高声音。 “你是要我们在这里下来走路？”燕尾低声说。 “是的，大江先生就是这样说的。按照他的安排，我就在这里让大家下车，然后掉头回去。” “你没有理由让我们在这种地方下车，犬塚先生也会觉得很困扰的啊！”网野吼叫道。“我明白了，那我给你钱好了，你把我们带到天狼星天文台去。好了，把你的计价器重新打一下。” “这样的要求恕我不能接受。” “就是说拒载吗？哦——，你是哪个出租车公司的？犬塚先生，您看我们该拿这个家伙怎么办？我觉得我们可以教训他一下，让他知道侮辱侦探会有什么样的后果……” “哎，你冷静点儿，年轻人，这可以认为是委托人不愿意同侦探以外的人接触。像这样领会对方的意图，也是侦探的工作。” 犬塚露出含有自我欣赏意味的笑容，拿起行李，打开了旅行车的门，在洁白的雪上落下了第一个脚印。 “你捡回了一条命啊。” 网野一边恶狠狠地向着司机这么说，一边从旅行车上下来。 接着，燕尾仍然保持着沉默，从旅行车上下来了。他扶了扶歪了的太阳眼镜，把一个小波士顿包背在肩上。 “来，我们也下车吧。”我催促雾切，雾切拎着包站了起来。 下台阶的时候，雾切向着驾驶席看去，这样问道：“你是怎么从大江由园那里接受指示的？” “怎么……是指？”司机反问道。 “你直接跟他见面了？” “不，我只是通过电话接受他的指示而已，并没有直接跟他会面，旅行车也是按照他事先指定的安排的。” “他的声音是什么样的？” “什么样……就算您这样问……我也只能说是很普通的男声。” "yes." 雾切冷淡地说，若无其事地从旅行车上下去了。 刚才这几句话到底是怎么一回事呢，她是想知道代理人的真实身份吗。不管怎么说，看来司机单纯只是受人之托，忠人之事而已。 我是最后一个下车的。 就这样，放下五名侦探之后，旅行车无情地沿着覆满雪的道路掉头回去了，很快就消失在雪中，只留下轮胎的印痕。我们被彻底抛弃在山里了。 “如果在太阳下山之前走不到天狼星天文台，那可就糟糕了。” 犬塚张开双手，做了一个像是要接住雪的动作，这样说道。 燕尾第一个向前走了出去。一瞬间，他的脚陷进雪里，身体失去了平衡，不过他很快就站稳了。 “雪相当深，小心一点。” 他回过头说，像是在告诫我们一样。 从体格和人品看来，我感觉他是最靠得住的。他的分类编号“245”表示的是“政治犯？恐怖犯罪？等级5”，也就是说他是个跟恐怖分子作斗争的武力派侦探。无论是他的沉默寡言，还是他的郁郁寡欢，也许都是由于他过去的经历。他走路的时候会拖着一只脚，这是不是也是因为他在战场上留下的旧伤使然呢。 “总而言之……反正只有一条路，我们就这样往前走吧。” 我这样说，犬塚和网野瞥了我一眼，像是在说“知道了”，然后就跟在燕尾后面走了。 “走吧，雾切妹妹。”她还站在雪中一动不动，我这样说，打算从背后推她一把。 雾切回过头来，眉间蹙起细细的皱纹。 “也许我们该在这里回头。” “啊？都到了这里还回头？走回去吗？” “我听见脚步声了。” “脚步声？” 也许是因为雪的缘故，周围一片寂静，然而我没有听见任何人的脚步声。我歪了歪头，重新看着她。 我听不懂她的话似乎让她觉得有点着急，她的表情更加严肃了，远远望着那几个已经走出去的男子的背影。 “也不能对他们不管不问呢……”雾切这样低声说，开始往前走。 “啊，等一下。”我赶紧跟在她后面。 如果把视线从她身上移开一小会儿，感觉就很难在雪中找到她了。我立刻赶到了她前面，回头看着她。 “你从刚才开始都在说些什么呢。” “你不在意吗？”雾切仍然望着前面说。 “在意什么？” “奇怪的委托信。” “这个嘛……净是些让人在意的地方，不过……” “话说回来，大江由园这个人，究竟是不是真的存在呢。” “咦？”我歪了歪头。 “大江由园……把读法稍微变一下……就是欧文？U·N。” “难道是……U·N·欧文？不会吧，这应该只是错觉吧？” 这个名字是在那部有名的推理小说中出现的。在这个故事当中，以某个孤岛为背景，十个人接连被杀，他们都收到过一个叫做U·N·欧文发出的人的邀请函。这也是“unknown”（不明身份）的谐音。 “就算代理人是U·N·欧文好了，那他到底打算干什么？难道他是想再现'无人生还'？他特意把这个像是提示一样的名字写在委托信上，要是在他具体行动之前一不小心把事情泄露出去了该怎么办？” “似乎目前还没有泄露。”雾切指了指沿着路往前走的几名男子。 “不……这果然只是想多了吧？” “要是这样就好了。”雾切做了一个像是在缩脖子的动作，这样说道。 她到底发觉了什么呢？关于这个奇妙委托的真相。 “总而言之，这个时候就先跟着那些人走吧。要是被留在这种雪山里面，还没来得及接受委托就先冻死了。” 我这样一说，雾切点头同意，跟在了我的身后。她的步子很小，想要追上我有些吃力，我为了能让她跟上，走得比较慢。 “喂，话说你啊。”我向雾切搭话。“你为什么想当侦探？还是中学生就当侦探，应该有你自己的理由吧？” “……我不是想当。” "what?" “我一生下来就是侦探。” “呵呵，这算什么啊，你打算走硬汉派路线？” 我半开玩笑地说。按照她的情况，与其说是硬汉派，倒不如说是粉嫩派更准确吧。 然而她却表情严肃，脸上没有丝毫笑容，看来是认真的。 “该不会你们家祖业是侦探？” “是的。”雾切简短地回答道，做了一个像是拂去落在头上的雪的动作。 “嘿——，那就是说你要继承侦探的事业？” “是啊。”这次她的声音里含有自豪的成分。 “你没有不情愿吗？” 对什么不情愿？她仰头看着我，表情像是在这样说。 “就算是祖业，是什么不好，偏偏是侦探啊。这个世界上还有很多其他的选择对吧？偶像啦，护士啦，面包师傅啦……大家甚至一直都在说侦探是不适合女性的职业呢。” “我从来不会根据喜好来思考。”雾切面无表情地回答。“对我来说，当侦探就跟活着是一回事。” “感觉听起来好像负担很重……这就是说，你家里人从小都是这么告诉你的？” "yes." 雾切很干脆地肯定了，从她的样子看来，她甚至从来没有对此感到过任何疑问。 她那无比纯洁无暇的眼眸，反而给我一种脆弱的感觉。她的家世应该远远超乎我的想象吧。 雾切好像想问什么，不停地往我这边瞟。 "What's up?" 我一问，她立刻把视线移开了，开口说：“……你呢？” “嗯？你是想问我为什么要当侦探？这当然是因为……我想成为正义的伙伴……吧。向那些寻求帮助的人伸出援手！果然这才是侦探应该做的吧。” 对于我充满热情的语气，她并没有表示出什么特别的反应，反而用一种像是看到了什么不可思议的生物一样的眼神看着我。 “你那是什么表情啊，我可是认真的。” “唔嗯……是吗。” “你自己问的，现在又一副不感兴趣的样子，这算什么啊？话说你啊，再怎么说也是跟我一个学校的学妹，是不是应该有点儿学妹的样子？我不会要你跟我说话时用敬语，不过对学姐你还是应该更那什么一点……” "For example?" “这个嘛……”我不经意间想到了。“要是隔了三个年级，感觉其实不太像学姐，更像大姐姐了吧。那么……就让你叫我的时候叫姐姐。怎么样？” "sister?" “不、不，不用说得那么高雅，别加上'大人'啦，普通的'姐姐'就好。姐姐大人感觉让人有点不好意思啊。” “结姐姐大人。” “别、别这样，好丢脸！还是换一个吧。” “我觉得怎么称呼都无所谓。”雾切叹着气说。“别说这个了，我们快走吧，小心掉队了，结姐姐大人。” “你是故意的吧！” 我不由得捂住脸扭来扭去。这样下去的话，将来这有可能成为我不堪回首的一段历史，感觉也会引起大众的误解。 雾切一个人走在了前面。 我一边发出抗议，一边匆匆跟在她后面。 不经意间望向道路的前方，我看到几名男子已经停下了脚步，似乎在盘算着什么。 我跟雾切一路小跑追上了他们。 在他们的眼前，立着一块巨大的牌子。 "Welcome to the Desperate Sirius Observatory" 不知道是谁的恶作剧，“绝美”被人用红色喷漆改成了“绝望”。对于这个令人毛骨悚然的暗示，让人觉得不可思议的是，当时我们对此毫不关心。要问为什么的话，那是因为对我们来说更重要的是这样一个事实——我们来到了天狼星天文台附近。 招牌上标出了箭头，箭头所指的方向的确有一条狭窄的小道。 “该不会连这个箭头也是恶作剧吧。”网野抱着胳膊说。 “很难想象对方的目的是让我们遇险。”犬塚果然很冷静。“就算这是个陷阱，取暖还是不愁的。酒我可是要多少有多少！” 他这样说着，拍了拍行李箱。 “未成年人要怎么办？” “靠体温取暖就好了。”犬塚露出了猥琐的笑容。 对于等级“3”的犬塚，我无法产生任何一丝敬意。名侦探应当是清正廉洁的绅士……也许是出于这种固有观念才会这样。不管怎么说，他只是等级“3”，拥有数字“2”或者“1”的侦探肯定会比他出色得多。更不用说零级了，他们会不会看起来像是另一个世界的人呢…… 以燕尾为首的几名男子开始沿着道路往前走。 如果真的就这样等到太阳落山，我们可能会全军覆没。森林里冰雪覆盖的道路越来越暗，风势也大了起来，除了走得有气无力的我们几个人，没有任何其他的动静。 几名男子毫不照顾步子比较小的我和雾切，越走越远了。我们不得不在一片昏暗之中追随着他们的身影，他们的足迹。 雾切突然一指道路前方：“你看，结姐姐大人，是灯光。” 我抬眼望去，在暴风雪的帷幕对面，隐隐可以看到建筑物内亮起的灯光。 话说回来，刚才—— “你那个称呼……” 雾切不理睬我，先往前走了。 ——哎，算了。 那栋建筑物坐落在一片地势稍高的开阔地之上，暖色的灯光将周围一片雪白的风景映成了红色，也许是照明的灯光从镶着玻璃的室内透出来了吧。它在黑暗的夹缝之中发出一等星一般的耀眼光芒，简直就是一颗地上的星星。然而卷着雪片的狂风模糊了我的视线，这使得它的整体形状看起来有些扭曲，就像是海市蜃楼的幻影一样。 我们终于抵达了天狼星天文台。 天狼星天文台就跟犬塚说过的那样——换句话说就是根据我所收集的资料——是一栋星型的双子结构建筑物。只不过从我们的视角看来，并不知道它究竟是不是星型，只不过是一栋普通的扁平建筑物罢了。 首先迎接我们的是一栋小型的建筑物，这就是模仿天狼星B所建造的B栋。是不是应该说它是一间独立的门厅呢，它整体都镶嵌着玻璃，内部的情况一览无余。在这栋B栋更前面的地方，可以看到主楼的A栋在熠熠发光。 我们就像逃跑一样冲进了B栋，入口处的自动门打开了，仿佛在迎接我们。 看来终于来到了一个可以躲避暴风雪的地方。我拍了拍胸口，感觉连心口都已经冷透了。 一进门，正面就是通往地下的楼梯，楼梯前面的门才是真正的玄关大门。 “这构造还真是麻烦啊。”网野一边抚平自己被吹乱了的七三分发型一边抱怨。“要想去主楼的话，是不是就一定得穿过这条地下通道啊？” “为了让这栋建筑物在所有方向都有可供远眺的客房，所以主楼好像没有设置玄关呢。” 我一边回忆着资料的内容一边说。 “话说回来……没有人出来啊。” 犬塚沿着通往地下的楼梯走下去，站在了玄关的双扇大门前。旁边的墙上安装有对讲机。 犬塚粗鲁地按了一下按钮，然而毫无反应。 “灯还开着，感觉应该不会没人在……”犬塚有些疑惑。 “会不会是因为什么急事出门了？” “玄关附近不是没有脚印吗？说明这几个小时都没有人出入。” “啊，的确如此呢。”网野很佩服地说。 “牙先生就算了，连代理人都不在，这是怎么回事。” 犬塚把手放到门上。 “嗯？门是开的。”大门无声地敞开了。 “没有动静。”燕尾小心地窥探了一下门后说。“你们在这里等着。” 燕尾迅速地潜入门内，然后大声说了句“安全”。听到这个有些夸张的信号之后，我们进了门。 “没人出来迎接啊。越来越觉得这委托人莫名其妙了。” 网野有些不耐烦地说。 前面是一条二十米左右的地下通道。地下通道这个词常会给人以阴暗潮湿的印象，但这里却不一样，每隔几米就安装有埋地灯，让人联想到电影院的通道。 在通道的尽头，有一扇跟刚才一样的双扇大门。这扇门上没有锁孔，轻轻一拉就开了。 终于到主楼了。 这次是沿着通往地面上的楼梯往上走，格外明亮的光芒从楼梯上方撒下来。我们心怀警惕地一起走上楼梯。 “哦——，这就是天狼星天文台吗。”犬塚发出感叹声。 首先吸引住我们目光的是圆顶式的天花板，其内侧全部镶着镜子。 等于说目前的情况也就是一个半球形的凹面镜正罩在我们头上。在这个凹面镜的作用下，照明的灯光得到了增强。 “这是怎么回事啊，感觉就像被丢进了一个奇怪的实验器具里面一样。” 网野低声说。 “让人想起乱步的《镜地狱》呢。不过在那里面球体的内部全都是镜面……”犬塚咧嘴笑着。“你们知道吗，说起凹面镜，那是天体观测当中不可或缺的道具之一。大口径望远镜几乎全都是用的凹面镜。” 天花板上映出我们被拉长变形的模样。映在凹面镜里的世界，不光是左右颠倒，就连上下也倒了过来，在这个扭曲的镜中世界里，面容诡异的我们正俯视着这边，这景象让人感觉不太舒服。 “镜子这种东西实在是不可思议。同我们所熟悉的世界相比，这样一个似是而非的世界就在近在咫尺的地方张开大口等待着。哎呀哎呀，没想到居然连天花板上都装了镜子，牙柳一郎先生可真是个偏执又浪漫的人哪。” 犬塚像是非常感慨的样子。 然而根据资料所说，天花板上的凹面镜似乎只是为了增强保温和照明的效果而镶上的铝板而已。从结构上来说，中央大厅是没有窗户的，因此才需要照明效果增幅装置，倒也不一定是这栋建筑物的主人对于镜子有什么憧憬。 楼梯走到顶，终于能够将大厅的全景看清楚了。 大厅是五边形的，每一条边的中心都有一扇门，那是通往客房的。一共有五扇门，也就是说组成星星的角的三角形被分成了五个，成为五间客房。 在大厅中央有一张圆桌，旁边还有一把小安乐椅。 安乐椅主要是指供一个人坐的扶手椅。人们把那种不直接到现场去，当场将事件解决的侦探称为安乐椅侦探，眼前这把椅子的椅背和椅面上都铺着厚厚的软垫，以木制的椅腿支撑，完全可以让大侦探不慌不忙地思考。 这就是大厅里所有的东西了。最关键的天体望远镜却不见踪影。 “咦……？照片上这里有一架很大的望远镜的……”我抱着胳膊说。 “一年零三个月前，牙柳一郎由于逃税而被追加罚款……”燕尾突然开了口。“一台天体望远镜被征收了，用来抵押他未缴纳的税款。只有这里的东西消失得一干二净了，对吧？这就是衙门作风，当官的一直都是这样，对于现场毫不关心……” “您、您怎么会知道这种事的？”我吃惊地问他。 “一调查就知道了。”他平静地答道。“顺带一提，在两个月后，这整栋建筑物都被拿出去卖了，一家新兴IT企业把它买了下来。只不过，这家企业似乎是某家公司建立的傀儡公司，至于其中隐藏了什么内情，我就没查出来了。” “你为什么不早点说？”网野语气不善。 “情报不是商品吗？世上哪有白痴会免费把商品送出去的？” 对于燕尾低沉的声音，网野似乎也只有沉默了。 “要是燕尾老弟说得没错，那就是说这栋建筑物已经不在牙柳一郎先生手上了啊。”犬塚表情阴沉。 “就是说跟那个姓牙的没关系吗……那、那么到底……委托人是谁？”网野一脸狼狈地说。没有人能够回答他这个问题。 “总、总而言之我们只能等那个叫大江的代理人出现了。这么装腔作势，这次委托说不定是相当重量级的人物提出来的。”网野说。 我们面面相觑，然后视线开始漫无目的地游移。心中潜藏的小小怀疑和不安似乎正在摩擦碰撞…… “虽说有点失礼，既然主人不在，那我们就来探探险吧。” 犬塚好像还没有泄气，是不是应该说他不愧是等级“3”呢。他打开附近的一扇门，观察室内的情况。 “我们也调查一下周围的情况吧，好不好，雾切妹妹。”我向雾切说。 “分头调查比较快。”她冷静地回答，一个人往大厅深处走了。虽然我开始把她当做同伴了，不过她好像并不这么觉得，让我有种反被年纪小的女孩教训了的感觉。 我垂头丧气地随便找了个房间察看。 客房跟采访稿件上面写的一样，房间本身是三角形的，不过由于右手边有衣橱，左手边有厕所和浴室，实际上可以说是一个方向朝里的本垒板形状。床在衣橱旁边，对面则是梳妆台和小型冰箱。 三角形的两腰将近一半的部分都镶着玻璃，看来是设计成瞭望窗的。然而，打开窗帘向外望去，也只能看到白色的雪花在黑暗的森林中飞舞的景象。就算是白天或者是没下雪