The Detective is Already Dead

Chapter 128: A certain girl’s tale 3

"And that's where the story links up. I see."

I closed the journal for a moment, and a sigh escaped me.

The truth behind Danny Bryant's disappearance had been revealed. Then there was the darkness, and the secrets, that Kimihiko harbored. No doubt Mistress Siesta would go on to confront these issues.

"I wonder who he actually is," I murmured to Mistress Siesta, who was asleep on the bed.

Boy K.: Kimihiko Kimizuka. Up until now, the version of him in her journal hadn't been much different from the one I knew.

To put it nicely, he was cool. To put it less nicely, he was blunt. He did have a sense of humor, though, and he was kind and compassionate when it really mattered. He seemed unapproachable at first, but when you talked to him, he was unexpectedly interesting. He was constantly trying to put on a good front, but sometimes he did really dumb things, and that was rather cute.

Each of us felt that we might be the only one who really understood him in the whole world.

We were made to feel that way. "But by whom?"

Suddenly, although I couldn't say why, I felt just a tiny bit afraid of Boy K. Even though I'm only an artificial intelligence. How funny.

"Still, Mistress Siesta picked up on his peculiarity."

At this point, she alone had registered the fact that Kimihiko was— intentionally or unconsciously—wearing a mask.

He took his emotions and what he really felt, along with his goals and his

wishes, shut them all up in a box, and then chained it shut. At first glance, he seemed apathetic and emotionless, but when you got to know him, he was surprisingly funny—and yet nothing was that straightforward with him. It was all just an act.

In that case, now that the Ace Detective had seen through him, what would her next move be?

"...My."

Wondering what would happen next, I opened the journal again—only to find that Mistress Siesta had written no more entries.

How had she dealt with Kimihiko after that?

Was the current Kimihiko Kimizuka still Boy K., still wearing that mask?

I flipped through the journal, searching for answers, but found only blank pages. Mistress Siesta's entries never resumed.

Could it be a sign? Was she telling me to stop prying into her private life?

Still, there was no doubt that their story had continued through those blank days.

"Isn't that right, Kimihiko?" I asked him, even though he wasn't here.

Come now, tell me.

What sort of dazzling adventure did you and Mistress Siesta have next?