67 Jinjiang Exclusive

He must be very lonely.

69

Xiaowen met Kunikida Doppo in an accident a few months ago. It was also because of that accident that she learned about his identity as a superpowered person and the existence of the Armed Detective Agency, a "superpowered detective agency".

She wasn't sure if the "vampire" in Fyodor's room was related to any supernatural abilities, but the only adult she could think of who would believe her and do something for her was Kunikida.

Even if he might criticize her for being too reckless in "stalking" him.

Holding the hot tea that Chunye had given her, Xiaowen took a deep breath and omitted the incident at the gymnasium. She only said that she had noticed Fyodor was suspicious and was afraid that the police wouldn't care without evidence, so she secretly followed him to his residence.

"That's too dangerous!" Sure enough, Kunikida Doppo slammed his fist on the table when he heard this. "You're still a primary school student. If you think the other person is dangerous but you don't have any evidence, you should tell your parents and teachers instead of trying to find evidence yourself."

Xiaowen was startled by Kunikida Doppo. After apologizing, she said guiltily, "I didn't mean to... but he might do something bad next, and it will be too late!"

"—Besides, I brought an alarm, have a smartwatch to call the police, and I also know karate—!"

"..."

"Alright." Kunikida Doppo sighed deeply, feeling that this generation of young people was too difficult to manage. "Um... Fyodor, you said he's dangerous, did you see what he did?"

Xiaowen: "..."

She couldn't help but glance at Kawakami Wakai, who was talking to Izumi Kyoka.

I have a nagging feeling that if I had told Kunikida-san that Fyodor was Wakami-san's boyfriend, and that she had witnessed him trying to kill Wakami-san—

It seems to be not very kind to Kunikida's heart.

"..."

"He was flirting with a girl!" After thinking for a moment, Xiaowen exclaimed in a shrill voice, "Yes, that Fyodor, the one carrying a scalpel, was flirting with a girl!"

The little girl spoke in a loud, often shrill voice; in an instant, her voice echoed throughout the entire Armed Detective Agency.

thump--

The documents in Kawakami Wakana's hands were scattered on the floor.

What is this child saying?

Although she guessed that the little girl didn't want to reveal that she and Fedor had gone to the multi-purpose toilet alone in the gym that day, but... wasn't that reason too outrageous?

She could even imagine what Fedia's face would look like if he heard those words.

"That's not important!" Xiaowen's ears turned red as she realized Ruoyi had overheard her words, and she quickly changed the subject. "The important thing is that I followed him and discovered that he actually has a vampire by his side!"

"They are real vampires, definitely not cosplay!" she added.

Xiaowen had initially thought that even the Armed Detective Agency wouldn't immediately believe her upon hearing the word "vampire." Unexpectedly, Kunikida Doppo and Dazai Osamu merely exchanged a glance, and a pencil and a sketchbook were already placed in front of her.

Dazai Osamu: "Aya-chan, right? I wonder if you could draw what the vampire you saw looked like?"

"I got a perfect score in art at school!" Xiaowen said happily, picking up a pencil and drawing the vampire she had seen, based on her memory.

A man who looked like an adult, with long hair, red eyes, and pointed ears—

It was the vampire Ruoyi had seen that day, who appeared among the members of the "Five Signs of Decay of the Celestials".

"That's it!" After finishing the drawing, she immediately held up the sketchbook for Dazai Osamu and Kunikida Doppo to see.

emmm...

Dazai Osamu and Kunikida Doppo remained silent.

Although it looks a bit like a cat-eared person, it seems to have captured all the necessary features?

"Thank you, we'll handle this." Kunikida Doppo took the sketchbook. Dazai Osamu, however, looked thoughtfully at Xiaowen's drawing.

The person this child saw and the person Pushkin saw must be the same person, right?

…………

afternoon.

In the afternoon, everyone was either resting or out on fieldwork and hadn't returned yet. Dazai Osamu hummed a love song and quietly slipped away to the detective agency. But to his surprise, he had only just reached the stairwell when he saw Kawakami Wakana waiting for him there.

"Wakai-chan?" Dazai Osamu said half-jokingly, "What, are you coming with me if I go swimming?"

“Who wants to go into the water with you!” Kawakami Wakana immediately retorted, but then lowered her head. “If you really are going into the water.”

Now that she had decided to have a frank talk with Dazai Osamu, she looked at him seriously and said, "You're going to the Port Mafia to find Pushkin and see if he knows the vampire the little girl saw, right?"

"I... I don't care what your relationship with the Mafia is, and now is not the time to worry about that, but could you take me with you?"

"Take you with me?" Dazai Osamu raised an eyebrow. "Wakana-chan, do you want to see Pushkin because of him?"

"Dostoevsky".

"..."

"I don't know." Ruoyi felt her heart start pounding. "But I've noticed... he seems to like me a little bit."

"And I...maybe I still have some feelings for him."

As she spoke, she covered her cheeks tightly, as if to prevent Dazai Osamu from seeing the blush on her face.

“But since I’ve already joined the detective club, I can’t possibly like him, right? After all, you said that he’s not someone I can change my mind about, and Ranpo-san also said that day that if necessary, the detective club would… kill him.”

"I see..." Dazai Osamu pursed his lips. "To be honest, you're not going to commit suicide with me, and who you like or dislike is none of my business. But—"

"Human emotions are inherently complex, and completely severing ties with someone you once liked isn't easy. So, if it were me, I would either acknowledge my conflicting feelings for that person and try to let them coexist, or—"

He paused for a moment.

"If you can make good use of this feeling, you've grasped his weakness."

"Alright," he waved, "then I'm off! Remember to keep my sneaking off to the Mafia Building a secret from Kunikida-kun!"

Wakai stuck her tongue out at Dazai Osamu.

If he finds out, I have no obligation to cover for you!

but……

Thanks to Dazai, she now seems to know what to do.

That is—to gain Fei Jia's favor!

After all, her current special abilities are limited in what she can do for the detective agency, so she might as well trust her intuition.

Perhaps, when Feda's favorability rating is truly maxed out, her supernatural abilities will undergo some changes.

However, Kawakami Wakana discovered that although she had decided to max out the favorability rating, there was actually very little she wanted to do.

After all, her previous failure had already proven that it was useless for Fedia to be selfless towards him; having ulterior motives now would only make him dislike her.

Even when she went to see him, it seemed that apart from those two meetings at the coffee shop, it was always Feda who contacted her...

But Kawakami Wakana didn't want to have to consult with Dazai Osamu or Edogawa Ranpo about everything before she could get things done. So, she decided to take a different approach—

Leave something for Fedia.

That afternoon, Ruoyi asked the president for leave, claiming she wasn't feeling well. She took the train to Tokyo and found the apartment where she used to live, which was later used by Fei Jia.

But as she tried to knock on the door, she suddenly heard a clear child's voice: "Ruoyi-san, this house has already been emptied out."

Huh?

Huh—?

Ruoyi looked down at Xiaowen standing next to her with a guilty conscience.

"Wen, Wen-chan! What are you doing here?"

"Let's see if the vampire is still there." Xiaowen pouted and said stubbornly, "Dazai-san's point at the detective agency this morning was that he thought my drawing was ugly, right? So I want to sneak back and see what the vampire looks like so I can help you guys!"

"But when I came back, there was nothing left inside. It seems that Fyodor disposed of everything in the house this morning."

Kawakami Ruoyi: "..."

That must be because your stalking caught Feda's attention!

It's easy to guess that for a child like Xiaowen to try to follow Fei Jia without being discovered is probably as difficult as putting an elephant in a refrigerator.

However, this child really is...

I don't remember things.

"Didn't Kunikida-san say that?" Wakai half-squatted down and patted Xiaowen's head, "Just leave this matter to the Armed Detective Agency, you just need to focus on your studies."

“I know…” The little girl clutched the hem of her skirt, her voice full of grievance.

"But... it's not all for the detective agency."

"That night, I noticed it. When I made eye contact with that vampire, his eyes... were so lonely."

"..."

Xiaowen's words made Ruoyi pause in her hand, which was rubbing her fluffy head.

For some reason, the word "lonely" seemed to pierce the most painful corner of her heart.

“Silly child,” she said with a wry smile, “Vampires and humans have different lifespans. If that really is a vampire, no one knows how many years he has lived.”

"After so many years, all the other acquaintances have grown old, but I have remained the same. Of course I feel lonely."

As she spoke, she took Xiaowen's hand: "Come on, let's go get some ice cream, okay? After we're done, let's hurry home so our parents won't worry."

Holding Koda Aya's hand, Kawakami Wakana led her away from this troublesome place. Unbeknownst to them, Fyodor stood in the now-empty rented room, leaning against the door, constantly biting his nails.

He heard what Ruoyi and Xiaowen said.

The rented room wasn't well-lit; even though it was daytime, it still felt gloomy without the lights on. Fyodor chewed on his nails while looking down at his long shadow stretched across the floor.

Are you lonely...?

If that little girl truly read loneliness in Bram's eyes, then wouldn't he, like Bram, also be consumed by that same emotion deep within his heart...?

[Author's Note]

Fei Jia: Why do I feel like I've become the object of a romance game?