Chapter 50 The Main Body, Two or Four Days

I went to the Armed Detective Agency.

Before they even reached the fifth floor where the detective agency was located, and before they could even knock on the door, they spotted Mr. Ranpo in the coffee shop on the first floor.

Through the cafe's clear glass window, I saw Ranpo sitting by the window. And at that very moment, as if by telepathy, Ranpo turned his head and saw me.

Then he squinted his eyes, smiled, and waved to me.

I pushed open the coffee shop door and went inside. As I passed the bar, I nodded to the manager as a greeting, and walked all the way to Ranpo's table.

There was only a half-finished glass of orange juice on his table. I sat down opposite him and asked, half-jokingly, "Mr. Ranpo, were you waiting for me?"

If Ranpo really says "yes," I wouldn't be surprised.

Since meeting Edogawa Ranpo, he has displayed extraordinary wisdom on many occasions, as if he should know many things.

"I don't know," Ranpo said.

This surprised me somewhat.

He turned to me, changed the subject, and continued, "I haven't seen him or anyone in a long time."

I nodded: "It's been a long time."

Nearly a month.

"Or maybe it's been a long time since you've seen me."

"Um."

"But I might be very happy."

"Uh-huh??"

I stopped mid-nod abruptly. "Wait, Mr. Ranpo, that doesn't sound right. It sounds strange."

Ranpo said, "But you seem very happy now, even happier than when I last saw you."

I said, "But I'm happy because I can't see Mr. Ranpo."

He tilted his head and asked me, "Then what makes you happy?"

Because there are many.

Because I can freely control my alternate identity, because I went back to the vocational high school, because I sparred with Megumi a few times, and because I saw Gojo Satoru again.

However, neither of these points is something that can be presented openly and explained directly.

I cannot provide a suitable explanation, nor do I know whether Mr. Ranpo has already deduced the answer to the question.

I have never proactively mentioned the system and alternate accounts to anyone (Dazai Osamu doesn't count as proactively mentioning them, and neither does Ranpo).

However, Edogawa Ranpo always defied common sense; the normal logic of "if I didn't tell him, then he wouldn't know" did not apply to Ranpo.

So I asked the system if Edogawa Ranpo had discovered my existence. The system replied that it was uncertain and that, based on analysis, there was a 52% probability that it had discovered me and a 48% probability that it had not.

It's the same as not answering at all; it's all for nothing.

I countered, "Does Mr. Ranpo have an answer?"

He bit his straw: "I think so."

Ranpo took a sip of orange juice and said, "The great detective sensed it a long time ago."

"What?"

"Or he's leaving," he said.

"..."

The next second of silence, I realized that I had not refuted it.

****

I have a headache right now.

Controlling the alternate account means I can control the dormant state, and being able to control the dormant state means I can return to Tokyo.

Because the reasons I gave for leaving back then no longer hold true.

I really want to go back to the vocational high school, and I've told Maki and Gojo-sensei that there will be a day when I can go back.

But I can't just go back to the vocational college like this, can I?

Back when I was planning to leave Tokyo, I was lucky enough to find a detective agency that would take me in. Everyone at the agency took good care of me, and I stayed there for quite a while.

Now that I'm free, it would be a bit unfair to just leave like that.

When I brought up this issue with Dazai Osamu at Lupin Bar, he blinked and asked me in return, "Why can't you just resign?"

I:"……"

I looked at him and said seriously, "Because that would seem... how should I put it... heartless and ungrateful."

Dazai Osamu looked me up and down, then said with a smile, "Then it's a pity you didn't come to the Port Mafia. If you were a leader like Mori, you would probably have left without looking back."

I:"……"

It's clear you're very dissatisfied with your boss, Mr. Dazai.

“You can’t draw that analogy, Mr. Dazai,” I said. “If your boss, Mr. Mori, was really as bad as you say, then he had no reason to take me in back then.”

“Hmm, maybe,” Dazai Osamu said.

Dazai Osamu and I spent half a day discussing this issue at the bar, during which I kept drinking water.

Speaking of which, the bartender on duty that day happened to be Akutagawa, but I had changed my appearance, so he didn't recognize me, and I pretended not to know him either.

Of course, in the end, Dazai Osamu and I didn't come to any conclusions.

Dazai Osamu said, "Aru-kun, now I have to mention what I told you before, 'It's okay for people to be a little selfish sometimes.' If you have to blame someone, blame yourself for not being heartless enough, otherwise you wouldn't be struggling with this issue now."

I don't completely agree with the statement: "Mr. Dazai, it's not that I'm heartless, but no one would choose to leave so directly."

Besides, "heartless and ungrateful" isn't a good term, so why should I be heartless and ungrateful?

"No."

No sooner had I finished speaking than Dazai Osamu immediately contradicted me, pointing smugly to himself, "I know how to do it."

I:"……"

Me: "As expected of you, Mr. Dazai."

I went to the Armed Detective Agency for several days in a row, and like before, I accompanied Mr. Ranpo on a shopping trip, and also helped Mr. Kunikida out.

Due to her job duties, Yosano Akiko is often the one who pays the most attention to my health.

When asked, I said as always that it was no problem, only adding that everything was fine.

One piece of good news during this period was that my work on the Manhasset account was completed and was able to be recovered.

Goodbye, Mr. Francis.

There's another piece of news I won't comment on—good or bad—that I've acquired a new online alias.

The system refers to it as "an orphan from an orphanage in Yokohama".

After hearing this, I: [...]

I told the system: "[I suddenly regret telling you about having a non-service industry identity back then, because I feel that the new identity you gave me after that was worse than working for someone else.]"

The system said: [Try to look on the bright side, host. This is the last mission.]

Me: [?? The last one? You actually have an end? I always thought there wouldn't be.]

The system told me at the time that all the aliases I was given were due to the expectations and requests of others.

But will people's expectations ever stop?

No, it won't.

The system seemed to know what I was thinking, saying: "[Because this time it's not just someone else's wish, but also your wish, host.]"

I was puzzled: [?? I don't understand.]

Don't curse me! I have a harmonious family and never thought of experiencing life in an orphanage.

It no longer explained in detail, but simply said: [Host, you will find out.]