Tokyo Detective Chronicles

Normally, no one would approach her room except for her maid, Yui.

After all, Kanata Morikawa has limited mobility, so if there are other important matters, she will be asked to go there.

If someone were to visit her, the maids would always notify her in advance.

It would be quite inappropriate for outsiders to see the eldest daughter of the Morikawa family in this state.

Therefore, she had never expected that Fushimi Iori would suddenly appear in her room.

Fushimi clearly hadn't expected Morikawa Aoi to have this side to her.

Only then was he able to see the girl's full appearance.

She was dressed in a very comfortable outfit: pajamas with a monster print, hot pants that were short enough to reach her upper thighs, and white stockings that she was only wearing half of. Her hair was casually draped over her shoulders.

Although this outfit wasn't particularly special, it completely overturned the image of Aoi Morikawa in his memory.

Xiao Kui had her head down, while Fushimi was sitting, so he could see her blushing face.

Sensing that the atmosphere was getting tense, he put down the controller, stood up, and straightened his clothes.

"Um... Xiao Kui..."

Morikawa Aoi pursed her lips without saying a word, clenched her fists, then lowered her head and stepped forward, placing her hands on Fushimi's shoulders, which were a head taller than hers, making him turn around, and then pushed Fushimi out of the room.

"Wait, just a moment!"

"Bang!"

The sound of the door closing came from behind Fushimi.

Suddenly, the room was filled with the sounds of fists pounding on the mat, and faint whimpering sounds coming from someone burying their head in a doll...

Fushimi scratched his head, probably not angry. Although he had knocked on the door, it did seem a bit unreasonable for him to just sit down and play games without saying a word.

However, the good news is that the grape-sized ball of obsession was successfully dispelled after the game.

Thinking of this, a prompt appeared in his mind, and a notification box appeared before his eyes.

[Speed ​​+1]

[Current speed: 21] (Average speed of all humans: 10)

[Received a reward: an adorable teddy bear doll that every kind girl should own]

[Effect: Reduces the holder's spiritual vision]

Sweet dreams, young lady.

Fushimi opened his palm, and after a brief distortion in the air, an adorable teddy bear landed in his hand.

Brown fur, black glass eyes, a red bow around its neck, it looks soft and fluffy.

Judging from the description, it's a pretty good special item. Fushimi immediately frowned and examined it...

The effect is very weak.

It belongs to the lowest level of spirit mediums, but fortunately it has no side effects.

For a ball of obsession of that size, it's already quite good.

Unfortunately, for a psychic with his level of spiritual vision, the effect he could have was quite limited.

Moreover, while maintaining a high state of spiritual awareness while sleeping may sometimes lead to strange dreams, it will undoubtedly also make one more alert to the dangers lurking on the edge of the mundane world.

Besides, having something like this on the bedside table of a grown man like myself is really...

After thinking about it, why not just give it to Morikawa Aoi as a gift for helping out?

He squeezed the teddy bear; it felt nice to the touch.

Giving a female junior high school student doll as a gift doesn't seem quite appropriate. Wouldn't it be too childish?

……

Just then, the door clicked open.

Aoi Morikawa stepped out of the door, her demeanor completely transformed from before.

She had changed out of her loose pajamas into the uniform of the Saint Laurent Girls' Noble School.

A black fitted pinafore dress with a white shirt underneath, tied with a red tie, and knee-high black stockings underneath.

She seemed to be in a hurry; her tie was tied crookedly, and the top two buttons of her shirt were not fastened properly, revealing a small patch of her fair collarbone.

Her long white hair, which she hadn't had time to comb, fell naturally over her shoulders.

The blush on her cheeks had not completely faded.

She stood in the doorway, her hands behind her back, her body slightly leaning forward. Her azure eyes glanced quickly at Fumi before swiftly looking down again.

"Iori...brother."

His voice was much clearer than when he was playing the game, and it carried obvious tension and unease, like a child who had made a mistake.

Fushimi then noticed that Aoi Morikawa had grown considerably taller than he remembered, reaching about chest level.

Some of the childishness had faded from her face; her deep blue pupils were brimming with moisture, her nose was straight and upturned, and her lips were a natural pale pink.

Her skin was fair, and her eyelashes were long and thick, casting a light shadow under her eyes.

If we say that Rina Hoshizaki's beauty is the kind of healthy, lively, and down-to-earth beauty that comes from being a girl next door...

So Aoi Morikawa's beauty is like an untouched, exquisite beauty, as if she was born to be placed in a display case and become a precious treasure for all mankind.

It carries an innate sense of distance.

However, the panic and embarrassment at this moment actually brought the two closer together, and they showed many of the adorable expressions that are typical of their age.

Although both are of the Morikawa family bloodline, her eyes, unlike Kanata's sickly pinkish-white, are a clear azure blue.

Both hair color and eye color are changes resulting from generations of the Morikawa family's contact with flowers, which are then passed down to their descendants.

However, despite sharing the same parents, the two individuals exhibit an astonishing difference in physical condition. Although both inherited the Morikawa family's abilities related to "flowers," one is plagued by illness and nearing death, while the other remains remarkably healthy.

Aoi Morikawa kept a tense expression, her cheeks still a little hot, but she pursed her lips to prevent herself from making any unnecessary expressions.

She didn't know why Fushimi kept staring at her without saying a word...

Finally, unable to bear the atmosphere any longer, the girl struggled to lift her head and look into Fushimi's eyes:

"Brother Iori, is there something you need from me?"

Fushimi snapped out of his daze and, not intending to hide anything, said, "Well, there's something I'd like to ask you for help with."

Only then did the girl notice the teddy bear in Fushimi's hand, and tilted her head.

She clearly didn't remember having such a doll in the house.

But she didn't feel at all that this was a gift Fushimi had prepared for her, since it was out of the blue and not a holiday.

She also realized that the teddy bear was not an ordinary doll, but a special item.

Seeing this, Fushimi no longer hesitated and handed it to the girl:

"Xiao Kui, this is a gift for you."

"Eh...Eh?!"

Aoi Morikawa's eyes widened suddenly.

She stared blankly at the teddy bear in Fushimi's hand, then looked up at Fushimi's face, and then back at the teddy bear.

The girl's emotions, which she had finally managed to calm down, surged up all at once. She tremblingly took the teddy bear and then hugged it to her chest, her limbs stiffening slightly.

The bear's fur brushed against her chin, and the soft touch made her instinctively tighten her arms.

"Th-thank you."

She even forgot to politely decline, and just hugged the teddy bear, head down, revealing a pair of blue eyes and red ear tips.

Fushimi couldn't help but find her appearance somewhat amusing.

"You're welcome. May we go inside and talk?"

"Oh, of course!"

Aoi Morikawa quickly stepped aside, and Fushimi re-entered the room.

Then, to my surprise, I discovered that in just the short span of less than five minutes, Aoi Morikawa not only had time to cover her head in embarrassment and change her clothes, but she had also cleaned up everything in the room that might cause any discord.

The game console, snack bags, messy mats, and plush toys all disappeared.

The curtains were half-drawn, and the setting sun slanted in, casting warm patches of light on the floor.

The room was so clean it looked like no one had ever lived there.

If it weren't for the faint smell of potato chips still lingering in the air, Fushimi would have almost doubted whether he had just been hallucinating.

"Please, please sit down."

Morikawa Aoi pointed to the low table, then knelt down opposite him, hugging her teddy bear, her legs together, her posture as upright as if she were being interviewed.

Fushimi sat down, took out the cotton bag containing small bone fragments from his pocket, and placed it on the low table.

He briefly explained his purpose and that he needed Morikawa Aoi's help to make a flower candle pointing to cause and effect.

Aoi Morikawa seemed to be listening attentively, but Fushimi noticed that her fingers were unconsciously stroking the bear's ears, and her eyes were somewhat unfocused, clearly indicating that her mind was not entirely on the matter.

"Aoi?" Fushimi called out to her.

"Ah! Yes!"

Morikawa Aoi snapped back to reality, like a student who had been daydreaming in class and had been called on by the teacher: "I'm sorry, I was just now..."

Fushimi smiled and suddenly said, "Aoi, you look very cute today."

Morikawa Aoi was stunned.

"You don't need to be so reserved in front of me."

Fushimi continued, his tone quite gentle:

"Since you call me Iori-nii-nii (older brother), you can just be yourself in front of me. Otherwise, I'll feel quite ashamed when I think about how much pressure my arrival will put on you."

Morikawa Aoi quickly waved her hands: "No, no! I feel absolutely no pressure!"

After saying that, she lowered her head again and added softly, "...Mm."

Fushimi then went on to talk about the leech monster. When Fushimi mentioned the prematurely deceased fetuses, the girl hugged the teddy bear in her arms tightly, a hint of pity flashing in her azure eyes.

"So... Brother Iori wants to use the wedding night to find the murderer who killed these children?"

"right."

Fushimi nodded: "Your brother's current health condition isn't suitable for this kind of work, which is why I've come to ask you for help."

Aoi Morikawa remained silent for a moment.

"it is good."

She looked up: "Although my skills are far inferior to my brother's, I should have no problem making a 'wan' character candle..."

Fushimi knew that the flowers of the Morikawa family could be broadly divided into four categories:

The characters 森, 罗, 万, 象, among which the smoke or candle that points to fate is named with '万'.

"It just needs some time...it will take about three days for the flowers to bloom."

"That's enough."

Fushimi breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank you, Aoi. If you have any requests or desires, please tell me, and I will try my best to fulfill them."

"No need... Didn't Brother Iori give me a teddy bear?"

The girl gently scratched her cheek with her finger, a little embarrassed.

"That's not enough. Consider it a favor I owe you. Let me know whenever you've made up your mind."

Aoi Morikawa, who was about to refuse, looked up and met Fushimi's gaze, then lowered her head again, continuing to stroke the bear's ears with her fingers: "Okay, okay..."

Afterwards, the two chatted about their recent studies and life.

It seemed that after what happened today, Morikawa Aoi had gradually let go of her usual restraint towards Fushimi, and the atmosphere became more relaxed and pleasant.

Afterwards, Fushimi politely declined the Morikawa family's invitation to dinner.

He needs to get back as soon as possible; he has many things to worry about lately.

Therefore, after finalizing the details and chatting with Kanata Morikawa for a while, he left early.

In the room, once again all alone, Morikawa Aoi hugged the teddy bear tightly, curled up on the tatami, buried her face in the fur, and gently rubbed against it.

An involuntary smile curved his lips.

……