Not a detective

Page 154

However, Mo Yue seemed to be a prophet, and actually read what she wanted to say.

Then, the man started rummaging through the pockets of his uniform. "Look, empty, empty... This one's empty too, all empty, huh? I didn't bring it with me."

Dongyun Sueyue turned all her pockets inside out, and even took off her little leather shoes to show her, but there was really nothing there.

"A handkerchief should only be held in your hand, right? If I hide it inside my clothes, it shouldn't count, right? And there are guys around, so I won't take my clothes off."

Since things have come to this point, it definitely isn't on her... Could it be that what she said is true?!

Kato Mio was stunned. She couldn't understand what this unconventional person was thinking at all.

Why would someone do that, throwing the handkerchief behind their back and walking to the chair, thus exposing their weakness?

There must be a reason for doing this; is it just to stall for time?

Kato Mio glanced quickly at the wall clock. Her voice and thoughts were so chaotic that she almost forgot about the time limit. After all this commotion, there were less than fifteen seconds left before the time was up, which was very urgent.

We can't hesitate any longer... If we want to catch up, we have to seize this opportunity. If we turn back any later, it will be pointless!

Just as she began to twist her neck, preparing to turn around.

This moment.

As if struck by lightning, she stopped moving in shock and forced herself to calm down.

No.

wrong.

This is a trap! This is a scam! Don't fall for it!

A strong premonition stopped Kato Mio from acting. As if she had received a divine revelation, after a brief moment of astonishment, the corners of her mouth turned into a smile:

"...What a brilliant plan, Miss Dongfeng, I almost fell for it."

"Actually, you're not sure if I can hear the handkerchief fall to the ground, right? You can't be sure if I can still detect what you're saying, or if this kind of interference will actually work. You're worried I'll have problems in the sixth round, so you have to eliminate me this round, and that's why you came up with this deceptive method. All those things you said, deliberately walking up to me and showing my palm, were all to affect my judgment, constantly stalling for time, trying to create the illusion that I ran out of time last time, so I'd be anxious to turn back..."

"But if I turn around, I'll be eliminated, because the handkerchief didn't even touch the ground!"

“You’ve already walked right up to me, without a handkerchief in your hand, and you’re not hiding one on your person either. Theoretically, the handkerchief should have been left behind. If that’s your thinking, then I’ve lost, because you can’t use common sense to speculate, Miss Dongfeng… there’s not nothing behind you, there’s another person behind you, am I right?”

"I told Asakawa to keep quiet and not to give any hints, but I forgot to say that he couldn't offer any help... So, he can be your helper too!"

Just then, the time came to an end, and with the final "click" of the second hand, we reached the finish line.

Kato, the squad leader, wore a confident smile and only slowly turned around when it was all over.

"You've already secretly handed the handkerchief to Asakawa Riku! He's the one holding the handkerchief! So, the handkerchief still hasn't fallen to the ground! I win—"

Her confident voice suddenly disappeared.

That smile froze on his face.

Gradually, it turned into disbelief.

"A very good guess, but unfortunately, it was wrong."

Higashino Suetsuki patted her on the shoulder and pointed in that direction.

—The handkerchief was on the floor behind the chair, already fallen to the ground.

"Time expired and the seated person did not turn around to check. Due to exceeding the time limit, 0 points are awarded."

Asakawa Riku stood in front of it, but from beginning to end, he didn't touch it.

He shook his head with a wry smile and said, "Squad leader, it seems you still don't understand me very well. I said I would be fair, and I will absolutely not side with either party."

Zashiki-warashi no Aki: Chapter Twenty - Complete Victory

"How...how is it possible..."

Squad Leader Kato's voice was trembling. When she got up, she accidentally slipped, kicked the chair, and tripped over it.

Although Asakawa Riku stepped forward and helped her up, he could feel that her hands were cold and her eyes were empty, as if they had lost their luster.

She shook off Asakawa Riku's hand:

"No...it's impossible, I clearly didn't hear it, I really didn't hear it."

In that instant, she was absolutely certain that her guess was correct: Miss Dongfeng must have secretly handed the handkerchief to Asakawa.

But when you turn around, the scene you see is completely the opposite.

Asakawa Riku smiled, not minding at all, and explained:

"The station staff dropped the handkerchief in the very first second. With 60 seconds remaining, they scored 60 points, making the difference 60 points."

"The first second?!"

Squad Leader Kato was taken aback. He turned around and saw Shinonome Suetsuki helping up a chair.

So... it was when he was "stepping" down! So it was so early in the morning, that he deliberately made such a loud noise to avoid being heard!

Therefore, all those subsequent words were a smokescreen. She had no idea where the limits of her hearing were, so she said those words to cover up her initial actions.

The planning started so early on.

"you……"

Squad Leader Kato stared at the bewitching woman: "Aren't you afraid that I'll turn around and check immediately... and the score difference will be caught up!"

She had absolutely no idea what this guy was thinking.

"I'm not scared."

After Mo Yue lifted the chair, she sat down herself. It turned out that she didn't think it was bad for things to be knocked over, but rather that she wanted to sit down.

She turned around and met Kato's gaze: "Because I know you absolutely wouldn't dare to turn around."

"Why... By what right!"

"Because people who cheat all have one thing in common: winning or losing is very important, and they absolutely cannot lose. They will cheat if they have a reason not to lose."

Mo Yue looked at the flustered class monitor and spoke with precise words that pierced her heart like blades: "So you dare not turn back, you are afraid of losing. Your guess is just an excuse your subconscious is making. No matter whether you come up with any reason to convince yourself, you will not turn back. You are not as indifferent as you say. You have fewer chips than I do."

"Uh……!"

Squad Leader Kato was speechless; she couldn't refute it.

...Failure to check results in immediate elimination. This rule was originally designed to eliminate challengers, because she would never fail to check; only challengers would.

But unexpectedly, one day, this rule will become an invisible shackle, trapping her firmly in that chair, unable to turn back!

As long as she can't use cheating, she can't be sure... because she really has reasons not to lose.

The bluff was actually seen through... Why are this person's eyes so terrifying? Does she have superpowers? Can she read people's minds?

"I lost... I was completely defeated... I was completely seen through, it's terrifying..."

Now that things had come to this, Sergeant Kato slumped his shoulders, let out a helpless sigh, lost all will to fight, and had no choice but to surrender.

However, it seems that Shinonome Suetsuki is not going to let her go yet:

"Hmm? Aren't you going to continue? There are still two rounds left."

She was already seated in the chair, seemingly ready to start the next round.

Squad Leader Kato shook his head helplessly:

"I concede. As I said, since you've seen through my cheating methods, there's nothing more to say. Besides, even if we continued playing, I wouldn't have a chance to win, would I?"

Yes, after the fourth round, their current scores are [Kato Mio 30 points, Shinonome Suetsuki 121 points], which is a hopeless gap.

Even if we play normally, as long as Shinonome Suetsuki doesn't check for failure, it doesn't matter if we drag it out until the last moment and then turn back, because this point difference is already irrecoverable.

The outcome has been decided.

"Ugh... I've only just started warming up, what a buzzkill~"

That annoying guy was still sitting in his chair, shaking his head.

In contrast, Asakawa Riku maintained a serious expression and questioned Kato, the class president:

"Class monitor, now that it's over, I want to ask you, why did you cheat? Since it was just a little game of choosing a booth at the school festival, wouldn't a fair duel have been better?"

He now understood why all the challengers failed at this stage.

Facing Kato Mio, who possesses superpowers, and with specially designed rules, there is absolutely no chance of winning if you play this game normally.

I reckon only a weirdo like Shinonome Sugetsuki could defeat him.

"...It might just be a small game for you, but it carries a different weight for me."

Squad Leader Kato smiled bitterly: "The 'bargaining chips' I mentioned before were just me bluffing. In reality, the situation is completely the opposite; I'm the one who has staked everything."

Seeing Asakawa Riku's puzzled expression, she explained:

"I...I'm not from Tokyo. My hometown is Kumamoto Prefecture. You can't tell from my accent, can you? Actually, I've worked hard behind the scenes for a long time. I've always been the top student in school since I was little, so my family sent me all the way to Tokyo to give me the best education. But they're from the countryside too, and they don't know how much tuition a good university costs. To get a ticket and scholarships, and not let my family down, I had to use the student council route to add important weight to my resume. You probably know, this kind of game, which is actually a 'gambling' game, is very popular in the student council. Many people use it as a way to prove their intelligence and ability, and even whether they can get an important position depends on it. But actually, I don't have the brilliant talent of Kasahara-san. I can only rely on my hearing to cheat. Only in this way can I keep winning..."

She spoke at length, as if she had finally unloaded a heavy burden, took off her glasses, and wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes.

He gave a wry smile and said, "From the very beginning, I should have known I'd be exposed. It's time to pay the price. Tell me my cheating method—"

Yes, Kato Mio finally realized that this was not something she obtained through legitimate means, and it was completely unfair to the other students. Who doesn't have a background and their own hardships?

That's it... It doesn't matter if I'm disgraced, it's fine if I'm expelled from the student council...

"I won't tell anyone."

Asakawa Riku replied calmly.

"Eh?"

Looking at that stubborn face that was holding back tears, Asakawa Riku remembered that on that island, when he publicly exposed the truth about the "Red Stingray," she had the same expression.

He shook his head: "I won't tell anyone, let's just leave it at that. We're all in the same class, so just consider this a favor to you."

The boy stood up and left only one last sentence.

"Actually, class monitor, even if you didn't cheat, your grades would still be better than mine, wouldn't they?"

Then they left the room.

Kato Mio stood there, still in a daze, the sounds of Asakawa Riku and the beautiful lady beside him laughing and talking still echoing in her ears, no matter how far she had walked.

For the first time, she began to feel annoyed: why is his hearing so good?

"...You clearly have a girlfriend... so please... don't say things that could cause misunderstandings."

Tears finally broke free, and she buried her head deeply in her arms.

Zashiki-warashi no Aki: Chapter 21, Stage 3

After leaving the student council, Asakawa Riku said helplessly to the person next to him, "Didn't you go a bit too far? Was it really necessary to go that far?"

This refers to Shinonome Suetsuki, of course.

This guy really doesn't hold back when he speaks. Judging from Kato's expression just now, he was probably quite shocked and might even have some psychological trauma.

Finally, he deliberately walked up to her and, without lying, said he had dropped the handkerchief. This was completely unnecessary showing off, just to make her regret it.

He earnestly advised, "We're not enemies, we're just playing a game among classmates. There's no need to make things so tense. We still need to have basic emotional intelligence."

Even though Higashion Suetsuki is older than him, for some reason, he doesn't feel any older sister vibe in front of her at all.

Instead, Asakawa Riku had to lecture him like an elder.

"Hey...she was the one who cheated first, wasn't she?"

Sure enough, she wouldn't listen at all.

Asakawa Riku sighed, "So whether it counts as cheating or not... I haven't really figured it out myself, so in the end I can't really blame them..."

Is it considered cheating that Kato Mio can hear the "sound of a handkerchief falling to the ground"?

Who knows... If Asakawa Riku were sitting in that chair, he could also sense the moment the handkerchief fell by the change in sound and the disturbance of the wind.

In other words, he can do the same thing, which is not difficult for a martial artist.

So, does this count as cheating? We can't expect him to pretend he didn't know, can we?

Just like in a casino, if someone can use the superpower of "X-ray vision" to see through the cards and the superpower of "prophecy" to predict the future, wouldn't that be considered cheating?

Or is it considered part of one's personal ability?