Killed Again, Mr. Detective Volume 1 Case 3 Chapter 2 part 1

Volume 1

Case 3: ?????????

Chapter 2 You Mustn't Pull My Skirt (Part 1)

TLed by: TanoshiKara

The filming started from the lobby, and shifted to several locations like a guest room, the boiler room, and a corridor on the upper floors.

Unlike the detectives, who fly solo most of the time, movie filming revolves around a group of people on set from start to finish, and the person at the center of it was Yuiru.

The girl she plays, Uzura, is a female high schooler with an iron will and a rookie detective who gets caught up in tough cases every single time.

"Those words I return to you bow knot tied!"

That seems to be the signature line in the original work as well, meaning that this was the source of that line Yuriu had been saying from time to time ever since I met her.

I knew little about acting, but Yuriu, being lit by the lights with her outfit and make-up on, seemed like a person from a different universe. An entirely different person from the usual Yuriu, who would call me Master with an innocent smile.

Reiichi Marugoshi, playing the partner to Yuriu's character, had changed completely; Unlike his usual unreserved self, he adeptly played as a poor, weak-hearted writer who follows behind Uzura like a puppy.

A gruesome case had occurred inside this very Kowloons Hotel, which had been selected as the filming location, and Uzura faces this case head-on as a detective.

The actress playing as a side character, and the big-name actress playing the villain were fervently playing as their characters, likely feeling compelled to by Director Toriho's zeal.

The filming proceeded smoothly, and it was already dusk in the blink of an eye.

"Can't wait for its completion, huh! Wonder when the public screening will be!"

"We should be invited to the advanced screening if we manage to flawlessly complete this request. That would mean that we would be able to watch it earlier than the masses. We should take that day off no matter what; No matter what"

Lilithea and I stood in front of the entrance, discussing the movie enthusiastically among ourselves.

The two of us had become invested in the movie.

Of course, we were not merely gazing nonchalantly at the unusual filming set. During the filming, we split up and looked around for any suspicious individuals, and we watched the entrance and exit as well.

We had also checked the hotel's guest list, and were, save for the filming crew, already familiar with the people who were staying here.

"Things are proceeding smoothly for now, huh"

"Is this merely a prank, perhaps?"

"I hope so"

"Masterrr! Lilithea-saaan! Thanks for your hard work!"

A spirited Yuriu appeared while we were talking.

She had taken off her outfit and removed make-up, and had reverted to her usual self.

"From your demeanor, it looks like you nailed it out there. Yo, famous actress"

"Whoaaa, please don't call me thattt! I was so very embarrassed at the thought that Master and Lilithea might be watching me. But......weeew, how do I put itt? Yes, I think my practice has borne fruit!"

"Glad to hear that. Has the filming wrapped up for the day?"

"Yes. According to them, the filming will continue tomorrow. But it seems like there’s only one scene left. Apparently, they'll be filming it in the morning. And so, most of the crew heading back to the city later today......was the plan, but"

"Did something happen?"

Yuriu pressed her index fingers against each other and eventually pointed them upwards.

"You see, because of the heavy rain," She then said.

"Eh, don't tell me they are stuck here due to the rain"

But now that she mentioned it, it has been raining since morning. I recall the morning news going on about a stationary front and high atmospheric pressure or something.

"It is as you feared. The roads are submerged? Flooded? or something, so......"

"Ohhhhh dear! I knew it! See, I knewww we would get trapped here!"

"W-What's wrong, Master?"

"Please pay him no mind. It is the most common spasm of his, after all"

What kinda spasm is that... But my unsettling hunch was right in the end. Couldn't they let me grumble at least?

"Haa......I guess it rained that heavily, huh. I was so immersed in my work and touring the filming set that I didn't notice. Won't it affect filming tomorrow if it rains too heavily?"

"I wonder. It would be good if it is sunny tomorrow though......"

"The rain will get even heavier from tonight, lasting into the wee hours of the morning......or so it says," Lilithea said, reading off the latest news article on the heavy rain after she took out her smartphone.

"I wonder if this hotel will be alright"

"There is no need to worry then"

"This town has always been in an area that is prone to flooding, but our hotel has been built on one of the more elevated terrains in the area. We’ve not had any floods ever since our hotel's inception," Old Man Chou reassured us from the counter, seemingly having overheard our conversation.

He had a sharp gaze as usual, but he did not seem to be angry.

"That said, water has probably accumulated in the surrounding areas, so vehicles like cars cannot be used"

But if things are like this, I worry for our office. It's on the second floor, so there's probably no need to worry about it being flooded, though.

"So? What should we do later? Finding traces of the culprit?"

"Umm, Yuriu-chan......nothing has happened yet. In the first place, it has not been confirmed that the threat letter is real"

"Ehehe. That's right"

"That's why it's better not to be too concerned about it"

"That's...true! Ah! Then please tell me your room number, Master. I will come over to hang out later. Let's play The Game of Reincarnated Life! I brought it over with me from my house!"

The Game of Reincarnated Life is a board game where players roll a die and move through various spaces. When played with friends, it will probably last them through the night.

"That...sure is nostalgic"

"With our fates controlled by the dice, we shall marry, take on loans, and go through divorces; Let's lead scandalous lives, pretty pleaseeee!"

What a way to put it.

"That's fine with me, but won't that stern manager of yours get angry? He'll say, 'Scandals are NG, okayyy', you know?"

I say that, but I'm actually not fond of that manager. Including how he blatantly treats Yuriu like a product.

"Are you talking about Nakuji-san? That's true...... In that case! I'll sneak over late at night so I won't get found out!"

"Now it sounds even more like a tryst though"

"Isn't that fineee? It's your employer's orderrr. Masterrr"

I thought this girl was the type to obediently follow an adult’s every word, but she has a surprisingly mischievous side. No, I guess she is merely in field trip mode.

"After the game, I'll talk about love with Lilithea-san for the rest of the night"

"Eh!? T-That is......"

"Let's do itt! Please! I wanna do that kinda thingg! As you can see!"

"Ah, you mustn't pull my skirt. Just what do you mean by as you can se-"

Forgive me, Lilithea. Even if you look at me with those pleading eyes, this is too much for me to handle.

While casting a sidelong glance at the two maidens, I headed for the counter in the lobby.

Utaki was there, seemingly bored and fiddling with her smartphone

"Hello, Utaki-chan"

"You here again? You come here a lot, huh"

Utaki was slumped over on the counter and was stretching her hands languidly.

"Quite the heavy rain, huh"

"Yeah. Quite heavy, huh"

"At least look up at me when you're having a conversation"

"Don't talk like my teachers. Anyway, are you like free, Sak-kun? You're a detective, right? Why don't you go look for a job?"

"If it's a job, I got one earlier...... Rather, do the roofs leak in this hotel?"

"Eh? You here to lodge an unreasonable complaint?"

"No. But this hotel is quite old, so I was wondering if it'll be alright in that regard when it is raining this heavily"

"I've been living here since forever, and surprisingly, it's been fineee, you know?"

"But water actually got in through the gaps in the window frames in the room I'm staying in, though," I said, politely expressing my true intentions.

"You're kiddinggg," She said as she leaned over the counter and took a photo with me.

"Yayyy"

"Don't you 'Yayyy' me! You don't believe me? Charging a low price doesn't make it okay for you to skimp on the service, you know"

"You sure are desperate"

"Stop giggling! Ah! Hey, it just happened! A water droplet landed on my head! Wasn't it from the upper parts of the atrium? The roof is leaking! It is!"

"It's a tear from a God"

"So poetic............hey, that's not it! I'm the one who wants to cry!"

Reacting to Utaki whenever she teased me made her cackle eventually.

"Ahahaha! Sak-kun's interestinggg!" Utaki cackled as she lurched forward and tapped her palm against the counter.

One of her traits is that she, contrary to the impression she gives, laughs a lot. She may seem mature, but she, as expected, acts like a middle schooler in this regard.

"Look, you should think about the customer......a-," I trailed off as I caught sight of something intriguing when I was approaching her, interrupting me while I was complaining.

"What's up? Something wrong?"

I stared at the wall at the back of the counter.

"Ahh, this? Seems like someone had written it here long agooo"

Someone had written words on the wall with calligraphy ink. Four rows of words, written vertically. It took up a space that was two meters long and wide.

Is it Cantonese?

Those skillfully written words caught my attention.

"I didn't notice when I arrived. What's written on it?"

I thought that Uwaki would tell me that she did not know or tease me, but to my surprise, she translated the meaning of the words on the wall and recited it based on her memory.

[Hurl the traitors into the jaws of the Dragon; The interferers into the flames of the Phoenix; The greedy to the bottom of the ocean; The insubordinate scoundrels to the claws of the Tiger—]

"......Sounds pretty disturbing"

"Grandpa taught me some time ago. Said it was some sorta iron-clad rule. Something like they'll seriously do that to you if you dare betray the organization, I think?"

"Does the organization refer to a continental criminal organization?"

I, too, have heard of them before. They have kept a low profile in recent years, but they had quite the influence in the past, particularly during the years before and after the war.

"Something that declares the end traitors of the organization would meet......huh"

"This hotel probablyyy had some connections with those kinda people in the past. That said, it's back during my grandpa's and dad's time, though. But there's no time to remove it at this point, and everyone had forgotten its meaning, so it's left behind as a decoration, or so he said"

"Something you've gotten used to seeing actually having a terrifying meaning sounds like something that could become an urban legend, huh"

"True. With that, I'm gonna head back to workkk"

"No, wait, wait a minute, you've not addressed the roof leaka......"

"The greedy get hurled to the bottom of the ocean, you know?" Utaki said as she flaunted the photo she took just now.

It was the photo with Utaki and me. She only added decorations to my face, making it extremely cute, before adding a heart between the two of us.

I'm up against a middle schooler. She now has a photo that would spell quite the trouble for me if it ever got out to the public...

□

The staff, who were stuck due to the heavy rain. They had the entire sixth floor to themselves, courtesy of Old Man Chou; Of course, it was not out of charity, as he did charge them for their rooms. 

Following that development, I asked for our room to be switched from the fourth floor to the sixth. This was to allow us to respond immediately if something happened as a result of the threat letter.

Indeed, since the filming crew was staying in the hotel, I must stay vigilant.

After dinner, I decided to part ways with Lilithea for a while to patrol the hotel.

"Are you alright patrolling on your own?" Lilithea asked worriedly just as we were about to part ways.

"W-Well, I should be fine. We've not seen any suspicious individuals up until now after all"

I was only acting tough, of course.

"I want Lilithea to be by Yuriu's side just in case. You know that girl, she'd most likely try to come along when no one's watching, saying that it's a disciple's duty"

That is true, or so Lilithea said as she nodded after I tried to convince her with those words.

However, she still looked somewhat discontented.

"I'm counting on you, Lilithea"

"Even though you usually imagine that horrible outcomes would come to pass, and avoid dangerous things and scary places......It is only in times like this that you put on a brave front for some odd reason"

"Errrm......I'm telling you that I'll be fine! There's no way I would slip up every time and get killed at first sight after all," I said, trying my best to sound enthusiastic so as to reassure her.

That said, it'll be alright even if I were killed. I've already written my will yesterday, after all.

With that, I petted my disciple's head and headed out to patrol.

It had just turned 11:30 p.m. 

Standing in the corridor alone made the sound of the heavy rain all the more clear.

"I suree don't like this......This suree is scary"

I walked down the silent corridor after I whined to myself.

The filming crew was already relaxing in their rooms. However, that was only because Director Toriho had told everyone to sleep early, lock their doors, leave their rooms only when absolutely necessary, and sit tight until morning.

It seems like everyone had taken that advice to heart, as they would be filming early in the morning tomorrow as well.

I think that nothing much would happen if everyone stayed in their rooms.

"The hotel at night is creepy, but it'd be a breeze if I could get paid without anything happening......I guess," I said, trying to sound optimistic to distract myself.

Of course, I said 'a breeze,' but I had no intention of cutting corners on purpose, deciding to check every nook and cranny of every floor just in case.

"Guess I should start from the top"

With that decided, I got up to the top floor - floor nine - after an excruciating ordeal of staircase climbing to get there.

"A-As I thought......not being able to use the elevator is tough......"

I was heaving by the time I got there.

After I caught my breath, I patrolled the four corridors that extended out in the four respective cardinal directions by walking through the hallway that connected them.

I should be able to count the number of guests staying on the top floor with one hand. Only natural since climbing up here really is troublesome.

There were windows at the end of each corridor, but they were covered in the darkness of the night, so I could not see the scenery beyond them.

"Guess there's nothing amiss......Hm?" I said as I was approaching the western corridor before I stopped in my steps.

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Feel free to comment/pm me if you find any mistakes. Thank you very much for reading, I hope you enjoyed the first half of the chapter.