Chapter 19: A Serialized Detective Story

[There's nothing much to do on the weekend, and I don't have to work today, so I can stay at home, go online, watch videos, and so on.]

[However, since staying at home is truly too boring, I decided to go out for a walk.]

[I didn't expect that just by going out on a whim, I would see a kidnapper.]

[Beika really is a magical place; it feels like you can run into criminals no matter where you go.]

[Having lived here for over ten years, I really should be used to it by now.]

[Rarely encountering such a thing, I directly called the police. Well, the police's response speed was actually quite fast.]

[So I've said it before, if Kudo had just contacted the police when he discovered those two from the brewery, maybe he wouldn't even have had the chance to get hit with a club.]

[Today's diary doesn't have that much explosive content; after all, not every day is full of content.]

[However, I witnessed the classic scene of Kudo turning into an elementary school student yesterday. I wonder what happened afterward? Did he move directly into Ran Mouri's house?]

Nagi Sanzenin, who was reading the diary, suddenly became interested in this.

"Maria, have the bodyguards been monitoring Shinichi Kudo's situation?"

"Shinichi Kudo? I'll go ask."

Maria went to ask, and indeed, the bodyguards had not been keeping an eye on Shinichi Kudo after he turned into a child.

She immediately requested to investigate the whereabouts of that child.

The answer came back quickly, accompanied by a photo taken from outside the hospital into the hospital room.

This photo passed through Maria's hands and was delivered to Nagi Sanzenin.

"Maria, who are these two people?"

In the photo, besides Shinichi Kudo, who had turned into a child, there was a man with a handlebar mustache and a woman who looked very young.

"The man is Yusaku Kudo, a world-famous mystery novelist."

"The woman is Yukiko Kudo, a world-famous actress who won many classic awards when she was young."

"Eh~ It seems the father's intelligence and the mother's love for acting were perfectly inherited."

From Maria's introduction, Nagi Sanzenin knew that Shinichi Kudo was truly a perfect heir.

He is hailed as the "Sherlock Holmes of the Heisei Era," but does he know that this isn't a good title?

This kind of fame often brings a pile of unnecessary trouble and targeting.

"It seems that, just as the diary said, he isn't a bad person; he's just at an age where he likes to rush in, constantly radiating emotions toward things he's interested in."

However, she also understood why "Shinichi Kudo" would be called a Grim Reaper.

Because this person really does rush toward cases he's interested in at any moment.

As for whether Shinichi Kudo is the root cause of the cases in Beika City, she was very certain: absolutely!

But she also knew that the other party probably felt quite wronged to receive the title of "Grim Reaper."

"Maria, in detective novels, does the protagonist always run into inexplicable cases?"

"That's for sure. In order to keep the story going, detective stories definitely have to encounter many bizarre cases."

"Aren't detective stories just built up by one case after another?"

"However, most detective stories focus on the story content; the suspense and reversals in the story are the interesting parts of detective stories."

Nagi Sanzenin looked at Maria with some surprise.

"Maria, you know a lot about these things."

"Because I read some books when I have nothing to do. In the Great Library, you've piled up a lot of materials for drawing manga, and when I have free time, I also go to tidy them up and find some books to read."

Maria's answer was also reasonable.

A maid's work is very complex, especially when being a maid for Little Nagi. Besides daily cleaning, the biggest problem is often having to face Little Nagi's sudden "whims."

A maid also needs time to vent and relax.

So, occasionally reading some interesting novels is also one of Maria's little hobbies as a maid.

Only, after finishing, Maria looked at Little Nagi with a subtle expression.

"So, you think that Shinichi Kudo is the protagonist of some detective novel?"

"No, I don't think it's a detective novel."

Nagi Sanzenin denied it directly.

"Detective novels wouldn't cause a title like 'Grim Reaper'."

"Which detective novel would allow the protagonist to have such a title? How many people would have to die?"

"Indeed."

Maria also felt it was quite ridiculous.

If a detective novel had a number of deaths that could be called "Grim Reaper," that detective novel would definitely be trash.

"So, I think it should be a manga, or an anime."

This sudden, long-winded addition made Maria's breathing hitch.

"Detective manga and anime... and the deaths are serialized?"

"That's why that person is called the 'Grim Reaper'."

"...Indeed."

It was well-reasoned, leaving Maria unable to refute it.

"Connecting it to the situation in Beika City, I gradually understand why the crime rate in Beika City is so high."

Nagi Sanzenin was a bit speechless, yet it seemed she had found the answer.

"It's just putting the crime rate of the entire island nation into one point, just to send some cases to the protagonist."

"..."

Such an answer is truly a bit speechless, but combined with reality, it seems that's really how it is.

"The point of Shinichi Kudo turning into a child doesn't look like an ending, but more like a beginning."

"Mm, the beginning of the story is that the famous detective Shinichi Kudo was hit with a club by a member of a strange organization, was forcibly fed a strange drug and turned into a child, and then it's the story of Shinichi Kudo using an alias to investigate that organization and the poison, attempting to turn himself back into a high school student."

Maria's speculation was as logical as ever, and Nagi Sanzenin also listened, finding it very logical.

That initial club and a pill directly caused a high school detective to have a grudge with a strange organization, and what followed was a story of mutual maneuvering between them.

Mm, very reasonable.

"No wonder he dislikes being a student at Teitan High School."

Nagi Sanzenin understood a bit, but then she became curious again.

"Maria, what kind of story do you think we are in?"

"For us, it should be a story with Little Nagi as the theme. I think it should be relatively life-oriented, a story with a very Little Nagi style."

Maria thought about it; it seemed only situations related to Little Nagi were reliable.

"Little Nagi, if you want to know, you can just go ask when the time comes."

"Mm."

Nagi Sanzenin also had such a plan.

Then she looked at the diary; next was today's lottery time.

However, having had such a gem before, she didn't hold any hope.

[Genshin Impact]

[Obtained production recipe: Mondstadt Hash Brown]

[Mondstadt Hash Brown: A fragrant fried potato cake, can be used to restore vitality.]

PS: Seeking data for the new book.