The Library, Horikita's Brother

Library

Qiuyue arrived at the light novel section.

"Sigh... the light novels and manga in this world are far inferior to those of Sakura Country in my past life..."

"There are only a few interesting ones, and I've already finished them. Speaking of which, in this world, the number one in the anime and 2D culture industry is actually our neighbor, Zhonghua Family~"

"...Even though I'm now in a Sakura Country body, I can't help feeling proud of my homeland..."

"Forget it. At worst, I'll move to Zhonghua Family after graduation, take their citizenship. I don't want to end up as a Sakura Country person even after I'm buried."

"Come to think of it, the mystery novels my little brother shoved into my hands before he left were pretty good. Let's go check that section out."

Qiuyue arrived at the mystery novel section, picked a book that caught his eye, and started reading directly.

After a long while, Qiuyue closed the book, let out a breath, and muttered to himself.

"This is way too brain-burning! There's too much misleading information—I can't make sense of it."

"That's only natural. You picked one of the Four Great Mystery Novels, The Black Death Hall Murder Case. So, which part did you like the most?"

"Probably when Hosui entered the Black Death Hall and climbed the first set of stairs, he noticed that the servants could hear his light footsteps even in a noisy environment, and they even yielded slightly. From this, he deduced that the family was in a state of extreme psychological tension (Wernicke's auditory illusion, pathological hyperacusis) + Shinsai and Lady Serena's irregular poetic rhythm + Nobuko's post-awakening signature = the vanished, hidden sixth person: Oshigane Tsutako.

(Note: This references analysis from a forum expert.)

That was the most stunning deduction for me in the early part, and also the only reasoning technique I've fully understood so far.

Just based on that, I think this book is excellent."

After Qiuyue finished speaking, he suddenly realized what had happened, jumped up in shock, and turned anxiously toward the direction of the voice.

In the seat to his right front was a very cute, beautiful girl with long silver hair, big purple eyes, a petite figure so slender she looked like a gust of wind could blow her away, giving off a soft and adorable vibe.

She and Qiuyue stared at each other in silence, but the corners of her mouth were curled in a smile, and she seemed to be in a very good mood.

Qiuyue blushed a little for a moment, stunned.

Wasn't this Shiina Hiyori, the NPC you only ever ran into in the library?

...So cute... Calm down, calm down. Even though I've been single my whole life, and there were plenty of beautiful girls in my class before, I kept my composure. No way I'm falling into a trap here.

And if she's got her eyes on me, doesn't that mean Ryuen does too? No thanks! I'm going full sigma male!

Qiuyue snapped back to reality, turned around without hesitation, and walked toward the door with firm, swift steps.

"Huh...? Wait, classmate."

Qiuyue deliberately pretended not to hear and kept walking forward.

Shiina hurriedly caught up, grabbed the hem of Qiuyue's shirt, panting slightly. After catching her breath, she looked at Qiuyue with a hint of grievance.

"Classmate, you walk way too fast. I know I might have startled you just now, and I apologize for that, but am I really that scary...? Did you have to bolt like that?"

Qiuyue turned around helplessly. You're not scary—you're actually really cute—but Ryuen is...

"Ahaha... well, you see, I'm just... um... socially anxious. Yeah, I've got a bit of social anxiety."

Qiuyue scratched his head with an awkward smile.

Shiina put her hand in front of her mouth, covering a light laugh, exuding the elegance of a refined lady.

"Classmate, it seems you're not very good at lying~ Let me introduce myself. I'm Shiina Hiyori from Class C, first year. Nice to meet you."

Qiuyue thought, What do I do if I want to kidnap her? Asking online, pretty urgent.

"I'm Qiuyue Qi from Class D, first year. Nice to meet you."

"So, Qiuyue-kun, what other mystery novels have you read? Have you read Nishino Keigo's The Devotion of Suspect Z?"

Shiina looked at Qiuyue expectantly.

Looks like she really wants a reading buddy. Whatever, if Ryuen finds out, so be it.

"I know that one. My little brother is also into this stuff and showed it to me."

"Let me tell you, this book is amazing. For a long time after I started reading, I kept thinking:

'Is this novel really that good?' But the moment the truth was revealed, I was shocked, and I suddenly realized all the details the author had set up earlier.

I also really love one line from it:

'Some truths are destined to be carefully buried deep in the heart, because the moment the answer is revealed is also the beginning of annihilation.'

What about you, Qiuyue-kun? What part of the book did you like?"

She's this excited, huh...

"It really is like that. When you first start reading, you begin to doubt, and only when you reach the end of the story do you realize that the author had us readers completely fooled. Just like the Naoki Prize review said:

'He took deception to its extreme.'

I also really liked one line from it:

'Neither of us can escape the shackles of the clock; we've both become gears in the clock of society. If one gear is missing, the clock will fall into chaos. Even if we long to act freely, our surroundings won't allow it. We gain stability, but the loss of freedom is an undeniable truth.'

That line really taught me something."

"Right! This book..."

Shiina grew more and more agitated. Seeing this, Qiuyue quickly interrupted her.

"Shiina, let's go back to our seats and talk slowly."

Male Dormitory Building, Room 415

Qiuyue looked at the footage on the two tablets on the table and sighed.

"Looks like it's not today either. Oh well, I'll wait a little longer."

Until a figure appeared in the frame.

She was cautiously scanning her surroundings as she stepped into the center of the shot, with a man following behind her, but he stayed hidden in the rear.

Qiuyue sat up straight, his eyes locked onto the screen, and quickly started recording.

"As expected of me, this camera angle is perfect..."

Qiuyue kept praising himself.

Horikita stared in one direction in the footage, until she saw a man enter the frame from that direction.

His expression was icy cold, his gaze like he was looking at something utterly uninteresting.

He grabbed both of Horikita's wrists, lifted them above her head, and pinned them against the wall.

"Whoa, he's that harsh with his own little sister? Whether from the original story or this video, he really goes all out... Too bad there's no sound."

Qiuyue silently complained.

Suddenly, someone emerged from behind and approached Horikita's brother.

Ayanokoji quickly stepped forward and grabbed the arm of Horikita's brother, the one holding Horikita's wrist.

"Oh~ Route-kun makes his entrance."

After they exchanged a few words, Horikita said something to Ayanokoji.

Ayanokoji let go of Horikita's brother's arm.

The instant Ayanokoji released his grip, a lightning-fast punch came flying straight at his face like a gale.

Ayanokoji dodged it swiftly, almost by reflex, sidestepping the blow.

And so they began round two of their fight.

Before long, Horikita's brother stopped attacking and started talking with Ayanokoji.

After a while, they both left. Alone in the dorm room, Qiuyue muttered to himself.

"Should I go retrieve it now? No, too risky. I'll do it tomorrow. First, contact the Student Council President. Worst case, I'll just give that up."

Qiuyue found the number he'd obtained from hacking into the student council's system—Horikita Manabu's number—and sent the video over.

[How many points do you want?]

"Heh, that was a fast reply."

"Talking to smart people is great. No hassle at all."

Qiuyue stretched his back and continued replying.

[5 million pr.]

[Too expensive. I'll pay you at most 2 million pr.]

[Deal.]

[Fine. You need to delete this video first.]

[No. Send the points first.]

[But what if you don't delete it?]

[I won't. My whole thing is integrity.]

[I guess I have no choice but to trust you.]

Qiuyue's current personal points: 5268710