I'm Curious (2)

"Do you believe in artificial geniuses?"

"Artificial geniuses?"

"That's right."

Sakayanagi's expression grew somewhat serious.

It seemed like a reasonable idea.

But when you actually thought about it...

"I don't."

"Why not?"

"...It's hard to explain."

Oreki spread his hands.

If geniuses could be mass-produced, could they still be called geniuses?

Sakayanagi thought more and more highly of Oreki.

The two of them were clearly a good match.

"Well, let's leave it at that. If you have anything else to do, feel free."

"Feel free?"

"I never force anyone."

"Uh... I see."

Oreki stood up and left.

Before leaving, he glanced at Sakayanagi.

She was reading a very thick book.

The title...

It seemed to be something about a bookshelf.

Evening.

The sky was growing dark.

Oreki walked to the window and looked outside.

He had been here for two days.

He felt as if time were flying by.

But it was only a feeling.

Before long, he drew the curtains, turned off the light, and went to sleep.

Until the following afternoon.

"Do you remember what happened yesterday?"

Sakayanagi's question brought Oreki back to his senses.

A lot had happened over the past few days.

It had left him in a constant daze.

"Mm..."

"Didn't sleep well last night?"

"Maybe."

"Would you like me to move you to another room?"

"That won't be necessary."

Oreki shook his head.

He didn't want to abuse his authority.

"Let's go."

"Mm, Kamuro's already waiting outside."

"Please don't tell me it's the motorcycle again. That would be too..."

"It isn't."

Sakayanagi said meaningfully.

She smiled faintly.

"Good."

Oreki breathed a sigh of relief.

It wasn't that Kamuro Masumi shouldn't ride a motorcycle.

But on school grounds...

That would draw far too much attention.

But what Oreki hadn't expected was...

"Whoa, a Lexus?"

"Mm. I didn't know you were interested in cars, too."

"It's hard not to recognize a car worth tens of millions of yen, isn't it?"

"Is it?"

Looking at Sakayanagi's indifferent expression, Oreki felt helpless.

Money really did let you do whatever you wanted.

"Are you two ready yet?"

Kamuro Masumi complained from inside the car.

She'd already been waiting for more than ten minutes.

"We're coming."

Oreki and Sakayanagi sat in the back.

Before long,

they arrived at the art museum.

There were pitifully few people here.

But that was normal.

People without money didn't come here.

People without time didn't come here.

The only people who could come here were...

Oreki didn't want to say it.

There wasn't much point, anyway.

He opened the car door.

"Give me your hand."

"...That's rare."

Sakayanagi froze for a moment.

But she still offered Oreki her left hand.

With Oreki's help, Sakayanagi got out of the car with ease.

But just as Oreki was about to let go...

"Isn't that Oreki?"

Kushida Kikyo waved to him from a distance.

It really was a small world.

Why did he keep running into people he knew?

"Are you two... on a date?"

Kushida Kikyo asked curiously.

After all, from where she stood, Oreki and Sakayanagi were already holding hands.

It wasn't strange for her to get the wrong idea.

"You're mis—"

"We are."

Sakayanagi answered before he could.

Taking the opportunity, she grabbed Oreki's right hand as he let go.

"Huh—"

"I didn't notice at all."

"Looks like Kei has no chance. I'd better tell her soon."

Kushida Kikyo said to herself.

She seemed genuinely troubled.

As if it were something happening to her personally.

"Well, have fun!"

With that, Kushida Kikyo left.

She returned to the group of girls beside the convenience store.

Oreki frowned.

Wasn't this getting a little out of hand?

"Was that necessary?"

"Mm... I was just playing a little joke."

"That really was a 'little' joke."

He could already imagine what would happen tomorrow...

No.

Maybe he'd get a text from Karuizawa Kei tonight.

Sakayanagi let go of his left hand.

But Oreki quickly took it again.

"It's not too much to ask for a little compensation, is it?"

"...Of course not."

She replied a little awkwardly.

—Strong on offense, weak on defense?

Oreki wondered.

But never mind.

Since Sakayanagi had taken the initiative to hold his hand, she couldn't expect to let go so easily.

The two of them entered the art museum.

It had a distinctive style.

Everything was minimalist.

It was very comfortable to look at.

And the space was spacious, so you could view the exhibits from any angle.

"You're Mr. Sakayanagi's daughter, aren't you?"

A middle-aged man in a suit walked over.

He seemed to know Sakayanagi's father well.

"Yes."

"Wonderful! I heard your father invited a very capable detective... May I ask where he is?"

"Right in front of you."

"In front of me? But... I don't see anyone."

He looked around.

He really couldn't find anyone who looked like a detective.

"Heh..."

Sakayanagi couldn't help laughing softly.

She looked at Oreki.

Oreki cleared his throat.

"I'm that gentleman's assistant. Just show me the relevant information, and I'll pass it along."

"I see..."

"That's right."

"But Miss Sakayanagi said he was already here."

"You must have misheard."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"That's strange..."

The man scratched his head, looking confused.

In the end, he still chose to trust the chairman.

"Please follow me."

So Oreki and Sakayanagi got into the elevator.

Meanwhile,

—Why don't you dare step forward, great detective?

Sakayanagi had sent him a text.

Oreki replied simply.

"Want to see a cliché plot?"

"Hm?"

"I have no reputation or status right now. If I claim to be a brilliant detective, won't people just laugh at me?"

"That's true."

"Then they look down on me. In the end, I solve the case and prove those people wrong."

"That sounds kind of familiar."

"Right?"

The elevator doors opened just then.

Oreki turned off his phone.

He followed the middle-aged man out.

"Here's the surveillance footage from the time."

Oreki sat down casually in the armchair.

The crime had taken place at night.

Sometime between nine and ten, there had been a power outage.

It had lasted about five minutes.

In the end, they'd had to turn on the backup generator to light up the art museum.

But...

"Steal it in five minutes?"

Watching the famous painting being swapped out in the footage, Oreki fell into thought.

That was bulletproof glass.

An ordinary person couldn't open it easily.

"Were there any other clues?"

"There were, but..."

"But what?"

"I can't think of how they're connected to the case."

"Tell me anyway."

The middle-aged man nodded.

He gathered his thoughts for a moment.

"Before the power outage, someone noticed an abnormal fluctuation in the current."

"Where did it lead?"

"It seemed to be... the electrical box in the staff lounge."

"Anything else?"

"A few days ago, someone sent in an anonymous tip."

"A tip?"

"Yeah... It was mostly just complaints about the former curator. Nothing particularly useful."

"Is that all for now?"

"Yes."

Oreki was intrigued.

It seemed this wasn't a simple case.

Interesting.

Seeing the look on Oreki's face, Sakayanagi remained silent.

I'm curious...

Will you be able to solve it smoothly this time, little Oreki?

To be continued.