“New VTuber Ochiba Kareki Investigates the Murder of Her Group’s COO: A Locked Room and a Director’s Bonds with his VTubers.”
I could clearly picture the title in my head. My Neighbor was acting just like a big-name detective. The culprits were in real trouble with her on the case. Everything she’d said was the truth.
After all, the perpetrator was the bureau member dispatched by Mr. Akutsu.
It had all started a little under an hour ago. After we finished watching my neighbor’s event, the three of us left the secondary stage in Area B, chatting among ourselves as we headed for the staff zone set up in Area C.
“We’ve seen what we came for, hmm? Why not have lunch? My stomach is rumbling.”
“The youngest daughter suggests that we take advantage of this chance to attend the event and spend our time enjoying the booths in the venue.”
“I’m interested in the booths, too,” I said, “but the food court here probably has really long lines. I skimmed over some posts on social media, and people are talking about how terrible the wait is.”
“Ah, yes,” agreed Ms. Futarishizuka. “I glimpsed the sign earlier, and it said there was a two-hour wait.”
“Oof. Yes, I’d like to avoid that if possible.”
After a moment, my bureau phone began to vibrate. I checked the screen and saw Mr. Akutsu’s name. Today was supposed to be a day of rest, at least according to the calendar. Still, I couldn’t afford to ignore it, so I excused myself and reluctantly answered the call.
If I’d known this would happen, I would have just left my phone at home. “Hello, this is Sasaki.”
“I checked your location before contacting you. You’re at the festival venue, right?”
“Yes, that’s right. What about it, sir?”
“Sasaki, I need you to do something for me.”
“…What might that be?”
I bet he’s got another tiresome job for me.
Sure enough, mere moments later, I received a very tiresome job.
“A short while ago, our negotiations with a certain man with connections to a foreign terrorist group failed and we disposed of the target. You know this man as Kuga, the COO of Otherworld Productions. Our plan was to make it look like a suicide, but the terrorist group entered the premises and interfered, and at the moment, our operation has stalled.”
“Um, what?”
“Normally, we would use a psychic capable of teleportation to get out, but said psychic has gone missing, along with their entire team, somewhere in the venue. Both our negotiation and cleanup teams are isolated on-site. I want you to recover them and handle the cover-up to make it look like a suicide.”
“……”
Was this the reason they called in a fake bomb threat? I doubted Miss Inukai or her team had been informed about their dealings with Mr. Kuga.
“Excuse me, sir, but aren’t there other bureau members here at the venue?”
“There are. And they have informed me that you’re currently with Futarishizuka and Type Twelve. There are too many eyes inside the venue. We need certainty on this, which is why I decided to leave the task to you.”
“Chief, today is supposed to be my day off…”
I thought that today, at the very least, I’d be immune to any unreasonable requests from the boss. And now that I had the details, I really didn’t want any hand in this task—hence my attempt to decline.
But the section chief’s next words sealed my fate. “You’re required to keep your company phone on, even on weekends, specifically for situations like this. Didn’t you learn that in training? And you know as well as I do that you’re a part of this.”
“…Understood, sir.”
My neighbor’s activities had probably led to them uncovering Mr. Kuga’s background in the first place.
I never dreamed he’d be in cahoots with a criminal organization. But then I thought back to how well he’d treated her compared to the other talents ever since she joined the company. He’d probably wanted to get her on his side. Maybe he was even involved in the proxy war and hoping to get his hands on a reward.
That was probably exactly why the bureau had dealt with him.
Man, the entertainment industry is horrifying.
I felt like all manner of evil spirits were running rampant all around me, with only a thin wall keeping them out of view.
But then I remembered that two much scarier individuals were standing right beside me, listening intently.
“Sounds like another tiresome job has fallen into our laps,” remarked Ms. Futarishizuka.
“Father,” said Type Twelve, “the government has released statistics showing that fathers in Japan who don’t pay attention to their families and instead prioritize their jobs are frequently pressed into a late-stage divorce as soon as they lose their income stream. If you consider the mid- to long-term happiness of our family, then you must remember to make time for your family, or…”
If I could get their help with this, it might just be possible to pull off the chief’s ridiculous request. At any rate, I didn’t have a choice. “I understand, sir. I’ll do it.”
“Listen to me, Father…”
“I knew I could count on you, Sasaki.”
“I do have a question before we get started. Is there a psychic at the event who can go around undetected? One with an invisibility power, if possible—like the one who was with Ms. Futarishizuka at the bowling alley.”
“Yes, one of the people involved in the cover-up. They’re currently at the venue.”
“If we could get their help, I think this will be possible.”
“Understood. I’ll have them contact you immediately.”
“As for getting to the scene, would it be possible to send someone involved with the event there so that we can be the first people to discover him? One of the VTubers we’re acquainted with should be easy enough to make use of.”
“Sure. I’ll do what I can.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Type Twelve could deal with the security cameras throughout the venue if we asked her. I could explain that it was to prevent Winterfest from being canceled, and so that my neighbor wouldn’t lose her chance to shine. I was fairly certain she’d cooperate.
“Then I leave it in your hands, Sasaki.”
“Understood, sir.”
Our conversation only lasted a few minutes. Leave it to the chief to never waste time. I ended the call and put away my phone.
“What was it?” asked Ms. Futarishizuka. “More work?” She looked utterly disgusted.
I explained everything the boss had told me verbatim. Type Twelve listened closely. I felt guilty for involving her in all this while she was trying to enjoy herself.
“…And that’s the story. Could I ask you to help me?”
“Help you? Hah. If those are the boss’s orders, I can’t exactly say no. Besides, I’m the one who pestered you for a ticket to the festival. Of course I’ll help. Let’s get this over with.”
“Thank you, Ms. Futarishizuka.”
“Father, does this occurrence invoke rule six?”
Fake family rule number six stated that when someone in the family was in trouble, we all had to work together to help them. Type Twelve frequently found herself mixed up in our business due to that stipulation. But this time, nobody was in trouble, exactly.
“I don’t believe it does,” I replied. “That said, if anyone else at Winterfest finds out, the event could be called off. And that would be an unfortunate way to end things for my neighbor and Abaddon.”
If someone discovered that there had been a murder, the second day would be called off for sure. But if the cause of death was suicide, then maybe we—and the management—could cover it up until the end of the event. A ton of money had gone into making Winterfest a reality. As long as there was no criminal activity involved, I doubted there would be any backlash from the public.
“Acknowledged. The youngest daughter will do everything she can to help her elder sister.”
“Thank you, Type Twelve. I really appreciate that.”
With the mechanical life-form’s help, the job was basically half-finished.
A moment later, I got two messages on my company phone—one from the section chief and one from another bureau employee. Mr. Akutsu had sent the psychic’s current location, a photograph of him, and a general plan; the other message had come from the psychic with invisibility powers; he was asking how to go about our mission. Once I’d sent the latter a time and place to meet, our preparations were complete.