Let’s pause here for a brief explanation of the Pretty Boy Detective Club─which, if I were to remove myself from the equation for a moment, I would describe as a not-for-profit organization operating behind the scenes at Yubiwa Academy Middle School.
Being the wise and sensible person that I am, I was certain this organization couldn’t possibly exist, despite plausible rumors to the effect that it was involved in just about all the trouble that went on at our school. Little did I know that its members were engaged day in and day out in solving “beautiful mysteries” from their headquarters in an art room long forgotten by students and teachers alike. Aside from me, the newbie, there are five of them:
Nagahiro Sakiguchi, the student council president; the bossman, Michiru Fukuroi; Hyota Ashikaga, the ace of the track team; Sosaku Yubiwa, heir to Yubiwa Academy─and the fearless leader of the Pretty Boy Detective Club, Manabu Sotoin.
The leader is still in fifth grade, as it happens, and while the other members of the club dismiss it as “elementary,” I personally think the question of how a fifth grader ended up commanding this distinguished group of middle schoolers is the biggest mystery of all. But we’ll set that aside for now.
The hand of fate had led me to become a client of theirs, and thanks to a bewildering series of twists and turns, I ended up joining the organization myself. But even once I was a member, their activities seemed to me eccentric at best.
“Ha ha ha! Fear not, young Dojima, the very fact that you wished to join us is proof positive that you’re plenty eccentric yourself!” the leader assured me, although his assurance was itself plenty worrying.
But compared to some of their activities, I had to admit that painting the art room ceiling without permission displayed a certain amount of moderation, if not restraint─not to mention the fact that it was already too late.
On the other hand, it was unclear why they’d decided to start on the ceiling at this particular moment─even if it was just a whim, there still must have been some spark, but oh well, probably not a question worth pursuing any further.
The work continued in silence for another hour or so─and while I unfortunately can’t say I performed the role of assistant very efficiently, I have no intention of taking full responsibility for that fact.
I mean, the child genius doesn’t talk.
Since he remained mute and expressionless, giving no hint as to which brush or color he needed next, all I could do was guess.
Ordinarily, the leader─the only one of us able to glean anything about what goes on in Yubiwa’s mind─would have interpreted for him, but today he had his hands full steadying the ladder.
Now that I think about it, the fact that both the president and vice president had taken on the humble role of ladder-holder shows what an excellent and sound organization the Pretty Boy Detective Club really is. For his part, Mr. Bare-Legs was lounging around taking it easier than any of us, but then, you generally want your emergency personnel to be as well-rested as possible.
I was just thinking that, thanks to the combined efforts of the three ladder-holders, the child genius was in no danger of falling─when.