* * *

<An invisible culprit! An unreadable motive! Hmm… This is getting exciting!>

On the way from the treasure vault to the staff room… Extra-sama was getting incredibly excited in my mind.

She’s always liked mystery situations.

…Although she’s terrible at being a detective.

<Who’s terrible, who!?

Ah, were you listening?

You are.

I trust you, Extra-sama, but I don’t trust your deductive skills.

<U-U-Ugh… You’re quite blunt… But!>

Extra-sama, dejected for a moment after I said that…

<This case! I already know who the culprit is!>

…Immediately recovered, and declared that triumphantly.

<The culprit… is that Deputy Director Gaisha! I’m sure of it!>

…She declared that, as if she had already won.

<He has the authority to deactivate the treasure vault’s security system… That alone is suspicious, but that deputy director… He’s clearly hiding something!>

Ah, yeah, hiding something…

Certainly.

The information Akashiterika was organizing earlier contained a contradiction that only Extra-sama and I know.

That is—

<Those Frozend Living Dolls… shouldn’t even exist anymore!>

Right.

That’s the thing…

From what I’ve heard, the Frozend Living Dolls are the women that skeleton general Tekigataa immobilized with his 【Dollfication】 special ability…

If that’s the case—

<The Frozend Living Dolls should have disappeared several months ago, when Emi defeated General Tekigataa! Just like that Kawayuikko princess!>

So there’s no way they existed until last night.

<But the Frozend Living Dolls were ‘stolen last night’! That’s because the deputy director, who should have been checking the treasure vault in place of the director, didn’t report that they had already disappeared! In other words!!>

Extra-sama, ranting up to this point, and then—

<Deputy Director Gaisha is the culprit!!>

…Declared that again, triumphantly.

But.

You can’t say that for sure yet, can you?

<Whyyyy!?

Well, it’s true that Deputy Director Gaisha is hiding something.

I’m sure of that.

But.

Just because he didn’t report the disappearance of the Frozend Living Dolls… doesn’t mean he’s the culprit of this case.

Why would not reporting their disappearance mean that he stole Teodartes’s Plate and the Superbad Jeweled Crown?

<U-… Well… Why?>

I don’t know.

Anyway, so Deputy Director Gaisha is suspicious, but we can’t conclude that he’s the culprit.

Not yet.

Let’s just look forward to Akashiterika’s questioning.

<Haaaa… Is that so? I seeee…>

Extra-sama, her terrible deduction completely denied, was dejected.

<Hey, don’t call it terrible…>

Sorry.

<…By the way, Emi, about the truth behind the disappearance of the Frozend Living Dolls… You’re keeping quiet about it, but why?>

Hmm?

<Wouldn’t it be less confusing if you told them earlier?>

Hmm…

But, Extra-sama.

If I suddenly said, ‘The Frozend Living Dolls are the victims cursed by a ghost. I defeated the ghost, so the victims were all freed, and disappeared.’… What would you do?

<…I’d be like, ‘Huh? What are you talking about?’>

Right?

Since this is a fantasy world, I don’t think they would outright deny it.

But there’s no proof for the truth I know.

So even if I try to question Deputy Director Gaisha about his secret, based on that… it’ll just be an endless argument.

<Certainly.>

So I think I’ll keep quiet, unless it becomes absolutely necessary.

It’s fine… Akashiterika will surely find the culprit from other information.

<…You really trust Akashiterika, don’t you?>

Well, she’s a detective.

…Hey, don’t be sulky, Extra-sama.

I trust you the most, when it comes to things other than deduction.

You’ve been, and always will be… my best partner, right?

<…Ehehe, is that so? Well, of course! Hmph!>

…So easily pleased.

So, well, like that.

Outwardly silent and expressionless.

Inwardly… slightly exasperated by Extra-sama’s gullibility.

I was walking down the corridor of the museum, following Akashiterika and Director Rakigataa.

And then, just as we reached a T-junction in the corridor…

“…!”

A truly… truly faint… killing intent.

I definitely felt it.

“…………”

I stopped walking, silently, and looked towards the right corridor, different from the direction we were heading.

The corridor where the magic lamps aren’t lit.

Even if I move my sunglasses… all I see there is darkness.