"People will value you even if you just be yourself. You'll be fine. So don't worry too much about that part, okay?"
Kirigiri just averted her eyes, apparently with no intention of listening to me.
"Being a high rank doesn't necessarily mean you're a good detective. I mean, just look at people like Kou Inuzuka."
"But it has value in itself in order to sell myself as a detective."
"Sell yourself...? You sound like you have a specific market in mind."
Kirigiri, instead of responding, went ahead to open the door and go inside. I hastily followed her.
As soon as I went through the door, I was hit with the fragrant aroma of old wood and books. The Detective Library itself only had about ten years of history, but I heard that the building it was housed in had been used as a library before that for over fifty years.
Kirigiri stepped through the next door, and then stopped in her tracks, looking around. It looked like she was already lost.
"Kirigiri-chan," I called out from behind. "Let's go up to the front desk and try getting our cards renewed. We might have gone up in rank after solving that last case."
"I suppose."
Kirigiri began to walk alone, stopped abruptly, and then waited for me. Maybe she'd decided she should let me lead the way.
I brought her with me to the front desk. These days, with libraries going digital, lots of them have fancy circulation desks that make it look like you're in a bank or a hotel. The Detective Library, however, looked just like the good old analog libraries. The staff members working behind the counter were wearing white shirts with old-fashioned black arm warmers, too.
"Um... I'd like to renew my card, please..."
I took out my card and set it down on the counter, addressing the worker. He looked to be about in his fifties, with sunken cheeks. I got the impression he was a true literary type. He looked down at me for a long moment, and then picked up the card, spending another long moment looking down at that.
"Please wait just a moment."
He slowly got to his feet and headed towards the computers behind the counter. I could see about three computer monitors in all. He watched one of them as he slid my card into the slot.
"...Hmm, there is an update. Please wait a bit longer while I get you a new one. Would you like to keep the same photo?"
"Yeah, that one's fine."
"Understood."
"Actually, while you're at it, can you take a look at her card, too?" I asked, and gestured for Kirigiri to present her own card. She took her card out of her notebook and held it out to the worker.
"Please wait about five minutes."
I looked around idly as we were waiting. The counter was in its own room, with doors on either side. If we went through the door into the next room, we'd find the shelves with all of the detectives' files. There were a few other workers behind the counter, taking care of some kind of deskwork. Nobody spoke a single word unnecessarily; I felt like I should be holding my breath as long as I was there. The Detective Library professed to be neutral, with no ties to any organization—but I still had to wonder who exactly these staff members were. When I really thought about it, it was eerie, the way they worked like silent machines.
"All right, they're ready." The man came back to me with two cards in hand. We accepted them.
Yui Samidare: DSC #887
"Oh! I went up a rank! Woohooooo! That's great!" I said, spontaneously jumping for joy.
"Shhhh. Quiet in the library," chastised the worker.
"Sorry!" I apologized in a whisper. "It's thanks to Kirigiri-chan that I went up in rank. I mean, I didn't really do anything. How's your card looking, Kirigiri-chan?"
"I went up in rank, too."
Kyouko Kirigiri: DSC #917
"Amazing! You ranked up twice!"
"Quiet!"
"Sorry..." I apologized again. "It's a pretty big deal for you to be Rank 7 when you're a first year in middle school. You might even be the first one the Detective Library's ever seen. You really are amazing."
"At this rate, then, I'll need to solve four more cases on the level of the Sirius Observatory case in order to become Zero Class." Kirigiri was as composed as ever.
"I-I guess... But, y'know, I can still congratulate you for now. I guess I let a newbie catch up to me in rank. But isn't it pretty cool that we're a team of Rank 7 schoolgirl detectives?"
"A team? I don't recall establishing any such thing."
"W-Well, I was just saying that because it would be what people looking at us from the outside would think, and put on headlines and stuff," I blurted out.
At any rate, I was glad that we both went up in rank. I was as happy for Kirigiri's talent being recognized as I was happy for myself.
You are encouraged to comment and form theories on the mysteries,
