"Don't steal my case!"
The Service Club fell into a dead silence. Sakuraba Ema was startled by the sudden voice, her shoulders flinching. Nikaido Hiro's pen left a long ink trail across her paper; she looked up and shot a reproachful glare at the blue-haired figure.
The unexpected guest, however, lacked any sense of self-awareness. She rushed to the long table in a single bound, slamming her hands down on the surface and staring at Kurobe Nanoka with large amber eyes.
"I didn't ask for your help," Kurobe Nanoka said calmly, not even looking at her.
Tachibana Sherry straightened up, placed her hands on her hips, and said righteously, "But you haven't commissioned them yet either! According to my observations, you've been wandering around the school every day after class for the past two weeks, often going to places where people rarely venture!"
Sherry pulled a small notebook from her pocket and flipped through the pages with a flurry of rustling. She cleared her throat and began to read aloud.
"Last Monday: Old school building warehouse, stay ti: forty-seven minutes. Last Tuesday: Storage room behind the gymnasium, stay ti: thirty-three minutes. Last Wednesday: The library—you went there three tis! At least half an hour each ti!"
She closed the notebook and looked at Kurobe triumphantly.
"So you must be investigating sothing! Perhaps... perhaps a secret passage beneath the school! Or... or a legendary cursed object! If not that, then..."
Her eyes lit up.
"Aliens! You're investigating a hidden alien base inside the school!"
Sakuraba Ema whispered, "That's basically illegal stalking..."
Sherry's ears twitched, and she whipped her head around.
"It's not stalking! It's an investigation!"
Ema was startled by Sherry's face suddenly lunging toward her. She shrank to her right toward Hikigaya, her chair letting out a piercing screech against the floor.
"I—I just..." Ema said in a small voice, her face turning slightly red.
"Can you call a detective's work 'stalking'?! This is clue gathering! Suspect behavior analysis! Psychological profiling..."
"Alright, alright, rein it in a bit. You're too close." Seeing the trembling Sakuraba Ema, Hikigaya felt compelled to speak up and tell her to calm down.
Sherry paused, looked down at her position where she was practically pressed against Emma's face, and stepped back two paces, scratching her head sheepishly.
"Ah, sorry, sorry! The Great Detective tends to get too close when she gets excited."
Ema breathed a sigh of relief. She stole a glance at Hikigaya and then quickly looked away.
Nikaido Hiro watched the scene, tore the ruined page from her notebook, and crumpled it into a ball.
Sherry turned back to Kurobe Nanoka and raised her magnifying glass once more.
"So! Kurobe-san! What exactly are you looking for? The Great Detective will definitely find it for you!"
Kurobe Nanoka remained silent for a few seconds, seemingly giving up her resistance. She reached up and touched the ribbon tied at the base of her ponytail.
"A hair tie."
"A hair tie?" Sherry blinked. "What kind of hair tie?"
"I'm looking for a hair tie. A black one."
Sherry's expression shifted from excitent to confusion, and then finally to disappointnt.
"Just... just for that?"
"Just for that."
"Then why..."
"Because it's important," Kurobe Nanoka interrupted her. "My older sister gave it to ."
Her voice remained calm, but Hikigaya noticed that as she said this, her fingers tightened slightly on her lap.
Sherry looked at her, then at Hikigaya and the others, and finally let out a sigh.
"So... your request is just to find a hair tie?"
"Mm."
Sherry's expression collapsed completely. She walked over to a nearby chair and slumped into it.
"And here I thought it was so major case..."
She grumbled, placing the magnifying glass on the table.
Hikigaya looked at Kurobe Nanoka.
"Is there anything special about that hair tie?"
Kurobe Nanoka was silent for a mont.
"It's one my sister used to use. She gave it to later."
Her voice was a bit lower than before.
"But I lost it."
Sakuraba Ema asked softly, looking at Kurobe Nanoka and then glancing at Sherry, seemingly still processing this strange person who had suddenly appeared.
"Your sister... is she..."
"She's fine. Attending school normally, living a normal life."
Her tone was certain, but Hikigaya noticed her eyes flicker when she said it.
Kurobe Nanoka raised her hand and pointed to the hair tie on her head.
"This is the other one. They were originally a pair."
Hikigaya looked over. A black hair tie was tied around her left ponytail. It did indeed have silver embroidery on it and looked very delicate.
"So, how long have you been looking?" Nikaido Hiro asked, finally setting down her pen.
"Two weeks. I only realized it was missing the first night after enrollnt."
"What places have you searched?"
"The classroom, corridors, stairwells, the field, the gym, the library, the old school building..." Kurobe Nanoka rattled off a string of locations. "I've searched every place I could."
"What about the lost and found?"
"I go every day."
"Have you posted 'lost item' notices?"
"I did that too."
Nikaido Hiro fell silent.
It seed this Kurobe Nanoka had indeed searched quite thoroughly.
"Then..." Hikigaya thought for a mont. "When was the last ti you saw it?"
Kurobe Nanoka said, "The day of enrollnt. It was still there during lunch break, but when I woke up the next morning, I found it was gone."
"Is there a possibility you dropped it at ho?"
"I've searched the house. Every corner. It's not there."
Tachibana Sherry slumped over the table, her chin resting on the back of her hand, looking listless.
"So it's just a hair tie, missing for two whole weeks, searched everywhere possible, and still not found." She sighed. "This kind of case is just too boring..."
"If it's boring, you can leave," Nikaido Hiro said flatly.
Sherry imdiately sat bolt upright.
"Who said I was leaving! Since the Great Detective has taken this case, she must solve it!"
"We didn't commission you," Hikigaya said.
"But you didn't reject either!" Sherry said righteously. "Besides, isn't it better to have an extra pair of hands? I'm a professional!"
As she spoke, she pulled out that small notebook again.
"According to my deductions, a hair tie is most likely to be dropped at..."
"The library," Kurobe Nanoka interrupted. "I already checked there."
"Then... then the field!"
"Checked."
"The cafeteria!"
"Checked."
"The classroom!"
"I check it every day after school."
Sherry opened her mouth, but finally closed the notebook in defeat.
"Then... then where else could it have gone..."
The room beca quiet again.
Hikigaya watched Kurobe Nanoka. This girl had remained calm from start to finish. Usually, when soone loses sothing and can't find it for two weeks, they show at least so anxiety or frustration, but she showed none.
And that look in her eyes when she ntioned her sister...
"How about this? Since you've searched for so long without luck, it might really be in so particularly hidden spot. We'll split up and search again, focusing on the places that are easy to overlook."
He looked at Tachibana Sherry.
"Are you coming too?"
Sherry's eyes lit up instantly.
"Really? I can join?"
Looking at her, it was clear they couldn't drive her away anyway; at least by moving together, they could keep her sowhat restrained.
"You can, but you have to follow instructions. Don't go wild."
"No problem! The Great Detective is a master of teamwork!"
Sakuraba Ema asked softly.
"Then... where should we start looking?"
"Let's start with the Class J classroom. Even though Kurobe says she checks every day, as the saying goes, the darkest place is under the candlestick. Maybe sothing was missed."
Kurobe Nanoka nodded.
"Okay."
The five of them stood up, preparing to leave the Service Club.
As they reached the door, Tachibana Sherry suddenly rembered sothing.
"Oh right! I haven't introduced myself yet! I'm Tachibana Sherry, Class 1-J, and I'm a Great Detective!"
She looked at Sakuraba Ema.
"You're Sakuraba Ema, right?"
Emma was startled by the sudden call-out and instinctively shrank toward Hikigaya.
"...Yes."
"It really is you!" Sherry's eyes sparkled. "I thought you looked familiar! The whole school was talking about you and Hikigaya earlier..."
She got halfway through the sentence before suddenly realizing sothing. She quickly covered her mouth and stole a glance at Nikaido Hiro.
Nikaido Hiro's expression didn't change; she simply said calmly, "Let's go."
The five of them walked out of the Service Club and headed toward the stairs.
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