The Back Alley Mystery
I decided to accompany Lily, who said she had to conduct fieldwork as an assistant investigator for Lampadis.
Hmm... You really didn't have to come along, Captain...
Weren't you busy?
I wanted to see what kind of work you do.
Ah...!
I thought maybe you were just interested in mysterious cases too...
That's true too.
Ehehe, I knew it!
Uncovering mysteries hidden behind a veil... is always so thrilling!
Then Captain, you have to stay close, all right?
Lily came to a stop in a back alley in NOA's downtown area.
Narrow paths twisted between old, crumbling buildings, looking like a poorly maintained maze...
It definitely seemed like this place has been neglected.
So, what exactly are we investigating?
Well, for this case... In this alley...
Multiple people have reported seeing a strange creature...!
A creature?
Yes. That's what the client said.
Apparently, a suspiciously large shadow keeps flitting back and forth at the entrance to the alley.
It's not even a human-shaped shadow. It also moves at an incredible speed... or so I heard.
Has it hurt anyone?
Hmm... No one has been injured yet...
But the local residents are too scared to even come out because of it.
Since no one has been maintaining the area, it's getting dirtier and causing all sorts of problems.
Hmm... What could the culprit be? What about their motive?
First, we should comb through the alley and look for clues!
Ehehe. Mr. Rabbit always says he's amazed by how much braver I am than I appear.
But... there's no reason to be scared, right? Not when I have you and Mr. Rabbit...!
Even if it really is some kind of creature, I'm sure we can take it down somehow.
That's true...
And more importantly...
I'm an assistant investigator of Lampadis!
Investigating the scene carefully and finding every possible clue!
That's the duty of a detect— I mean...
A private investigator!
Right, Mr. Rabbit?
Lily hugged Mr. Rabbit tightly and smiled.
And Captain...
Usually, in cases where people say something was the work of a creature...
A lot of the time, there's no actual creature involved!
What?
Of course, there have been cases where it really was the work of Voidborns or monsters...
But those usually happen out in remote areas, not in the city itself.
This case happened right here, in NOA!
So I'm pretty sure there's no creature this time.
It must be some kind of misunderstanding.
So let's hurry up and find some clues!
Hmm... There should be clues around here somewhere...
I'm sure there must be something left...
Lily spent a long time combing through the grimy alleyways.
Ooh...! I found something! Captain, I think I discovered a trace of the culprit!
Look here, do you see?
What Lily found was a footprint left in the wet dirt.
I thought the rain would have washed all the traces away...!
Luckily, this was hidden under some broken junk.
Hmm... It's not a shoe print, is it, Mr. Rabbit?
Maybe the reason this trash can got wrecked... was because someone was digging through it?
Ah...! Look at this, there's some suspicious red fur caught here too!
Mr. Rabbit, this feels like a really important clue, right?
We got ourselves a decisive clue!
Now, if we piece these clues together...!
The fact that someone was rummaging through trash cans in this alley means...
So... Hmm...
Maybe it was someone with red hair trying to find something they threw away...?
...Are you sure?
Um... Maybe not... Th-then...! If we try a different perspective...!
The thing people thought was a creature might actually be...
Wait, Mr. Rabbit, I-I'm still thinking!
What am I doing just standing here when I found all the important clues, you say?
Hngh... But I don't know...
Hmm? What did you say, Mr. Rabbit? Ah...?!
Lily suddenly dropped Mr. Rabbit on the ground in surprise.
She pointed in turn at the footprint and the wrecked trash can.
*Sigh* The footprint is far too small and oddly shaped to belong to a human.
The tiny bite marks found on a discarded apple in the trash can.
And we can't forget the short red fur.
With this much evidence, it should be easy to figure out who the culprit is!
It should be somewhere over there.
When I looked in the direction Lily pointed, I saw junk shifting ever so slightly.
Is it just me, or has your tone changed, Lily?
...
Lily...?
...Huh?!
Lily snapped back to her senses.
Looking around before spotting Mr. Rabbit lying on the ground, she hurried over and hugged him tightly with a flustered look.
M-Mr. Rabbit...!
I told you not to just borrow my body without asking...!
Borrow...?
Oh...?!
C-Captain, did you see that too?
That wooden plank just moved...!
Whatever it is, it's incredibly fast...!
M-Mr. Rabbit!
Wait, don't do—
Before Lily could finish, a beam shot out from Mr. Rabbit's eyes, hitting the pile of junk.
W-what was that?!
Squeak! Squeak!
Crawling out from behind the broken boards was...
...A rat?
A huge, brown... rat staggered out, looking dazed.
So you were the culprit...?
Ehehe, see, Captain?
Once you know the truth, there's nothing scary about it!
Who would've guessed such a cute rat was the culprit?
Lily cheerfully picked up the culprit by its tail.
A cute rat...?
Hmm...?
Oh! It's not a rat!
No, it's not...!!!
It's a squirrel! See? Its tail is fluffy and curled up.
And this thing stuck to its back...
It's definitely a piece of an acorn!
Hello, little squirrel!
Looking closely, it really did seem more like a squirrel than a rat.
Though... it was about five times bigger than a normal squirrel with its red eyes gleaming menacingly.
And its oversized teeth were bubbling with foam...
Ah, I get it now!
Were you digging through the trash because you were hungry?
And you only came out after sunset because you were afraid of people?
As for the shadow... ah!
I think you're right, Mr. Rabbit.
When the sun set, its shadow stretched across the alley, making it look huge and scary!
...
Hmm? Mr. Rabbit?
That's not the important part? Then what is...?
I-it's dirty, so I should throw it far away?
That's too cruel, Mr. Rabbit...
Even if it's just an animal that can't understand us, we shouldn't be mean to it.
Oh?! Look at it trying to be cute, Captain!
You call this cute?
Maybe if cute stood for Chattering Unnerving Teeth Eagerly!
The squirrel twitched aggressively, as if looking to pounce at me.
Hmm... I did catch it.
But it's not like Cyippy committed a crime, right?
So...
How about I raise it at the office?
...I think you should let it go.
Although Lily looked like she really wanted to keep Cyippy...
I had a bad feeling about it, so we decided to release it in a nearby park.