The Case of Mr. Rabbit's Disappearance
Like always, I dropped by the Lampadis office...
Only to find Lily pacing around anxiously with tears welling in her eyes.
Captain...! What should I do...?
What's wrong, Lily? Did something happen?
Mr. Rabbit... Mr. Rabbit is...!
What about Mr. Rabbit?
He's gone!
Captain, you remember Chippy, right?
Actually, event after that day... I visited the park from time to time to give Chippy treats...
I was giving Chippy a snack, and before I knew it, Mr. Rabbit was gone...
I looked everywhere, but he's nowhere to be found...
Lily paced in distress, her eyes brimming with panic.
W-what should I do...?
The Professor and the boss are both away on business... I'm all alone...
Lily.
...Yes?
Well, yes, but...
I've always relied on Mr. Rabbit during moments like this. I'm still not very good on my own.
Now that he's gone, I can't do anything...
Whenever I got stuck, Mr. Rabbit used to say...
"What will you ever do without me?"
And now... without him, I really can't—
Let's show him.
...Huh?
...!
Lily steadied her trembling breath and inhaled deeply.
Okay... Stay calm. I'll go over everything one step at a time...
First... I need to go back to the scene.
I'll examine the area more carefully and start by gathering evidence.
Once I piece it together and eliminate the impossible...
Whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth.
That's what Detective H always says!
I'll solve this with a brilliant deduction and get Mr. Rabbit back!
...This is where I called Chippy over. I pulled out a snack, and...
Just like always, I sat Mr. Rabbit on this bench for a moment.
Then I placed the snack on the ground, and when I turned around...
Mr. Rabbit was gone.
Whew... Stay calm... Let's look for any clues that might help..!
First, footprints... but there are too many kinds to distinguish anything...
Mm! These marks on the bench look to be recent...!
Look at this. There's a scratch on that tree trunk.
Unusual traces like this left at the scene...
Detective H said they're often very important clues!
So then...?
Uh... um... if I use these clues to narrow down the suspects...
Then...
The conclusion is...!
...The culprit stole Mr. Rabbit and escaped up the tree?
The culprit must be... a monkey?!
...
...
...M-maybe not.
Yeah, probably not...
Hngh... Captain...
If Mr. Rabbit were here, I bet he would've pieced everything together right away...
He'd have deduced what happened and even captured the culprit by now...!
But I...
I'm not as good as Mr. Rabbit...
My own... strengths...?
What could they be...?
We figured it out last time, remember?
Last time...?
Hmm...? Lily, are you out for a walk too?
But... is something wrong?
H-how did you know?
You look down. And where's that stuffed rabbit you're always carrying around?
Well... he's missing. I was out looking for him...
I only took my eyes off him for a second, but then...
Oh no! Really? That's terrible!
Can you believe it? Someone took Lily's stuffed rabbit!
What...?! Whoever did that is the worst!
Lily! Don't worry! I'll help you this time!
Yes, we'll help you.
I owe you one, after all.
I'll go check with some folks I know and ask if anyone's seen your rabbit! Just wait here!
I'll go ask around too!
E-everyone...!
It's nothing. Lily, you've always been there for us.
We just want to help you back. That's all there is to it.
Thank you...
See? I told you. You have your own strengths.
...Yes. You were right, Captain.
I may not be able to make brilliant deductions like Mr. Rabbit or Detective H, but...!
Your kindness might be a weakness sometimes...
But it's also something no one else has.
Ehehe... Do you really think so?
People always say I'm foolish for never turning anyone down.
So I always thought it was something I had to fix...
But if you put it that way, Captain...! I guess I can feel a little proud about it!
Ah! But still, I can't just leave everything to the others!
We should get out there too and ask if anyone's seen Mr. Rabbit!
...The sun's about to set.
If this keeps up...
Hey! You two. Have you seen Lily today?
You were... looking for me?
Huh...? Oh, so that was you, Lily!
Perfect timing. It's best if you check for yourself.
Hey, bring him out.
Ngh...! Kgh...! Let me go...!
That stuffed rabbit he's carrying, isn't it yours?
Word got around that you were looking for your stuffed rabbit.
From the fruit shop owner to random passing merchants, everyone was talking about it.
Then out of nowhere, this guy comes crashing into us! And he just happened to be holding a familiar doll.
He had a shifty look in his eyes, so we nabbed him right away.
M-Mr. Rabbit...! Mr. Rabbit! I found you!
So it was yours after all.
You prick... I knew you were a thief!
A thief?! Wait, no! I was just going to borrow it!
Ooh... Why did you steal Mr. Rabbit...?!
I-I know all about this doll! I heard it from somewhere...!
I know this rabbit isn't just an ordinary doll!
...?!
There's no way... that squirrel would've followed you so obediently otherwise!
Squirrel...? You mean Chippy?
Yeah! That thing was mine to begin with! I made it!
You made it?
I remembered the grotesquely large and deformed Chippy.
If this man really made that... could he be...?
There's no way it would follow you of all people!
That violent thing smashed its cage and ran away from me!
That means your doll must have some kind of power... How else can you explain it?
Then... you're...! Grrr...
Huh? What was that?
Y-you're a fool!!!
This has nothing to do with Mr. Rabbit!
If you want Chippy to trust you, you have to be kind to him first.
You... were never kind to him at all!
What are you talking about?! I treated that thing like family!
That's a lie. I doubt Chippy feels the same way.
Chippy... He was starving enough to dig through trash, but still refused to come back to you.
You hurt Chippy and then expected love in return...
How can anyone be that selfish?!
So... it wasn't because of this doll...?
That can't be! I have to see...
I have to see what's inside it with for myself!
The man suddenly turned and ran off.
M-Mr. Rabbit...! Give him back...!
Lily dashed after him and grabbed Mr. Rabbit.
The very moment her hand touched him, Mr. Rabbit's eyes lit up and the man was blown away, screaming.
Eeek! I knew it! There's something in that doll!!
Ehehe! Mr. Rabbit...! I found you!
You're not hurt, are you? I was so worried...
Ah, okay! I'll clean off all that dust when we get home...
Hngh... you're scolding me for taking so long just to catch some small fry...?
I really gave it my all..!
I-I might have failed the deduction part...
Ehehe... at least using my personal network was a good idea?
Mr. Rabbit... are you praising me? Thank you...!
Lily hugged Mr. Rabbit tightly, whimpering with relief and joy as she did.