Hyouka:Volume 2 Chapter 1

Status: Incomplete

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1 - Let's Watch a Movie Preview!

There was a saying that all men are created equal. At the same time, it was also said that nobody is born perfect. If both these phrases were valid, then the order of heaven would be unenforceable. As a person's value would change depending on the region they're from, one cannot just dismiss their values entirely. Let alone being born perfect, just being born with one talent is difficult enough. While the common folk may be envious or jealous of geniuses around them, for me their talents are just a part of our daily lives, so I don't see what the fuss is all about.

It was the end of the summer vacation. I was having such a conversation with my old mate Fukube Satoshi, who nodded in agreement with my thoughts.

"Exactly. For the past 15 years of my life, I haven't seemed to be the sort to possess any talents at all. There's a saying that great talents mature late, but that sounds more like working hard through nurture rather than talent. So I guess wishing for some talents is a distant dream for us."

"Well, geniuses are geniuses for a reason. If we common folk could obtain their talents, then we wouldn't need to be envious of them."

"My, longing for the life of common folk now, aren't you, Houtarou? ... If it's you, then..."

Satoshi then casually quipped, "I think you're actually quite talented."

I had no idea what he was talking about. As I gave a puzzled look, Satoshi chuckled and said, "I know very well that I'm not the talented sort, but the same cannot be said about you, Houtarou."

"Wha?"

As his manner of speaking was usually filled with jokes, I thought a little about accepting the good parts of what he just said at face value. I had two rebuttals to make, firstly, "If I had to say it, I think it's premature of you to call yourself a normal person. Aren't you pretty good at collecting vast amounts of knowledge?"

Satoshi shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, I guess, even if it sounds like bragging. Though I wouldn't go so far and say that I'm good enough at winning quiz shows. The knowledge I learned isn't that vast."

Really?

Anyway, second rebuttal, "If I wasn't not a normal person, then there's no way I could observe people."

"Then I won't say anything more. Though I still have reservations about you not having any talents."

"Where have you ever seen me using my talents anyway?"

"Hmm, where, huh?"

After pretending to think, he pointed his finger towards Kamiyama High School.

"There."

"The school?"

"No, the Geology Room, AKA the Classics Club room... You were simply amazing in solving the 'Hyouka' incident. Truth be told, I never expected you to be that good. That's why I said I'm having reservations about you not being talented based on that," He said while smiling. In contrast, I looked bitter.

The "Hyouka" incident. It was not a criminal incident, neither was it civil. "Hyouka" was the name of a series of essay anthologies published by the Classics Club, a mysterious organization which Satoshi and I belonged to. The reason why the anthologies were named as such cannot be explained in a few sentences, and for very good reason as well. Thanks to such a reason, I was involved in all sorts of bothersome events. And Satoshi was commenting on my role in such events.

He continued, "The one who solved all that was you."

"Now you're exaggerating. I was just lucky."

"Lucky, huh? I wasn't talking about how you think of yourself, but how I see you."

He can say such haughty stuff with such a calm tone. As I was used to his manner of speaking, I was hardly annoyed.

Besides being an old mate, Fukube Satoshi is also a good rival. As a guy he was short in stature, and his weak-looking appearance could easily be mistaken for that of a girl if seen from afar. However, he is actually quite spirited, especially when pursuing things that interest him. So much so that he would prioritize that over other things that are considered "necessary" by everyone else. He is always seen carrying a smile and a drawstring bag. As he swung the drawstring bag around, he asked, "By the way, what time is it now?"

"Check your own watch."

"It's inside my bag, it's too bothersome to take it out," he tapped at his bag and said. Satoshi considered carrying a wristwatch around too troublesome, and would prefer to check the time via his cellphone.

"I'm the one that's feeling bothersome here."

"'If I don't have to do it, I won't. If I have to do it, hurry up and finish it.' Right?"

Satoshi smiled while poking fun at my motto. I checked the time on my wristwatch and corrected him, "It's 'If I have to do it, make it quick.' ... Anyway, it's just past ten."

"Do you really have to memorize every word of that? It's not like it's some grandiose motto or anything. Wow, is it ten already? We'd better hurry. Chitanda-san may be able to forgive us for being late, but it's Mayaka I'm scared of."

With that I agree. Ibara Mayaka can be very scary when she's angry. I don't know if Satoshi knows this or not, but I have a feeling Chitanda Eru's the same as well. As Satoshi picked up his speed, I followed suit.

Crossing the crosswalk, we came upon the school gates. It was a typical day in Kamiyama High, where there are students everywhere despite it being a school vacation.

The courtyard was filled with students either in uniform or casual wear. The music from the musical clubs could be heard playing. Besides the courtyard some sort of large monument was being erected, probably some attraction devised by some club. Even though it was summer vacation, Kamiyama High School was still filled with students with full of energy, as all were preparing for the Cultural Festival.

The total number of students Kamiyama High School numbered about a thousand. The school provided curriculum for university entrance exams as well as having a lively club activity scene. If you excluded the exalting Cultural Festival, Kamiyama High was just a normal school like any other. The campus contained three buildings; the General Block which houses the regular classrooms, the Special Block with their special purposes classrooms, and the Gymnasium. The Classics Club room was located in the Geology Room on the fourth floor of the Special Block.

Amidst the singing of the Chorus Club and A Capella Club from the courtyard, we hastened our pace. As Satoshi said, my motto was "If I don't have to do it, I won't. If I have to do it, make it quick." To put it simply, I was an "energy saver". Such a lifestyle was totally different to those that go all out in these student activities like the Cultural Festival. Though I wasn't in the mood to think about such things now.

From the entrance, we headed towards the corridor leading to the Special Block. A long painting from some club could be seen placed on the side of the staircase to dry as we climbed them, taking four steps at a time, which was quite exhausting. As it was late summer, I took out my handkerchief to wipe my sweat as we entered the Geology Room.

We were at once greeted by someone yelling, "You're late!"

Standing firmly in the centre of the room like a guardian god was none other than Ibara, the actual person in charge of overseeing the publication of the Classics Club anthology "Hyouka", with whom I have a long acquaintance.

Ibara Mayaka. While we were not exactly intimate with each other, for some reason we just couldn't avoid seeing each other all the time. While she had grown since primary school, she still had a childish-looking face despite being a high school student. Despite her appearance, she was actually quite strict. Besides being unforgiving to mistakes made by others, she was even more demanding towards herself. The reason for her wrath was simple, as it was agreed that we were supposed to meet up here at ten in the morning.

Maintaining her guardian god stance, Ibara spoke, "Fuku-chan, explain yourself."

Satoshi's smile became stiff as he said, "Well, we couldn't use our bikes today..."

"You should have known that already!"

By the way, while people were free to come to Kamiyama High School via bicycle during summer vacation, as the bicycle park was currently under maintenance, it was unusable.

"Get a grip already, Fuku-chan! You still haven't handed in your manuscripts!"

Satoshi spread out his hands as he struggled to protest, "W, wait a minute Mayaka! Isn't Houtarou late as well?"

Ibara turned to look at me, and upon meeting my gaze, turned back towards Satoshi.

"Who cares about Oreki?"

... Double standards, huh?

The reason Ibara paid so much attention to Satoshi was because she had a crush on him. And she herself made no attempts to hide this. On the other hand, Satoshi had been evading her advances to this day. As to when they started all this, I had no idea.

Anyway, the Classics Club was made up of four members: myself, Satoshi, and Ibara, as well as the President, Chitanda Eru. Though right now Chitanda was nowhere to be seen.

"That's double standards!"

"What're you talking about? There's no double standards."

I interrupted their meaningless exchange and said, "Hey, Ibara, Chitanda's absent as well."

"How can I have double standards... Huh? Chi-chan? That's right, she still hasn't arrived. That worries me."

"I see, indeed it's not double standards," Satoshi muttered.

"Yeah, it's triple standards."

Unusually, Ibara replied while smiling.

As if on cue, a silhouette was seen silently opening the door and entering the room. It was Chitanda.

Chitanda Eru. With her long, dark hair and frail-looking figure, she gave the look of an elegant lady. And that was a fact, as she was the daughter of the Chitanda Clan, which owned vast tracts of farmland within a corner of Kamiyama City. However, in contrast to her graceful nature were her large eyes. To me, those were what represented her the most. If Ibara was a child in appearance, then Chitanda was a child due to her incredible curiosity to every mystery she ever encountered. Yet she was intelligent despite such a childlike nature, which made it all the more difficult to cope with her.

The clock pointed to half past ten. Chitanda bowed deeply and said, "I'm very sorry for being late."

Chitanda hardly ever looked this unkempt. While not strictly punctual, it was rare to see her late. Ibara must have been thinking the same thing as she asked Chitanda without blaming her, "Did something happen?"

"Yes. A little bit. I was having a long conversation just now."

What conversation? We won't know if you don't elaborate. That said, Chitanda continued before I could ask.

"I'll explain later about what conversation I was having."

What's she up to? I have a bad feeling about this.

"Hmm... Oh well, let's get started then."

The reason the Classics Club was gathered here today was to hold a meeting concerning the publication of the club anthology "Hyouka", which included what design and fonts to use, how to arrange the articles and what paper to print on. While it would have been better if I had just suggested to let Ibara handle everything, she probably wouldn't allow it, as she reasoned that since we have all contributed our money and manuscripts, it's only fair that we take part in compiling the anthology as well. I didn't exactly want to do this, but then I don't have anything better to do during summer vacation anyway.

Ibara took out a few paper samples from her bag and began speaking.

"This is the highest quality paper that our budget could allow, while this is the cheapest. They're very different, and not just in appearance, but how the ink appears on them..."

As she began explaining, both Satoshi and Chitanda listened with enthusiasm. While I felt like a piece of rotting wood on the mountain, I still made an effort to listen, so that Ibara wouldn't get mad.

The editorial meeting was over sooner than expected, just under an hour after it began. Ibara had written down the items which had been approved in her note, which she would then relay to the publishers. Being an editing supervisor sure sounds tough, so I placed my palms together in gratitude of her hard work.

It was now afternoon. While we were free to go home, we decided to stay and have lunch, having just bought some boxed lunches from the convenience store. As I took my boxed lunch worth less than 400yen out of my shoulder bag, the other three followed suit.

As he peeled the film wrapping around his rice ball, Satoshi spoke without addressing anyone specifically.

"So, when's the anthology gonna be published?"

The one who should have an idea as to how to answer that question was of course Ibara, who grumbled as though saying "As if I could remember exactly when" and said, "We should have the sample copy by early October, but we won't be getting the actual copies until just before the Cultural Festival."

It was now late August, a week to go before summer vacation ends. It would become bothersome to continue writing when classes resumed in September. As an energy saver, I do not like to leave work undone as it's inefficient. It is of course better to get it finished as soon as possible. Anyway, we've still got plenty of time.

The sound of Chitanda opening the lid of her boxed lunch could be heard. For girls her age, boxed lunches would usually be small and contain food as simple as small snacks. Though her box was just as small, the food it contained looked quite filling: Stewed butterbur, sweet omelettes and minced meat. Before taking out her chopsticks, she asked nonchalantly, "By the way, are any of you free this afternoon?"

As I was never the sort with anything better to do anyway, I do have time to kill. Naturally, I shook my head. So too did Ibara.

"I've got to take these notes to the publisher, but it won't be until this evening."

Satoshi thought for a while,

"I was thinking of heading to the Handicraft Club to see if I could help out. I haven't gotten my hands on sewing equipment for some time now. Besides, it's been a while since I hung out with the Student Council committee. But why not?"

As all three of us were in agreement, Chitanda looked as though she was the happiest person alive. Seeing her smile, I suddenly had a bad feeling. Though I wouldn't go so far say this was based on experience, I was just apprehensive of trouble, that's all.

As she placed her chopsticks down, she said with vigour, "Then, let's watch a preview!"

Preview?

I had no idea what she was talking about. Did something happen which I have no knowledge of? Without thinking, I turned to look at Satoshi, who simply shook his head to indicate he too knew nothing. Ditto for Ibara, who looked puzzled.

"Chi-chan, what preview are you talking about? A movie?"

"Yes... Umm, it's not really a movie, but more like a videotaped movie."

Videotaped movie? Surely she means home-made movie.

"Is it with the Movie Studies Club?"

Chitanda shook her head.

"Not really."

"Then, the Home Movie Studies Club?"

Stop being stupid, Satoshi. Both Ibara and I stared coldly at his smiling face, though he continued smiling as usual and said, "I'm sure it exists! If there exists a Classics Club, surely a Home Movie Studies Club would exist as well."

Satoshi dispelled his joke right away, true to his motto of "Jokes are to be made on the spot, so too are misunderstandings to be dispelled right away." If he says it exists, then it probably does exist. This was not something to be surprised about, as Kamiyama High School does have a huge variety of arts-based clubs out there.

But still Chitanda shook her head.

"It's not that either. It's an exhibition movie made by Class 2-F."

"Wow, a class exhibition."

Ibara nodded in admiration.

"Don't think my class would have the energy to organize their own exhibition, as everyone is busy with their own clubs."

Indeed. Even for my class 1-B, no one made any proposals to organize something for the Cultural Festival in the class's name, as everyone was tired out by their own club activities. Besides, holding an exhibition would be quite a huge task. Come to think of it, this would make Satoshi pretty amazing, as he's busy with the Classics Club, Handicraft Club, and Student Council.

"Some Class 2-F students belonging to various sports teams decided they too want to take part in the Cultural Festival. As I know someone from Class 2-F, I was invited to their movie preview in order to ask for my opinion of it. How about it? Are you interested?"

"Yeah, I'll come!"

Satoshi agreed without even batting an eyelid. Then again, anything that interests him would elicit such a reaction.

Ibara raised her brows slightly and asked, "What kind of movie is it?"

"Umm, I hear it's a mystery movie."

That answer was enough to satisfy Ibara.

"Sounds entertaining. Sure, I'll come as well."

"I thought you hated artistic movies, Mayaka,"

"I don't dislike them... This one's made by people with an interest in movies, after all."

Indeed, no one would think along the lines of wanting to watch a movie made by people who just "want to take part in the Cultural Festival".

Now, what about me?

To be honest, I'm not exactly that interested in movies. I've never felt like watching any movie, whether it was arthouse movies or blockbuster movies. As to why that is, I'm not too sure myself. Probably something to do with watching movies being too time-consuming, I was told that I'm missing half the fun of my life as a result. I don't exactly hate watching them, and there were some movies which I was fond of...

Anyway, guess I'll go home.

Before I could speak, Chitanda cheerfully opened her mouth.

"Then it's decided! We're all going then!"

"No, I..."

"Actually, besides myself, I was told to bring three more people along with me. I was thinking that there are three of you here in the Classics Club; the number is just right."

She's not even listening.

Smiling mischievously, Satoshi pointed his thumb at me and said, "Chitanda-san, Houtarou seems to have something to say."

"Oreki-san, you're coming, right?"

Ugh.

"... Aren't you?"

Argh.

Why was it that I could never figure out how to handle Chitanda every time? No matter what kind of responses I thought up beforehand, she was bound to make me go. Of course I could have chosen to just turn her down without feeling guilty, but the problem was I could find no reason to refuse her.

I shrugged my shoulders in resignation. Whatever, there was nothing for me to do even if I went home now anyway.

The Audio/Visual Room had its curtains drawn, blocking out the light of the setting sun from outside, turning the room dark.

From within that darkness a female student emerged suddenly. The reason for such an illusion probably had something to do with the navy blue dress she was wearing, which blended well with the darkness.

Chitanda called out to her.

"I've come as you requested me to."

She walked towards us, and it was only then I could make out her features.

Her height was similar to Chitanda's, perhaps a bit taller, while her figure was slim. Her eyes were slightly raised and small, and her face looked refined. It wouldn't be too far off to describe her as pretty, though to me she felt more stern than pretty. While it was hard to determine whether she was a year older than us, there was a sense of majestic solemnity exuding from her. Rather than a high school student, she felt more like a stereotypical police officer or teacher... no, more like a female Self Defense Force officer, with a rank no lower than Major. Speaking in a calmingly soft voice, she said, "Ah, so you've come."

She looked at each one of us and continued, "Welcome. You have my thanks for taking the time to come."

Chitanda slowly introduced us one by one.

"This is Ibara Mayaka-san, Fukube Satoshi-san and Oreki Houtarou-san. Like me, they're all members of the Classics Club."

The girl seemed to give a rather ambiguous expression as we were being introduced. I couldn't tell if she was smiling or looking depressed. But she soon reverted to her previous expression and bowed to us.

"Pleased to meet you... My name is Irisu Fuyumi."

As she introduced herself, Satoshi reacted at once and raised his voice in exaltation.

"Ah, just as I thought, you're Irisu-sempai! I knew I'd seen you somewhere before."

"Your name is Fukube Satoshi-kun, right? I'm sorry, but have we met before?"

"You attended the meeting for the Cultural Festival Organizing Committee during the end of June, right?"

"I can't quite remember, did something happen?"

Regardless of whether she really forgot or was playing dumb, Irisu answered as such. Satoshi continued cheerfully, "I saw the way you resolved the conflict between the musical clubs and the drama clubs. Truth be told, I was amazed! Since then I've always wanted to meet with you at least once!"

"Ah, now I remember," she replied bluntly, "I didn't do anything particularly special then."

"No, really, you were great. I still remember it now; three times you urged the chairperson to duly restore order at once so members could voice their opinions without interruptions. The conflict was sorted out in less than five minutes as a result. I virtually gave a standing ovation in the bottom of my heart, as Irisu-sempai felt more like the chairperson back then."

If Ibara was not the sort to give compliments, then it was also rare for Satoshi to give praise to someone in such an over the top way. Now here's the interesting part, how would Irisu Fuyumi react to such a compliment? I listened intently as I wondered.

Yet despite Satoshi's gaze of admiration, she hardly reacted much and said, "Is that so?"

"Irisu-san, you did say you weren't that interested in what happens around school, right?" Chitanda asked, to which Irisu nodded.

"Fukube-kun was part of the Committee on my behalf as club president, so that meeting probably did happen. So please don't be too startled by his words."

"I see. I wasn't really startled though."

Satoshi looked dejected as she said that. Ibara then asked Chitanda, "Chi-chan, how are you acquainted with her?"

"Irisu-san? ...Our families are quite close to each other. Irisu-san would often look after me when I was younger."

So the Chitanda Clan does have people to hang out with as childhood friends, that sure is some luxury the Oreki Clan couldn't afford. They sure are a prominent clan. Come to think of it, was Irisu's clan also just as famous? I'm not quite sure myself. Anyway, it probably doesn't concern Irisu Fuyumi herself.

"Anyway,"

Irisu returned to the subject at hand, and showed us the object she was holding in her hand. The rectangular object seemed to be a video cassette.

"You have been invited today to watch this tape. As I'm sure you've heard from Chitanda already, this video is a movie made by my class. My wish is for you to watch the movie and give us your honest feedback."

"We look forward to doing so."

So said Chitanda.

Seemed like a real movie preview, alright. But what for? As the question popped in my head, I asked, "Is that all we have to do?"

Irisu looked straight at me with her grim gaze. Feeling the pressure from her gaze, I continued, "Just watch, and then provide feedback?"

"Is that so strange?"

"Even if we really do give our critique, you're not going to amend the movie, are you? Surely a preview is mainly for the purpose of advertisement, where you ask people to spread the word about your movie, isn't it?"

For some reason, Irisu nodded as though satisfied.

"A good question. Indeed, there's no point in just watching this movie. I will answer your question, but it would be better if you could first watch the movie. Shall we?"

Hmm, something didn't feel right. But due to her efficient answer, I said no more.

Upon seeing my agreement, Irisu continued, "We have yet to give this movie a name. For now it simply goes by the working title 'Mystery'. When the video ends, there's something we would like to ask of you, for that purpose, we wish for you to watch it first."

This time it was Ibara's turn to speak.

"If it's called 'Mystery', then is it a detective movie?"

"It wouldn't be wrong to call it that."

"Then may we take memos during the movie?"

"Of course. Do write as many details as you see."

That said, we left all our stuff in the Geology Room. As Ibara was about to ask if we could go back to get our bags, Satoshi spoke.

"I'll do the memo taking then."

And duly took out a notebook from the drawstring bag that he always carries along... I didn't know he'd brought that inside as well.

Irisu looked at her simply designed silver wrist watch and said, "Now, let us start. Please take a seat."

As suggested, we took the seats nearest to us. Satoshi opened his notebook while Irisu headed towards the control room. Before entering the iron door, she turned to us and said, "Enjoy the movie."

As she closed the door, a mechanical sound could be heard. A white screen slowly descended before us. We duly sat upright and leaned as far back as possible.

By the way, Irisu sure didn't prepare enough for this preview. She should at least have provided us with some popcorn.

A movie whose title had not yet even been decided should normally not exist. Yet an image appeared before us. It was none other than Kamiyama High School, which we were all used to seeing. It showed a classroom with tables and chairs lined up tidily. A look outside the window showed that the time was during sunset.

A narrator began to speak in a husky male voice.

"It all began when a group of determined students from Class 2-F decided to participate in the Kanya Festival in order to leave behind memories of their high school life. So they held a meeting one day after school to decide what to do."

By the way, "Kanya Festival" is the nickname for the Kamiyama High School Cultural Festival, though we in the Classics Club do not call it as such. As for the reason, that's another long story.

A group of students then appeared on the screen. Six of them in total, seated around tables arranged facing each other. This must be the meeting scene that the narrator just mentioned. The camera then showed each person while the narrator introduced them with their names.

First off was "Kaitou Takeo", a muscular male student who looked as though he belonged to some martial arts team. Sporting a crew cut, he was the tallest of the six students.

Second was "Sugimura Jirou", a slim looking student and the only bespectacled male student. Perhaps due to having the camera pointed at him, he couldn't remain steady.

Third was "Yamanishi Midori", a girl with tanned skin and dyed brown hair going down to her shoulder. Though a few seconds elapsed between various shots of her, her hair seemed to have grown a bit already.

Next was "Senoue Mamiko", a short girl with a slightly wide girth. Rather than plump, it might have something more to do with her round face instead.

Following her was "Katsuda Takeo", a guy with rather good looks. Though his hair was dyed reddish, he felt like more of the serious sort of student.

Finally, "Kounosu Yuri", a plain-dressed girl who looked quite relaxed despite having the camera facing her. She was the shortest of all the girls.

As their names were being introduced, Satoshi quickly scribbled them down in his notebook. Most of the name spellings were guessed as they weren't written on the screen.

After the introductions, the next scene showed the bespectacled Sugmimura speak.

"How about we visit the Narakubo area?"

Ugh Ibara could be heard groaning. I knew how she felt, since the guy was reading his lines in a deadpan manner.

"The Narakubo area?" asked Yamanishi, whose hair length varied depending on the scene. The red-headed Katsuda replied, "I think I've heard of that area, it's in Furuoka Town, if I remember correctly."

"Exactly, it's an abandoned mining village. It was born during the mining boom, though there's hardly anyone there now."

It was deadpan dialogue all the way, but that was to be expected. Chitanda did say these were people from sports teams who wanted to take part in the Cultural Festival, after all. Can't really expect them to perform like the Drama Club.

The well-built Kaitou raised his arm to speak.

"Research in an abandoned village, huh? Sounds good to me."

"It would be good to go there once, as it does have an appeal that makes it worth visiting. A village with a history worth one's lifetime, that sounds interesting."

Yamanishi's line here was slightly better as she imbued it with some emotion. It's probably her genuine feeling about the place. Meanwhile, the round faced Senouchi responded with an equally good performance, "The material may sound interesting, but it's an abandoned ruin, isn't it? Not exactly my type of place."

Kounosu, who wore a downcast look all this time, interjected, "I know how to get to Narakubo... It's deep within the mountains. If we walk from the nearest bus stop, we'll get there in about an hour."

"Eh~"

Yamanishi didn't sound too pleased. She's probably the character that complains a lot. On the other hand, Kaitou looked rather relaxed.

"We should be able to handle it if it's just an hour. We could ride bikes there, and even have a picnic while we're there."

"Then it's decided. Our exhibition for the Cultural Festival will be a research into the history of the Narakubo area."

Sugimura then gave a dissenting opinion, citing that just covering an abandoned village isn't interesting enough. He was backed by Yamanishi, who preferred to go somewhere else. Senoue suggested it could be fixed by presenting the story from an interesting perspective. When asked how it could be done, Sugimura suggested covering it like an adventure story, but was rejected for being too traditional. Kounosu then suggested covering the occultish aspect of the area, which was approved for being interesting. Though Sugimura countered that more research would be needed as there were hardly any ghost stories from that area. What followed was an awkward series of give and take between the classmates as they debated heatedly amongst themselves on which ideas to adopt and which to reject. That was the main flow of this initial scene. As the scene blacked out, the narrator spoke again.

"A week later, the group headed towards the Narakubo area in Furuoka Town."

As the screen fades back in, the school scenery was replaced by that of a mountainous forest amidst the midsummer heat. This was no doubt the Narakubo area.

I knew where Furuoka Town was, it's about 20 kilometers north from Kamiyama City. It was once a prosperous town due to a rich deposit of lead or some other metal in the mines nearby, but like any other town that solely relies on one industry to prosper, has since fallen into hard times once the mine was exhausted. But what of the Narakubo area?

That was the topic Ibara and Satoshi were discussing about,

"Fuku-chan, you heard of Narakubo?"

Unsurprisingly, Satoshi of course knew,

"Yup, it used to be the main mining area for the Furuoka Mines. While getting there is inconvenient, at its height it was pretty prosperous."

He then went to list a few famous enka singers, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enka)

"... These were the sort of celebrities that they managed to invite to perform in the area."

Ibara looked a little surprised, so did I, for the names Satoshi listed were quite prominent.

"However,"

As Satoshi was about to continue, Chitanda cut him short,

"It's about to start."

As the picture moved along the dense forest, it showed a group of students. Naturally they were in their appropriate casual wear for such hot weather. Each carried their own rucksack, though we had no idea what was inside of them.

Yamanishi stood upright and said,

"Sure is hot. We've been walking for some time, are we there yet?"

Sugimura replied,

"Almost. About five minutes, I guess."

"That's what you said a while ago. Darn, it's so hot, I'm tired already."

"Well, you're not the only one who's hot, so hurry up and keep walking."

So said Kaitou. And they all began to walk again, with the camera following them.

The Narakubo area indeed looked like it was situated deep within the mountains. While there were signs of human activity along the road, they were largely covered up by the forest. Amidst the bushes one could occassionally catch a glimpse of the streets of Furuoka Town below the mountains. While the road was paved, one could see signs of damages. The asphalt on the pedestrian sidewalk looked as if they were about to come off in the size of fists. Whether it was due to such poor walking conditions, the camera constantly shook as it moved along. If the actors were amateurs, then so was the cameraman. Even a layperson like me could tell the camera work looked unusual, resulting in a hard to see visual.

The shot then cut to another angle from behind the group. Before long, Sugimura, who led the group, straightened his glasses and pointed ahead,

"We're here. That's Narakubo!"

Everyone followed Sugimura's gaze, including the camera, and a basin within the mountain was shown. On top of the basin was a ruin.

For someone living in a modern city, to think that such a ruin could exist 20 kilometers from where I lived felt surreal. There were many single houses scattered with windows broken and roofs in disrepair. Some were virtually collapsed. If this place was the ore mine, then these houses would be the miners' houses. Disregarding any signs of human presence, these houses were now surrounded by a thick layer of ivy. An enamel signboard could be seen under what used to be a shophouse, further emphasizing the loneliness of the deserted townscape. I see, Sugimura's words wasn't made up, this place was indeed worth having a visit.

The camera panned quickly across such scenes. Maybe it had something to do with the cameraman's inexperience, or it was done to conceal the actors' crappy performances. At any rate, the next visual shown was quite intense.

Even the actors looked stunned by such a scenery. As the camera faced towards what they were seeing, someone could be heard whispering "Wow". I had a feeling that line wasn't scripted.

But then, the scripted dialogue resumed once again,

"I see. This is a good place to collect material,"

Said Katsuda, who took out an instant camera from his pocket and began snapping away. Senoue took a notebook out and began writing. After a brief pause, Kaitou began instructing in a loud voice,

"Anyway, we need to find a place to stay for the night. We'll start with the research after that."

"How about there then?"

Kounosu pointed to one of the ruins in Narakubo. As the camera moved to where she was pointing, a large building could be seen, seemingly a theatre.

"We should be safe from the rain if it's there."

"I see. Then let's go."

The six of them then began to walk down the slope, and the screen fades out.

Upon fading in, the screen now showed the entrance of the theatre. The group stood before its two glass doors and looked up at the building. The camera panned up towards its dirty walls. Looking diagoanally upwards, the threatre felt surrealistic.

The camera then returned to the group, where Kaitou opened the glass door, and each of them followed him into the theatre. The last one to enter was Kounosu, with her eyes looking down. She muttered,

"For some reason, I have a bad feeling about this."

She then entered the theatre, and as the six of them entered the darkness within, the scene ended.

Both Satoshi and Ibara raised their voice unexpectedly. Satoshi looked delighted, while Ibara looked displeased.

"Aha, a mansion mystery, huh?"

"Hmph, just a mansion mystery?"

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