Creative Aniblogger Collaboration: Short story shenanigans–Couples & Parks?

Hello everyone!

As you would have already guessed, yes, this is the second post for the day. Horray! Instead of simply Day 7 of “Music Week”(which you can read here), you get a bonus-special…something absolutely amazing!
*This is absolutely not because of my inability to find a song for today

Now then, it’s finally time to present this collaboration to everyone! [Anime: Re:Creators]

What is it? The impatient ones amongst you might already be asking. Why, it’s a lovely little initiative started up by our folks over in the discord server–a collaboration!
In fact, this collaboration is the reason why our discord server exists in the first place. It is the start of everything, quite literally. Without this collaboration, I wouldn’t have started the discord server with the 5 of us and naturally, others wouldn’t be able to join either.
Reminiscing aside, it’s time to finally get on with what the collaboration is about.

The entire premise is quite simple, really: the people participating were to write a short story of no more than 10k words. We were each assigned a random genre of anime(yes, anime) to write a story on, along with the common theme of the need to include a “couple” and a “park”. Now, I wouldn’t spoil which genres each of us got, and I wouldn’t say mine until the end of the story, so expect each story to be vastly different 🙂

First up, we have Irina and her wild ride right here. Just when you thought her talents have their limits, she breaks you expectations and goes for more.
Next, we have Astral and his fantastic story here. I loved the progression, the characters, and everything that has to do with it.
After Astral, we have Keiko’s story here, imbued with her very best, and one that I enjoyed reading a lot.
But of course, last but not least, you have me. What is my story like…? You will have to read it to find out, but know that it’s not for the faint hearted…
*Please go read the stories that the others wrote, because they deserve your recognition!

Well, before we begin the story, I feel compelled to talk about certain things related to this collaboration. Such as the people who would have been able to join but couldn’t due to circumstances, they deserve some time in the limelight too!
We have Shoka and his issues with parents and blogging preventing him from doing anything really, hence his recent inactivity…
We also have Iza, who sadly couldn’t join us in time because of real life.
And then we have the loyal TPAB who wouldn’t forget his promise with Iza and thus wouldn’t be joining us this time.

All of them participated in this small project/collaboration in one way or another, and of course they were integral parts that made this possible today. TPAB especially, since it was his idea that brought us together.

And yes, this collaboration took forever to come out. The initiative started August last year and was planned to finish within the year. Yes, it started over half a year ago…
If there’s anyone to blame for how long it took, it’s definitely me. I procrastinated too long in writing my story during the time, along with other issues. Well. At least the project is out now right? Right…?

I think I’ve taken up too much of your time just going on about what the collaboration is actually about instead of actually letting you read my story, so I’ll stop now.

Before you read, there is one FINAL THING I have to say, and it’s quite important. First, there are 3 different ways you can read this story, with the first being just reading on, and reading the story from this post itself. Another method would be to download the rtf format using the link here, and using a word processor such as Microsoft word to read it. And the third way, would be to access the Wattpad site for it. Yup, I uploaded it on Wattpad, for certain reasons I will get to later. The link to that is here.

Second thing I have to announce would be that this is actually part of a series of stories I will be writing named <<Narratives of Glauvania>>. The short story is but the starting of the series, so if you want more, the link to the continuations in at the end of the post.

Without further ado, please enjoy yourself with the story. And if you think you would like to try your hands at writing a story too, go ahead! Before that, however, please leave your thoughts of our stories below!

 

---

Short story: Tris Asher

 

The name’s Edmund. Edmund Smiths. I am just a normal country boy turned rich man through peddling. And now, on my sales trip in the Royal Capital of Tido, I managed to meet the love of my life.

Ahhh… The absolute beauty of Isabella. I really want to bury my face in her ample bosom and–No. I shouldn’t be thinking these things. A gentleman would never think of these things.

Calm down.

Caaaalm down.

I’m just going to casually invite her to that park at night to see the rumoured ghost, and then I’ll spring a surprise on her with a proposal of marriage.

She will be delighted. She will definitely think I am a man amongst men, and fall for me completely. We will marry, and have many children. Although it is expensive living here in Tido, It will be worth it.

She will definitely love it.

With those thoughts, I invited Isabella for another date when we met again. She agreed. YES!

I can’t wait for the night!

 

* * *

 

 

Oh my god…She…

She accepted it! Yes!!

I embrace Isabella tightly, smelling her unique fragrance. She smells like a flower tonight, just as always. Although I can feel her ample bosoms on my chest, now is not the time to think about that.

I am going to marry Isabella! Words cannot describe how happy I feel right now.

I pulled away from her hug a little bit, just enough that our faces can meet.

It’s time to lean forward for the kiss!

The kiss that will seal the deal!

Isabella probably noticed this, because she closed her eyes and pouted her lips a bit.

I, Edmund Smiths, has managed to get a wife! Father, mother, your son has become a man!

I leaned forward for the kiss.

…

Instead of the normal warm feeling of her lips, some type of warm liquid has sprayed onto my face, and some even dripped onto my hands.

Was it a prank by Isabella perhaps?

Opening my eyes hurriedly, the scene in front of my eyes is horrid.

My lovely Isabella has a deep cut through her throat.

So that means the warm liquid on my face is…

I think some of it has gotten into my mouth!!

Argh!!!!

Pulling away, I noticed the figure clad in black behind her.

Wait… Isn’t that…?!

I turned around to run. I’m sorry Isabella!

But it was too late.

I felt a sharp pain on my neck, and my strength left me almost instantly.

This… wasn’t supposed to happen…

I can’t let this person get away…for Isabella…

“Hmph. What easy kills. Thought you could be all lovey dovey in the night and no one will notice eh?”

With the last remaining strength left in my body, I used the blood on my hands to write out what I know.

“….what’s this?! You wrote something?! HOW DARE YOU?! JUST…STAY…DEAD!!”

The black figure got mad. I feel many sharp pains in my back. I want to scream, but I can no longer do so.

Turning to see Isabella one last time, I saw…

No way.

You monster!!

 

* * *

 

 

Loud banging. A sharp voice.

“Tris, waaaaaaaakeeeee uuuuuuuuuuuuuuup!”

Argh. Why does this happen every time…

“Alright alright… gimme a minute…”

After freshening up and changing out of my sleepwear, I opened the door.

“About time you opened up! We got a case Tris! A big one!”

Not another one…

“Oh really? Why not you come inside and we talk about it?”

The woman in front of me rolled her eyes and pulled me out of my door by my ears. Ow ow ow…

“We’ve got no time detective! Come with me to the headquarters now!”

The woman proclaimed, still dragging me by my ears. It hurts you know… Can you just release your hand? Also, what about my breakfast? Nooooo….

 

* * *

 

 

The Royal Police Headquarters. A majestic building in the middle of the noble’s living area. With a crest of 2 griffins holding up swords, it symbolises ultimate justice.

Currently, I am inside taking a briefing with my partner Eta.

Or rather, Third Princess Eta.

Well, either way, she’s my partner, and she also happens to be the one to rudely awaken my sweet dreams every morning. Even though I was eating so much good food…

Anyway, back to the situation at hand.

We are both sitting in one of the meeting rooms, listening to a burly man give us a briefing on the most recent case.

Who is he? Well, he is the Chief Constable of the Royal Police Force, my direct superior you would say. Fourth prince Aven.

Why am I surrounded by royalty? To be completely honest, I don’t know myself. I saved Eta during one of my cases and she stuck with me ever since, and she even got her brother, Aven to come to the Royal Police Force with her.

Geez, if I were any other detective, I would have fainted by now from the overwhelming presence in this one room.

Good thing I’m me.

Oh, you don’t know who I am?

Well, I’m Tris Asher, the future King of the Kingdom of Glauvania! Ha~ha~ha~ha—nah. I’m just a detective in the Royal Police Force. Although I’m pretty well known due to having solved several hard to crack cases before, I’m not exactly famous either. My name is pretty much only known by those in the police force, of course.

About the current case I am called up for, it seems that there was yet another murder in Lovers’ Park. There is currently a serial killer on the loose who seems to be murdering couples as well as assaulting them, and we believe that this current case is also related.

Either way, Aven handed this case to me and asked me to get to the bottom of it, fast.

Despite being royalty, since he is the 4th prince and therefore out of the line of succession, His Highness Aven was a pretty down to earth person. He might look burly on the outside and have a handsome face that doesn’t really match his physique, however deep inside, there is a burning desire to eradicate all crime.

After confirming some details and signing some paperwork handed down to me(standard protocol), I headed out to the crime scene with Eta.

Well, its more like Eta dragging me there since she grabbed my hand roughly and pulled me along, but I guess it’s the same thing.

 

* * *

 

 

“Good morning to you, Detective Tris! Good morning to you too, Your Highness!”

The constables stationed near the entrance of the park greeted both of us as we approached.

“Good work gentlemen. Can someone bring us over to the crime scene?”

Getting right to work, I decided to start off by getting to the crime scene and knowing more about the exact details.

One of the constables answered and starting leading us towards the inside of the park.

Lovers’ Park’s scenery was really nice, with a romantic atmosphere befitting of its name. Well, not that it matters anyway, I’m here for a date with the dead.

“Tris… I’ve got a bad feeling about this… The last few cases in this park, the victim was…”

Suddenly, Eta spoke in a worried tone.

I know what she was talking about. After all, this series of murders have been covered up pretty nicely by the power of the Crown so far, but as the Royal Police Force, we all know about the freak killings this place went through.

“It’s fine Eta. There’s always a first for everything.”

I assured her in the best way I know how.

The constable leading us stopped.

“We are here.”

It was a normal walkway, with some rose bushes as well as some trees nearby. It would probably make a pretty good spot for a proposal.

Right now, however, it was covered with blood, and inside the yucky pool of blood, there are two corpses.

Not exactly the prettiest sight.

Eta covered her mouth with her hand as she gasped.

“Oh no… so what the others said was true…what kind of a monster would do this…?”

Apart from being extremely bloody overall, the corpses were mutilated. The woman apparently had her breasts cut out and the man’s privates are also brutally cut off. Truly a gruesome sight.

I would say it’s a miracle that Eta didn’t scream.

“So uh… What are the details of the victims?”

Forcing myself to continue staring at the crime scene for clues, I asked the constable who respectfully stood behind us.

“The man was Edmund Smiths, pedlar for living. The woman was Isabella Ann, who is the shopkeeper of a groceries shop. Both of them were rumoured to be dating and recently Edmund seemed to be preparing to propose to her. Both of them have cuts to their throats, which were probably the lethal wounds, while the man also received multiple stab wounds to the back. And as you can see, their genitalia were both mutilated, similar to the other murders that have occurred here so far.”

Another couple. More genital mutilation.

Definitely more victims to the serial killer.

Hm? What’s that? There seems to be extra blood in a spot that wasn’t near the puddle of blood.

The man’s hand seems to have been there. Perhaps he tried to write a message in blood?

It seems that the murderer noticed though, as the blood is all mixed together and messy now.

Perhaps they knew each other?

“Tris, there doesn’t seem to be much clues here, let’s go search nearby instead.”

With one hand still covering her mouth, Eta pulled on my sleeve and suggested for us to change places.

Well, I guess there’s not much else to be seen here, unless you really like bloody corpses that much.

“Alright, let’s head out.”

“…oh, and I also don’t like all this bloo-”

Quickly covering her mouth with both hands, she went to a nearby bush for a bit.

Knowing what is happening, I waited for her return before heading out with her.

 

* * *

 

 

“Uh hum… You will forget what you just saw, you hear me?”

While blushing a bit, Eta lightly punched my back.

“Your every wish is my command, Your Highness.”

I did a knights kneel and joked. Of course, all that earned me was an extra hard chop to my head. Ouch.

Noticing the constable still following behind us, I figured I should give them something to do while we go out searching for more clues.

“Can you go round up the potential suspects and witnesses? Bring them to the headquarters afterwards, I’ll interrogate them personally later.”

“Yes, detective! Good luck with finding clues! On a side note, have you not been sleeping well? You always seem to have these black eyebags.”

Oh…my eyebags. They’ve been around since as long as I remember. I feel like I’ve been sleeping well though.

“I have no idea either. Good work so far, keep it up!”

Waving goodbye to the constables, we went around searching for clues.

 

* * *

 

 

“Alright. So here’s what we have so far:

A knife we found by the river with blood on it. Definitely the murder weapon we were looking for.

A bloodied black coat that seems to have been worn by the murderer. We can use that information to sieve out some suspects later, although black coats are in fashion so that won’t really help.

Annnnnd that’s pretty much it. Darn, there really seems to be no leads on this.”

After confirming the evidence that we managed to find, we both came up pretty much empty.

There really isn’t much to be said about this case so far. Evidence that doesn’t exactly point to anyone, and no eye witnesses to the crime so far. We can’t use this to find the murderer, let alone convict the person.

I have one thing I know so far, but it wouldn’t exactly be good enough to judge on for now. I’ll just hold on to my thoughts.

“Eta, let’s head back to headquarters to see if they found anyone so far.”

“Alright… Also, can you hold this evidence for me? I don’t really like the smell coming out of the evidence bag.”

A princess will always be a princess… I guess.

Oops, I said that out loud. Ouch.

 

* * *

 

 

“So I take it that these are our suspects and witnesses?”

Looking at the people seated in the room, I asked the constable beside me.

“Yes, detective. Including the janitor who spotted all these people, we’ve rounded up all of them.”

The constable answered me, then proceeded to introduce the people here to us.

The janitor is a frail old man who look as if he could be blown away by the wind. There’s no way he is the murderer.

Beside him was the other witnesses who came forward after seeing the constables looking for information, Clarence Power.

A young man in his twenties with a handsome face. Wearing a top hat and a black coat while holding a cane in his right hand. Pretty stylish if you ask me.

He worked as a paperboy in the mornings and a waiter at night.

His attire was pretty suspicious to me, but I don’t really know fashion so I can’t judge. From the way people looked at him though, it seems as if it was nothing too unusual.

When introduced, he stood up and bowed to us.

“Clarence Power, at your service. I-”

“We can save your explanations for later. Now sit down.”

Eta was quick to shut him down. Did he offend her somehow?

Sitting opposite them were the suspects. These people were spotted near the park that particular night.

First would be a husband and wife couple. The man was pretty normal looking and he had a smile on while flirting with his wife, a beautiful looking woman. They were the Eld family.

Sein Eld would be the husband while Fealty Eld was the wife. Sein worked as a merchant while Fealty was a genuine housewife.

After their introduction, they simply smiled and nodded at us while remaining seated, then went right back to their flirting.

I feel pinching on my arm. I guess Eta is annoyed at them. I won’t blame her, this kind of attitude is unforgivable in front of the Crown.

Next to them is another man in his thirties, Birwyn Bleu. Pedlar for living, he opens a shop next to the female victim’s.

He stood up and greeted us when he was introduced, then sat back down. Seems like he was a man of little words.

And our last suspect, a middle aged woman.

“The name’s Lihal. Lihal Roth. Make this quick, I still have to go back to my shop.”

She stood up and introduced herself before the constable could, and quickly sat back down, staring at me.

I’m no good at staring competitions.

Turning to face everyone, I thanked them for coming.

Explaining that we have a murder case on our hands, I asked them to come with me one by one to have their interrogation.

“Alright, I’ll go first, make it snappy detective.”

Lihal instantly stood up and walked towards me.

I lead her to my office, with Eta following close behind.

Is it just me or is Eta staring at Lihal very intensely?

The interrogations will now start.

 

* * *

 

 

“Alright, can we start with why you were at the park that evening?”

“I was just taking a casual stroll, ya know? I needed to cool my head a little because of that stupid husband of mine.”

“Would you happen to have seen a man and a woman on a date? If so, did you see anyone else following them?”

“Nope, I ain’t seen nothin, detective. Are you done? I really need to go back and take care of my shop. My drunk ass husband ain’t gonna be able to handle the shop by himself ya know?”

There isn’t really anything in this that is suspicious, and we lack evidence. I suppose I’ll just let her go.

“Alright, you may go for now. Bring in the next person!”

I’ll just have to question the rest of them first.

Somehow, I feel as if Eta is staring at me harder than usual. Did I do something wrong?

 

* * *

 

 

“Clarence Power, at your service. I-”

“Sit down and keep your mouth shut until we ask you questions.”

“…Yes madam.”

“It’s Your Highness to you.”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

“Now sit down.”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

Wow, Eta is treating him like a dog. I wonder if it’s ok to let her continue like this. Will she ask him to bark next?

“Alright, tell us what you saw, and make it concise! One wrong word and I’ll hold you for contempt!”

Wait, I thought I was doing the interrogation?

Oh well, I guess I’ll leave it to her this time.

“Yes Your Highness! I was taking a stroll in the park that evening when I saw a couple walking through the park. I was curious as to why there’s a couple out so late at night so I followed them. And it was then I saw the murder take place. I saw a person dressed in a black coat killing both of them! I immediately went to hide and didn’t come out until the person was gone.”

“Did you see anything else?”

“Nope, I swear I saw nothing else Your Highness!”

Alright, now stick out your tongue and bark two times~

…is what I thought might happen, but of course Eta didn’t go that far. It’s all just my imaginations, in the end.

I think there’s something weird about this witness though. Maybe he’s got a connection to this case somehow.

But for now, there’s not much to be had from this guy either.

“Alright, you may go now. Next person!”

…When did Eta take over my job completely?

 

* * *

 

 

Next came the janitor.

Do we even need to question him?

We let him go after confirming who he saw on that day.

It does feel good to get the procedures under my control again though.

Take that, princess, haha.

Ow-ow~

I guess chuckling to myself is no good either.

 

* * *

 

 

“Birwyn Bleu. How can I help you?”

Oh wow. This man gives off a dangerous feeling just from the way he talks.

Nono, it’s no good to judge something like that.

“Tris, something tells me this man is the murderer. No, he is definitely the murderer!”

Ah… It’s no good for a detective to judge like this you know?

“Eta, we can’t just a book by its cover.”

“I think it should be fine in this case though?!”

…I guess I’ll just ignore her for now. She’s useless like this.

“So, what were you doing at the park last night?”

“I was actually supposed to meet with a friend, but she didn’t show up so I just went home.”

A female friend eh? In the Lovers’ Park no less. I guess it’s that then?

“Wait a second Tris, this guy is definitely lying! There’s no way a person like him can have a girl friend! There’s no way he has friends! W-”

Covering her mouth that was next to my ear, I told the man to leave.

Geez, even though she is royalty, she can be such a child someti-OW OW OW is she biting my hand?!

Pulling my hand away from her, I saw Eta glaring at me. Oh no, this isn’t good.

“Next person please!”

I shall seek asylum from the incoming people.

 

* * *

 

 

Lastly, it seems that we have the couple coming in.

My saviours~

My back is almost definitely close to being fractured from the amount of abuse its been given in the past 30 seconds.

I wonder if it will heal itself?

While thinking that, I asked the standard question after they settled down.

“Can you tell us what you were doing at the park that night?”

“I am just here for my husband, I wasn’t actually at the park.”

The woman replied me with a cold voice while staring at me.

I know I am good looking but is this much staring ok?

Ouch…why am I getting hit again?

“Alright, then what about you, Mr. Eld?”

“Oh, I’m sure he just went to cool off his head a little. We had a little bit of a…misunderstanding, but its all resolved now. Right honey?”

“Yea, I’m sorry about that honey, I’ll make it up to you tonight~”

The two of them proceeded to make out in front of us.

Really now?!

I can practically feel bloodlust from Eta. Oh man is she mad.

“Ah… I see then, you may go now.”

…Oioi…is it just me or did they ignore me and are making out even harder now?!

If looks can kill, the couple in front of my would have died ten times over by now with Eta’s bloodshot eyes.

“YOU MAY GO NOW~!”

Eta shouted at the top of her lungs.

Getting their ears blasted, they quickly retreated out of the office.

…Hey…at least bring me out too…my ears are almost bleeding you know…

The couple seems really suspicious to me somehow. Would a couple really make up that fast, and instantly go into heat right after a large enough argument to see one of them driven out in the night?

Perhaps I should investigate further.

 

* * *

 

 

Coming out of the Headquarters, the sky is already dark.

I guess we should wrap it up for the day.

I have my doubts about several things, but it’s too dark to do any investigations right now, and I would say the two of us need this rest for now too.

Eta followed me home. Well, she rents a house next to me after all.

Rather than a house though, I would moreso call it a mansion. It’s gigantic after all, and it comes with servants, maids, and the Royal Guards have also stationed personnel.

Looking at my own normal home, I can’t help but feel some sadness inside me. Royalty sure have it good huh…

Why can’t I be born of a royal bloodline?

My family was…oh, I don’t have memories of them actually. For some reason, one day I just found myself in this city. Yup, absolutely no memories.

It was harsh at the start but I managed to become a detective and got a stable income. They pay really well here in the capital so I guess I’m more well off than normal people.

“Come to think of it Tris, you’ve been taking walks around late at night recently. My guards say they saw you lingering around here not really doing anything, but since they know you they didn’t say anything. Is that why your eyebags are getting worse by the day? Why haven’t you been sleeping?”

While I was thinking that, Eta suddenly asked me some questions.

Have I really been outside at night? No way, I’ve definitely been sleeping well. Those cakes sure are delicious…too bad they are so expensive in real life.

“Nah, it’s probably someone else and your guards mistook him for me. You should tighten your security, it seems like you have a stalker~”

Ouch, I got hit for saying that again.

Note to self, jokes of that category is not ok.

After hitting me for a while, Eta waved goodbye to me and went into her mansion.

I went into my own home and sat down on my bed after a small dinner.

Now then, its time to sort the things out.

We have a serial murder case.

Suspects are 2 merchants, a couple and I should probably include that suspicious witness into the list too.

Currently, the only things we found are the murder weapon, a knife and the coat that the murderer was wearing. But so many people wear those that both of those can’t be used for anything.

On top of that, it seems that the only targets are couples.

There is actually another case that is very similar to this one, only that the couples are assaulted from behind in the day, knocked out, and had their valuables stolen.

Hmm…considering the behaviours of the suspects today, I think I know who did the assaults.

However, although the murder could be linked, it seems that…

Oh, right, maybe if the two cases are linked in that way, it would make sense why that person said that.

However…in the end, it comes down to motive. If there’s no motive, we don’t have a case.

After all, no one would murder so many people for no reason unless they are insane. And of course none of the suspects are insane from the looks of things.

Ah…thinking so much makes me tired.

I’ll go search for more clues tomorrow. And of course investigate those suspicious people.

Time to catch some sleep…

 

* * *

 

 

In a certain mansion in Tido.

A black figure goes into one of the rooms and greeted the person inside.

“Was the job done?”

“Yes, my lord. Perfectly.”

“Well done. Any new movements on the other thing?”

“My lord, it’s been no problems so far. However, we’ve got a detective sniffing around now.”

“Hm. Is it that famous Tris Asher?”

“Yes, that’s him.”

“Ah…him again huh. Well, it’s fine for now, but keep a watch on the movements from the Royal Police Force.”

“Yes.”

 

* * *

 

 

Hm…? Where am I?

I don’t remember coming to this place?

I was…sleeping!

How did I even come here?

I’m currently standing in a darkened house, the only light source being the candle on the table in front of me.

There is also a note on the table.

‘Remember’? Remember what?

I looked around the house.

Just a normal home, except that it looks as if its been abandoned for quite some time.

There’s a lot of scratches on the walls.

However, it seems like the furniture is just dusty.

Hm…? Why do I feel as if I’ve been here before?

Remember…?

Yes…remember your memories fool.

Hmm? Who was that?

Memories? You mean the memories of my family?

Fa…mily…?

ARGH! MY BRAIN HURTS!

Whats this?! I don’t want to remember this?!!

Do…it…you can’t run from it forever….

 

* * *

 

 

My name is Tris.

My family lives in the capital city Tido. Cool right?

Well, we live in a small house, but still, we used to live in a biiiiiiiiiiiiiiiig mansion.

I’m not lying you know! My dad used to be the Chief Constable too! He was a big shot!

Well, he is longer one, which is also why we moved to this new house. Lilla was crying because she had to sell many of her favourite toys too.

I don’t want Lilla to cry. Which was why I tried to ask if selling mine instead of hers was alright.

But daddy and mommy said my toys are not worth enough.

I’m sorry Lilla, your big brother tried.

I’ll spoil you extra hard from now on.

And when I get old enough, I’ll make sure to get all the money to buy back your favourite toys.

So why am I awake so late at night? To go to the washroom of course!

Nature calls! And I will gladly answer!

“…SHUT UP! IF YOU DON’T I’LL…”

“…NO!!!!…BR…ER…SA…ME!”

Hm? What’s that noise?

It’s coming from… Lilla’s room?!

Is there something wrong?

I creep towards her room to take a look.

The door is slightly ajar. I peek inside.

Oh. It’s just dad.

…?

Why is he holding Lilla down?!

Wait a second…

Lilla is…crying?!

Is daddy bullying her? I’ll save you Lilla!

Pushing open the door, I charged in.

Bashing daddy off Lilla, I quickly hugged her and pulled her aside into a corner of the room.

“It’s ok now Lilla, big brother is here… It’s all ok now…”

I tried to comfort her. She won’t stop crying though. Is it because she is not wearing clothes and feeling cold?

I took off my shirt and helped Lilla wear it. It’s a little big, but it will do. I also hug her tighter so I can share some of my warmth with her.

I can feel a little wetness on my lap. Poor Lilla. She’s so scared she wet herself. I’ll help her change into another pair of pants later.

Suddenly, a loud noise can be hurt. It’s the door slamming shut.

“You…You dare to resist?! You have been pretty disobedient recently…Is it because that bitch told you something?! She told you something didn’t she?!”

Dad suddenly flared up and charged towards us.

Is this another one of his outbursts? Is he going to hit us now?

…

Recently, dad has been raging a lot.

Even mom has been fighting with him.

“You need to stop gambling! Our finances are already really tight!! Can you at least think of the children?!”

“What do you know about it?! I just need a bit more money… Just a bit more and I can earn back everything I’ve lost!!”

“You won’t! Please…just stop before our debts go any higher!”

“Hmph! You are one to talk! Where were you, disappearing the whole day then bringing back suspicious amounts of money?!”

“I…I’ve been working…for you!”

“If you have been working, why won’t you tell me?!”

“Its not…I just wanted to help you…”

Lilla didn’t want them to fight, so she decided to speak up for mom.

“Daddy, you shouldn’t scold mom! That’s being mean!”

“…You dare talk back at me too?!”

As a result, everytime he gets angry, he hits Lilla or mom.

…

Thinking this, I told Lilla to stay put and stood up.

“Dad, you shouldn’t do this! Don’t you love us? You used to say that you loved us a lot!”

“HAHAHAHA…LOVE? I’LL SHOW YOU LOVE THEN!”

I was pushed aside.

…What’s dad planning to do?

“Since you are that bastard’s children…I’ll just ruin you!”

While saying that, dad grabbed the shivering Lilla and threw her onto the bed.

Is he going to spank her? No! I have to stop this!

“Dad, no! You’ve changed! You were so cheery and so awesome before! What happened to the old you?!”

“The old me? THE OLD ME?! Hahahaha…what a joke! You think I wanted this to happen?! It’s all your mother’s fault!!”

I tried to push daddy away, but he overwhelms me with strength and knocks me to the walls while still holding Lilla down.

I can see Lilla in the corner of my vision. She is shivering, still crying.

“Lilla… It’s ok, big brother is here with you!”

I talked to her to calm her down while dad seemed to be doing something.

“…hic…big brother…hic…no…”

I can’t move my body! It hurts!

“Shh… It’s fine Lilla. It’s all fine…”

“AGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

 

* * *

 

 

ARGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

W-what…was…

Was that…my memories…?!

My head…ARGH…

That…wasn’t real…right?

…

No. It definitely felt real.

I have to get my bearings here. Calm…down.

Caaaaaaalm.

Dooooown.

Calm.

Freaking out isn’t going to change what happened. For now, I need to accept it for what it is.

…no matter how bad it seems.

Let’s…analyse what happened.

I was lead here…by myself.

Some kind of flashbacks appeared in my head just now… Stuff that I don’t want to remember.

The amount of tiredness I feel everyday… The observations by others…

Does it mean I have two personalities?!

My current self that is active during the day, and another me who comes alive during the time that I’m “sleeping”.

Doesn’t that make “me” another suspect?!

…I need to rethink everything I’ve learnt to far.

 

* * *

 

 

Tris isn’t normal today.

He seems to be at odds with himself, and his eyes are bloodshot. Not to mention his clothes…

And yet, I can’t do anything to help…

Am I just a burden again, just like that time…?

“Tris, are you ok?”

Trying to find out what’s wrong, I asked Tris.

He didn’t respond.

“TRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIS!” I shouted as loudly as possible.

His shoulders shook as he seemingly woke up from a trance.

“Why are you still in your sleepwear anyways? Is something wrong?”

Hmph. How dare he ignore me.

“Ah, nono. Nothing’s wrong. I’ll go change my clothes now, wait for me Eta!”

Stupid Tris.

…

“So what did you figure out so far? You seemed to be deep in thought so you must have found something out right?” I asked Tris.

“Well, yes. I did figure certain things out, but I need to be sure. Let’s go check out that couple again.” Tris answered with a doubting voice.

Is everything really alright?

Well, asking him again is just going to produce the same answer, it’s just how it’s always been. I’ll just let the matter rest for now.

…

We’ve arrived at the shop that they live in. Seems like a typical live-in shop with the living quarters at the back and the front of the building being the shopfront.

…just like any other merchant’s house.

While on the way, we seem to have passed by a woman who seemed to look like Tris, but he was too deep in thought to have noticed. I wonder who that is?

Well, we headed in after calling out and getting no response. The couple is probably not home?

Grr…just thinking about what the two might be doing right now angers me.

I decided to let out my anger on Tris as usual.

We entered their living quarters while Tris was rubbing his back and muttering something like “crude princess”. Hmph. Seems like I need to teach him another lesson.

Dragging him by his ears, we checked the place out.

Something caught my eyes. A ring!

“Tris, look at that!” Haha! I found something before Tris did!

“Oh, that ring? Yea, I saw that the moment we came in.”

Stupid Tris.

Tris picked up and ring and stared at it for a bit. Is there something special on it? I don’t think I can see anything…

Suddenly, his head shot up as if he realised something big. You hit my head, stupid Tris!!

“We have to go find Duke Douglas right now!”

 

* * *

 

 

Douglas Shine. My uncle and a womaniser to the core. With his good looks and his status as a Royalty, he gets many women to kneel before his prowess.

Detestable.

If he wasn’t a royalty, the exposure of his many affairs with others’ partners would have gotten him a death sentence by now.

His mansion is about the only thing he has left, since he lost all his land for his crimes.

Tris and I reached the mansion at about noon.

After getting the guard to report to the duke about our arrival, we were escorted in.

I feel very uneasy.

…

“What do you want with me?” The man himself greeted us while seated behind a large table.

We sat down on the sofa provided and I just let Tris do his thing.

“Let’s just get straight to the point then, Duke Douglas. Can you tell us more about…”

…

“Eta, I’m sorry for everything up till now, I’m going to have to leave you now.”

“No!”

Hm?

Wait. Huh? We are still in the Duke’s mansion?

Duke Douglas stared at me bewilderedly. Taking a look beside me, Tris also looks shocked.

“Oops. I…guess I fell asleep?”

 

* * *

 

 

“Have they finally left?”

“Yes, my lord.”

“Alright. It’s time to put the plan into action then. Call the duo up, I have a new task for them.”

“The duo, my lord? But Her Highness is-”

“I know what it means. Just do it.”

“…yes, my lord.”

Eta Shine. Don’t blame me for this.

 

* * *

 

 

Target: A police detective and a princess.

Current location: A certain apartment building.

This mission is a piece of cake. Killing royalty should be hard since the Royal Guards are present, but for some reason this princess seems to have chased away all her guards.

Well, at least that’s what Karen told me.

Still, it’s still best to remain cautious.

“Karen, go check and see if any Royal Guards is secretly hiding nearby. If there is…”

“I got it, sis.”

…

“Kerrie, all clear. We can carry out the mission now.”

“Mhm. Make it fast. The money we can get from this job should be enough.”

Let’s go! This shall be the last mission us sisters ever have to take up!

 

* * *

 

 

“Alright, I think I have this whole case sorted out now.”

I stopped Eta.

My doubts were cleared after the chat with Duke. The voices in my head thinking that I could have been the killers were cleared as well.

Phew. Feels much better now that the load is off my shoulders!

I brought Eta to this building here so we could discuss about our next move without anyone watching us.

It’s finally time to close the case.

Eta seems really confused as usual, I suppose?

Ouch! Why did she punch me?

“Tell me what’s going on, now!” She puffed up her cheeks and demanded.

“Wel-Get back!”

I sensed killing intent.

“Oh? it seems that we have been found out.”

2 dark figures stepped out from the shadows. From the voice and their body shapes, they seem to be two female assassins. Hm…

“The Flower Duo? Seems like the Duke has made his move.”

The assassins don’t seem the least perturbed by my deduction. Is this what professionals are like?

“Less talking, more killing. Let’s go, Kerrie!”

“Sure thing, sis! I’ll leave that princess to you!”

Both of them suddenly sprinted towards us.

…Is this the end?

…

Warm and sticky feelings on my fingers.

But…the one in my grasps is…Eta.

A knife is protruding from her back.

This…can’t be happening!

T…AH…AHHHH…

…

When I woke up again, Eta was clutched in my arms in a literal princess hug, while the two assassins lay in a heap in front of us, unconscious.

What even happened?

Well, that’s not important right now!! I can still feel blood dripping from Eta’s wound, I have to get her to the Royal Guards quick!

 

* * *

 

 

“All the required people have been summoned, Your Highness.”

“Very well. You may bring them in now.”

His Highness Aven Shine settled all the preparations for me. It’s time to make Duke Douglas pay for his crimes!

…

The mini-court has been seated with Clarence Power, the Eld couple, and the Duke. When I arrived with His Highness, all of them stood up to greet us, except the Duke.

I feel pretty nervous. I feel very nervous.

Hey, I may be a detective, but I can get nervous too, you know!

I’ll just suppress this nervousness for now. Think of Eta! You have to make the Duke pay, Tris Asher!

I did some breathing exercises to calm my nerves, and stepped up.

…

“Clarence Power. Did you or did you not commit the crime of the serial killings?”

“No, I definitely did not, sir! I just so happened to be there on that day! Please, it’s not me!”

“Oh? You are saying you just so happened to be at a park for couples alone, with no motivations whatsoever, and that you just so happened to see someone following the couple?”

“Eh? Ah? Uh, that, that is…”

Duke Douglas has a detestable smirk on his face. I’ll wipe it off you soon enough, just sit still. I’m not done yet.

“Clarence Power. You didn’t simply happen to be at Lovers’ Park on that day, did you? You were out there with a motive–to commit a crime.”

“W-Wait! But I-”

“The crime, however, is not the serial killings. It’s robbery, isn’t it?”

Clarence fell silent. It might look as if he was calm, but his shaking cane betrayed his feelings.

“I don’t know about any robbery cases, sir. Please stop slandering me.”

“Stop lying, Mr. Power. You have something in your coat pocket, don’t you? The way it sags is too suspicious.”

A constable took out the item inside of Clarence’s pocket. It’s a butterfly knife.

“Oh? I wonder why you would need to carry this around?”

“H-Hey! That doesn’t prove anything! I just carry it around because it makes me feel safe! Besides, the robbery cases had the victims knocked out, right? I can’t exactly knock them out with this knife!”

“Unfortunately, I think not, Mr. Power. Your extraordinary knowledge of the case details aside, there’s something else on you that can be used to commit the crimes.”

“O-Oh? Show me what it is then! I definitely don’t carry anything of that sort!”

“…your cane seems a little bigger than a normal walking cane, doesn’t it? Must be pretty hefty carrying that thing around, even if it’s for style. I wonder why else you would carry such a large cane around, other than to use it as a weapon?”

…Clarence Power looks like a deflated balloon now. His Highness gave the signal and he was escorted away.

“Now then, with that minor detour finished, let’s talk about the serial killings in more detail, shall we?”

All three of the seated people seems shaken by my performance. Even the Duke seems to be a little uneasy.

Well, there’s still plenty more where that came from, and I’ll let you have it!

“Sein and Fealty Eld.”

Both of them seemed to be inside another one of their flirting streaks. Well, your act ends here!

“You can both stop your acting now. It’s pretty obvious that the two of you do not really like each other and instead hate each other. I’m not sure what exactly happened, but Mr. Eld being kicked out of the house and spending the night at Lovers’ Park is clear evidence. Furthermore, although your pretence might fool others, I can see how you both are actually staring at each other with a flicker of anger, not love.”

The Elds stopped their flirting and both stared at me. After my long explanation, Fealty Eld took the initiative first and moved her chair away from Sein Eld. They both turned their heads away from each other in disgust.

“So what, Mr. Know it all? We just want to keep up appearances, that’s all.”

Sein looked at me and broke the silence.

“…you are the murderer, aren’t you, Mr. Eld.”

The Elds look surprised while Duke Douglas keeps up his poker face. I can see a glint of a smirk on the corner of his mouth, however.

“What makes you think so?” After the initial shock, Sein Eld seems to have recovered and asked me calmly.

“There’s many reasons. First, your wife is cheating on you, isn’t she?”

“Hey! How dare you-”

“Silence! Let the detective speak.” Fealty Eld was about to have an outburst, but was immediately shot back by His Highness. She sank into her seat a little.

Nodding to His Highness to show my thanks, I continued.

“Next, the victim seems to have wrote something in blood, but it was erased away. However, it means that the victim has to have known the person. You would make for a good prime suspect, given that you are also a merchant, and you two are probably acquaintances, so if Edmund Smiths were to see you, he would have been able to write down some clues.”

“Finally, we have the motive. Your wife cheating is not just the start of you losing your rationality, it also gives you the motive. You probably hate the lovey-dovey pairs hanging out around Lovers’ Park, don’t you? Your own marriage being a failure, seeing other people enjoy their relationships probably just added fuel to your fury.”

“Which is probably why you did it, isn’t it, Mr. Eld?” After pausing a bit to catch my breath, I looked at Sein Eld right in the eyes and said to him.

Sein Eld’s face was a complete calm. But what he did next was shocking.

“HAHAHAHA! Excellent work, detective. It is just as you said. My wife is a cheating bastard. Furthermore, the other couples can’t seem to be able to stop displaying their shitty love all the time. I’ve had enough, so I did it. After that, it felt great to be able to play around with their bodies. Heheheheh. How do you love-birds like that, hahahaha, HAHAHAHA!”

His Highness gave another signal and Sein Eld was dragged off after being placed in handcuffs.

What a madman.

“Hmph, is that all, detective? Why was I called here then? Did you simply wanted to waste my time?”

The comment came from Duke Douglas. As impatient as ever.

“Don’t worry, your judgement comes now, Duke Douglas.”

“My what? You had better watch your mouth, detective!”

“…Duke Douglas. Respect the detective’s authority and let him speak. Tris, care to explain what you mean?”

“But of course, Your Highness. Remember when I said that Fealty Eld was cheating? The person she was cheating with was none other than Duke Douglas. Furthermore, he was probably the one who led Sein Eld on the path of the serial killing, with the power he holds.”

“Nonsense! I have nothing to do with this woman! I don’t even know who she is!”

“Oh? But I have evidence that you should at least know this woman.”

“Hmph. Show it before you continue with this ridiculous reasoning!”

It’s finally time.

Time to bring the evil Duke to justice!

I take out the ring I found at the Eld family’s house.

“Do you recognise this ring, Duke Douglas?”

“…t-t-t-that is…that is…” All of a sudden, Duke Douglas seems to be stuttering. Serves him right.

“Your Highness, why not you take a look and tell us what exactly this ring is?”

His Highness took the ring. An audible gasp escaped from his mouth.

“This emblem…Duke Douglas! Isn’t this your ring?”

Duke Douglas seems to be having a bit of cold sweat at this point.

“N-No way! That must be a fake! That’s right! That has to be a fake! See, I’m wearing my ring right here!” He held up his right hand to show us a similar ring on his pointer finger. Seems to me that he prepared well for this.

Good thing I have prepared for this, too.

“Duke Douglas. I remember you saying that your ring is one of in the whole world, isn’t it? That it was made with rare metal that dropped from the sky?”

The things I asked during our conversation on that day became handy.

“That’s right! That means even more so now that the one you are holding has to be a fake!”

“I would beg to differ. Rather, I can now safely say that the ring you are wearing now is the fake. If you would please take it off, we can do a comparison.”

A constable took the ring from the Duke’s hands and placed it on the table in the middle of the room. I also placed the ring I found beside it.

“Now. Notice any difference between the two?”

“Hmph. The difference is that mine is the genuine article!” All the people present shook their heads while the Duke simply scoffed at me.

“Well. If you were to look carefully, you would notice that one of the rings has scratches on it. Now, that would be the ring I found.”

Looking at the Duke’s face, it’s slowly turning white. What a pushover.

“You must be thinking inside, ‘So what?’. Well, this means that the ring that the Duke is wearing is brand new while the ring I found has already been through some times. Now, which one do you think would be the ring that the Duke would be wearing around him all the time?”

Everyone gave out an “Oh…” as they understood the meaning behind my words.

“Now that we know that the ring I found is the real ring, the next question to answer would have to be ‘Where was this found?’. I found this ring together with Her Highness in one of the least expected places–the Elds’ home. I wonder who was it that said earlier that he never even knew Fealty Eld?”

Fully confronting the Duke now, I asked him sarcastically while holding up the ring.

The Duke’s face is now flashing between red and white. Whew. What a lightshow.

“Now, why would your ring be found at the Elds’ home? I can only think of one thing with all the facts uncovered so far–to cheat with Fealty Eld. Your Highness, if you can recall, Duke Douglas has already been caught cheating with others’ wives before, so this wouldn’t even the the first time. Given how he has lied about not knowing Fealty Eld, along with evidence to suggest his involvement in the case, I believe we can at the very least convict the both of them with adultery.”

By now, Duke Douglas has slouched onto the chair, and Fealty Eld is busy wiping off her sweat.

“Y-Y-Your Highness. Please have mercy on us. I…I…-”

“The law is absolute, especially given the tragedies born from your affairs, I can’t just let the both of you off lightly.” Fealty Eld tried to plead with His Highness, but was shut down.

…

Looking at the two cheating criminals being taken away by the constables, I finally let out a long sigh.

It’s finally over.

Someone lightly patted me on the shoulder.

“Great job, Tris. Eta would be proud of you.”

With that, His Highness exited the room.

Eta, eh?

I wonder…

* * *THE END* * *

---

And with that, I thank you for taking the time to read my story. Please, check out the stories the others wrote, and if you are feeling like you want more from the universe I created, you can check out my continuation to the “Narratives of Glauvania” series too! The link to the continuation to my series is here.

As always, if you get entertained, I’m happy too. Which person’s story did you like the most?

-Plyasm

If you enjoyed it, it was totally worth writing! [Anime: Eromanga-sensei]