Part 3: Episode 3: Investigation Day 1 End, An Ominous Late Night Operation
Ryouta and I decided to finish off the day with a quick trip to the Torimi Café, to see if any clues had been left there.
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We searched around where we had the tree, but we couldnt find any clues
Im sorry, Mr. Urushihara.
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You didnt see them either, Mr. Urushihara?
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Correct. By the time Mr. Kawara and I got outside, the tree was already gone.
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That said
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Was there something else?
The music stops.
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Please, look at this. Mr. Rabu sent it to me a few minutes ago.
Mr. Urushihara proffers his cellphone. A smartphone! Fancy!
Mr. Urushihara pulled up a picture on his phone and pointed it in our direction.
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Y-you mean, these shadows are
!
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Mr. Rabu said he took it just before he was rendered unconscious.
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Suspicious shadows carrying away the tree
They must be the culprits!
Those silhouettes look awfully familiar
But maybe its just my imagination.
Probably nothing! I wouldnt have gotten this far in the vicious food chain if I worried about little things like that.
There were a few things that we could learn from the picture, however.
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There are two of them, then.
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Theyre awfully small
Though, its a little hard to see in this picture.
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That does seem like him.
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This will help us a lot, Mr. Urushihara. Thank Mr. Rabu for this, too!
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How is he doing right now?
That makes sense; Azami always seemed the most capable of the two.
Rabu always seems a little bit incapable, or like hes in a subtly bad position
Sort of like hes always stuck being a background character.
Its not much, but weve found a clue. Well pick up the trail tomorrow morning!
And so Ryouta and I headed home, in order to prepare for the coming day and a new investigation.
The music stops.
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Youre still here, Sakazaki Yuuya? Havent you been instructed to leave with the other students, excepting emergencies?
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There is a little something going on, actually.
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Aside from the usual? And what would that be?
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There have been orders to investigate the Christmas Thieves. High priority.
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Thats the string of thefts involving Christmas trees, isnt it?
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Its not as if theyre growing legs and walking away, after all. And its a little hard to imagining them spontaneously disappearing.
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Im quite happy to take up the job to defend everything the ladies and gentlemen of the town have worked so hard to prepare for this special season.
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You certainly seem eager enough. Its good to have a little zeal, but dont go letting your guard down just because the case in question is completely idiotic.
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We never know who may have laid traps for us where.
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Roger that. Ill carve it into my heart, Mr. One.
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Ill go take a look at a few things, then. There is a tree here on campus, after all.
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First Ive heard of it. Wheres it set up?
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Sakuya must want to show off with his big, fine, all-natural tree. He doesnt let anybirdie touch it, but you can always see it in his window.
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Its really quite childish.
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Nothing wrong with a little vanity while hes still young. To a point, at least.
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Anyway, Ill go take a look at the council room and then head into town. Ill send my report to HQ later. Adieu!
The music stops.
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Stealing the towns festivity is hardly an admirable pursuit. I suppose Ill see if I can rustle up any gadgets to give Sakazaki a hand
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But this is him Im dealing with. It looks like sneaking in is going to be hard, but knowing him hell have overlooked something obvious
As I chuckled to myself, I heard a loud explosion coming from upstairs.
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!?
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What
was that!?
I ran as quickly as I could up to the student council room.
I dont know what I had expected to find when I arrived, but it definitely couldnt compare to what was before my eyes.
![](14-Yuuya_Portrait.png)
Wh-what