In/Spectre (虚構推理)

We beg you...

Please become... our Goddess of Wisdom.

Oh...must be time already.

Thank you.

Hello... It's been a while.

I'm sorry. Who are you?

Wait. You don't remember

what the person who saved your life looked like?

It's safe to say I haven't been through

any life-threatening events in the last decade at least.

It was two years ago, it happened here...

- -

Are you going to be all right?

Uh, thank you. I guess you saved me.

Oh, sorry!

It's fine.

As the one who saved your life,

all I ask is that you remember me forever.

That's going a bit overboard.

Although...

I guess it is possible to die that way.

Right, I'll remember.

He reminds me of a goat.

Goats are skinny, spacey beasts

that spend their whole lives obliviously munching on grass,

day in and day out.

But you can feel a bizarre sort of vitality in them.

Yes, one must never underestimate a goat.

An extremely agile creature that has no problems

living in highlands or even wastelands.

And...depending on the breed...

it may also have two powerful horns.

They're almost like demon horns.

Horns of undeniable sharpness...

Is this...

what they mean by "love at first sight"?!

Oh... That girl was you?

But that girl wasn't wearing a beret.

I feel like I would have remembered that...

And you can only tell girls apart

by which hat they're wearing?

Hey, sorry.

I'm not that good at remembering girls' faces.

And if I remember them too well,

it just makes Saki grumpy.

In that case,

please try to remember it again.

My name's Kotoko Iwanaga.

Written with the characters for "koto" like the instrument,

then "child," "rock," and "eternity."

I'm seventeen years old, and quite lively.

Cool. I won't forget this time.

Yeah, I'm so sure...

considering I heard that you and Saki broke up.

How'd you know that?

What are you doing, Kuro?

Oh, Saki...

Uh, actually... she sort of saved my life.

I saw.

I'm so sorry for the trouble he caused.

And thank you.

Why are you the one apologizing?

I lost my balance.

What is she? His older sister?

Actually, she could be his younger sister...

His name is Kuro Sakuragawa.

He's a second-year at Homei University, studying law.

He comes here often to visit his cousin

who's a long-term patient.

Is this cousin of his

a somewhat tall woman with long, dark hair?

Oh no, they're not related to each other.

That's Saki.

She's a year older and his girlfriend.

They've dated since they were in high school.

Kuro even decided to go to the same university

that she was attending.

Then, two years after our first encounter...

Apparently, Kuro and Saki

are getting married after they graduate.

I heard they just met each other's parents recently.

They'll be getting married any day now.

He's alone today?

Did Kuro and his girlfriend break up or something?

What? I doubt it.

You know...he stopped talking about his girlfriend

right around February.

You're right.

And he hasn't really talked to anyone recently.

What is this hospital's policy

on handling personal information, anyway?

They said they had no obligation to protect

a visitor's personal information.

Is that how it works?

It really is a bit shady.

Though to be fair,

they never did tell me who your cousin is

or why they're in the hospital.

Never even said a word.

You're better off not knowing.

The reasons people are hospitalized long-term

aren't usually that amusing.

So, in regard to the rumors

that you and Saki broke up right before spring...

They don't care about my privacy at all, do they?

You weren't kidding...

The point here is,

that you're back to being single again.

Have you maybe thought about trying

a fresh start with someone new?

Could you get to the point already?

Very well then.

How about dating me with marriage in mind?

I've held this one-sided love for two years,

just waiting for this moment!

You're surprisingly direct, despite how you look.

And if you waited two years, pretty persistent, too.

A young lady can always wait for fate.

The thing is, there'd be problems,

on account of you being a middle schooler...

I told you!

I'm seventeen years old and in high school!

I even plan on applying to your university next year!

What, do you have the memory of a chicken?!

Was what I said really that funny?

Nah... It just made me feel happy.

A high school girl just asked me to go out with her.

I guess maybe I'm not a total lost cause.

Haven't felt this great in a while.

I see. Did Saki dump you?

It wasn't Saki fault.

There was no way around it.

So, I'm not sure I'm ready to see anyone new.

So what was it, and be specific,

that ended your courtship in a sudden break-up?

Over the winter...

Saki and I went on a trip to Kyoto.

But you weren't married!

What would people think?!

What decade were you born in anyway?

So, late one night,

when we were walking along the Kamo River...

Hmm?

What?

Those things that show up on shorelines?

Yup. It was a kappa.

It wasn't a gataro, suiko, or hyosube?

You sure know your stuff.

Whatever it actually was,

calling it a kappa seemed to fit best.

All I know is that what I saw

wasn't a human or an animal.

But it was definitely some kind of

moving, breathing life form.

The moment we realized that,

it became something so terrifying,

that it felt like all the rules of our world,

were about to crack open.

But generally speaking, kappas aren't bad.

These days, they're very trendy creatures

that can recommend good sushi or shrimp chips.

Well, the one I saw looked like

he'd drag you into the river...

and suck out every last drop of your blood.

The next day,

they actually found a body in the river near there.

It was ruled an accident... cause unknown.

Saki's a brave, no-nonsense girl,

and she doesn't believe in yokai or ghosts.

But she saw that thing and got so scared,

she just clung to me, shaking.

And then? What happened?

Without a second glance Saki's way,

Well, there were some cowardly whimpers,

and running off like a scared rabbit.

Well, it was a kappa.

After that,

she said she never knew I was that kind of person,

and things got awkward.

She was already planning to move away for her new job.

That was her excuse to break up.

And honestly, who could blame her?

I don't really care if you believe me or not.

If you don't,

then I'm just a crazy college kid who blames

a kappa for the fact that his girlfriend dumped him.

Or...

Maybe I'm a college kid who went crazy

from the shock of getting dumped.

Regardless, I'm not worthy to be your boyfriend.

Gotta go, my bus'll be here soon.

But we aren't done talking yet.

Please clarify the subject of your statement.

Who, exactly, left Saki and ran off?

It wasn't you that ran off. It was the kappa, right?

The kappa saw you next to Saki,

got scared, and ran off. There's no doubt.

An awful experience for that kappa,

just randomly running into you in the middle of the night.

I feel sorry for it.