Chapter 31: Making Fujiwara Chika Japan's Prime Minister is Scarier Than Ghosts
Although up until now almost everything Bocchi had said were apologies, everyone had gradually grown used to her social anxiety and treated her with patience.
Umaru, naturally friendly, even took the initiative to sit beside Bocchi and chat now and then so she wouldn't feel awkward sitting alone.
It wasn't until after two in the afternoon that Kaguya finally stirred from her deep sleep.
When she opened her eyes she stared, blank, at Hayasaka, who bent over her and said softly, "Young miss, you're awake." For a moment Kaguya's mind went completely blank.
Why am I resting on Hayasaka's lap?
Where is this place? It doesn't look like the Shinomiya estate…
Memory returned in fragments, and a hot flush climbed her cheeks. She rubbed them hard, as if she could scrub away the shame. Her reaction to the diary last night had been too strong; in the chaos her "Little Kaguya" side had slipped out. Normally that would be harmless, but today was their first offline diary club meeting.
Had Utaha and the others seen that foolish, naive version of her?
Previously she could keep up an indifferent front in the group chat and at most grumble privately to the Mysterious Person. Now she felt the performance had destroyed both the dignity of the Four Palaces and her personal image.
Before she could decide how to face Utaha and the others, the girls already noticed her unease.
"Kaguya, how are you feeling now?" Utaha asked first—she'd been the one to use Ripple Breathing to put Kaguya to sleep.
Kaguya sat up from Hayasaka's lap, smoothed her skirt and tried to look normal, though her expression still trembled slightly. "I apologize. Because of my personal reasons you saw my childish side. I hope you don't mind."
At that look Hayasaka rose and left the café, understanding that her young miss and her unusual friends needed privacy. Word of Little Kaguya had already reached the main family, so feigning ignorance would be easy enough for them.
Alone with the group, Kaguya calmed herself with Ripple Breathing. "Give me some time to process what happened," she said.
---
After reading that morning's diary update in her head, Kaguya glanced at Bocchi, who had shrunk further into her chair now that the atmosphere had changed.
If the Mysterious Person had truly been present and escaped the Shinomiya bodyguards' notice, the possibilities were few: either he'd used disguise techniques to infiltrate the guard team, or there had been an "inside Kage" who interacted with him.
For the first possibility Kaguya would have Hayasaka check the day's bodyguard roster and movements. For the second… everyone here technically qualified as a suspect. But Bocchi, timid and socially anxious, drew Kaguya's eye—someone like her would be easy to influence with a little coercion.
Still, such methods were for the Shinomiya family's enemies. Kaguya refused to use them on fellow diary holders. Her most important stance in the group right now was unity: she wanted to form a united front with diary holders, not break that trust.
So she kept her suspicion hidden and smiled kindly at Bocchi to reassure her. Then she redirected the conversation back to the gathering.
"Ai told me she won't be free until after four, so let's head out around three to find Miko," Kaguya said.
Originally she had booked a lunch chef trained at Totsuki for an elegant meal and planned an afternoon hanami before meeting Miko once Ai arrived. If Miko turned out to be a diary holder, they'd invite everyone to the Shinomiya estate that evening and ask her to check for any lingering anomalies.
But Little Kaguya's unexpected appearance overturned the schedule: the Totsuki chef was replaced by a roadside café and the cherry-blossom tea party by a casual chat. The girls didn't object—the diary was the real reason they'd gathered, and their talk revolved around it and the Mysterious Person.
Putting aside the morning's embarrassment, Kaguya found her rhythm and made use of the information she'd collected: the link between the Cat's Eye Sisters and treasures stolen by Kaito Kid and their ties to the Shinomiya family; what daily life for the shrunken detective Conan looked like now and how he propped up the bumbling Mouri Kogoro. She even considered mentioning Sawagoe Itaru, but decided the sordid details would only make the group uncomfortable, so she kept it to herself.
By the time they left the café the group's mood had visibly smoothed; Kaguya felt her image had been at least partly salvaged.
---
That was when Ai arrived.
"Ah~ Kaguya-senpai, nice to meet you! I'm Hoshino Ai, working hard to become a top idol~! Have you recovered? It's such a pity I missed seeing such a cute senpai in person. Oh—did anyone take photos as souvenirs?" she trilled, slightly disguised with a hat and glasses.
Kaguya almost lost her composure at Ai's cheerfulness, but accepted it as just Ai's way. Both of them—created by the same author—could master a skill after experiencing it once and were skilled at disguise and performance. Their differences were in usage: Kaguya kept her true nature hidden beneath composed layers; Ai lived carelessly and thoughtlessly, closer in spirit to Fujiwara Chika.
Free-spirited and unable to read the room, Ai could shatter composure with the smallest remark. The thought of Fujiwara Chika steering Japan's future made Kaguya shiver; the idea was more terrifying than any ghost. Better to let Ai remain an idol.
"So where are we going now? Does Miko live nearby?" Ai asked, bouncing between greetings.
"She's shopping in the nearby district," Kaguya said, producing a photo. "There's a well-known fortune-telling shop on that street. Its prayer beads are said to work—let's begin our investigation there."
---
In the past Utaha and Kaguya would have dismissed such shops as scams. But after the diary's unscientific phenomena and the Mysterious Person's revelations, their perspectives were shifting rapidly.
The Yin–Yang Eyes were supposed to activate on the day Miko appeared, but none of the girls dared test them yet. Even Chitanda, who wanted to use the ability to find her long-missing uncle, admitted she wasn't prepared—she still needed lights on when watching horror and often couldn't sleep afterward.
That made them feel a sympathetic protectiveness toward Miko, who had suddenly awakened the highest level of Yin–Yang Eyes yet had to pretend she didn't see anything.
Learning Miko frequented this fortune-telling shop, the group headed there out of curiosity.
"I study occultism," Kuroneko said, smoothing her Gothic Lolita dress. "If the shop owner's a fraud, I'll see through it at a glance."
Her dark, composed presence made her confidence believable. "Then we'll leave it to you," the others agreed.
Led by Kaguya, the striking group arrived at the shop.
The sign read: Shitamachi Kamubo Fortune-Telling Hall. Beneath: Wealth • Career • Romance • Exorcism — All UP.
As they approached a heavily made-up, pleasantly plump woman left the shop, smiling. "Thank you, Kamubo-sama! If this works I'll definitely come again~!"
From inside, an older voice chuckled: "Hahaha, don't worry—Shitamachi Kamubo never lies! If the effect fades, replenish with another 30,000 yen!"
The departing customer walked away satisfied. But because Kuroneko practiced Ripple daily, her senses were unusually sharp; she caught a low mutter from inside the shop: "Tch… still have to split the takings with the recruiters. Barely anything left. When will another fat sheep appear…?"
Kuroneko clicked her tongue. Fraud.
She turned away in disgust, unwilling to give the place any of her time. But the fortune-teller inside had already noticed the new customers. Years of experience let her judge at a glance: some looked ordinary, but one among them radiated wealth—a golden goose. She couldn't let that one go.
Plastering a hospitable smile on her face, she called out, "Welcome to my hall. What would the young ladies like to know?"
Kuroneko ignored the bait and leaned back to whisper what she'd heard to the others. Inside the shop Kamubo forced a calm, dignified air even as a flicker of anxiety crossed her features—when dealing with wealthy clientele, eagerness was fatal. Always appear composed.
END of the chapter
150ps=1 extra chapter and so on
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