The movie ended. Although Uchiha Ryo wasn't particularly interested in this kind of film, Yukinoshita was clearly engrossed in it.
Uchiha Ryo looked around for where to go next.
The closest place to the cinema was a love hotel across the street, but Yukinoshita obviously wouldn't agree to go there.
Her idea was that since they had finished the movie, they might as well go straight home.
But just as Yukino was about to head back, she received a call from a friend.
"Mhm..... mhm, let's go, Uchiha-kun. We're going to Shuchiin."
Uchiha Ryo was reluctant. "It's a perfectly good weekend. Even if you wanted to go straight home, I wouldn't stop you. Why go back to school?"
Yukinoshita Yukino turned her head. "Eru-san said she found something interesting and plans to investigate."
The curious baby Chitanda had activated a summoning jutsu, but since she wasn't the president of the Classic Literature Club, she only called her best friend, Yukinoshita.
And Yukinoshita felt that since Uchiha Ryo had solved the case last time, she wouldn't lose this time.
"So, what is it?"
Yukino shook her head. "I don't know either. We'll find out when we get to school. Eru didn't plan on calling too many people, so it'll probably just be the three of us."
Suddenly, Yukino stopped and looked around in confusion.
"Where's Enyun-chan?"
Uchiha Ryo spread his hands. "I don't know. Maybe she got bored and ran off."
Far away at Takashi's house, Enyun-chan had rushed back as fast as she could, but what awaited her was a floor full of fish bones.
Nyanko-sensei, clutching his stomach and lying on the floor, even burped when he saw Enyun-chan return.
.....
Meanwhile, at Shuchiin, even though it was the weekend, Shuchiin students were allowed to enter the school for self-study if they wished.
Uchiha Ryo and Yukinoshita arrived at the Classic Literature Club room and saw Chitanda Eru buried in a pile of old books.
Her purple eyes blinked, and finally, she looked at the two at the door with a smile. If Chitanda wasn't older than Yukino, Uchiha Ryo would have thought she was some kid who had run away from home.
Uchiha Ryo: "So what exactly is it?"
Chitanda Eru giggled, stood up, and pulled both of them over.
"I heard about it at school recently! The legend of the old Shuchiin school building."
Yukinoshita: "The legend of the old school building?"
Chitanda nodded and was about to speak when her gaze turned to the outside of the door. Uchiha Ryo sensed someone running quickly towards them in the hallway.
At the door of the Classic Literature Club, Fujiwara Chika suddenly appeared wearing a detective hat, then pointed her finger out the window in front of her.
"Where there are school urban legends, there is the Great Detective Chika! There is only one truth! Let's go investigate the school building."
Yukinoshita: "...."
Uchiha Ryo: "....."
Chitanda clapped her hands. "Mhm, mhm, it's great that Fujiwara-san is interested too!"
Uchiha Ryo shook his head helplessly. "Anyway, what exactly is this legend of the old school building you two are talking about?"
Fujiwara Chika raised her hand. "Let me explain! I've been investigating for days!"
Behind the Shuchiin school building, there was a mountain range that had already been explored. It was the back mountain where they competed during the sports festival.
And the old Shuchiin school building was built on the other side of the mountain range, about a twenty-minute walk from the school.
But as early as thirty years ago, that school building had been outsourced and turned into a hot spring inn.
→
Uchiha Ryo: "Get to the point."
Fujiwara Chika pouted. "Honestly, Uchiha-kun, you don't know how to take things step by step."
Since its establishment, this hot spring inn has had a legend about the "Abyss Woman." About a hundred years ago, the local hot spring source was known as the Abyss Pool.....
Any man who soaked in this Abyss Pool would become irritable and violent, while any woman who soaked in it would be possessed by the ghost of the Abyss Woman and commit suicide within a few days.
Originally, this was just a legend. After all, this hot spring inn had been open for thirty years and nothing like this had ever happened. But just last week.....
Fujiwara Chika looked serious. "I heard from a Shuchiin student that someone saw a ghost in the hot spring dormitory, and a woman hanging herself in the middle of the night! They thought they were seeing things, but they saw it again the next night!"
Those students fled the inn early on the third morning and talked about it on the school forum.
After Fujiwara Chika finished, Yukinoshita stroked her chin. "So what we need to investigate is whether the Abyss Pool and that ghost exist, right?"
Chitanda Eru nodded. "What exactly are ghosts? Do they really exist? I'm very curious!!"
Fujiwara Chika held her head high. "So let's go home and pack, then go stay at this inn for two days!"
A two-day weekend trip to a hot spring inn... it was indeed more interesting than staying at home. And with the two curious babies, Chitanda Eru and Fujiwara Chika, this hot spring trip probably wouldn't be boring.
As for what to prepare, it was nothing more than their own yukatas and daily necessities. Although the hot spring inn provided them, many people were not used to using things from outside.
Returning to the apartment from school, after preparing a series of items, they set off again.
Destination: the inn outside the back mountain of Shuchiin. This was a well-known domestic hot spring inn called [Hinatsuru]. It was quite popular in the Tokyo area, but because of its partnership with Shuchiin, students like them would basically get a lot of discounts.
"Welcome! Welcome to Hinatsuru Inn!"
At the entrance, a little girl wearing a white hat bowed slightly.
Fujiwara Chika walked up and rubbed the little girl's head. "Wow, Ai-chan is so sensible, helping out at home?"
Seeing the confused expressions on Yukinoshita and Chitanda's faces, Fujiwara Chika turned and said.
"This is the daughter of the Hinatsuru Inn's proprietress, Hinatsuru Ai... Although she's young, she's already helping out at the family inn."
Hinatsuru Ai smiled shyly. "Chika-oneechan, it's only natural... Are these sisters and brother Chika-oneechan's classmates?"
Fujiwara Chika: "Mhm! Please give us two Japanese-style rooms."
Hinatsuru Ai nodded, then stared at Uchiha Ryo with curiosity. "Big brother, I seem to have seen you somewhere before."
"Uh.... you've seen me, little sister? I don't recall...."
Hinatsuru Ai suddenly thought of something and pointed at Uchiha Ryo.
"I remember now. You're Hana-chan's older brother. When we got out of school, you were the one who came to pick her up, right?"
I see. This little girl is Hana-chan's classmate....
[System has detected a capturable target]
[Capturable Target's Name: Hinatsuru Ai]
[Current Hinatsuru Ai Affinity: 20]