第６０７堀：よくわからない噂 (Part1)
### Chapter 607: The Vague Rumor
**Side: Taiki**
Well then, with the addition of the loner girl, I suppose we’ve bolstered our forces, but we’ve only solved one of the three mysteries. If we don’t resolve the remaining two just as we did this one, holding the inter-nation summit and meetings at this academy will be impossible.
Since our investigation of the toilet ended with nothing more than a broken door, we moved straight on to the next rumor. During this process, the loner girl—Solo—was surprised to hear why we had been wandering around such places.
"H-huh!? The mystery left behind by the first head of the Kamishiro family, one of the Three Houses?"
"That’s right. Three have already been discovered. One of the remaining three is you, Solo. The place where you were staying."
"Wait, haven't you heard the rumors about that place? Mikos-chan is surprised by that, you know?"
"Um, I knew there were rumors. That’s why I was able to eat in peace. If anyone came near, I’d just let out a cry, and they’d run away."
"I see. So you were utilizing the location of the rumor."
"In that case, as Yuki-sensei said, it feels like Solo-chan was the one creating the rumors, doesn't it?"
"Well, the recent ones are definitely me, but I think the ones that existed from long ago are a different matter."
Ah, that’s true. Solo has only been active for the past year or two, so that leaves the question of what the rumors that existed before her were all about.
"Yuki-san. The toilet rumor... it might not be over yet..."
"That’s a possibility, but Mikos says there haven't been any strange reports from anywhere other than that specific toilet. Perhaps it was a place that had already been demolished or something. Well, there’s no actual harm for now, so we’ll put it on the back burner."
"Understood. Then, as planned, shall we move on to the rumor about the 'mysterious classroom that appears in the evening'?"
"Yeah, the timeframe is limited, so we’ll start with that."
Yuki-san and I stood up and addressed everyone.
"As Solo said, there’s a possibility the original toilet rumor is something else, but since Mikos and the principal haven't heard of any other incidents, we’ll suspend the toilet investigation and prioritize the remaining two. Does anyone have any objections?"
No one seemed to have any objections, so they remained silent.
"Then, as planned—or rather, thanks to Solo, we’re ahead of schedule—we’ll focus our efforts on investigating the mysterious classroom that appears in the evening."
"In the evening?"
Solo tilted her head at those words. It seems she doesn't know about this rumor.
"Oh? You haven't heard of it?"
"S-sorry."
"No need to apologize. I didn't know about it either. It’s questionable whether the rumor even exists in the first place."
"Grrr! Kagura, are you doubting Mikos-chan’s information!?"
"But it’s true, isn't it? Even the principal and my sister were tilting their heads, and Solo doesn't know either. Where on earth did you get this story from?"
"No, no, the principal and Kanna-sensei were just tilting their heads; they knew of the rumor itself, right? See, isn't that right?"
The principal and Kanna nodded in response to being prompted.
"As Mikos-kun says, such a story did indeed exist, but..."
"Exactly. It existed, but... I thought it was just about me. So, Mikos-san, where did you pick up this rumor?"
"Um, from a senior who graduated last year. And she was a Special Rank student, just like Kagura. I remember she told me to come to a certain place during the graduation ceremony, but when I went there, the place didn't exist."
"Ah, I remember hearing a story like that."
"Same here."
"Hm? What do you mean? You went to the place, but it wasn't there?"
"Um, I went to the location I was directed to, but it was just a hallway. There was no classroom at that spot."
"The principal and your sister too?"
"Indeed. That is correct."
"Yes. It was the same for me."
"Then why don't we just go to those locations?"
*What, if we know the locations, this should be easy.* That’s what I thought, but the story had more to it.
"Tick-tock-tick. The thing is, the locations specified to the principal, Kanna-sensei, and the person who graduated last year were all different."
"Excuse me?"
"These are the specified locations."
Mikos spread out a map, and everyone’s eyes gathered on it. There were indeed five marks on it.
"There are five in total, why is that?"
"I asked other people. It seems they were also high-achieving students in the past."
"Hmm. Feels like someone is doing this intentionally. So, maybe they called out to me this year?"
"Probably. But Kagura hasn't been at the academy much lately."
"Ah, I’ve been busy lately. So, the marks are all scattered."
"For now, I think it would be best to investigate these five locations."
"I see. Yuki, what do you think about this?"
"Honestly, I don't really get it. The locations are all over the place, and it’s strange how they connect to the story of a 'secret classroom'."
"Right? Couldn't it just be for a confession? You know, high-achieving students have promising futures."
"But, they all use the same phrase. 'I will guide you to a secret place'."
"That’s still a confession spot, isn't it? These locations are in high-traffic areas."
Kagura is right; these aren't tucked away like the East Women’s Restroom. These are places where you’d see people during the day. But then, Solo spoke up.
"Oh, wait a moment. I’ve heard of that rumor. That high-achieving students are invited to a secret organization every year."
"What’s that?"
"Ah, I remember that story. I see, maybe the rumor shifted into what Solo is talking about? See, doesn't it sound plausible? A secret organization working in the shadows to scout out the elite!!"
"But, even when the principal and your sister went, there was no one there, right?"
"There was no one."
"Indeed, there was no one."
"Isn't the method a bit sloppy? Does it mean the five people Mikos heard from were the only ones who returned safely? Why?"
"Ugh, that’s... I don't really know."
The conversation seems to be heading in a strange direction. Perhaps I should steer it back on track.
"Well, since it’s all so uncertain, we should just investigate it thoroughly, right, Yuki-san?"
"That’s the plan. If it’s just a rumor, then so be it. I’m not that concerned about the truth of the rumor itself. If the conclusion is just someone calling people out for a confession like Kagura said, that would be a best-case scenario. To verify that, we’ll go investigate those five sites. But please, be careful. It’s a story that’s been around since the school’s founding, after all."
With Yuki-san’s words, the argument between Kagura and Mikos came to an end. If it had continued, it might have turned into a fight. "It’s true," "It’s a lie"—that’s a common trigger for arguments. The bad atmosphere was avoided before it could escalate.
"This time, we’ll start by investigating the sites where people were called. Popuri-dono, Aetheri-dono, and I will be joining the investigation, so I’m counting on you."
Taizo-san, perhaps sensing the uneasy air, declared his participation to drive the point home. Since this wasn't an investigation inside a "mystery space," there wasn't much risk, and it had already been discussed that having Taizo-san and the others join would likely lead to more discoveries.
Personally, I’m grateful to have the technical team, including Taizo-san, on-site. It’s strange not to have experts during an investigation like this. Actually, the common consensus between Yuki-san and me was that we could have solved this earlier if we’d just thrown Taizo-san and his team into the mystery space, but due to diplomatic issues, that was impossible. All three of them are personnel from other countries.
Actually, Hifie-san would probably kill us. If I were to say, "But I’m a Hero and a King," well, in my case, I’m the head of my country, so it’s fine. I might get scolded by my subordinates, but given the current situation in Lanks, they understand the importance of building connections with the New Continent and the If Continent, so they turn a blind eye to it.
Well, in reality, it’s safer for my standing within the Rogari Continent to cooperate with Yuki-san on various things anyway.