After breaking up, my ex asked me to win her back

"Speaking of which, I haven't yet asked for your names."

"Why so formal all of a sudden..."

"What's the big deal? I am a Showa-era girl who believes in repaying kindness! Is it weird to want to know the names of the people who helped me?!"

"Kagura Hikaru."

"Komori Ai!"

"I am Mizuno Yuna, an unworthy young woman, please take good care of me."

The above conversation happened while the three were descending the mountain.

They were on their way to the killer's house.

First premise, this rural town is very small, with a population of less than a thousand, and the neighbors know each other well.

Second premise, as the deceased Shrine Maiden Mizuno Yuna had seen the killer's face and knew who he was.

Answer: There was no need for deduction, they just had to go directly to the killer's house to arrest him, this novel didn't even have a detective's role!

Kagura Hikaru had already made a contingency plan.

To put it simply, first use excellent eloquence to break his defense, and if there is any resistance, use force to break his defense a second time.

Then came the crucial step of evidence search, which was mostly likely near the killer's house. They should look for a well, and if they found the well covered, they were on the right track; breaking it open would reveal the body.

After that, it was straight to calling the police and incarceration, simply attributing it to a divine revelation during the interrogation would do, and if the criminal dared to accuse him of property damage, the knowledge of law and lawyering skills would come in handy, then extort a sum for emotional damages, breaking his defense a third time.

This was Kagura Hikaru's perfect Arithmetic class.

Regrettably, they encountered a setback at the first step.

"...We've been knocking for five minutes already."

Experience tales at My Virtual Library Empire

"No one is answering..."

"Caw, caw, caw!"

Amidst Komori Ai's imitation of a crow's call, Kagura Hikaru reluctantly realized a fact.

Thirty years had passed, and the killer might not still be in the same place, moving was also very likely.

From the outside, this isolated bungalow located at the foot of the mountain and far from the town center, indeed appeared nearly abandoned, with sand blown against the door by the wind, showing clear signs of not being cleaned for a long time, even weeds were sprouting up.

And because of the unbearably high outer walls, it was impossible to clearly see the inside of the house, and whether there was no one inside or someone was deliberately not answering was uncertain.

"Oh ho, aren't you a child from the Kagura Family? What brings you here, looking for the owner of this house?"

At this moment, an elderly man carrying a basket happened to pass by, pressing down his straw hat as he asked.

He did not notice the figures of Komori Ai and Mizuno Yuna at all, looking straight at Kagura Hikaru.

"I'm sorry, I wanted to ask, has this family moved out?" Kagura Hikaru took the opportunity to inquire.

"Yes, about twenty or so years ago, they moved to the city because of marriage."

"I see..."

"You looking for him for something?"

"Just heard some uncertain news... nothing important, you carry on."

Kagura Hikaru watched the old man head up the mountain path, then shook his head at the Shrine Maiden.

Now, it wasn't the time to be hopeful.

The killer had fled.

"Well, don't be disheartened, these things happen!" Mizuno Yuna smiled as she patted Kagura Hikaru on the shoulder, "He just slipped away for a bit, the opportunity will definitely come!"

"...You're right."

As long as the criminal was still alive and moving within this country, there would definitely come a day to bring him to justice.

"Anyway, let's sneak in first and check if the body is still there."

Kagura Hikaru looked around to make sure no one was there, rolled up his sleeves, and prepared to scale the wall.

"Young man at the bridgehead, stop right there!" Mizuno Yuna held out her right hand and sternly halted him, "Breaking into someone's home while they are away is a crime, youngster! The police will come and take you away!"

"...What are you talking about?"

Kagura Hikaru looked puzzled. "If you don't get caught, it's not a crime—that's common sense, isn't it?"

"Where on earth did you get such an idea? Tadem Military Prison?!"

"Then what should we do? If we don't confirm that the most crucial evidence of the crime exists, the unilateral accusation against the murderer is meaningless."

"That's why I'm telling you there's no need to rush, youngster. I never said we wouldn't go and check."

"?"

The Shrine Maiden puffed out her chest proudly and patted it, "Criminal law is set for humans, so if the criminal isn't human, they won't be taken away!"

Has human perception already disappeared? Time really is scary.

While Kagura Hikaru was thinking of some disrespectful things, he let the Shrine Maiden pass through the wall and infiltrate the murderer's home.

Thinking about it, even if he entered, in the end, the person who would need to confirm whether there was a body in the well was Mizuno Yuna, who was a ghost. They couldn't just smash open the well lid before the police arrived—it would destroy the evidence.

Moreover, in case there were people in that house, the Shrine Maiden, invisible in the eyes of ordinary people, would likely be overlooked—an ideal situation.

After waiting a minute, Kagura Hikaru saw Mizuno Yuna come out with a complex expression on her face.

"How did it go?"

"...Um, that's definitely, my body," the Shrine Maiden said haltingly.

"Was anyone else in the house?"

"No."

Kagura Hikaru nodded, "I see."

Letting a ghost see her own body thirty years after being murdered seemed to be a bit too much of a shock. On the way home, the normally lively and proactive Shrine Maiden became silent, her head bowed in thought.

Seeing her pitiful look, Kagura Hikaru found it troublesome but still spoke up to engage her, possibly to divert her attention.

"Hey, are you going to follow me all the way home?"

"Hm? Can't I?" the Shrine Maiden looked up.

"Speaking of which, you said you are a bound spirit. Why can you travel this far? Don't you find it strange?" Kagura Hikaru looked back to see the foot of the mountain where the Shrine was already far away.

"I indeed am a bound spirit, after all, I really can't leave this village," the Shrine Maiden defended, "Before I died and became a ghost, I didn't realize the range of a bound spirit could be this vast."

"Then why do you stay in the Shrine instead of being with your family?"

Kagura Hikaru's question made the Shrine Maiden silent for a moment.

"My family... They left ten years ago or are buried deep in the homeland, so there's probably no chance of seeing them again."

"Is that so? That's truly regrettable."

"...Cough, how about your family, Kagura? Are they still happy?"

"It's okay, it's just that my parents cheated on each other, my father's affair turned into my stepmom, my mom remarried and her new spouse's kid is an ex-girlfriend from middle school, and recently the granddad who was very close back home passed away—that's about it."

".........."

"This is so heavy—your face says it all."

"...Brother, I had no idea you can't judge a book by its cover—you've had such a hard time at such a young age," the Shrine Maiden covered her mouth, eyes brimming with tears.

"What do you mean by 'can't judge a book by its cover'?"

"Do you want to borrow my shoulder? You can lean on me anytime!"

"That won't be necessary."