[Sakurajima Mai: I really want to go, but this will take much longer than I imagined. Bai Li-kun can go back first.]
[Bai Li: Although I wanted to go home first this time, I just received a request, so I'll probably have to take a detour.]
[Sakurajima Mai: That fast? Who's the client?]
[Bai Li: The president of the Service Club next door, Yukino Yukinoshita.]
[Sakurajima Mai: Yukinoshita-san, ah, I remember she was often one rank behind you when the second-year academic rankings were announced.]
[Bai Li: I will investigate the anomaly she mentioned.]
[Sakurajima Mai: No problem, be safe, in all aspects.]
[Bai Li: In all aspects?]
[Sakurajima Mai: Just be safe! Teacher Hiratsuka is here, we'll talk later!]
The text conversation ended there.
Bai Li-kun looked at the last reply, then put away his phone, turning his gaze to Yukino Yukinoshita beside him.
"Yukinoshita-san, what is the mystery you want me to know?"
"I think... it has something to do with memories."
Yukino Yukinoshita was about to begin explaining the background of this request.
But before she could explain, Bai Li-kun interrupted her, "Is the place we're going on campus or off campus?"
"Off campus."
"Then let's talk as we walk; it will save time."
"Okay."
Yukino Yukinoshita nodded in agreement.
The two of them closed the doors of their respective clubs and walked along the corridor towards the school gate.
Midway, Yukinoshita-san continued their conversation, "The incident began three days ago..."
"Is it related to a request for your Service Club?"
"Yes, currently the Service Club only has me and Yuihama-san. Three days ago, she received a request from a girl who lost a bracelet. It was a gift from her deceased grandmother, so she hoped we could help her find it."
"Couldn't she have asked the student council for something like this?"
"We did that, and we also followed that girl to different places to investigate: her usual seat in the cafeteria, the track and field club's activity room, the playground she passed on her way to and from school, and the courtyard where she stayed at noon, etc. But we found nothing."
Yukino Yukinoshita then emphasized, "She told us that the bracelet wasn't valuable. Theoretically, it shouldn't have been stolen by an outsider. After all, the bracelet only had infinite value to her, as a memory of her grandmother."
Bai Li-kun strongly agreed with this point.
The materials of the bracelet might not be expensive, but for the owner, a gift from a deceased relative holds a different kind of value.
"Originally, our actions were limited to within the school, because if we expanded the search to off-campus, finding the bracelet would truly be like searching for a needle in a haystack."
Yukino Yukinoshita said this, then looked ahead, "However, that day, Yuihama-san decided to follow that girl to investigate on her way to and from school. She also texted me that she went to a park near the girl's house to look for the bracelet."
"What was the result?"
"We found nothing, but the real key point is what happened after that, which is when the anomaly appeared."
Yukino Yukinoshita was thinking about how to explain it.
She briefly organized her thoughts and continued, "The next day, I met that girl and asked her about the bracelet, but the girl replied, 'What bracelet? I've never worn a bracelet.'"
"Oh?"
"Not just her, I also talked to Yuihama-san afterward, and she also looked puzzled, saying she didn't know about any request related to a bracelet."
"Like memory confusion or something?"
"Today, Yuihama-san didn't come to the Service Club. After I found her... Yuihama-san seemed to have forgotten her identity as a Service Club member."
Yukino Yukinoshita's description was concise and clear.
The student who requested the Service Club to find a lost item had forgotten about it;
Yui Yuigahama, who helped, also encountered the same problem, with her related memories affected.
And all of this was most likely related to the park they had visited.
Because according to Yukinoshita-san's description, all the anomalies appeared after they went to the park.
After hearing the explanation, Bai Li-kun felt it was worth investigating.
"Before this, did you talk to Teacher Hiratsuka?"
"I did. She contacted the girl's parents."
"What was the result?"
"The girl's parents told Teacher Hiratsuka that it might be due to stress from studies or something, which caused the memory loss. They plan to take her to the hospital for a check-up and let her rest for a few days."
For ordinary people, losing part of one's memory certainly seems like some kind of illness.
It's impossible to connect it to the supernatural.
"So... is this considered a mystery, Bai Li-kun?"
"I think it's worth investigating."
As soon as this topic came up, Bai Li-kun suddenly remembered the meaning of Hiratsuka Shizuka's words.
The clubroom that just became available;
The Service Club next door.
And the problems Yukino Yukinoshita and Yui Yuigahama encountered.
"What about Yuihama-san? Is she also resting?"
"Yes."
"Then let's go to the park they visited first."
"I had that thought too, but... if we go, and we lose our related memories just like them... it might even be worse."
"Don't worry about that."
Bai Li-kun said confidently, "I won't let that happen."
His words carried an undeniable power.
Yukinoshita-san found this a bit incredible.
But with no other options, Yukinoshita-san chose to believe.
Believing that the young man in front of her had the ability to change the current situation.
No sooner said than done.
The two immediately left school and headed to the park that Yuihama and the client had visited.
After boarding the bus from the station, Yukino Yukinoshita looked at Bai Li-kun with concern, "I've already asked Teacher Hiratsuka for the address. Before we get there, Bai Li-kun, what are your thoughts on all of this?"
"I think they might have encountered some strange thing that affects memories, like a demon or an evil spirit."
"A demon, an evil spirit? Do such things really exist?"
Yukino Yukinoshita looked doubtful.
"Anything is possible, Yukinoshita-san. The truth of the world might exceed many people's expectations."
Bai Li-kun was certain that once they arrived at the scene, the answer would immediately surface.