A Day in The Life of a Pseudo-Detective.

“What's this?” Hitsuki asked, as the maid handed him a peculiar-looking emblem. It contained a star with a map etched inside. “It looks… beautiful.”

The maid didn’t open her eyes. It seemed to be locked in place.

“This is the emblem of the personnel of The Kingdom of Lizrab.” The maid said. Her voice felt lifeless as it echoed through the room. “Her majesty the current acting Queen Chiyoshi said this might help you in your expedition.”

Hitsuki wore it on his suit collar. The blue metal glinted red under the sunlight. “Flashy-”

It was only a minute, probably even less. But the ‘someone’ couldn’t wait any longer, thinking what was happening behind the closed doors.

Hitsuki felt a whisper of wind grazing over his face as the main gate flung open. The maid, Sol’s braid ribbons danced over the sudden breeze.

“Humph.” Hanahoshi crossed her arms, triumphant and prideful. “This door cannot stop me!”

Sol stood up, fixing her brown bangs. “Princess Hanahoshi, this type of behavior is not expected of someone who is fighting for the throne.”

“Oh hey, Sol!” Hanahoshi’s attitude turned flowery. “It was so long since I saw you!!”

“Princess, you saw me yesterday,” Sol replied, as Hanahoshi went in for a hug, taking a deep breath of her scent.

But she turned away quickly, as if remembering something important.

“Oh right!!” She exclaimed, looking at Hitsuki.. “I was supposed to take you with me to the library!”

“Huh? Me?” Hitsuki made a face. “When did I ever say that I love hallucinating over dead trees?”

“Eh!? You don’t??” Hanahoshi asked.

“If you see me reading a book willingly, then that means @#! #$%@# !$# @#$%!$#.” He replied.

[T/L: the world has changed]

Hanahoshi wasn’t concerned that his speech sometimes came encrypted. She giggled instead.

“It seems like you have a world of your own—with rules and taboos.” She said, looking at the torn-out book. It hid mysteries that they couldn’t decipher, nor could he.

That’s when they heard a low grumble. Everyone looked at the source of the sound, even the culprit.

“Seems like the number one rule of my body is that it needs food to survive!”

“That’s right. How can I forget such an important thing!” Hanahoshi rolled her eyes. “Still can’t believe you had the guts to say that you were hungry at the freaking courtroom!”

“Still can’t believe you guys were going to kill me just because I look like someone,” Hitsuki muttered sarcastically.

But he saw the silent guilt on Hanahoshi’s face. She whispered, “It’s their first time seeing something so similar to a Vampire… please forgive them, okay? I am sorry on their behalf. It's probably because of me-”

Hitsuki pressed his palm on her mouth. He felt the warmth of her lips. “Stop babbling and give me some food. Any food, you spoiled rich princess.”

Hanahoshi laughed. “You really don’t change. I wonder if you are ever scared of death, at all.”

Hitsuki averted his gaze to Sol, who stood by the entrance. “I am not going to be executed for talking to her like this, right?”

“You are not. And please continue,” Sol replied. “I was quite enjoying the banter between you two.”

*****

“Soo… are we not going to some fancy dining area?” Hitsuki whispered to Sol, who was tagging along with them.

“Princess Hanahoshi always has her meal with her immediate elder brother,” Sol replied.

The hallways were spaced multiple stories in height, and you could easily play football by its given width. His mind hovered over everything, but nothing seemed to sink in. His legs shook due to hunger.

“Her elder brother can’t go to the dining area?” Hitsuki asked.

“You would see why shortly after,” Sol replied. “Please be patient until then.”

Silence soon engulfed them in the long hallway. Only their footsteps could be heard.

“You have an emblem on you too, don’t you?” Hitsuki said after some time.

“I am a maid of the Royal Blood, so that makes me a personnel of The Kingdom of Lizrab, yes,” Sol said. “But I am just a lowly maid. Nothing more, nothing less.”

Hitsuki laughed. “Like heck I would believe that! Nice try though.”

Sol stopped for a moment. “What do you mean?”

“Two things. Firstly, you are one of the two maids who stay at Queen Chiyoshi’s office. No way you are just an ordinary maid. Secondly, you are following me and Hanahoshi. Which is fine normally, but Hanahoshi has maids of her own. It only makes me believe that Chiyoshi sent you to guard me all the time so that I can’t do anything suspicious. Which I don’t mind at all, though.”

Hitsuki continued walking as if nothing had happened, but Sol stood there. Hitsuki stopped when he realized she was not tagging along.

“Is anything wrong? Was I not supposed to find out about it?” Hitsuki asked.

It was for the first time that Hitsuki saw any expression of emotion from Sol’s face, and it was a smile. A smile of utter defeat.

She sighed happily. “Acting Queen, her majesty set this trap as a test for you. She wanted to see how long it would take you to find out. But it seemed like you didn’t even need a day to understand. She had stumbled upon a diamond on her hands, really.”

She laughed. “Or a bomb, if you happen to be a mole, after all.”

“I am not!!” Hitsuki protested.

She stood for a moment, before opening her eyes after ensuring none was around. Not even the princess herself.

“What the… heck…?” Hitsuki stood, his eyes wide. He was drawn in her eyes—a beautiful sapphire blue.

But it was only for one of them. The left eye was a prosthetic, which had the emblem in its pupils.

She stood there, looking at Hitsuki. But for him, she was staring at his soul.

“Acting Queen Her Majesty told me to show you this if you managed to find this out.” She replied.