The Case Files of Jeweler Richard - Chapter 3.4

At the end of a long day, I was making a phone call in my one-room apartment in Tadanobaba. I wasn’t calling Hiromi, my mother. It was Tanimoto-san. Because it was my first time calling her at night about something unrelated to class, I acted so stiffly that my back hurt*, but since the topic was what it was, my worries ended up being unfounded.

(TN: The phrase used here is 肩肘張る which literally means stretching your shoulders and elbows but figuratively means putting on a bold front or acting formally, so I had to interpret it more loosely)

“The emeralds are cursed…? There are some strange stories, aren’t there? Aki is also being distant. She should have talked to me about it.”

When it came to stones, my beloved Tanimoto-san became an extreme dandy. It seemed that it was a tendency that didn’t change since the days she was the president of her rocks and minerals club, and her nickname at that time was Gorgo Tanimoto. She was austere. Cool. Dependable. It seemed a bit unrefined with a girl’s title, but when I saw it in action, I had a hard time coming up with a nickname that suited her any better.

“But I do feel guilty. It was supposed to be Aki’s long-awaited big moment.”

“It’s fine, don’t worry, I’ll keep an eye on her for the two of us.”

“I just can’t drop practicum no matter what…”

Tanimoto-san, who was in the faculty of education, sometimes didn’t come to school because of practicum. It seemed that she headed to a partner school for it. Since she was dealing with another party, of course she couldn’t take a break.

There were two weeks until the performance of Jewels on Sunday.

It would be a difficult time as it is, and the company members seemed to be on edge.

“Seigi-kun?”

“Ah, oh…it’s nothing.”

I returned to the topic and asked about Shinkai-san. They went to the same school together until the middle of their first year of high school when she won an international competition and went to France to study, just as she had said herself.

“I knew that she was dancing a big role from the club’s mailing list. She said that she will do her best for her first big role. I heard a little about her senpai who was fighting an illness. She also consulted with me to see if there was a good stone for illness. But, I never thought…it would become so serious.”

Tanimoto-san sent a video link to my phone with a “Try this.” Shinkai-san’s ballet competition had an official channel on a video site, and it was possible to see the dances of past finalists.

Shinkai-san, who was wearing a white ballet costume and looked a bit smaller than she was now, was dancing on a stage with the competition’s logo on it. She was trying her best to smile, but her expression was a bit stiff, probably because of nerves.

Ballet was graceful.

Not a single one of the steps of her feet or finger movements were out of place. Her arms and legs were stretched perfectly straight, and even though she was standing on her tiptoes, she never fell. Because she was always smiling faintly, it didn’t seem dangerous. She looked exactly like a creature who was like that by nature, happily frolicking around. It really was the fruits of incredibly hard work, effort, and perseverance.

What do you think? I heard Tanimoto-san’s voice. It seemed that she was watching the same video in real-time. I switched the call from speakerphone to normal mode again and held the phone to my ear. It felt like I was speaking closer to her this way.

“It was amazing. I’m a complete amateur, but I think she was really good. But…today, I watched Shinkai-san practice, and she got so many times better.”

“Of course. This competition video is from many years ago.”

Tanimoto-san said matter-of-factly. I recalled what happened when we revisited the company.

The second round of the gemstone mystery-solving was almost entirely Richard’s unrivaled domain. Director Kataura fortunately passed by us at the gates, so we were accommodated and Richard had her introduce us to Old Man Yoshida. Old Man Yoshida repeatedly insisted that he didn’t want any outsiders inside at a time like this, but he became silent when Director Kataura mentioned Homura-san’s name. It seemed that the Homura Corporation was quite a big sponsor. In the end, we won through sheer dogged persistence, and Richard was allowed into the company’s office. He would probably ask them to show us those documents.

Since the condition was that only one person was needed, I waited at the door. It was too painful to just stand there and have nothing to do, so Director Kataura let me through to the lesson room. Shinkai-san and the others were doing a dress rehearsal. I widened my eyes and asked if this was okay, and noticed the look on Director Kataura’s face as she said with a bitter smile, “If you are fine with it.” She said they had security cameras, but there was a very limited number of places with them. An outsider like me had to be in the presence of a lot of people. If that was the case, then it was better to obey.

The walls of the lesson room, which was about the size of a university classroom, were all mirrored. At the center of the around twenty company members; Shinkai-san was dancing. Even when I timidly entered the room, she didn’t break her concentration and continued to dance to the instructions of someone who seemed like a teacher, sitting in a chair in the center. Since she kept practicing the same scene, the pianist only played the same places. The dancers around her, dressed in T-shirts and tights, were going back and forth in the lesson room, seemingly to confirm the movement of their positions. There were only two male dancers. It was a group of people who weren’t that much older than me, except for the fact that they were extremely slender, all of them were small-faced beauties, and they were learning movements that made it difficult to understand how they could open up their joints so much. I could only think of them as creatures that were like me in form, but not in substance.

It was a scene where Shinkai-san was in the center and several women moved around. She slowly lifted one leg to the side of her head and kept balance, and the teacher immediately told her she was raising it too quickly. She redid the same thing three times, but she never looked pained. She was smiling. Even after that, the pinpoint suggestions towards Shinkai-san continued.

At first, I thought it was strange. Even to the eyes of an amateur, she was clearly the best, so why did she get criticized over the tiniest details? I thought that, and then thought about it over again. It was a given that the person in the center was the best. She was in the center, not anyone else, after all. It was a place you couldn’t stand in unless it was done even better and so perfectly that there was no shred of something feeling out of place.

When the rehearsal was interrupted for a temporary break before a do-over, she was smiling at her partner, a male dancer, who was consoling her in sympathy.

“I’m fine. We have to do our best. Minako-san would laugh at us, after all.”

Kataura Minako.

When that name was spoken, the strange atmosphere in the lesson room could be felt against my skin. People making disgusted faces as if to say, “Why would you say such a thing on purpose,” people who were looking down as though they couldn’t bear it, and people who were looking at Shinkai-san with worry. It was only for a moment. When the break was over, everyone returned to being sparkling dancers. But, everyone was certainly thinking the same thing.

Was the reason for the mysterious incidents really a “curse”?

Shinkai-san didn’t believe in it, it seems. She proclaimed that she didn’t believe in it even a little bit. That it was impossible. I thought I would say the same thing if I were in her place. There was no way I could stand in the center of the stage, assuming the place of my respected senpai who passed away in the middle of her ambitions and use her as a reason to lament my own “bad luck.”

Shinkai-san’s smile was somewhat painful to me. It was as if it was her final line of defense against the crushing brilliance of the stage. I knew I was thinking too much into it, but still.

While watching for about an hour, my shoulder was tapped by Richard, and we left the company once again. I didn’t contribute anything to solving the mystery behind the emeralds, but I caught a glimpse of an amazing world.

“…Tanimoto-san, you’ve been friends with Shinkai-san since you were little, right? Was she always this incredible?”

“Yep. She really was. She works hard no matter what’s standing in her way. Aki’s ideal dancer is someone who can work hard tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and the day after that until they die. I was insensitive and I asked her if that wasn’t too hard. And then she laughed. She said it was hard but fun. She’s always been kind.”

Tomorrow and the day after tomorrow. Those were like a marathon runner’s words. I wondered if all dancers thought that way.

If that was the case, how sad and frustrating it must be for those who had to leave this world while they were still young.

No, no, that was exactly why a curse was too simplistic. Shinkai-san had said Kataura Minako-san was a good person. If it were me, even if I died, I wouldn’t want to do bad things to the people I loved. I couldn’t bear to die and leave things like that. If the people important to me were in trouble, I would want to help them even just a little—that was what I might think, but…stop it. That was the world of the occult.

I once again asked Tanimoto-san what she thought of the stories around the emeralds. Two cases of mysterious phenomena. A dead ballerina. She was a girl who was like an airy and gentle sugar candy fairy, but she was also a calm person with a very strong core.

“Hey, Seigi-kun, do you know that there’s an old jinx related to the French stage?”

With that tone, it seemed that the other Tanimoto-san returned. “I have no idea,” I answered. A French jinx?

“They say that actors who wear green will die an early death.”

Green. The green of emeralds. That caused an early death? When I said, “We’re not talking about psychic phenomena, are we?”, Gorgo Tanimoto assured me that of course we weren’t.

“Traditionally, a substance called verdigris was used to dye green costumes. It’s copper rust. Although it has now been proven to be not very toxic, it was considered to be deadly poison until recent times.”

“I see, so…but that thing just now—”

“Of course we know it’s a lie. It’s nonsense that stage costumes could decide a person’s lifespan. Human technology has progressed slowly but steadily. That’s why I don’t believe in stories that hinder people who are trying to advance forward. Objects don’t curse people. Whether it’s clothes or stones. I definitely believe so.”

Her voice was forceful. I recalled the words Richard repeated at every turn.

Humans are creatures who develop themselves in the direction they truly desire.

I didn’t know if it was a good or bad direction for that person. It sounded like he was saying that fortune was unpredictable and changeable. But above all, I thought what he wanted to say wasn’t the cynicism of giving up when everything seemed futile, but the encouragement of showing your determination if there was somewhere you were aiming for. Did that mean that he was a man who had a beautiful head and was relatively hot-blooded? Like me? I doubt that.

“I think this Emerald role is Aki’s second touchstone. She won the competition, studied abroad in France, and came back, and she’s been a professional dancer ever since, but as far as I’ve seen, she rarely has the opportunity to play a leading role. This is a big promotion.”

“You really are close to Shinkai-san, aren’t you.”

“Yep. Aki’s a bit like my, um, birth parent.”

“…Huh, birth?”

“Sorry, I mean godparent!* She was the one who gave me the Gorgo nickname.”

(TN: In Japanese, godparent is 名付け親, which literally means “naming parent”. I think in some cultures the godparent is the one who names the baby)

Oh. That might be possible if it was Shinkai-san. I almost burst out laughing.

“She came up with a pretty interesting name. Was it when you were in middle school?”

“Yep. It’s because the waiting room of our neighborhood beauty salon had a lot of old manga laid out there, so my friends and I went there for the most part…I was a bit embarrassed, but I thought it was okay if Aki called me that.”

“I like that name. It’s cool.”

“I’m not sure about that.”

“It gives off a reliable, dandy kind of feeling.”

“…That’s the first time someone’s ever said something like that to me.”

My chest tightened at Tanimoto-san’s voice. Was it possible that we had something of a good mood going? A long phone call at night was too common. The moment I noticed, my heart began pumping blood throughout my body with a tremendous force. Crap. I was going to stutter again.

“Seigi-kun, please take care of Aki. She’s a very good girl.”

“…I’ll do everything I can to help.”

“Thank you so much. Well then,”

Good night , she said. Good night , I answered.

The case of the emeralds’ curse wasn’t cleared up at all. I couldn’t even see a key to the solution. But right now, I feel like I was in a dreamland. I got onto my bed that I bought at a discount sale from an emporium and started furiously head-butting my pillow. I was happy. I was feeling very happy right now. My happiness continued up until an email from Shinkai-san came.

“To Nakata-kun. I got a call from Shouko just now, and she said you liked me. You made her misunderstand you, didn’t you? You should work harder.”

Uwaaaaah.

Wrong. That wasn’t the case. Tanimoto-san was wrong. She was wrong. Why was she so divinely good at interpreting my liking for her in the wrong direction? It was painful. It was incredibly painful. Did the god of love have something against me? Thank goodness Shinkai-san was so perceptive.

While making distressed sounds, I replied to Shinkai-san, telling her I was truly sorry and that I will continue to work hard. As I moaned soundlessly, an unexpected postscript came.

“I got a message from Richard saying that he’s going to visit again on Friday. Did you hear anything? Director has a scary look on her face. I’m a bit scared.”

Again on Friday?

After I replied to her that I’ve never heard of such a thing, Shinkai-san didn’t send any more messages. What was going on? I nervously tried contacting Richard, who tended to bombard one with messages. About what Shinkai-san told me. If he was really going to revisit the company on Friday.

His response came swiftly. As ever, he thrust a succession of short texts.

“Next Friday at one p.m., I shall be going to the ballet company in Gotanda.”

“I will give you a special bonus, so please come when it is convenient for you.”

“I shall give you the details on that day.”

“Depending on the situation, it might be a bit dangerous.”

What did he mean by dangerous?

I wrote back asking if it was okay to call him right now, but Richard responded that there was a hindrance. It was already nighttime, but I guess that meant he was either on the road or still at work. I asked him for the details but got no response. Stop pointlessly aggravating my anxieties. Tell me that it’s nothing.

Or maybe—it wasn’t nothing?

When I returned to my room after taking a shower, there was a single message from Richard.

“Are you coming?”

Of course.

Replying with just that, I got into bed. I didn’t know what Richard was worried about, but I have already made up my mind. I absolutely had to go with him. I made a promise to Tanimoto-san. To protect her precious friend.

Passing the days without applying myself to class, I then got another text from Richard on Thursday night.

“Attempted disappearance of the necklace. Third time.”

Honestly, I had a hunch that was going to happen. But I didn’t want it to be real.

Nothing made sense anymore. A third failed attempt. If it really was an inside job, then I didn’t think they would continue to fail this much. So this really was occult-related? No way. But.

I didn’t know what was going on anymore. Would this mystery be solved tomorrow?

What’s going on, Richard?

Friday noon. I passed through the doors of the Kataura Ballet Company. Richard, wearing a suit, looked as cool and composed as he always was. Probably having heard that we were expected visitors, the guards let us through without asking anything. Since they greeted Richard, was he an acquaintance now?

Apparently, Richard visited the facility last Tuesday. It was the third round, without me.

He seemed to have talked with Director Kataura.

She didn’t believe what he told her at first, but there was only a week until the performance. She decided that now was the only time to accept what was to come.

We passed through the line of small lesson rooms on the first floor and went even further back, where there was a set of massive doors, like for a small gym. It was a hall that seemed like a small concert hall. Richard signaled me with his eyes and opened the doors. Immediately, the sound of a piano being played spilled out. They were in the middle of practice right now.

The lights were off in the small hall. The only place that was illuminated was on the stage that was set up a step higher. They were right in the middle of dress rehearsal. When we entered the hall under the cover of darkness, we could see Shinkai-san on the stage. She wasn’t wearing those accessories. People in stage costumes were moving around on the stage, and other people with long legs and dressed in hoodies were sitting in the seats below. Director Kataura was sitting in the center of the first row. Below the stage, the pianist was playing music according to her directions.

It was a sight like the culmination of all the “beauty” in this world. However, now wasn’t the time to be entranced.

After the piano stopped playing, the lights in the hall returned. Director Kataura lightly clapped her hands to admonish the company members who had all begun to chatter.

“Please listen to me for a moment. I need to speak to all of you.”

Her voice was quiet. Her face was pale and her expression hard.

I held my breath at the entrance of the hall. Next to me, Richard was also standing ready.

“It is regarding this emerald necklace.”

There was a velvet box on Director Kataura’s lap. The emerald jewelry Shinkai-san wasn’t wearing. A tension ran through the hall.

“During rehearsal the other day, it went missing. This is the third case of mysterious phenomena that is related to this necklace. As expected, I felt uneasy, and I discussed this case with Marienbad.”

The buzz spread in the hall. She probably wouldn’t have discussed with them about the fact that the jewelry she borrowed from them seemed to be cursed and mysterious phenomena kept occurring, but you could only think of it as a bad-natured justification or a joke. However, if the situation became this serious, it might be a different story.

Director Kataura informed everyone in a ringing voice.

“This is an important piece of jewelry to our ballet company, but I asked them in good faith if it would not be safer to return it temporarily if these strange occurrences continue any more than this. However, unfortunately, I received a reply saying ‘We do not want you to return it.’”

Before the chattering spread, Director Kataura continued to speak.

“Whether it is a curse or not, if there is the possibility that something mysterious is attached to the accessory, they want us to take care of it here. I do not believe in the paranormal, but the other party may not like having something disturbing returned to them either. After a discussion, it is decided that our company will keep the emerald necklace for an indefinite period of time.”

The buzzing just kept growing. I heard people saying “There’s no way.” I would think so. Jewelry was expected to be insured. It was a demarcator of how long it could be borrowed. There was no way they were going to loan it outside the scope of application. What’s more, Director Kataura acknowledged the “curse”. Even though Shinkai-san had said that the ballerina who was loved by everyone in the company would never do such a thing. Shinkai-san, on the stage amidst this oppressive atmosphere, was silently staring at her toes. I transferred my gaze from Director Kataura to her. It happened at that moment.