Holmes of Kyoto: Volume 10 (eBook)

Mai Mochizuki (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2022
250 Seiten
J-Novel Heart (Verlag)
978-1-7183-7666-3 (ISBN)

Infos

It's May in Aoi's second year of university, and to celebrate her twentieth birthday, she and Kiyotaka take a trip to Kyushu on an extravagant overnight train. As they're enjoying their vacation on rails, they run into Shiro Amamiya, one of the people involved with the drug cult in Ohara. He has two stolen hanging scrolls on him, which were supposed to have been sold at an overseas auction! In order to reclaim their friend's paintings, Aoi and Kiyotaka find themselves taking on a new investigation. The mysteries continue in Holmes of Kyoto: Volume 10!

Textauszug

Prologue

It was April.

Last spring, Holmes had been working at a place called Shokado Garden Art Museum in Yawata City, Kyoto Prefecture, as part of his training. The garden was 1.5 times the size of Koshien Stadium and could be enjoyed all year round, but it was especially beautiful in spring when the cherry blossoms bloomed. In addition to the light pink variety, there were also deep pink weeping cherry trees. I thought back to the time when he—Kiyotaka “Holmes” Yagashira—had been called “a beautiful young man with the grace of a weeping cherry tree” and smiled.

I, Aoi Mashiro, was leisurely walking around Shokado Garden by myself. I had come here with Holmes, but he wanted to discuss something with the assistant director, so I had decided to wander around the garden in the meantime.

“So pretty...” I stopped, awed by the beauty of the flowers. “I’m glad I got to come here. When I visited last year, it was past cherry blossom season.”

I had assumed that no matter how long Holmes’s discussion ran, I wouldn’t get bored here—and I was right. In the outer garden, which had around forty types of bamboo, there were three tearooms called Sho-in, Bai-in, and Chiku-in, as well as a stone washbasin and the historic Ominaeshi Tomb. The camellias really made it feel like early spring.

Beautifully arranged flowers, bamboo, trees, and ponds. The Kyoto Botanical Gardens near my university were nice too, but this place was overflowing with charm.

I wonder what Holmes’s discussion is about? People often come to him for advice, but it’s unusual for him to ask someone for advice himself.

“Aoi!” came a voice from behind me.

I turned and saw Holmes jogging towards me. Behind him was Assistant Director Igawa, and I bowed to him.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” said Holmes. “You could have joined us...”

“It’s okay. I was admiring the garden.”

Since we came all this way, I want to take my time exploring the garden. I’m sure he can understand that feeling.

“The garden is nice in spring, isn’t it?” he said with a grin.

Igawa, who had slowly walked up to us, raised a hand and said, “Hey there, Aoi. It’s been a while.”

“Yes, it has.”

“The last time we met was when Kiyotaka was working here, so I guess it’s been about a year.”

“Yes, although I secretly came here in the fall as well.”

“You did? Thank you. You should’ve asked for me,” he said happily. “Oh, right.” He turned to Holmes. “How far along are you in your training, Kiyotaka?”

“I’m already on the final stretch.”

“Really?! Didn’t you say it was going to take around two years?”

“I’m trying to finish as soon as possible.”

“I’m impressed. So, where are you working now?”

“Daimaru’s Kyoto store.”

“That department store?! What are you doing there?”

“I’m helping with a project in the sales promotion department.”

“Huh, that seems like a good fit. We’d love it if you came to work for us again.”

“I’m honored to hear that.”

“We were able to make new connections through the Seiji Yagashira exhibition. Oh, and Yoneyama has become famous in the industry in such a short time.”

Ryosuke Yoneyama, who had visited the exhibit, was someone we knew well. He was a former counterfeiter who had reformed after being exposed by the nationally certified appraiser Seiji Yagashira, Holmes’s grandfather and the owner of Kura. After finding a girlfriend, he had wanted to become a man worthy of her, so he’d gone abroad to study painting and won a major contest there. Using that achievement as a stepping-stone, he had gone on to win several awards and was now a famous painter, both in Japan and overseas. As it happened, his girlfriend was Saori Miyashita, my best friend Kaori’s older sister.

“Indeed,” said Holmes. “I heard he had a successful solo exhibition in Roppongi.”

I had also heard about it from Kaori. Yoneyama had held a solo exhibition for ink wash paintings—his specialty. Apparently, when the topic of an exhibit in Tokyo had come up, he had insisted on holding the show in Roppongi because that was where Miyashita Kimono Fabrics had once expanded their business to. Unfortunately, the store had lost so much money that they’d had to pull out of Tokyo and business was poor for a while. Knowing that, Yoneyama had purposely chosen Roppongi so that he could get revenge for them. His exhibition turned out to be a great success, and he happily proclaimed, “I’ve avenged Miyashita Kimono Fabrics.”

I’m not sure if Yoneyama having a successful exhibition in Roppongi counts as Miyashita Kimono Fabrics getting revenge...

There was a reason Yoneyama was working so hard. It was because he was serious about marrying Saori. Since he was a talented painter who was willing to be taken into the Miyashita family and inherit the store, Saori’s parents had initially been enthusiastic about their relationship. However, their minds changed after learning that he was a former counterfeiter who had been on a suspended sentence. Yoneyama was trying his best in many ways to overwrite his past deeds and win their approval. His success in Roppongi surely would’ve improved their impression of him.

“Yes, the exhibition was a success, but it’s a shame that he ran into trouble.”

“Huh?” Holmes tilted his head. “What trouble?”

“Oh, you didn’t know? Since you’re so well-versed in the art world, I thought you’d know everything.”

“I’m not accompanying my grandfather these days, so that kind of news hasn’t been reaching me,” Holmes said in a mildly bitter tone.

Holmes’s position as the owner’s attendant had been taken over by Yoshie Takiyama, the owner’s girlfriend. Sometimes her son, Rikyu, accompanied them for learning purposes. On a side note, Rikyu had successfully passed the exam for the Kyoto Institute of Technology, his first choice of university.

“Some of Yoneyama’s works were stolen,” the assistant director said with a grim face.

“What?!” Holmes and I both blinked in surprise.

“I haven’t seen anything like that in the news,” said Holmes.

“Yeah. It seems they don’t want to draw too much attention to the matter, so I think only the people involved know. They did report it to the police, of course.”

“I see,” Holmes muttered, stroking his chin.

As I listened to their conversation, I found myself increasingly curious, so I asked, “Which paintings were stolen?”

“I don’t know, but he said he’d been holding on to them because he wanted to submit them to overseas contests. He must be especially distraught over the theft because he had that emotional attachment to them.”

My heart pounded. What kind of paintings are they?

Yoneyama had shown Holmes and me one of his ink wash paintings before. It was a gray scale piece titled Weeping Cherry and Bush Warbler. It didn’t use any color, yet looking at it made you envision a light pink hue. I was fascinated by the perceived color, and the captivating beauty of the weeping cherry blossoms left a deep impression, as did the adorable bush warbler lovingly looking up at them. The painting had rendered me speechless, and before I knew it, I had tears in my eyes.

Holmes murmured a passionate, “This is incredible.”

“It’s a painting of you two,” Yoneyama happily responded.

“Huh?” We blinked in surprise.

“People were calling Kiyotaka ‘a beautiful young man with the grace of a weeping cherry tree,’ weren’t they? Ink-painted weeping cherry trees really do feel like him. They’re elusive and people imagine different colors when they see them. So, this weeping cherry tree is Kiyotaka and the cute little bush warbler is Aoi,” he explained with a mischievous grin.

Holmes and I looked at each other and chuckled.

“I’m honored to be likened to such a wonderful piece of art,” Holmes said.

“Me too,” I added. “This adorable bird is me? I feel like other people will get offended.”

“It has your round and cute eyes, but you’re much lovelier,” Holmes said smoothly, making my heart skip a beat. It felt more like something a Parisian would say than a Kyoto guy.

“Yeah, yeah,” Yoneyama said with a shrug.

“Am I really such an elusive person?” Holmes wondered. “I consider myself fairly easy to understand.” He gazed at the painting for a while before slowly lowering his eyes and placing a hand on his chest. “I sincerely think it’s a masterpiece that will last for generations.”

Yoneyama scratched his head, looking both happy and embarrassed. “Did you like it?”

Holmes nodded. “Yes, very much. Even if it wasn’t modeled after us, I’d want to look at it all day long.”

I could tell that his praise was genuine. After all, I felt the same way. Every time I set eyes on the monochrome painting, vivid colors came to mind. It was a wonderful work of art that made you want to admire it forever.

“I like it too, so I was planning on keeping it,” said Yoneyama. “But I wouldn’t mind letting you have...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 23.6.2022
• Reihe/Serie: Holmes of Kyoto
• Reihe/Serie: Holmes of Kyoto
• Übersetzer: Minna Lin
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Krimi / Thriller / Horror ► Krimi / Thriller
• Schlagworte: Cozy Mystery • Drama • female protagonist • History • Japan • Light Novel • Slice of Life
• ISBN-10: 1-7183-7666-9 / 1718376669
• ISBN-13: 978-1-7183-7666-3 / 9781718376663