Holmes of Kyoto (京都寺町三条のホームズ)

Spring.

While the cherry blossoms of Kyoto were in full bloom...

Others were flying high, enjoying the blossoms,

but I was deep down in the dumps.

Until that day I went down to Teramachi Sanjo,

We appraise and buy the antiques you have hiding at home

to the antique shop "Kura"...

and met a certain someone.

Welcome.

"Holmes and Zen Master Hakuin"

Episode One

Aoi-san.

Is something the matter?

Aoi-san?

Oh, n-no...

I was just thinking about the first time I came to this store.

It's already been about two weeks.

Time certainly flies, doesn't it?

Yes...

Um, I've finished my cleaning.

Is there any other work I need to do?

Let me see... I can't think of anything.

Why don't we move on to lesson time?

All right, Holmes-san.

You always wear those gloves, don't you?

People don't usually wear gloves when dealing with porcelain,

since the feel of it is so important...

But this is my style.

What's this one?

It's a Kokaratsu tea bowl.

Please, take a close look at it to start.

The art isn't very good, is it?

Yes, and that's part of Kokaratsu's charm.

They say that Kokaratsu is the final destination of the pottery lover.

It's known for the hard clay

that forms fine wrinkles on the unglazed portion of the foot as it's finished.

These are known as "crinkled cloth wrinkles."

Crinkled cloth wrinkles...

You're so excited to learn, aren't you?

Oh, no, I wouldn't say that...

This man's name is Yagashira Kiyotaka.

Also known as Holmes-san.

In the two weeks since I started working here,

he's occasionally given me private lessons about antiques.

This shop is a well-known, government-licensed appraiser.

Yagashira Seiji-san is the owner, and his grandson, Holmes-san, is in training.

The owner is always traveling around the world,

so I haven't met him yet.

Holmes-san's father, Takeshi-san, is officially in charge of the shop,

but he leaves most of it to Holmes-san in practice.

Aoi-san.

Have you gotten used to working here yet?

Oh, yes! Thank you for asking.

I'm glad to hear it.

I need to hash some things out with my editor.

You can handle things here, can't you?

Yes!

He really is a popular author, isn't he?

And I'm left running the shop as a result.

Oh, welcome!

Welcome.

I'd like to request an appraisal.

You mind helpin' out?

Not at all. Please have a seat.

Well, well...

My family's run a business in Kyoto for generations.

Is this one of those Kizeto tea bowls?

I ain't got any interest in tea bowls myself...

He showed me a Kizeto tea bowl in one of our previous lessons.

But this one is...

I'm sorry to inform you, but this is a fake.

Wh-What'd you say?!

A genuine Kizeto typically has a glossy appearance,

as though the clay has been coated with oil.

It should have an overall sense of immaculacy.

This item has no such feel to it.

But beyond its appearance, a genuine Kizeto has a lightness when held.

It wouldn't have this leaden heft.

In addition, while this has the lustrous green of chalcanthite applied before firing,

it's gone quite dusky.

This is very clearly a counterfeit designed to look like a Kizeto.

Counterfeit?

A kid like you don't know what he's talkin' about!

I do know.

I think you brought that tea bowl in here, knowing that it was counterfeit.

You said that you live in Osaka, didn't you?

Why, then, did you go to the trouble of bringing your tea bowl

to an antique shop in Kyoto?

I-It just turned out that way!

I happened to be in Kyoto an' decided to stop by.

And after you had this tea bowl made,

you employed the aid of a professional to have it distressed,

which suggests extensive experience in the counterfeiting trade.

That suit... Forgive my impertinence, but it doesn't fit you well.

Your shoes are falling apart, too.

You came to my shop specifically, then waited until my father left.

You'd heard there was an inexperienced appraiser working in Teramachi Sanjo,

and you thought that you could deceive me.

Am I wrong?

Ah, well... y'see...

I'm sorry to inform you,

but while I may be young,

I ain't so green that I'd be fooled by this crude imitation.

I-I'll let you off easy just this once!

I'm the one lettin' you off easy...

Shoot, that really got my goat...

Aoi-san, could you cast some salt out the door?

What? Salt?

Yes. Salt, please.

All I have is this boiled egg seasoning...

Wouldn't that be kind of a waste?

Yes, indeed. That would certainly be a waste.

I thought so.

Why don't we make ourselves some eggs, then?

Okay!

Delicious!

I really enjoy how disarming you are, Aoi-san.

What do you mean?

After dealing with a miserable counterfeit,

I tend to spend the rest of the day feeling annoyed about it.

But when I saw you there holding that seasoning,

it was as if the whole thing deflated.

I was honestly surprised myself...

You really get people bringing in counterfeits?

Counterfeits are a malicious practice designed to extort money from people.

I cannot brook such evil.

To those who love art, it's blasphemy.

Holmes-san, you're a very upright person, aren't you?

Upright? Me?

Yes.

No, I just hate counterfeits.

I'm actually quite perverse, with a fundamentally wicked personality.

Wicked?

It did sort of feel like he had a dark side to him back there...

No, that can't be!

After all, the day I first came here...

Two Weeks Earlier

Wh-What should I do?

It's so hard to break the ice...

Welcome.

Holmes! You mind havin' a look at this?

Ueda-san, I must ask that you stop calling me "Holmes."

Aw, don't be such a spoilsport, now!

Holmes-san?

Well, well...

Amazing!

Yokoyama Taikan's "Mt. Fuji and Cherry Blossoms."

It's a very fine piece.

Right? And in real great condition, see?

And a Yokoyama Taikan, to boot! It's gotta be worth a bundle!

I see. It is very beautiful, and it is in very fine condition,

but I regret to inform you that it's a reproduction.

Aw, drat. It ain't the real deal, huh?

But it's so beautiful...

Okay, I hear you.

I was hopin', just maybe...

He just took that clerk at his word...

Even though he's so young...

But there's so much passion in the selection and decoration of this shop.

I don't know much about this kind of stuff,

but they certainly seem like quality items...

What's this?

Do you like it?

Oh... I-I don't know. It just seemed... nice.

I see. Please feel free to take your time browsing.

E-Excuse me...

Yes?

Why did that man call you Holmes-san?

Is it because you know lots of things, like Sherlock Holmes?

Let me see...

You're a student at Ohki High School.

You originally came from eastern Japan.

It's been about six months since you moved to Kyoto.

You came to this shop because there's something you want to have appraised...

But it's not something that belongs to you.

How did you know I moved here six months ago?

Just instinct.

You don't seem as though you're too new in town,

but you also don't appear to be completely at home.

So I suspected you might have moved here during summer vacation last year.

W-Well... how did you know that what I want appraised isn't really mine?

High school students don't tend to own the kinds of things we appraise here.

Moreover, your apparent hesitance to have it appraised

suggests it doesn't belong to you.

Am I wrong?

W-Well...

But you need money...

So you took it out of the house without permission.

Would that be correct?

Kiyotaka, you're scarin' the girl. Knock it off already, would ya?

This is why we call you Holmes.

Forgive me. I let myself get carried away.

So they do call him Holmes because he knows everything...

Actually, Holmes is just a nickname.

D-Did he just read my mind?

My surname is Yagashira.