Damn, I didn't realize to scheduled the chapters.
Sorry about that, I was on vacation with my family. anyway, here's to make up for it.
---
February 7th, Thursday, 6:16 AM
There were very few visitors paying their respects at Beika Cemetery early that morning.
After driving into the parking lot behind the cemetery, Hiro glanced at the lunch box resting on the passenger seat.
Instead of bringing flowers or carefully preparing someone's favorite fish and chips like he had last year, he had tried something new this time, adding his signature nikujaga (Japanese meat and potato stew).
Unlocking his phone with Face ID, Hiro looked through the messages in their LINE group chat, a gentle smile forming on his lips.
[Jinpei: Seriously, Class Rep? I've been waiting downstairs at your place for ten minutes already! Hurry up and come down!]
[Kenji: I'm starving, starving~! Class Rep, you're buying us breakfast later!]
[Wataru: Coming. It's because of that terrorist attack a few days ago. Our entire First Investigation Division has been working nonstop. There was another explosion in an alley near the MPD last night too, but fortunately it doesn't seem like anyone was hurt.]
[Kenji: Speaking of which, you guys still haven't found any leads? That's pretty strange. Officer Onizawa is in charge, isn't he? His deduction skills are supposed to be excellent.]
Reading the conversation, Hiro recalled the explosion he had seen reported on the news. Coincidentally, that had been his day off.
A terrorist attack targeting police officers was certainly a serious matter, but the National Police Agency had no intention of stepping into the investigation. After all, their recent priority was rooting out the moles hiding within the police.
According to the intelligence Rei had passed along, an undercover operative from the Organization had infiltrated the MPD. Hiro had been making frequent trips there recently, hoping to identify any suspicious officers.
[Hiro: I won't wait for you guys then. I'm going ahead to visit Ritsu.]
After sending the message, he slipped his phone into his pocket, stepped out of the car, picked up the lunch box, and headed into Beika Cemetery.
Passing familiar rows of black gravestones engraved with photographs, he finally stopped before the one bearing the name Sasajima Ritsu.
Lowering his gaze, he noticed a bottle of Calpis sitting before the grave, decorated with a cute little sticky note.
"Ritsu-senpai, I'm here to visit you again.
I've been working on a really difficult case lately. I hope we can catch the culprit today."
Even without a signature, the neat handwriting made it obvious who had written it.
Smiling, Hiro placed his lunch box beside the bottle of Calpis. Seeing how spotless the gravestone had been polished, he chuckled.
"Ritsu, you're really lucky to have such a thoughtful junior. I guess girls really are more attentive. She even brought a handkerchief to wipe your gravestone clean."
He straightened up, about to say something more, when his phone suddenly vibrated in his pocket.
Confused, he pulled it out and saw that Kazami was calling.
The moment he answered, Kazami's hurried voice came through.
"Morofushi-san, this is bad! You asked me to keep an eye on the MPD. We just received word that the fax machine in First Investigation Division, Violent Crimes Section Three received another strange cipher letter!"
'A strange cipher letter?'
Hiro's pupils contracted sharply. Realizing what it meant, he urgently asked,
"Is it the same kind of cipher letter as three years ago?!"
"Yes, sir. Right now we—"
"Immediately apply for Public Security to join the investigation. Hurry!"
Ending the call, Hiro quickly forwarded everything he had learned into the group chat, telling his former classmates, who were still on their way to Beika Cemetery, to head directly to the MPD instead.
Before leaving, he couldn't help glancing back at the black gravestone.
A bitter smile crossed his face.
"Hey, Ritsu... once this is all over, we'll come visit you again. So don't be lonely, okay?"
...
The sound of water droplets hitting the concrete echoed loudly through the silent, empty room.
Long, raven-like eyelashes trembled faintly. Only after a long while did they slowly open.
Ritsu stared blankly at the ceiling.
Where... was he? This wasn't his apartment. Nor was it the break room at the MPD.
What had happened to him?
"...Ngh!"
The moment he moved, pain tore through his wounds, making him grit his teeth.
Fortunately, the sharp pain also brought back memories of what had happened the previous night.
"…I never imagined the fish that took the bait would be you."
Remembering that familiar face and the unfamiliar hoarse voice, Ritsu abruptly pushed himself upright.
Only for the weight around his neck to throw him back onto the floor.
He instinctively reached for his neck, only to touch something cold and metallic.
'What... was this?'
Confused, he slowly climbed to his feet and looked into a shattered mirror nearby. Only then did he notice the metal collar fastened tightly around his neck.
Attached to either side of the collar were transparent capsules filled with mysterious pink and blue liquids.
'What... What the hell was going on?'
...
Chaos had already erupted inside the office of First Investigation Division, Violent Crimes Section Three.
Inspector Megure stared helplessly at the cipher letter in his hand.
His eyes drifted toward the empty desk positioned diagonally ahead of him.
Why did he suddenly have such a terrible feeling? Less than five minutes later, that ominous feeling proved completely justified.
Hayasaka burst through the office door in a panic.
"Inspector Megure! Onizawa's car has been sitting in the parking lot since last night, it was never driven away! I also just called Akemi, and she said Onizawa never came home!"
"You mean... he has disappeared?!"
The news instantly threw the office into even greater turmoil.
Kazami, who had arrived at the doorway, overheard the conversation. He knocked lightly on the open door and said coolly,
"I'm Public Security officer Yuya Kazami. I was told Inspector Megure is in charge here. Which one of you is Megure?"
Hearing that he was from the National Police Agency's Public Security Bureau, Megure immediately understood why he had come. Frowning, he replied,
"I'm Megure. What is it?"
"Please hand over the cipher letter your department received. From this point onward, the Public Security Bureau will be taking over the investigation."
'So they're stepping in after all...'
Megure's expression darkened.
"We also have the authority to investigate, don't we? Besides, one of our detectives is currently missing. Isn't it inappropriate for Public Security to simply take over?"
Kazami pursed his lips.
Unable to make the decision himself, he quietly stepped aside to wait.
Several dozen minutes later, after learning about the missing detective, Hiro immediately stepped forward to mediate. He had no desire to let tensions rise simply because they belonged to different departments.
"Inspector Megure, I hope the Metropolitan Police can cooperate with Public Security on this investigation. This case is connected to both the bombing seven years ago and the one three years ago. Personally... it's extremely important to me."
It was the very case that had nearly killed Kenji and Jinpei. It was also the case Ritsu had once handled while working undercover.
This time...
They absolutely had to catch that elusive bomber.
Megure naturally recognized the young rising star of the National Police Agency standing before him. He nodded.
"Understood. We'll cooperate fully."
Hiro gave a small nod before asking,
"I also heard one of your detectives is missing. Would you mind telling me his name?"
"Onizawa Takashi. I imagine that's not an unfamiliar name to you."
"Onizawa?"
Hiro froze for a moment before quickly asking,
"Do you know approximately when he disappeared?"
"He likely vanished after leaving the MPD around eleven o'clock last night. His car was never driven out of the parking lot, so he probably disappeared somewhere nearby. I've already instructed the technical division to pull the surveillance footage—"
Hiro interrupted him.
"There's no need to review the surveillance footage. Officer Onizawa's disappearance is almost certainly connected to last night's explosion near the MPD, the one in which there were supposedly no casualties."
"The highest priority right now is deciphering the cipher letter and locating the remaining bombs before anyone else comes into contact with them."
"...Understood."