Chapter 5 - Blue Sky
Looking at his watch, it was just about 3 AM in the morning.
His should-be familiar room had a completely different look. Even back when he moved here, the room had never been this messy. Things that had been in his bags, bookshelves, and closets had been piled all over the room. And that was not the end of it either.
Ichijou had been searching for a certain something.
He had been certain that he took care in putting it away, but it would not show up no matter how hard he looked. It was not something he needed right away, and he had many matters to attend to in the morning. Yet despite all of that, Ichijou continued to cut away at the hours he had left to sleep, as his search reached a late hour. He knew that he was not acting like himself and that he was just wasting time, but he continued to grow more and more impatient. He had just enough time to go take a shower and have a short nap. Just how did it come to this?
I know I put it in here, Ichijou thought, as he pulled out the deepest drawer in his desk. This was the third time. Stored in it was a bundle of loose-leaf notebooks. Ichijou picked up the notebook with the year 2000 printed on it, dating back 13 years. He was certain he had put it inside this notebook, but it was not there. Thinking that perhaps it had dropped to the bottom of the drawer by accident, twice he had taken out and sorted all the loose-leaf notebooks he had, but to no avail.
I can’t think of any other logical place it could be in, he thought, as he checked everything a third time with an unhealthy tenacity. When it seemed as if he was finally going to give up, a certain something softly dropped onto the floor.
“Huh…?”
Ichijou could hardly believe his eyes. It was the picture he had been looking for.
Some of his notebooks were stored in a plastic bag, and it appeared that the picture had stuck onto it. Ichijou wondered how he could have glossed over such a simple thing. Baffled, he plopped himself down onto the backrest of his desk chair. The hours he spent piling up everything in his room was all for nothing.
“What the h.e.l.l I am doing…”
For the first time in a while, Ichijou felt appalled at himself. Pictured within the photograph he was holding, that man was laughing at him as well.
Taking place 13 years ago, right after it was decided that the Unidentified Lifeform Investigations would come to a close, the picture was taken from afar. Ichijou had no recollection of when it could have been taken. Sitting between the tables messily stacked with various doc.u.ments was G.o.dai and Ichijou, as a bright light shone through the room. In contrast to Ichijou who was staring at the whiteboard with a serious face, G.o.dai was flashing a friendly smile to the camera. It was the only photograph of G.o.dai that Ichijou had.
Ichijou intently gazed at the photograph. He had spent all those hours to make sure he still had it.
There was no denying that the White Kuuga had shown itself. But G.o.dai would yet to reveal his true face.
Would G.o.dai smile like he did in this photograph again after the current Unidentified Lifeform investigation gets wrapped up?
No, Ichijou whispered within his heart.
That would never happen until we manage to do something about it. Whether or not he’ll smile again all depends on us. You won’t have to fight anymore… If we won’t be able to say those words to him from the bottom of our heart, then G.o.dai will never truly be at rest.
While it was true that they held unfamiliar forms, the lives that G.o.dai took were those with human personalities. If those elements were taken into consideration publicly, he would be arrested by the police and sentenced under the pretense of committing murder, despite all he had to suffer for them. The Unidentified Lifeforms tremendously overpowered the police force, forcing them to have no choice but to depend on him. Because Kuuga was identified as either No. 2 or No. 4, the incidents were officially recognized as mutual slaughtering between the Unidentified Lifeforms, allowing the police force to one-sidedly reap the benefits.
But, what kind of feelings did G.o.dai end up going through behind the scenes? G.o.dai had never spoke of them to Ichijou, nor had Ichijou ever asked him about them, as if they had a mutual implicit understanding between them. Despite that however, Ichijou was confident about how he felt. On that day he found the human body of No. 0, he had no doubt that G.o.dai had been crying throughout the fight.
That was why that Ichijou was resolute in wanting to seal away the Unidentified Lifeforms under the hands of only a police officer. All so that the now returned G.o.dai would undo his transformation to reveal his smile.
At about 6 hours later, Ichijou was on his way to the NRIPS with Mika at the wheel. Enokida had contacted them saying that she would have the results to the a.n.a.lysis of Lionel’s structure not too long before noon, so they decided to meet at 11:30 AM.
The samples to be inspected came from all three factories that supplied the drug. Among the samples included the original solution, obtained from some help from Tsubaki behind the scenes. Although there were not many people related to Lionel that felt that the drug was approved within an abnormally short timeframe, there were still quite a few who did.
Sugita had told them not to go near the Tokyo Police Department, and instead to meet up with Mika outside and head for the NRIPS. This was likely out of concern over any officials catching on to what they were doing and getting in the way. Avoiding the use of any government-owned vehicles, Mika was to pick up Ichijou at his apartment with a rental car and head for the NRIPS. Sugita would take a different route in order to separate their timing and lower suspicion.
Mika followed the plan perfectly and picked up Ichijou while skillfully avoiding traffic. Their drive ended up being exceedingly smooth, arriving at their destination an hour early. Since there was still plenty of time, Mika suggested they wait it out in a nearby family restaurant.
It was still a bit early for lunch, but because it was during summer vacation, the seats were packed, with toddlers running all over the place. The mothers in the central table would scold them to be quiet, resulting in an immediate silence. But eventually someone would head to the soda dispenser, causing the rest of the toddlers to follow suit in a roar of excitement, only to end up being scolded again as this pattern continued to repeat itself.
It was a scene you could see anywhere. Mika and Ichijou took their seats at a table for two, without paying much mind to the ruckus. They just felt that they had a lot of energy. If the toddlers got out of hand, the adults would scold them. That was all there was to it. As those thoughts swam through Ichijou’s mind, he saw a mother take out a small bottle.
“How about we just take a drink now?”
Seeing that, another mother went “Oh, then maybe we will too!”, as she took out the same bottle out of her bag. It was Lionel Z.
“Oh wow, you’re giving him Z? It’s not too harsh?”
One more mother saw the scene and asked, with the first mother responding with a smile.
“It’s completely fine. The label says that it’s okay for 5-year olds.”
“Oh, really? Does it work?”
“It’s just amazing! It has even a faster kick than the strawberry flavor, and it lasts long too. Just half a bottle will keep my child calm and smiling for half the day.”
“Wow, that sounds great!”
“Shall I give you half of it?”
“Sure, I’ll gladly take it!”
The mothers then called to the children who were chatting about at the toy display in front of the register and had them drink the Lionel Z. Mika, who had been watching, reflexively got up and was about to stop them, but the children quickly gulped it down with gusto. The children then all sat down quietly with an angelic smile on their faces.
“How cute!”
“It really is, huh?”
“I feel like I’m getting happy just from looking at their faces!”
“You’re exactly right!”
Mika sat back down and looked at Ichijou for an instant, before lowering her head down with a quiet mutter.
“...That thing sure packs a punch…”
“Yeah…”
“I once had a cla.s.smate during high school who was raising a little boy, and she claimed that it was a lot of trouble… He would only do things that she would tell him not to, so whenever she saw a well-behaved little girl, she would always go ‘I’m so jealous’.”
After a temporary silence, Mika continued.
“She might be having him drink it too now, without knowing a thing about it…”
“.........”
“I’m sure if I was a mother, I would have ended up doing the same thing…”
“We’ll go hear the results from Enokida’s a.n.a.lysis and come up with the best countermeasure we can. I’m sure we’ll find a way to put an end to the final game.”
“Yes…”
The strawberry yogurt sundae that Mika ordered then came in and interrupted their conversation. Ichijou was drinking the premium coffee that came from the drink bar. Right before Mika was about to scoop a strawberry into her mouth, her hand suddenly stopped.
“...I wonder why he can’t become red.”
“...Are you talking about G.o.dai?”
Mika lifted her head with a surprised look as if Ichijou overheard her talking to herself. She quickly shoved the strawberry into her mouth, and then continued to ask her question after she calmed down.
“Were you with G.o.dai-san when he turned red?”
“Yeah… But that time, G.o.dai transformed from his human form immediately to that red form.”
“...Why did he become red?”
“...To be honest, I don’t know the exact reason. But according to Sawatari, G.o.dai said that the reason why he couldn’t become red was because his feelings were half-hearted.”
“...Feelings were half-hearted…”
In the end, Mika did not continue to touch her strawberry yogurt sundae at all. The only sip Ichijou had of his premium coffee left only a bitter taste in his mouth. Shaking off their heavy feelings, the two of them left the family restaurant.
As they made the short trip to the NRIPS in Mika’s rental car, Mika spoke to Ichijou while looking straight ahead.
“He was a really strong person, huh…”
“Huh?”
“He sacrificed himself for the sake of everyone’s smile… What he did really was amazing… G.o.dai-san’s like a ma.s.s of pure justice…”
“...You’ve got that wrong.”
Ichijou reflexively responded.
“Huh?”
“At the very least, I’ve never heard a single word about justice from him… Nothing about sacrificing himself either.”
“But…”
“He’s...always said that he’s only been doing what he wanted to do.”
“What he...wanted to do?”
“He was always fond of the smile of others… That’s why he fought to protect it.”
“.........”
“That’s not justice. It’s something simpler than that.”
“.........”
“That’s why I wonder if he had suffered.”
Ichijou felt as if he saw Mika’s grip on the handle tighten.
Upon arriving at the NRIPS, Sugita had surprisingly made it to the lab ahead of them. There were several lab members there who were sorting out the information, but Enokida was yet to be seen. The a.n.a.lysis she was working on contained top-secret cla.s.sified information, so it was suffice to say that she was asking a lot from her lab members to work on something like this. They mainly consisted of members of the chemistry department who focused on illegal drug use. A member from the lifeform study department in his late 30’s greeted them.
“Enokida-san appears to be unable to come to a conclusion. The a.n.a.lysis itself has been completed, so I was told to give you the general outline… But, to be honest, some of it is out of my field, so would you be okay with a rough explanation?”
They were handed some print-outs, but Sugita immediately gave up on reading it after taking a quick glance.
“Make it really rough.”
“From the samples we’ve received, there were 5 varieties that differed from the rest. However, for the most part, their makeup follows the established guidelines. It matched up with the clinical data perfectly.”
“So there’s nothing suspicious, huh?”
“Technically speaking, that’s correct.”
“Technically? That’s a bit too vague.”
“Don’t get too worked up over it, just have a look at this.”
Displayed on the monitor was some kind of molecular model. The various pentagons and hexagons were connected by lines, forming a circle.
“This is one of the lactic-acid bacterias among Lionel’s active ingredients, Klaut Basip GK. It is recognized that if this bacteria enters the human body during this state, it has the effect of relieving exhaustion and diminishing stress.”
“Hmm.”
“According to the common public, the people who drink this instantly get a smile on their face. Commercials and such heavily a.s.sociate Lionel with smiles, so it’s possible that this could just be a placebo effect, but even then it’s still ridiculously effective. So, we decided to replicate its state while in the human body.”
“I see.”
Ichijou muttered while flipping through the doc.u.ments Sugita abandoned, while Mika read through it as well silently.
“In order to take into account individual differences, we set up four different settings of acidity and temperature.”
“And something suspicious showed up, right?”
Sugita took a half step forward.
“No, there were no changes whatsoever.”
“What the h.e.l.l’s up with that?”
“By the way, Enokida-san suggested to run some tiny electrical signals through them…”
“Something pops up this time for sure, right?”
“Yes. It decomposed to an entirely different substance that directly affected the central nerves. The fine details are in the doc.u.ments so I won’t go into them too much, but the new substance had the effect of relaxing the face muscles.”
“...So that’s what causes the smile.”
“That’s correct.”
Ichijou recalled the children at the family restaurant. Those who had drank the Lionel were definitely smiling. The expression that the mothers found so adorable was simply an effect from the drug.
“But the drug’s makeup shouldn’t be different from the clinical tests, right? Why would it go under this kind of change?”
“I don’t know.”
“Is Klaut Basip GK something that normally decomposes with electric signals?”
“No. Normally, that would be considered impossible. Because of this new result, Enokida has for some reason began to a.n.a.lyze the smartphone taken in as evidence.”
“The smartphone?”
Ichijou exchanged faces with Sugita. An exhausted “Sorry for keeping you waiting!” was then heard as Enokida entered the room, with the lab members bowing to her before making their way off. Enokida, saying “Ahhhh, I’m too exhausted!”, was about to collapse onto Sugita before stopping with her eyes closed saying “I don’t want an old man”, proceeding to turn around and support herself on Ichigou. She laid against him for about 10 seconds after saying “Let me take a little nap…”, and then picked herself up gracefully with a “Thanks!”. While Mika was a bit startled, Sugita and Ichijou made no reaction whatsoever. Enokida then began to make her report as if nothing had happened.
“Now, I’m about to tell you guys something really crazy, alright?”
Ichijou and Sugita instinctively looked at each other. Having known Enokida for a while now, they were surprised to hear something like that from someone who had the belief that there was nothing that science could not reveal.
“How much have you guys heard already?”
“The bacteria Klaut Basip GK decomposed to a completely different substance after being exposed to electric signals…”
“...And that change was something normally considered impossible.”
“That’s right. It has a completely unknown chemical structure, and while it does have a name, it’s way too long so I’m just going to call it ‘A’ for now… On its own, it’s something that you could find just about anywhere, but it also serves as a puzzle piece for Klaut Basip GK.”
“A puzzle piece…”
Mika recalled the complicated molecular structure. If that was the GK structure, then one of its components must have been Substance A.
“Right. It would be as if Substance A in the GK structure was a hidden ninja that just suddenly threw off its camouflage and jumped onto the scene! It would then move to the brain and relax the face muscles.”
“But that should be impossible, right? Under normal circ.u.mstances, that is.”
“Right. So how exactly did this change occur…? This is where my theory comes in, that theory being that quantum entanglement is taking a significant role.”
“Quantum entanglement… I recall reading that term in an article on quantum computers.”
“That’s my Ichijou. It isn’t something the average person would know about. To put it really simply, imagine that Ninja A from earlier has a twin that’s living really far away named Ninja A’.”
“First, puzzle pieces, and now we’re talking about twins…”
“Just like the Corsican Brothers, when Ninja A goes to take a bath, Ninja A’ does too. Of course, when Ninja A goes to bed, so does Ninja A’. Now, there must be some kind of communication going on between them, but it’s something that can’t be picked up by the typical instrument. This type of communication that’s taking place on the particle level is what would be called quantum entanglement. Got it?”
“Hmm, kinda, but if we don’t say ‘Got it’, then you aren’t going to move on with what you’re trying to say, so let’s just say I ‘got it’ for now.”
“I’m bringing up this theory because there might be particles involved in quantum entanglement within the secretions of the final Unidentified Lifeform player. First, the secretion, while still in a harmless state, will be taken in by its targets. Then, once enough of it reaches the brain, the ‘twin’ particles can relay a message saying something like ‘turn into poison’, which will instantly trigger the slaughters. Oh, of course, it would be a poison that wouldn’t affect the player.”
“Um…”
Mika, who had been silent up to now, chimed in.
“So basically, you’re saying that the UL can control the poison it secretes telepathically.”
In response to that, Enokida stopped for a moment, but quickly continued with a strained smile.
“I didn’t really want to word it like that since it sounds so fake, but yes, I suppose that would be a simpler way of explaining it.”
“C’mon, if that’s all there is to it, you could’ve just said so, Enokida!”
“Tee-hee!”
Ichijou then sharply interjected.
“Enokida-san, I heard you took a closer look into Rin Togibe’s smartphone. Have you learned anything new?”
“Wow, nice follow-up! You’re absolutely right! That completely inexplicable communications system! I felt like I was close to figuring it out, so I investigated it a bit more.”
“And…!?”
“Just as I thought, protein of organic origin was located within the SIM card!”
Enokida flashed a “I knew it!” face to everyone as she nodded vigorously.
“...And it’s Substance A!
The trap had been revealed. There was no doubt that the final player was Gouhara!
Because the conclusion reached by Enokida was a lot to take in, Mika asked Ichijou to take the wheel for the ride back from the NRIPS.
After receiving the a.n.a.lysis results from the various theories they made, Enokida headed to the whiteboard and drew a crude sketch of the cross-section view of the human head.
“Examining the results from the simulation, it’s shown that the Substance A, which broke off from the GK structure, begins to acc.u.mulate in the prefrontal cortex after performing its role as a central muscle relaxant in relaxing the facial muscles. The prefrontal cortex is what controls how a person thinks and feels. If left alone, the Substance A won’t do any real harm, but via quantum entanglement, Gouhara can alter it to whatever he’d like. ...We have no idea how much Lionel has been produced and consumed so far, but all of it contains Substance A within the state of quantum entanglement. I’m sure it’s a terrifying amount…”
“So what you’re saying is…”
Ichijou spoke while breaking everything down.
“Within just a moment’s notice, millions of people could fall into a state of mental disarray, driving themselves to death. And the trigger for all of that…is Gouhara himself.”
An invisible threat was on the way.
“Are we able to jam or intercept something like quantum entanglement?”
Mika, who had been completely silent up until now, asked Enokida with visible concern.
“Once particles have entered quantum entanglement, they become synced for good. Even if they were on opposite sides of the Earth, they would still react with each other, and no kind of interference could stop that.”
“...That means that we’ll have to kill Gouhara before he can flip the switch.”
It was a violent way of putting it, but Ichijou had no means to deny it.
“But…”
Mika’s eyes were cast down momentarily, but she quickly lifted her face and blurted out exactly how she felt about the situation.
“Just how are we going to fight against someone like him!? It took all we possibly had to take down No. 48! There’s no way we would be able to stand a chance!! ...Not with just the white Kuuga, at least…”
Mika’s voice was trembling. Ichijou surmised that she must have recalled the battle she witnessed up-close against No. 48. And the opponent they were facing now could very well be ten times the adversary.
“That’s exactly why we’ll have to do the best we can this time.”
“...But there’s no doubt that Gouhara will use his position as a politician to get in the way of whatever we try to do! He was even able to move the top of the police force at his will! We have absolutely no chance against him!”
Mika, who had always conducted her investigations with a cool head so far, had began to feel cornered due to the enormous advantage Gouhara had gained with all his work behind the scenes. Considering how long his system has been nurtured and maintained, it would be difficult to see it penetrated in any way, even if society itself would deem it to be an evil…
Enokida wrapped her arms around Mika’s tensed shoulders. Recognizing her gesture, Mika slowly came back to her senses and once again cast down her eyes. In response to that, Ichijou spoke with a calm tone.
“Even if we get pressured by our superiors, there are still many people who would without a doubt support our cause. Enokida-san and the rest of the NRIPS has shown us exactly that.”
“It might just be that they feel threatened by me, though.”
“Once everyone does everything they could do to the best of their ability, we will definitely see the light. We’ll have to do everything we can to prepare for that moment.”
“.........”
“If Kuuga is unable to take on his red form, then he will most certainly die if he takes part in this battle.”
“!”
“It’s not just Kuuga. No one should sacrifice themselves for this on their own. That’s why we need to work together… With our ideals and determination, we definitely have it in us to make that a reality.”
As Mika slowly began to face Ichijou, Sugita quickly cut in with an “Anyway…”
“Right now we’ll have to think about how we’re going to capture Gouhara. While our strength is almost depressingly weak, we’ll just have to steadily work at it with whatever we can do. Don’t even think about spouting anymore complaints.”
“The NRIPS will also continue to investigate further into this. It might not mean much because of how absurd of a conclusion we reached, but we might as well send a doc.u.ment of our reports to the Ministry too. Even if the chance is one in a hundred million, it would help us a lot of any Lionel shipments got recalled.”
“Thanks for your continued cooperation.”
After excusing himself, Ichijou laid his hand on Mika’s shoulder and looked at her in the eyes.
“I’ll be counting on you, too.”
Mika lifted up her face but failed to manage any words and simply made a slight nod. Enokida then began to discuss with Sugita about handling weapons, and Ichijou and Mika made their way out of the NRIPS.
The series of incidents lied far beyond the realm of detective work. Especially for Mika, who had never experienced anything like it. The weight of responsibility on her shoulders was likely ten times heavier than what Ichijou felt. But Ichijou knew that she would be able to stand up against it as a police officer, as he glanced at her face and stepped on the gas pedal.
The final results the NRIPS obtained from the Lionel a.n.a.lysis were sent to the Ministry that same day. The person in charge went through them, but just as Enokida thought, they made no plans to recall the product.
Officially speaking, the investigation on these incidents were supposed to be terminated, but Sugita managed to obtain cooperation from several detectives, and they formed a network around investigating Gouhara’s actions and whereabouts.
“This is really rea.s.suring.”
Ichijou was speaking to Sugita as he looked over a doc.u.ment with all the names of the people who were cooperating.
“Although they’re all people who were part of what happened 13 years ago. Couldn’t really talk about it that openly, after all.”
While listening to Sugita, Ichijou looked for a name he felt should have been on the doc.u.ment. Sugita quickly caught onto what he was doing.
“Well, um, yeah, in the end, we didn’t contact Sakurai. Rather, we couldn’t contact him.”
“Right, he got transferred to another department, after all.”
Ichijou had recently received a postcard from Sakurai notifying him that he finished moving to his new home and decided to move away from the detective work in hopes of marrying soon.
“I’m sure he’d drop everything to join our cause if we contacted him, but at the same time I’m sure that would ruin his current career plans.”
Sugita rubbed his shaved head in self-contempt and added another remark.
“You know...his wife, Sasayama, is pregnant.”
“Wow, really?”
The good news was like a shining light amidst the past depressingly heavy days.
“If we contact Sakurai, I’m sure Sasayama would want to join in too… I know I shouldn’t just leave them out, but I spent a lot of time thinking about this.”
“I completely understand.”
“We went through a lot to get all these people on the list, but you have to understand that they won’t be at our beck and call. Considering the situation, it’ll take time for them to do anything to help us. Just don’t get your hopes up.”
The door to the meeting room then flew open, and they turned around to see Mika wearing a dumbfounded face while holding a magazine.
“What’s wrong, Natsume?”
“...Take a look at this.”
Written in an incredibly gaudy font was the t.i.tle “Over 100 Million Lionel Bottles Sold Campaign!”.
“‘Thanks to all of you, we are close to reaching over 100 million Lionel bottles sold’...’The popularity of this product has grown at an incredible rate during the past three months’... Is this seriously happening?”
“Look at the next page, too.”
Turning the page revealed an interview-style advertis.e.m.e.nt. Pictured was the president of the recreational drug industry holding a bottle of Lionel Z while having a lively chat with none other than Tadayuki Gouhara.
“Gouhara…!”
Sugita glared at the article as he began reading it with Ichijou. The dialogue between the two was completely transparent.
“I’ve had a look at the results for the questionnaire, and it seems that on average, people are enjoying about two bottles of Lionel every three days. I have to say, that’s quite the achievement!”
“Yes. Our firm has been producing various drinks for about 40 years now, but we’ve never seen people enjoy our product this much.”
“It really is amazing how it can make you smile just from drinking it. I’ve actually often found myself scowling after thinking of ways to counter my opposition, and always end up asking my secretary to go buy me some Lionel. (laughs)”
Before even finishing reading the article, Sugita picked up the magazine and threw it onto the ground.
“Geez, what the h.e.l.l does he mean by “It really is amazing”, this is ridiculous!”
“It’s expected that the total of Lionel bottles sold will reach 100 million three months after it first went on sale… That’s five days from now!”
Mika continued with a pale face.
“If we take into account the average of one person drinking two bottles of Lionel every three days over the course of three months, and the total number of bottles being 100 million, that means that about 1.66 million people have consumed it!”
“1.66 million…!”
That was the number deciphered from the conversation between Rin Togibe and Gouhara about his intended slaughter count.
“So that means in five days, Gouhara will flip the switch and all those people will…!?”
Sugita turned to Ichijou with a clear look of shock on his face. And then Ichijou spoke with anger within his eyes.
“This is most likely a challenge from him.”
“What!?”
“After Enokida coincidentally conversed with him via Rin Togibe’s smartphone, there’s no doubt that he perceived our future actions and purposely set up this interview advertis.e.m.e.nt for us to see. He then created an arbitrary “average” that would lead us to calculating the date when he would enact his slaughter.”
“So he thinks that we won’t be able to do anything about it anyway, and pretty much sent us a calling card!? He’s taking us for G.o.dd.a.m.n fools!”
“On the other hand, however, this means that he won’t do anything until that date. Considering how Rin Togibe murdered 32,000 people all at once, it’s very likely that Gouhara set it up so that 1.66 million people will all be murdered at once.”
“I see… He has to murder the number of people he decided on previously all at once, otherwise it wouldn’t count as clearing his goal for the game.”
“This time we’ll end his scheme with our own hands. so we can end this wretched game once and for all!”
Ichijou and Mika went over simulations on what to do when they encounter Gouhara. Because they had no idea what kind of abilities he would have when he would change form, there was little they could do in terms of thinking of countermeasures. However, they needed to plan for what to do when they make contact, when he changes form, and where they would fight and defeat him. They had a great amount of matters to attend to, such as procedures for an emergency retreat, and confirming just how much support they would be able to receive. Enokida would be focusing on developing new Anti-Unidentified Lifeform bullets until the morning of the slaughter date. Because the development originally got suspended due to their research on the smartphone and Lionel, they would barely have enough time to finish it. In hopes of it finishing as soon as possible, Ichijou and Mika continued to brainstorm countermeasures. Thanks to the immense efforts Sugita went through, he managed to convince over twenty detectives nation-wide to meet up with them in four days first thing in the morning. And Mika, who had originally been showing nothing but fear in regards to the operation, began working with surprisingly increased fervor. “We will definitely see the light…” Those words were what supported her and allowed her to get this far.
Two days later during the evening, after receiving a call from Enokida asking to meet up with her, Ichijou and Mika made their way to the police department in Koto. Prototypes for the new nerve-breaking bullets Sugita had requested had finished development. Being that Gouhara was an important person in the realms of politics, he would be extremely well guarded, making it even harder to make contact with him than Rin Togibe. Due to this, Sugita wanted to make use of an enhanced version of the long-range high pressure rifle used back in the fight with No. 39.
“Sorry it took so long! I wanted to test the recoil rate.”
At a shooting range with no one around within a 300 meter radius, Ichijou fired one of the new nerve-breaking bullets from the high pressure rifle. The recoil was nothing like he had ever experienced, and it took everything he had to prevent his upper body from being thrown back. Even Ichijou, who had confidence in his ability with a rifle even while Kuuga was fighting close-range with his target, was a bit overwhelmed by its power.
“So even Ichijou has trouble with the recoil… Alright, then I’ll attach a muzzle brake and make some more fine adjustments. I’m sure I’ll be able to get it to you within two days, see ya!”
Enokida immediately began making her way out, but quickly stopped herself with an “Oh, wait!”
“I almost forgot to tell you. I’ll be getting 300 of those Python-use nerve-breaking bullets within two days too. We were originally going to get 2000 of them, but we’re already at our limit, you know?”
Considering the number of detectives that would be partic.i.p.ating in the operation, it would be hard to say that 300 would be enough. But with the enhanced power, they would at least be able to handle cover. The materials they were asking for had to be received under the table, since they could not be purchased legally, so there was a limit to how much they could get away with. Despite that, Enokida pulled all the brakes and did her best to gather what she could to meet their demands. The pa.s.sion she showed in her work was unchanged from the time she worked with Ichijou 13 years ago. That was why Ichijou had immense trust in her, but Mika, on the other hand, still had some doubts.
“We will make it in time, right…?”
“Hmm?”
“If we don’t make it in time, then he’ll be all alone…”
“...Are you talking about G.o.dai…?”
“.........”
“Don’t worry, we definitely won’t leave him by himself.”
Mika raised her face with a pained expression. As if she was saying “Is that really true?”
Looking straight back at her, Ichijou revised his statement.
“...No, in fact, we won’t even give him a chance to do a thing.”
After staying at the police office for two days working on the simulation, he printed out some copies of the doc.u.ments and got ready to go home. With the new rifles and new nerve-breaking bullets, along with the amount of people they gathered together, he was sure the operation had a chance. They had twelve different scenarios they planned out in accordance to the possible developments that could occur during their capture of Gouhara. All that was left to do was to get a good night’s rest and prepare for that moment.
Sugita got a phone call from somewhere as Ichijou and Mika exited the room with him, and they excused themselves before going on their separate ways. It was going to be a quiet evening.
However, right at the moment Mika was about to hit the b.u.t.ton next to the elevator, Sugita came rushing to them shouting “Hold on, guys!”
“Gouhara is planning on travelling to Brazil! And it’s going to happen tomorrow evening!”
“What did you say…!?”
It was a completely unexpected move. Among all of the actions they had observed from him so far, none of them had suggested he would do such a thing. The sudden decision was made to prioritize one of his previously established schedules. His goal was to a.s.sist with the train system. Plans to develop bullet trains in Brazil had been postponed indefinitely, but they were being re-opened, and so Gouhara wanted to make it there as soon as possible.
“This must have been something decided between businesses, there’s no way the Ministry of MITI could make a decision like this.”
Mika’s face became visibly pale.
“He’s going to escape to somewhere we can’t reach him...and leisurely flip the switch at ease…”
If he managed to conceal himself overseas and engage the quantum entanglement particles, the 1.66 million people who consumed Lionel would die. They had to stop him before that happened.
Mika contacted Enokida right away.
“Enokida-san, please get the rifles and bullets ready by tomorrow afternoon.”
“What!? What’s going on!? You’re asking for the impossible!”
“Then please do the impossible! Gouhara is going to escape!”
“Calm down, Natsume-kun! There’s no doubt that he’ll show up at the airport tomorrow evening! If we focus on making our preparations until then, that’ll make the operation run more smoothly!”
“If we make our preparations...right? But…”
For the time being, Enokida said that she would do what she could.
“I can’t promise anything, though. The bullets are all manufactured at the f.u.kudori Prefecture, and just transporting them would take a few hours. Honestly, the chance that we would be able to make it in time would likely be less than 10 percent.”
Sugita decided to make preparations for the off chance they would be stuck using their normal weapons and equipment. However, there was little chance of victory to be seen in that plan. It was made solely because he wanted everyone to at least be able to do something, even if it meant going in there practically unarmed.
The fate of 1.66 million lives was hanging onto the development of the new rifle and bullets.
“Let’s believe in Enokida-san…”
But Mika’s opinion on the situation did not seem to change in response to Ichijou’s words.
An hour later, Ichijou returned to his house. He wanted to relieve himself of as much fatigue as he could in preparation for tomorrow.
After taking a shower and cleansing himself of his sweat and heavy thoughts, he collapsed onto his bed and closed his eyes. Even Ichijou had his inner doubts and anxiety. He wanted to take down the threat with only the power of the police force, but that ideal was beginning to collapse. G.o.dai was going to appear again and have them borrow his strength, even though Ichijou promised himself that he would not let G.o.dai bear that inhuman strength on his own again…
Suddenly a heavy rain began to pour down, and nothing but the sound of raindrops filled his room that quiet night. As Ichijou focused on that insignificant detail, he began to recall a certain memory.
When he was in the third grade, he encountered a trembling puppy in the rain.
Growing fond of it, he handed it some bread, which it hungrily ate up. The puppy then began wagging its tail at an incredible rate, which he thought was so cute that he picked it up and asked it, “Do you want to come home with me?” But at that moment, young Kaoru remembered that his apartment did not allow pets, and he disappointedly lowered the puppy back onto the ground. He then immediately turned around and ran off as fast as he could, without looking back even once.
When he next encountered the puppy, it had been ran over and dead. And Kaoru cried.
When Ichijou next opened his eyes, it had not been much time since he dozed off.
The rain had been falling harder.
As Ichijou approached the window side to draw his half-closed curtain, he noticed someone standing beneath a streetlamp outside, blurred by the rain. Whoever it was, they were standing without even an umbrella. Feeling a sense of unease, Ichijou pressed his face to the window to get a better look, discovering a drenched Mika.
Ichijou immediately got dressed and headed outside with an umbrella. After sheltering her from the rain, he questioned her.
“What are you doing here like this…?”
“...I’m sorry…”
Looking down, that was all Mika had to say. Ichijou put his arm around her shoulders and helped her to the entrance, but when she would not take another step further, Ichijou went to grab a bath towel and wrapped it around her head.
“Let’s just get you dried up first. Would you like some coffee…?”
As Ichijou turned around towards the kitchen, Mika grabbed the back of his shirt. As Ichijou looked back in response, Mika began to faintly mumble something with her head still down.
“...me.”
“Huh?”
“...Please don’t leave me…”
She was still looking down, but Ichijou was able to barely hear out her words the second time.
“Natsume-kun…?”
As Ichijou began to turn to her in confusion, Mika plunged her face into his chest. He could feel her warmth through his t-shirt, and her breath at his chest felt even warmer. As Ichijou stood there dumbfoundedly, Mika grabbed onto his t-shirt and slowly lifted up her face and spoke with clouded eyes.
“Ichijou-san… Please, hug me.”
“Natsume-kun…!? What are you saying…!?”
Mika squeezed Ichijou’s hands while he was unable to find a place to put them. Mika then once again buried her face in his chest and embraced him as hard as she could. From within her trembling breaths, she squeezed out a desperate plea.
“...Please hug me...at least, just for now...let me connect with you…”
Ichijou was a man too. It was not as if he was unable to feel anything from this. But he did not hold any special feelings for her. It would be irresponsible of him to accept Mika like this.
“...You shouldn’t say such foolish things.”
Ichijou grabbed her shoulders and gently pushed her back.
With their connection severed, Mika turned around as her shoulders drooped down. Just as she was about to retreat, she stopped for a moment in silence, before speaking once more with her head down.
“I know… I shouldn’t let myself depend on you so much…”
“Huh…?”
“I’ll… I’ll see this through to the end, in my own way…!”
As Mika lifted her face, her eyes showed none of the hesitation or weakness she showed earlier. Ichijou, who was unable to completely comprehend what she was saying, simply stood there perplexed. Ichijou’s phone then began to ring, it was from Sakurako. It was likely something important, which created a gap between Ichijou and Mika. Mika took advantage of this and ran off with an instant “See ya!”
“Natsume-kun!”
Ichijou reflexively chased after her. But Mika was quickly picked up by a taxi that just happened to be pa.s.sing by, and she escaped into the rainy evening. As Ichijou simply stood there unable to do a thing, the phone in his hand continued to ring. After shifting gears in his head, he answered the call.
“Sorry for calling so late, this is Sawatari. Is this a bad time?”
“No, it’s fine. What did you want to talk about?”
“I’m in Nagano right now, and we I finally found that other set of ruins!”
“The Coffin of Darkness… was it?”
“Yes. And just like the Kurougake ruins, there’s a mummy of a warrior enshrined here.”
“! So you’re saying that there were warriors other than Kuuga!?”
“No. It appears that the warrior that rests here has also been a.s.signed the t.i.tle of Kuuga.”
“So there was another Kuuga…?”
“Yes. According to the inscription, this warrior used a sort of prototype version of the Arcle. However, the Amadam used for it was still incomplete, making it so that it was easy for darkness to begin festering in the user’s heart, which eventually led that warrior to go berserk. Supposedly, he was able to barely hold on and seal the Grongi, but pa.s.sed away soon after that. In the new Arcle…the one G.o.dai used, a feature was installed that would warn the user when darkness would begin to fester.”
“To think that there was that kind of history to the Arcle…”
“If that’s all there was to it, I wouldn’t have rushed to contact you, but...that very prototype Arcle isn’t anywhere to be seen.”
“What…!?”
“The entrance to the ruins was completely caved in, but it’s possible that a landslide three years ago may have re-opened it. It was in a place that rarely ever saw people, but there are signs that someone may have deliberately sealed the entrance again. It could be possible that like the case with No. 0, there may have been a surviving Grongi. Do you think it may have been behind it?”
“I doubt it... I don’t see why a Grongi would go through the trouble of doing that.”
Suddenly, a certain something began to spark aflame within Ichijou’s heart.
“Sawatari-san, do you know if anyone had access to Professor Natsume’s thesis paper from the university?”
“Other than members of our research lab and the ones from Shinano University, I don’t think so… Oh, Mika-chan might have known something about it…”
“Natsume-kun…!?”
“Yes. You heard about how three years ago, Mika’s mother pa.s.sed away due to illness, right?”
Ichijou had not heard a thing about that. Could she have purposely avoided that topic?
“She helped me out alot back then in Nagano, so I attended the funeral. It was there that I remember Mika looking through the research notes left behind by her father. I remember she showed some unease towards it, talking about what would happen if the Unidentified Lifeforms showed up again…”
“I had no idea…”
“Yes. Professor Natsume had a lot of experience in this field, so he may have had left a memo regarding the existence of a second set of ruins…”
Three years ago, Mika was in the Nagano Prefecture. And as part of the security team for the mountain patrol, it was entirely possible that she had the chance to inspect the landslide…
Ichijou swallowed his breath.
Could it be that Mika…!?
Flashbacks of his time with Mika began circling through his head. The moments that felt especially suspicious began appearing one after the other.
Back in Kyoto when the subject of G.o.dai first came up, he talked about the horror G.o.dai must have experienced when he changed form, to which Mika displayed an abnormal level of shock against. Mika was also the one who made the comment that when the limits of what the police force could do became more apparent, the more hope there would be for Kuuga to show up. If Mika herself was Kuuga, then it would make sense for her to say such a thing. And furthermore, despite the immense amount of falling rubble during the fight with No. 48, Mika was able to get out of it with only a few light injuries.
Now that he thought about it, when Mika talked about the fight between Kuuga and No. 48, not once did she refer to Kuuga as “G.o.dai”. Normally, she would say something like “G.o.dai-san saved me.” It could have been that Mika was not very comfortable with lying, so she chose her words carefully.
During the incident with the Nakamen Company president, while wearing the Arcle, she had transformed, but did not engage in combat. It was because No. B-1 had taken care of him beforehand. And the fight with No. 48 was the first time she fought as Kuuga. It was likely that ever since then, she had been struggling with all kinds of feelings. Fear, pain, and the faint tug of the sense of duty…
After Gouhara became the next target, she must have been suffocated by all of those things day after day. Mika had left Ichijou with the words “I’ll see this through to the end” before disappearing, the same words G.o.dai left him. The only difference was that this time, Mika was heading off with an incomplete Arcle.
“You’re getting too ahead of yourself, Natsume-kun!”
Ichijou screamed those words in his heart as he ended the call with Sakurako, and immediately called Mika, to which she did not respond. He then immediately called Sugita and told him everything about what happened with Mika. The only possible place she could have gone to was where Gouhara would be. According to the news, Gouhara had just finished a meeting with his project team at the democratic party main office.
As Ichijou rushed towards that location in his car, the rain began letting up, but his heart remained stormy.
Why didn’t I realize it? Why didn’t I hug her? Who cares if it might have been irresponsible, if I had properly embraced her at that moment, she might have kept a cool head about this.
When Ichijou thought about the feelings and determination she went through when she stood in the rain and when she headed towards Gouhara’s location, Ichijou’s heart could not help but ache. He began to think about how much better it would have been if he was the one to wear the Arcle, the same thoughts he had thirteen years ago.
Just how many times am I going to make the same mistake…!?
Sitting on the top of the multistoried building was a structure like a gla.s.s tower that stretched towards the darkness, with its surroundings ominously quiet. Two jet-black cars were parked in front of the center entrance, with several men standing around them wearing badges that showed that they were members of the Diet. After getting out of his car and heading through the side entrance, Ichijou listened to their conversation and confirmed Mika’s arrival. They mentioned that a female detective asked to have a short talk with Gouhara, who which obliged and headed into the elevator alone with her. Supposedly he had forgotten something in his office, and was fine with answering Mika’s questions on his way to retrieve it, something the men were growing anxious about.
Ichijou showed his police badge to one of the security guards, and presented his folded up picture of Yusuke while whispering “Sorry, G.o.dai” to his heart. Under the pretense of asking information about him as a suspect, Ichijou sneaked a peek at the security monitors. Sure enough, one of them showed Gouhara and Mika pa.s.sing by. Although they were not on the same floor as Gouhara’s office the men were talking about, rather, it was where the president’s office was located, the top floor. For the time being, Ichijou made his way back to the front, finding an excess oil retrieval truck parked in front of him. While it was a bit of an old-fashioned and reckless move, Ichijou threw out a smoke candle from his car, catching the truck owner off-guard and giving Ichijou the chance to slide under the truck. Taking advantage of the security guards coming to resolve the commotion, Ichijou infiltrated the building. After taking the high-speed elevator to the top floor, Ichijou entered a long hallway, dark from all the lights being turned off. Stemming from a proposal of one of Gouhara’s committee members, iPads were installed on the walls within regular intervals of each other. During the afternoon, they would display images and videos from various prefectures or messages from the president, along with a guide feature that utilized touch panels. As Ichijou took a step forward in order to find the room where Gouhara and Mika was, all the iPads lit up simultaneously. Displayed were two figures within the president’s wide office, surrounded by gla.s.s.
They were Gouhara and Mika.
Their conversation began playing at an accelerated rate.
“I’ve been waiting for you, half-boiled detective.”
“You must have heard about it from No. B-1… I knew it was you…!”
“Fufu. You’ve done an impressive job, walking right into my web.”
“...And just what do you mean by that?”
“My oversea travels were but a pretense. I knew if I made that announcement, you police officers would come straight for me.”
As Mika glared at him with a confused face, Gouhara continued with an air of composure.
“It was essentially a performance made to make this game more exciting.”
“...I won’t let you complete this ‘game’ of yours!”
As anger swept through her body, Mika changed form into the white Kuuga.
“Don’t do it, Natsume-kun! You won’t be able to do anything while in the white form!”
Of course, Ichijou’s voice would not reach her.
“Once I defeat you, everything will be over…”
Filled with determination, the white Kuuga’s hands balled up into fists.
But Gouhara simply laughed scornfully in response.
“As I thought, you seem to have gotten the wrong idea.”
“What…!?”
“Those figures I announced were but a rough estimate. In reality, I have already reached my target number.”
“That can’t be…!”
“Shall we test it out? Once I change form, I can kill them off in any way I’d like.”
“Your threats aren’t going to-”
“This isn’t a threat. It’s just that even being able to see but one more Linto suffer would make this all the more enjoyable.”
While listening to their exchange, Ichijou made his way to the security gate in front of the president’s office. With his only way in blocked off by a secure lock system, Ichijou continued to listen.
“...Don’t screw with me…!”
“If you don’t want that to happen, then take me down with one strike. I’ll only give you one chance.”
“I’ll...kill you!”
The white Kuuga dashed towards Gouhara at lightning speed, her fist connecting with his chest with an incredible rate. Gouhara’s body flew towards the wall behind him, blood flying from his mouth upon impact, his body then crumbling to the floor without showing a single sign of life.
But as Ichijou watched that scene play out from the corner of his eye as he continued to shoot down the security system, he grew anxious. There was no way it would end just like that.
The white Kuuga’s shoulders rose as she took a deep breath. In front of her eyes, the fallen Gouhara suddenly burst out laughing, as he slowly rose up from the ground.
“If you’re going to say that you’ll kill me, you have to make sure that I can’t resuscitate myself. Like blowing my head into pieces, for example. In the end, all of you are just too naive.”
As Gouhara spoke, a disturbing sound could be heard from his body as he transformed. His skin became black, a mane of sorts grew around his neck and shoulders, and his head twisted into the shape of a lion’s. The lion species monster Go Raio Da had shown itself.
At almost the same time, a variety of bizarre events began occurring within the 270 degree view of the night before them. A car went berserk near the Shuto Expressway, causing a series of car accidents. A trailer car ran straight into a gas station. A plane taking off from Haneda Airport began taking on an unnatural turn and plunged into an Odaiba building. The fires from all these explosions began spreading throughout the city, drowning the night sky in a sea of smoke.
“What…!? Just what is going on here…!?”
“It looks like there was a pilot among the many Lionel fans.”
“No, it can’t be…!”
“As a little side show, I had about 300 people within this area in our view fall into mental instability at the same time. I’d presume that about 1000 people died as a result of that ensuing chaos.”
As Raio gave off a ridiculing laugh, he picked up the white Kuuga by her neck as she murmured the words “This can’t be…”, reverting to her human form. It was at that moment that Ichijou barged into the room. Without a moment’s delay, Ichijou shot at Raio’s shoulders, causing him to release his grip on Mika. But at the same time, he shoved Mika’s head under his foot, and returned to his human form while taking out his smartphone.
“Take your foot off of her…!”
Ichijou kept his gun aimed at Gouhara as he carefully closed the distance, but Gouhara paid absolutely no mind to him.
“Hang on just a second for me. I’m declaring my crime to the internet right now. It’s not like the inept police force can do anything about it anyway, right?”
Ichijou shot the smartphone out of his hands.
Gouhara silently took on Ichijou’s intense glare with glee.
“Fufu… You know, Ichijou-san. I love the people of this country. They always do exactly what I want. Each and every one of them give in to their greed so easily.”
“What are you saying…!?”
“I didn’t do a single thing that wasn’t desired by the people. For the sake of the authorization of Lionel, I worked the hardest I could to provide a method to people who desired benefits that would give them even more benefits. That’s why authorizations that would normally never be approved kept getting approved, leading to immediate commercial production. While there were some people who showed disapproval, it was the people themselves that drowned out those naysayers all on their own. There were some people who argued over the possibility of undesirable side effects due to the ingredients, but after I asked the advertising agency to do something about it, they went ahead and made it a national drink. As long as there’s money going around, no one really cares about who says what.”
It was then that Mika regained consciousness and began lifting her head up, but Gouhara immediately denied that of her and grinded her head back into the floor. The action was meant to ridicule her. As Gouhara lifted his gaze back up, Ichijou seized that chance to fire three shots into his eyes. While Gouhara tottered from the impact back towards the gla.s.s window behind him, Ichijou ran to Mika’s side. However, Gouhara pushed out the bullets from the eye sockets of his now smiling face, with the wounds instantly recovering afterwards.
“The Linto sure have changed… At least, in my time, they were still a species with pride. But now, they’re willing to feed their very children with Lionel, just because it makes them smile, not caring a bit about the potential dangers of the product. They are truly foolish creatures. Those who are foolish should die.”
“Don’t screw with me! You’re the one who set them up like that!”
As Ichijou’s cry rang out, Mika’s fists squeezed tighter in response while she laid beneath Gouhara’s foot.
“The only reason we’ve been going to such lengths for the Gegeru is because we’ve been disillusioned by the Linto. Back then, we would have been more than enough satisfied with just killing them. There was a thrill in stepping over those with pride. But now it’s different. We have to win them over, again and again, and then betray their expectations, causing them to fall to h.e.l.l while embracing shock and sadness over realizing how much of a fool they were. Only then will we be able to enjoy ourselves.
“...I’ve had enough of you!”
As she screamed those words, Mika slipped out from beneath Gouhara and slowly managed to stand up.
“I don’t want to hear your logic over straight-up murder!”
Gouhara then began to let out a ridiculing laugh.
“Your father was murdered by Daguva, correct?”
“...What about it…!?”
“That was for the best, don’t you think?”
“!? ...What!?”
“Thanks to that, he won’t have to suffer to the likes of earthquake disasters, or nuclear power plant accidents. And above all, he wouldn’t have to die realizing just how incompetent this country is.”
“...Just what are you saying…!?”
“If I was a Linto, I would be so filled with anxiety right now that I would want to die. That’s why I’m sure he’s feeling happy right now in the next world that he didn’t have to suffer such a death.”
“...Just what is with that logic…”
Mika cast her face down and covered it with her fists. Gouhara paid no mind and continued.
“My Gegeru is the same. I’m enjoying myself. And I’m sure the 1.66 million people falling from death are happy too. Isn’t this just the greatest?”
“...Don’t screw with me!”
Mika’s body instantly changed form.
“This time…I’ll kill you for good!”
As she shouted out with a rough voice, her shoulders, arms, and legs all had horns growing from them, as they were those of the black Kuuga. But compared to the time G.o.dai fought Daguba, the horns were smaller, and the large eyes were flickering between red and black.
“Stop, don’t do this, Natsume-kun!”
Faster than Ichijou could finish his words, the black Kuuga plunged into the now transformed Raio, with the both of them crashing through the windows.
Ichijou looked out the window while being ravaged by the strong wind, catching sight of the two of them intertwined as they fell and smashed onto the ground beneath. Water began gushing out from the nearby damaged fire hydrants. It would have caused quite the panic, had it been the afternoon. Ichijou ran out of the president’s office and immediately contacted Sugita, while he made his way down to the 1st floor using the high speed elevator. He then rushed towards the terrace side across the waterspout decorations and found the crevice created from their fall, but neither the black Kuuga or Raio were in sight. In no time at all arrived Sugita in a police car. After shutting off the patrol light and stepping out of the vehicle, he shouted towards Ichijou.
“Natsume and Gouhara just disappeared while they were fighting! We can’t catch up with them in our vehicles! For the time being, I issued an emergency warning, but…”
“If things don’t go well, Natsume-kun could easily go berserk! We have to do something…!”
But there was nothing they could do. Suddenly, they were a.s.saulted by a blinding light.
“What…!?”
A white offroad dirtbike slid onto the scene with a roar. Wearing a motorcycle helmet and suit, the rider’s ident.i.ty was unknown. As stopped his vehicle and flipped his visor, he was revealed to be…
“Sakurai!”
“You’re too cruel, Sugita! Why didn’t you let us in on this!?”
“Sorry. But why are you here…?”
Apparently, he heard rumors from an old friend about what was going on, and he went through all kinds of trouble to arrive at the scene as fast as he could. But they did not have the time to continue talking about that.
“Before I left, my wife had me bring her BTCS(Beatchaser)3000 with me!”
While he said that, Sakurai handed his helmet over to Ichijou.
“I’ve heard of this vehicle…”
“My wife made sure to test tune it, so I can a.s.sure you that it runs well.”
The communications device then could be heard from the helmet, saying “Tsuu-san, have you arrived at the scene yet?” It was Nozomi’s voice.
“This is Ichijou… Is this Sasayama-kun!?”
“Huh!? Oh, sorry…”
“Nozomi-chan, where are you right now?”
Tsubaki spoke over the intercom, to which Nozomi responded “I’ll soon be right above you!”, as a helicopter appeared in the sky above the democratic party building.
“Ichijou-san, I’ll be gathering and sorting out information from all over the place, and I’ll use that information to support you from above as you chase them