The next day.
Aya Tone awoke in a daze, finding, as expected, a little cutie nestled against him.
A chubby cheek rested against his chest, a tiny mouth exhaling soft, steady breaths. In this peaceful scene, even time itself seemed reluctant to disturb her.
But some people were simply not human.
“Time to wake up, time to wake up.”
Aya Tone extended a finger, playfully poking the soft flesh.
“Mm~” The tiny mouth twitched slightly.
Then!
Sly eyes slowly opened a slit. After pinpointing her target, she launched a biting attack with a swift ‘crunch!’
Yet, Aya Tone seemed prepared. Just as his finger was about to fall into the ambush of those baby teeth, he sharply withdrew it, narrowly escaping the sudden assault.
“Hmph~ Papa, you’re cheating.” Seeing her attack miss, Aya Jiu lost all pretense of sleep. She scrambled up, pouting, and glared sullenly at Aya Tone.
‘She had been so careful this time, so why couldn’t she bite him?’
“Oh~” Aya Tone raised an eyebrow slightly.
‘Cheating?’
‘Let me show you what adult shamelessness truly means.’
“Hmph~”
****
After a quick wash.
The living room curtains had been thoughtfully drawn, and in the quiet gloom, several steady breaths mingled.
‘Yes, it seemed last night’s alcohol had served as a rather effective sleep aid.’
Stepping over the mess on the floor, Aya Tone left his home without a trace of lingering attachment.
‘With no women in his heart, his sword would naturally be divine.’
‘He still needed to drag out that bastard who framed him and deal with them first.’
‘That dog, it was clearly a setup, a malicious frame-up.’
‘He was a law-abiding citizen who hadn’t done anything wrong. He always prioritized peace when out and about, and hadn’t offended anyone.’
‘Both of his ‘alt accounts’ had also been peaceful. It couldn’t be that…’
‘He was just a random ‘lucky’ audience member, and his luck was so bad he got picked, right?!’
Aya Tone’s face darkened as he muttered to himself.
On the autumn streets, people were gradually donning long sleeves. A petite, dark figure wove continuously through the crowd.
Finally, he stopped outside the gates of the City Public Security Bureau.
Pulling down the ‘Sealed Hat’ on his head, his delicate little face became an unimpeded pass.
The police officers on duty uniformly snapped to attention, saluting Aya Tone with the highest respect.
“Don’t mind me, I know my way around here.” He’d been brought in for ‘tea’ not long ago, so of course he knew his way around…
But this time, he wasn’t here for tea.
Aya Tone strode towards the conference room.
As he pushed the door open and glanced inside, he saw that the conference room was already filled with various high-ranking officials, dressed in an array of uniforms.
Fire Finch, who hadn’t returned home last night, was also seated among them.
“Everyone’s here, let’s begin then.”
Aya Tone jogged to the empty seat beside Fire Finch and plopped down.
The meeting’s agenda was concise: after the victim was discovered yesterday, it was as if Pandora’s Box had been opened. Within mere hours, multiple new reports had emerged, all describing victims whose deaths mirrored the first.
“So you were kept here?” Aya Tone tugged lightly at Fire Finch’s sleeve.
“Obviously…” Fire Finch’s face was grim, her eyes blazing with fury at the culprit.
‘The matter was almost concluded, and she had been looking forward to going back to celebrate Aya Jiu’s birthday. Damn it!’
‘That killer better pray they don’t fall into my hands, otherwise!’
‘Hmph!’
‘Death itself will be a luxury!’
“Uh…”
Aya Tone quietly recoiled. ‘The President is terrifying.’
‘If it were him, he would simply humanely destroy them and invite their souls into a banner.’
‘He wouldn’t be *that* cruel…’
“This contains the recently collected information about the victims. The most significant link among them is this man.”
Aya Tone stared at the photo pinned to the board, instantly feeling a mix of despair and the urge to cry.
‘Oh no… he’s become the protagonist again…’
‘He definitely didn’t want this kind of role!’
“Um, I think…”
His soft voice instantly drew everyone’s attention.
“Uh…”
Under the gaze of dozens of eyes, Aya Tone cautiously swallowed.
‘Oh my god, don’t look at me!’
‘His dead brain needed to start working, fast!’
Suppressing the tingling sensation on his scalp, he feigned composure, picked up the photos laid out on the table, and began to speak:
“From these photos, it’s clear the victims have no obvious external injuries, yet their expressions suggest they suffered immense torture. This strongly indicates they were harmed by a mental ability.”
“As for the person you suspect, judging by the information in the file, regardless of their strength, they possess a water-type ability. What kind of joke is this?”
Aya Tone’s sharp gaze pierced everyone present like an arrow.
In that moment, everyone’s heart sank. A strange pressure rendered them speechless.
‘Was this the aura of an S-rank?’
The Deputy Director, bracing against the pressure, stammered, “We merely listed all the clues and discussed countermeasures together…”
“Hmph, instead of wasting time here, we should just leave immediately.”
Aya Tone impatiently interrupted, “The culprit dares to commit multiple murders; they’re clearly provoking us! They won’t stop.”
With that, he pushed his chair back and stood up.
The entire process was as smooth as flowing water.
By the time everyone reacted, he had already left the conference room.
“President Fire.”
“Don’t look to me. Just send someone to follow him; with him there, it’s enough.”
Having said that, Fire Finch gathered the documents in front of her and departed under the gaze of the others.
She fully understood Aya Tone’s mood.
‘Having his ‘alt account’ inexplicably branded as a suspect would annoy anyone.’
‘Indeed, it had to be Aya Tone; he gave absolutely no face.’
A wild grin finally spread across Fire Finch’s tired face.
‘She had been on the verge of flipping the table to deal with those old fogeys.’
‘Seeing the Deputy Director dare not utter another word just now filled Fire Finch with immense satisfaction.’
****
After leaving the bureau, Aya Tone quickly located the spot where the first victim had been discovered, cross-referencing the information in the file.
It was in a small alley, a definite haunt for delinquents.
Due to the murder, the already sparsely populated street had become even more desolate.
“It’s a bit cold…”
The autumn wind swept through the alley, carrying a foul stench that assaulted Aya Tone’s nostrils.
“Damn, that really stinks.” Covering his mouth, Aya Tone furrowed his brow.
Without lingering, he casually scanned a shared electric scooter and rode towards the nearest crime scene.
A week had passed since the discovery of the first victim.
‘In a week, even if there had been any clues, they would have long since vanished in the wind and rain.’
‘He was merely curious why the killer would target a delinquent.’
‘For money?’
‘Or revenge?’
However, it seemed too much time had passed, or perhaps someone had deliberately disrupted the magical energy in the air.
He found nothing.
‘Playing hide-and-seek, are we? Well, you’d better hide well, because the cat is coming.’
A cruel smile involuntarily twisted Aya Tone’s lips.
‘Since his opponent had made their move, he would respond.’
The electric scooter sped past, the wind catching in his hood, causing his silver hair to appear and disappear in flashes.
“You, stop!”
“Uh…”
Seeing the traffic police officer waving him to pull over, the wild smile on Aya Tone’s face froze.
“Uncle, I’ve got it, I’ve got it.”
He pulled a small receipt from his bag and waved it in front of the officer.
‘To deal with situations like this, he had prepared his ‘get out of jail free card’ long ago.’
Traffic Police Officer: “…”
“Put on your helmet, and don’t ride in the motor vehicle lane.”
“Oh~”
Heres hoping for a update