"The forensic report indicates the time of death was between 11 PM last night and 1 AM this morning."
The lead officer stepped out from the crime scene. Still wearing his mask and hairnet from evidence collection, he gave a concise briefing to the scar-faced woman before him.
With so many criminal cases piling up lately, the police headquarters was overwhelmed. He hadn’t expected Director Nishikino An herself to visit the scene.
Nishikino An listened impassively. Her team’s efficiency was disappointing. Those two serial murder cases remained unsolved after all this time. The longer they dragged on, the more tangled they became.
Thinking of the park restroom stall case reported last night, Nishikino An frowned slightly. She’d have to discuss it with Kisaragi later. Her hard-won good mood had shattered again at the sight of these unresolved files.
This case likely occurred close to the park incident’s timeline. There might be a connection.
Nishikino An ducked under the yellow police tape and entered the scene. The officer followed, detailing the case:
"The victim’s been identified—a special admissions student from Light Private High School’s second year."
"Family confirmed he never returned home last night."
Officers still on-site greeted her respectfully as she passed. She nodded back, her brow furrowing at the gruesome sight.
The scene lay on the city’s outskirts where asphalt and concrete gave way to grass and farmland. A massive pit yawned in the earth—big enough to hold a person. White chalk outlined a human shape along its edge.
Nishikino An pulled on rubber gloves and crouched by the pit. She sifted through loose soil stained faintly with blood.
According to the first responding officer, a street cleaner had discovered the body. His daily routine included sweeping this road. That morning, he’d spotted a large patch of upturned earth in the distance. Drawing closer, he noticed freshly disturbed soil. Recent news about drug trafficking made him suspicious. He dug through the dirt—
—and came face-to-face with a lifeless, ashen face.
Nishikino An took the crime scene photos from the officer. Cause of death appeared to be asphyxiation. Jagged ligature marks circled the victim’s neck, flanked by scratch wounds—desperate attempts to tear the rope away.
It was unclear if this was the primary crime scene. The killer might have buried the body here after strangling him elsewhere.
The victim’s torn clothing and multiple wounds suggested violent struggle. Some injuries were old; others fresh—as if the killer had stabbed him repeatedly after strangulation, just to be sure.
Given the victim’s ties to Light Private High School, officers had already been dispatched to the campus.
*Eiko Sakurai must be tearing her hair out right now.*
Nishikino An had always clashed with Sakurai. The woman despised her yet played the harmonious colleague perfectly in front of Kisaragi. Such hypocrisy.
"Where’s the street cleaner now?" Nishikino An stood, peeling off her gloves. Her frown deepened as she fixed the officer with a sharp gaze. "Can he be questioned?"
He hesitated, avoiding her eyes. "Well…"
"Is there a problem with the cleaner?" Her voice turned icy, pinning him under her stare.
He swallowed hard. "The victim…"
"…was the cleaner’s son."
---
Kojima Hidemi nearly collided with several students on her way to class, textbooks clutched tightly to her chest. Uncharacteristically, she didn’t snap at them. Her distraction was obvious to anyone glancing her way.
Spotting police officers in uniform entering the school gates, she jolted aside like a startled rabbit. Teachers and students stared briefly before moving on.
*Damn it. What’s Light High doing letting so many cops in?*
*The rooftop incident was already resolved. Why are they back?*
Kojima gritted her teeth. Last night, she’d been leaving a host club in high spirits when a bloodied figure in tattered Light High uniform suddenly grabbed her, begging for help. She recognized him—a second-year special admissions student. Before she could react, Tanaka Kenta and his friends appeared, laughing it off as "just a prank between seniors and juniors."
Between a penniless scholarship student and the Tanaka family’s only heir? The choice was obvious.
Assuming he couldn’t possibly be dead, she’d shoved him away in disgust and sped off.
She hadn’t thought much of it—until teachers in the staff room gossiped moments ago: *That second-year special admissions student is actually dead.*
*Are they here about that?*
*Dead and still causing trouble!*
Kojima’s jaw tightened. Then she spotted Shanwu Lingsheng approaching—calm, gentle, patiently explaining literature problems to students.
Shanwu Lingsheng walked straight past her without a glance.
"Tch." Kojima muttered under her breath. "What a show-off… You were questioned by police this morning too, weren’t you? Probably not so pure yourself—acting all sweet while hiding who knows what kind of monster—"
As if hearing her, Shanwu Lingsheng turned. That ever-present gentle smile stayed fixed on her face.
But her eyes held Kojima like a corpse.
A chill shot from Kojima’s feet to her scalp. She looked away, cursing under her breath, and hurried off.
