Chapter 141: Episode 3 · Remaining Sense of Pain (Part 2)
Within the Film
After parting ways with the mysterious girl, Kokutou Mikiya arrived at Aozaki Touko's office—only to be surprised to find Ryougi Shiki already there.
"Huh? Shiki, what are you doing in a place like this?"
"That's a rude way to put it. This is your workplace, isn't it, Kokutou?"
On the other side of the room, Aozaki Touko sat quietly at her desk and spoke up.
"You're early. Didn't I tell you there weren't any cases lately? You could have come in the afternoon."
"Boss, I hate to bring this up as soon as I arrive, but… please pay my salary."
"Kokutou, about that… The issue is that I don't have any money right now. Sorry, but I'll have to pay you next month instead."
"You've got to be kidding me. Didn't you just rent a plot of land from the Asagami family yesterday? That must have cost a fortune."
"Yeah. That's exactly why I'm broke."
"…"
Touko's reasoning was so absurdly logical that Kokutou was momentarily left speechless.
"…Fine. In that case, to cover my living expenses for this month, I'm going to leave early today. That should be okay, right?"
"Sure. Oh, by the way, Kokutou, I have one more favor to ask."
"What is it?"
"Can you lend me some money? As you can see, I'm completely penniless."
"…"
Realizing that his own boss had stooped so low as to borrow money from him, Kokutou took a deep breath, forcefully shut the office door, and walked out.
After seeing him off, Aozaki Touko turned her gaze toward Ryougi Shiki and spoke.
"I know you just got out of the hospital, so it's a bit inconsiderate of me to ask this… but financial struggles are something everyone faces at some point. For the sake of this office's survival, I really need your help with this case."
"You mean last night's incident?"
"Exactly. This time, the client is fully aware of who the killer was. Your job is to protect the perpetrator as much as possible. However, if they show even the slightest resistance—"
"You can eliminate them without hesitation."
"Killing them just for resisting? Are you sure about this?"
"If you kill them, they'll make it look like an accidental death."
"…That's convenient."
With that, Shiki turned and walked away without hesitation.
Seeing her reaction, Aozaki Touko remarked,
"Why are you in such a rush? You don't even know what she looks like. How do you expect to find her?"
"I don't need to. That person is definitely the same as me. So, the moment we meet, we'll inevitably start fighting."
As she finished speaking, Ryougi Shiki had already left the room.
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When the scene ended, the audience immediately began to discuss it.
"Judging by the timeline, this must be shortly after Ryougi Shiki was discharged from the hospital. Her arms are still intact, which means this happens somewhere between A Study in Murder – Part 1 and Overlooking View."
"How did Shiki and Aozaki Touko even meet? Did Kokutou introduce them?"
"What about that other Ryougi? In Overlooking View, Shiki's second personality didn't seem to be present. Does that mean the other Ryougi's persona never reawakened?"
"Forget that—what's up with the girl from earlier? Someone hired Shiki to protect her, but then said she could be killed if she resisted? That makes no sense."
"There are so many weird contradictions in this case…"
Since only a small portion of the story had been revealed, there wasn't enough information for the audience to form a complete picture. All they could do was remain patient and continue watching.
<+>
After leaving Aozaki Touko's office, Kokutou Mikiya went to meet an old friend from his school days.
His purpose was obvious—he needed to borrow money.
However, after learning Kokutou's reason for visiting, his friend unexpectedly made a request of his own.
"I can lend you some money, but I want you to do me a favor."
"Oh? Is there something troubling you?"
"I need you to help me find someone."
"Tell me the details."
"His name is Keita Minato. He used to be one of my underclassmen. He wasn't exactly a good guy, but he wasn't truly bad either. A while ago, he ended up joining a gang of thugs by accident. He was at the scene of that bizarre murder last night. Though he survived, he's been acting extremely strangely since then—he refuses to go home and looks like he's terrified of something."
"Was he on drugs?"
"No, the ones who did drugs were the guys who got killed. Keita is a coward—he wouldn't dare get involved in anything risky. That's probably the only reason he survived."
"Alright, I'll look for him."
Kokutou Mikiya was inherently kind. Even though he had stepped into a darker world, he couldn't bring himself to ignore someone in danger.
While Kokutou Mikiya was searching for Keita Minato, the grotesque string of murders continued—three incidents in total.
Every victim had their limbs twisted off, and their corpses were left in a miserable state.
Meanwhile, after accepting Aozaki Touko's request, Ryougi Shiki roamed the city. By chance, she ran into Kokutou Mikiya's younger sister, Kokutou Azaka.
Shiki and Azaka had met before, back when Shiki visited Mikiya's home. The two never got along, and to Azaka, Shiki was practically a romantic rival.
Sitting beside Azaka was her friend, Asagami Fujino—the same violet-haired girl Mikiya had taken in earlier.
"You—don't you feel pain?"
Shiki's sudden question made Fujino pause. She clearly hadn't expected such words.
Sensing the tension, Azaka cut in and shot Shiki a sharp glare.
"Forget it. I have things to do, so I'll be going. Oh, right—Azaka, do you have anything you want me to tell your brother?"
"Just one thing: 'Brother, please break up with this woman as soon as possible.'"
"Got it."
With that, Shiki turned to leave.
However, after taking only a few steps, Asagami Fujino's image lingered in her mind. She could feel that there was something off about that girl.
After some thought, Shiki decided to turn back and secretly followed her.
Elsewhere
After parting ways with Azaka, Fujino headed alone into a dark alley where delinquents often gathered. She approached a young thug.
"Excuse me, do you know where Keita is?"
"No, I haven't seen him lately. I can't even contact him."
"Do you know where he's hiding?"
"Hiding? What do you mean by hiding? Did he mess up something?"
The thug was irritated by Fujino's strange way of speaking.
He knew that this girl used to be treated as a plaything by Keita's gang, so seeing her now, he naturally had some ideas of his own. With a smirk, he said:
"Forget about all that. If you came to me, doesn't that mean you're looking for some fun? Should we go to my place, or do rich girls like you prefer doing it in a place like this?"
Fujino remained silent, her tone emotionless.
"Before that, answer me—where is Keita?"
"You don't need an excuse anymore, do you? There's no way I'd know where that guy is."
"…"
At that moment, Fujino slowly lifted her gaze.
The thug finally noticed something strange about her eyes.
They glowed with an eerie, spiral-like radiance.
"Where is Keita?"
Her voice carried a forceful, interrogative weight.
And then—
CRACK!
The thug's arm twisted violently on its own. His elbow bent at an unnatural ninety-degree angle, and then—another twist—his joint shattered.
"GUAAAHHHHH!?"
Unable to comprehend what was happening, the thug let out a beast-like scream.
"H-Help— someone help me—!"
The moment his cry rang out, his entire body lifted slightly off the ground. His right leg twisted apart from the knee down.
SPLASH!
Blood sprayed across the pavement like water from an overturned bucket.
From start to finish, Asagami Fujino simply watched with bright, radiant eyes—motionless.
The gruesome scene left the audience in stunned silence.
"What the hell was that?"
"She didn't even touch him. How did his arm twist off like that?"
"Is this some kind of magic?"
Even the Imperial Mage Academy mages were left dumbfounded by the spectacle before them.
<+>
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