Chapter 2 Chapter 2 Unknown Origin

After opening the black envelope and pulling out the black washi paper inside, I finally understood why the envelope was extra thick. There are a total of twelve challenge books inside. Before opening the envelope, I imagined all kinds of different types of cases, but the reality far exceeded my imagination, leaving us in complete despair. All twelve challenge sheets have my name written on them. "This, this is... what's going on..." I read the challenge book over and over with trembling hands.It doesn't look like they are twelve duplicates, each one is about a different event.

"The uniform method is a secret room." Wuqie tried to maintain a calm tone and said, but her complexion was obviously not very good. "This is asking us to solve twelve incidents in one week, and all of them are locked room murders? This is just too messy!" I had the feeling of being rediscovered just how horrible the Crime Victims Relief Council really is.Common sense doesn't work with them, and I've been very clear about this from the very beginning. The game has started. "What should I do..." I held my head and started pacing back and forth in the small room.

Among the twelve challenges, only two events took place in the same place, which means that I have to travel to all twelve events.I don't know exactly where these locations are until I investigate, but their relief efforts are presumably not all concentrated in one city.No matter how you think about it, a week is far from enough. "Calm down, sister, let's discuss countermeasures." "What kind of countermeasure... Unless there is a random door, how can this problem be solved! Even if there is a random door, it is impossible to deal with twelve incidents at the same time!"

"The worst case scenario is to just give up." "……give up?" "Even if you fail to solve the case, the detective will not suffer any punishment. In this case, then we choose those cases that seem to be easier to solve, and leave the rest alone. Same topic." "This is not an exam, but an incident? Some people will really be killed, and some people will really kill people. This is a matter of human life and nothing can be ignored." "Well, so what I mean is to try to solve it as much as possible. It's more reliable to start with the cases that can be dealt with in order, so that nothing is solved."

Wuqie sat down on the bed and looked at me with pleading eyes. Do you have to make some kind of sacrifice in order to achieve your goals? I faced this choice again. "...Maybe you're right," I sat next to her, finally regaining my composure. "Originally, with my ability, whether I can solve one of the incidents is a problem... This is my illusion. I think that as long as I work harder, I can solve all the incidents." "Why did you suddenly say something frustrating?" "I was hit hard by the reality. They should want to tell me through these challenges that no matter how hard I stand on tiptoe, there are always some things that I can't achieve."

"But sister Jie can jump higher than anyone else," Wuqie said with a forced smile. "Because you are by my side, my lord sister, I have survived again and again." "Sister Wuqie..." I don't know when, you started to smile at me. "So you can't be so discouraged, we still have hope." "hope?" "There are several detectives who are good at solving secret room murder cases registered in the detective library. As long as we can get their help, wouldn't we be able to solve twelve cases at the same time?" I see!Since the enemy adopts crowd tactics, we also invited a large number of detectives to fight against them——

"Wait, this won't work," I immediately denied. "I don't trust the Detective Library. I think they must be secretly in collusion with the Victims of Crime Relief Commission. Some of the detectives must be with the members of the Commission." Those who accepted the white envelope. Heard that there are detectives who go after the Victims of Crime Relief Committee and go missing, and their numbers are well over double digits.Just thinking about it, they should have been murdered to silence them, but maybe some of them were invited to join the club like me, and accepted the white envelope.

"Yeah... These people must find it a pleasure to hinder us." "That's right? We don't have time to figure out whether the summoned detectives are friends or foes one by one," I said, glancing at the clock. "Hey, it's been thirty minutes! If we continue like this, one day will pass before we reach a conclusion! Huh... what should we do? What should we do..." Detectives in the Detective Library are unreliable. That being the case, should we go find those detectives who are not registered in the detective library?Where can I find a detective who has not joined the organization and is familiar with the secret room technique?

"Where's your grandpa, is he still not coming for the time being?" "Yeah," Wuqie replied with a nod, lost in thought. "He hasn't contacted me since that day." Ten days ago, the current patriarch of the Wuqie family, Wuqie Bubiwai, contacted us and reminded us "don't get close to the new Immortal Emperor".Since he has an important job abroad, it will be some time before he returns. "It's really not enough to rely on the two of us alone..." "There is one more person who can help," Wuqie said, raising his head. "Ten dozen detectives may not be as good as him alone."

"Hey, who is that? Could it be your detective friend?" "No, I don't know this person either—one of the 30th-level detectives, Yu Jingling." There are currently three detectives with the "000" number. "Earl of the Easy Chair" Longzuo Temple under the moon. "Law Enforcer" Jonny Yap. And the imperial mirror spirit of unknown origin. Yu Jingling's personal file did not disclose any information, and it is not known where this person is currently. Only the case files that have been handled before can prove his or her existence. The cases handled by Yu Jingling are basically strange cases similar to supernatural phenomena, unsolved mysteries in history and extremely confusing cases.There is a little story about Yu Jingling. It is said that this person hid behind opaque glass when solving the unsolved serial murder case in Los Angeles that happened in the 1960s and is still unsolved, commonly known as the "zodiac murder case". In an interview, the name Yujingling was translated as "GHOST IN THE MIRROR".And this phrase has now become synonymous with Yujingling.

"Although it can be confirmed that Longzuosi Yuexia and Jonny Yap were with the new Immortal Emperor, Yujingling was not present at that time." "Anyway, this person must also be a member of the committee. This person has not disclosed his identity, and he is a famous detective, but he has not come out to show his face. He must be their accomplice." "Even to confirm this, I think we can try to contact Yu Jingling. If the other party is an enemy, then we need to find out the true identity of this person as soon as possible." "That's what it says..." To have to deal with level 30 detectives as "enemies" once again made me shudder, feeling like being thrown into an inappropriate battlefield.Why did things turn out like this, no matter how you look at me, I'm just an ordinary high school girl. "How do you get in touch with someone who no one knows the real identity?" "...First of all, we must start thinking about this problem." "Hopefully this week doesn't go by while we're thinking about it." "My lord sister still has the leisure to say sarcastic remarks, so you should think about it too." Wuqie said that she seemed a little angry. While calming her emotions, I thought about Yu Jingling's question again. According to past experience, high-level detectives may not be very decent. Judging from the fact that Yu Jingling hides his identity, the other party may be a rather weird person. Is this person an enemy?or friends? If the level 30 detectives are willing to help us, maybe the time to solve the case can be drastically shortened. "Do you want to leave a note in the detective library like last time? But the detective library can't be trusted..." We also tried our best, and Wuqie and I fell silent with our arms crossed. Now we don't even know where to start. Just at this moment—an unfamiliar phone ringing came from nowhere. "Sister Wuqie, do you have your phone?" "No, I don't have a cell phone." "It's not mine either." I looked at my mobile phone, the screen was in standby mode, and the ringtone didn't ring.But there was indeed a ringtone coming from nowhere. I listened intently, looking for where the sound came from. It sounds like the sound is coming from my backpack. "Ah, could it be..." I remembered what the boy Rikner gave me when I left the detective agency at Ryuzoji yesterday.I quickly pulled it out of the backpack. The sound was indeed coming from the wooden box. I undid the ribbon and opened the box to find a cell phone, wrapped in cushioning material, that was blinking to indicate an incoming call.Other than that there is nothing else in the box. "this is?" "Mr. Ryuzoji gave it to me," I replied succinctly, taking out my phone. "I took it." Wuche nodded. "Incoming call from hidden number" is displayed on the LCD screen.I hit the call button. "--Hey?" "How are you doing recently, how do you feel?" I have an impression of this magnetic voice. "Mr. Longzouji?" "The answer is correct. It seems that the challenge book has been opened, and the style this time is quite different from before. Did it surprise you?" "Isn't that fair?" I said it sarcastically.By the way, I turned on the speaker of the phone, so that the fog cut can also hear our conversation. "Hehe... After all, it's just fairness in the 'Challenge of the Black'. The current situation can be said to be too favorable to you," Long Zuosi's voice seemed to be enjoying it. "My contact with you like this is the exception among the exceptions." "What do you want from me?" "Three things. In this 'Black Challenge', the intelligence of the police will be very important. You can learn all the information the police has through Rico, just ask him at any time." So that's what he meant by helping. "Okay. How do I contact him?" "His number is stored in that mobile phone, you can use it as you like, and we will reimburse you for the phone bill." Long Zuosi probably felt that he had told a joke, so he laughed. Not funny. "The second thing is that this 'Black Challenge' is managed and directed by myself, Ryuzoji Yuexia. In other words, this 'Black Challenge' is initiated by twelve perpetrators to you My challenge is also my challenge to you, I hope you can understand." "--OK." "Therefore, I would like to set up the rules for you and me to win or lose." "Okay...huh?" Win or lose for both of us?A level 30 detective wants to fight me? "If you solve all the incidents within the time limit, or prevent the incident from happening, you win. However, if even one incident is not resolved, you lose. Can you accept it?" "This is not a duel, no matter how you think about it, it is not good for me!" "It's just—" Long Zuosi ignored my opinion and continued. "If I lose, I will quit the Victims of Crime Relief Council." "Withdraw... you mean leave the committee?" "That's right. As long as I, the main creator, leave the committee, the committee will lose its right-hand man and suffer a very heavy blow. For you, this condition should be your dream." "What if I lose?" "It doesn't matter. If you lose, you will only return to the battlefield. If there is any punishment, it should be. As long as you are still a detective, your battle will not end." Although it is not easy to win, this game can be said to be low-risk and high-reward.It seems that there is something inside, but... I glanced at Wukiri and asked for her opinion. Without saying a word, she nodded slightly.I made up my mind. "Okay, I accept your challenge." "Very good, as expected of my favorite detective." Anyway, there is no turning back. Then the arrow is on the string and has to be sent. "What about the third thing?" "You know Yu Jingling, right?" The name made my heart skip a beat. "I saw it in the file." "That's easy to say. Yu Jingling last appeared a year ago. At that time, someone confirmed his whereabouts in Fairbanks, Alaska. Since then, there has been no news, but it is now confirmed that this person has disappeared. go home." "...That is to say, Mr. Longzuosi doesn't know where Yujingling went before?" "Unfortunately, for us, Yu Jingling is also an elusive ghost in the mirror. The news that this person has returned to China is also the result of our analysis of the news that several organizations entered the country at the same time." "I'm not clear……" "All organizations in the world are tracking Yujingling, police, intelligence agencies, special forces, military, killers, detectives, mafia, right-wing groups... Simply put, some organizations want to use Yujingling's ability, However, some organizations do not want this to happen. Since a few years ago, they have been engaged in a fierce battle for the imperial mirror spirit. A certain country has devoted all its efforts to forming a special team to capture the imperial mirror spirit. We By tracing the movement of this professional team, we can roughly understand the whereabouts of Yu Jingling." The scale of things seems to be bigger than I imagined.And judging from the words of Longzhaosi, the Crime Victims Relief Committee seems to be far behind others. "Then let's get to the point... Today we learned that two organizations and three killers are on their way to Meyura Station. We can be sure that they have been tracking down the whereabouts of Yu Jingling since not long ago. Of course they It's impossible to go to a picnic just in time. You know what I mean?" "Yes." Yu Jingling appeared at Meyura Station—— Meyura Station is a big station in the middle of the business district, and not too far from here. I often go there to buy clothes during the big sale. Where I always make a fuss about the length of shorts, the offensive and defensive battles that will influence the situation of the world will break out. It is hard to imagine such an extraordinary thing happening in the scene I am used to. It feels too out of reality.There is actually a killer? "You also need to go to the station to have a look, maybe you can meet a ghost. The committee has already started to act." Huh?The committee did not know Yu Jingling's true identity, nor did he have a complete grasp of the person's whereabouts.Does this mean... "Is Yu Jingling not a member of the committee?" "If Yu Jingling had been a member of the committee, I wouldn't have mentioned this matter to you." Yu Jingling is not an enemy! What a blessing, this means that the enemy's combat effectiveness is about 30% lower than I thought.In this way, as long as Longzuoji Yuexia can be pulled from the position of the committee, the opponent's combat effectiveness can be halved in essence. It shouldn't be too much to think so. "But why did you tell me the news of Yu Jingling's appearance?" "In the end, it's just for the sake of fairness. You should be in urgent need of help now, right? By the way, relying on collective wisdom to investigate cases is not against the rules of the game. Just find more companions." It seemed that everything was as he expected. "Having said that, Yu Jingling is a very lonely person. Such a person may not help you. Conversely, this person may also agree with our committee's philosophy and join us. From this perspective, Yu Jingling The scramble is probably the first round of this 'Black Challenge'." He seemed to be right. Just because the other party is not an enemy and leave it alone, this will definitely not work.Even at the cost of losing some time, I still have to fight for Yu Jingling, whether it is possible or not is another matter... "That's all I want to say. After this time, I will not contact you directly again. See you next time, when the victory or defeat will be decided." "That..." Seeing that the other party was about to hang up the phone, I hurriedly added. "We really have to be enemies with each other? Is this your wish, Mr. Ryuzoji?" "I don't want this to happen. If possible, I would like to fight for the ideal with you. However, time is irreversible, and it is the same for you and me." There was silence over the receiver. I thought of many things to say, but in the end I couldn't say them. "Let's have a good match." After leaving this last sentence, the call ended. I sighed heavily. "...It feels like things are getting worse," I expressed my true feelings. "For a high school girl detective, this is beyond my capabilities." "There's still me, a junior high school student detective," Wuqie encouraged me. "However, Yuexia of Longzuo Temple was able to talk to Sister Jie so normally, I was really surprised. It seems that he is very close to you." "You think the conversation between me and him sounds very harmonious? My hands are shaking all the time... Ah, are you jealous?" "Not at all, I'm not jealous at all." "Oh, really?" "But I feel that I have seen a little hope. It seems that we need to negotiate with Yu Jingling as soon as possible." Hope... yes. I don't know if Yujingling can become our hope? Having said that, can we get in touch with Yu Jingling before the spy agencies and killers of various countries? "All in all, let's go to Meyura Station and have a look. Before that... Sister Kirikiri, do you want to go home first?" "No need." Wuche shook his head. "But you only have a uniform and a shirt, so go back and get a change—" "No, hurry up and get ready to go out." "You, why are you angry?" At this moment, the mobile phone rang again, interrupting our conversation. I looked at the LCD screen of my mobile phone, and it said "Calling from Likorne".I hit the call button. "Hey?" "Is it Miss Wuyue Yujie? You answered the phone so quickly, Longzuo Temple should have already told you." "That's right." "Then I won't explain. Ryuzoji ordered me to go to Meyura Station. Let's meet there." "Did he tell you to spy on me?" "I'll wait for you under the snow." The phone hangs up.It was a little irritating, but his last words sounded good, so I resisted throwing the phone. In the end, I left the dormitory in uniform.It's rare to go out on the street with Kirikiri, I originally wanted to dress up, but thinking that the remaining time of this life-threatening game is ticking by every second, I chose the battle attire I'm used to wearing , which is more convenient to move around. It's five stations away by train, and I sat side by side with Kiriri, looking at the scenery from the opposite window.On the streets covered with a thin layer of snow, light snow is falling one after another. "Take this tram to the beach." As I said this, Wuqie looked at me in surprise. "When it's summer, let's go to the beach to play together." Kiritaki had a surprised expression on her face, then lowered her head and nodded, but her expression was gloomy, as if she didn't believe such a day would come.I smiled at her and she seemed a little embarrassed and turned her head away. We got off the tram and went to the place where we agreed to meet. Because it is daytime on weekdays, there are not many people.There is a hexagonal monument in front of the station, shaped like a snowflake crystal. In front of this monument stands a young man with a tie around his neck and a suit and vest, holding a black umbrella in his hand. "Awaited." I walked over and he nodded at me.The boy was still beautiful, fluffy and fluffy like an elf, the suit jacket draped over his arm as usual.Isn't he cold? Kiriki hid behind me, observing the young Rikorner. "I brought a friend, is that okay?" I pointed to Wuqie and said. "No problem," Rico said, with a mysterious smile. "Let's talk while walking, do you want to go shopping?" "OK!" "Master Jiejie," Wuqie tugged at my clothes behind my back. "Don't get carried away." "No, this is to confuse the enemy." We followed Rico, who entered the department store connected to the station building.We walked through the heated store for a while, then took the elevator upstairs. "Have you heard where the Royal Mirror Spirit appears?" I said to Rico's small back. "I was just ordered to come to the station." Without turning his head, he replied with his back to me. "Hmmm...So, where are we going now?" "The women's clothing section on the third floor." "Is the imperial mirror spirit there?" "No, I just think Miss Knot might want to go." "You... are quite considerate." "Master Jiejie," Wuqiri poked my back. "Joking should be done in moderation." "No kidding, I really want to buy clothes for you." "I'm going back." Wuqie turned around to leave, but now she was in the elevator, so she could only stay put.She seemed to be angry with me, and kept her back to me until the elevator went up to the third floor. I grabbed her hand and pulled her forward. "There are various rumors about Yu Jingling's true identity, and it's almost unclear which ones are true. Some people even think that this person is an urban legend." Rico walked in the aisle of the women's clothing area, and suddenly spoke.With the attention of other customers on the merchandise and no one interested in us, it seems that there is nothing wrong with confusing the enemy. "I wondered if Yu Jingling could be several people, is this reasonable?" I said casually. "Maybe just like Ellery Quinn, the Royal Mirror is actually a name shared by two people... It may also be a team of several people like Michael Slade—" "Don't you think Miss Xiangzi looks good in this dress?" Rico ignored my words and walked into a boutique. "I said you, are you listening to me... Ah, that dress looks good! Sister Wuqie, try it!" I picked up a dress in aqua blue, the color of a spring sky, with a lace bodice and ribbons.The color is a bit too bright for her style, a dark cardigan to go with it... "It's really girly." Wuqie looked down at the clothes sticking to her chest, and said helplessly. "What are you talking about? Aren't you a girl now? How could this dress not fit you? Uh-hmm, but it's true that a more mature one would be better..." "All I need is a uniform to wear." "You can't wear a uniform forever. What do you think, Rico, let me hear the boys' opinions." "The cute dress is good, but it seems to be a bit temperamental." "You understand it well! I think so too." "Maybe a shirt with a kitten or a bear pattern would work well." "Ah! That's it!" "Let's go to another store." Rico quickly left the store, so I also took Wuqie's hand and followed behind him. Wuqie already had a resigned expression. "The two organizations that tracked Yu Jingling this time are the Chinese intelligence department and the scientific research team under the Russian army." Rico suddenly talked about serious topics.For us, this extraordinary thing is no longer the opposite of everyday life, the two seem to have developed in parallel. "You know it very well." "It's my job to convey the details," Rico turned around with an innocent smile. “Both groups have two non-combatants each. They don’t carry weapons when they’re operating abroad, so they’re arguably less dangerous. Especially the Russian group, they’re not soldiers, they’re developing superpowers researchers, that is to say, experts who simply study supernatural phenomena.” I looked around, but I didn't see any customers who looked like Russians. They were all happy-faced female customers with several shopping bags in their hands. "The problem is not with them, but with the three killers." Rico uttered the shuddering words with a normal expression. killer - We're going to step into their field next.If you want to get close to Yu Jingling, it must be impossible to ignore their existence. "The nickname of the first killer is 'copycat' - unknown nationality, female gender, a killer who is good at imitating crimes. She will imitate the unsolved serial murders in the country or state where the assassination target is located, and kill the assassination target. Also That is, she placed the body of her assassination target among unrelated serial homicide victims to clear herself and her client of suspicion. Because of her method of assassination, most of her missions were regarded as It is a case committed by other serial killers. However, in this way, she cannot kill people in a very ostentatious way, and she will act cautiously, and there are not many attack methods that can be used." It was like using a computer to search, and the information came out continuously.Rico's appearance is already extraordinary and refined, but he did not expect that his intelligence processing ability is also extraordinary. We took the elevator up to another floor, and the next one was the women's clothing section. In the midst of mundane scenes, incredible conversations continue. "The second assassin's nickname is 'Wright Flyer'. It is said that he is a small Romanian, but the actual situation is not clear. His assassination method is relatively common. He is assassinated with a silenced pistol after approaching the assassination target. It can also be said to be a Very irritable and aggressive killer. After the mission, he was seen several times fleeing in a private jet at the nearest airport, hence his nickname." "Is this killer in the same group as the one you just mentioned?" "No, they should all act alone. For them, the other party is a competitor with the same assassination target. It is best for them to meet each other and consume each other's combat power." "—Where is the third killer?" "Nationality is Japanese, and there is no special nickname, but this person once studied at Hope's Peak Academy. He used to be a 'super high-level rock climber', and his name was Huodengjian. After graduating from the academy, he conquered He climbed many cliffs abroad and gained fame, but from a certain period, he began to perform performances climbing historical buildings such as the Eiffel Tower and Angkor Wat, and was expelled from the industry. Now he uses his talent to become a A killer who appears at any time with one finger and kills at will with one finger. Only the gangsters know his active performance. By the way, he can bend the body of a rifle with one hand. In addition, there are The source said that for a policeman wearing a bulletproof suit, he once crushed his heart through the suit." It turned out to be a killer from an elite school, but a bunch of exaggerated guys came here. I began to feel a little pitiful for Yu Jingling who was being chased by these guys.Does a person like the detective, once his ability exceeds the limit, become a tool of political struggle and strategy, just like in the past wars, countries kidnapped and killed scientists for the purpose of weapon development. If so, then Kyoko Kirikiri might be used as a tool one day.No, maybe already... Walking in the aisle of the store, Liko spoke again as if talking about the weather: "By the way, before I joined you, I received reports of sightings. It is said that a woman suspected of being a 'copycat' was seen entering this department store." "Hey!" I suddenly felt a trace of murderous intent, and quickly put on a vigilant posture. There was no suspicious person around.As usual, only the big sisters in the store's clothes are busy around. "Then you should tell me earlier. What are the characteristics of the other party?" "She wore a coat with a hood, like Little Red Riding Hood. She had blond hair and carried a suitcase." "The appearance is very conspicuous. Even if you are far away, you can see her at a glance. Be careful when you see her, and don't approach her." "My lord, if you do this, you won't be able to find Yu Jing Ling," Wu Qie said. "As soon as we see her, we should follow. If we want to go forward, danger is inevitable—right?" "That's what it says..." Is this road really worth the risk? Having said that, we can't be sure that Yu Jingling is waiting for us at the end of this road.Everything is blurry and it really feels like catching a ghost in a mirror. "Miss Knot." Rico stopped suddenly. "What, what's the matter? Could it be that the killer is here?" "The swimsuit store is just ahead." Lico said, pointing to the front of the aisle. "Well done, boy!" I was about to run forward with Wuqie, but I couldn't help but stop. At this moment, a shadow shuttled between the shops—— The red hat passed by.I glanced at Rico, seeking his affirmation. Rico nodded.That's right, that person just now was "copycat". We followed her as if nothing had happened.Fortunately, there were several guests walking on the aisle, and we cleverly used these people as a cover to follow her. Little Red Riding Hood didn't seem to notice us.She is dragging a suitcase in her left hand. She is not particularly tall and has a slender figure.The hand she was dragging the suitcase was very white, so it should be white.She was wearing more of a cloak than a coat, and her hat had two protuberances shaped like cat ears.Although she is wearing a hat, she can also see her flowing blonde hair from behind. "Although he is a killer, his appearance is really conspicuous, and he is much thinner than I imagined." I whispered to Liko. "It doesn't take brute force to kill someone." Rico said with an angelic face. We followed "copycat" for a while, and she turned a corner in the passage, pushed open a door with a sign "for staff only", and walked in. We followed her to the door. "This is the stairs that the staff take, I don't know where it can lead to?" I reached out to push the door. "Wait," Wuqie grabbed my hand. "I have a sense of foreboding." "Is it the footsteps of the god of death you said? It doesn't matter, I won't chase after her. Don't talk about this, let's go and see if she went upstairs or downstairs." I slowly pushed the door open. From the crack of the opened door, a thin arm suddenly appeared and grabbed my wrist. "Ah!" Then I was dragged through the door. The light inside was dim, it was a landing, and "copycat" was standing by the door, restraining me from behind.Although only one door away, it is deserted here, and the in-store radio sounds far away, almost like a hallucination. I knew I should have listened to Wukiri. Something sharp was against my throat. I raised my hands to show that I would not resist, and at the same time secretly looked at "copycat".She has fair skin, reminiscent of beautiful girls in northern Europe or the Alps. She wears thick glasses that look highly prescribed, and she also wears light makeup, probably to cover up the freckles on her face.Her brows drooped, as if she was a bit embarrassed, but to be honest, she gave the impression of being shy and shy.I don't know if the cat ears on her hat are because she is a "copycat" or because she is a foreign cosplay lover. She said a few words in some foreign language and pulled me towards me in order to keep me under control. At this moment, Rico opened the door and rushed in. "Are you all right, Miss Knot?" "No, nothing..." I reluctantly said, even though I was still held hostage. "Can you understand what she's saying?" "She was asking 'who are you guys'." Rico started talking to "copycat".Although I don't know what foreign language they are talking about, the voice of "copycat" gradually calmed down.As expected of Rico, his smile must have a healing effect. I suddenly discovered something. —the fog has disappeared. "Hey, where's sister Wuqie?" I interrupted the conversation between Rico and the killer and asked, but the two ignored me, it seemed that they were talking speculatively. Although I am a hostage, I seem to have a subtle sense of alienation... "What the hell are you talking about?" "She's asking me 'who's my favorite cartoonist'. Well, I—" "Why are we chatting?" I don't know if Rico can manage to convince her. No... The other party is a killer, and according to the current situation, as long as she wants to, she can kill me at any time.Although I have been very unlucky during this time, it was the first time that I was taken hostage by a killer. What should I do? I don't know any self-defense skills, and I don't have a weapon in my hand. I was going to pray to God— But he still decided to pray to Kyoko Kirikiri. Help me, sister Wuqie! —Crack.While Rico was talking endlessly with the killer, there was a sudden sound of metal crashing behind him. "copycat" also found something wrong, so I went back. It's too late now. One of "copycat's" hands—the free hand—has been handcuffed at some point. 手铐的锁链连接着她的旅行箱，手铐的另一边就铐在旅行箱的提手上。 而在旅行箱的后面——楼梯平台下一级楼梯的地方，雾切响子不知什么时候已经站在那里了。她正打算把旅行箱从楼梯上拽下去。 “copycat”叫了起来，想把旅行箱抓住，她为了去追旅行箱而把我放开了。 在下一个瞬间，旅行箱开始沿着楼梯往下滚落。 而被手铐连在上面的“copycat”也被旅行箱扯着，一起跌了下去，看来旅行箱比我想象的要重。苗条轻巧带猫耳朵的小红帽，很快就被旅行箱带了下去，跌在下一层的楼梯平台上。 她发出一声巨响跌落在地，重重撞在了楼下楼梯平台的墙壁上。 她发出痛苦的呻吟，瘫倒在地板上。 “结姐姐大人，你没事吧？” 雾切跑上来，来到我身边。 “唔、嗯……你什么时候跑到她背后去的？” “我只是走卖场那边的楼梯从下面绕上来而已。” 雾切手叉着腰，挺起胸膛。 这次又是雾切的急智救了我。要是没有她，我不知道已经死了几次了。 脚边落着一支钢笔，看来刚才抵在我喉咙上的东西就是这个。 我们一起走下楼梯，围在“copycat”旁边。她还没有失去意识，但全身受到撞击，只能躺在地上动弹不得。 我们打开旅行箱查看，发现里面除了跟连环杀人案有关的剪报，几本关于悬案的书籍之外，还塞满了日本漫画和薄薄的同人志，难怪会这么重了。里面有好几本护照，不知道哪一本是真的，说不定都是假的。 在她随身携带的物品之中，并没有什么能够充当凶器的东西，钢笔似乎是她唯一的武器。 “她只会在制定计划之后杀死暗杀目标，想必今天只是来对暗杀目标进行确认的，并没有打算杀人。”利科说。 “幸亏是个文静型的杀手。” “要不要斩草除根？” “算、算了吧，这样不太好。”我赶紧说。 “真的吗？要是让她活着，还会有无辜的人被杀的，她毕竟是个杀手。” “这不是我们的目的吧，我们在追踪御镜灵啊。” 利科盯着我看了几秒钟，然后没有再说什么了。 “在她的随身物品当中并没有跟御镜灵有关的资料。” 雾切从旅行箱旁边站起来说。 “利科，你有没有从她那里打听到什么？” “对于御镜灵的来历，她似乎一无所知。今天之所以会到这里来，是因为她得到了情报，说暗杀目标会在下午四点出现在这家百货商店的天台上。” “这不是重大情报吗！” 御镜灵会在下午四点出现！我用手机看了一下时间：三点五十分—— “哇，已经没时间了。” “我们就这样上楼到天台去吗？” 利科说，他一点都不慌张的样子。 天台好像是在九楼的上面一层。虽然从这里跑上去相当累，不过应该能赶在四点之前到。 “我们走，雾切妹妹。” "etc." 雾切在“copycat”旁边蹲下，把手铐取下来。 "what are you doing?" “把手铐收回来，这东西对我比较有纪念意义呢。” “哦，是那个时候的……” 雾切把手铐收进了制服口袋里，原来她把手铐藏在那里啊。 我们撇下“copycat”，沿着楼梯往上跑。 从四楼到五楼，从五楼到六楼…… 然而就在我们爬上六楼的时候，突然不知从哪里传来了警报声。 我们不由得停下了脚步，面面相觑。 “火灾警报？” “我们到楼里看看吧。” 我们打开门走进六楼观察情况。这一层是卖床上用品和日用百货的，响个不停的警报声让店员和顾客们都显得骚动不安，不过还不至于陷入恐慌的状态。 很快响起了店内广播。 “目前在餐饮楼层发生火灾，请各位顾客按照工作人员的指示，有秩序地前往避难。重复一遍……” 整个楼层的空气终于紧绷起来，有人开始发出近乎惨叫的声音，也传来了匆忙的脚步声。 “请走这边的紧急出口！” 店员大声喊道。顾客们好像也已经明白目前情况紧急，成群结队往紧急出口走。 "Do you have any idea?" “在这种时候响起火灾警报，怎么想都不可能跟御镜灵的事没有关系。” 雾切表情冷静地说。 “问题在于不知道是想抓人的一方还是想逃跑的一方蓄意制造的呢。” “总而言之我们上天台去看看吧。” 我们一面小心不被店员看到，一面走向跟他们的指示相反的方向，去往“工作人员专用”的门那边，这时已经看不到几个人了，看来避难进行得很顺利。这层楼平时到处都是来购物的客人，非常热闹，现在人们却渐渐从这里消失，这样的情景仿佛世界末日正在逼近，有种令人毛骨悚然的特殊感觉。 我们打开通往楼梯的门。 正在我们打算离开这个楼层的时候，背后突然有人叫住了我们。 “你们几个，那边不是避难通道啊。” 我们回头一看，在距离这边大约十米的通道对面，站着一个保安人员。他大概是发现我们之后跟着追过来的，正用怀疑的眼神打量着我们。 “你们打算去哪里？赶快去避难吧。” “不，那个，我们是觉得……这边路可能比较近……”我吞吞吐吐地回答。 “那边很危险，你们过来。”对方向这边招手，我很不情愿地从门边走开几步。 然而雾切和利科却没有立刻听从他的命令。 “不是说了很危险吗，听不明白？” 保安人员的声音之中增加了几分压迫感。 “对、对不起，我们马上过去。喂，雾切妹妹你也跟着走。” “结姐姐大人，你不能过去。” "what?" “好了，time up！不听话的孩子就要接受penalty！” 保安人员把手臂伸到背后，从背后取出了一样东西。 那不是电筒或者对讲机一类的东西—— 而是一把枪。 “die！”装着圆筒形消音器的枪口对准了我们。 然而令人吃惊的是，在对方扣动扳机之前，利科已经先出手了。 利科举起支在地上的伞向对方掷去。 伞在离心力的作用下化作了一柄黑色的长枪，袭向保安人员。 然而伞的尖端所瞄准的地方并不是这名男子的身体，而是枪口。 伞的尖端刺中了消音器。Hit the bullseye. 在伞插进枪口的情况下，扳机当然是扣不动的，并且就连单手握住枪也变得很困难，一时半会儿要想把伞拔出来也不大可能，男子用外语咒骂了一句，把枪丢到一边。 这时——利科的身影已经在男子眼前消失了。 不知什么时候，利科已经绕到了男子背后，他不费吹灰之力就扭住了男子的右手臂，然后毫不犹豫地把他的右臂向着一个令人难以置信的方向一拧，在火灾警报声中，明显响起了一声骨头折断的声音。 保安人员发出不成声的惨叫，膝盖着地，然后面朝下扑倒在地。 利科毫不留情地从背后一脚踩住男子的脖子，将其完全制服。在小小少年的脚下，一个大男人毫无抵抗之力。 然而利科的攻击还没有结束。 他从搭在手臂上的外套内侧取出了一把榔头。 这不是木工用来锤钉子的那种单纯的东西，整体是类似于碳钢的材料，想必就是作为武器制造出来的。 他举起榔头—— “利科！”我赶紧抓住他的手臂阻止他。 利科转头看我，他的面容仍然如同精灵一般。 “为什么要阻止我？” “已经够了吧！” "That can't be done." “你要杀他？” “怎么会呢，我不会做这种事的，”利科把手上的榔头转了个圈。“我只是想把他的喉咙、眼睛和手指弄坏。” "what are you talking about?" “这是为了让他从今以后什么都说不出来，什么都看不到，什么都抓不到。” “用不着做这种事！” “结小姐，请你冷静一点，你又没有必要替他说话。” “我不是在替这个人说话，我是不希望你做这种事！” “我也不想这么做的，这种人要是不在这里让他再也爬不起来，之后又会来复仇什么的，很麻烦。我接下来要做的事情就跟台风来之前关上护窗板是一回事。” “yes——你干脆杀了我吧，”被压在地上的男子勉强出声说。“不管多少次我都会来找你们的，与其每晚为了从夜空中飞来的杀人魔而头痛，不如现在就把我钉死。” “既然本人也这么说……那我就不客气了。” 利科露出微笑，再次举起了榔头。 “到此为止了。”雾切的声音制止了利科。 不知什么时候，她已经把枪口对着利科了。被伞刺中的消音器被她从枪口上取下来了，扔在一边。她双手紧紧握着枪柄，手肘没有伸开，而是并在胸前，枪口对准目标。对于初中女生的手来说，这把枪看起来又大又沉重。 “马上就到四点了，我们赶快上楼去吧。” "Ok." 利科把两只手举了一举，然后把榔头收进了外套里，把踏在男子身上的那只脚收了回来。看来他终于肯听话了。 “不过以防万一还是把左臂也折断吧。” 利科按照他所说的，抓住男子的左手手腕，不费吹灰之力将其折断，男子再次发出惨叫，整张脸上布满了冷汗。 “你……到底是受什么样的教育长大的啊。”我战战兢兢地望着利科。 “因为父母去世得早，我没怎么受过正规教育，”利科微微一笑说。“我的理想是去大学学习跟宇宙有关的知识。” “这样啊……”除此之外我说不出其他话了。 雾切用放在收银机旁边的塑料胶带把这个保安人员缠起来绑住。 之后我们开始检查他的随身物品。虽然他口袋里装着钱包，但驾照上面的照片怎么看也不是眼前的这名男子。 “他应该是从保安人员那里偷了一套制服，虽然化了装，但显然是个外国人。他就是”Wright Flyer“没错吧？” “我不知道，不如直接问问他本人吧。” 利科走近那名男子，男子好像有些害怕，身体颤抖起来。 “请问你就是'Wright Flyer'吗？” “No！”利科从外套内侧取出了榔头。 “Yes！Yes！” "seems like it." “在胁迫之下得到的证言也不知道是真是假啊。” 我无可奈何地说。 “结姐姐大人，时间。” “啊，对了，”我用手机看了一下时间。“只有一分钟了！” “我们赶快走吧。” 我们把“Wright Flyer”留在原地，从已经半个人影都见不到的六楼坐电梯一口气上到九楼。 我们从钟表和眼镜卖场之中穿过，打开天台的门。外面还在下雪。 把门一打开，狂暴的寒风就把我们吹得东倒西歪。天台上是个广场，夏天的时候会在这里开设露天啤酒店或者举办活动，不过现在这里完全是一张白纸般的雪地。 脚下有好几行凌乱的足迹，不过冬季顾客也能随意出入天台，并没有什么参考价值。 一眼看去这里空无一人—— “有人倒在那边。” 雾切按着被风吹乱的头发，指着广场深处。 在砖块砌成的花坛后面，露出一个仰躺在地的人的双脚。从这里只能看到他的脚尖，不知道是什么人。 我们走到外面，穿过广场。乌云仿佛就在头顶上，只要一伸手就能碰得到。 我们绕过花坛，倒在那里的不是一个人，而是四个。 其中有两个亚裔男性，穿着西装像是白领阶层，另两个则像是俄罗斯人，衣服和裤子都皱皱巴巴的，实在很难说他们打扮得很时髦。 他们分散倒在护栏周围，姿势扭曲就像在跳舞一样。护栏外面是一片虚空，可以看到下方灰色的街道。 雾切在像是俄罗斯人的男子身边蹲下，摸了摸他的脖子。 "died." “真的假的……死了？”我抓起倒在地上的男子的手腕。“没有脉搏了，不过还有一点温度。” “现在的时间是？” “四点零五分。” 时间已经过了。现在只剩一切结束之后的残局了吗—— “不知道是不是御镜灵干的。” “这四个人应该属于追踪御镜灵的组织吧。” 利科一边在躺在地上的人衣服口袋里翻找一边说。他找到了钱包和护照，但是却没有最关键的跟御镜灵有关的情报。 “看起来好像没有外伤，他们的死因是什么？” “他们脖子上有伤痕。” “那就是被掐死的？” “但是所有人脖子上都有伤痕。就算真是御镜灵下的手，在四对一的情况下，御镜灵为什么一定要用这种很费时间的方法杀人呢。虽说对方不是战斗人员，但在掐死其中一个人的时候，其他人就会乘机溜掉了。” 雾切把尸体仰面朝上的头部抬起来，查看他的脖子。 “啊……”雾切好像发现了什么，小声叫了起来。“颈骨折断了。” “这边的人好像也是。” 雾切和利科好像都对尸体的异常状况很感兴趣，两人一起蹲在尸体旁边讨论起来。 四个人都是脖子折断死的？ 这里到底发生了什么啊。 我对验尸一窍不通，也帮不上什么忙，只能站在一边看着他们两个。 Therefore-- 雾切他们没有发觉护栏外面，也就是再往前一步就无处踏足的天台边缘，有什么东西动了一下—— 察觉到这一细微变化的，只有我一个人。但是一开始看不大清楚，我不知道那到底是什么。 那东西逐渐变大，显现出清晰的轮廓。 那是个人头。 本该什么都没有的护栏外面，有个光头男人正盯着这边…… “啊、啊……那个……” 极度的恐惧让我全身发抖，我指着那个人。 “怎么了，结姐姐大人——” 在雾切他们发现不对的时候，那个人已经一跃而起站在了护栏外面，露出了全身。他身上穿着一套袖管和裤管都是七分长的紧身潜水服，炫耀着他那如艺术品一般完美的肌肉。 在我尖叫起来之前，他的手指已经按在了护栏的菱形铁丝网上，就像撩开门帘一样，轻而易举把铁丝网左右分开，从撬开的洞里钻了进来。 这人——肯定就是曾经的“超高中级的攀岩运动家”火灯剑。 他身上既没有绳索也没有安全带，所有装备只有挂在腰上的镁粉袋……这也就是说，他是仅靠自己的手指贴在大厦外壁上，一直埋伏着等我们来的。 男子开始向这边走来。 雾切想举枪，男子发觉了她的意图，径直向她冲去。 斗牛一般的猛烈撞击之下，雾切毫无抵抗之力，她整个人被撞飞了，枪飞到了空中，落在水塔上面，看来是很难拿回来了。 “雾切妹妹！”她瘫倒在雪地之上。 火灯接下来选定的目标——是我。 在我不知所措的时候，他已经逼近我眼前了。 我得躲开——来不及了！我只能眼睁睁目睹男子向我逼近。 我会被撞飞的——我做好这样的准备闭上眼睛，然而我的身体却发生了另一种异常的变化。 ……我喘不过气来。 我这才发觉男子的手抓住了我的喉咙。 Ah, so it is. 我亲身体会到了那些俄罗斯人是怎么死的。只要火灯的手指再使上一点力，我的颈骨大概就会粉碎了。 意图将我杀死的男子脸上，却没有杀意和憎恨，反倒更接近于运动员为了创造新纪录全力一搏时候的表情。对于被逐出业界的他而言，最后所找到的归宿大概就是征服人的生命这道至高无上的悬崖吧…… 在我这样想着的时候，意识逐渐远去。 在我逐渐模糊的视线之中，最后所看到的是…… “无关人员禁止进入” 雾切手上拿着上面写着这行字的牌子，走到火灯背后。 然后——她对着火灯的后脑勺挥下了那块牌子。 然而火灯就像什么事都没有一样，身体没有移动半分，表情也没有什么特别的变化。 然而从他的光头上，一缕鲜血沿着额角淌了下来。 看来还是伤到他了。 抓住我脖子的手松开了。 我被扔了出去，跌坐在地。火灯强壮的右臂这次选择了雾切作为猎物，好像一条蛇似的一口咬住了雾切细细的脖子。 火灯就这样把雾切的身体提了起来，雾切的双脚很快离开了地面。 Stop! 虽然我想大叫，但因为刚才喉咙被掐住了的缘故，我发不出声音。 那个混蛋……我一定要杀了他……！ 我怀着这样的决心想要站起身来，但腿却不听使唤。 雾切的脸变青了。 啊，雾切快不行了…… 正在我由于绝望而快要放弃的时候，一块黑布忽然轻飘飘地飞起在空中，盖在了火灯脸上。 西装……？那是利科丢出去的外套。 火灯用空着的那只手把盖在脸上的外套揭下来，然后将目光投向站在雪中的少年。 “过来，”少年一边解开领带，一边手掌向上招了几下手，像是在挑衅。“曾经的超高中级。” 火灯似乎认为这是挑战的信号。 这个时候——他露出了发自心底的开心笑容。 然后，雾切对他而言就像没了意思的玩具一样，他把雾切丢下，向着利科奔去。 利科已经把领带解开了。 在体形差距如此悬殊的情况下，不知双方能不能相互匹敌。利科的身体看起来简直还没有火灯的大腿粗，实在不是能够一战的对手。 火灯闪电一般伸出右手，想去抓利科的脖子。 利科完全没有躲闪的意思。火灯露出了胜利的笑容。 要是脖子被抓住就完蛋了……我几乎要失声大叫。 然而火灯的手臂中途却突然顿住了。他向着利科伸去的右前臂中部被领带缠住了。利科双手各拉着领带的一端，将火灯的右臂勒住，并且还在继续左右收紧。 火灯的表情扭曲了，被领带绑住的地方鲜血直流。 “里面有细钢丝。你引以为傲的肌肉使的力气越大，钢丝就会陷得越深。” 尽管利科发出了警告，火灯仍然咬着牙开始用力挣脱束缚。 “呜哦哦哦哦——”他发出咆哮。 与此同时，他的手臂喷出血来，将周围的雪地染得一片通红。 然而他却没能挣脱束缚。火灯放弃了右臂，用空着的左臂去攻击利科的侧腹。 然而利科毫不犹豫地松开了领带，以华丽的动作向后跳开。 火灯恢复了自由。领带仍然缠在他右臂上，但他还可以用左臂。不知道他惯用的是哪只手，不过既然他是攀岩运动家，两只手的握力应该都超出常人。 要是他用剩下的那只左臂抓住利科，那就糟糕了。 火灯果然完全把攻击交给了左臂，向利科挥过来，虽然利科堪堪躲过，但相当惊险。到了这时，两人体型的差距渐渐将利科逼入了劣势。 不知不觉间，利科已经背靠着护栏了。 “你挺强的啊。”火灯说出了第一句话。 大概是因为已经把对手完全逼进了绝境，他开始多了几分从容。 “在杀你之前，把你的名字告诉我吧。” “有必要吗？” "what?" “名字有那么重要吗……既然这样，我就告诉你吧，我是御镜灵，有一些人是这样称呼我的。” “你就是御镜灵——是吗，那正好。” 火灯使出浑身力气举起左臂。然而他的手臂却没有挥下…… 他好像全