Tokyo: The Player Behind the Scenes

"Please, please deliver these flowers to her. If she still lives there, please let me know so I can visit her in person after I'm discharged from the hospital."

Holding the greeting card, Heisei Ryu and Kurosaki left the hospital in silence.

The eyewitness, on whom they had placed their greatest hope, was not interviewed, but instead, they obtained such a terrifying amount of information from seemingly unrelated people.

It wasn't until he got into the car that Kurosaki finally let out a leisurely sigh.

"I feel like your assistant, Takagi, is a bit underutilized working for you."

"She's a very outstanding person. Don't even think about hitting on her. She doesn't like sloppy men."

"No?! I only said one thing! It's not like I had any feelings for her. Besides, I clearly tidied up, am I still messy?"

Kurosaki looked slightly insecure and grinned at himself in the rearview mirror.

Ping Shenglong ignored him, drove to several flower shops, finally found a bunch of pink calla lilies, and then drove toward the address on the card.

He had already asked Takagi to check on the way there, and the tenants of this house had not changed in the past few years.

After finding a place to park the car and placing the greeting card in a conspicuous spot on the bouquet, they quickly found the house indicated on the card.

【Dayou's house】

“Wait for me outside.” Heisei Ryu glanced at Kurosaki’s stubble.

"Huh? Uh, okay. Remember to call me when you go in." Kurosaki wanted to ask some more questions, but considering that if the other party was a woman living alone, two men coming to her door seemed too intimidating and could easily arouse suspicion.

Kurosaki walked across the street and pretended to make a phone call.

Ping Shenglong stepped forward and rang the doorbell.

Soon, footsteps could be heard from inside.

"Who is it?" a voice came from behind the door.

"I'm a detective from the Metropolitan Police Department. We have news about your husband."

clack.

The door was immediately opened halfway, and a slightly thin woman gripped the door frame, looking at the man in front of her with excitement and wariness.

"Is what you just said true?"

Ping Shenglong quickly sized up the woman in front of him.

She was wearing an apron, presumably cooking. Her hands gripped the door frame tightly, her voice trembled slightly, and her eyes were filled with excitement.

Ping Shenglong suddenly wondered if letting her know the truth was really the right choice.

He would prefer to see a wife who has started a new family and cherishes the past with nostalgia and longing. In that case, delivering the message might not bring much sadness, but given the current situation...

"This is a belated bouquet for his wedding anniversary, please accept it."

Ping Shenglong handed over the flowers.

She stared blankly at the bunch of pink calla lilies, her mouth slightly open, her throat bobbing several times before she finally raised her trembling hand to take the blood-stained greeting card.

The greeting card had only a few words, but she read it for a long time.

The woman made no sound; her back was bent so low it seemed as if it had been struck by a heavy hammer, and her head was completely buried. Only her constantly heaving shoulders could be seen, without a sound.

Only when she collapsed completely onto the entryway did a faint sob, as if she couldn't breathe, escape her lips.

"Mommy mommy!"

A toddler, no more than two or three years old, stumbled out and slammed his body into Ping Shenglong's leg. He raised his tender face, opened his arms, and shielded his crying mother with anxious eyes and a hint of fear.

"No, you're not allowed to bully my mom!"

Staring at the face of the little boy who could barely speak, Ping Shenglong's eyes seemed to travel through time and space, seeing himself thirty years ago.

His stiff body slowly relaxed, and he bowed, saying, "I'm sorry to have bothered you."

He left with that sentence, asked no further questions, and walked out of the wall with somewhat unsteady steps.

He looked up blankly, gazing at the sky that was gradually changing color.

The sun was nearing sunset, and the aroma of sukiyaki wafted from an indistinguishable source. A few students and office workers were walking along the narrow street.

The twilight still held a lingering warmth, like a ladle of lukewarm water, slowly pouring down the long street, trying to equally offer passersby a final bit of warmth, but it was blocked by the eaves, unable to reach the woman kneeling and weeping in the doorway.

"what happened?"

Kurosaki Mihiramori seems to be acting a little strange.

"Let's go." Ping Shenglong shook his head and walked towards the parking spot.

"No, we're already here, aren't we going to ask anything? Once we upload this information, a lot of people will definitely come and bother us. Why don't we get more firsthand information?" Kurosaki followed behind Taira no Ryu, muttering to himself the whole way.

Heisei Ryu suddenly stopped and turned around to stare quietly at Kurosaki, making Kurosaki feel a little uneasy.

“Sometimes, we don’t necessarily have to be so utilitarian.” After saying that, Ping Shenglong continued walking forward.

Kurosaki nodded blankly, then suddenly came to his senses.

What the hell!

Anyone can say that, but you absolutely cannot!

How dare you call me opportunistic?!

You're the most pragmatic one when it comes to handling cases!

Kurosaki quickly stepped forward to protest, but Taira no Ryu remained expressionless and unmoved.

The two got into the car, and Ping Shenglong took out a cigarette, lit it, and smoked it in silence.

Kurosaki opened the window and turned on the external air circulation.

drip.

There is a message on my phone.

[A new batch of personnel information has been released, a list of those who appeared on the platform that day but were neither found with a body nor registered.]

Ping Shenglong clicked on it, and there was a batch of items highlighted in red, which had undergone a second screening by Takagi.

Kurosaki leaned closer, and the two quickly glanced through it.

Then, it suddenly paused at a certain name.

"Nobi Chira."

The two looked at each other.

They didn't believe it was a coincidence.

Chapter 2 3K equals 6K

Chapter 126: Muramasa Takii

"Ahem, due to some special reasons, Ikeda-sensei will not be able to come back to teach for a while, so tomorrow we will officially assign a new class to your first grade, third group."

Two days after the holiday, the coach announced the matter as discreetly as possible at the morning meeting.

It's best to avoid saying things like Ikeda Rui is suspected of murdering those students.

The official identity of Ikeda has not yet been revealed, and the reporters have been drawn away by the more explosive Tokyo Monster incident, which has greatly reduced the pressure on their school.

However, if it is confirmed that Ikeda Rui is the murderer, he will definitely be able to stubbornly squeeze into the trending topics list and occupy a place.

They try to avoid trending topics like this at all costs.

The students murmured amongst themselves after hearing this, but were generally quite pleased.

It's only been a few days since school started, so why would I feel reluctant to leave?

Faced with the overwhelming pressure of Ikeda's team leadership, even if you haven't done anything wrong, you'll feel a strange sense of guilt. You'll feel like you've committed a heinous crime if you leave a bite of your lunch uneaten.

It would be great if someone ordinary, less strict person could take charge this time.

You shouldn't be like Ikeda, with his imposing physique and taciturn nature; nor should you be like the coach, rigid, stern, and prone to rambling nonsense.

Ideally, she should be like that inexperienced female teacher in the next class who seems easy to bully.

"There's one more thing. One of your students hasn't been to school due to health reasons, but he's back today. Come in, Muramasa."

The coach looked towards the door and waved.

Muramasa Taki walked gracefully into the classroom, stood beside the podium, her slightly pale face bearing a gentle smile, and bowed to the students: "Hello everyone, I am Muramasa Taki, from Mie Prefecture. I look forward to your guidance in the future."

After saying that, he picked up the chalk and wrote his name on the blackboard.

In the class, many boys felt their hearts flutter like puppy love at that moment, as if the waters of love were flowing from the sky.

"I think I saw a Yamato Nadeshiko."

"It's like I've met the mother of my dreams."

I think I saw milk.

Each one is more outrageous than the last.

However, judging by her face alone, Muramasa Taki is indeed the purest and gentlest type of high school girl, exuding a calming "motherly" aura.

He glanced at the expressionless Chiba Shion on the back desk. Hmm, they were definitely two extremes.

Chiba met Higashiyama Shin's gaze, his lips twitching stiffly a few times before a slightly strange smile appeared, which vanished in an instant.

“Laughing like that is tiring,” she said.

"Everyone's smile is different; the most beautiful smile is the one that suits you best. You've probably never seen me smile like this before."

Shin Higashiyama imitated a classic Japanese sunny boy's silly smile.

Chiba's eyes seemed to be momentarily dazed by the sunlight. He raised his hands and placed them on Higashiyama Shin's face, suppressing his smile.

"I'm the only one I've ever seen, am I?"

".I guess so."

Chiba's hands were cold, and Higashiyama Shin didn't want to say anything, otherwise his fingers would have sunk into his mouth.

The coach coughed heavily twice, and the old man's menopausal voice instantly silenced the adolescent restlessness in the class.

At this moment, Taki had finished writing her name and turned around.

"Alright, Muramasa is still quite weak due to health reasons, so she won't be participating in PE class for the time being. Please take good care of her and don't let me find out if she's bullying any of her classmates!"

"Yes!"

"Muramasa-kun, there are a few empty seats in the classroom. Please choose one."

"Yes, thank you teacher."

Taki politely thanked her, then glanced at the few empty seats before choosing the one furthest back, surrounded by girls on all sides.

Higashiyama Shin's expression remained unchanged, but he was already somewhat puzzled.

There's something evil about it.

But Muramasa is indeed a human being.

He still carries an aura of "evil," but whether it is "major evil" or "minor evil" is very vague, to the point that even with his birth date, it might not be possible to calculate it properly.

"Even the Five Star Constellation Master and the Spirit-Nourishing Fiery Eye can deceive him? It seems he is at least a demon of the Crimson Bone level."

Don't be fooled by the fact that Zhu Hai was killed by a single slash and a lightning bolt; he might seem like a complete weakling.

In reality, it is not weak, and Zhu Hai's greatest strength should lie in lurking in the shadows and causing trouble, absorbing more negative human energy to grow stronger.

But perhaps he was completely suffocated after being trapped in the escape cave for hundreds of years. As soon as he came out and couldn't sense the presence of a stronger being, he couldn't help but cause a ruckus. He became so arrogant that by the time he realized what was happening and tried to run away, it was too late.

The result was that not half a pound of the demon and the ashes were left; it was all scattered.

What does this mean?

It's no big deal to survive temporarily; the world is still quite dangerous.

His current methods are still too limited. Even if he can withstand nuclear bombs, he may not be able to withstand asteroids. Even if he can withstand asteroids, what if this universe has a will that automatically corrects his alien soul and causes a solar helium flash?

We can't exactly go to Proxima Centauri.

Thinking about it this way, there's still room for improvement.

To ensure the situation remains under control, it's necessary to understand in advance where Muramasa Takii's demonic aura comes from.