Tokyo, 9-chome 23 in Rice Flower Town.

The bustling streets of the past were now apocalyptic - the earth-shattering flames accompanied by explosions engulfed the entire building almost instantly; The shattered bricks and walls collapsed, burying all those who didn't have time to flee in all directions!

A cordon rose under the officers who arrived in time, and two worlds were cut off in an instant—

The people outside were weeping and wailing;

The hearts of the people inside were filled with helplessness and despair.

Under the ruins, the victims are incalculable!

"My kid is still inside! My child is still inside, please save her! Please! ”

"My wife is inside! Don't stop me! ”

"Daddy! Mom! Father!!! Mom!!! ”

There are people who have lost their loved ones roaring to storm the cordon, and dusty children crying helplessly—the once prosperous commercial buildings are now in ruins, and the past is full of devastation.

It's been a long time since a tragedy of this magnitude has happened in Tokyo.

When Katsumi Uehara and Miwako Sato arrived at the scene of the explosion, they saw such a scene.

The two with heavy hearts glanced at each other, each took a deep breath to calm the anger surging in their hearts, and calmly showed their IDs to the police officers who were protecting the scene, and put on gloves.

"The Metropolitan Police Department's Criminal Department searched a section of violent crimes, and the police department made up for the three departments, Katsumi Uehara."

"The Metropolitan Police Department's Criminal Department Investigation Section 1 Violent Crime Department 3 Department Police Department Supplement, Miwako Sato."

The old inspector chief, who had been struggling to support him at the scene, finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw someone from the Metropolitan Police Department, and signaled his colleagues to quickly let these two chiefs from the Metropolitan Police Department in, this kind of big case is not something they can meddle in.

"Sato, Uehara, are you in charge of this case?"

The fire chief, who had already completed the fire extinguishing work and was carrying out the rescue, was directing his subordinates on the side, and immediately rushed over when he saw two faces he had seen in the Metropolitan Police Department.

"Ida, what's the situation like on site?" Seeing that Miwako Sato, who was led by an acquaintance, also omitted to introduce herself, and asked straight to the point.

"It's not good, although the fire is extinguished, but the places where the walls collapsed are high-risk areas."

"What about casualties?"

"So far, we have rescued fifty-seven people from the rubble, and thirteen have died."

“……”

The cruel and cold data made Miwako Sato unconsciously sweep her gaze over the emotional crowd outside the cordon, and she suddenly felt a little dry in her throat.

On the side, Katsumi Uehara, who had lost his usual smile on his face, crouched down, frowned and reached out to pull out a sheet from the pile of rubble—no, it should be said that it was a third of the menu. After shaking off the stones and dust that had fallen on it, I blew a breath, and the first thing that caught my eye was the huge font "New Store Opening" directly below the menu.

"Asahii?" Katsumi Uehara, who was muttering the name of the shop, raised his head and looked at the ruins in front of him, where firefighters were coming in and out, carefully examining every inch of the scorched earth.

Miwako Sato, who had finished talking, paced and stood still, crossed her tongue across her waist with her hands on her lips, turned her head to look at the more and more people outside the cordon behind her, and frowned: "How is it?" Did you find anything? ”

"It's clear that this is a new store that has only been open for less than a month, and the main specialties are bullfrog meat and snake meat." Raising the one-third of the menu in his hand, Katsumi Uehara, who stood up, handed it to Miwako Sato, and then turned his eyes to the group of media reporters outside the police cordon who had already carried long guns and short guns: "There is the boss's work phone number on the menu." ”

Miwako Sato, who took over the menu, immediately took out her mobile phone from the pocket of her suit: "I'll contact him." ”

The woman's slender thumb quickly pressed the keys on the keyboard, but it was followed by a shutdown tone.

"Has the fire department confirmed the cause of the explosion? Gas pipeline explosion? Or is it a bomb that we suspect? ”

"It's not confirmed yet, but judging from the situation on the ground, it's hard to say."

Miwako Sato, who tried five times but couldn't get through the phone, stuffed the phone back into her pocket, looked around at the scene of firefighters and police officers relaying to put the injured in the ambulance, and said in a low tone: "We can only pray now that this is only an accident caused by the explosion of the gas pipeline, otherwise it will ......."

A criminal who dares to use a bomb and can take a reckless human life - once the two of them have their previous suspicions confirmed, then the police will face a madman who does things with no regard for the consequences.

What's even more terrifying is that the quality of the bombs that were traded has reached the military level.

"Normally, it's very difficult to blow up a building like this with a gas pipeline explosion." After retracting his gaze from the outside of the cordon, Katsumi Uehara continued to look at the ruins beneath his feet.

The officers who were in charge of sweeping the rubble after the firefighters were busy going back and forth, the soles of their shoes crunching against the rubble.

Perhaps because there were a lot of people going back and forth, some of the broken stones and bricks that were originally covered were moved out of position, and a sudden reflection was clearly captured by Katsumi Uehara, who subconsciously made him walk over.

"I'll take a look at the wounded, I'll leave it to you here."

"Wait a minute, Sato."

Lying on the ground and stretching out his hand, he took out the thing that caught his attention from the gap, and Katsumi Uehara, who looked down at it, had his pupils shrinking, and he called out to his partner without looking back.

"Huh?"

"We ...... It seems like there's something big going on. ”

A card glowing metallic in the sunlight was pinched in the hand of the man who slowly stood up and displayed in front of the woman's eyes.

The silver card surface is densely covered with extremely mixed scratches, and it looks like it has been beaten in a collapsed restaurant; In the center of the card on one side, there are four letters engraved - NEXT.

——？！

Miwako Sato's eyes widened suddenly, and she was shocked: "This is?!" ”

"Shiratori found out about that serial murder case, the crime mark that the murderer left on the body after the murder." Flipping over the metal card in his hand that had no decoration other than letters, Katsumi Uehara's eyes were solemn: "That murderer has committed another crime." ”

“……”

Miwako Sato, who reached out to take the card, rubbed the card face repeatedly, and subconsciously bit her lower lip with her teeth: "I'll notify Shiratori to come over." ”

After that, he reached out and took out his mobile phone and turned out the number of Ren Saburo Shiratori, and pressed the dial button-

"Ringing ringing!"

About three or five seconds later, the two people, who did not wait for someone to answer, suddenly heard the phone ringing from under the rubble.

It's not loud, but it's still noticeable.

Miwako Sato, who was holding the phone tightly, raised her eyes and glanced at Katsumi Uehara, and then her shocked gaze fell on the area where the ringing came from in the ruins-

"Shiratori?!"