Vampire and His Pleasant Companions: Volume 2 - Part 7

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By the next morning, Akira's mood had improved. Although he was prone to anger and holding grudges, it seemed he was okay this time. Al watched as Akira changed into a white shirt and black slacks and brushed his teeth. The only difference from usual was that Akira yawned a bit more than normal.

That day, even after arriving at work, Akira was yawning frequently. Two bodies had arrived in the morning, and since Koyanagi was off, Akira and Tsuno each took responsibility for one. After Tsuno finished his work, he was scheduled to accompany the body to the family’s home, as per their request.

A little after 1 PM, Akira returned to the break room, wearing a white coat over his scrubs, and collapsed onto the sofa with a thud. Letting out a deep sigh, he quickly ate the bento that had been delivered to the table, then lay down on the sofa. Within minutes, the sound of his gentle breathing indicated he had fallen asleep.

It was rare for Akira to nap at work, so Al found it unusual. He approached Akira, who was sleeping with half his face pressed into the sofa cushion. His profile was beautiful, with long eyelashes and a high nose. Even when Al brought his nose close to Akira’s cheek, he didn’t so much as blink.

The door opened with a click. Muroi walked in. He was in charge of cleaning up, so he always returned a little later than everyone else. When Muroi noticed that Akira was asleep, he quietly closed the door.

"Takatsuka-san," Muroi called softly, but Akira didn’t respond. He was fast asleep. Muroi tiptoed over to the sofa and crouched beside Akira, staring at his face. He looked happy, but there was a hint of sadness in his expression.

"Takatsuka-san," Muroi whispered again. Akira’s breathing remained steady and even. Muroi gently extended his hand and touched Akira’s bangs. Watching from the side, Al’s heart began to race. Muroi played with Akira’s slightly curled bangs for a moment, then moved his finger closer to Akira’s lips. But he stopped just short of touching them.

The look in Muroi’s eyes grew more intense, and Al started to feel anxious. Muroi shifted his position, leaning forward. His face drew closer. Sensing that Muroi might try to kiss Akira, Al panicked. In America, kissing was a common thing, seen everywhere, by people of all ages. But in Japan, it was something only couples did.

Al kissed Akira every night before bed, but that was different. The meaning wasn’t the same. When Muroi’s face got about eight inches (roughly 20 centimeters) away from Akira’s, Al scrambled in front of Akira’s mouth and made a loud "Squeak!" sound, trying to say, "No!"

Startled, Muroi pulled back with a surprised look, then gave a wry smile. His long, thin fingers gently grabbed Al, and he lightly tapped Al’s nose, saying, "Keep quiet for a bit."

Still holding Al, Muroi turned his gaze back to Akira and once again...

"Squeak, Squeak, Squeak!" Al cried from Muroi’s hand. It was absolutely unacceptable to force a kiss. Without Akira’s consent, it shouldn’t happen.

As Muroi’s lips got within an inch of Akira’s, Akira suddenly opened his eyes. Muroi froze as if he had collided with something. Akira stared at him intently.

"What were you about to do?" Akira asked directly.

"Well, um..." Muroi stammered, turning pale, his grip on Al tightening. Al, feeling like he might be crushed, looked distressed. Noticing this, Akira sat up and extended his hand toward Muroi. "Hand him over."

Muroi reluctantly placed Al in Akira’s outstretched hand. Al shook his wings, which had gone numb from Muroi’s grip, before moving to Akira’s shoulder.

"Did I do anything to make you think you should expect something from me?" Akira asked.

Muroi didn’t answer.

"Is sharing a meal together enough to make you expect something?"

There was a long silence. Akira sighed and scratched his head. "It seems like it’s better if we don’t go out together anymore."

Muroi bit his lip.

"...Do you dislike me?" Muroi asked.

"It’s not that I dislike you. It’s because you expect something from me."

"Even though you rejected me, I can’t stop liking you or hoping."

"I don’t need a lover, nor do I need you as a romantic partner."

Akira’s answer was clear. It was harsh, but unambiguous. Yet Muroi wasn’t deterred.

"Takatsuka-san, have you ever been in love with someone?"

"Who knows."

"Who knows? What kind of answer is that?" Muroi’s voice trembled.

"Emotions aren’t something that can be easily expressed in words. I might have never fallen in love in the way you mean."

"Isn’t a life without someone to love lonely?"

Akira stared at Muroi and tilted his head slightly. "Why should you get to decide if it’s lonely?"

"I’m not deciding anything..."

"Yes, you are. The shoes you’re wearing might fit you perfectly and be comfortable, but that doesn’t mean they’re a good fit for everyone else."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, there might be some oddball who prefers shoes with holes in them. To me, your idea of ‘a life with someone to love’ doesn’t sound appealing."

"So, you’re fine with being alone forever?"

"That would be easier."

"Easier or not, that’s not what love is about. Falling in love is a more natural feeling, isn’t it?"

"I’m fine being alone. I don’t need love or a partner. I thought you could handle that, which is why I spent time with you. But if that’s making you expect more, then it’s better if we don’t have any unnecessary interactions. Wouldn’t that be better?"

"Wait..." Muroi pressed his hand to his forehead. "I’m getting confused. Please don’t treat me like some machine you can just switch off."

"Then what should I do?" Akira asked, genuinely puzzled, though it sounded cold and dismissive.

"To you, what am I?" Muroi’s voice was almost a cry.

"In half a year, you’ll just be another student who finished their internship here and moved on."

Without another word, Muroi left the break room. Akira picked up the magazine that had been on the table and began reading it as if nothing had happened. But as he flipped through the pages, he became increasingly restless, eventually slamming the magazine shut and tossing it aside. He let out a small, irritated "Tch" and lay back down on the sofa.

Akira wasn’t as cold as his words suggested. He could be rough, but he was kind. He claimed he didn’t need love or a partner. But could he really not feel lonely being alone? It couldn’t be possible. Yet, Akira insisted that being alone was what he wanted.

Al wanted to ask why Akira preferred being alone, why he said he didn’t need anyone to love. But, being limited to the words of a bat, all Al could do was sit on Akira’s shoulder, silently watching his sulking face.

◇:-:◆:-:◇

That afternoon, an urgent body arrived. Akira frowned as he looked at the paperwork Matsumura brought in.

“Left arm severed, and the right leg and frontal to occipital area missing…” Akira muttered. Matsumura lowered her eyes and said, “It was an accident in our neighborhood. The person was riding a bicycle and got hit by a car from behind. Only seventeen years old... how tragic.”

Tsuno hadn’t returned yet. Although Akira hesitated briefly, he decided, “This is going to be a time-consuming body, so it’s better to get started right away.” He handed over the body he was supposed to handle that afternoon to Tsuno and took on the emergency case himself.

When Tsuno returned from accompanying the previous body, he quickly ate and then went into the preparation room. Just after 6 PM, Akira and Tsuno finished their tasks almost simultaneously. Al swapped places with them and began cleaning the preparation room. The lingering smell of blood made his stomach growl loudly.

He had actually planned to take a bit of blood from the body scheduled for the afternoon. It had been almost six days since he last fed. While he wasn’t at his limit yet, he was starting to feel quite hungry. Since he began filming, Al sometimes had to miss his part-time job. Akira wasn’t always working late either, so it had become difficult to time when he could get blood. Accident victims or bodies that had undergone autopsies often had their blood vessels severed in many places, making it hard to pump fixatives through them. This also made it difficult to collect the blood that would normally be disposed of.

As much as hunger was tough to endure, there were some situations where nothing could be done about it. Al shook off his disappointment and quickly finished cleaning. When he returned to the break room, Akira had already left, and Tsuno was waiting for him instead. Al was scheduled to get a ride to the studio with Tsuno that day.

When Tsuno learned that Al was acting alongside Yuuka Jinbou, he, normally a quiet person, asked if he could visit the set. Tsuno had been a huge fan of Jinbou since her gravure days. But right after asking, he seemed embarrassed and said, “Never mind,” looking down.

Wanting to give Tsuno the chance to see Yuuka in person, Al spoke to Sakeiri about it. While getting an autograph or taking photos was strictly prohibited, Sakeiri gave special permission for Tsuno to visit, as long as he didn’t cause any trouble, and issued him a pass.

When Tsuno entered the filming studio for the first time, he seemed as restless as a child on a school trip, looking around in wonder. Al, trying to act like he knew his way around, explained the locker room and the break room to Tsuno. Tsuno nodded earnestly and watched with interest as Al underwent his heavy makeup process.

As the time to enter the studio approached, Tsuno’s face gradually grew tense.

“Are you happy to finally meet Yuuka?”

Tsuno looked as if he was about to cry and said, “I’m so happy that I’m nervous,” before doubling over with a groan.

“I’m so nervous, I feel sick…”

He rushed off to the restroom and didn’t come out for a while. When he finally emerged, his face was pale, like that of a sick person.

“Kane-san, I’m happy you brought me to the studio, but I think I’ll head home after all.”

“What? Why? Don’t you want to meet her?”

“I do, but I can’t. Just imagining meeting Yuuka-san in person and making eye contact with her makes me so nervous I start shaking. Even if I could talk to her, if she thought I was weird or annoying, I couldn’t bear it.”

Tsuno’s face was as serious as when he was working.

“I know it’s almost impossible to even make eye contact with her, let alone talk, but just thinking about it makes me anxious… I know it’s strange…”

As he spoke, Tsuno rushed to the restroom again. Mitani, who had been listening nearby, whispered to Al, “What a timid… no, I mean, sensitive guy.”

The mere thought of meeting Yuuka made Tsuno so nervous that he decided to stay in the break room instead of going to the studio. When Al invited him, saying, “If you feel like watching the shoot in the first studio, you can come,” Tsuno replied with a weary “Thanks,” before lying down to rest.

Al and Mitani were called into the studio by the third assistant. But when they got there, Yuuka wasn’t around. When they asked the staff, they were told she hadn’t arrived yet. After filming the scene between Al and Mitani, the shoot was paused because Yuuka still hadn’t shown up.

“Yuuka-chan is already thirty minutes late,” Al overheard the assistant whisper to Sakeiri.

“This is a problem. Did you try contacting her manager?”

“We haven’t been able to reach them.”

Yuuka had never been late before. Just as Al was wondering why, Mitani nudged his shoulder.

“Hey, I watched Friday the 13th yesterday, and I still think it’s the foundation of horror films.”

Even though he said it was a classic, Al wasn’t well-versed in horror since he didn’t like it much.

“I guess the turning point for Japanese horror movies was Ring. Have you seen it, Kane-san?”

Al shook his head vigorously.

“Both are old, but they’re really good. I have the DVDs, so I can lend them to you sometime.”

“I won’t watch them.”

“Why not? I’m sure you’d enjoy them.”

“If I watch scary movies, I can’t sleep at night.”

Mitani casually remarked, “Horror movies are scary, sure, but they’re just make-believe.”

“But I’m still scared.”

“Kane-san, you said you deal with real corpses, right? I think that’s scarier than anything made up.”

Behind them, Mitani’s manager, Sakurai, let out an exasperated sigh. Sakurai was a large, middle-aged man with a short temper like Akira, but he was very protective of Mitani and kind to Al. Though, when they first met, he had forcefully dragged Al from the break room into the hallway.

“You’ve got such a laid-back personality, so why are you so into horror movies? Kane-san might be fine with it, but try not to talk about horror too much in public.”

Al wondered why he was considered “fine” for horror conversations. While he liked Mitani’s friendly nature, talking about horror made him uncomfortable. Just hearing the plot summaries gave him the shivers.

“Watching horror films is just a hobby, like reading or surfing,” Mitani said, tilting his head in dissatisfaction.

“I don’t mind those hobbies, but horror is a different story. Some girls might be put off, and with the recent rise in grotesque crimes… Remember that string of serial murders nearby about six months ago? They caught the culprit, but still…”

Al’s heart skipped a beat. Grotesque crimes… Could he be talking about the random killing spree in which Al was attacked and helped capture the perpetrator?

"I know that your love for horror movies is just a hobby and that you can clearly distinguish between fiction and reality. But there are some people out there who jump to conclusions, thinking 'liking horror movies equals having grotesque tastes.' I just want you to avoid being seen through that lens," Sakurai said.

"I’m careful about who I talk to," Mitani replied, pouting. Al wondered why he was chosen as someone it was safe to talk to about horror. He couldn’t figure it out.

Suddenly, a faint scent of blood wafted into Al’s nostrils. He looked around, thinking that Tsuno might have entered the studio, but there was no sign of him. The studio door was slightly ajar, but Tsuno was nowhere to be seen.

The scent of blood continued to linger. With five studios in the building, it was possible that someone had gotten injured in one of them. However, judging by the scent, it seemed like a minor cut or scrape.

“Um...” a voice called out, and Al, Mitani, and Sakurai all turned around at the same time. Ando, Yuuka’s manager, was standing there, disheveled, out of breath, and clutching her chest. Her eyes darted around anxiously, and there was something off about her. At the same time, the faint scent of blood suddenly became stronger.

“Do you know where Yuuka is?” Ando asked.

“She hasn’t come into the studio yet,” Mitani answered leisurely. Ando adjusted her crooked glasses and muttered, “That’s strange.”

"I had an engagement tonight, so I couldn’t accompany her. Yuuka was supposed to arrive here alone about an hour ago, but she’s not in the waiting room..."

Sakurai sighed in frustration and tilted his chin. “That’s a problem. We can’t start shooting without Jinbou-san. Both Mitani and Kane have been waiting here all this time.”

“I’m terribly sorry,” Ando apologized deeply, running a trembling hand through her messy hair. “It’s really troubling... She’s not even answering her phone.”

“Ando-san, are you injured?” Al asked. Ando turned to him, looking puzzled.

“No, I’m not injured.”

“I smell blood.”

Ando’s face turned pale with shock. At that moment, the third assistant burst into the studio. The scent of blood grew even stronger. A shiver ran down Al’s spine. Something was wrong—something was seriously wrong.

“It’s terrible!” The assistant’s face was ashen. “Someone... fell from the back stairs, and... it seems like it might be Yuuka-san.”

Ando let out a horrified scream, covering her mouth.

“Is it really Yuuka?” Sakeiri, who usually had a smirk on his face, rushed over to the assistant, his expression now frantic.

“Someone already called an ambulance... and the police too,” the assistant stammered.

“I’m asking if it’s really Yuuka!” Sakeiri demanded.

“I-I don’t know. But from the look of it... she might be... dead.”

Ando collapsed to the floor, and Sakurai, standing next to her, hurried to help her up. Al sniffed the air, the scent of blood growing stronger, like a trail leading him somewhere. His legs started to move on their own.

“Kane-san, where are you going?” Mitani called out, but Al was already walking. The hallway outside the studio was starting to buzz with commotion. He crossed the hallway and headed toward the front entrance. There was no need to search—the scent of blood was guiding him to the stairs.

Al exited the building and ran toward the staff parking lot. The smell of blood was overwhelming, mingling with his growing hunger, making him dizzy. A crowd had gathered at the bottom of the emergency stairs on the west side of the studio. Al pushed his way through the throng of people and moved forward.

A dark, shapeless figure lay at the bottom of the stairs. In the dim light, it was hard to see, but as he got closer, Al noticed twisted limbs bent in unnatural directions and disheveled black hair. The ground around the body was stained with dark, red-black blood, like someone had splashed a bucket of water. As the onlookers watched from a distance, Al gently lifted a strand of black hair covering the face.

The face was half-crushed, but it was Yuuka. She wasn’t breathing. Her head was cracked open, and parts of her brain had spilled out. When Al gently touched her cheek, it was still warm. But she was dead. There was no trace of life left in her.

Yuuka had been a bit mean, but she was beautiful. She always said that Al was "interesting." She was so young, and she must have had so much she still wanted to do. Why did this have to happen? A sharp pain pierced Al’s chest.

Even though he felt sad, Al could feel his thoughts being gradually overwhelmed by the scent of blood. No... he thought, trying to pull away from Yuuka, but his legs wouldn’t move. He was grieving for someone he knew, feeling the pain of loss, yet somewhere deep in his mind, all he could think about was the blood.

Sadness and hunger began to separate. His reason was slipping away. He wanted to lick up the red, sweet substance seeping into the concrete. His throat was dry. Desperately dry. He wanted that sweet substance to quench his thirst.

Don’t drink! A warning echoed in his mind. Yuuka hadn’t offered it to him. Unlike with the deceased bodies, he couldn’t give anything in return. So he mustn’t take it. Absolutely not.

But his body wouldn’t obey. Al placed his hands on the concrete, lowering his lips toward the dark red stain...

“Kane-san, what are you doing?”

Al felt a strong pull on his arm as he was dragged backward, sliding across the ground. The distance created between him and the blood caused the scent to fade, and with it, his rationality returned. At the same time, he covered his mouth in shame. The fact that he could crave the blood of someone he knew, someone who had just died—it made him feel sick to his stomach.

“You’re not supposed to touch things like that until the police arrive,” Mitani said. Al turned to see Mitani holding his arm, his face pale and his cheeks tense.

“I don’t feel well,” Al muttered.

“That’s because you were too close,” Mitani replied.

“Yuuka... she’s dead,” Al said, his face contorted with pain.

A hand appeared on Mitani’s shoulder from behind—Sakeiri’s. He glanced briefly at the body lying on the ground before turning back to Mitani with a trembling voice. “Are you sure it’s really Yuuka?”

“It seems that way,” Mitani replied.

“Her build might be similar, but in that state, it’s hard to tell from just looking at the face. We can’t be certain…”

“Kane-san went closer and saw her face. I think... she’s probably dead.”

Sakeiri clenched his jaw tightly. Suddenly, a loud scream echoed around them.

“No, no! Yuuka! Yuuka...”

Supported by Sakurai, Ando was screaming hysterically, as if mourning a family member. Al watched her blankly, taking in the scene.

Ando, who had brought the news that Yuuka might be dead, carried a strong scent of blood. For someone to carry such a strong scent of blood, they must have passed very close by. But Ando had arrived at the studio quite late. If she had parked her car in the staff parking lot and walked by without knowing Yuuka was dead, she might have picked up the scent on her way. The area under the emergency stairs was dark.

Al moved closer to Ando, who was now trembling and crouched down.

“Ando-san,” Al called her name. Yuuka’s manager looked up, her face wet with tears.

“How did you get to the studio?” Al asked.

“B-by car...” Ando stammered.

“Where did you park?”

“In the underground parking lot,” Ando replied. Sakurai, who was beside him, tilted his head in confusion.

“Kane-san, why are you asking that? It’s normal for a manager to park in the underground lot since they need to drive the actors home afterward.”

“Did you search outside the studio when Yuuka wasn’t there?” Al asked, knowing this was the last question—the one that would reveal the truth. Ando hesitated before responding.

“No, I didn’t search outside. If I had... if I’d found her earlier... Yuuka might have... Yuuka might have still been... alive...”

“Ando-san, please calm down,” Sakurai said, trying to soothe her. A uniformed police officer arrived and instructed everyone, including Al, the other actors, and the staff, to go inside the studio and wait.

Yuuka Jinbou was dead. And Ando’s body was stained with the scent of her blood. Ando must have seen Yuuka in that state up close. Al had initially thought that Ando had unknowingly passed by the body, but Ando’s own words had ruled out that possibility.

She had been near Yuuka’s body but lied about it. Al couldn’t help but think about what that might mean.

◇:-:◆:-:◇

Al, Mitani, their managers, the director, and everyone from the lighting, props, and set design teams were gathered in the studio, prohibited from leaving. Despite the large number of people, the room was eerily quiet, with only Ando’s intermittent sobbing breaking the silence.

About an hour after everyone had been confined to the studio, three men in suits arrived. Two of them were unfamiliar faces, but one was someone I knew—Yanagawa, a friend of Akira and Nukariya's partner.

Facing the thirty or so staff members, Yanagawa spoke, "I'm sorry to keep you all here. We need to ask you a few questions about Yuuka Jinbou. It won't take long. Is Yuuka Jinbou's manager here?"

Sakurai answered in place of Ando, who was too overwhelmed by tears to speak. Seeing Ando's tear-streaked face, Yanagawa asked, "Would it be alright if we spoke more at the station?" Ando nodded, trembling.

Ando was escorted out of the studio by another detective, and Yanagawa, along with one other detective, began questioning those who remained. I approached Yanagawa myself.

"Yanagawa, I need talk."

Yanagawa looked puzzled at the sudden approach of a foreigner in a black cloak. "How do you know my name?"

Al had met Yanagawa before, during a murder investigation, but at that time, he had been in bat form. He couldn’t exactly admit that. “I friend of Nukariya. Yanagawa, listen to me.”

Mentioning Nukariya made Yanagawa’s lip twitch nervously. “What about Nukariya?”

Overhearing the conversation, Sakeiri, who had just finished being questioned, walked over.

“You’re Nukariya’s... what, his minion?” Al said.

The other detective burst into laughter while Yanagawa’s face turned red. Realizing his mistake, Al quickly corrected himself. “I mean, his partner.”

"Now that you mention it, Nukariya is a detective. So he's his minion—no, his partner, right?"

Yanagawa seemed perplexed. Sakeiri explained briefly, "I'm a classmate of Nukariya's. And this foreigner is a friend of his... roommate."

Sakeiri, who had been somewhat subdued in front of the detectives, suddenly grew more assertive upon learning that he was Nukariya’s partner.

“I need to talk to Nukariya,” Al insisted.

Yanagawa, still irritated, replied, “We’re working as a team. Nukariya is currently at the scene of Jinbo’s death, so if you have something to say, I can pass the message along.”

“I need to talk to Nukariya directly.”

Yanagawa’s face soured. “That’s not possible right now.”

Al knew Yanagawa wouldn’t believe him if he said he’d identified the killer by scent. Only Nukariya knew Al’s secret, that as a vampire, he could track the scent of blood.

“I go to Nukariya,” Al said, heading for the door, but Yanagawa quickly grabbed his arm. “Hold on. You can’t leave until we’re done questioning everyone.”

Al didn’t know what Ando’s interrogation would reveal, but he suspected that, even if she wasn’t immediately detained, she was somehow involved in Yuka’s death. Al’s suspicions were slowly solidifying into certainty—Ando had lied and might have been the one to kill Yuuka.

“I need to speak to Nukariya now,” Al insisted.

“No exceptions, even if you know him,” Yanagawa said firmly.

If Al could talk to Nukariya, they could focus the investigation on Ando instead of wasting time considering other possibilities like suicide or an accident. Solving the case quickly would also bring justice to Yuuka. Yanagawa’s rigid adherence to protocol was getting in the way.

“Let me meet Nukariya!” Al pressed.

“I said no exceptions!”

“You stubborn. That why Nukariya get bullied.”

Yanagawa’s eyes widened in shock.

“If you don’t let me talk to Nukariya, you get scolded by him. You regret it.”

Yanagawa’s gaze darted around nervously, clearly rattled.

“So much paperwork,” Al added, pushing further.

Yanagawa’s lips twisted awkwardly. “How do you know...”

Realizing he’d said too much, Yanagawa clamped his mouth shut.

“Hurry, let me talk to Nukariya or I get angry!”

Yanagawa ground his teeth, his expression one of frustration, as he pulled out his phone and made a call. After a brief conversation in which he referred to Al as a “weird foreigner,” he reluctantly apologized into the phone.

“…Nukariya said he’ll be here soon,” Yanagawa muttered, his face dark with displeasure.

True to his word, Nukariya arrived within a few minutes. As soon as he entered the studio, Al grabbed his arm and led him to a corner.

"I heard an actress died, but I didn’t realize it was someone in your show."

Nukariya placed a hand on his chest, trying to catch his breath.

"Sorry for sudden call."

"No, it’s fine. I’m really glad you’re here... Did you notice something about the case?"

AI nodded.

"Yuuka was murdered."

Nukariya’s expression grew serious.

"It's not confirmed yet until the official forensic results come in, but from the damage to the back of her head, it seems likely that she fell backward over the railing of the third-floor emergency staircase. It’s rare for someone to fall backward and commit suicide, and even if it was an accident, why was she on an emergency staircase that’s rarely used? The likelihood that someone pushed her... the possibility of homicide is increasing."

"I think Ando did it."

Nukariya’s eyes widened. I explained the scent of Yuuka’s blood I had detected on Ando and the unnaturalness of her responses to my questions.

"This is troubling..."

Nukariya muttered softly.

"So we have a prime suspect. If we fail to catch her now after everything you've told me, I’d definitely be upset."

“You will find the proof,” Al said confidently.

Nukariya smiled, reaching up to pat Al’s head, still adorned with a black wig. He treated Al the same way, whether he was in bat form or human. It was the same with Akira.

"Thanks to you, I can focus the investigation on the relationship between Ando and Yuuka Jinbou. We can avoid unnecessary steps and solve this case faster..."

“Excuse me, Nukariya-san!” Yanagawa called from a short distance away.

"What?"

Yanagawa glanced at Al.

"Uh... I’d rather not discuss it in front of... this person."

"Just say it."

"Well, it’s just..."

Nukariya’s brows furrowed, and a faint smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. “I said just say it. Or are your ears not working? If they aren’t, maybe you should head to the hospital and get them checked out before it affects your job.”

Yanagawa stiffened, clamping his mouth shut before glaring resentfully at Al. Then, with a hint of smugness, he announced, “We’ve identified a suspicious man. A visitor to the studio—he had permission from the producer but has been alone in the men’s waiting room. He doesn’t have an alibi for the time when Yuuka Jinbo fell.

A chill ran down Al’s spine. Men’s waiting room? Could it be...

"What’s that person’s name?" Al asked, but Yanagawa ignored him, his aloof expression irritating Al.

"What’s the name of that suspicious person?" Nukariya inquired, to which Yanagawa replied, "His name is Tsuno."

"Tsuno? That’s not right. I know him—he’s Akira's colleague," Al appealed to Nukariya. "He came to the studio with me, so he’s not suspicious."

Nukariya ordered Yanagawa, "Just get his name and address, then let him go." Yanagawa's body trembled as he protested, "W-wait a minute!"

"He’s clearly suspicious. Besides, the men’s dressing room is close to the emergency stairs leading to the third floor."

Nukariya sighed softly and pressed his forehead.

"Oh, there’s one more thing that’s bothering me. Mitani, one of the actors who worked with the victim, is apparently a horror fanatic and likes splatter films, according to some of the staff. I think we should bring him in to the station and hear what he has to say."

Al, watching Yanagawa puff out his chest with pride, turned to Nukariya and said, "Mitani was with me. He’s not the culprit."

"Yanagawa, I’ve heard that this actor, Mitani, has an alibi, so there’s no need to investigate him further. And don’t report that horror fan stuff to the higher-ups—it’ll just cause unnecessary trouble."

"I can’t accept that!" Yanagawa shouted, clenching his fists tightly, drawing the unnecessary attention of everyone around them.

"Even if it’s your order, I can’t just ignore this. It’s like deliberately overlooking crucial evidence…"

Yanagawa’s voice trailed off as he noticed Nukariya glaring at him with an intense expression.

"If neither Mitani nor Tsuno has anything to do with this case, how will you take responsibility?"

"R-responsibility?"

"How will you make up for the wasted time on pointless investigations and interrogations?"

"You can’t know it’s pointless until you try. And besides, it’s not uncommon for investigations to hit dead ends…"

"Investigations that are known to be pointless aren’t necessary. Besides, we already have a suspect in mind."

Yanagawa’s eyes widened in shock.

"I’ve explained my reasoning. If you want to bring those two to the station and question them, be my guest. But if it turns out they have nothing to do with the case, you’ll have to return the wages for the time you wasted."

"That’s absurd!"

"What do you think pays for your meals? It’s taxpayer money. The public doesn’t have to pay a detective like you to waste their time on nonsense."

Yanagawa’s lips twisted, and he looked as if he was about to cry. Nukariya, not concerned at all about Yanagawa’s dejection, whispered to Al, "Could you tell me a bit more about what you know?" Then, he turned to Yanagawa and ordered, "Go ask everyone if there’s anything suspicious about Yuuka Jinbou or her manager, Ando."

"Her manager...?"

"Is your hearing failing again?"

Without a word, Yanagawa turned on his heels, shoulders slumped, as he walked toward the others involved in the case. His defeated figure was truly pitiful.

"I wish he’d get used to how I work by now, but Yanagawa seems to have a hard time learning—he’s either too stubborn or just lacks the ability. But, well, he’s resilient, and compared to my previous partners, he listens more."

Nukariya didn’t seem to care at all about the disheartened Yanagawa. Al tried to recall everything he knew about Yuuka and Ando. While he didn’t have much to say about Ando, who he’d hardly spoken to, he was certain Ando was the one who killed Yuuka. Yet, based on what he’d observed between the two, Ando had always seemed devoted to Yuuka and didn’t appear to harbor any strong resentment that would drive her to murder.

One by one, the staff who had finished being questioned began leaving the studio. Tsuno was led to the studio, walking unsteadily. When his eyes met Al’s, they welled up with tears. The poor man had fallen ill with anxiety, only to wake up and learn that his idol, Yuuka, had been killed, and now he was under suspicion as the killer. Just being in the wrong place at the wrong time had dragged him into this mess.

Tsuno was clearly shaken, and Al worried about whether he could drive home safely. However, by the time they were ready to leave, Tsuno had calmed down and reassured Al that he would drive him back to his apartment as planned. After changing out of his costume into his casual clothes in the dressing room, Al headed down to the first floor. As he passed by the studio, Sakeiri, who was on the phone, called out to him.

"Hey, Kane-san!"

"Yeah?"

“Are you heading home now?”

“Yeah.”

"Oh, I was just telling him that you were about to head home. Huh? It’s okay? Okay, then."

It wasn’t clear whether he was talking to Al or someone on the phone, but Sakeiri soon ended the call.

"Takatsuka just called, asking if you were still shooting because you were late getting home. I told him you were on your way out, and he hung up."

Al felt a bit happy knowing that Akira was worried about him being late.

In the car on the way back, Al apologized again to Tsuno. He had thought he could fulfill Tsuno’s wish of meeting Yuuka, but it had ended in a terrible way.

"It was shocking and unexpected, but it’s not your fault, Kane-san. Don’t worry about it," Tsuno replied in a weak voice.

"…I’m not sure what time it was, but I heard a loud ‘thud’ sound. It worried me, so I left the room and went to check near the stairs. Not the emergency stairs, but the internal staircase inside the building. I couldn’t figure out what it was, so I thought maybe it was just a sound effect from the shoot and went back to my room... That noise must have been from the fall, right?"

Tsuno sighed. The memory of Yuuka’s lifeless body weighed heavily on Al’s heart as well. Perhaps sensing the heavy mood, Tsuno changed the subject.

“Kane-san, don’t you have a smartphone?”

“No.”

“Isn’t that inconvenient? Doesn’t Takatsuka-san tell you to get one?”

There were times when Al thought it might be nice to have one, but smartphones were too expensive for him right now. Besides, he couldn’t carry one around or use it while in bat form during the day. While he had filming now, once the drama ended, he wouldn’t be going out much at night, and he’d mostly be at home with Akira. He figured he wouldn’t need it, especially since Akira let him use his phone or the computer whenever he asked.

“Speaking of which, have you seen those smartphones that women carry, the ones that are really decorated?”

Decorated phones... Al’s mind immediately flashed to Yuka’s sparkly, glittering smartphone.

“After I heard a noise, I saw a woman wandering around the hallway, looking down at the floor. I was curious, so I asked what she was doing, and she said she was looking for her smartphone because she had dropped it. She described it as pink, with a beaded cover, and a wallpaper with a red polka-dotted bat. She seemed like a serious person, wearing glasses and a suit, so I was surprised that she had such a flashy smartphone cover. I wonder if she ever found it.”

A pink, glittery smartphone cover with a red polka-dotted bat wallpaper. How many people in this studio would have a phone like that? The one searching for it might have been Yuuka, and today… Ando was wearing glasses and a suit.

“Tsuno, stop the car.”

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling sick?”

“No. Stop. Need phone.”

Tsuno pulled the car into a convenience store parking lot. Al borrowed Tsuno’s smartphone and dialed Nukariya’s number, which he had memorized. He asked if Nukariya could send a photo of Yuuka’s manager, Ando. Within three minutes, a picture arrived in Tsuno’s text messages. Al showed the photo to Tsuno.

“This... Is this the person looking for the phone?”

Tsuno peered at the screen and looked surprised.

“Yes, that’s the person! Kane-san, how did you know?”

Al had seen Ando’s smartphone before. She often used it during Yuuka’s shoots. Al only remembered it as being dark-colored—definitely not pink. The loud noise Tsuno heard in the dressing room was likely the sound of Yuuka falling. After she fell, Ando was searching for her smartphone. But why would Ando need to look for Yuuka’s phone? Perhaps there was something on Yuuka’s phone that was “inconvenient” for Ando.

Al borrowed Tsuno’s smartphone again. Thinking it was best not to let Tsuno hear, he stepped outside the car and called Nukariya. When Nukariya answered after just one ring, Al said:

“Ando is looking for Yuuka’s phone. There’s something in it. I’m sure of it.”

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