"I want to join Public Safety Devil Extermination Special Division 4 !"
Hearing Makima about to hang up, Himeno quickly blurted out the thought buried deep in her heart.
"Hmm~ Come find me at this address on Monday." Makima seemed unsurprised by Himeno's decision and immediately hung up the phone.
No... it was approved so easily? Himeno fell into deep self-doubt. She had risked certain death to say she wanted to join Division 4, and yet no assessment was needed... her resolve was truly cheap.
While Himeno was stunned, Makima had already sent the address via text message.
Himeno stared at the address, silent.
---
Late at night.
Yagami lay in bed, finished his hot milk, and was about to enter a baby-like sleep.
His phone vibrated, attracting his attention.
"Hmm? Ryōgi Shiki? Looking for me at this hour?" Yagami Raito became interested and immediately decided to make an exception, breaking his regular sleep schedule to see what Ryōgi Shiki wanted.
[Ryōgi Shiki: Yagami, are you there?]
Yagami Raito curved his lips into a faint smile, his fingers quickly typing a response: [My pleasure, please speak.]
On the other end of the screen, Ryōgi Shiki looked conflicted, deleting the long string of questions about Yagami Raito and Makima's relationship.
What was important now was the serious matter of apprehending Kira, not personal affairs. She would definitely ask later, but there were priorities.
Find Kira, and use the power of my eyes to kill Kira's killing ability! Ryōgi Shiki touched her eyes, then re-edited the message.
[I need your help to investigate some information.]
[Information... it's been a while, but Ryōgi-san hasn't cleared her name yet.]
Yagami Raito's reply was swift. From junior high until now, his persona to Ryōgi Shiki had always been that of an ordinary person with excellent information-gathering abilities. Whether it was investigating personal relationships or tracking targets' movements, Yagami Raito was adept at such trivial matters.
The reason, of course... was that he could freely hack into Makima's computer.
[That kind of thing...]
Ryōgi Shiki seemed annoyed, slamming her phone heavily onto the soft comforter, then quickly picking it up to reply.
[You can monitor me for as long as you want in the future, you can even monitor me right beside me, but right now, I need your help.]
[Okay, please tell me.] Yagami Raito stopped teasing Ryōgi Shiki and began discussing the serious matter.
[I need you to help me investigate criminals who died of cardiac arrest in the past month. This needs to be done confidentially. Can I trust you, Yagami?]
Yagami Raito's scarlet eyes were now filled with amusement. Nothing was more satisfying than a wolf successfully claiming to be the Seer.
[Of course. If you, Ryōgi, only had one person left in this world you could trust, it would definitely be me.]
[But Ryōgi, you're going to investigate that Kira, aren't you~]
Light's gaze was profound. Proclaiming Kira's existence naturally meant being targeted by the police, or related detectives; this was predictable. Not just Ryōgi , but the police probably already started their secret investigation into him.
The reply from the other end significantly slowed down, perhaps because of a particular sentence that struck a chord with Ryōgi Shiki.
After a long pause.
[Mm... you already know.]
[Although from Kira's actions, he seems to be a serial killer specifically targeting criminals, Ryōgi, your investigation might provoke that Kira…]
[I'm not afraid.]
[But I am afraid~]
Ryōgi Shiki's pupils constricted, her back already drenched in sweat.
What am I doing?
Because I want to punish Kira, am I dragging Yagami into this turmoil?
This target is not on the same level as previous ones. I don't even know their killing methods yet, what if... what if Kira finds out Yagami is investigating them, gets provoked, and starts targeting ordinary people...
The thought of such potentially catastrophic consequences filled Ryōgi Shiki with dread.
Light Yagami will die.
That absolutely cannot happen.
If anything were to happen to Light Yagami, she would never forgive herself.
Ryougi Shiki didn't notice that between catching Kira to eliminate the potential danger to ordinary people and Light Yagami's safety, she unhesitatingly chose the latter.
"Sorry, Yagami. I didn't think it through. I'll find another way to handle this."
"I haven't refused."
Light Yagami smiled faintly. How could he refuse an investigation into himself? Not only would he not refuse, but on the contrary, he would present the information obtained from the police in even more detail to Ryougi Shiki.
Since it's a game, the more thrilling it is, the more fun it will be!
"As long as it's what you need, Ryougi, I'll do anything. There's no one in this world who deserves to die. My attitude towards Kira is the same as yours, Ryougi; we can't let him continue causing trouble! I'll do my utmost to help you investigate."
"However, Ryougi, you must remember your promise. After this, you'll have to properly prove your innocence..."
"I'm going to sleep. Don't worry about me. Good night."
He turned off his phone screen.
Light Yagami pulled out his notebook for his last pre-sleep activity, writing down the execution list, which he had made a week in advance, in order on the Death Note.
After doing all that, he fell into a sweet sleep.
He slept soundly, but Ryougi Shiki, on the other end, was in distress.
Ryougi Shiki clutched her phone, her face flushed, and walked to the window, looking up at the bright moon. In this quiet night, she could hear her own violently pounding heart.
"There's no one in this world who deserves to die. Yagami is right."
She had to catch Kira.
Because that Kira, he disdained death and trampled on life.
Death was clearly so lonely and worthless. Death was clearly so dark and chilling. Death was clearly more terrifying than anything. Yet, he so casually deprived people of their lives.
Even if it was the lives of criminals.
Ryougi Shiki could not tolerate such behavior. She wanted to destroy Kira's ability to kill and hand him over to the law.
"No, perhaps after stripping him of his ability, he should go back to living a normal life..." Ryougi Shiki didn't know how she was thinking. Handing this fanatical justice enforcer over to the law for execution would be too cruel for him, despite the benefits he brought to ordinary people...
"If, before I catch him, he never once lays a hand on an ordinary person." Ryougi Shiki also firmed her resolve: "Before the police catch him..."
"I must protect Yagami and absolutely not let him get hurt..."
Ryougi Shiki suddenly lifted her head, covering her left eye with right hand.
She had forgotten to ask a very important question.
"What exactly is Yagami's relationship with Makima?"
---
Author Notes:
The True Face of Demise
Death, stripped bare, was an abyss of utter solitude and profound insignificance. It was a chilling, inky void, a pervasive dread that eclipsed all other horrors.
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