Bungou Stray Dogs: Tainted Future [HIATUS]

Reason 32: Wheels of the Perfect Crime

'Little Sheep. Oh, My Little Sheep!
How you let yourself believe
The words of a madman set free

With memories gone,
Your soul sought life and freedom
A cry to the sky, to the God, to the demon

How wrong. How cruel.
You deceived yourself
To be caged in nothing but illusions

Can you even hear yourself?
I doubt, I doubt
Don't fret

I, too, could not hear myself.'

Broken pieces of the vase, ripped pages and splinted woods littered the room as a pitiful light shone on Hinatsuri's figure. A bitter laugh escaped her lips as she stared at the book floating before her. The deeds the book had done before she became a guardian had been revealed right before her eyes. The cruelty it posed against her was too much for her to handle.

"To think that in the end, it was all scripted. You let another soul suffer on your account. You let the demon take a part of you. Hahaha! How stupid! Comical!" An angry glint lighted her eyes, a strong determination amidst the rage. The book glowed before dropping down like a lifeless body. She picked it up and gripped it tightly.

"I will play your horrible game, but note this, I will get that soul back. That soul is mine to keep." She promised. Suddenly, the room returned back to its normal state, and she made the book disappear from her sight. Biting her lips, she took her cloak and stepped out of the room to do her job.

'To think that I did not even know you and let you ask the sky to take you under its wing, I'm so stupid to think that I was it's only guardian.'

Yokohama City Police
Security Office 27'S
Attached Jail

"Listen, you're going to get out here. Are you listening?" The man in the bear suit asked. Silence was his only reply. He took off the mascot's head to get a good look at the prisoner before him. The man's olive green eyes dimmed at the thoughts that invaded his mind. The guilt that crowned his heart grew heavier. The terrified look on the kid's eyes still flashed in his mind. Ranpo sighed at Kunikida's antics.

After the investigation done by the police, it was found that the remnants of the grenade matched those of the Armed Detective Agency. The evidences were also destroyed by the enemy. A form of harassment meant to attack Kunikida.

"'I feel so guilty, I will accept the charges' is what you're thinking, right? I will prove your innocence. I already know how. The rats must have a good evidence destroyer. We will catch that guy. No one will be able to complain." The detective assured. The blonde's eyes widened at Ranpo's sudden determination. He asked what drove him to do such thing. Ranpo sighed and put on the mascot's head. He, too, felt the weight of his actions. If only he was able to get past through that guy's plan, the girl would not have died.

Quickly, he left the jail to find the cleaner. On his way to the viewing tower, Ranpo had ran into Poe who was waiting by the lobby. The writer clutched his back and glanced at the person who bumped him. The detective took off the mascot's head and asked what he was doing in the area. He replied that he was waiting for somebody from the auction. Ranpo hummed, then Poe asked why he was wearing such outfit only to discover that it was the director's punishment for him for defying his orders during the virus-ability issue.

Suddenly, Ranpo had a bright idea and pulled the writer up the tower. He gave him a communicator and left him at the top floor while he remained a floor below him. Poe wanted the detective to search with him, but he warned him that the enemy knew his face. The cleaner was one of Dostoyevsky's trusted allies. If anything else, that man would surely manipulate his own information to escape them or maybe tempt them more. The detective narrowed his eyes at his own thoughts. There will be no second chance. He will catch him and have him pay for what he had done.