Written By Fate ||L Lawliet x Reader||

Chapter 35

L sat at his usual position, leaning forward, hands steepled beneath his chin, his eyes never leaving the team members who surrounded the table. He was as unreadable as always, his gaze flickering from one face to another with unnerving precision.

Y/N, seated just to his right, glanced at the monitor where the name Hiroshi Nakamura flashed in bold letters. The name was accompanied by a detailed photo and an assortment of fabricated criminal charges. An alleged international fugitive tied to a terrorism network, supposedly captured just days ago in a covert operation. It was the perfect bait. The rest of the task force believed every word of the briefing, unaware that Nakamura was a complete fabrication.

L had been meticulous in his planning, and Y/N had been briefed thoroughly on her role. The task now was simple: provoke Light into revealing something about his methods. L suspected that Kira's killing methods were something more than mere coincidence. There was something supernatural at play—an unseen hand guiding the deaths, and they needed evidence. They were about to find out if Light was the one holding that hand.

Y/N leaned back in her chair, her gaze flickering toward Light, who was sitting across from her. His sharp, calculating eyes were trained on the screen, but there was an odd stillness in his posture, a quiet tension that Y/N couldn't ignore. She had learned to read the subtle cues Light had begun to drop—his small shifts, his involuntary glances.

Y/N smiled casually, letting her voice carry a teasing edge. "Interesting case, don't you think? A criminal like Nakamura could really put Kira to the test. Imagine if he doesn't die in the next few days. That'd be... suspicious, right?"

Light didn't respond immediately, his eyes flicking to the monitor again as if double-checking the name. There was something almost too calm about him. He smiled politely but it was stiff—controlled. He had become a master at hiding his thoughts, and Y/N wasn't sure whether that was a good thing or a dangerous one.

"It's possible Kira might see him as a priority, but we can't always predict how he chooses his targets," Light said with a nonchalance that felt forced.

Y/N raised an eyebrow, her voice turning playful but pointed. "True. But wouldn't it be strange if someone this high-profile was overlooked? Unless Kira doesn't have all the information he needs..." She let the words hang in the air, watching his reaction.

Light didn't miss a beat, but Y/N caught the way his fingers tightened slightly around his pen. His gaze darted momentarily to L, who was sitting in his signature slouched position, arms crossed, watching Light with what could almost be described as knowing curiosity. Light's eyes shifted quickly back to the screen, but his smile was gone now. A subtle twitch at the corner of his mouth.

"I'll look into it more later," Light said, rising from his chair and excusing himself with a calm air that was now clearly a façade.

Y/N watched him leave, her mind spinning. It was all too clean, too calculated. Light was hiding something. She exchanged a glance with L, who met her gaze with a faint but approving nod.

Y/N whispered under her breath, "He's too calm. He's definitely thinking something."

L's voice was quiet, just loud enough for her to hear. "Agreed. If Kira acts on this information, it will narrow down our suspect pool significantly. But I don't believe he'll act in the way we expect. He's too strategic for that."

Light sat at his desk, the Death Note resting in front of him. The words Hiroshi Nakamura lingered in his mind. He couldn't help but question everything. Could this be a trap? If Nakamura was truly a fabricated name, then writing it would expose him as Kira. But if Nakamura was real, and Light failed to kill him, the task force would grow suspicious.

Ryuk hovered behind him, watching him with that same eerie amusement. "They're testing you, aren't they?" Ryuk said with a chuckle, leaning over Light's shoulder. "If this Nakamura guy is fake and you write his name, you'll expose yourself. But if he's real and you don't act... well, Kira looks weak."

Light didn't acknowledge Ryuk immediately, his mind racing. He was trapped between two choices, neither of which felt safe. But his instinct screamed at him that he couldn't afford to fail. He couldn't risk giving Kira any reason to appear weak.

"Shut up, Ryuk," Light muttered, his hand tightening on the pen. His thoughts were a storm, but he made up his mind.

He wrote the name in the Death Note.

The next few days were an agonizing wait. The task force, fully invested in the charade, buzzed with expectation. Nakamura's name was now widely known, and the world was watching to see whether Kira would strike. But there was no death, no sign of the terrorist mastermind who was supposed to fall.

L leaned back in his chair, surveying the task force as the announcement played on the monitors. Nakamura had been confirmed alive, an additional investigation confirming his safety.

The room was silent for a moment. L's gaze flickered to Light, and Y/N watched his reaction carefully. There was a shift in Light's demeanor—a twitch in his hand, a brief flash of panic in his eyes. It was subtle, but it was there.

Y/N turned to L, her voice a whisper. "He's panicking. I saw it. He knows something isn't adding up, and he's trying too hard to hide it."

L nodded slowly, his face unreadable. "If he truly is Kira, this proves he has some kind of specific method for killing—something that requires knowledge of a person's identity. If he were innocent, this would have been a moment to simply laugh it off. But his reaction... it's telling."

Later that day, L and Y/N met privately. Y/N couldn't shake the feeling that they were close to uncovering the truth. It was all coming together.

"If Light is Kira," Y/N said, "then this proves he's not just killing randomly. He must have some kind of access to people's personal information. It's not just about who he chooses. It's about how he knows."

L steepled his fingers thoughtfully. "Indeed. And the fact that Nakamura, a completely fabricated person, didn't die when he should have—combined with Light's reaction—narrows it down. There's something more to Kira's method, something... supernatural."

Y/N couldn't help but feel a thrill of excitement. They were closer than ever before. But as always, the closer they got, the more dangerous the game became. Light would never make a move until he was absolutely sure. But soon... soon he wouldn't be able to hide anymore.

The days that followed were filled with tense surveillance, more false leads, and careful watching. Y/N stayed close to Light, watching for any further signs that he was Kira. L, ever the calculating genius, kept pushing their investigation forward, but Y/N knew the truth: they were on the verge of something bigger.

And then, it happened. The moment they'd been waiting for—when everything would shift, and Kira's true identity would be revealed. But it would come with a cost. One they couldn't anticipate. One that would change everything.

And Light would never see it coming.