Chapter 48

8 Identified Ruby Eye Host No. 11, the boy who went by the code name Trancer, was still unconscious when he was loaded onto an ambulance to be sent to NCAM. DD, who arrived a few minutes after it was all over, rode in the ambulance with him at Yumiko’s command (which she called a “request”), meaning that he was only on the scene for a total of less than five minutes. Of course, he spent those minutes sniffing around for the scent of Ruby Eyes, but this only served to confirm that Liquidizer and Stinger were already beyond his detection range. The parking lot of the cold-storage warehouse had been blocked off by the Metropolitan Police Department, and the forensics lab was already collecting samples. Because Stinger had scattered a huge amount of insects, it would probably take quite some time to collect all of them. After reporting to Professor Riri Isa at headquarters, they sat side by side in the rear of the Delica D:5 that DD had parked just outside the lot, drinking the canned coffee they found inside the car. The coffee was cold, of course; as he sipped on it, Minoru thought idly that if he were Trancer, perhaps he could heat it up again in an instant. “…What’s going to happen to him…to Trancer?” After a moment, Yumiko shrugged lightly. “If they go by the 3E case manual, it’ll be the same as Igniter—they’ll remove his Third Eye, and Chief Himi will erase his memories…probably.” “I see…” If Trancer was no longer a Ruby Eye, would Liquidizer still think of him as someone she wanted to protect? Or perhaps… “…I think there’s a definite possibility that Liquidizer will come to the hospital to rescue Trancer before the Third Eye removal surgery.” Yumiko glanced at Minoru for a moment, then looked forward again. “If she does, I imagine she’ll certainly die this time. There aren’t many guards on the first floor, but the 3E section on the eleventh floor is like a fortress… Personally, I think Stinger may have attacked you on the first floor partly in an attempt to take your key card…” “Huh…? But that key card has fingerprint recognition, so unless I’m the one holding it…” “Perhaps he would have cut off your fingers, too, then. But…his main goal was…” “It was my blood.” Yumiko gave a small nod. Apparently, the syringe Stinger dropped was an archaic glass model made for collecting blood. Minoru had no idea what Stinger would have done with his blood…or Trancer’s, Yumiko’s, and Liquidizer’s…and he didn’t want to know, either. On top of that, it seemed like Stinger was trying to draw blood from the fallen Trancer’s heart, not his arm. In that case, it was highly likely that Trancer would have died from the myocardial or arterial injuries. If Minoru and Yumiko hadn’t followed him from Oomori, that might well have been exactly what happened, and Liquidizer could have fallen into Stinger’s hands, too. So Minoru and Yumiko had saved not only Trancer’s life but Liquidizer’s as well…possibly, at least. “…Why did Trancer run to a place like this…?” Minoru looked up at the square cold-storage warehouse as he mumbled. It wasn’t a very deeply thought-out question, but Yumiko tilted her head thoughtfully, then finished her canned coffee and stood up. “That’s a good point. Perhaps there’s something inside.” “Huh…?” “Let’s find out, shall we?” With that, Yumiko trotted off briskly, and Minoru hurried after her. Returning to the crime scene, Yumiko approached the detective from the Public Welfare Department. After a short conversation, he handed her something, and she walked back over to Minoru. “What’s that…?” “The key to the warehouse, obviously. They haven’t searched inside it yet, but he handed over the key quite easily when I said we wanted to ensure that there were no Ruby Eyes inside.” Easily, huh? He looked pretty sullen to me… Keeping his thoughts to himself, Minoru followed Yumiko once again. There was only one door in the wall of the warehouse that faced the parking lot, a rather old-looking one at that. When they unlocked the door, they found a place that looked like a break room, with a sofa, table, and TV. On the wall directly across from the entrance was a heavy door with a sign that said ENTRY STRICTLY PROHIBITED. “…It’s probably extremely cold in there, isn’t it?” “It’s minus thirty degrees, they said. It’ll be fine; I’ve done this before at an amusement park in Yokohama.” With that, Yumiko unhesitatingly opened the door. Inside was a narrow space that led to a set of double doors; when Yumiko closed the door behind them and opened these ones, a blast of cold air immediately stabbed at their skin. “S-see? It’s cold all right!” The instant Minoru exclaimed that and inhaled through his nose instead of his mouth, his eyes widened. Yumiko turned to him; she seemed to have noticed the same thing. The scent of a Ruby Eye. “Yumiko, what if there really is…?” Minoru trailed off and shivered, and Yumiko gave the cryogenic air a few more sniffs before slowly shaking her head. “It’s not a fresh smell. I think…it’s the trace of Ruby abilities that were used here.” “E-even if that’s true, it could still be a trap…” “There are employees in here all the time, right?” She was right. Relaxing his shoulders a little, Minoru looked around again. It wasn’t quite as much a world of ice as he’d expected. The rows and rows of mobile racks stacked with countless cardboard boxes were frosted over, but the floor was dry concrete, so his feet didn’t slip on the surface. Following the faint smell, the pair advanced into the back of the warehouse. About eighteen meters into the valley of racks, they abruptly met with a wall. There was nothing to the left and right but more boxes, which seemed to be full of frozen food—certainly nothing to worry about. Just as Minoru was about to comment that there was nothing there, he heard a slight cracking sound at his feet. Looking down, Minoru saw that one area of the floor was frosted over. The Ruby Eye scent grew a little stronger. When he raised his eyes, he saw a concrete pillar sticking out from the front wall. It was noticeably covered in a thick layer of frosted-over ice. “…The smell seems to be coming from this pillar.” With a whisper, Yumiko cautiously approached the pillar, wiping away the frost on the surface with the leather glove on her right hand. The thick layer of transparent ice that covered the pillar was laid bare. Inside, however…there was nothing. All that could be seen through the ice was a blurry glimpse of the dark-stained concrete surface. “There’s nothing here…” Minoru nodded in assent with Yumiko’s murmur. “Yeah… Although I do think the stain on the concrete looks a bit like a person…like a standing girl, maybe…” “Stop that! This isn’t some spirit photography.” Yumiko frowned, then jumped suddenly. Her smartphone was vibrating in her jacket pocket. Taking it out, she switched it to speakerphone mode. “Yes, Azu here.” “Yukko? Is Mikkun there, too?” It was the voice of Professor Riri Isa, who they’d reported to just a few minutes ago. “Yes, he’s right next to me.” “Okay. Both of you listen, then. We don’t know yet whether it’s related to this current case or not, but apparently, there was a previous incident in that cold-storage warehouse.” “An incident…? Was it related to Ruby Eyes?!” Yumiko and Minoru looked around at once, but the Professor immediately responded. “No, the incident occurred six years ago. A girl who was in the fourth grade at the time was found frozen to death in that very warehouse.” “A girl…” “Frozen to death…” Once again, the two of them looked back at the stain on the frozen pillar. Unexpectedly, in the depths of Minoru’s ears, Liquidizer’s words played back again. That boy has managed to stay himself all this time by hanging on to an illusion. And it’s probably his Third Eye that’s showing him that illusion. Minoru didn’t know why he would remember those words at that moment. Once again, the Professor’s voice came through the speaker. “There had been reports at the local child guidance office that the girl was being abused… Her parents were interrogated, but the incident was ultimately deemed an accident. We’re currently investigating whether she had any connection to Trancer, Liquidizer, or even Stinger.” “…Understood. We investigated inside the warehouse ourselves, but there didn’t seem to be anything out of the ordinary.” “All right. Be careful on your way back.” After finishing the call and putting her smartphone away, Yumiko once again looked up at the pillar of ice. However, she quickly turned away and spoke to Minoru. “Let’s get out of here. We’re going to freeze if we hang out in this place much longer.” “…You’re the one who said we should come in here in the first place…,” Minoru muttered as he once again followed after Yumiko. When they left the warehouse, the time was about eight o’clock. Though he’d told Norie that he would be a little late, Minoru still felt guilty for missing dinner. He wanted to get home as soon as possible but couldn’t quite bring himself to ask Yumiko to take him all the way from Ota Ward to Saitama. As they walked through the parking lot, Minoru mumbled to himself. “Maybe I really should buy a motorcycle…” Immediately, Yumiko stopped short in front of him and turned around. “Oh, really? Then I suppose I can come with you when you buy it. I recommend a supersport, of course, but it might be better for a beginner to start with something easier, like the street fighter type. There are a lot of good ones right now, even with a range under a million yen…” Then she stopped abruptly. “Wh-what’s the matter?” Yumiko blinked several times, then spoke with a strange expression. “You know, I was thinking…” “Yes…?” “Isn’t your twenty thousand, something hundred yen still in the Agusta’s rear case…?” “………” Minoru froze, his mind rapidly retracing his memories of the last hours… Then he slowly nodded three times. After a moment, the two of them headed toward the exit of the parking lot, running with all their might. The End