When the time Hachiman had requested finally arrived, Meguri leaned in close to his ear, a hint of nervous tension in her voice as she whispered softly.
"You're going to be late for work, you know~ Come on, wakey-wakey, Hachiman-ku~n?"
"Whoa!"
For a fleeting, disorienting second, Hachiman wondered when on earth he'd gotten married to Meguri, before scrambling up in a panic.
"Eek!"
"Wait, where am I...?"
"Geez, you scared me! It's almost time, Hachiman-kun."
Recalling that he had actually asked Meguri to wake him up, Hachiman gave a deep stretch before slowly pulling himself into a sitting position.
"Thank you, Megurin. Thanks to you, I woke up feeling great."
"It really doesn't look like it, though..." Meguri replied, a little worried after watching him leap up so abruptly.
"No, no, popping right out of bed is the best way to wake up."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, I'm fine, so don't worry."
"Well... if you say so."
Just then, Jiyuu walked over, having noticed that Hachiman was awake.
"Good morning, Advisor. Did you sleep well?"
"Yeah. Thanks to Megurin, I'm wide awake and feeling great."
"Glad to hear it."
Meguri and Jiyuu exchanged a quick nod, and then Meguri turned back to Hachiman.
"Hachiman-kun, the test results for Xxeec... for Mr. Tamotsu Shigemura came in just a moment ago."
"Finally, huh...? So, what were the results?"
"Guilty as charged. Completely black. Succinylcholine—or suxamethonium, as it's known now—that muscle relaxant was detected in his system. It's primarily used prior to anesthesia, though it isn't used much these days."
"A muscle relaxant, huh...? I see."
Hachiman nodded at her explanation, as if his suspicions had been confirmed.
"So it was drugs after all. Does Sis know about this yet?"
"I've already informed Haru-san. The information has been passed along through both Haru-san and Sagami-san. From what I hear, they've officially decided to re-examine the crime scene."
"Surprisingly fast movement from them for once."
"Ah, about that," Jiyuu interjected, "it seems Kikuoka-kun tipped them off to that possibility in advance. He had everything arranged so they could move the instant the test results came back."
"As expected of Kikuoka-san. He saw our moves coming a mile away."
"Indeed, he is quite the sharp operator."
Jiyuu let out a heavy sigh before addressing Hachiman again.
"This entire ordeal stems from negligence on the police's part... I must apologize for putting you through so much trouble, Advisor."
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
"Truth be told, according to the forensics report, there were indeed traces left behind that suggested a third party. However, the higher-ups declared it an accident right from the start, brushing those traces off as belonging to a friend or visitor."
Hearing Jiyuu's explanation, even Hachiman could only stare in utter disbelief.
"Hey, hey... what the hell is wrong with the police force, Godfrey?"
"I have no defense... Still, it appears the superiors involved in this blunder will all be disciplined en masse, so I suppose that is the sole silver lining."
A faint, sly grin crept onto Hachiman's face as he looked at Jiyuu.
"I see, I see. Well then, that settles it—your promotion is basically guaranteed, old man. Go ahead, seize the power and swing the heavy ax inside the police department, Godfrey."
"The Advisor truly sees through everything..." Jiyuu chuckled faintly. "It does indeed look like I will be stepping up to fill the void left by those being disciplined."
"Of course you are. When I told them to request a re-examination, I specifically instructed them to include your name so you'd get the credit for this. Everything went right according to plan."
"Say what? Now hold on, I couldn't possibly..."
As Jiyuu floundered with a flustered expression, Hachiman switched to a deadly serious tone.
"Godfrey. This isn't about self-interest—it's for justice. You are going to change the police force."
In reality, Hachiman was simply plotting to boost the authority of his personal police connection so he could ask for favors whenever trouble arose. Naturally, he wasn't about to say that out loud. Instead, he adeptly chose the exact phrasing that would resonate with Jiyuu's sensibilities—a masterstroke of manipulation.
"I see... For justice, then. Gahahahaha! Very well, leave it to me!"
"I'm counting on you, old man."
Hachiman then turned to Meguri to ask about Kiyomori's whereabouts.
"So, where's the geezer now? Don't tell me he kicked the bucket from old age while I was sleeping?"
"Pfft!" Meguri burst out laughing despite herself.
"Hachiman-kun, stop that! Kiyomori-san has already started treating Mr. Shigemura. He seemed brimming with confidence, so I doubt it'll turn out badly."
"Is that so...? Well, give it your absolute best for your final hurrah before the grave, geezer."
Meguri's expression turned serious as she looked at Hachiman.
"Hey... what do you make of this incident, Hachiman-kun?"
"I can't think of anything other than someone administering drugs to a defenseless player in the real world to match the timing of a sniper shot in-game. The only real puzzle left is how they managed to get their hands on other people's real-life addresses."
"Is there any other possibility?"
"Honestly, none come to mind. So, if possible, I intend to wring the answer out of them directly inside the game."
"Now that the police are moving, that might really be the only way we can assist."
"Indeed. Results on this side won't come out overnight, after all."
At that moment, Hachiman noticed a new email notification on his device.
"This is... I see. So it really was the work of those Laughing Coffin bastards."
"Laughing Coffin?!" Jiyuu gasped.
Hachiman murmured under his breath as he read Kazuto's email, quickly sending back a concise "Understood."
"Who was that email from?"
"Kazuto. Looks like this whole mess is the handiwork of the remnants of Laughing Coffin, the PK guild from SAO. He didn't write it in the email, but Death Gun's true identity is almost certainly Red-Eyed XaXa, one of their former executives."
"Red-Eyed XaXa... So those scoundrels have no intention of repenting after all."
"Looks like it."
"Well, this isn't the world of SAO. We will make sure they are properly put under arrest."
"Please do... Huh?"
Just then, another email arrived from Kirito.
'Forgot to mention—we're short on time, but let's set a rendezvous point.'
"A rendezvous, huh..."
Meguri suddenly snapped out of her thoughts with a gasp.
"Oh no! It's almost time for the finals!"
"It's already that late? I'd better step on it. Megurin, old man—I'm heading out."
"Please be careful out there!"
"Advisor, stay safe!"
With that, Hachiman logged into GGO.
"Kazuto-kun, I've dispatched personnel to the residence of the Laughing Coffin executive. Also, headquarters just notified me that they're reopening the investigation. It seems highly probable that the cause of death in this case was drug-related. Following up on that, they're going to re-examine the body, and they plan to redo the crime scene investigation from scratch."
"Is that so...? Wait, did they seriously turn up nothing during the initial scene investigation?"
Just like Hachiman, Kirito was utterly dumbfounded by the police's incompetence.
"Ah, it's quite embarrassing. I imagine a storm of internal discipline is sweeping through the department right about now. The police were completely useless during the SAO incident and the lingering hundred-person cases, so public criticism has been harsh lately anyway. Ah, that reminds me—Kazuto-kun, would you like to come work for my division?"
Bypassing the shameless pitch entirely, Kazuto asked Kikuoka directly.
"Isn't there a single decent high-ranking officer in the police force?"
Kikuoka acted completely unbothered by being ignored and answered casually.
"Hmm? There is, actually. Someone you know quite well."
"Someone I know...? Ah! Wait, I think Hachiman mentioned him before... Could it be old man Godfrey?"
"Spot on. Since he was off the main promotion track, he wasn't involved in this case whatsoever. If things go well, he might just manage to stir things up among the higher-ups."
"I see. Man, I'm really counting on you, Godfrey."
In Kirito's mind, a dependable image of Godfrey laughing heartily—'Gahahahaha, leave it to me!'—appeared. His imagination wasn't far off from reality.
"Anyhow, the next issue is figuring out the mechanism behind the murders," Kikuoka continued.
"It's drugs, right?"
"Not that part."
"Ah! You mean how they made it look like a PK inside the game?"
"Right. I mean, an accomplice on the outside likely injected the player with drugs at the exact moment a bullet hit them in-game. But practically speaking, they aren't hackers, so there's no way they could know individual players' real-world addresses."
"True... For now, Hachiman and I will try to catch them in-game and wring it out of them. Though we don't even know if they'll be in the finals, nor is there any guarantee they'll come clean quietly."
To Kazuto's realistic assessment, Kikuoka responded lightly.
"Well, I'll leave that in your capable hands. On this end, we'll make sure your physical body is fully protected... Oh, excuse me for a second."
Kikuoka's phone rang, and as he stepped aside to take it, Natsuki—who had been waiting quietly behind him—spoke up.
"Yep! Leave it to your big sister!"
"Thanks, Natsuki-san. I'm relying on you. For now, I'll rendezvous with Hachiman inside... Ah, right, I should probably set a meeting location... Though I don't really know the finals map very well... Guess I'll dump that responsibility on him."
Just then, a simple one-word reply arrived from Hachiman: 'Understood.'
Keeping an eye on the clock, Kazuto quickly shot another email to Hachiman, but received no reply.
"He probably saw the email, but time's running out, so he might not have the leisure to reply."
"Probably. You should head in soon too, Kazuto-kun."
"Right. I'll leave things on this side to you, then. I'm off."
"Good luck!"
"Wait, Kazuto-kun!"
Kikuoka, who had just finished his call at that exact moment, called out to Kazuto.
"One last piece of bad news. It seems neither XaXa nor Johnny Black are at their residences. Furthermore, both of them secretly disposed of their personal belongings before skipping town. They're likely planning to flee somewhere far away."
"Are you serious...? Got it, I'll share that info with Hachiman too!"
And with that, Kazuto hurriedly logged into GGO as well.
""Alright, time to move.""
The moment the two logged into GGO, they uttered the exact same phrase simultaneously and sprinted toward the center of the dome. Having known each other for so long, their minds operated on the exact same wavelength.
"Wait, Kirito-kun, where are you going?"
"To Hachi— I mean, Shana's place!"
"EH?! You know where Shana is?!"
"Sorry, I'm in a rush! See you inside!"
"Ah— wait!"
"Shana-sama, where are you headed?"
"Shana, where are you going?"
"Got some personal business to attend to. See you guys inside."
Shouting back to their respective acquaintances, both of them sprinted at full speed. By the time they spotted each other near the central area, there were merely three seconds remaining before the finals commenced.
Shana yelled out toward Kirito:
"Grid coordinates! From your head to my head!"
"Got it!"
In that split second, both of them were warped onto the battlefield of the finals.
"So this is the stage for the finals..."
Kirito murmured as he surveyed his surroundings with keen interest.
"If I remember correctly, everyone gets spawned in random, scattered locations at first. Now then, 'from my head to his head'... Kirito's K and Hachiman's 8, making it K-8? Man, I hope he spawned close by..."
Muttering to himself, Kirito opened the map on his terminal to check his current coordinates.
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