Chapter 23: Return to Reality, Surveillance
After pulling the handle of his private space inward, Kaito was instantly engulfed in a stream of white data.
When his senses returned, he was sitting in the chair in his dorm room once again. His body felt slightly stiff. The clothes he was wearing had automatically switched from Mercenary Tao's robe back to his original shirt. Kaito glanced at the back of his right hand; his inventory from the Infinite Space was still accessible at any time.
Knock, knock.
A rap on the door. With a thought, Kaito's breathing rhythm returned to normal, and his Hamon deactivated. He stood up and opened the door to see the weathered face of Inspector Sato standing there once again.
"Heh, sorry to bother you again, Kaito-kun," Sato said, feigning embarrassment. "I forgot something earlier, a colleague just reminded me. Is it convenient to talk for another minute?"
Sato had been a detective for over a decade, and as a member of "the project," he had become a person of that other space. His control over his body and his experience in dealing with people were both immense. His apologetic posture was flawless, without a hint of artificiality. He looked just like a normal police officer, asking a university student for a bit more cooperation.
As Kaito opened the door, a cross-breeze blew in from the window behind him, causing his white shirt and short black hair to billow dramatically. He mirrored the inspector's gesture, scratching his head and offering an equally sheepish smile. Sato himself didn't even notice that the angle of Kaito's smile, the timing of his movements, and the way his lips and facial muscles twitched were an exact copy of his own.
"It's no problem, Inspector," Kaito said. "Actually… I just remembered something too. There were a few things I wasn't completely clear about earlier."
Looking at the young man, whose handsome features seemed almost unreal, Sato suddenly had a premonition that this was not going to be a smooth investigation.
As soon as Sato sat down, Kaito took out a phone and handed it to him.
"Inspector, I'm really sorry about this. I actually received a few strange text messages yesterday, all from web-based numbers…" He ran a hand through his hair. "I thought it was some new kind of scam, but then I guessed they might have been from Ryo. When you asked me about it earlier today, I was scared, so I didn't say anything right away."
Kaito kept his head lowered, the very picture of sincere repentance.
Sato looked at the messages on the phone and confirmed his suspicions. Ryo had indeed contacted Kaito, and the "hot potato" that "a lot of people were after" was obviously the [Card] from the intelligence reports.
Sato's expression turned serious. The time for games was over. His legs tensed, his body half-risen from the chair—an awkward position, but an excellent state of readiness. The posture was subtle, making his next move impossible to predict.
Kaito seemed not to notice Sato's shift. He continued, "Inspector, I also… snuck out of the university last night. I went to the old street where Ryo and I used to hang out in middle school to look around, but I couldn't find the thing he mentioned. I don't know what happened…"
Sato stared into Kaito's eyes, but found no tells. Not only that, his heartbeat, his breathing, even his pulse were perfectly steady. Sato held his gaze for nearly five seconds. Kaito's face began to pale, his breathing growing slightly erratic, as if he were at a loss. His every reaction was a textbook example of a student being grilled by the police.
But Sato's gut was screaming at him, and he found he couldn't tell if the boy's emotions were real or an act.
He nodded, stood up, and took Kaito's phone. "Kaito-kun, this information is very important. Here's what we'll do. I'll contact my colleagues at the precinct first to confirm the situation on that old street."
With that, he turned, taking out his own phone to make a call, his back completely exposed to Kaito.
Kaito sat in his chair, watching him. The inspector's muscles had actually relaxed. He was like a prey that had let down all its defenses.
Suddenly, Sato felt a chill on the back of his neck as a faint breeze passed by, raising goosebumps on his skin. He instinctively spun around, his hands turning pitch black.
Kaito's file flashed through his mind like a movie reel.
Ostracized by all his classmates as a child, nicknamed "Monster." In middle school, for unknown reasons, he got into a fight with thugs from off-campus, resulting in multiple adults being hospitalized.
In high school, he seemed to have reined himself in. He was feared at school because of his reputation, but there were no violent incidents.
During his four years at university, the young man seemed to have studied a great deal of law. Every conflict he was involved in ended with a ruling of "justifiable self-defense." In all of those cases, he never once went to the hospital himself.
Even with his years of experience as both a detective and a Reincarnator, Sato had rarely encountered such an abnormal individual. It was as if he were a special operative raised in a war-torn country with constant gunfire.
As he finished his turn, Sato's pupils contracted. The young man he had labeled an anomaly was still sitting properly in his chair, his head lowered, not moving a muscle.
Like a student who had done something wrong…
No, Sato corrected himself, he is a student.
In that instant, Sato's conviction began to waver. Had he been prejudiced from the start? This young man, in essence, had no criminal record or disciplinary actions. Strictly speaking, he was a "good person." Was he letting his personal bias dictate his investigation?
Torn, Sato paused for a moment, then genuinely dialed a number.
"Hey, Old Yang, do me a favor and check something from last night…"
"Yeah, confirm if any suspicious individuals were seen on the old street before that time."
He made several calls. The intelligence he received was mixed. Several unidentified individuals had indeed been spotted in the area. And Kaito had appeared on surveillance footage, but he wasn't doing anything out of the ordinary.
The suspicion couldn't be cleared, but it also couldn't be confirmed.
After his attempt at "fishing" for a reaction, Sato ultimately found himself feeling a sliver of trust for Kaito, and a small pang of guilt for his prior certainty. So, he made a decision.
"Kaito-kun, this is a serious matter. I need you to listen carefully to what I'm about to say."
"I am now officially informing you, on behalf of the [Toka Special Affairs Bureau], that for the foreseeable future, you will be placed under surveillance at [Observation Level: Dangerous]."
"During this period, you are required to remain within the designated area and are not permitted to leave. Failure to comply will result in our bureau taking compulsory measures."
Sato's expression was deadly serious. Kaito nodded repeatedly, then, as if just remembering something, he asked, "Inspector, I still have classes. It should be fine if I move around the campus, right…?"
Sato nodded. He hadn't explained what the Toka Special Affairs Bureau was, nor how the surveillance would be conducted. But it seemed Kaito wasn't concerned with those details, showing a remarkable degree of cooperation.
After giving a few more instructions, Sato hurried away from the university.
Not long after he left, there was another knock on Kaito's dorm room door.
"Big Bro Kaito, some guy was asking about you at the bar street in the college town. You want the boys to… give him a proper welcome?"
The visitor had a head of bleached-blond hair and a black rose tattoo on his neck. His thuggish aura was completely out of place among the university students. But he was extremely respectful to Kaito, keeping his head bowed and covering his mouth with his hand to prevent the smell of smoke from entering the room.
Hearing this, a knowing smile spread across Kaito's face.
"Katsu, give me a phone. Send me his location and picture later. I'll let you know what to do."
The blond thug nodded and, without hesitation, handed over his own brand-new smartphone. Seeing the smile on Kaito's face, he couldn't help but shiver.
He knew. The true monster of this region's underworld was about to make his move…