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“One day, you will be amazed by what I am capable of, and I guarantee you won’t see it coming.”
“I’m looking forward to it. I’ll take you out for a drink if you end up surprising me.”
“All right, it’s a deal. You better not forget.”
“I won’t. Besides, I’ve got nothing to lose either way. Oh, look, I can see the fishing-gear shop.”
I slow down the car and park on the side of the street where I can see the shop.
After getting out of the car, I observe the store. Only an hour remains before sundown. We should have the bomb disarmed in time as long as nothing goes wrong.
“Any idea what kind of car we’re looking for?”
“It’s simple, really. Just look for a large commercial vehicle with tinted windows to keep people from seeing inside.”
; I park the company car slightly away, then carefully approach the shop. I cannot deny the possibility that there might be armed personnel hiding somewhere in order to protect the bomb.
The fishing-gear shop seems to be closed for the day, so only a few cars sparsely occupy the parking lot, which could fit a little over ten vehicles. There’s no sign of anyone in the parking area, and the slope on the west side leaves the whole place dim. I turn my head until I find a bunch of tall oil storage tanks behind me reaching out as far as the port itself. The closest tank is only around three hundred feet away from me. If the parking lot was to be blown up, the hellish flames would undoubtedly spread across every tank with ease.
“Kunikida, check that car out.”
I face the direction Dazai is pointing in, where I find a small white commercial vehicle parked with a rental car plate. The tinted windows are visible even from afar. Furthermore, the car seems to be sitting lower than the others even though nobody is inside, which suggests it’s not totally empty. I jot WIRELESS JAMMER down in my notebook before tearing the page out and focusing. Then the sheet of paper instantly transforms into a handheld wave inhibitor.
“Dazai, place this by the vehicle but keep your eye out for booby traps. I’m going to search the vicinity.”
The jammer bears a strong resemblance to a cell phone. However, this device can intervene with radio channels, making nearby wireless devices unable to communicate with one another. It has an effective radius of around fifteen feet. The bomber won’t be able to remotely detonate the bomb with this nearby.
I grip my gun while scouting around the parking area. I keep my guard up, but there are no signs of any snipers or enemies waiting to ambush. Instead, I find two recording devices hidden in the grass. One camera is the same type we found at the abandoned hospital, while the other is a smaller wireless type. This only further confirms that the bomb is here.
Suddenly, I hear people’s voices and lift my head.
—What’s going on?
People have started to gather on the other side of the road. Around ten people appear to be surrounding something, their faces clouded with worry. I have a bad feeling about this. After hiding my gun, I approach the crowd. Then I cut my way through to get a look at the cause of all this fuss.
My breath catches in my throat. There’s something there that shouldn’t be.
It’s Alamta’s body.
“Hey, Kunikida, I placed the jammer by the car. What do you want me to—?”
Dazai calls out to me from over my shoulder, but even he finds himself at a loss for words at the sight.
Why is this guy here?
Why is he dead?
I approach the corpse. There are no signs of hypostasis and no postmortem rigidity in the chin. He is still warm under the arms. It’s evident that he was killed only moments ago—murdered right before we arrived. Not only that, but there are no visible wounds on the body. Nor are there any external changes that might indicate how he died. Instead, countless black symbols appear on his skin, covering his body like blemishes: “00.” Two zeros? Are these tattoos? Or could this be—?
“Kunikida, the military’s bomb squad will be here soon. Let’s let them handle the technical stuff and get out of here.” Dazai places a hand on my shoulder.
“……Okay.”
I checked Alamta’s belongings, but all he had was some change and a fake license—nothing of use. And with the mystery left unsolved, Dazai and I plow through the growing crowd of spectators and leave the scene.
I ruminate behind the wheel of the company car.
