Vol 3 Chapter 27 – How to Deal with a Killer Next Door (【The Exonerator of the Maritime Nation】Arc)

“Have you calmed down?”

“Yes……”

It had been several minutes since Hirata woke up.

She sat beside me, a cup of coffee in hand.

“I’m sorry for losing my composure……”

“No, it’s understandable.”

I had been rubbing her back until she calmed down.

And now, here we were.

“Um… how did you even find me? I didn’t tell anyone where I was……”

That had been bothering me for a while.

The only ones who knew about this place were Arisu and me.

No way… did Arisu team up with Hirata to get rid of me?

Those two don’t get along at all—I can’t imagine them cooperating.

“That’s a secret.”

“……I see.”

No point in overthinking it.

I had something more important to ask.

“So, what exactly did you two come here for?”

I cut straight to the point.

No doubt about it—I was going to be killed.

To them—no, to the organization—I was a traitor.

Hirata, now the new boss, must have come personally to deal with me.

“What do you mean? Obviously, I came for the Boss.”

“For me…? But I already left the organization……”

I pulled my hand away from her back, making sure she wouldn’t notice the trembling.

“Fufu. Boss, you sure love to joke around.”

Hirata smiled as she looked at me.

Joke? What joke?

Even Mayuzumi, sitting across from me, was nodding in agreement.

“There’s no way the Boss would just up and leave the organization. That’s impossible.”

So because I did something impossible, you’re going to kill me!?

I’m sorry! Please forgive me!

“Ha ha……”

If this kept up, I was dead for sure.

But I had a plan.

“It must’ve been tough getting all the way down here, huh?”

Hirata wasn’t the type to act before finishing a conversation.

That meant—

“Not at all! If it’s to see the Boss, this much is nothing!”

I just had to keep her talking until Sugiyama-san and the Executioner got back.

As long as those two showed up, things would work out.

I clung to that one last shred of hope and desperately kept the conversation going.

“By the way, how did you even get into this underground facility? The entrance is supposed to be locked unless you have a remote device……”

“Ah, that? Mayuzumi took care of it with brute force.”

Hirata boasted as if she had done it herself.

Wait, so he actually broke through it?

Mayuzumi’s that strong even without lifting his limiter?

He’s basically an android at this point.

“That’s amazing. As expected of you.”

“I’m honored by your praise.”

No, this is terrifying.

If he ever removed his limiter, he’d probably blow up an entire movie theater.

I anxiously waited for the others to return.

“Boss? What’s on your mind?”

“Huh?”

Crap.

Did she notice I kept glancing at the clock?

“No, it’s nothing———————.”

“Is this about Kuzuryuu-sama from earlier?”

Before I could deny it, Mayuzumi stepped in and spoke.

“Kuzuryuu’s…?”

Now that I think about it, I believe Kuzuryuu mentioned something when I returned from the shower.

“Yes. That matter.”

“I thought as much… I was a bit worried, too.”

“Kuzuryuu-san’s matter? What happened?”

Hirata, clearly struggling to keep up with the conversation, asked Mayuzumi.
I get it—I want to know, too.

“When Hirata-sama passed out, Kuzuryuu-sama called your cell phone.”

“My phone…? Let’s see… Oh, it’s true. There’s a call history with Kuzuryuu-san.”

“I thought something might be wrong, so I answered the phone, but as soon as I explained the situation, he hung up immediately.”

“Hmm…”

Hirata, with a troubled expression, dialed Kuzuryuu.
Several minutes passed, but he didn’t answer.

“No good—he won’t pick up. It’s strange that Kuzuryuu-san isn’t answering… Maybe something happened over there.”

“Could it be an emergency…?”

Hirata and Mayuzumi fell silent, each lost in thought.
This should buy us some time.
I hoped they’d stay like this for a while.

“Alright, I’ve got it. Let’s go to Kuzuryuu-san’s place.”

“That’s right. That’s the quickest way.”

With that, the two stood up.
Huh—could it be we’re getting off scot-free?
I almost couldn’t hide my delight at this unexpected grand-slam reversal.

“But we don’t know where Kuzuryuu-san is…”

“Don’t worry about that.”

“Boss? You know where the two of them are?”

I recalled that Mayuzumi had mentioned something about a seaside cave.
That word “cave” had been nagging at me.

————————————————————

I remembered Kuroda’s words from that time:

‘”There’s a well deep inside the cave.'”
‘”A well?'”
‘”But it isn’t just any well—it’s a “well filled with corpses.”'”

————————————————————

And then a few hours ago, I heard Sugiyama-san say:

‘”We call that place the “Sanctuary.”‘”
‘”Sanctuary…'”
‘”I apologize for the religious talk, but inside that Sanctuary is a well… and if you throw a sacrifice into it, sometimes your wish is granted.'”
‘”That is an intriguing story.'”

————————————————————

I had one thought.

“Those two must be at the place called the Sanctuary.”

“Sanctuary?”

“Yes. It’s a location used by our organization. If the multiple pieces of information I have line up, it’s the cave with a well filled with corpses.”

At my words, both of them grimaced.

“They call a place like that the Sanctuary?”

“The Boss of this organization mentioned it himself. And I believe it’s connected to that door.”

Where I pointed, a door painted red loomed.

“I’ve heard that this room leads to the Sanctuary. It’s clearly a suspicious door.”

“I see… It’s too suspicious, but we won’t know until we open it.”

Hirata said that, then stood up and placed her hand on the doorknob of the red door.
With an unpleasant sound, like something rusty being dragged, the door creaked open.

“This is…”

Beyond the door, a dark, man-made passage stretched out.
It was obvious that the passage led somewhere.

“It’s highly likely that the Sanctuary lies ahead.”

“I see… What should we do?”

Hirata appeared lost in thought.
I earnestly wished they wouldn’t go alone.

“I’m also curious about the Kuzuryuu matter, so shall we proceed?”

“Yes, indeed.”

Huh? Are we really going!?
Mayuzumi seemed excited.

“Boss, please stay here. We don’t know what might happen.”

With that, she handed me a small package.

“What is this?”

“It’s a GPS device. Keep it on you so that if anything happens, we can immediately locate you.”