Chapter Text
PART I: OUR LADY OF TRUTH
Light didn’t know what was coming.
But whatever it was, he was ready.
It had been two weeks, he thought, since he had received the
message—two weeks since he had rewired his watch.
At the thought, he looked down at it.
It was 1:12. That meant he still had three minutes to get to Roger’s office.
Three minutes until the test began, whatever it was.
When Mello got there, he was intrigued to find Matt right outside the door, leaning against the office windows with their blinds shut tight, and thumbing away at his gameboy.
It made him anxious, knowing that he wasn’t the only one expected that day.
Then again, of all the people that could have been beside him, Matt was the one he hated the least.
Shoving aside any fears he may have had (and there were many) he glanced over his shoulder and let out a sigh.
“So…” he said.
From somewhere inside of his goggles, the other boy looked up.
Oddly enough, they asked each other the same thing.
“You too?”
Both of them drew back, the muscles in their jaws clenching.
And then Matt laughed.
Of course it freaked him out a little bit, but he would never let Mello catch onto that—if you wanted to put it chemically, then Mello was about as reactive as Fluorine.
Any emotion he could pick up on, he would latch onto somehow.
And if Matt was nervous for the meeting (whatever it was), then Mello must have been downright terrified.
“Jesus,” he said. “Didn’t know I was telepathic…”
“You’re not,” Mello chided, grinning. “You’re just lucky.”
“And you’re just standing there.” With the click of a button, Matt’s game was paused. “So why don’t you tell me what you’re doing?”
The blonde boy crossed his arms, joining his friend on the wall. “I think you know damn well what I’m doing… but if you really want it spelled out for you, then fine. I was told to meet Roger here today at 1:15. It beats me as to why, but… I guess I’ve got to listen to him.”
Shaking his head, nose pointed towards the floor, Matt began to laugh.
The last time that boy had listened to something Roger said, he was still shorter than Matt.
Mello raised his eyebrows slightly. “Hm… so I was right.”
“Aw, come on,” His friend turned to him. “Right about what?”
“You said it yourself,” Mello sighed. “ You too . That means you were called here just the same.”
Uncharacteristically, Matt’s typical grin grew into a dead poker face.
Caught, Mello thought to himself. Caught like a fly in honey.
“Could be,” the other boy said nonchalantly. “Or maybe I’m just sitting here.”
Turning around again to make sure that no one was near him, Mello shook his head. “Oh, cut it out, Jeevas. The way you’re looking at me, I already know it’s true.”
Matt’s thumb hit the same button from before.
The gameboy fresh and alive, he sighed, “Alright, you caught me…”
Mello grinned. “I knew I would.”
“Yeah, so did I. Now have you got a watch?”
“Wish I did…”
“Well, it’s not that bad. I guess Roger will open the door for us, anyways.”
The blonde boy chewed on this. “I guess so.”
He reached into his pocket to chew on something else, figuring he had to calm his nerves somehow , but as his fingers touched the paper of the wrapper, he spotted something out of the corner of his eye, between strands of his hair.
“Oh dear God,” he groaned. “Matt, don’t look now…”
Near walked slowly, unbothered as he made his way towards them, and even more so as he asked quietly, “I take it you’re talking about me?”
“No, dipshit,” Mello sighed. “I’m talking about the president of the United States.”
Twirling his hair as he crouched down along the wall, Near simply replied, “Oh. Alright then.”
Matt laughed, shaking his head.
And as entertaining as it was, it did nothing to calm Mello down.
Love it or hate it, Near was there with them.
That meant Roger must have called him, too.
But why ?
Come to think of it, Mello hadn’t been told why any of them would be there; all he knew was that by 1:15 that day, he was supposed to have planted a bug that would give him access to the audio of whatever conversation him and Roger were supposed to have.
But he couldn’t know for sure if anyone else had been told about the bug, nor what their topic of conversation was supposed to be.
Judging from the people there, though…
He scoffed, if only in his head.
Maybe the old man had finally found out about the socks Matt had stolen from Near’s drawer. But that would mean that Near had figured it out, and so far, the older boy was twelve and a half pairs deep and had yet to be caught.
It was a little game they played, Matt and Mello—an admittedly stupid one, but one that gave them plenty to laugh at.
His teeth sinking into the chocolate, Mello smiled.
He’d like to see Roger scold him for that one. If he did, he might just have burst out laughing in the office.
The sun peeked through the window to his left—the real window, not the one that just led into Roger’s office.
And that was when he heard it.
Like a screeching banshee, like a glitter-stained vulture sinking in for the kill, hair bleached blonde and lips painted pink, Mimi called from just a few feet away, “Hey, guys! I didn’t know you were coming here, too!”
“Afternoon,” Matt muttered, not looking up from his game.
Mello shook his head in disbelief. “Don’t tell me he called you here, Mimi.”
The young woman, now just before him, drew back a bit, surprised. It didn’t make sense to her why Mello would be so disappointed, seeing her. They used to be lab partners.
Then again, Mello seemed to be disappointed every time he saw someone other than Matt.
“Oh,” Mimi sighed. “Well, I guess I can’t give you that kind of satisfaction—”
Matt cackled. “Then what kind of satisfaction can you give him?!”
“I—” The young woman’s whole face went red. “Oh, Matt, come on! You know I’m taken already, don’t you?”
The boy grinned, cocky. “So that’s what matters to you, and not the fact that he’s fourteen?”
“I bet you think this is really funny, don’t you?”
“Guess we know where your priorities are…”
The young woman crossed her arms as she lined herself up against the wall, indignant. “You know what, Matt? I guess it does matter that you’re fourteen. Because that’s the only reason you find something like that so funny.”
Near, busy shuffling a deck of playing cards on the floor, didn’t care so much about the conversation. But that didn’t stop him from teasing, “Ooooooh…”
Mello gave one simple kick, and the cards went sliding in every imaginable direction.
The boy felt his stomach do somersaults. “Hey!”
Mello just beamed. “That’s what you get, you know. And Mimi,” he turned to her. “You can just get yourself and your pigtails out of here… the grown-ups are talking.”
Matt gasped.
“Grown-ups?” Mimi scoffed. “Are you joking? I’m eighteen! You’re not even old enough to drive!”
“Well, it’s not exactly ameteur hour, that’s all I meant…”
“Oh, you’ve got a lot of nerve, haven’t you? You and Matt bo…”
She trailed off.
Mello froze mid-chocolate, confused.
And then it all made sense.
Dreadful, terrible sense.
As if Near wasn’t bad enough, as if Mimi wasn’t the worst possible person that could have ended up outside of that door, somebody came along that Mello hated more than both of them combined—and that was saying something.
“Light!” Mimi cried. “Aw, you came at just the right time! I’m being completely victimized here! Matt and Mello are being total bullies!”
Light…
Mello shook his head.
Light, whoever he really was beneath his alias, was the wrench thrown into Mello’s entire plan.
He was the asshole that had come to the Wammy House just a year earlier, speaking English better than a native speaker, and by the end of his first semester, had somehow managed to beat out both Mello and Near.
Of course, that semester’s rankings hadn’t been announced yet (and come to think of it, Mello found it a bit strange) but if trends still held out, then the goody two-shoes that stole John Lennon’s haircut was still the smartest student in the school.
That made Mello third .
How pathetic.
“Matt,” Light sighed, almost relieved to be thrown into the conflict. “Mello, lay off her, will you?”
Taking Mimi’s hand in his, he explained, “She’s taken.”
“No kidding,” Mello muttered. “Now let’s just get to the point—you’re the only one of us with a watch, so for the love of God, what time is it?!”
“Oh,” the young man drew his wrist to his face. “Looks like it’s just about…”
He never got the chance to answer.
He didn’t need to.
Just as he was about to say it, the door opened.
Everyone’s heads snapped to the left, and within seconds, the hallway was dead silent.
Out stepped Roger Ruvie, the school’s headmaster, the student’s caretaker, and the parish priest of the church next door—and in stepped the students.
They lined up in no particular order, with Matt on the far left and Mimi on the far right.
The door closed behind them, and Roger stood near it.
He didn’t sit at his desk like he usually would have—he couldn’t have.
Someone else had taken his place, turning the chair around to face away from the five of them.
And beside this unknown stranger stood another gentleman, a second Roger, almost, with preened white hair and a tidy mustache.
Near’s eyes went wide, looking at him.
He was staring at the founder of the orphanage, the famed inventor, the only person who could contact L directly.
He was staring at Quillish Wammy.
But if he was there in front of them, and there was someone else in the chair to his right, then—
Mimi gasped, but before she could get the words out, the chair began to turn.
L looked at them one by one, his lips curled into a quiet frown as he stared, dark, almost black eyes placed atop white, almost grey skin.
His face was sickly thin, as was the rest of his body, his clothes wrinkled and hanging off of him as if on a wire.
If Light didn’t know any better, then he would have said that the world’s greatest detective was two steps away from death.
But there was a look in his eyes, a hungry, curious, calculating look.
Reaching one bare foot to the floor, L stood up, and slowly, bent over like a tiger stalking its prey, he walked over to the students.
Mello was sure he would pass out. It was just a matter of when.
“Good afternoon,” the detective spoke in a surprisingly pleasant tone. “Light, Mello, Mimi, Matt, Near… I trust that you already know who I am, judging by your expressions. Still, allow me to clarify.”
He let out a sigh.
“I’m L.”
Oh God, Mello thought. Was the room really spinning or was it just his nerves?
Light glanced to his sides, careful not to appear too eager to speak.
Then, recognizing he was the only one who would, he cleared his throat.
“L,” he said. “Huh? Well, I’ll admit that I’m surprised to see you in person—especially on such short notice—but I’d like you to know that you have nothing but my respect and admiration.”
Having said his peace, the young man extended his hand to the detective.
But L never shook it. Instead, he pushed it away.
“Yes, thank you for the flattery, Light. But I’m afraid before we can introduce ourselves, I’ve got something I need to do…”
With that same look in his eyes, L abruptly began to scan the room, turning around and around until he seemed to lock onto something.
Mello said a Hail Mary.
The world’s greatest detective was staring directly at him.
He took a few steps forward.
— art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary —
With careful tenacity, the detective lifted the crucifix on Mello’s neck.
— Mother of God, prayforussinners now and at the hourofourdeaths, amen —
“Mello,” he said calmly. “Please, May I…”
“Y-yes.”
— HAILMARYFULLOFGRACETHELORDISWITHTHEEBLESS —
The rosary was pulled off delicately, though the sight of the detective’s hands made Mello flinch.
And turning it around in his hand, studying it, L hummed to himself.
Suddenly, he smiled.
“There it is,” he said, spinning one of the beads towards the bottom. “Painted over in the exact shade it should be.”
Mello’s shoulders slumped. He had been caught.
Waving the necklace back and forth, as if to hypnotize his student, L said, “You’ll be getting this back, of course… But until I can find the time to remove the bug, I’ll hold onto it.”
“Now,” the detective sighed. “What now…”
His eyes locked onto Mimi.
She tensed, unable to help the thought that the man she was meant to look up to seemed to be a bit of a pervert, the way he was staring at her.
Still, she didn’t budge.
If he were to try anything on her, if he lunged or made any kind of sudden movement, then she would have six witnesses, including her boyfriend.
Light would sooner fight with words, she knew, then his fists. But if push came to shove, he would shove—she was sure of it.
“Let’s see,” L muttered. “It’s got to be on you somewhere… the way you dress, you have plenty of opportunities to hide it in your clothes somehow…”
She swallowed hard, and beginning to grow afraid at the thought of the detective grabbing at her clothes, she met Light’s eyes.
They were steady, she noticed.
He was trying to reassure her.
Drawing in a deep breath, and exhaling it shallowly, she lifted her chin.
L continued to study her. “So the only question is where…”
That was when he caught sight of her ring, glimmering in the light of the office.
It was a metallic thing, silvery, and crowned by a single square ruby—though the authenticity of the gem was questionable—and it was about the same size as an average RF transmitter.
“Mimi,” the detective called. “It’s an odd request, I know, but may I take your hand?”
Caught, the young woman thought. And caught red-ringed.
“Yes, you may.”
She was surprised by how cold his fingers were, and would even call herself unnerved as those long, cold fingers pressed down on the ruby in her ring.
It loosened just as she had designed, and smiling, satisfied with himself, L peeled the gem away and removed the bug.
“There we are… I’ll be taking this, now. You can have it back later, but until then…”
He turned around, examining the room once again, and became fixated by the side-to-side rocking of the bobblehead on Roger’s desk.
Of course, he thought.
Lifting it into the air, he turned it upside down.
“Mr. Wammy,” he called. “Could I please have a screwdriver?”
“Naturally,” the old man nodded, producing a small blue box from his coat pocket.
He opened it carefully, and drawing his glasses away from his eyes, as if to get a better look, selected his instrument, which was then passed onto L.
The detective made quick work of undoing the battery compartment, and made even quicker work of undoing the access to the desk toy’s solar panel.
There, he found, hidden within the circuit, was the bug.
He hummed and placed the dismembered limbs of the bobblehead back in its ancestral home—that is to say, he set them back on the headmaster’s desk.
Matt stood poker-faced, his hands in his pockets.
He had really thought, somewhere in that apparently genius mind of his, that that would have worked.
So much for genius, he decided.
“Clever,” L muttered. “But it’s not over yet…”
He didn’t even need to examine the room to figure it out.
Towards the ceiling, on the edges of the walls, the train traveled in circles, letting out a soft chime every time it completed a lap.
The students watched in confusion as L lifted himself onto his toes, blocking the toy with his hand as the wheels spun on endlessly.
With his other hand, he combed through the containers, his fingers searching for something they couldn’t seem to find.
After the eleventh (and final) car, he grew annoyed.
But that was when it struck him.
Letting out a laugh, a harsh, flat, unnatural sound, he let the wheels spin wildly around the office and instead focused on the underbelly of the track.
At first he passed it, rightfully mistaking its hiding place for a simple wire entrance.
Then he laughed again, and slipping the small piece of wood aside, the bug fell to the floor.
“Incredible…” he muttered, turning it around in his hand.
Near gave no visible reaction.
Then L frowned, and with wide, unfeeling eyes, looked directly at Light.
Noticing this, the young man felt a certain sense of pride.
He was the last one to be caught—if he would even be caught at all.
The detective walked towards him, hunched over, as before.
And studying him from every angle, circling him and staring him up and down, L couldn’t seem to figure it out.
Light sighed calmly.
“Oh dear…” L mumbled. “This isn’t any good, now, is it?”
Mello’s pupils dilated.
Did that bastard really just trick L ?
Abruptly, the detective grabbed hold of Light’s wrist, and noticing this, Mimi screamed.
“Please relax,” L said. “It’s not that big of a deal, really, I just need to see something…”
Again, Light showed no sign of discomfort, or even anxiety.
“Search wherever you’d like, L,” he shrugged. “It’s honestly alright by me.”
“Hmmm…. If that’s the case, then I will.”
He pressed against the dial once.
It didn’t open.
He tried twice.
Nothing.
A third time, nothing.
So he tried a fourth.
No change.
L was beginning to grow impatient.
Twice in quick succession—no result.
Thrice, now there was a different story.
The bottom compartment of the watch slid out, revealing a shallow tray.
L smiled maniacally as he removed the bug.
“Good God…” he said. “There it is.”
Returning to his chair, placing his feet right on the fabric, tossing the bugs in the air, L laughed.
“So that makes five,” he whispered. “I’ll admit it, all of you… I’m impressed. You did far better than I thought.”
Mello smiled, unable to contain himself.
Across from him, the detective shook his head. “That said, I’m sure you have questions. And I’m glad you do. So allow me to explain:
“Two weeks ago,” he began. “And unbeknownst to anyone besides myself, Mr. Wammy, and Father Ruvie, you each received a message instructing you to plant a bug somewhere in order to listen to a conversation in this office on this date. This was to be, as the message described, your final test.
“I’m pleased to let you all know… you passed.”
Near blinked.
That was all well and good—he knew he would pass.
But what about it? What was it supposed to mean?
“Now,” L continued. “You may have noticed that this semester’s rankings have not yet been released, and due to this very situation, they couldn’t be until today, once our meeting concludes.
“Simply put, I’ve chosen to test the five of you because you are the five smartest students in this school. That, I’m sure you already know.”
But Mello refused to believe it.
Himself, sure. Near and Light, of course. Matt, it made sense.
But Mimi ? The girl who giggled and gossiped her way through her classes, just waiting until the school day was over so she could go and gawk at her boyfriend some more?
There was no way in hell…
“But I don’t just do this to everyone. There’s a reason you’re all here today, and there’s a reason I asked you to plant bugs.”
He placed the tip of his thumbnail between his teeth, and eyes wide open, he asked, “So what do you think that reason might be?”
Matt’s stomach dropped to the floor—no, lower.
For once in his whole life, he hoped he was dumber than people said he was. Way dumber .
“You’ve…” he stammered. “You’ve been working on the Kira case in Japan… the serial killer that’s getting all those criminals and making it look like heart attacks…”
L blinked.
Well, that’s not a good sign at all…
His student went on, “The one that killed Lind L. Tailor on TV, and… and can kill with just a name and a face.”
Mimi’s face went white as paper somewhere beneath all that blush.
She had heard about the case, sure.
But up until that moment, she had forgotten about that .
“You…” Matt trailed off, and before speaking, swallowed once. “You want us to work with you, don’t you? You want us to solve the Kira case alongside you.”
The room grew deathly silent—a good atmosphere to compliment the petrified faces of L’s students.
Giving a deep sigh, the detective nodded.
“Yes, that’s right. If you’re up for the task, then I’d like the five of you to help me on the Kira case. I’ll be the first to tell you, I understand if you don’t wish to come along—from what we know about him so far, it’s a very dangerous case… If you’d like, then you can walk out this door right now, free of any judgement or punishment.”
Matt opened his mouth to speak.
But he was overpowered by the detective, his eyes low and hazy as he added, “Just know that if you do leave, I won’t be telling you your rank.”
Mello clenched his jaw.
That was one hell of a tactic… and a damn good one, too.
“Wait a minute,” Light called. “L, if I’m understanding you correctly, then… you’re going to bribe us into coming with you by not telling us our ranks?”
“Yes, that’s one way to put it. Though I should add that the ranks happen to line up precisely with my favored order of succession… hopefully that adds a bit of an edge to it?”
“Succession?” Mello cried, unable to hold his tongue any longer. “You mean if we come with you, you’ll tell us who your successor will be?!”
Inexplicably, the detective pulled a string of grapes from his pocket, and working slowly, began to pluck them from the vine and into his mouth.
“I’ll tell you who I most favor to take this post after my death, yes. But that’s only as it currently stands… that could change as time goes on. So to clarify,” he swallowed. “I’m really telling you that you are all among the top five to succeed me. And if you agree to join me on the Kira case, then I’ll tell you which position of succession you’re currently in.”
He looked Mello in the eye.
“Does that answer your question?”
“Yes,” the boy said resolutely. “Thank you, L.”
Matt grew numb with fear.
He’s going to do it… he had better not do it…
“I’ll come with you,” Mello announced. “Wherever you need me to go, I’ll go.”
Oh God. He did it .
L nodded. “Very well, then. Thank you, Mello—you’re the third smartest student and thus, the third in line to succeed me.”
— ohgodohgodohgodohgodohpleasenogodpleasenoohgod —
Hearing this, the blonde boy let out an audible breath, the kind that gets released after being punched in the gut.
The corners of his vision grew red.
He was third, he thought. He was fucking third in line to succeed L.
No, that couldn’t be right… he hadn’t worked like he had, he hadn’t busted his ass for the past five years just to end up a loser.
Not when he was that close to beating out Near! Not when Light had just come out of nowhere and sprinted to the top of the list in a year!
It just. Wasn’t. Fair.
For a minute, he thought he was going to go what is called, in extremely scientific terms, apeshit . He was convinced that there was no way out of that hellhole he’d dug other than kicking Near in the balls and dragging Mimi into the art room furnace by her pigtails.
And then he heard something beside him.
“I’ll go, too,” Matt said quickly, trying to maintain casualty. “If Mello’s going, then someone’s gotta keep him company, huh?”
“Yes,” L agreed, munching on his grapes. “I suppose you’re right… In any case, Matt, welcome to the team—you’re in fourth.”
The blonde boy felt himself relax a little.
Matt was coming with him, he thought. So at least they would be together.
Not to mention… the positions could change. L had said it himself.
That’s right, Mello still had time to prove himself. In fact, there wasn’t any better opportunity to do so. If he could catch Kira, he thought, or better yet—if he could work with L to catch Kira, and somehow Near didn’t join the case —
A childish, emotionless voice severed his train of thought.
“If you think I should go, L,” Near said. “Then I suppose I will. I’m interested to see where the case leads…”
L shook his head. “No, I never said that I thought you should—I have no opinion. Still, if you wish to come, I invite you to. So do you?”
“I do.”
“Very well, then. Near, you’re second, and that makes three. Light, Mimi—”
Letting out a sigh, Light made eye contact with the detective.
This was his moment!
Speaking slowly, he began. “L… I need to tell you before anything else that I’m honored you would invite me to this case.”
“Oh, thank you.” L blinked. “That isn’t an answer, though.”
“I understand,” the other man said. “I guess what I’m trying to say is… I have a lot of respect for you. I’ll admit, it makes me very happy to know that I can be a part of this case, that I can bring Kira to justice—and I don’t know if I’m allowed to say this in front of the others, but—”
He laughed a little, partly out of a desire to impress his mentor, and partly because he was scared shitless.
“I was born in Japan. I lived there for all of my life, at least until I came here… so to bring down this Kira , whoever he is, and in my home country, nonetheless? It’s like a dream come true… I’ll go with you, L. You can count me in!”
L smirked. “Well, if you’re so sure, then maybe I will. Congratulations, Light. You’re in first.”
Light’s face hurt from smiling. He had been expecting it, of course, but to hear it actually said to his face—it sure was something.
Unfortunately, not everyone felt the same.
In fact, Mello felt a twinge of annoyance.
Near shared the same sentiment.
Oh well.
Mimi stepped forward.
“Light’s right, you know,” she said, burying that bony white terror that seemed to swell in her every time she heard about Kira. “I’m Japanese, too, and that being the case… we would make good additions to the team. We would know the language off the bat, and beyond that, we would know the culture, and the customs…”
She sighed.
Before she could stop herself, she was saying, “L, I’ll go with you. I want to hunt Kira, too!”
Under his breath, Mello couldn’t help but mutter, “ And I want to tape your mouth shut… ”
Fortunately for him, nobody seemed to hear.
If they did, they didn’t say anything about it.
L simply smiled and said, “Thank you, Mimi. I’m sure you’ve figured it out by now, but you’re in fifth place. And speaking of fives…”
He stared at the bugs on the table.
“I’ve got five out of five of you to come with me… I have to say, I wasn’t expecting such optimal results.
“And yet here we are,” he sighed. “Myself, Near, Mello, Matt, Mimi…”
His tone shifted then, and his voice grew dark and dull.
“And Light.”
The young man frowned, confused as to why his name was being said with such an edge.
“Hikaru Yamaji.”
His eyes grew wide, his muscles tense. For the first time in a long time, Light lost his composure.
Now, of everything new that had happened that day, to see the top student of one of the most elite schools on the planet, the young man who toed the line of professionalism like it was a circus act, break down and start raising his voice ?
Even Roger seemed surprised.
“L…” Light staggered, louder than he would have liked. “W-why are you telling that to everyone? You know, you can’t just—”
“Please calm down, Mr. Yamaji,” the detective instructed. “I only said your real name because I need everyone to know it for this case.”
The young man’s face went red. Who in the hell was he calling Yamaji ?! “No, L, you don’t understand—”
“Mr. Yamaji.”
Mello’s jaw dropped, the taste of chocolate now sour on his tongue.
He had found something sweeter than cocoa, and its name was watching Light AKA Hikaru Yamaji break down in front of L .
“—Listen, I hate to sound pushy here, but the last thing I need is for anyone to know my real name—”
Louder this time. “Mr. Yamaji.”
Light let a grunt break through. “—There are people in this room, you know, that—”
Though he hated to fight fire with fire, L knew that sometimes the only way to win was to scream the loudest.
“ Mr. Yamaji! ”
Light froze dead in his tracks.
Near, for his part, covered his ears.
“I understand your points,” the detective said in a huff. “But you aren’t letting me finish.”
He shook his head.
“I need the others to know your real name.”
“Well then…” the young man said, choking through the words. “Then why?”
L answered bluntly, “Because, Light—there’s a 0.3 percent chance that you are Kira.”
Light felt everything in him drain away.
The words seemed to echo around him.
But they didn’t make any sense.
Before she could think, Mimi was speaking.
“No,” she interrupted, dead sure of herself. “That’s not possible. L, if Light was Kira, then that would mean that he was in the Kanto Region at the time of the Lind L. Tailor broadcast—but he was right here! He- he couldn’t have just packed his things, flew to Japan, and come back in a couple of minutes!”
“I understand that,” L said casually. “But 0.3 does not equal 0. And until it does, neither you nor Light has a rebuttal I’m willing to accept.”
“But…” Light stammered. “Dear God, is a 0.3 percent chance really something to go revealing my full name for?”
“In my opinion, yes. Now if you’d like to speak about this another time, preferably when you’ve calmed down, you have my word that we will. Until then, there are other things I need to say.”
Everyone in the room could see it—Light clenched his fists.
Then, with a deep breath, he let them go.
“Fine,” he said, defeated. “You go on…”
L nodded. “Exactly one week from today, at 10:00 A.M. I want you all to come back here. Roger will drive you to the Southampton Airport, where I’ll meet you after you go through security. Our flight leaves at 1:00 P.M. for Frankfurt, where we’ll spend the night. At 7:00 A.M. the next morning, we’ll be flying straight to Tokyo. It’s an eleven-hour flight, too, so dress comfortably. I don’t need to hear anyone complaining…”
“But,” Matt spoke up. “Why are you coming with us? I thought that you always worked from somewhere else.”
“Oh, yes,” the detective sighed. “That’s the other thing… See, it used to be that the Japanese National Police Agency’s Kira Task Force was comprised of twenty-two members, including the Commissioner General and the Superintendent General. Twenty-one of these members had at least some level of direct experience with homicide cases, and half of them had been involved before in serial killings.
“Unfortunately,” he said, defeated. “After the death of Mr. Tailor, only six of those members remain…”
Mimi pursed her lips.
It was worse than she thought.
“We were lucky enough to keep the Commissioner General—the chief of the NPA, in other words… and what a relief that is. And apart from him, we’ll have five other officers, three of them seniors, some of them quite well regarded...”
He paused.
“Some not. As a matter of fact, one of them has taken this up as his first case as an NPA officer, and after failing his exams six times, nonetheless. If I were him, I would have left while I had the opportunity...
“Oh,” he groaned. “No matter. To answer your question, Matt, the six remaining members of the task force have asked that I show my face to them in order to gain their trust, and so I’ve agreed.”
Mello bit his cheek. “You did? But Kira can kill using only a name and a face…”
There it was again, crawling up Mimi’s spine.
A name and a face was all it took...
“So they have half,” L said bluntly. “But it’s going to take quite a bit of work for them to figure out my name… along with an… no, most of yours.”
Light grimaced.
“In any case, I can’t afford to lose the NPA’s support, and especially not the Commissioner General’s… so in spite of my internal conflict, I’ve complied with their request.”
He blinked. “It hasn’t happened yet, though. And it won’t until we all meet them in person the day of our arrival in Japan. Until then, I’ve hidden a USB somewhere in each of your rooms— when you find it, because I know you will, you will be able to familiarize yourself with all of my information on the remaining task force members, along with everything we know so far about the case.”
He concluded with this:
“Your help in this matter is crucial; I’m very glad you’ve all agreed to do it. But the fight’s just beginning… so let’s not dawdle around anymore. I’ve said my piece.
“The twenty-sixth of December, 10:00 A.M. sharp. Have all of your things packed, your teachers notified, and if questioned by your peers, tell them honestly that you’ve been asked to assist me with investigatorial matters—but nothing more than that.
“Hereon, and especially in the presence of the NPA, I ask that you refer to me as Ryuzaki and Wammy as Watari. Each of you will be given a code name as well, although… I can’t imagine you’ll use it much. Your aliases should suffice.”
He looked around, watching like an eagle from above.
“Are there any questions?”
Well, sure. Light had a whole laundry list of questions, most of which started with why . But he kept his mouth shut, at least for the time being.
“Great,” he announced. “Then the next time I’ll be seeing you all will be a week from now. Please try and familiarize yourself with some basic Japanese phrases, and you may all return to class.”
For a moment, no one moved.
It would seem they were in too much shock to do so.
Then, with a shake of his head and an angry gleam in his eye, Light walked out of the office, not bothering to hold the door open behind him.