Chapter 29 The bomb is the devil's whisper.

Rei Furuya eventually returned to the safe house without staying overnight.

He couldn't help feeling depressed when he talked about it—Furuya Rei was pushed back by Kitagawa Ryusei.

The only thing that comforted him was that Rae wasn't there, and Morofushi Hiromitsu was sitting on the sofa waiting for him.

Hearing the door open, the young man on the sofa turned around.

The door closed, and Morofushi Kagemitsu smiled faintly: "How was it?"

No matter how much time has passed, Rei Furuya still can't help but look away when his childhood friend teases him.

Fortunately, the living room lights were off, and the darkness concealed his expression. He managed to keep his tone from sounding strange: "Um... let's talk it out."

Unexpectedly, Morofushi Kagemitsu glanced at him, feigning confusion: "I asked about his connection with the organization."

Jianggu Ling: "..."

Is this still his childhood friend?

Hiro, you used to be dark-skinned, but you didn't look like this before!

Even though his childhood friend had become a semi-mature relationship, he still answered the other person's question first, his words brief yet tinged with helplessness: "For now, we can't really sever our ties..."

To be honest, he really didn't expect Kitagawa Ryusei to be the head of the Special Investigation Team.

The fact that the young man gained the trust and recognition of the police department's top brass in such a short time speaks volumes about his excellence and the hard work he has put in over the past two years.

While feeling honored, Furuya Rei was even more worried.

Unlike the Public Security Zero Team, whose identities are kept secret, Kitagawa Ryusei also works in the Criminal Planning Division, making him even more likely to be exposed to the organization.

Not long ago, he clearly expressed his concerns.

Kitagawa Ryusei's answer was also very clear—

"If they really have the audacity and ability to strike a police officer without any scruples and with precision, then the one who should be most apprehensive is the Superintendent General of Police, not a lowly officer like me."

"Rest assured, we will try our best to avoid direct conflict with them. But abandoning the project halfway and passing the risk to others is definitely not my style."

"And... I won't be surprised at all, believe me."

Rei Furuya didn't know what gave the young man such unwavering courage, but he was willing to believe every word the other person said.

The fight against the organization is no longer the mission of one or a few police officers.

Many police officers are playing a game of cat and mouse with criminals, whether they are aware of it or not.

They are police officers, criminal investigators... dedicated to their duties and facing danger head-on.

This is something that Rei Furuya is proud of.

*

The last leaf on the unnamed tree in front of the police station finally drifted down from the top, entering the next stage of its life cycle, and fell to the soil to experience its slow process of becoming fertilizer.

The weather has cooled down completely, which has also cooled people's moods down. Tokyo residents are no longer as restless as before, and the police officers are also much more relaxed.

As a result, he smiled more often, and his work efficiency improved accordingly.

Young Furuya's words proved prophetic; poor Mr. Zero is now in a long-distance relationship, and it's normal for him to not see his lover for a week or two.

Two years have clearly passed, but now even two hours feel unbearable.

Unlike the distressed undercover officer, Kitagawa Ryusei falls into the category of police officers whose mood improves.

Kenji Hagiwara, who has the best connections, said he saw a blond guy working at a coffee shop. Jinpei Matsuda and the squad leader have been getting their Metropolitan Police Department colleagues to buy dozens of desserts and coffees together lately, and apparently they've all gained a few pounds.

He thought to himself, "I'll invite the police department along another day," and slowly added the matter to his itinerary.

A colleague from the planning department, carrying documents, brushed past Kitagawa Ryusei as he walked past the office. Then, with a dreamy look on his face, he stopped, took a few steps back, rubbed his eyes, and turned around.

—So this kid wasn't born with a grumpy face!

This good mood lasted until one morning when Kitagawa Ryusei was greeted with a wonderful gift as he went out.

Pressing the doorknob, Kitagawa Ryusei put on his coat, straightened his collar, and used his light-colored turtleneck sweater to keep out the cold wind that was trying to blow into his neck.

As he picked up the key to the entrance and was about to leave, he suddenly sensed something was wrong and stopped in his tracks.

Only a crack was opened between the door and the frame, allowing just a glimpse of what was happening outside.

A black box, about the size of a shoebox, lay quietly in the hallway; its material was impossible to discern.

At this moment, it was flashing an ominous red light, silently confronting Kitagawa Ryusei.

After a long pause, the brown-haired youth took out his phone, his tone calm yet carrying an inexplicable sense of absurdity:

"Hello, is this the Metropolitan Police Department? I need to call the police."

...

Kenji Hagiwara never expected to visit this place under these circumstances.

Upon hearing the task assigned by the head of the mobile team, he almost threw the bomb disposal tools in the man's face.

The Asai villa area near Yoshioka 3-chome.

— He, Xiao Zhenping, and the squad leader had a chance encounter with the missing person there a while ago and had a great time together.

That's where Kitagawa Ryusei lived.

Kojinpei was sent out on another mission. It wouldn't even take two aces to use one bomb. Hagiwara Kenji picked up his toolbox, led his squad, and set off.

Upon arriving at the location of the bomb, Kenji Hagiwara's heart sank. Before him stood a familiar house number.

"Have all the ordinary people been evacuated?" he asked in a deep voice.

The team member, who should have given a positive answer, hesitated and only replied when he looked over, "I... I guess so?"

I just don't know if the inspector who has a good relationship with Captain Hagiwara is considered an ordinary person.

Before Kenji Hagiwara could frown and ask what he meant, he saw Ryusei Kitagawa, dressed neatly, push open the security door and walk out.

Having probably guessed that an acquaintance would be coming, the brown-haired youth did not show any surprise at Kenji Hagiwara.

On the contrary, Kenji Hagiwara's beautiful eyes almost popped out.

"Xiao, Liu, Sheng, what are you still doing here?! It's dangerous here!" His pupils trembled as he questioned her while steadily dismantling the bomb casing with one hand.

"Oh," Kitagawa Ryusei remained unmoved by the young man's questioning, his gaze sweeping over the fully armed members of the explosives squad behind him, before turning to Hagiwara Kenji, who was covered in sweat from running and wearing only a single layer of clothing: "I thought Captain Hagiwara looked so confident that nothing was wrong."

Kenji Hagiwara, caught off guard, was speechless for the first time: "..."

As expected of the ace of the explosive class, the bombshell was dismantled in just two sentences.

The small metal box was filled with tightly packed parts.

Red and black lines are densely intertwined, connecting the central display screen.

A time bomb, fifteen minutes until it explodes.

Kenji Hagiwara made a preliminary judgment after only a brief glance and breathed a sigh of relief—it wasn't too troublesome.

He was focused on distinguishing the fuses, yet he still managed to spare some energy to talk to Kitagawa Ryusei.

"Knowing this is a dangerous item, Xiaoliu should have stayed far away. Although Hagi is reliable, what if the bomb exploded before Hagi could save the damsel in distress!"

Judging from his tone, the others present felt much more at ease, as they trusted their captain completely and held up their riot shields to support Kenji Hagiwara.

Kitagawa Ryusei did not respond to his words.

He'd seen plenty of bombs, but this was the first time he'd ever seen police defuse one.

Confused, he asked, "So the leads are deliberately distinguished by different colors?"

When defusing the bomb, Kenji Hagiwara's expression was more serious than ever before: "Of course, but when you accumulate enough bomb disposal experience, you can tell which wire to cut without even looking at the color—"

He didn't finish his sentence.

Then the brown-haired youth suddenly fell silent, and then said from the bottom of his heart, "...Then this bomber is quite 'considerate'."

Kenji Hagiwara, who was imparting his experience, froze, a question mark slowly appearing above his head: "?"

"There's even a display screen showing a countdown."

"..."

"It can't display fifteen minutes, but the actual explosion time is only three minutes?"

"…………"

"This bomb is too conspicuous. Although sheet metal can increase its lethality, why not disguise it to make people less vigilant and throw it into a sheet metal trash can? The effect would be the same, right?"

The atmosphere, which had eased somewhat, became heavy again as the young man spoke each word.

The corridor fell into a deathly silence, with the sound of several police officers swallowing clearly audible.

Everyone was staring at Kitagawa Ryusei with eyes that seemed to regard him as if he were a devil.

"..." Kenji Hagiwara also froze for a moment, his hands holding the tools motionless, but a thin layer of sweat slowly seeped from his palms.

He deftly cut a black wire, wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, and looked up with a deep gaze: "Little Liusheng, I'm begging you, Hagi needs quiet right now."

Kitagawa Ryusei looked innocent and wisely kept quiet.

But the echoes of the young man's words still lingered in everyone's ears.

For these bomb disposal police officers who frequently deal with dangerous materials, it was nothing short of the devil's whisper.

The mantra "maybe only three minutes" was deafening. Everyone was as if they had been put on fast-forward, holding their breath and not daring to relax, making them much more nimble.

This level of bomb was no challenge for Kenji Hagiwara. Nothing unexpected happened until the last red fuse was cut, and the countdown on the display screen stopped.

8:17.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Kenji Hagiwara released his tools and collapsed to the ground from a half-squat position, his voice erratic: "...This is definitely the most difficult bomb I've defused this year."

It's not because it's complicated, it's just that there's an extra mouth next to it.

Thinking this, he turned his head, struggled to his feet, and lunged at the culprit behind it all.

"Little Liusheng, where did you learn such nonsense ideas from!"

I can't believe what they would do if they actually encountered such a bomber!

There's absolutely no prior experience to draw upon!

Kitagawa Ryusei was caught off guard and pounced on. As her mouth was covered, she clearly felt her hair being torn apart.

He struggled to break free from the black-haired youth's arms, his face flushed red, and finally managed to free his mouth. His disheveled hair was a little annoyed because there were still outsiders around: "It would be unbelievable if you, a bomber, followed the rules!"

What kind of criminal would keep using the same tricks to give the police experience points?

Kenji Hagiwara knew he wasn't wrong, but he still couldn't help pinching the young man's cheeks and pulling them apart: "Unsettling the morale of the army, what is your punishment!"

And what dangerous remarks were those!

The way this guy said it in such a calm tone gave him a frightening feeling that the other person was very experienced.

The bomb has been defused; all that's left is to remove the wreckage. This operation is much faster than they initially anticipated.

"Alright, alright, you can all go down first," Kenji Hagiwara waved for his teammates to leave after venting his emotions, planning to take his things down himself later: "Wearing a bomb suit all the time is just uncomfortable to think about."

The teammates clearly felt the same way; physical problems were secondary, and they urgently needed to calm their psychological issues.

After handing the storage box containing the dangerous device to the captain, they helped their comrade, whose legs were a little weak, leave.

Soon only two people remained in the hallway.

While tidying up, Kenji Hagiwara asked Ruki Kitagawa, "Ruki just said to disguise the bomb to make people lower their guard. Could you elaborate?"

He had to admit that every word the young man said could terrify a bomb disposal officer.

Whether it's the first two points that double the danger of bomb disposal work, or the third point that causes unpredictable harm to innocent civilians.

Just thinking about it sends chills down my spine.

"..." In fact, Kitagawa Ryusei didn't know where to begin, so he could only make something up: "For example, hollow out a lemon and disguise the bomb as kitchen waste?"

Kenji Hagiwara stroked his chin thoughtfully: "It is indeed feasible."

Moreover, the display screen issue mentioned by the other party is not impossible.

Including him and Kojinpei, the bomb disposal police relied too much on this "clue" provided by the criminal when facing a time bomb.

But is it really reliable every time?

His thoughts were still wandering—and with the widespread use of remote signals, who can guarantee that such technology won't be used for crimes by those with ulterior motives?

Lost in thought, Kenji Hagiwara reached out to close the container holding the bomb wreckage.

Yu Guangzhong, however, caught a glimpse of a reddish flash.

The countdown that had been frozen on the screen suddenly flashed twice and then vanished.

A sudden surge of instinct for unknown danger roared through his mind, causing Kenji Hagiwara's movements to falter abruptly.

In an instant, a chill penetrated his flesh and bones, seeping into the very marrow of his body, making his very bones feel cold.

The young man's eyes widened in horror, his purple eyes lifeless and fixed on the box in front of him.

The bright red characters symbolizing death reappeared on the monitor, coldly announcing the countdown to life.

0:05.

The bomb, which had already been defused, was detonated again.

It made a dripping sound.

A metallic taste of blood filled Hagiwara Kenji's throat, his voice choked with embarrassment: "Run..."

These words may have been spoken aloud, or they may have been uttered by the lips in vain.

He could no longer hear anything.

Kitagawa Ryusei couldn't see what was inside the box, but he had experienced far more and countless life-threatening dangers than Hagiwara Kenji...

The black-haired youth's phone suddenly rang, vibrating against his skin and in his pocket.

It brought him back to his senses.

"--run!!"

The hoarse, mournful sound was like the wailing of a trapped beast.

Kitagawa Ryusei saw the young man flash past his eyes like a shadow, then lunged forward, grabbed the bomb, and staggered away in another direction away from him!

"Stop!!!"