Chapter 55, Twelfth Week (4)
After Ida arrived at the scene and identified himself as a police officer, the bomber was so frightened that he stumbled and crawled, unable to speak clearly, begging for protection from Ida, who was a police officer.
Date Wataru: "?"
He glanced at the reindeer man whose figure quickly disappeared, then looked at the bomber who, despite looking terrified, only had an arm injury, and fell into deep thought.
What did Furuya do to scare this bomber like this?
Never mind, whatever it is, he won't be soft on criminals.
Ida Ko subdued the bomber, handcuffed him, and then began to notify the Metropolitan Police Department.
Soon, Matsuda Jinpei and Hagiwara Kenji also brought good news: the danger of the night was finally over.
*
Morofushi Kagemitsu was still dressed in a full Santa Claus costume, with his hat and beard covering most of his face.
Even so, the location where he met with Rei Furuya was still very secretive.
"So? Is that person really one of the organization?" Morofushi Kagemitsu asked in a low voice.
“No, he hasn’t joined the organization yet. This operation was planned by him to prove his strength to the organization,” Furuya Rei said. “He knows almost nothing about the organization. He only learned a little bit from a friend at the bottom and wanted to join the organization because of that. But the organization looks down on him because he only knows how to make bombs. So he planned to set a trap to kill so many business and political figures in the Gemini and to mess with the police to prove his strength.”
Morofushi Kagemitsu: "?"
Zhu Fujingguang was greatly shocked and did not understand.
Rei Furuya was also helpless: "It's outrageous, isn't it? This kind of guy who only messes around and exposes the organization's existence, the organization wouldn't just not take him in, they would send someone to kill him instead."
Even if Pisco were caught committing murder, Gin would kill him, let alone anyone else.
Oh, Gin, who can fly an armed helicopter and straf the Tokyo Tower, doesn't count himself.
Rei Furuya often suspects that the organization was actually started by Gin himself.
Okay, actually, it's because Gin has the ability and status to handle the aftermath that he dares to be so arrogant, but this bomber obviously doesn't.
"The organization has been investigating information about [Sakura] recently, wanting to recruit her into the organization. It's causing quite a stir, and some people have heard about it and want to join the organization as well," Furuya Rei said seriously. "So, this is also a butterfly I brought, but it will be very beneficial to our future operations."
At this time, there seem to be quite a few people who want to join the organization, just like bombers, so it will be easier for them to sneak into the organization and infiltrate undercover than before.
However, we cannot let our guard down before that.
Rei Furuya has actually been thinking about this all along.
He was thinking that maybe their guesses were wrong, maybe even if the timeline that changed Hagi's fate of death was changed, he wouldn't be able to get the next save point, maybe he would have to save all four of his friends who were being maliciously targeted by the world before he could get the next save point.
In other words, the worst-case scenario is that his reincarnation time will be extended to six years, and after a mistake or failure, he can only go back to the day he graduated from the police academy and start from scratch.
Rei Furuya always assumes the worst about the system, which allows him to be fully prepared, take all dangers into account, and minimize the impact.
Therefore, on December 26th, when a prisoner, who was well-informed, learned that the police now had signal jammers and changed his plans at the last minute, almost causing Kenji Hagiwara and Jinpei Matsuda to crash, Rei Furuya, who was already prepared, worked with everyone to resolve the danger.
Although the bomb timer stopped dangerously in the last three seconds, giving everyone a fright, thankfully nothing serious happened.
From that day until December 31st, the Explosives Team did not receive any more missions.
"Do prisoners also celebrate the New Year?" someone remarked, but they finally had time to rest and could go home to reunite with their families.
During their vacation, Kenji Hagiwara, Jinpei Matsuda, and Wataru Date got together to formally discuss the issue they had been thinking about for a long time.
To be honest, ever since they learned about the save-load loop, they have been very worried about Furuya Rei, but they are also somewhat helpless.
How can we make Furuya Rei feel more relaxed and happy? How can we stop him from working so hard to such an alarming and heartbreaking degree?
Rei Furuya said that his greatest joy and ease was seeing them live well, and they did manage to survive together, but Rei Furuya never seemed to relax.
Even though the current situation seems to indicate that they have most likely survived the death threat of Hagiwara Kenji's worldline convergence, Furuya Rei... he's even busier than before.
Kazami Yu is also a subordinate of Furuya Reishi and a friend of Morofushi Kagemitsu.
Sometimes, after Morofushi Kagemitsu subtly guides them, they can glean some information from Kazami's occasional quips.
For example, his boss is younger than him, has a serious and meticulous personality to an alarming degree, faced some opposition when he first became such a high-ranking boss, is a complete workaholic, and has recently been so busy that he has been living in the office, etc.
Although Kazami didn't mention Furuya Rei's name, appearance, or specific job, it was enough for Morofushi Kagemitsu, who already knew, to understand how hard his childhood friend was working.
Although it wasn't unexpected at all, I still felt a bit helpless and angry.
Even the strongest person is still a human being who gets hurt, gets sick, and gets tired; they're not real superheroes or gorillas.
They could completely sense that Rei Furuya was truly disregarding his own feelings when he put in the effort; he was taking it too seriously, and the pressure he carried was incredibly immense. All of this made them very worried, and they wanted to help him ease his burden a little. This was also the case with Hiromitsu Morofushi, who was not present at the meeting but was participating in the discussion on his phone.
However, this matter is not so easy to resolve.
Because Rei Furuya has to work incredibly hard to overcome fate, and he tries his best to do everything perfectly. He's the kind of person who sticks to his decisions once he makes them, and even they have a hard time influencing him.
"Sigh, there's no other way. At least we need to tell him that we care about him a lot, so he needs to take better care of himself." Kenji Hagiwara made the final decision, finalizing the plans for the evening.
Let's all ring in the New Year together tonight.
Then they grabbed that guy who always liked to work his hardest by himself as much as possible and gave him a good talking-to. They had to make him realize from the bottom of his heart that he was no longer alone, that he was no longer the Furuya Rei that no one would care about.
In that case, when considering all the dangers and risks, he would also think of this and take himself into account, right?
Of course, based on their understanding of Furuya Rei, saying these things before the immediate danger has passed might not be very effective.
The best time is tonight, when you successfully celebrate New Year's Eve and enter the new year.
Under normal circumstances, Rei Furuya would not meet or socialize with his colleagues before he was about to officially begin his undercover career; even his previous actions were always rushed and secretive.
However, in his speculations and instructions to everyone, he expressed great concern that the system might cause trouble on the last day before the New Year, just like it did on Halloween and Christmas.
According to the system's usual practice, it is very possible that on New Year's Eve, December 31st, at the moment the New Year's bell rings on January 1st, they will die amidst fireworks and countless New Year's greetings, and then the cycle will end before the New Year begins, allowing everything to start from scratch.
That's why Rei Furuya insisted on staying by the side of his close friends who could be killed by the world at any moment, and he had to get through this critical period with them.
They've wished each other a Happy Halloween and a Merry Christmas, so surely they can celebrate the New Year together with smiles this time too?
If he successfully turned the page to the new year, he could feel more at ease and then officially begin his undercover work.
For this moment, Rei Furuya had made almost the most complete preparations.
For example, he had already chosen the deserted hilltop where the five of them had agreed to watch the fireworks on New Year's Eve, and had checked it up and down many times to make sure there were no bombs and that no one would sneak in with a bomb.
Even so, Rei Furuya still brought Dr. Agasa's latest improved small signal jammer, just in case something happened and he had to activate it.
The entire setup was foolproof. Unless a phone call suddenly summoned Kenji Hagiwara and Jinpei Matsuda back to deal with the bomb, it was hard to imagine that something would happen to them with such a setup.
The place where most people gather to celebrate the New Year is actually the mountain opposite their chosen location, as well as the shrine and plaza at the foot of the mountain.
Before the hike, Kenji Hagiwara offered some suggestions.
"Should we go to the shrine and try our luck with a fortune stick?" he said.
Although people usually draw fortune sticks on the first day of the new year, their situation tonight is special, so they might get some hints.
Rei Furuya stopped him with a serious expression: "Don't go, we can't make a mistake."
Hagihara Kenji: "..."
After reaching the summit, close to midnight, Kenji Hagiwara wanted to make a phone call to his family, but Rei Furuya stopped him.
"Let's play after we successfully cross into the new year," Rei Furuya said.
After a moment of hesitation, Kenji Hagiwara obediently gave up. He exchanged glances with the three people next to him, and they all saw helplessness on each other's faces.
A plane flew low overhead, and Rei Furuya immediately looked up warily.
Matsuda Jinpei couldn't help but remark, "It's not like a bomb is going to fall from the sky, is it?"
But when he looked up, his eyes widened as if he really saw a black dot falling rapidly towards them in the dark sky.
Matsuda Jinpei couldn't help but swear.
Things had really gone so far as to be completely beyond their imagination.
Rei Furuya's voice suddenly rose: "Run!!!"
Whether it's a bomb or not, run first!
The signal jammer cannot be turned on. The planes flying overhead are passenger planes, and they are full of people. We cannot interfere with their flight.
Halfway through the run, Kenji Hagiwara couldn't help but look back, and just then he saw that the dark object suddenly lit up with red numbers.
【00:06】
"Oh no! That really is a bomb! The timer has started! Everyone, run faster!!!"
Although the bomb would have exploded under such an impact even without the countdown, the countdown immediately confirmed the bomb's identity.
After Kenji Hagiwara finished speaking, his vision blurred, and he discovered that a golden hue was still lingering in the darkness.
Wait, no! They haven't even managed to say the important words to that person yet! How can they—
【00:05】
Morofushi Kagemitsu seemed to realize something was wrong earlier, and he gritted his teeth and started rushing back.
"Furuya! What are you doing?! Run away!!!" Date Wataru shouted in shock.
【00:04】
Rei Furuya raised his hand as if he were holding something, making a gesture as if he were about to throw it at the approaching bomb.
It's obvious what he wants to do.
With such a huge bomb falling here, their chances of survival are very low, unless the bomb's landing point is changed, and that direction is indeed very suitable.
but--
"Zero! Stop! What if it's a trigger-activated bomb?!" Matsuda Jinpei roared, "Run!!!"
【00:03】
Rei Furuya suddenly threw the stone in his hand.
If it hadn't been a trigger-activated bomb, the precise shot would have altered its trajectory, causing it to fall into the air and explode off the cliff, allowing them to survive.
As they watched, after the stone struck the bomb, a red light, symbolizing death and despair, shone in the darkness, and the world was instantly engulfed in a blinding flash of light and a deafening explosion.
But the people below the mountain didn't find it strange, because immediately afterward, huge fireworks burst into the night sky along with the midnight chimes.
They were all cheering and celebrating the arrival of the New Year.
"Happy New Year!!!"
You are dead.
[End of 12th playthrough]
[Resulting in a Bad Ending: Trying to Catch the Moon in the Water]
...It still failed, but this time it was so outrageous that it made me feel nauseous.
It's a bit like Murphy's Law, but well, considering it's the world's murderous intent, it's not too unexpected.
But... was he the first to die?
They were indeed too close, which is not surprising. In that case, no one will have the memories in the next playthrough.
Even at that distance, everyone was still in great danger, so did he still fail to save them? Or did he force them to experience death again?
"Trying to catch the moon's reflection in the water"... does it mean that no matter how thorough the preparation, it's all in vain, like trying to catch the moon's reflection in water, and that one will ultimately die in an inescapable way due to the convergence of world lines?
Is it true that we can't overcome fate by working together like we did at the first save point?
Do we still need to change the world line...?
But just how absurd can this seemingly inescapable fate be? Is it completely insurmountable? Surely it can't be as bad as a meteorite falling from the sky, a sudden earthquake, or a sudden onset of a terminal illness or sudden death?
Based on the current situation, it should all be related to bombs, plus that sentence that sounded like a death sentence and the timer restarted... so it shouldn't have gotten to that point yet. Everything is still traceable, and falling bombs can be prevented.
It's still worth a try; it's not time to give up yet.
However, if the situation could become even more outrageous and worse, then we should consider boldly altering the timeline from its very beginning, even if countless unknown crimson butterflies might fly out of that Pandora's box that cannot be easily opened...
[Load save/load]
【yes】
[Loading save file...]
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