Chapter 7

Sniper rifle?

Xingchuan Heming's heart skipped a beat and he couldn't help but gasp. He never thought that a mission to avoid a car accident would lead to the use of a dangerous item like a sniper rifle.

Could it be that in the original novel, Date Kou's death was not just a simple car accident? When the person in the dark saw that the car accident had failed, he prepared to assassinate him?

So what should we do now? Saving people from a car accident and saving people from gunshot are completely different tasks. How can we save them now?

Instead, it was Date Kou who suddenly took out his cell phone and fiddled with it for a while, as if he had sent some messages. He then visibly breathed a sigh of relief, and then turned around to check on Hoshikawa and Akira. After confirming that they were not hit by the car, he asked with some concern:

"Are you okay? Were you scared just now?"

"I'm fine." Hoshikawa Kazuaki responded reflexively, and then asked worriedly, "Officer Ida, what should we do now? There's no way we can avoid the sniper rifle, right?"

Date Ko was about to pat Hoshikawa Kazuaki's shoulder soothingly, but then he remembered that his shoulder seemed to be injured, so he withdrew his hand and replied, "Don't worry, it's okay now."

As he said this, he stepped out of the bunker first, looked around, and after confirming that it was indeed safe, he turned back and smiled at them, saying, "You can come out now."

A quarter of an hour later, Xingchuan and Ming stood in front of the truck with a punctured tire, watching the driver, who had almost gotten into an accident due to fatigue driving, being taken away by the police with his head down.

The policeman who took him away was none other than Masato Nishimoto, who had just brought him here and witnessed the entire accident before he could leave.

Hoshikawa and Akira breathed a sigh of relief. They had finally saved Date Kou without any danger. Their mission was now safe. After sending the two police officers away, they could prepare to leave the dungeon and return to the real comic world.

"Hey, Hoshikawa, you called us on the side of the road earlier. Did you encounter any trouble?" Ida Kou's voice suddenly sounded from behind, scaring Hoshikawa and Ming.

Perhaps because of the near-death experience they had just had, the distance between them was no longer as obvious as before. At least Ida Kou's attitude towards him was much more casual than before, and there was a concern in his eyes that went beyond the social distance between strangers.

Xingchuan and Ming's hearts skipped a beat, thinking that it had finally arrived.

Before, time was urgent, so he ran over to remind the two to stay away from the road without thinking much. Now thinking about it, this action was indeed too abrupt, and combined with the car accident just now, it seemed even more suspicious. So in the time just now, he had already made up a set of words on the spot, not asking for strict logic, as long as it could deal with Ida Kou in front of him.

I saw him gently pinching his cheek with his fingers, his eyes wandering, smiling awkwardly, and answering with some embarrassment:

"Well, I actually recognized the wrong person. I had originally planned to meet him here on a whim, but I haven't seen him for many years, so I'm not sure what he looks like now. I just saw you standing on the side of the road, and I couldn't see your faces clearly for a moment, so I thought it was the grown-up Satoshi jaywalking like before... Uh, sorry."

Xingchuan and Ming realized that they had said something wrong, and grinned in annoyance, with apologetic eyes in their blue eyes. Then, his eyes flickered, as if he had thought of something, and continued to add:

"By the way, don't be fooled by my ferocious look at that time. There was actually another reason. I didn't encounter any trouble. Officer Ida, don't worry."

Ida Ko touched his face in surprise, and said with a bit of disbelief in his tone: "Did you mistake me for someone your age? I originally thought it would be the homeroom teacher or the eldest brother or something like that."

Xingchuan and Ming were embarrassed and quickly waved their hands in embarrassment: "I told you I made a mistake. I didn't see her face clearly at the time. After all, the time and place were right, so I didn't look carefully."

Date Kou didn't take it to heart and quickly accepted this explanation. He had already negotiated with Nishimoto Masato when he was dealing with the car accident just now, so he naturally knew why Hoshikawa and Akira were so fierce at that time.

He had just experienced a murder case and he was trying to help solve it. After being arrested as a suspect, he was taken for a car race by his straightforward younger generation. It was good enough that he didn't vomit on the spot. It was understandable that he mistook the person because he was dizzy.

But he still frowned a little worriedly and said, "But you looked... very nervous at the time."

In fact, Date Kou was thinking that Hoshikawa and Akira looked as if they had foreseen that a car accident would happen there. But Date Kou immediately swallowed back this unreliable guess.

He had just interrogated the driver himself. The driver was just tired and fell asleep. He was not a murderer who deliberately wanted to hit someone. After many years of investigating cases, Yi Dahang thought to himself that he still had this kind of vision.

Since he didn't know in advance that someone would harm him, this could only be a coincidence.

So, why was this seemingly weak but actually agile boy nervous at that time?

Xingchuan and Ming grinned and answered earnestly: "We were standing on the side of the road at that time, so of course I was nervous about whether there were any cars passing by. Speaking of which, Officer Date, you and Officer Takagi were standing on the side of the road chatting without even looking at the cars?"

He spoke sincerely, and the accusation in his eyes made Yi Dahang feel ashamed.

I am an old detective, but I made such a mistake today due to my carelessness. In the end, I was able to escape because of the boy's reminder. And if the boy hadn't pulled me back at the last moment, I would have died on the spot. But then I remembered the boy's dangerous move to block me, and Ida Kou was frightened. He immediately frowned and taught him a lesson:

"Since you know that car accidents are dangerous, why did you take the risk of exposing yourself in front of the car just now? As an ordinary citizen, you just need to protect yourself. Even if it was very dangerous at the time, as a police officer, I will naturally do my best to protect you."

Xingchuan and Ming knew that their actions had frightened the police officer in front of them, so they just lowered their heads and listened obediently. On the contrary, Ida Kou knew very well how intimidating his stern face would be, and was afraid of frightening the seemingly weak boy, so he finally said, "Forget it this time, but you must protect yourself in the future and don't do dangerous things again."

Xingchuan and Ming nodded in acceptance, but in their hearts they were thinking, this squad leader Date is just like what is described in the comics. Although he looks very strict, he is actually very gentle at heart. Such a lovely personality makes me want to bully him.

Thinking that the current situation might be included in the comics, Xingchuan and Ming Guo started to perform. He first bowed his head and apologized obediently, then raised his head and pursed his lips tightly, his slightly narrow eyes slightly widened, and his eyes were just the right amount of persistence. He stared at Date Kou stubbornly until Date Kou began to frown, and then he spoke very seriously:

"I value my life very much, and I will certainly protect myself in the future. But Officer Ida, in the face of danger, everyone's life is equal. Just as Officer Ida wants to protect me, I also want to protect Officer Ida."

Seeing Ida Kou's expression change from frowning to contemplation and finally to shock, he lowered his eyes and tilted his head slightly, as if talking to himself:

"Of course, at first I thought the person standing there was Satoshi, but I quickly realized that I had recognized the wrong person. But whether it was Satoshi or someone else, in that situation, I would want to protect the other person."

Hoshikawa Kazuaki raised his head again. Under Date Kou's complicated gaze, which finally understood, he said with a firm look in his eyes, "No matter what, I don't want anyone to die in front of me because of that car accident. So even if it happens again, I will still do it."

Maybe it’s because they both died in car accidents, but when Xingchuan Heming said this, he couldn’t even tell whether he was just acting or really thinking this.

He just saw that Yi Dahang on the opposite side was stunned for a few seconds when he heard these words, then he sighed silently, reached out and patted his head soothingly, and when he looked back again, there was a bit of heartache and pity in his eyes.

Hoshikawa and Akira were filled with questions after watching the aerial footage taken by Date.

That's not right. What's his reaction?

After hearing my gentle, kind and righteous words from the bottom of my heart, shouldn't he sigh and say "You are indeed a good boy with a righteous heart" and then encourage me to become a policeman after graduation?

Mr. Class Monitor, you have got the wrong script. What do the words "heartache" and "pity" mean?

Perhaps it was because Xingchuan and Ming's depression was too obvious, Ida Kou withdrew his hand and actually smiled. Then he straightened his face and said seriously:

"In any case, thank you for your help. If it weren't for your timely help, I would never have survived in that situation. As a police officer, I don't approve of your dangerous behavior. But as a stranger whose life you saved, I am extremely grateful for your kindness. So, please accept my gratitude."

Now it was Xingchuan Heming's turn to be stunned. He had only wanted to tease this legendary class monitor who looked stern but gentle and easy to bully, but he had never expected that the other party would thank him so solemnly. This is really...

He actually came for real. I am no match for him at all.

He had to frantically stop the other party, saying, "No, please don't mind it, after all, the truck didn't really hit me in the end." But in his heart, he was sighing, such a dazzling and upright person is really different from me. I was just completing the dungeon mission. Seriously speaking, it was you who saved me.

Thinking about how Date Kou could have escaped the danger faster, but he still took him with him and firmly protected him behind him, at this moment, Hoshikawa Kazuaki actually had the illusion that he had touched the sunlight.

He suddenly felt sad and didn't want to think about it any further, so he changed the subject and asked, "By the way, Officer Ida, you said that the sound just now was from a sniper rifle, right? That..."

Unexpectedly, before he could finish, he was interrupted by Ida Ko: "Don't pursue the matter of that sound anymore, and don't ask too many questions." He looked at Xingchuan and Ming and said solemnly: "This matter ends here."

Xingchuan and Ming were stunned for a moment, countless guesses flashed through their minds, but on the surface they nodded seriously and agreed.

The author has something to say:

You might as well guess why there are snipers here?