I have kidnapped again. It's Misaki Akutsu.
Pay a ransom of one billion yen.
One billion?
Haruto Narusawa is hiding something from the police.
That's money.
He might be involved in even more kidnappings.
The kidnapper wants risk-free kidnappings where the police aren't involved.
Why?
MICHIRU MISSED CALLS
Haruto! Are you hurt?
I'm fine.
What about Tomoka?
I got our parents to go pick her up.
We used the GPS to find you. What happened here?
I think...
I was hit with a stun gun.
Where's Misaki?
She wasn't here.
Misaki...
Misaki!
-Misaki! -Eri! Calm down!
Eri!
Where do you think Misaki could be?
I don't know.
It's all because of my pointless meddling because I doubted you, Mr. Narusawa...
It wasn't pointless. I got a look at the kidnapper's face.
Then let's go to the police.
If we go to the police, it'll put Misaki in danger.
How can you say that now?
They work for me.
The kidnapper
works for my company.
HARUKANA
Ms. Suzuma's employee file?
I need her address. Send it right away.
That's personal information. I'd rather you came to the office--
I need her address!
Send it right this minute!
Okay.
You're looking into this Ms. Suzuma?
Yes.
Then let me go with you.
No way! You're pregnant. What if--
It's dangerous for you too, Haruto.
I'll go with you.
Michiru.
Take care of Tomoka. Contact Todo and Miwa.
Explain the situation to them and get their help.
But I thought we shouldn't tell anyone.
I think that promise has already been broken,
and those two people I just mentioned
are my friends who helped us during Tomoka's kidnapping.
They can be trusted.
AYA SUZUMA
CO-OP YOKOMINE 105 8-10-16 NAGAYAMA, TAMA, TOKYO
This is the place.
Yes? Who is it?
Is Aya Suzuma there?
Well... Isn't this where Aya Suzuma lives?
No, it's not.
Oh, I'm sorry. I thought this is where she lives.
Oh, did you just move in here?
Excuse me?
Misaki!
-Hey! Cut that out! -Mr. Akutsu!
-Wait! Misa... Let me see her! -I'll call the cops! Get out!
-Honey, call the cops! -Let me see her!
-Wait! -Oh, I'm very sorry!
NAKAHARA
I guess she faked her address when she was hired.
Considering Suzuma's skills, she could have easily altered her records.
AYA SUZUMA
Ribbit!
FRIEND REQUEST FROM HARUTO1212 ACCEPT DENY
Who is this Suzuma person? Is she a member of some criminal group?
I don't know. But...
the person who attacked me
wasn't her.
You mean, she has an accomplice?
Just before I was attacked, Suzuma was there right in front of me.
I'm sure she has an accomplice.
When did you hire Ms. Suzuma?
I think it was about six months before Tomoka's kidnapping.
They've been preparing that far in advance?
BUG AND HIDDEN CAMERA DETECTOR
HARUKANA
FOR THE PUBLICATION OF THE RIBBIT WALKER DEVELOPMENT SCHEME
What's that plaque the bug was in?
The employees gave it to me when I published my book.
It was Kanako who had it made though.
So it was Ms. Tatewaki who planted the bug?
No.
Suzuma could have planted it later.
Oh, Mr. Akutsu?
What brings you here at this hour?
Oh, I was looking into Suzuma.
And you?
A U.S. food manufacturer wants to collaborate with us on Dungeon Table.
I was working on setting that up.
Has something happened to Ms. Suzuma?
I want to find out all we can about her.
Oh, can you open her locker? You've got the keys, right?
What? I can't just open it up.
Actually, Ms. Suzuma might have
leaked the Harukana user info to a foreign game company.
That's what we discovered when examining Ms. Suzuma's account with NEX Holdings.
Mr. Akutsu asked me to look into it.
I want to see her personal computer.
This could affect the fate of this company.
Please.
SUZUMA
Did Suzuma come to work today?
No, I don't think so.
Sorry to bother you while you're working late.
Call me if you learn anything about Suzuma.
Okay.
Where are you going?
Suzuma saw me today in the middle of the day.
Someone must have taken everything out of her locker after that.
These are the videos of the lockers on the south side of the eighth floor.
-Play it from there. -Okay.
Wait, please. We can't be sure Tatewaki's the kidnapper.
She is!
Ms. Tatewaki and Ms. Suzuma are in cahoots.
When you called Ms. Tatewaki, she quickly hid the evidence.
Wait. Even if that's true,
if we confront Tatewaki, there's no way she'll tell you the truth.
She could have accomplices.
Are you protecting her because you work together?
I'm doing it for Misaki.
At any rate,
let's wait until the handoff tomorrow.
And if they don't call?
Then I'll go and tell the police.
I'll wait until 10 a.m. tomorrow. However, I want Ms. Tatewaki monitored.
Oh, what's wrong?
Say, have you seen my phone?
No.
-Well... -Yes?
-Could you call it for me? -What? You're so helpless.
-Oh, sorry. I found it. Thanks. -Thank goodness.
-Night. -Good night.
Tell Michiru I look forward to seeing her at tomorrow's recipe meeting.
Okay.
HARUKANA
GPS1: KANAKO TATEWAKI HARUKANA ONLINE GAMES HEADQUARTERS
Share her location with me too.
If we notice anything fishy, let's contact each other.
Okay.
Oh, did you tell those two?
What happened with Ms. Suzuma?
I'll tell you later.
-There. -I'm home.
-Hi! -Welcome home.
Look, Dad. These are the pancakes I made for Dungeon Table.
Ta-da! Ribbit!
-Awesome! You got Rank A! -All right!
-Whoa! -Todo got Rank S.
Really?
-Isn't that amazing? -Whoa...
You know, it's kind of cool getting your cooking evaluated.
-What about yours, Miwa? -What?
Here it comes.
Ta-da! Ribbit!
Rank C!
What a lame game.
-It is not a lame game. -What?
Look at that! It's no wonder you got that.
-Those colors are crazy. -Oh, man!
They are not crazy. Yours is crazy.
What's that on it anyway?
This is 11:05 a.m. on April 14.
We believe it's just after Yuzuki was rescued.
Have you identified where she was held?
We got Mr. Kusakabe's permission to check the N-System traffic records.
Haruto Narusawa's car and Miwa's rental car
passed through Fujisawa Interchange at 7:40 a.m.
They exited at Oisohigashi Interchange at 8:30 a.m.
We don't know where they went after that.
There's no doubt that there was a kidnapping.
So the kidnapper got the ransom completely risk-free?
As you know Chief,
kidnappings for ransom have dropped drastically since the 90s.
However, in the last few years,
some criminals have developed more sophisticated ways of kidnapping.
The kidnapper's aim
is to make it so that the police aren't involved from the start.
And they're having Haruto Narusawa and others work as their partners?
We can't overlook that Haruto Narusawa could be the ringleader.
The kidnapper has tasted success,
so they're sure to plan another kidnapping.
Allow me to follow the movements of Haruto Narusawa and the others.
Keep it to a minimum.
Make sure it doesn't interfere with your other work.
Don't let them spot you.
Roger.
So basically, the kidnapper gave you this money and kidnapped Misaki.
You tailed the kidnapper, got hit by a stun gun, saw Ms. Suzuma,
and now you think Kanako could be a suspect, right?
-Okay. I know who the culprit is. -Really?
The culprit is...
you.
This is no time to be playing detective.
The kidnapper has given you 100 million for your work. You're in deep trouble.
And with your employees involved in the kidnappings,
suspicion of your involvement gets even stronger.
You could even be accused of being the ringleader.
At any rate,
the kidnapper is definitely trying to get Haruto wrapped up in this.
What's really got me wondering is why Todo's daughter was kidnapped.
If the same kidnapper committed all four,
wouldn't the first one, Koharu's kidnapping, be the key?
But we're not a rich family.
What's more, I was an active police detective then.
I don't know why they'd go after Koharu.
Maybe a personal grudge?
Considering my job, a lot of people despised me.
However, I checked out all of those possibilities.
Where were you at 4 p.m. on April 4?
Who's asking?
Where were you?
But all of them were in the clear.
I checked out everyone,
even my wife's friends and acquaintances and people who knew Koharu.
None of them had any idea who it might be.
Thank you.
No problem.
At any rate,
let's make rescuing Misaki our priority now.
I hope the kidnapper calls tomorrow just like usual.
We'll just have to trust that they will.
Mr. Katsuragi is nosing around. We need to be careful of the police too.
Kanako is suspicious too. We should check her out.
I can't believe that Kanako is involved in these kidnappings.
I got rid of your laptop. Don't return to the office.
I'm sorry for causing you trouble.
Delete this conversation.
Okay.
I GOT RID OF YOUR LAPTOP. DELETE
I'M SORRY FOR CAUSING YOU TROUBLE. DELETE
DELETE THIS CONVERSATION. DELETE
OKAY. DELETE
EMPTY THE TRASH? YES NO
ALL MESSAGES HAVE BEEN DELETED.
Are you okay?
Do you think the kidnapper will call? Misaki's all right, isn't she?
Yes.
I'm sorry.
It's all my fault that it's come to this.
I'll figure something out.
I'll do whatever it takes.
38 HOURS SINCE MISAKI AKUTSU'S KIDNAPPING
I'll be late because I've got a meeting at your father's company,
so just do as your grandpa says, okay?
Grandma will come with him to pick you up.
I wonder if Misaki's all right. She still hasn't read my texts.
Okay, I'll ask Mr. Akutsu about her.
Thanks.
Okay, see you later.
-See you. -See you.
-Take care.
See you later.
I'm going to be home late. Can you take care of dinner tonight?
Where were you out so late yesterday?
I was at a wine bar having fun with a young woman.
I really wish you'd move out soon.
Once Yuzu is truly recovered, I will.
When she snuggles with me before bedtime, she still trembles.
Maybe we should have her see that counselor that Michiru told us about.
Wait!
Let's leave things as they are a little longer.
We can go talk to them later.
I guess you're right.
Aoi Miwa took Yuzuki to school then went off with his ex-wife to work.
Got it.
Goodbye.
-Good morning. -Morning.
-Sorry to get you here so early. -It's okay.
So did you look into it?
I checked the last five years of financial records.
Vice President Tatewaki has never diverted company funds for her own personal use.
Then have you ever heard of her needing money?
No, I haven't.
Oh, excuse me,
but what are you investigating?
Well...
You see...
I'd like to know what Kanako's relation to Suzuma is.
Is there anything about the two of them that seems suspicious?
After the item meeting the day before yesterday...
Ms. Suzuma.
Can we talk?
Sure.
Vice President Tatewaki and Ms. Suzuma spoke together alone in the meeting room.
Do you know what they talked about?
However...
I'm not sure this is related.
What?
What is it?
A little before that, I told Vice President Tatewaki that
you had used 500 million yen.
Haruto.
Loan me 500 million.
I'll loan you the money.
I withdrew it from the company's account.
It's my job to keep abreast of the company's finances.
I reported to her that on the 12th of this month
you withdrew 500 million then repaid it five days later.
What did Kanako say?
She said, "I'll ask President Narusawa about this."
"Don't tell anyone else about it."
I see.
Got it. Thanks for looking into all this.
No problem.
Then, I'll be going.
Thank you.
Is that 500 million the money you used to rescue Yuzuki?
Yes. I withdrew it from the company account,
then I borrowed from the bank to repay it.
Ms. Tatewaki knew about it.
So why didn't she say anything to you?
Does Kanako have any connection with your family?
I doubt it.
So I guess...
Who's that guy?
A Harukana executive.
What is he doing here?
Are you sure you don't want to tail him?
We'll be spotted if we try too hard.
UNKNOWN CALLER
Hello?
In one hour, bring 100 million yen to the Yokosuka Museum of Art.
Mr. Narusawa will come alone again.
We'll give you the remaining 800 million. So give Misaki back now!
Pay 100 million at a time.
What about Misaki? Misaki is okay, right?
Please! At least let us hear Misaki's voice! I'm begging you!
There's no risk to you to let us hear her voice!
UNKNOWN CALLER
I'll put her on. Talk to her.
Misaki?
-Misaki? -Misaki...
Misaki?
Dad...
Mom...
Are you hurt? Are you okay?
Yes.
I'm fine.
What about you, Mom? Are you okay?
What?
Your heart.
I'm...
I'm just fine.
Don't worry about me.
Misaki. Wait for us.
Mr. Narusawa is helping us.
Just like with Tomoka, I swear we'll rescue you.
Mr. Narusawa.
Yes?
Don't tell Tomoka about me.
She'll worry about me.
I swear I won't.
You have 58 minutes.
Mr. Akutsu.
Yes?
Right now, my friend is
checking out who's renting that storage unit from yesterday.
Michiru is at Harukana for a meeting.
She's keeping an eye on Tatewaki.
If she's the ringleader, she's sure to do something
during the phone call.
Everyone's working to help us.
I swear...
We'll rescue Misaki.
Thank you.
The handoff has begun.
The kidnapper will call at 11 a.m.
I'm here. What should I do?
Place the money in the dark blue mini-wagon
parked behind the building.
I put it in.
There is 700 million yen left.
I will call tomorrow at 10 a.m.
I couldn't see what she was doing.
It was rented to Ms. Suzuma.
But her ID was fake.
I didn't learn anything about the ringleader.
Don't move.
My accomplice is watching.
Don't ever try to interfere again.
You'd better take us seriously.
Misaki really will be killed if you don't.
Ms. Suzuma talked to you directly?
Like we thought, it seems like somebody else is the ringleader.
But we weren't able to figure out if that person is Tatewaki or not.
The ringleader is Kanako Tatewaki!
What?
I used NEX Holdings' subsidiary cellphone company
to investigate her communication history.
Last night, she communicated with Ms. Suzuma.
KANAKO TATEWAKI AYA SUZUMA
She sent the message,
"I got rid of your laptop. Don't return to the office."
I'm going to Harukana now.
Mr. Akutsu!
You're the one who installed this bug, aren't you?
I did not.
I've had it with you!
Where is Misaki?
Tell me!
Mr. Akutsu!
Calm down.
My daughter has been kidnapped. How do you expect me to be calm?
Misaki has been kidnapped?
We know that you secretly got rid of Suzuma's laptop.
Mr. Akutsu has found the messages you two sent.
Kanako.
Why the heck did you do that?
After you contacted me,
I thought you may have realized that Ms. Suzuma was involved,
so I didn't tell you.
You mean you knew that Suzuma was one of the kidnappers?
Yes.
You're the ringleader, aren't you?
No, I'm not.
Then how did you know?
When I got Mr. Bizen's report that President Narusawa
withdrew then replaced 500 million yen, I realized it.
I thought that maybe he was involved in a kidnapping again.
I checked the company server access records
around the 12th of this month when you withdrew that 500 million yen.
There was nothing suspicious about your access history.
But right around that time,
there were records of somebody frequently using a text-to-speech tool
to contact a line outside the company.
When I looked into it,
I discovered that Ms. Suzuma's personal laptop
had been used to make calls via an overseas provider.
Exactly one year ago,
at the time of Tomoka's kidnapping, there were similar call records.
APRIL 11, 2023 APRIL 11, 2022
I checked with Ms. Suzuma immediately.
Ms. Suzuma.
Can we talk?
Sure.
I asked her if she was involved in the kidnappings.
But Ms. Suzuma didn't say a word.
So
I told her I wanted her to resign from the company.
Why didn't you tell me?
I wanted to protect this company.
When Tomoka was kidnapped...
Harukana was saved by the money spent by all our users.
But if they found out that the kidnapper was someone inside the company,
Harukana would be criticized and we'd be done for.
So
I thought it would be best if Ms. Suzuma just disappeared and nobody found out.
I didn't care if the kidnapper wasn't caught.
To me...
This company is my child.
I had to do whatever I could
to protect Harukana.
I never thought
that it was Mr. Akutsu's daughter that had been kidnapped.
I should have told you sooner.
I am truly terribly sorry!
5 MILLION DOWNLOADS
HARUKANA
METI MINISTER AWARD
HARUKANA
So Todo already spotted you?
Haruto Narusawa is acting oddly.
Don't be so hasty.
If you've got the time to chase after a crime that didn't even happen,
you need to get a family.
Mr. Katsuragi, after this case is solved, let's go to some mixers together.
Isn't your youngest in university, Chief Yoshino?
He graduates next year. I'll finally be through with all that.
After I'm demoted from chief,
I'll take time off for a leisurely trip to some hot springs with the wife.
Are you taking the fall for the Tomoka Narusawa kidnapping?
Everyone knows about the police's huge blunder.
Since I was in charge of the case, I've got to be sacrificed.
Catching the kidnapper will fix that.
Mr. Katsuragi!
Two days ago, a missing person request for a young girl was filed
at the Shichirigahama Police Station.
How come it wasn't reported?
While the mother was filing the request, Haruto Narusawa showed up and stopped her.
Eri!
The mother's name was Eri Akutsu. That's Akira Akutsu's wife.
A kidnapping is happening now.
IF YOU TRY TO ESCAPE, I WILL KILL YOU. IF YOU BEHAVE YOURSELF, YOU'LL BE SAFE.
It's Misaki Akutsu.
Sorry that it's gotten so late.
It's all right. I enjoyed it. Feel free to call me anytime.
Okay.
How's the baby?
Doing fine.
That's great! I can't wait to see you.
But don't overdo things, okay?
Okay.
You can be assured that no matter what happens,
we'll be there to protect Tomoka.
So you can leave her to us, all right?
Thank you.
Okay, let's go.
Bye.
Oh, you want something to eat? I think my mom cooked some stuff.
I'm grateful, but not right now. I'm going to change.
Okay.
12/12 CATEGORY
Evening.
How did it go?
I don't think anyone was following us or watching us.
Miwa, what about Yuzuki and Satsuki?
Oh, no! I need to get home.
Hold on a second.
I know who the kidnapper is.
Now you're playing the famous detective?
Something was bothering me.
Since Michiru usually takes Tomoka to and from cram school by car.
On the day that Tomoka was kidnapped...
How did the kidnapper know that Tomoka went alone?
The kidnapper probably just happened to spot her alone.
There was a bug in the router.
They heard Michiru and Tomoka arguing
and found out Tomoka was going alone.
What? But...
But didn't Todo check to see if there were bugs then?
Everything seems okay for now.
If you planted it there, you certainly wouldn't tell us.
Are you seriously suspicious of Todo just because of that?
In the game,
the account that I communicated with was haruto1212.
HOW CAN YOU GUARANTEE THAT THEY AREN'T POLICE?
BE AT ISAKA SHRINE IN NARAMACHI 6-CHOME, AOBA WARD, YOKOHAMA BY 4 P.M.
So what?
I saw it in your office.
1212 is your wedding anniversary.
That's just a coincidence. That's not valid evidence.
That's right. It's insane to suspect him just because of that.
Suzuma, you, and your wife.
What the heck is your relationship?
Todo.
Are you
the kidnapper?
I kidnapped her.
Translated by Brian Athey