To Her, She was Always the One
...And that's what happened.
You've... really been through a lot.
Whatever happened, I'm glad you're safe, Captain.
But at the same time... I bear a great deal of responsibility. I never imagined something like that would happen to you...
It's okay. Nothing happened to me.
And the Professor said she'd be fine.
But I hear the culprit is still at large.
On the other hand, there haven't been any more victims since the fourth incident. Do you think the culprit has stopped...?
Lisa asked anxiously, but I couldn't confidently tell her yes.
It would be a relief if they'd truly stopped, as Lisa suggested... but there was no telling when another incident might occur.
Anyway, now only the Journey itself remains.
Yes, that's true.
You've worked very hard, Captain.
I'm counting on you until the very end.
Phew...
...Captain?
You finally came out.
Good work in there.
Fufu. I didn't realize you were waiting for me.
You even came all the way to Public Security.
Just as I finished speaking with Lisa, the Professor finally emerged after her questioning was complete.
Despite my concerns, nothing seemed wrong. Just as she'd said, everything appeared to have worked out.
What happened?
They established that there were no grounds for suspicion, so it ended as smoothly as I expected.
I did have to share my deductions to prove I was at the scenes for a personal investigation.
Fortunately, it seems several people other than me have been designated as suspects.
Whoever is wearing the mask of the judge... will likely be revealed soon.
...Good. That's a relief.
If you have nothing else to do on the way back, let's go shopping together.
These worn out gloves may lead to me being a suspect once more... so I should purchase a new pair.
It had been one chaotic event after another, but it all seems to have brought the Professor and I a little closer.
At the very least, she was comfortable enough to make morbid jokes about it now.
What happened with the conference?
Ah, I haven't explained that yet.
In truth, it was more of a private gathering to compile information about H.
Most of what I heard was either something I already knew or little more than rumors, but it wasn't completely meaningless.
The name H had come up again.
It clearly seemed to be a person... but who?
About this person you call H...
Is she the person you've been searching for?
...I see.
It's late, but I suppose I should tell you now.
To give you the conclusion first... Yes, you're right.
Detective H. Someone akin to a missing fragment of myself who vanished one day.
Detective H...
I think I've heard of her.
Long ago, I held a certain twisted belief.
Countless criminals commit acts that are uniformly sordid and filthy.
But it wasn't their crimes that held my attention.
Resentment, passion, anger, desire... Thinking that their acts arose from such things only disgusted me.
Their methods and motives... I considered them all beneath contempt.
...
But H was different.
H stood on the opposite side of me, yet the detective's existence made me more complete.
Though our goals differed, the detective was the only person capable of speaking with me as an equal.
Even though we were certain to turn our guns on each other someday.
How could someone like that...
Just vanish?
Fufu... Who can say?
In the end, that person was the reason I began this Journey... so perhaps it no longer matters.
Especially now that I have you, Captain.
Her smile was somehow chilling.
Only her mouth smiled. There was no emotion behind it.
H resembles you, Captain. Very... very much.
My goal of learning what happened to the detective at the end of the Journey hasn't changed.
But now, I wouldn't mind even if the detective is already dead.
You are every bit H's equal... No, you surpass H.
I could feel her twisted desire for discovery.
It held a different warmth from affection and a different depth from obsession.
Until the very end of the Journey. No, even after everything is over...
I wonder what you will show me, Captain.
It seems I've gained... one more reason to complete the Journey.
...Until the very end, all of her expectations rested on me.