Chapter 1
L. The smartest man alive. And the world's best chocolatier and candy connoisseur.
On January 13th, L decided to give a little something extra in some of his treats. He gave a televised speech describing this extra something.
"Dear inhabitants of the world: I, L, have chosen to elect a successor to my factory. In order to choose this successor, I have created five golden tickets, and put those five tickets in five separate chocolate bars of random variety and random destination. The five who discover these chocolate bars will be allowed to attend my candy factory on the last day of next month: February 28th at 2:30 p.m. The age of the attendee does not matter, but it is requested that each has one guardian with them. Whether or not they win my name, each participant will receive a lifetime supply of my products. That is all."
Naturally, the video caused an international uproar. People immediately flooded every candy store on the planet, desperate for the chance to meet, let alone become, the fabled L.
One child in particular, however, didn't seem very interested. He'd rather play with his toys instead of wasting his money on sweets. The pale boy curled a lock of snow-white hair between his fingers as he carefully stacked dice into a complicated skyscraper.
But as the scramble for the tickets continued, he pondered the opportunity of what they promised. Once the first ticket was found, his desire to obtain a ticket was sealed and justified.
On January 14th, only one day after the tickets were first announced, newspapers all over the world showed the same headline and article:
L'S FIRST GOLDEN TICKET FOUND
Late last night, a young man from Los Angeles is said to have discovered the first of five golden tickets from the famed L's chocolate and candy company.
"It wasn't all that unexpected, really," the discoverer, 19-year-old "Mello" (name changed upon request) explains. "I buy at least three chocolate bars a day from this guy's company, so I wasn't too surprised that I got one."
Near's eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly at the mention of the alias "Mello". So he's found the first, he thought. God knows what he'll do if he wins the name.
That same day, a package came in the mail addressed to Near. There was no return address. "Careful! We can't be sure if the package is rigged," Halle Lidner, one of Near's special agents, said.
"Don't be ridiculous." Near brushed off the warning, getting a pair of scissors and opening the box. It was empty, but further inspection revealed a note that gave a single letter: M.
"Tch." Near resisted crumpling the note in his hands. It was just like him to send a taunt like that. "Lidner, go out and buy a few of L's chocolate bars." He kept his voice flat and monotone.
Lidner opened her mouth to respond, but thought better of it and left.
Anthony Rester said what Lidner didn't. "Near, I thought you didn't like sweets."
"I don't." Near curled a lock of hair thoughtfully. "But I thought it would be a good idea to try anyway. After all, I have just as much a chance as anybody to get one."
Rester thought on that last sentence, and nodded in agreement.
Lidner returned a short time later, pulling four candy bars out from her purse.
"Thank you, Lidner," Near said simply, taking the four bars and setting them beside him.
"This is highly irrational, Near. What if one of those does contain a ticket?" Lidner stood high above the little white ball that had gone back to stacking dice.
Near lifted a shoulder, and let it drop. "Then we go to this factory and see it for ourselves. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, as I'm sure you realize."