"I still don't believe it." Tomoya shook his head at Eriri. Both of them are currently in Uncle Yang's house.
"You'd better believe you eyes, Tomoya." Eriri told him, "If it isn't for George who found the strand of purplish red hair around lunch time, I wouldn't believe it would be Iori Hashima."
"But I knew him for a few years already. He ain't the type to try and take us down in such a personal way. He will stick to his skills."
"I'm starting to trust Utaha's instincts. Perhaps you don't know Iori anymore." Eriri sighed, "He's a changed man. He insulted your wife. I'm pretty sure he's the one who placed the device under Utaha's bed. About Megumi's kidnapping, he's definitely behind it. Megumi told us that she had seen Iori before she was captured."
"Maybe it is all a coincidence."
"Are you this stubborn, Tomoya? Wake up and smell the coffee. Iori Hashima's out there to fuck us up. And we got to do something. We got to report it."
"I don't know about this." Michiru added, "I feel he's still the same as old times. However, if he ever did break into our house, then he should be reported and arrested."
"Okay, so how do we check if it is his hair?" Tomoya asked, "We ain't going to send that to the police. That ain't substantial evidence."
"Oh hell yeah, I'm submitting it." Eriri challenged him, "I'm going to report it to the police. I'm going to show you Iori Hashima isn't as innocent as you think." She then stormed out of the house.
"I don't think she will be successful in starting a case at all." Michiru said to Tomoya, "I just hope Iori's not the person Eriri make him out to be."
"Me too." Tomoya looked at her, "I really wish Eriri's wrong about Iori."
In Japan, Liam and Justin are sitting in the former's office, waiting for news of Furoshi Kawanawa. It's been two weeks, and he hasn't appeared at all. No signs of the criminal.
"This guy really knows how to hide, doesn't he?" Justin asked, "Oh yeah, how's your relationship with your wife?"
"Still not good." Liam shook his head, "I really, really hope that I can get to Singapore before the competition starts. That way, I can cheer her on. But by the looks of it, I don't think I can even make it there."
"C'mon, look on the bright side." Justin placed his arm around Liam's neck, "We will definitely close this case soon. Trust me on this one. How about we get some donuts? It's on me, man."
"But what happens if any of the officers call us, saying that they've found Furoshi?"
"It's okay. We can just stuff the donuts into our mouths and chase after him. Don't be a stinker and let's get some delicacies!"
Liam followed his partner to the bakery and bought some donuts. While Justin is paying, Liam decided to walk around the bakery.
As he is walking, he bumped into someone. Liam looked at the man, who bowed down and turned away from the officer. Something about his face seems oddly familiar. Maybe he could be the one Liam's looking for.
"Furoshi?" Liam touched the guy's shoulder, "Are you..."
The guy turned around and kicked Liam away before he ran into a car and drove away. Liam quickly pulled Justin into the police car.
"Hey, wait, my donuts!" Justin went back into the bakery to take his donuts and then got back into the car. Liam got onto the driver's seat and drove after the guy's car.
Liam sped through several traffic junctions and a highway before losing sight of the guy's car.
"Shit." Liam cursed, "Justin, this is all your fault. If you didn't care about your donuts so much, we would've definitely caught up to Hiroshi."
"Donuts are essential to me, you know that? It keeps me energetic. Besides, are you sure that's Hiroshi? For all you know, you might be mistaken."
"No, he has a scar on his face. On his nose, to be exact. Furoshi also has a scar on the nose too, and it's the same scar."
"If he's really Furoshi, then I know where he might be." Justin said. A few minutes later, both of them reached Nancy's house. There, they saw the guy's car parked outside.
They got out of the car and went to knock on the door. The same guy opened the door.
"Can I talk to my mother for one last time, please?" He asked, "I know you guys are from the bakery, and you're here to arrest me. I'm willing to surrender myself. I'm sick and tired of running. I feel guilty for almost killing someone. Just let me converse with my mum, okay?"
Liam nodded his head and waited with Justin and him in the house. A few minutes later, Nancy came back home from the supermarket.
Upon seeing the guy, she dropped her groceries onto the floor and walked to him with teary eyes.
"Is that you, my dear Furoshi?" She placed her hands on his cheeks. The guy nodded.
"I'm sorry, Mum." He tearfully said, "I realized what I have done wrong. I know I have made you worried. I promise to repent once I'm out."
"It's okay, boy." She hugged him, "Mum knows you're a filial boy. You did it to help us. I just want you to know I don't need money to live a good life. I just want you to be with me. That's all I want."
The mother and son hugged each other for a good five minutes before they stopped it.
"Mum will visit you in jail, so you won't feel lonely." Nancy said. Furoshi nodded happily before turning to Liam.
Liam took out the handcuffs and handcuffed Furoshi. As he and Justin escorted Furoshi to the police car, he took one last look at his mother, who is waving goodbye. He smiled back and got into the car.
Back in Singapore, Eriri told Tomoya that the report wasn't successful as there is no evidence that Iori had broken into the house. There are no cameras in the house too. Additionally, no items were stolen, which means it isn't a burglary or a robbery.
"It can't be though." Eriri said, "This red hair is definitely like Iori's hair. I still don't believe he wasn't behind this, or Megumi's kidnapping." Eriri said, "Something's amiss."
"I've checked, Eriri. The neighbor living one floor above us also has purplish red hair, so I'm pretty sure it's not Iori."
"Am I just thinking too much?" Eriri asked, "But what about the kidnapping?"
"I think it's just our bad luck." Tomoya said, "Maybe the people that had aimed Masaru and Utaha-senpai are the ones who took Megumi away."
"You can be true. Maybe I'm just overthinking it too much." Eriri said, "I think I should let the matter rest."
"Yeah, you should."
Eriri's phone then rang. She saw that the caller is Liam and answered the call.
"Hey, Liam-san, what's up?" She asked.
"Hey, Eriri, I got some good news for you." Liam said happily, "Your mother...She's woke up a few minutes ago."
"Really?" Eriri's eyes lighted up with delight.
"Yeah. She talked to me and your father earlier on, and she's feeling okay now. She's out of the woods now. Also, I've caught the perpetrator. You can feel at ease now."
"Thank you so much, Liam-san." Eriri replied.
"Thank your mother for having the determination to wake up. Now that she has woken up, you must do her proud. Win the competition, alright?"
"Okay!" Eriri then said goodbye to Liam before ending the call.
"Your mother's awake?" Tomoya asked. Eriri nodded her head and squealed in delight. George came out of the room, looking confused.
"What happened, and why is she so happy?" He asked. She went to hug him, "My mother's awake! My mother is safe and sound!"
"Oh, really?" George smiled at her, "I'm glad she's okay now."
The next morning, the Blessing Software team (except Masaru and Utaha), Jasper, and Jia Ying gathered in the living room.
"As we all know, we got less than 96 hours to finish this game." Tomoya told the team, "We do not have much time left. Masaru is waiting for us to finish so that he could code the game. I hope the rest of us could finish it earlier so that we have some time to test run. Give it your all for the next few days, alright?"
The team roared in agreement and immediately got to work. For the next few days, they worked hard to finish the game with quality. Tomoya and Megumi checked the overall standard of the game, while Jasper and Icy Tail replayed their music to see if they could improve it. With the newfound confidence and energy because her mother is alive, Eriri drew the rest of the required art with skills and dedication. Jia Ying bought all three meals for them every day.
For Masaru, he would accompany Utaha for her physiotherapy sessions in the afternoon, and do some coding in the night.
On the evening before the competition, Jia Ying and Megumi had went down to buy some dinner for the team.
While they are walking back to the house after getting the food, Jia Ying looked at Megumi, "I heard about yesterday. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Megumi responded, "It's just some minor bruises. Thank you for asking. How about you? Have you been coping well?"
"I guess I am, but I'm not at the same time. I'm still trying to figure it out."
"It's okay, take your time, Jia Ying."
As they walked to the lift lobby, they saw Liam, Ayako, and Lucy waiting for the lift.
"Liam-san? Ayako-san? Lucy-chan?" Megumi is surprised, "What are you doing here?"
"Tomoya told us where you guys are at." Liam replied, "I want to see Michiru. I'm going to talk to her. Also, I'm here to support you for the competition tomorrow."
"Don't you have a case to solve?" Megumi asked. Liam shook his head, "I'm done with it."
The team members is waiting in the living room for their dinner. They are taking a break from their work before going for their last push after dinner. Everything must be done by tonight, so that they can submit the game.
Megumi opened the door and announced that dinner has arrived. Tomoya and Michiru went to the door to help them, but are shocked to see Liam, Ayako, and Lucy with her and Jia Ying.
Lucy ran to Michiru and hugged her. Michiru patted her stepdaughter's head.
"Michiru, can we have a private talk outside?" Liam asked. Michiru nodded and went out of the house with him. They went to the staircase.
"Michiru, I'm sorry." Liam said, "I know I always break my promises because of my work..."
"Don't blame yourself. I'm to blame too." Michiru uttered, "You're a policeman. You are supposed to be ready anytime to protect the city. Yet all I do is to keep asking you to do the stuff I want you to do. I never spared a thought for your job..."
"Michiru," Liam held her hands, "This is my fault, and you had nothing to do with it. Despite me being busy with my work, I still agreed to your requests. I keep giving empty promises to you, and I understand how you feel."
"I'm glad you came here." Michiru smiled at him as she had tears in her eyes, "I'm really glad you took your time off to come to Singapore. During the times you weren't around, I have been doubting myself about this marriage. Whether I'm cut for this or not. I really love you, Liam. I can't bear to leave you at all, but sometimes I just wonder if we can even make it out like this. All the sleepless nights thinking about you, crying because of you...I don't want this marriage to end horribly, you know."
Liam looked at her, "I promise not to give you any more empty promises, Michiru. I promise to be by your side all the time. I won't let you doubt our marriage again. Would you forgive me please, Michiru?"
She nodded him and hugged him while crying. Even though she didn't like how Liam is always busy, she understands him and his job thanks to the talk her Icy Tail friends gave to her a few nights ago.
"Liam, I will try to be more understanding now." Michiru told him, "I know you are a policeman, and you are needed any time without warning. I will try my best to accommodate to you. I know you enjoy your job like how I enjoy mine."
"Speaking of that, I got some news for you." Liam patted her head, "I decided that I would quit being a policeman."
Michiru immediately stopped hugging him and looked at him, "Why, Liam? You told me that is your dream job. You got in through hard work and dedication. Why would you just quit it out of nowhere?"
"It's not really nowhere. I did this for us. I'm always busy, and have no time for your events. By me quitting my job, I would definitely have time for you. I would be able to spend quality time with you."
"But..."
"Michiru, don't talk me out of this. Yes, I love my job a lot. But between my job and my family, I choose family. I don't want to lose my family, especially my loving wife, because of my dream job. I can't bear to lose you, Michiru."
"Thank you, Liam." She smiled as she cried tears of joy. He cleared her tears, and they both shared a kiss together. Ayako, who is watching from the side, smiled at them. She is finally happy the two ironed their issues out.
After dinner, the Blessing Software team members gave it their all to finish up the game. Masaru came back to the house to finish the coding too.
Around midnight, the game is finally completed and tested. It is a successful project, and everyone cheered in joy.
"I really hope we would win this competition." Michiru said.
"Me too." Tomoya said, "Let's be positive and hope for the best. Whether we win or lose, it's all experience. Me and Megumi are going to test the game out right now. You guys can whatever you want."
The members then all went to sleep. Jasper waved goodbye and went back to his home.
At one in the morning, Tomoya started to get tired. Megumi saw it and told him to go to sleep.
"Are you sure you can do this all alone, Megumi?" Tomoya asked. She nodded her head, "I'll be fine. I'm not that tired anyways. Besides, I can code if I find any mistakes. If I were to sleep, you wouldn't be able to code well if you were to come across a coding problem, right?"
Tomoya nodded his head, "You're right. Just remember to sleep as early as possible. We need to be at the venue early. Get some sleep, alright? And submit the game before you sleep too."
"Sure, Tomoya-kun. Good night."
"Good night, Megumi." They then shared a kiss before Tomoya went to the bed and slept. She continued to look through the game. She wasn't pleased with one of the main protagonist's routes, and thus she started to edit the coding and the story plot.