Author's Notes: So... okay... Yeah, I really like the idea of Takumi X Yuuko but that's not really what I'll be focusing on. I really like Yuuko though because she's pretty awesome. Well, all of the main female characters are pretty awesome. I mean, Kyoko is a sports car driving detective and Nokia really grows on you. But speaking of female characters, I sometimes feel like Takumi was kinda abandoned by his mom. If you interpret her DigiLine messages a certain way, it's like she more prefers being overseas away from her son than taking care of him. And the game doesn't even mention Takumi's dad. I'm sure Takumi learned to cope with being alone... maybe... Anyway, this is a filler chapter because it just covers the mandatory red cases you need to complete to progress to the next chapter. I'd omit them altogether but they do bear some importance to the main story, so enjoy!
~WOW!~MYSTERIOUS~DIGITAL~FACE~
"Kamishiro Yuuko…" Takumi frowned as he stared up at the ceiling of his bedroom. "I thought you looked familiar… but what brought you to the agency? Why ask us to look into Yamashina Makoto? Are you looking into EDEN Syndrome too?" He reached out his right hand and stared at the 'X' printed on the back of his glove and sighed. "I know I'm not the only victim. You know someone, probably a family member, who's had it for eight years after all…" He curled his fingers so that his hand made a fist. "I think I understand how you feel but…" He brought his arm down over his face and sighed. "There's so much I don't understand…" He remained on his bed for a few more minutes before sitting up. "In that case," he stated to himself, "I need more information. If I want answers, I'll have to find them myself. Let's see if there's anything else at the hospital I can dig up."
He rose to his feet and grabbed his goggles from the nightstand. After a quick meal, Takumi checked to make sure he had his key and wallets before closing the door to his room. As he slipped on his shoes, he noticed Kyoko was calling him.
"Ah, Kyoko-san. I was just about to—" he paused when he saw the detective was currently on the phone with someone else. He locked up his apartment and started for the station as he patiently waited for her to finish.
"Hmm, you just barely succeeded, then?" she asked the other line. "I haven't received any information from the assistant at this detective agency. Please get back to me with the information as soon as possible." Kyoko finally put down the receiver before turning her attention to Takumi. "I know it's your day off today, but something just came up."
"Alright," Takumi nodded. "Does it have to do with EDEN Syndrome?"
She shook her head. "You're not a police detective so at times like this you should just do nothing."
"But, Kyoko-san, I—"
"Anyway, moving along, I need your help with something else," she quickly cut him off. "I've put it on the whiteboard. You can take this one whenever you like. Come to the office when you're ready."
"Why not just give it to me right now?" Takumi suggested. "It'll save me the trip."
"Huh? You didn't understand what I meant?" Kyoko shook her head at him. "I can't tell you here… That's pretty much a rule, you know," she sternly stated.
"Client confidentiality, right?" Takumi smirked as he looked at the street around him. "Alright, I'm coming over now," the detective's assistant nodded.
Client: Kuremi Kyoko
Place: Kuremi Detective Agency
Details: This is a personal case… Help me with Matayoshi's case without being noticed. Discretion is required.
Takumi frowned at the note but accepted it anyways. He tucked it into a new folder and reported to Kyoko for more details. "So what's this case about?"
"It seems that a criminal calling himself the 'Mysterious Digital Face' has tipped the police off about his planned crimes. He told the Shinjuku Matagi—a cop who loves Shinjuku—that he was going to steal top secret police information," Kyoko briefed him.
"Eh!? That's pretty bold…" Takumi blinked at that. "But how does this involve us?"
The detective smirked. "This is of course a situation for the police to deal with. They've put Detective Matayoshi of the cyber crime investigation unit in charge. Such dramatic incidents tend to hurt the pride of the police force…"
"Ah… I see where this is going," Takumi crossed his arms.
"If the criminal manages to steal the data and gets away, the blame will fall on Detective Matayoshi," Kyoko nodded with a grim expression on her face. "If that's the case it will be a hard blow for us…" She smirked up at her up-and-coming assistant. "So, I need you to help Matayoshi with his investigation covertly. Do you understand what I mean by 'covertly'?"
"Well, I know the definition of the word, but…" the redhead brought his gloved hand up to his chin.
"Huh? You have a question?" Kyoko crossed her arms.
"What exactly do you mean by 'covertly'?" Takumi asked. "I mean, this is Detective Matayoshi we're talking about. He'd come to us if he really needed help, right?"
"Matayoshi isn't very good at this kind of thing," Kyoko shook her head, "so I asked him privately if he needed some help… His response was 'This is a matter of pride for myself and the force!' and refused… But I'm not going to let this go so easily," she seriously stated, "so I would like you to support him 'covertly'."
"Alright then," Takumi nodded. "But who is this 'Mysterious Digital Face'?"
"Perhaps he was inspired by the 'Multifaced Criminal' Ranpo Edogawa and got his name from that," the detective shrugged. "Back then, the mysterious man who inspired terror and madness in children… Kogorou Akechi was his name. His rival was a group of young detectives."
"I've never heard of him," the teen shook his head.
"You don't know about it because it was a bit before your time… Actually," Kyoko wore an amused smirk, "even people in my generation are too young to know about it."
"I see… And the 'Shinjuku Matagi'?"
"I had never heard that phrase before either," Kyoko admitted. "It's most likely a nickname of some sort. At the end of the day, the kanji used may be spelled 'Detective' but it reads 'Cop'. 'Matagi' means 'bear hunter'."
"So a cop who works as a bear hunter?" Takumi pieced together.
Kyoko shook her head at him as he was getting off topic. "Please get to work as quickly as possible."
"Alright," he smiled. "But where should I start?" he asked himself with closed eyes.
"Huh? You want to know what you should do?" she smirked. Takumi opened his eyes and stared at her curiously. "This is about stolen information from the police, so try going to and asking groups of thugs on the street for information."
"Right… that makes sense," her assistant sheepishly laughed.
"I'll try and find out what was said in that tip-off. You go to Cron and ask around," Kyoko crossed her arms.
Takumi spoke with every hacker he encountered as he journeyed through Cron's second level. He didn't discover much until he met a whimsical hacker wearing an oversized blue cap who seemed as though he had information on the Mysterious Digital Face.
"Yeah, of course I know!" the boy nodded.
"Really?" Takumi's eyes widened. "Please tell me everything."
"Yeah, the 'Mysterious Digital Face' is a hot topic around her at the moment," the hacker smirked, looking around Cron. "The cops were asking me the same kind of questions earlier."
"The cops?" the detective's assistant frowned.
"Wait, are you asking around about him too?" the hacker suspiciously eyed Takumi. "Well I'm not saying nothing to no cop," he crossed his arms. "Cops and hackers are enemies, you know?"
"Hey, come on," Takumi gave the hacker a convincing smile. "I've got Digimon, don't I? That makes me a hacker, right? You can tell me."
He eyed the Digimon following Takumi before giving up his information. "This incident must be particularly embarrassing for the police. The criminal admitted to the crime before committing it. I know a hacker who hates cops more than anyone… Maybe that guy is the Mysterious Digital Face…" he said, pulling his cap down over his eyes.
"Do you know where I can find that hacker?"
"Huh? You want to know where that hacker is?" The whimsical hacker shrugged. "He hangs out in Shinjuku a lot. He's a fiery, moody, shady kind of guy. Cop or not, you're gonna wanna question him." With that, the hacker walked away.
"Thanks!" Takumi called out to him before calling Kyoko. "I just found out that there's a cop-hating hacker in Shinjuku."
"I just got the information from the tip-off warning," Kyoko nodded with a pleased smile. "It brought me here to Shinjuku, too. One way or another it looks like our criminal is in Shinjuku… Go find him as soon as possible!" she directed her assistant.
"Understood!" Takumi nodded before cutting the call. He turned towards the logout zone, but blinked when he saw a middle-aged man in a long green raincoat coming towards him.
"Huh?" Matayoshi smiled at him. "Oh, you're from Kyo-chan's office, right?"
Caught already!? Takumi's eyes widened. "Detective Matayoshi…!"
"Hey, what's with the 'Oh crap!' look on your face!?" the old man frowned at him. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm just a curious teen checking out Cron," the redhead nervously chuckled. "There's nothing wrong with that… Anyway, why are you here?"
"Huh? You want to know what I'm doing?" Matayoshi raised an eyebrow at the boy. "I'm on the trail of the Mysterious Digital Face. I've come to EDEN to ask around about him."
"You did, huh?" Takumi looked around Cron. "Oh… so that's what the rumors about a cop-hating hacker being in Shinjuku was about…" he thoughtfully stated.
"Huh?" Matayoshi crossed his arms and frowned. "You say you think that hacker who hates cops is in Shinjuku? A hacker who 'hates' cops, you say…" He took a few seconds to think it over before suspiciously frowning at the red-haired boy. "But how do you know that?"
"Like I said…" Takumi sheepishly scratched his face. "I was around catching rumors…"
The Cyber Sleuth didn't think the veteran detective bought his lie, but Matayoshi definitely didn't push him any further than that. With a smile, the old man nodded to him. "Hmm, okay, well thanks for the info…" He turned around to leave but shook his head. "If Kyo-chan is getting you to do something, I want to know what it is."
"Eh!? But I'm not—"
"This is a matter of police pride!" Matayoshi cut him off and pulled his cap down. "It's mine to take care of!"
Takumi frowned as the man walked away. He brought his hand up to his chin and closed his eyes. "Pride or not, you can't force yourself to do everything alone…" the teen muttered to himself. "But then again… I suppose I'm not in any position to be saying such things…" He shook his head and opened his eyes. "Anyway, let's look for the hacker who hates cops in Shinjuku."
"Looks like you've arrived in Shinjuku," Kyoko stated.
"Um… Kyoko-san…" Takumi frowned as he confessed something to her. "So while I was in Cron, I saw Detective Matayoshi…"
"Huh? You met Matayoshi while you were asking around Cron?" She didn't seem all that upset as she brought her hand up to her mouth. "I see, you told him about the information on Shinjuku," she guessed. "If Detective Matayoshi solves the case by himself with that information, that'll be great. Just to be sure, please continue your investigation in Shinjuku."
"Understood," the boy nodded as he started for the downtown area of Shinjuku.
Takumi talked to the hacker loitering the street, but frowned when he didn't have much information to share. Soon he spotted a police officer so quickly approached him to see if he had seen anyone suspicious around.
"A hacker who hates cops?" the officer asked. "I saw this guy. He didn't look like a hacker but he really hated cops…" he recalled. "He was whispering something hateful about cops by the access point to the station courtyard…" The officer shook his head and smiled though. "But I don't really think he hates the police… I mean, come on, we are soooo cool!" He pulled his hat down as his smirk grew. "Someday I'm definitely gonna…" he quickly stopped speaking and cleared his throat.
Takumi frowned at how odd the officer was, but he shook his head since the man at least gave him something useful to work with. "Well, thanks." The red-haired boy turned back towards the direction he came from. "All right. Let's go to the access point in the station courtyard."
As soon as he got to the access point, he noticed a suspicious man standing right by it. He carefully approached him, but the man already noticed the teen. "What is it?" the man asked him. "You got somethin' you wanna ask?"
Takumi nodded. "Yeah, I'm—"
"What the!?" the man frowned at him. "Who the hell are you!? You think you're so important! You asking around? You're a cop, right?"
Caught off guard by the man's temper, Takumi quickly shook his head. "Not at all! I'm—"
"You're just hiding behind the power the state gives you!" the man accused the detective's assistant. "Tyranny! Cruelty! This is a violation of my human rights!" With a yell he suddenly accessed the network terminal.
"It looks like he's run from the access point to EDEN," Takumi frowned. "Let's go after him!" He quickly held out his hand to the terminal and traced the man's signature directly into Cron. When he landed, Takumi quickly lifted his gaze and saw a Digimon at the man's side.
"I hate the police!" the man yelled. "I hate them! I haaaate theeem!" He shook his head. "Questioning? Bicycle registration number? I don't have time for that!" he crossed his arms. "I need to get home. My favorite anime show is about to start!" He looked towards Takumi. "Am I really that suspicious looking? Am I really that shady? The police are the enemy! The police are the enemy!"
"Calm down! I'm just here to investigate a hacker for the police." Takumi frowned as the man didn't seem to be listening. He also didn't appear to be a hacker with a Digimon. Rather, it was just like when Growmon possessed Mephisto-san. Still, if Takumi wanted to get anywhere in this case, he'd have to take out the Digimon before him. The Cyber Sleuth quickly called out his team and began his scan on Vegimon.
The yellow Digimon glared at him. "You… you're the cops' crony? So, you're their little lap dog!" He swung one of his whip-like arms towards the boy but was suddenly knocked over by a ferocious black wolf.
"Foxfire!" Garurumon (Black) roared as fierce flames engulfed his opponent. The fierce animal bit Vegimon and tossed him into the air.
"Okay," Takumi nodded. "Gatling Arm! Destruction Grenade!" Galgomon and Guardromon both took aim and fired at it, quickly finishing the Digimon off. The Cyber Sleuth turned his attention to the panicked man to check if he was now okay.
"Whoa!?" the man flinched. "Oh, what…" He looked around his surroundings in confusion. "Where am I!?"
"You were possessed by a Digimon and brought to Cron," Takumi explained.
"Huh?" the man frowned. "Possessed by a Digimon? I see," he shook his head. "I can't remember…"
"Do you know anything about the criminal stealing police data known as the Mysterious Digital Face then?" Takumi asked, bringing his hand up to his chin.
"Hmm?" the man crossed his arms and shook his head. "Mysterious Digital Face? He stole secret police data? What are you talking about?" Takumi lowered his hand and studied the man as he explained himself. "First off, I'm not a hacker… I admit I hate the police, but…" he sighed. "I was born with a strange, suspicious vibe so everyone always mistrusts me and treats me like their enemy."
"That's… unfortunate…" Takumi knit his eyebrows together.
"Anyway, I don't know anything about the Mysterious Digital Face!" the man cried.
Takumi sighed and let him go. "Sorry for bothering you then," he apologized. As the man walked away, Takumi closed his eyes. "Where did the investigation go wrong?" He frowned to himself as he tried to retrace his steps. "I did everything correctly… but—" He opened his eyes when his Digivice began beeping. "Aiba Takumi here," he quickly picked up.
"Did you catch the criminal?" Kyoko urgently asked. She didn't even wait for her assistant to answer before relaying more instructions. "Okay, just bring the criminal straight to the station and don't let Detective Matayoshi see you…"
"Uh… About that…" Takumi shook his head. "It seems as though we found the wrong guy."
"Huh?" the blonde detective blinked at him. "He wasn't a criminal, just shady?" Kyoko shook her head. "I see… That's a pity…"
"Sorry…" Takumi apologized. "I think I messed up somewhere along the way." He looked up towards the detective and noticed she was smiling. "Huh? You're not upset with the results?"
She shook her head as she calmly kept her cool. "There's nothing to be done for it. We just need to do the investigation again. Please come back here."
"Understood," he nodded before hanging up. He didn't move though as he began frowning to himself. "Ah…" he sighed. "If I can't even solve a simple case like this on my own, how am I supposed to find the information necessary to get my body back?"
Takumi looked around as he came out of the Shinjuku terminal. He tensed up thought as he heard Matayoshi calling out to him. "Hey, you! What are you doing here?"
"Detective Matayoshi…!" the boy nervously turned around.
The old man laughed at the flustered boy. "Surprised, eh?"
Takumi crookedly smiled. "A bit…" He paused when he noticed the police officer from before behind the detective. "Huh? Who's that, Detective?"
"Hmm?" Matayoshi turned to look at the man following him. "You want to know who this is? This is the infamous 'Mysterious Digital Face'! I just arrested him!"
"Eh!?" Takumi's eyes widened. "Wait, are you sure!?"
"Huh? How do I know?" Matayoshi sternly frowned. "This guy isn't a real policeman. He's just a normal guy in a costume."
The criminal in the uniform smiled at the older man. "Just what you'd expect from Detective Matayoshi… You've truly earned the title of the 'Shinjuku Matagi'…"
Matayoshi crossed his arms and shook his head. "Right from the start, I never thought the criminal who did this hated the police. 'Shinjuku Matagi' was my nickname over ten years ago…"
"Ah… I see…" Takumi stared at the captured criminal.
"The person who knew this must have really liked the police…" Matayoshi nodded. "No, he'd have to be a complete fanatic. When I was going around Shinjuku asking about this and I ran into him, it came to me instinctively. When I looked into him I found out he wasn't a real cop."
"Then who is he really?" Takumi asked.
"He's a hacker who aspired to be a member of our cyber crime squad of the police, but kept failing the entrance exam. He broke under the pressure and admitted it when I cross-examined him."
Takumi raised an eyebrow at the smiling criminal. For some reason, the man didn't seem all that disgruntled at being caught. Instead the man slightly pulled his cap down. "Wow. Japanese police are truly excellent to be able to find me out so easily…" he chuckled. "So now I will get to spend all day every day with these policemen… Well, I guess that's not so bad…" he laughed.
Takumi opened his mouth to speak before shaking his head. I should just leave it at that… He turned back towards Matayoshi. "So what now, Detective?"
"Well, it feels like catching this guy is its own reward, but…" the old man shook his head. "Well, I suppose that's enough." He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his raincoat and flashed the teen a grateful smile. "I suppose I should thank you for your help…"
"What do you mean?" the boy knit his eyebrows together. "I… didn't really do anything," he said, a bit disappointed in the results of his work.
"I was only able to catch him because you gave me important clues," Matayoshi said, patting Takumi's shoulder. "You helped me save face…" the old man nodded. "I thank you for that. Please pass my regards on to Kyo-chan and tell her I'm sorry for worrying her."
"Sure thing," Takumi nodded.
Matayoshi turned around and pulled his cap down. "Oh, and tell her she chose a good assistant. I look forward to seeing what type of 'specialist' you'll grow into," he laughed. "If you ever need assistance, don't hesitate to ask for it whether it's from me or Kyo-chan, eh?"
"H-huh!?" the teen stared at the man with surprised blue eyes. "U-uh, yeah! I-I will…!" Takumi managed to stutter as the detective escorted the criminal away. The redhead watched them leave before finally smiling to himself. "Of course… I'm not alone so long as I have Kyoko-san and my Digimon looking out for me." He wryly laughed to himself. "I suppose I'm also worrying Kyoko-san…" He crossed his arms and closed his eyes. "Doggedly and with all your might, exhibit endurance like hard black iron…" Takumi opened his eyes and smiled. "I just need to keep my cool, right, Kyoko-san?"
Kyoko wore a wide smirk as Takumi finished delivering the news of the arrest to her. "Right, so the Mysterious Digital Face was safely brought to justice?"
"In the end, yeah," Takumi chuckled.
"You've managed to preserve the honor of the police force and of Detective Matayoshi," Kyoko gave him a satisfactory nod. "Good job. I suppose we should reconsider our low opinion of Detective Matayoshi now…" She took a moment to go over the entire case. "We tried to support him covertly at first, but… We weren't able to find the criminal by ourselves… He is an elite detective… That gut instinct of his… That's one of the greatest gifts you can have…" She became quiet for a moment as she further considered something. "Still…" she began with a smirk, "The 'Shinjuku Matagi'… 'Matagi' means a bear hunter, a person who can use the footprints and smell of a bear to track it down and move in for the kill." She nodded to herself and chuckled. "Of course, it's the perfect nickname for Detective Matayoshi."
"Alright, but what about Mysterious Digital Face?" Takumi curiously asked. "There really was nothing mysterious or digital about the actual culprit in the end."
"I think the real 'Multifaced Criminal' was sort of a fan of the police and private investigators. He's probably the first ever hot-cold personality type," Kyoko hypothesized with a shrug. "The same can be said with the actual culprit here."
"So their fascination with the law turned them into criminals?" the teen shook his head and sighed. "I guess there really are people of all types."
"You're one to talk about interesting personality types," Kyoko smirked at him. "But that said, you did a good job today. I made the right choice in giving this case to you. It seems you learned a lot from it."
"What do you mean?" the teen nervously asked her.
"Hmm… I'm sure you already know what I mean," she said, her smirk never wavering for a second. "You're my assistant after all." Kyoko shook her head as she returned her attention to another case she was working on. "Now, didn't you have plans earlier? You're free to complete them now. It is your day off after all."
"Actually," Takumi shook his head as he picked up the folder on her desk, "I think I'll stay and help out. You seem to have a lot on your plate, Kyoko-san."
"Oh?" Kyoko curiously looked up at him. "Are you sure you don't have a pressing matter to look into on your own?"
"Hm?" The redhead gave her a small smile and shook his head. "It's not something I should rush into alone. Besides, you're working these investigations by yourself, right, Kyoko-san? I want to help you as much as I can. Like you said, I am your assistant. You shouldn't have to do this all on your own if I'm here."
The detective proudly smiled at how much he was able to grow after just one job. "If that's the case, I'll be relying on you then, my dear Watson."
~TIME~CAPSULE~SNOW~WOMAN~
As she sipped her new coffee blend, Kyoko frowned at the draft that suddenly blew through the room. "Why in the world is it so cold inside Broadway?"
"Hm?" Takumi looked up from the stack of case files he had been reorganizing for her. "Is it? I think the temperature is fine."
She frowned as she studied her half-cyber assistant. "So not all physical laws hold with your body…" she mused. Kyoko shook her head as she sensed the office dropping another half degree or so. "Is something wrong with the AC? If you're not doing anything, find out what's going on," she nodded to him.
"But I'm—" Takumi paused when she coolly stared at him. He nervously chuckled and set the files aside. "Alright then. I'll have a look around when I go out for lunch. It's probably nothing though. I seriously don't feel anything different."
As he exited the agency to take his lunch break, Takumi saw a girl standing outside Mirei's consultation room shaking. "Brr…" the girl shook her head. "The back entrance is so c-cold… It's a little better here at least…"
Takumi frowned when he didn't really notice anything, but if a normal person thinks so, he might as well check it out. When he arrived at the back entrance, he looked up to the blond boy that usually took a break in the area and saw him shivering too.
"Whoa!" the other teen shook his head. "It's f-f-freezing in here! Did the AC break or something?" The boy looked towards the vents with a frown.
Takumi followed his gaze and blinked when he noticed something strange about the vent. Is that a digital distortion of some sort? He carefully approached it and blinked when his Digivice received an incoming transmission. "Huh…!?"
An image of a pale, brown-haired girl came up on the display. She didn't say anything, but she did seem a bit dreary. After a while, the transmission ended.
Takumi frowned. "Her voice cut out." He looked around again but noticed the distortion was gone. "I wonder what's up…" His Digivice rang again and he quickly picked up, thinking it was another transmission. To his surprise, it was Kyoko.
"Me again," Kyoko nodded to him. "I've got a new case for you. Why don't you drop on by so we can talk?"
The redhead knit his eyebrows together as it looked like he would have to forego his lunch break today. "Alright... If it's a case, I'm heading back now."
Client: Broadway Management
Place: Broadway
Detail: There is something wrong with the air-conditioning in Broadway. Find the cause.
Takumi blinked at the note in his hand. "So, how does this warrant an investigation?" he asked as he turned towards Kyoko.
"From what I gather, the air conditioning inside Nakano Broadway is on the fritz," she told him. "It just keeps pumping in cold air constantly and nobody can switch the heating on."
"Okay, but shouldn't that be a job for an electrician? Or a mechanic of some sort?" Takumi crossed his arms. "It's just a problem with the cooling system, right?"
"The thing is," Kyoko shook her head, "nobody can find anything wrong with it and the businesses are at a lost on what to do." She smirked as she saw it click together in Takumi's mind. "That's where we come in. People aren't getting much work done, so I told them to leave it to us! If we can get to the bottom of this mess, I'm sure they'll just love us forever for it!"
"So you intend to use this case to up our reputation…" Takumi crookedly grinned. "You made me skip lunch for—" he paused when his Digivice rang. "Hello? This is Aiba Takumi speaking." He blinked when the dreary girl from before appeared on the display. "Huh? You again?"
"Huh? You keep getting transmissions from someone?" Kyoko curiously hacked into Takumi's Digivice to see who it was. "Hmm… Well, isn't she a cutie," she teased her assistant.
Takumi smirked at that. "Oh, so you think so too? I wonder if she's my type," he chuckled.
Kyoko ignored his comment before she noticed something strange about the transmission. "The white noise in this is really bad. I can't make out what she's saying. Where's this coming—" she shook her head when the call came to an abrupt end. "Damn, it cut out."
"The first time she contacted me, it was around the area where it was the coldest," Takumi told the detective.
"What? You're saying the same transmission came in where it was cold?" Kyoko took a moment to think things over. "Hmm… We might be closing in on the cause. If so, our next step is to resolve this thing, plain and simple."
"Yeah, the sooner we do it, the sooner I can grab a bite," Takumi groaned as he placed a hand over his stomach. He shook his head since now wasn't the time for that. "So what do you need me to do this time?"
"I'm going to see if I can figure out the signal's origin. You ask around about the air conditioning," she nodded to him.
"Understood!" he nodded. Takumi paused for a moment. "Wait… I can probably grab some takoyaki from upstairs along the way. Lunch problem solved!"
Takumi pensively finished his takoyaki before ordering a triple scoop ice cream cone from the soft cream parlor nearby. He received many odd looks from the other visitors considering how cold the mall was, but the redhead really didn't notice since he had his eyes closed as he normally did when he was deep in thought.
"The sweetness of the strawberry is a bit high," he nodded to himself as he tasted the sample. "Perhaps if I balance it with the milder flavor of matcha green tea… And I suppose vanilla and chocolate are a classic combination, but there's also red bean… Oh, and I should really consider the order of how they're served," the redhead frowned. "Ah… in that case…" He straightened up and quickly told the server how he wanted his ice cream. "I would like a waffle cone with matcha green tea on the bottom, red bean flavor in the middle, and strawberry on top."
"Wow!" the woman working the booth handed him the cone. "Aren't you cold eating all that ice cream, Aiba-kun?"
"Nope, I'm fine," the boy smiled as he paid for his dessert. "I'm pretty resistant to the cold."
"You're lucky…" the worker sighed. "It looks like all of Broadway has its AC malfunctioning."
"Yeah," Takumi knit his eyebrows together. "Kyoko-san and I were actually requested to look into it. I'm in the middle of asking around about that now actually."
"But you couldn't resist ordering something anyways, huh, Aiba-kun?" the woman giggled at him. "You're quite the glutton despite how thin you are. Oh!" She straightened up as she remembered something. "If you're looking for information on Broadway itself, why not try K-Café? It might be a bit crowded now due to the cold, but the owner there knows a lot of random trivia about the building."
"Really?" Takumi stared at the remaining scoop on his cone. "Alright, I'll check it out."
He went up the stairs towards the fourth floor and turned the corner to get to K-Café. When he saw the line leading into the small establishment his face slightly fell. Crushing the used napkin in his hand, he shook his head before forcing his way into the small café.
"Sacchan!" he called out to the part-time maid. "Is the master available? I need to ask about Broadway's cooling unit!"
Sacchan quickly pulled the detective behind the counter. "Boss, Aiba-kun's looking for you!"
The raven-haired man nodded as he heard. "You wanna know how the AC broke? Beats me," he shrugged. "I have no idea. It's odd. We don't have a central unit anymore, so how could everyone's AC go out?"
"Central unit?" Takumi knit his eyebrows together.
"Huh? You don't know about the central unit?" The owner smiled as he happily shared the information with the young teen. "Back when this place first opened, there was a big underground unit that controlled the AC for the whole building. Sure feels like the old central unit going out. The way it worked was that every store circulated that cool air up to their stores with fans."
"Underground?" Takumi tilted his head to the side as the building design didn't make any sense. "Why was there a central unit underground at all?"
"Well, that was to refrigerate a certain something," the owner laughed. "What do you think it was?"
"Ice cream?" the redhead wistfully answered.
"It was Japan's oldest vacuum tube computer!" the man exclaimed. "Can you believe it? The room that computer was housed in was right here in Nakano!"
"Eh…?" the teen crossed his arms. "Is it still here?"
"Sad to say, I have no idea what happened to it," the man shook his head. "There's nothing left to it anymore. And even if there were, there are no records remaining. Nobody remembers where it was either. The room itself might as well be an urban legend."
"But it really did exist, right?" Takumi confirmed.
The man shrugged as he didn't really know either, despite explaining it all to the boy as thought it was all true. "I can tell you one thing though, it's really cold…" He broke into a sleazy chuckle. "Although it's done wonders for coffee sales today."
"Well, thanks for the information," Takumi smiled. He wrestled his way out of the café before noticing Kyoko was trying to reach him.
"I've figured out where that signal came from, so get back to the office when you can, all right?" she told him.
"I discovered a few things too," he nodded. "I'll be there in a few minutes."
Kyoko frowned when she noticed something on her assistant's face. "Were you eating on the job again?"
"It was technically my lunch break when you sent me to work," Takumi pointed out with a shrug. "I got hungry."
"Well in that case, you must be thirsty now," Kyoko nodded. "I'll prepare some coffee for when you'll get back." She cut the transmission before Takumi could say anything else.
Takumi weakly laughed to himself as he slowly made his way back to the office. "Oh, how cruel the coffee gods are…"
"Nice work with your investigation," Kyoko complimented her assistant as he choked down his coffee. "Now what have you got to report?"
"Apparently, Broadway used to house Japan's oldest vacuum computer. It's in a room hidden somewhere in the building, but it's related to the building's central cooling unit." Takumi grimaced as the coffee's aftertaste was lingering a bit longer than he wanted to but continued. "If we find that room, we might be able to fix the AC."
"Hmm…" Kyoko brought her hand up to her chin pensively. "This is the first I've heard of that computer room. But with that information, it's all starting to click for me now."
"So you know where that room is?" Takumi asked.
She nodded her head. "Like I mentioned before, I've figured out who the girl in those transmissions is. Her name's Yuki Fuyume. She was a breakout idol from a few decades back."
"But the girl is a bit too young, isn't she?" the boy knit his eyebrows together as he brought his gloved hand to his chin.
"What we've been seeing… the avatar on the screen is her when she was in her prime as an idol," Kyoko explained. "Somebody is therefore using a terminal inside Nakano Broadway and broadcasting her likeness."
"So… you're thinking a hacker or a Digimon," Takumi concluded.
Kyoko crossed her arms, proud that he was able to figure out that much. "And the signal seems to be coming from the fourth floor. Looking at the map, it's right inside a wall at K-Café."
"That narrows it down to a Digimon," the Cyber Sleuth nodded. He looked up in surprise though. "Wait… If that's the case… how am I supposed to access a wall!?"
The detective chuckled to herself. "The whole thing has played out like a horror story, hasn't it? A long lost idol relaying her message from inside a wall…" She ignored her assistant's groans. "But with your report, it's all coming together now."
Takumi smiled at her praise but still crossed his arms. "But a wall?"
"We've uncovered a piece of Nakano Broadway history that not even the owner of K-Café as the go-to historian could claim to know. But enough talk," she smiled, rising from her seat. "It's time to head back to K-Café. I'll be coming along for this one, too."
"Good, because I seriously want to know how I'm going to Connect Jump into a wall."
As they left the office, they spotted two students of Inoden walking past. One boy shook his head as he lowered his phone. "I got a message from a girl and when I answered it…" he shivered. "It got cold all of a sudden. It's the 'Snow Woman'! She's cursed us! It has to be her!"
His shivering friend shook his head. "I-I can hardly believe it… But it definitely has been really ch-chilly in here. I've got a bad feeling about this. Maybe I'll just go home…"
As they walked away, Kyoko chuckled to herself. "Heh, the Snow Woman. The MO sure does fit that folktale, though. Even the idol's name, Yuki Fuyume, means 'Winter Snow Woman'. Snow Woman herself shows up in a lot of stories from regions with cold climates. This is definitely the first time she's taken form as an old 80s idol. But it's pretty fitting for Nakano Broadway, all things considered," the woman continued to chuckle.
"But it's not a ghost… It's probably a Digimon…" Takumi seriously crossed his arms. "Maybe…" He sighed as he was still wrapping his mind over the whole wall thing. "Most likely…?" He shook his head and chuckled to himself. "I don't even know anymore…"
"Still, if we don't act quickly, she's going to damage this place's reputation," Kyoko reminded him, "so let's get a move on already."
"You're the one who was distracted first!" Takumi shook his head as he took off after her. "Kyoko-san!"
Takumi blinked as the crowd of people around K-Café let Kyoko into the store with ease. He didn't complain though as he quickly followed in after her. He nervously looked around as it would be difficult to do a Connect Jump without someone noticing. Still, they could probably just blame whatever strange phenomenon it was on the "Snow Woman". Maybe the ghost story would be useful after all.
The detective's assistant paused when he noticed Kyoko wasn't interested in talking to the owner, but was staring at a wall. He blinked too when he noticed she was staring straight at a digital distortion with a confused frown on her face.
"This is it…" Kyoko stated comparing the data from her pink-lens Digivice to the actual location they were standing at. "The transmission should be coming from the other side of here," she placed her hand over the distortion. She shook her head as she couldn't find anything suspicious at all. "Yet there's no door and there are no signs of the wall being tampered with… What's going on here…?"
"You can't see it, Kyoko-san?" Takumi asked while watching the light blue distortion flicker. She looked over to him curiously as he touched the wall. As soon as he did, his Digivice rang and the image of Yuki Fuyume appeared again.
"Another transmission…" Kyoko noted. "That just about confirms we're in the right spot, then."
"Of course, we are…" Takumi nodded.
Her eyes narrowed on her assistant. "I don't… I don't like the looks of this," she admitted to him.
"What!? Why not?" he asked. He paused when he felt a strange tingling sensation wash over his body. He quickly looked down at himself but was glad to see his body remained intact. He did notice, however, the sound of the AC kicking into high gear. "Huh…? Did the AC just go into full blast? Was that the idol's doing?"
Kyoko nodded as she crossed her arms. "It's like… she's noticed us trying to meddle with her… and now it's even colder. You're probably less… affected by her tricks thanks to your unique body."
Takumi shook his head. "I sensed something strange though…" he told the detective. He shook his head as he held his hand up to the distortion again.
"Oh, did you find something?" she asked.
"This entire time there was a digital distortion here," he quickly explained. "It looks like I'm the only one who can see it."
"I see…" she nodded. "So there's an entry point into cyberspace inside that wall."
"So this is how I'll Connect Jump into a wall," Takumi smirked to himself. He worriedly looked back at his shivering boss. "Kyoko-san…"
"Don't worry about me," she shook her head at him. "You go on ahead and get in there!"
With a curt nod, the Cyber Sleuth disappeared into the strange network.
Takumi made it into the deepest recesses of the network before he spotted the idol known as Yuki Fuyume. His eyes widened in confusion as there was no way any other human could have been here. He hurried over to her at once but noticed she had been expecting him.
"You… came…" she gratefully smiled at the blue-eyed teen. "Thank… you…"
The girl suddenly disappeared and in her place was a small cat-like Digimon that Takumi's Digivice quickly identified as a Wanyamon. "Please…" the Digimon stared at the boy with pleading eyes, "help… me…"
Just like the girl, the Wanyamon disappeared. Takumi looked around for any sign of the Digimon but he sensed another distorting wave crash into him. He frowned as it probably meant that Broadway was getting even colder.
He clenched his teeth together as he tried to come up with a way to fix the situation. "Alright… That Digimon called me here for a reason. If he wasn't the cause then something else is!" He flinched as a sudden chill washed over him. He brought his arms up to protect his face as chilling snowflakes flew towards him. "H-huh…? I feel cold…?" He carefully looked past his arms and saw a snowman-like Digimon running towards him.
"COLDER…" the Digimon breathed, its breath visible in the cyberspace. "IT'S NOT COLD ENOUGH! NOT UNTIL EVERYONE IS FROZEN!"
"So you're the cause of all this!" Takumi tensed up as he called out his Digimon. "Galgomon!"
The speedy Vaccine let out a cry as he tried to sucker punch the snowman. "Dum Dum Upper!"
"ZETTAI REIDO PUNCH!" The snowman quickly countered Galgomon with his own fist.
Takumi's eyes widened as the attack completely froze his Digimon's arm. "Galgomon, get back!" The hacker quickly checked the enemy's scan information and frowned that it wasn't a Virus as he had initially thought. "Guardromon, Garurumon (Black), switch out with Togemon and Tyranomon!"
While waiting for his Digimon to rotate, Takumi quickly reached into his bag for a recovery disk. He didn't have time to use it though because Yukidarumon set his sights on the boy. "SNOWBALL FIGHT!" the Digimon cried as he began throwing a barrage of snowballs towards the half-cyber human.
The redhead flinched but was surprised when Galgomon took the attacks instead. "Galgomon!" Takumi frowned as he quickly applied the health patch onto his Digimon and quickly relayed new orders for his other two active Digimon. "Go all out!"
"Wild Buster!" Tyranomon roared as he became engulfed in flames. He charged into the snowman and wrestled with Yukidarumon for a while.
The opposing Digimon winced a bit but raised his fist into the air. "ZETTAI REIDO PUNCH!"
Tyranomon rolled out of the way so Togemon could counter the punch with a few of her own. "Mach Jab!"
Completely caught off guard, Yukidarumon reeled backwards. Takumi pushed Galgomon forward after finishing his treatment. "Alright! Altogether now! Xros Combo!"
"Dum Dum Upper!"
"Dino Kick!"
"Coconuts Punch!"
All three of his Digimon finished off the snowman and Takumi let out a sigh of relief that it was over. "Good job, everyone!" he called out before collapsing to the ground into a sitting position. He paused when the Wanyamon he encountered before hopped towards him.
"Brr, it was so cold!" the small Digimon shivered. "Thanks for taking care of him! That was one nasty glitch!" He happily jumped into Takumi's lap. "You saved the day, really! You must have come over when you heard my voice, right?"
"Not really…" Takumi blinked at the Digimon as the creature affectionately rubbed his head against the boy's hand. "I came here to investigate as a Cyber Sleuth."
"You didn't?" the Digimon frowned. "You're a Cyber Sleuth working a case? I don't really get it," he shook his head. "But whatever," he chuckled, "all's well that ends well! Yukidarumon's rampaging really did cause so much trouble!"
"Yeah, it did," the boy nodded before knitting his eyebrows together. "But… uh… who are you?"
"Huh? Who am I?" the Wanyamon blinked at him. "Uh, well… to be honest, I don't really know myself."
"Really?" Takumi curiously stared at the Digimon with wide blue eyes. He's actually… really cute… he thought as he began petting him.
The Digimon purred at the boy's actions. "I've been stuck asleep inside this wall the whole time, you see." He suddenly jumped out of the boy's lap when Takumi's Digivice began to ring.
"Hey," Kyoko greeted her assistant. "It's finally stopped blowing cold air here. Great job! You did so much, you must be tired. It would have been a real sad state of affairs if we'd somehow managed to freeze to death here in Tokyo, of all places."
"That's true…" Takumi laughed. "But, uh… Kyoko-san… I found something interesting." He showed her the Digimon that was now playing with his team. "He doesn't know who he is… and I kinda want to help him…" he said with a slight blush on his face.
"Hmm? You found a cat Digimon with amnesia?" Kyoko stared at the small creature with intrigue. "Well, you solve one mystery, only to stumble into another, it seems. Come back here and we'll look into it."
Kyoko studied the strange Digimon with great interest. "An amnesiac Digimon, huh…?" She shook her head and smirked to herself. "Every time I think I've seen everything, I get proven wrong yet again." She nodded as she addressed the Wanyamon. "I take it those transmissions with Yuki Fuyume were your doing, then?"
"Yep," the Digimon nodded. "I wasn't able to move around once Yukidarumon started going crazy, so I had to call for help somehow and I sent out those messages." He noticed Takumi frowning at him and laughed. "Well, I did come from a vacuum tube computer inside a wall!"
"So I really did access that old computer network?" Takumi blinked in surprise.
"Then that means that vacuum tube computer was really there behind the wall, this whole time…" Kyoko mused.
"I'd been asleep inside that computer for a reeeeally long time," the Wanyamon nodded. "I only woke up just recently. And when I did, I had no idea who I was or what I was doing inside that wall, so I decided to go and see what I could learn. That was when I stumbled upon an intranet connecting the vacuum tube computer to the rest of the building."
"Intranet…?" Kyoko brought her hand up to her chin. "You must mean the networking lines that only operate inside Nakano Broadway."
"Yeah," the Digimon jumped. "So as I was just playing around, that was when Yukidarumon suddenly appeared. He was originally a Digimon that was created as a result of a glitch in the air conditioning system. But he managed to use the intranet to sneak into the vacuum tube computer I was living in!"
"I see," Kyoko nodded. "It all makes sense now. That must have been why nobody could find anything wrong with the system when they checked it."
"So it was a job only we could accomplish," Takumi stated.
"Yukidarumon just went completely insane and wouldn't listen to me," the Wanyamon sighed. "Eventually I couldn't even move with all of that constant cold. It was terrible…"
Takumi sympathetically stared at the adorable Digimon. "How awful… I had no idea. A cute critter like you being bullied by a bigger Digimon like that…"
Kyoko shook her head at her assistant but crossed her arms as she considered the old vacuum computer. "It's hard to believe such an old computer was even still operational to begin with too… But its existence is probably a remnant of the centralized AC system the K-Café owner mentioned before. The wiring must have been hooked up pretty poorly for Yukidarumon to be able to wreak such havoc, then… And therein lies the root of how this all managed to happen. I imagine even our conversation right now must be going through that intranet, as well."
"Aw…" Takumi frowned. "If that's the case, you're bound to Broadway… I was hoping I could take you to EDEN… I want to raise an adorable Digimon like you…"
"By the way," Kyoko continued to ignore the boy, "is there a reason why you… chose to appear as an idol in those transmissions?"
"Why?" the Digimon blinked at her. "She was just cute, I guess."
Takumi crossed his arms and nodded as though the reason was obvious. "A cute girl for a cute Digimon."
Kyoko frowned at them both. "Um?"
"Come on, Kyoko-san," her assistant shook his head. "It's not a very complicated answer."
"Yeah, it's simple!" the cat-like creature agreed. "I just thought someone cute like her would make someone want to come in and help me! I picked Yuki Fuyume specifically because, well… she was amazing when she was really popular! She could sing, she could dance, and her looks… Fuyume had everything you could want in an idol!" The Digimon jumped up as he remembered something else. "Oh yeah! There was also a world's fair around the time her career was really starting to take off! There was such a long line for the moon rocks…" The Wanyamon paused and frowned to himself. "Wait… Why do I… remember that? I don't even know my own name…"
Takumi blinked at the Digimon. "Eh…? That's a lot of strange things to recall… What's up with that?"
"I think I get what's going on here…" Kyoko nodded. "It looks like we've uncovered a decades-old time capsule."
"Time capsule?" the Wanyamon looked towards the detective in confusion. "What's that?"
"Your memories aren't just raw bits of information," Kyoko explained. "They're more than that. They have a certain… humanity to them, let's say. I bet you're somebody's old 'memories', stashed away along with that vacuum tube computer you've been living in. That's what time capsules are for."
"That's what I am?" the Digimon wryly smiled.
"But, memories or not, that doesn't make you any less empathetic a creature to encounter…" she smirked, looking over towards her assistant who was still staring at the Wanyamon like a young child wishing to adopt a lost kitten. "Either way, this case is wrapped up now."
"Eh? Really?" Takumi frowned, disappointment apparent on his face.
"We'll look into what's up with this cat Digimon later," she reassured him. "Truly, there's no other place quite like Nakano," the detective chuckled.
"There really isn't," her assistant smiled as they bade the small Digimon farewell for the time being. He crossed his arms and smiled. "Well, this is one report I don't mind writing out…" The teen bounced up and down as he faced his boss. "Hey, hey! Kyoko-san! Did you see how adorable and awesome he was!?"
She chuckled at his enthusiasm. "And here I thought you hadn't been looking forward to the case…"
"Eh?" Takumi was immediately pulled back to reality and Kyoko noticed he was his usual self again. "I hadn't… But it did turn out to be a job that only I could complete due to the nature of my existence," he frowned.
Kyoko frowned at his lack of confidence in his position as her assistant. "Still," she smirked at him, in the hopes of cheering him up, "you have a real knack for getting us involved in a lot of stuff, so thanks for always keeping it interesting around here."
The redhead eased up at that. "Heh… Thanks, Kyoko-san…"
~SEARCH~WANTED~HACKER~
Takumi yawned and leaned backwards over the sofa to stretch out his back. "Kyoko-san… I don't have anything to do…" he complained.
"You're free?" the detective raised an eyebrow at him. "What are you talking about? Detectives don't have free time."
"I finished up all the cases you posted up though," he pointed out.
"Fine, here's a task for you. Figure out what you should be doing," Kyoko challenged him.
"That's not very helpful," the redhead frowned at her. He sighed and shook his head before putting on a simple smile. "Fine… I'll head out and see what I can find." Takumi got up and started for the door before he noticed Kyoko was now intently staring at her screen and jotting something down onto a note. His eyes shone when he recognized it as a case for him. "What's that?" he eagerly asked.
"Mirei's sent in another case. She's a regular patron and an important customer. So make sure you complete her cases," Kyoko chuckled as she prepared to post it on the whiteboard.
"I'll just take that directly, thank you," Takumi said as he snatched it from her hand. "Now let's see…"
Client: Mikagura Mirei
Details: There are lots of bad hackers in this world. The poor Digimon… Don't you think it's time for just deserts?
The blue-eyed boy blankly stared at the note. "This doesn't have much in the way of concrete details…" Takumi shrugged to himself as he should have expected from the mysterious woman.
"In that case, go straight to Mirei and ask her what she wants," Kyoko crossed her arms. "Get to it, Cyber Sleuth."
"I'm off," Takumi waved as he left.
"Have a safe trip," she replied back.
Takumi smiled at the glasses-wearing woman as he entered the DigiLab. "How are you, Mirei-san?"
Mirei looked up at him with a satisfied smirk on her face. "If you're here, you must have taken up my case."
"That's right," the teen nodded.
"I figured you'd naturally come, given your close ties to Digimon," she smugly stated. "Anyway, let's get straight to business, shall we? You've already been to Cron in EDEN before, yes?"
"Of course," Takumi seriously answered.
"Then that'll make this conversation much quicker. EDEN is filled to the brim with hackers who view Digimon as little more than mere tools to do their bidding. Of course, said bidding is rather malicious and illegal in nature, to put it simply," Mirei frowned. "That's why I've sought out your help on this case. I'd like you to go after one such hacker and let's say 'discipline' them for these terrible hijinks. Hopefully as one of their own, they'll learn from your example to treat their Digimon much more kindly from now on."
The Cyber Sleuth nervously chuckled. "So you want me to use force against the hackers of EDEN?" Takumi shook his head as it seemed a bit too much. "Is that really okay? I don't really feel right going against every hacker with Digimon."
"Hmm? Not every hacker might be so bad, you say?" Mirei raised her eyebrow at him. "From the way you talk, I take it you've met some that make you so optimistic, then?"
"Yeah," he nodded, thinking of Yuugo.
"Well, I'll take your word for it if you really do believe that," the woman smiled. "But that doesn't change the fact that there are indeed bad eggs out there, ones that abuse their Digimon and make them suffer terribly… So I would still appreciate it if you turned up the heat on such hackers, so to speak."
"All right," the Cyber Sleuth agreed. "That I can definitely do."
"Thank you. I knew I could trust you to join me in such an important cause." Mirei turned to her screen and pushed up her glasses. "I've already found an especially malevolent hacker lurking about inside EDEN. This hacker seems to be somewhere on Cron's second level. This one seems to be a particularly nasty hacker. You'll know why."
"Just leave it to me then," Takumi nodded.
"That's all I have for you right now. Thank you again for taking up this case. Once you're done, come back here and report back to me," she instructed the teen.
"This must be the hacker Mirei mentioned," Takumi frowned as he noticed a hacker attacking every wild Baby II Digimon with a pair of PicoDevimon. "Hey! What are you doing?" The redhead quickly sent Galgomon to defend the scared Digimon. Takumi's Digivice scanned the hacker and found that the account information matched what Mirei had sent him. "So you're the Cyber Hacker Norio…"
"The hell you did that for?" Norio glared at the intervening hacker before noticing the Pyokomon he had been hunting were running away. "Ah! I've got to hurry up and crush them! Get out of my way!"
"Sorry, but I can't do that," Takumi shook his head. "I won't let you keep harming the Digimon. I suggest you give up being a hacker."
Norio frowned at the redhead. "Huh? You want me to stop misusing my Digimon and give up hacking?" He shook his head at the Cyber Sleuth. "The hell you going on about? The Digimon program's prime for hacking! I'm using it just as it was always intended! What good is a tool if you don't use it, dumbass!? Anyone in my position would use this for their own benefit!"
"They're not tools you can abuse," Takumi seriously stated.
Norio stared into the boy's blue eyes and smirked. "I see that look in your eyes. If you've got anything more to say about what I do, you're just gonna have to fight me!"
"Fine with me!" the redhead nodded as Guardromon and Garurumon (Black) joined Galgomon in the battle. One PiceDevimon tried targeting Takumi with its Pico Darts attack, but the half-cyber human jumped back. The redhead frowned as he noticed Norio was issuing orders to his Digimon to specifically target him. "Using Digimon to hurt people too? I'll show you how a real hacker does things. Galgomon! Guardromon!"
"Destruction Grenade!" Guardomon launched a pair of missiles at the two Child Digimon.
"Gatling Arm!" The Vaccine Digimon followed up with a barrage of shots but he stopped only after a few seconds. It wasn't their goal to finish the Digimon, but to subdue them.
"What the!?" Norio scowled as he forced his weakened Digimon to continue. "Why are you lying around for!? Get back up and attack! Throw some more Pico Darts! Use Devil's Whisper! Do something, you useless pieces of—" he let out a scream when Garurumon (Black) landed before him and howled.
Takumi shook his head and sternly called his Digimon back. "Garurumon (Black), don't! The battle's over! There's no point in hurting him at all." The kind hacker carefully approached the wolf and petted his side. "Easy now… Come on…"
Garurumon (Black) turned his head towards his master before noticing Norio was trying to back away. The Digmion growled, resulting in the hacker shaking his head. "Okay, okay! I get what you're saying! Shut up already… Will you leave me alone if I promise to treat my Digimon better from now on?"
This seemed to please the Virus Adult as the large black wolf happily pressed his snout into Takumi's face. The boy laughed as it looks like their mission was successful. The Cyber Sleuth nodded at Norio before recalling his Digimon. "You'd better remember your promise then," Takumi sternly warned him.
The other hacker groaned as he had no choice but to comply. He crossed his arms as he watched Takumi leave. "I hate having to deal with asswipes like you…"
Takumi dismissed his comment as it didn't really matter what Norio thought. The Cyber Sleuth had proven himself to be the stronger hacker anyways and that was enough. He gave himself a satisfied smile. "The hacker seems to have at least repented… I should report back to Mirei-san."
"It appears everything went smoothly for you," Mirei smiled as Takumi returned. "I'm so glad I called on you to help me clean up EDEN. Although knowing how strong your bonds to your Digimon are, perhaps this end result was the work of fate…" she chuckled.
"Well, there was no way my Digimon could have lost considering how I've been raising them," the boy stated with a frown. "They're my friends too, after all…"
Mirei laughed at his reaction. "You should take that as a compliment."
"Sure…" Takumi mumbled as he straightened up.
"Regardless, thank you for all your hard work today," Mirei smirked at him. "I expect great things from you going forward, as well."
"Wait… There's more, isn't there?" the Cyber Sleuth asked.
"Oh, you didn't think we were done with just this one hacker you took care of, did you?" she raised her eyebrow at him. She shook her head as his face fell. "Sad to say, there are still numerous hackers out there who are mistreating their Digimon horribly. While you were out taking down that first hacker, I drafted up what you might call a 'hacker blacklist'. Right now, there are 30 such outlaw hackers on the list, with the one you just defeated bumping the total down to 29."
"That many!?" Takumi asked in surprise.
"Oh, you feel that the number is rather high?" Mirei chuckled. "I assure you, I arrived at this final roster after only the most careful of deliberation." She shook her head. "Rest assured, you won't have to search for all of the remaining hackers by yourself. I know you're only one person, after all." She pointed over to the console Takumi normally used to set his DigiFarm. "On that note, have you tried out the DigiFarm yet? If you haven't, I suggest you do so posthaste. The reason for that is because if you order the Digimon on your DigiFarm to 'Investigate', they'll find out where the other hackers are for you. Once their locations have been covered, I'll send them over to you right away as new cases to check. You can handle them the same way as today's."
The Cyber Sleuth smiled at the task she set before him. "Alright, I understand. I'll do my best," he nodded to her before turning towards the exit terminal.
"Don't underestimate the strength of your bonds with your Digimon," Mirei reminded him. The boy paused to look back at her. "Big or small, each one will lend you their aid when you need it most. So please, do what you can to save those poor Digimon from the blacklisted Hackers. I expect great things to come of this," she chuckled as he finally left.
"I'm home," Takumi smirked as he reappeared in the office.
"Welcome home," Kyoko smiled back. "I see you've been working hard for Mirei. Nice job. You two appear to be developing quite the unique dynamic, if I do say so myself."
"I suppose," the Cyber Sleuth shrugged as he began filling out his report. "Mirei-san will probably have more cases for me in the future, but at least it'll give me some work."
"Good," the detective nodded. "Otherwise, I was going to suggest you improve your hacking skills as well as your studies. You should always be sharpening your mind so when the time comes, you will be able to endure whatever comes your way."
Takumi looked up at the agency's motto hanging on the wall above Kyoko's desk. "I understand," he seriously nodded.
Final Notes: So I had Agumon (Black) evolve into Tyranomon because having three out of five Digimon being Virus type is not very balanced. That said, I didn't add Vegimon to Takumi's team but I did include Yukidarumon since the snowman is a Vaccine. This gives Takumi two of each type so yeah, balance. Now about each of the three cases. Matayoshi is pretty cool, but uh... he's not very useful. Oh well. Every private detective needs someone on the police force to help them. I really like the Snow Woman case because of the Wanyamon. Of course, we don't learn more about him until later... As for the hacker blacklist... Well, it's only the start of a series of hacker hunt. Besides the purple DLC case to hunt down a trio of hackers, I'm not covering any more because... it's not important.