A/N: I've made some minor changes to some of the previous chapters, the main one being the shift from the term 'Mayonaka TV' to 'Midnight Channel'. As one reviewer kindly pointed out, seeing the term 'Mayonaka TV' is indeed rather strange, and after re-reading, I realise that 'Midnight Channel' makes the dialogue and sentences flow better than 'Mayonaka TV'. Thank you, 9tail-Naruto, for pointing it out! :)

...Gosh, this chapter. It was fun to write, but...man, I rewrote some parts so many times I lost count...

As usual, a big thank you to everyone who is reading/has favourited/followed/reviewed this fic!

April 15, 2013

"...So you knew the victim, huh?" Yosuke asked, a little melancholically, after he and Souji thanked Kamichika for answering all of their queries and the girl left for home.

"Well, not exactly." Souji shrugged. "Apparently, he nearly quit school to look for a girlfriend."

The brunet shot him a look of disbelief. "...That, uh, sounds a little too extreme. Are you sure you heard it correctly?" But then again, he realised, it was Souji. Souji rarely makes any mistakes, and when he does, he's quick and brave enough to admit them. Though he does have a tendency to be a little dense, which is rather amusing.

In response to Yosuke's question, the silver-haired adolescent hummed, suddenly appearing as though he were contemplating something. "Maybe something got messed up when more people spread the rumours. Like how the original rumour of the Midnight Channel got more unbelievable as time passed and more people in Inaba learnt about it."

"Huh, well that does make sense. After all, rumours always get too far-fetched in the end." The brunet then noticed that they were going slightly off-track and shook his head. "Anyway, let's get going. If we don't hurry, all of the students from Class 3A are gonna leave school."

"Ah...right." Souji nodded. "Come on, I know the quickest way there."

Using the nearest staircase, the pair rushed to the floor directly below them and past some rooms before arriving at their destination, which was right in the corner at the end of the line of the many Third Year classrooms.

They peered into the interior, noticing only two students - a male and a female - who remained in the classroom, performing their clean-up duty. The male student had raven black hair and aqua blue eyes, and was sweeping the floor while the bespectacled copper brown-eyed female student, whose black hair reached her chin, was wiping the black board. The classroom was enveloped in awkward silence.

The moment Yosuke landed his eyes on the girl, he couldn't help but blush. Then he tugged at Souji's arm, dragging him away from the classroom without giving Souji time to respond. The brunet leaned forward and whispered excitedly, "Dude, what the hell is with this school? Why are there so many cute girls here?!"

"Calm do-"

"More importantly, why didn't you tell me about this? And how have you not hit on anyone yet? If I were you I would have tried striking up a conversation with-"

"Yosuke, please calm down..." The silver-haired adolescent was sighing and shaking his head in exasperation, unable to keep up with his friend's energy; whenever Yosuke was like this, Souji often found himself being worn out sooner than he expected.

"O-oh, sorry partner," the brunet replied, sounding a little bit more composed. "But seriously, that girl over there? Don't you think a figure like that is...y'know, a little unfair?" Yosuke's face turned a deeper shade of red as he continued.

In response, Souji simply shrugged, knowing that if he were to add on anything onto the conversation, he wouldn't hear the end of it.

"Man, her boyfriend must be one lucky guy," Yosuke added with a tinge of envy and disappointment. Then, as if he had been struck by a Ziodyne, he jumped backwards, eyes widening. "Oh...oh crap, what if she's Yagiri's...?"

His grey-haired companion was quick to answer, "Don't worry. I doubt Yagiri's girlfriend turned up in school today. It would be too hard on her."

Yosuke visibly relaxed. "Y-yeah, you're right. Gave myself a bit of a scare there, I guess."

Souji seemed relieved that Yosuke appeared to be fine. "Anyway, let's go," he said, reminding his friend of their purpose in being there. The brunet nodded back.

They returned to the entrance of the classroom, and were not disappointed to see that the two students from before were still there, now wiping the desks and chairs. The two undergraduates glanced at each other before giving one another a brief nod. Yosuke cleared his throat, and then he knocked onto the door and slid it open very slightly.

"Uh, excuse me? Could we ask you something?" asked the brunet, who tried to sound as polite as possible, standing near the narrow opening between the door and the wall.

"O-oh, okay!" A timid voice, which clearly belonged to a young boy, answered. It wasn't long before the door was completely open, revealing the raven-haired male student who was holding a wet cloth in his left hand. "Um...may I ask who this is?"

"You can call me Hanamura. This guy here is Seta. He used to be a student here." Souji gave the boy a nod as an indication.

"Oh, I see. Um, I'm Ryuugamine Mikado. It's nice to meet you, Hanamura-san, Seta-senpai," the boy, Mikado, said as he bowed respectfully.

Souji placed his index finger against his chin, appearing deep in thought. "...Air-conditioner..."

"E-eh?" Mikado gave a little jolt at the silver-haired adolescent's comment.

"Ahaha, don't mind what he said. He's always like that," Yosuke laughed as he brushed it off with a wave of his hand.

His partner could only rub the back of his head sheepishly, not knowing whether he should apologise for the seemingly rude remark, or comfort the poor boy who had gone terribly stiff.

"...You know, you, uh, can get up now." It was really awkward to see someone hunched over in front of him for so long, Yosuke decided.

"Oh, that's right, I'm sorry."

After Mikado returned to his upright position, Souji took the opportunity to offer a quick but sincere apology, before he initiated the questioning, "Well, as Yosuke said earlier, we're here to ask you about something. We heard from someone that a classmate of yours was involved in the homicide reported yesterday, and so we were wondering if you know anything about it."

At the sound of the word 'homicide', both Raira Academy students in the room flinched, but while the boy's reaction was more obvious, the female recovered quickly and was back to wiping the tables before Souji and Yosuke noticed. The latter quickly added, "Oh but, if you don't want to talk about it, then..."

Mikado shook his head. "It's alright. Please go ahead."

"Well...okay then." Yosuke scratched his head, wondering how he should phrase his questions such that they didn't make the situation any more uncomfortable for the younger male and his classmate. "Did you notice anything strange with Yagiri before the, uh, incident? Like...was he acting different from his usual self?"

"Not...really." The Third Year sounded a little unsure. "I don't really know him that well, so..."

"Wait," the brunet said without thinking. "Did he go missing? Or, more like, did you hear anything about him going missing?"

"Mm…no, I don't think so…" Ryuugamine replied, tilting his head to the side slightly. Whether it was done intentionally or not, only he himself knew. Regardless, it lowered Hanamura's guard, while Seta's face carried no emotion.

The grey-haired undergraduate chose to ask about something else, deciding that he and Yosuke had gathered sufficient information concerning the victim.

"Then, have you heard about any unusual rumours lately?" Souji began vaguely.

Mikado fidgeted. "Um, 'unusual', as in...?"

"We know about the Headless Rider," Yosuke elaborated. "And things like the Slasher making a reappearance."

For some reason, the two Raira students froze again, but the both of them regained their composure swiftly. Still, it did not escape Souji's eyes, though the leader of the Investigation Team decided against asking them about it; he didn't want them to think that he was prying too much and invading their privacy.

Yosuke seemed to have caught his drift. "To be more specific, we were wondering if you've heard a rumour concerning television sets on rainy nights."

Mikado nearly heaved a sigh of relief. "Oh, well, no."

"I see..." Souji refrained from frowning as he gathered all the facts in his mind.

While it was true that the body of Yagiri Seiji was found in a similar condition as those in the Inaba serial murders, that was the only similarity that they shared. There were no reports of the victim going missing prior to his death, for instance. And just as what Ryuugamine and Kamichika had both told him, there didn't seem to be anyone who knew about the Midnight Channel, so it was unlikely for Yagiri to have appeared on the programme.

In the end, were he and Yosuke simply overthinking things? Could it have been a copycat killer like Kubo, after all?

Of course, the testimonies of only two people wouldn't be sufficient in order to arrive at a conclusion, especially since they were Third Year students; they'd rather pay more attention to their studies than to rumours floating around the city, so there still was no way of telling whether the Midnight Channel existed other than to try it out and see for himself.

Then, there was also something else that they hadn't asked about yet...

"...Fog," Souji mumbled under his breath absentmindedly. He then spoke in a louder voice, "Was there any fog yesterday?"

Yosuke drew a sharp breath, realising that he, too, had completely forgotten about that particular key area that tied all the potential victims to the serial murders in Inaba.

Mikado rubbed the back of his neck. "Well...it did get a little foggy in the morning..."

"The morning?" Yosuke echoed. "I see... No wonder we never noticed any fog yesterday," he said, turning to look at Souji who nodded back in agreement.

"So there's only one thing left to do, then," the brunet asserted, before he faced Mikado again. "Thanks, Ryuugamine. You've been a great help."

The Third Year scratched his cheek and chuckled nervously.

"Oh, and sorry for disturbing!" Yosuke raised his voice a little as he winked, his statement obviously aimed at the other student in the classroom who had been strangely quiet throughout the entire conversation. The girl simply tossed him a neutral glance, and then she paid no more attention to him. Noticing the detachment in her reaction, Souji cleared his throat and poked his companion's arm with a finger. Yosuke merely scratched it like he would an itch, completely oblivious to his partner's hint.

The pair thanked Mikado once again, and then they turned with the intention to leave the school and head for home. From where he was standing, the raven-haired boy could hear them murmuring, but couldn't pick out any precise words or phrases from their conversation. He turned slightly, just enough to steal a glance at his classmate.

He noticed the faint look of fear that flashed across Sonohara-san's features before she continued her clean-up duty diligently and silently.

Mikado frowned, then turned back to watch as the two undergraduates disappeared down the stairs, rubbing the wet cloth in his hand gingerly.

"...The body was found draped over a public lamp post," Naoto murmured to herself, looking over the files containing her copy of the confidential documents detailing the homicide. "According to Orihara-san's statement, he had knocked into the lamp post while passing through the alley, and following that, he felt something drip onto him. When he used the light coming from his phone, he realised that it had been blood, and that was when Orihara-san found the body.

"Tall buildings surround the alley, making it narrow and difficult to walk through, so not many people would wander into it. Moreover, the buildings hid the lamp post from view, so it wouldn't be wrong to conclude that if Orihara-san and Heiwajima-san weren't there, the body would never be discovered..."

'-In other words, we got lucky.'

Naoto sighed, and closed the file.

"It's just like before..." she whispered, frowning. "The victims died from causes that are not of this world, and were discovered hanging from objects of certain height. Passers-by also mentioned a fog that set in during the morning, but it was gone not long after, which would explain why Senpai and Hanamura-senpai didn't notice any fog. Furthermore, Harima Mika said in her statement that Yagiri Seiji had gone missing a few hours before his death, yet another similarity with the victims of the Inaba serial murder case."

The young detective stopped to lean into her leather chair. She folded her arms, closed her eyes, and then she took a deep breath before she released it slowly. When she was done, Naoto lightly shook her head.

"Don't jump to conclusions, Shirogane," she berated herself, taking yet another deep breath. "There's still a key point which hasn't been confirmed yet. Until then, this case is unrelated to the case in Inaba. Treat it like you would a normal homicide."

Despite her efforts to convince herself, she could feel the doubt lingering in her mind, taking the form of Yamato Takeru flittering about as if trying to warn her about something.

While her Persona rarely spoke, Naoto could usually feel his presence and his every movement within her. It seemed to be Yamato Takeru's way of communicating with her, so whenever she sensed him shifting around, Naoto had to deduce what he was trying to convey with his actions. To others, this might seem like an impossible feat; after all, how could you tell what someone is saying through body language when you can't see it in the first place? But perhaps since Yamato Takeru was a part of her, there really was no need to actually see him in order to understand him.

So from the way he was flying about and making spins in the air - at least, that was how it felt like to Naoto - Yamato Takeru was definitely concerned about something about the case. Though what exactly, Naoto couldn't pinpoint at the moment. Since her Persona's anxiety often translated into her own, however, it was making her rather unsettled, and so the detective picked up Orihara's file and began looking through it carefully again, resolved not to leave any stone unturned.

At first glance there wasn't anything out of the ordinary with Orihara's statement. It sounded logical, for it would explain why the two men were there, and how they had chanced upon the corpse. However, Naoto couldn't ignore the feeling that there was something suspicious about the man's statement.

Firstly, why did Heiwajima chase after Orihara if Orihara was the ordinary citizen he claimed to be? Heiwajima said that he detested the other man and that they were enemies, but on what basis, exactly? Was there something more to their relationship than what it seemed on paper? Residents said that it was common to see them fight and cause collateral damage, but nobody could offer a valid explanation as to what resulted in that.

Another thing that struck as odd was that Orihara hinted to the policeman recording his statement that Heiwajima had a motive for killing Yagiri Seiji. He told the policeman that Heiwajima had once gotten into a scuffle with Yagiri, who stabbed the former using ballpoint pens. Indeed, such fights were not uncommon motives for murder, but there was a clear lack of evidence, and thus it would be unreasonable to pinpoint Heiwajima as a suspect.

There must be some concrete reason why Orihara was convinced that Heiwajima deserved to be prosecuted by the law, though. So, if they were truly enemies, as Heiwajima asserted, then it would make perfect sense.

'...Therefore, the only likely explanation for the inconsistencies in their statements is that Orihara-san was not being completely honest.' That was the conclusion that Naoto arrived at and, perhaps, it was what Yamato Takeru wanted to bring her attention to as well.

But Yamato Takeru was still fluttering about, almost like a dragonfly dancing around in circles, as if there was something that she was still missing. Or, rather, that she was on the wrong track; that she shouldn't have been paying attention to Orihara Izaya's words but something else altogether.

'What are you trying to tell me, Yamato Takeru?' the young detective wondered. Then, she caught her own mistake, and shook her head. 'No...what am I trying to tell myself? Is there something that I have yet to be aware of?'

Naoto flipped the page, only to find nothing else remaining. She closed the file to take the one with Heiwajima Shizuo's name written on top, and went straight to the last page - a closing comment by the police officers who recorded his statement. The same could be said for Samia Brezhnev's folder.

That was when the detective realised that was nothing about the witnesses themselves in all three folders. It wasn't anything unusual, of course, since collating the witnesses' particulars like the age and address was not part of the protocol when taking statements. But for reasons unknown to even herself, Naoto had a feeling - a detective's intuition, as one might say - that such information held a key to understanding the case.

Immediately Naoto reached out for the office phone and pressed the quick dial. The phone rang twice before Naoto heard someone pick up. "Yes?" a deep, male voice answered.

"Good afternoon. This is Shirogane speaking."

"Ahh, Detective Shirogane. How may I help you?"

Naoto decided to go straight to the point. "Sir, I would like to enquire if it is possible for you to send me information about the three men who were near the site where the body of Yagiri Seiji was discovered. After looking over their statements, I believe that such information may prove to be helpful."

"That won't be a problem, Detective. My only request is that you give us some time for that."

"Certainly."

There was a slight pause. "Though I'd have to warn you...I don't think we'll be able to provide you with accurate information about one of those witnesses."

That was to be expected, but still, it got Naoto curious. "May I know who that would be?"

"It's Orihara Izaya, the one who first found the body."

Naoto could feel Yamato Takeru's movements become sharper and swifter at the mention of that name. Her eyes narrowed. "I see...and you never tried to search for his true particulars?"

"We did, but then every time we do, we'd find another source that contradicts what we've found. Detective, you ought to understand, we're not dealing with an ordinary citizen here."

Naoto said nothing.

The police officer took it as his cue to continue. "Well, of course, he's not involved in any major crime that we know of, but we've had men fish for information about him before, just in case, and we never failed to hit some snags eventually. He can be a pretty shady guy."

"...Is that so?" the detective replied, sounding disappointed despite the fact that childlike excitement was steadily building up within her.

Who is this man exactly? What does he do for a living that he has to go to such an extent to hide his personal information? What is his true relation to the man named Heiwajima Shizuo? Such questions filled her mind, and her desire to solve the mystery known as Orihara Izaya elevated with every second. It was for the fun of solving such mysteries that Naoto became a detective; became the person she is today.

She wouldn't deny that she was feeling rather exhilarated at having yet another enigma appear before her eyes. But of course, Naoto wouldn't let the thrill distract her from being the professional detective she was. After all, her true purpose in coming to Ikebukuro was to find the culprit responsible for the murder of Yagiri Seiji, as well as find out if it was related to the murders in Inaba. Figuring out who Orihara-san is would only be secondary.

"...Detective?"

Naoto shook her head, realising that she must've had been too deep in thought. "My apologies. I was considering the next possible course of action to take."

"No, no, it's quite alright. Take your time." Although the man had said that, Naoto could hear a hint of impatience in his tone, which was not-so-subtly condescending.

"Well," she began, deciding not to pay any attention to what her current colleague had said earlier, "if it isn't too much trouble, please also send me photographs of the three men. It would be useful to know how they look like, especially Orihara-san since he was the first to discover the body."

"With all due respect, Detective Shirogane, I highly doubt that would-"

"In case you didn't know, sir, the student who discovered the first body in the Inaba serial murder case ended up as a victim." Naoto paused. When all she heard over the phone was silence, she continued, "This is merely a safety precaution. I hope you can co-operate with me."

"...Understood. I'll send them over to you via email."

"I appreciate it." Shirogane nodded. "Oh, and one more thing. Please contact the local news broadcasting station to ensure that any interviews with the people who discovered the body do not go on air. In fact it would be ideal if no such interviews are conducted at all."

"Huh? But...why not? Their confidentiality will be assured of. And it would be better for the public to know more about the case so that they can keep track of it."

"That may be the case, but we need to reduce as many similarities with the Inaba murders as possible. That way, we can conclude if this is indeed related to the serial murders, or something else altogether."

The man clicked his tongue softly. "Detective, we don't have complete control over the media. Information is bound to be leaked somehow. It won't be long till the public finds out the identities of the people who found the body."

'Yes, and that is what worries me,' Naoto thought with a frown, recalling the exact flow of events that led to the kidnapping of the potential victims while she was investigating the murder case back in Inaba.

"Regardless," she said, "as long as we can withhold key information, even for a limited amount of time, we'll have an advantage over the killer."

Her colleague's grumble did not escape her.

"Please...this is a crucial period. We mustn't waste any time."

"...Very well. I'll do my best."

The young detective nodded to herself, despite the man's reluctance to follow her instructions. "Thank you. Have a good day, sir."

"You too, Detective."

After she heard the click and beeping that indicated to her that the man had hung up, Naoto placed the phone down, then leaned into her chair once more. She stared up at the ceiling, folding her arms in her lap as she did so, before she closed her eyes and heaved a sigh while she waited for the email to arrive.

It was during this moment of tranquillity that Naoto could once again sense Yamato Takeru's presence, feeling his warm, sunny glow wash over her. He had skid to a halt, and was gliding around the depths of her subconscious gracefully, as if he were a dolphin in a boundless sea, spreading his light to every part of her.

And, just briefly, but surely, Naoto heard a voice; oddly similar to hers, but in a much deeper, more masculine, tone. It was muffled, almost like listening to someone else speak while fully submerged in water, but at the same time it was loud and coherent, as though the owner of the voice was whispering directly into her ear.

Naoto froze.

"Keep going," was all the voice had said, before it melted away into nothingness.

Then she relaxed and allowed herself to smile.

Exhausted from a day's worth of college and running around, Souji and Yosuke decided to take shortest path back to their apartment. The exited the school compounds, and stepped into Ikebukuro's streets, greeted by the lazy late afternoon crowd that sparsely filled the area.

Yosuke yawned as he raised both his hands in the air and stretched.

"In the end," he started, tiptoeing for a bit while he walked alongside his grey-haired companion, "we never did manage to find out if this is related to the murders after all."

"Well, at least we gathered some useful information."

"Yeah, I guess." The brunet briefly glanced up at the sky. "Oh yeah...we were so busy that I hadn't realised that today's the day that..."

Souji gave his best friend a concerned look. "Yosuke..."

Yosuke shook his head. "Don't worry, partner. I'm fine. Really."

Souji didn't doubt that, but still, he couldn't help but feel worried for his friend.

They walked in silence thereafter, Yosuke with his arms folded and Souji with a hand on his hip. Both kept their eyes on the ground as they moved along the pavement, watching the tiles turn a darker shade of orange as time passed.

The pair made a turn, and then another. Moments passed before they found themselves standing at a four-way junction, looking from left to right. People and cars fell into their line of vision wherever they faced.

The two adolescents were about to proceed along that left path when they heard familiar accentuated Japanese calling out to them.

"Ohhh, Souji! And friend!"

"Hm?" The pair tilted their heads back, noticing a dark-skinned man clad in a sushi chef outfit standing behind them. Souji blinked, a little dazedly, and then he smiled. "Ah, Simon-san."

Simon gave the two younger males a broad, warm smile. "It nice to see you again."

"It's nice to see you again too, Simon-san."

The Russian's eyes fell on the brunet next to Souji. He couldn't resist the urge to clap his hands out of glee, which produced a rustling sound as the flyers in his hands rubbed against each other. "This must be Yo-su-ke, yes?"

"Y-yup! It is!" Yosuke bit his lower lip in an effort to stop himself from laughing at the alien pronunciation of his name. "It's, ah, great to actually see you in person, Simon-san."

Simon nodded enthusiastically, apparently sharing the same sentiments as the brunet. Then, as if remembering something important, Simon quickly flattened the flyers in his possession before he took one of them and held it out to Yosuke.

"Sushi?" asked the Russian, who had put on his most convincing smile.

"T-that's okay, really. I already tried it." The brunet desperately raised his hand, declining the offer as politely as he could endeavour.

Not at all bothered by the gesture, Simon tucked the flyer back into the pile he had in his hands. "It yummy, no? I recommend raw beef sushi. It new on menu. Very fresh."

"Ah, we ordered that yesterday," Souji chipped in, looking as though he was in a hurry to stop Yosuke from giving his honest comments about his lunch. "We also got ourselves some of the other sushi you have on your recommendations list."

"Good, good. Sushi fill stomach, give you energy." Then, out of the blue, Simon's face fell, and he shook his head. "Different from fighting. Fighting no good. Eat sushi better."

That sounded rather familiar to both adolescents, who fell into a somewhat deep thought as they pondered over where they had heard the Russian's words. "Simon-san, are you, perhaps, referring to what happened yesterday?"

The older man nodded at Souji's question. "They always fighting. I tell them off, but they never listen." He gave an exasperated sigh, his shoulders sinking as he did so.

"Who exactly are they?"

Simon blinked, appearing slightly confused. "Souji does not know? But you live here for one year already."

"I don't really go out that often," the silver-haired undergraduate explained. "Aside from school and going to Russia Sushi."

"Hmm...so Souji never see them fight before. That very strange." The Russian's brows were furrowed, as if tied together by an invisible thread. "It better if you not involved. You saw, yes? And yet you wish to know more?" he added, carefully regarding the two teens standing before him.

Before Yosuke could protest, Souji answered with a determined nod, "Yes. Please do tell me about them."

The brunet shot his partner an incredulous look, as if to ask "You really wanna know that badly, don't you?" Souji gave a sheepish shrug back.

"I see." The frown that was etched onto Simon's features suddenly turned into a warm smile. "Then we shall talk over sushi! It will be long story, and you will go hungry. And that no good, no good at all. So I order big portion for you, then can eat more and fill stomach. Yes?"

All colour on Yosuke's face drained considerably.

Night soon descended upon the city.

Despite that, the hassle of urban life still continued. Cars drove along the roads, buildings lit up like beautifully decorated Christmas trees, humans dominated the streets...

One has to admit that Ikebukuro can be quite a pretty sight at night, especially when one takes in an aerial view of the city while perched on a metal railing on the rooftop of a skyscraper building situated in the heart of the metropolis.

Izaya leaned over from where he was standing, keeping his hands in his pockets as he watched from above. "Truly marvellous," he breathed, letting the cool evening breeze sweep over him.

"I don't see what's so spectacular about it. It looks the same every night."

The informant looked over his shoulder, appearing unfazed that his human observation time had been interrupted by the dry comeback. "Ah, so nice of you to join me, Namie. And I see you've brought a friend, too. Just as I asked for. What a good girl, I should reward you."

"You falling to your death right now would be the perfect way to do that."

"How cruel of you. I do sign your paychecks, you know." Izaya shook his head in mock disappointment.

Namie gave him a scornful look. "I don't work for you anymore."

"Yes, I believe you've already made your intention clear in your letter of resignation." The raven took the envelope out from one of his jacket pockets, keeping it clipped between his index and middle fingers as he waved it. "But I never did say that I accepted it, did I?"

"I couldn't care less about that."

"Is this how you react when the only object you deem as deserving of your affection is gone? I must admit, it really is quite intriguing to see you getting this uptight."

Knowing that any emotional reaction from her was what the informant wanted to see, Namie focused on keeping as calm and composed as she could. Being mindful of her words and body language, Namie simply maintained her emotionless exterior, and set Celty's head onto the ground next to her while remaining where she was.

Izaya hummed in amusement, but otherwise remained silent as he continued observing the woman's every move.

Finally deciding that silence and watchful gazes would not get her anywhere, Namie folded her arms, standing firm beside the container containing the Dullahan's severed head. "I'm sure you know what I'm here for."

"Why of course. How may I be of service, Yagiri Namie-san?" Izaya spoke while he casually walked across the railing, raising both arms as he balanced himself.

The young woman pointedly ignored the information broker's antics. "I want to know who killed my brother."

"Hmm, unfortunately, I have nothing of value to offer concerning that at the moment. Whoever it is must have been quite a professional, I must add."

Namie's eyes narrowed slightly. "Elaborate."

"Well, there is nothing indicating of a fatal wound found on Yagiri-kun's body. That leaves poison as the next possible alternative, but alas, there are no signs of Yagiri-kun having been poisoned, either, so naturally, one would expect the cause of death to be a terminal illness, but you, of all people, should know that that isn't likely."

"..."

"The police have their hands tied up with this case. Up until now, they haven't found a possible suspect. Ahh, but they did consider Shizu-chan as one, though they let him off due to lack of evidence. What a shame." Despite saying that, the smirk never left Izaya's face. He continued circling around Namie, watching her intently. "If you want an honest opinion, I doubt they have discovered any new leads ever since Yagiri-kun's body was found. Well, it's still early into the investigation, after all. Who knows? I may have a satisfying answer for you in one second, one minute, one day…oh, the possibilities are endless!"

Namie stared back at the informant coolly. "I heard you were there when Seiji was found."

"Ahh, indeed I was. What of it? Jealous that you weren't the first to find your beloved brother and that it had to be me, of all people, who did?"

Namie kept her eyes on him, but said nothing.

"Or perhaps you're angry that the police took his body away. You've always been rather possessive of him, after all. What twisted love. Speaking of which, dare I ask what have you done to Mika-chan? She was there when Yagiri-kun went missing, if I'm not wrong. Do you blame her for not keeping an eye on your beloved brother? Or maybe you..."

Namie finally let out a soft sigh, and directed her attention away from the informant.

Then, without another word, Namie picked up the sleeping head and headed for the door, leaving her former employer behind talking to himself on the roof with the view of Ikebukuro as his only companion.