"I finally got a chance to meet her," Karanomori swiveled in her chair with one leg over the other. "The last witness of the Specimen Case. She is a new inspector in Division 2. You should go see her. She asked about the case and the killer behind it."

"She asked about Touma Kouzaburou?" a deep, male voice echoed throughout the lab.

"You might not be the only one on his quest," a smile lit up her face, only for a moment.

Karanomori stubbed out her cigarette in the ashtray on her desk, and turned to the predatory gray eyes behind her. Sitting on the black couch, with a clenched fist on his thigh and one elbow resting on the backrest, Kougami smoked a cigarette and stared at the small table in front of him.

"I understand… wanting to take revenge. I can see it in your eyes. There is nothing wrong with a cop having fun in his work. I will not deny my own personal relief as soon as I heard of his death."

"You still believe she's guilty," Karanomori raised her eyebrows. "Don't tell me you keep investigating her. You've already seen her light blue hue..."

"But nothing can take the pain away. Eventually you will learn to live with it. There will be nightmares. Hallucinations. Until one day… you will wake up with a different priority."

Kougami narrowed his eyes dangerously, pushing the smoke out of his mouth and creating shapes in front of his face.

"This is… ritualistic. Impressive," Yashiro tilted her head to one side, moving her left hand forward.

With her long black coat falling to the ground, she examined the body in a crouched position. Spider-like drones surveyed the grass around her black derby shoes. The park was completely closed.

"He stopped. He went silent for a while. We thought he was dead," Aoyanagi folded her arms.

"Until today," Kozuki scratched his neck.

"The surgeon's motives were understandable yet so different from this one. His acts are so wretched that…" Yashiro's voice trailed off as she looked at the empty holes in the pale face. "Only if I tear out his eyes... if I place them in his open hands… will I come to understand the torrent of feeling that drives me. My purpose."

"We called it the Judge Case," Katashi explained as a holographic file popped up on his wrist. "All victims are serial killers, drug traffickers, rapists or pedophiles."

"The worst of the worst," Kozuki nodded.

"Maeda Kaito," Aoyanagi turned her wristcom on to check the victim's profile. "Fugitive for six months ago after murdering his wife and children."

"Too bad he caught him first," Kozuki let out a laugh, then coughed and looked away.

"He wanted society to find him like this," Yashiro slowly stood up. "He is humiliating him."

"This makes seventeen victims," Aoyanagi remarked.

"Not if you add Nakamura's name too," Daiki lifted his chin towards her, bangs falling over his face.

"You think she's not related to the surgeon's case?" Aoyanagi raised an eyebrow.

"Nakamura Ichika could have been a target for the surgeon but the stage was disturbing," Yashiro replied without looking at the young enforcer. "She was on his list, but the style was different."

"Moreover… she was pregnant," Daiki blurted out.

Yashiro blinked and looked down at him all of a sudden. He was crouched close to the man, watching the bloodshot brown eyes.

"How does he identify his victims anyway?" she changed the subject. "The murders are premeditated, and the crime scenes are perfectly staged. He is using classified intel."

Kozuki widened his eyes, "Oh, boy. Don't even think about it."

"He must have some contacts," Yashiro turned around.

"Not just anyone. Someone working in the CID—which is basically impossible because he must be a latent criminal—or a highly skilled hacker," Katashi stroked his chin, looking into her eyes for the first time. "Does it mean the online security system of the Public Safety Bureau has been breached?"

"Wow! Can we do that?" Kozuki's smile broadened with wild happiness.

"No," Aoyanagi sent him a glare.

"Of course not," his face turned serious again.

"But it adds up," Daiki nodded.

"What makes you feel so sure?" Aoyanagi turned to the other inspector.

Yashiro slowly looked up and covered the sun with her hand, "Because that's how I would do it."

Kasei Joushuu raised a hand in front of her, placing her elbow on the armrest of her seat.

"Alea iacta est," she commented, then tossed the black die forward.

Someone caught it with both hands in front of her desk.

"This case may help you find answers as well. What are your thoughts so far?" Kasei glanced at the report on her screen indifferently. "Give me your short straight version this time, Yashiro."

The inspector frowned. She was using her name again with such confidence and there was something about the way she pronounced it—like she had known it all along.

"He... has been tracking, solving, and killing cold case serial killers for years. Probably a sadist. He makes sure not to show any patterns or leave any evidence. I can't work on his profile. I don't know this kind of man, I'm... confused about where to start," Yashiro sighed and looked away. "Most serial killers keep trophies from their victims…"

"Photographs are kept to remember the dead. Trophies are a physical reminder that can take you back to the time, place and thrill of your kills," Kasei swiveled her chair to one side without taking her eyes off her.

"The surgeon and this one haven't kept any," Yashiro shook her head and walked to the side.

"Kill a man and you will never be the same again. No laws, nor threats, can take you back from all those little emotions. Nothing else matters, but the life you're about to take."

Slowly, Yashiro stopped and looked at the woman sitting with her cheek resting on her hand. Those words made her heart skip a beat.

"Power—power is their most valuable trophy," Yashiro widened her eyes a bit. "The thrill of… painting outside the line."

Kasei smiled and continued, "You must feel pain as he feels it. What is his message?"

Yashiro frowned and looked up, putting her hands in her pants pockets.

"Can a crime be permitted if the end pursued is good? Why should Sibyl define what is right and wrong in this society… and not myself? God is dead. He is defying her."

"Her?" Kasei frowned for a second.

Yashiro's eyes widened in awe and a smile lit up her entire face.

"There was this story about a woman who had a dissociative identity disorder—then referred to as multiple personality disorder—and allegedly sixteen personalities. Her name was Sybil Dorsett, actually a pseudonym to protect this woman's identity. Her life has been described in the book Sybil and two movies."

"Never heard of it," Kasei raised an eyebrow and tilted her head a bit. "Sibyls were oracles in Ancient Greece, influenced by divine inspiration. Do you think he wants to become one of them? You mentioned in your report that one of the deaths wasn't the work of the surgeon."

"Others don't see it that way," Yashiro shook her head.

"I do. I want you to keep me updated on the case."

Yashiro was the only one in Division 2 fighting a robotic bot with elbows and open palms. After a few minutes, the hologram beeped and displayed some words she rolled her eyes at. She won the simulation. Then the hologram disappeared showing a robot underneath, and Yashiro stood up only to find a man with muscular build staring at her.

"Gets boring once you get the hang of it," his deep, hoarse voice commented.

Kougami Shinya was dressed only in black pants. He had pale skin, and his short dark brown hair was tousled.

"It does, doesn't it? Maybe I should try with a human being," Yashiro grinned and walked towards him.

"You could use some tips and tricks," he slowly raised his hands in front of his face, lifting his chin for a second. "Why are you here? This is the last job someone like you would choose. You hate the Sibyl System," Yashiro chuckled and paced around. Kougami frowned. "You need answers as much as I do. The Specimen Case… those deaths were not normal. You wouldn't expect them in a society under the management of the Sibyl System. And they happened anyway. Touma Kouzaburou… the man behind that case… where is he? How can someone live and commit such crimes?"

"I guess we're stuck with each other," Yashiro shrugged her shoulders and shook her head. "Is that why you're here, to team up with me? I'm touched."

"I wouldn't rely on your judgment for a second," he blurted out.

Yashiro smiled strangely pleased, "You have to rely on Sybil's judgment—not mine."

"Back then, when Sasayama was still alive, he said that law can't always protect people. I know you were there when he made that call. Do you know what he meant?"

"It's been three years," she raised an eyebrow and looked away. "Three years. Deal with that."

"You just remember what suits you best, don't you?" Kougami gritted his teeth.

"You and I are just alike. Living in the past... chasing ghosts... walking away from everyone we know..."

"You are free."

"Why is freedom so precious and cruel?" Yashiro looked up with strange detachment, then blinked and focused on him again. "I'm sorry. I never meant... to turn you into this."

She stood with her right foot forward, and her body slightly turned to the side. Her right fist remained stretched forward and her left one in her chest. Kougami was pacing around.

"Should've gone with him. He didn't deserve to die like that. He was a good guy."

"Tell that to the families of the people he killed," Yashiro tilted her head in a calm, cool voice.

Kougami frowned and rushed towards her, grabbing the collar of her black shirt. However, Yashiro swiftly pulled his arms away and punched his chest, without even moving from her place. Kougami took some steps backwards, his gaze drifting to the floor. When he looked up again, Yashiro touched her knuckles with the other hand. Then, slowly, she stretched out her fists and spread her feet apart, waiting for his next move.

Kougami ran at her again with his fists in front of him, and delivered a blow towards Yashiro. She raised her forearm to deflect his fist to the side of her face, hitting him in the neck, then in the chest with both hands, her legs slightly bent like when she practiced with punching bags. Kougami kicked forward, yet she slid to his side and made a turning step with a roundhouse kick—it was a fleeting, graceful movement that sent him reeling. Then Yashiro stood up again, placing the palm of her right hand in front of her.

"You and Sasayama are two of a kind, always whining about how unfair your lives have been. You don't like it? Then stop pouting and do something about it," her voice was louder than before.

Kougami moved back to her, raising his right fist towards her face. By then, Yashiro was already smiling. Unlike Makishima, who had a more graceful and composed style, Kougami was more of a street fighter with his aggressive, still technically efficient style of fighting. She gripped his forearm tightly and covered herself with her own, sliding forward to knee him in the stomach. Kougami gasped, but managed to elbow near her neck and shoved her away.

Yashiro grimaced and staggered back, yet as soon as she looked up again, Kougami was already closing in with predatory eyes. He kicked her multiple times but Yashiro dodged them all, until she grabbed him by the shoulder making him fall to his knees. When Kougami tried to break free from her grip, Yashiro elbowed him in the stomach and turned around, kneading him on the cheek. Kougami collapsed into a fetal position and she moved away.

"Life isn't fair nor unfair," Yashiro clenched her fists forward, two meters away from him. "It's entirely indifferent to our perspectives. It doesn't matter what we think or feel we deserve nor don't deserve. Sasayama knew that. He saw to it."

"How dare you talk about him!" Kougami blurted out almost in a shout.

He staggered to his feet and ran towards her, trying to kick her in the abdomen, but Yashiro caught his leg with her hands, then thrust forward to punch him in the face, perhaps too soon, as he shielded with his forearm and pulled her close to kick her in the chest. Yashiro gasped and staggered back. Kougami rushed towards her, grabbing her back to make her look up, but she released his grip and tried to punch him in the face. Kougami caught her forearm, then her head, and finally spun her around.

Yashiro lost her balance and fell, rolling for a moment. Her back and face hit the floor and she winced, closing her eyes as she stopped. When she touched her nose to look at her fingers, she saw blood. Kougami smirked for a second, still some distance away. Grunting in pain, she managed to get to her feet. His gray eyes stared down at her as Yashiro stretched her right fist forward, with the palm of her left hand staying in front of her chest. Although Kougami was taller and stouter, Yashiro looked at him with narrowed, piercing eyes. They were silent, each focused on the other like nothing else mattered.

Until Yashiro started to walk towards him, suddenly stopping to lift her leg and kick on his own. Kougami grunted and looked down, then Yashiro tried to give him another kick, which he shielded with his forearm, only to realize it was a trick to punch him in the chest, and finally, standing up with her leg bent in the air, Yashiro delivered another kick near his neck, bringing her leg down in one swift motion. Kougami staggered backwards and stumbled over a bench, falling and spinning so as not to hit his head on the floor.

"Inspector!" a voice echoed in the distance.

Yashiro did not come near him again. She was breathing fast and had a slight headache. An older inspector with short brown hair and dark eyes approached Kougami, who was still lying on the floor, but Yashiro took a few steps towards him and stood right between the two of them.

"The enforcer must be a target for dominator intervention," the man suggested.

Yashiro glanced back at Kougami. Her distant, cold eyes met his own.

"That won't be necessary," she uttered without taking her eyes off him.

"You are bleeding. Is this what you call control? Are you certain he did not overstep his bounds?"

Yashiro frowned and slowly touched her nose. It was not broken, but it was bleeding a little. Kougami raised an eyebrow and stood up. His body was sweating profusely and his eyes were half closed from exhaustion, just like hers.

"He is under my supervision approved by Chief Kasei herself," Yashiro explained in a calm and natural voice, utterly different from what Kougami had heard before. "Do you want to go question her decision yourself?"

The inspector's eyes widened, just as she thought they would. No one wanted to pay Kasei Joushuu a visit, and they would not ask her any further questions either. After an ordinary conversation they bid farewell, and soon Yashiro was lost in thought.

"Liar," a tired voice muttered behind.

Yashiro widened her eyes a bit and turned around.

"You're welcome. You see... by killing Endo Seiji you almost shot me too. I could have added that to my report, but I didn't. Don't you think you owe me one for that?" she smirked at him.

"Someday you may regret that decision," his voice was rough and calm all at once, like he did not have a care in the world.

Yashiro chuckled and started walking out of the room.

"I look forward to seeing that. See you around."

Kozuki Ryogo opened his laptop screen and began searching for something while the other enforcers enjoyed the evening with a couple of drinks.

"Take a look at this," he stretched back in his seat. "Special A Class profiler with high empathic abilities. Excels in combat too. Her father was killed by her mother when she was only fifteen years old. He was a known criminal. Her mother became a latent criminal and was executed."

"And here I thought she was a spoiled rich girl," Katashi's deep voice echoed in the room. "I am amazed her hue did not cloud after her parents died."

"What about her family?" Daiki asked, resting his forearms on the back of his seat.

"Uh… not much. Her uncles were also born in Japan… but they left the country. She's the only one who stayed. Let's see if we got something about…" Kozuki widened his eyes and leaned towards the screen. "She is the last witness of the Specimen Case. And Shion was right—she studied at the Oso Academy. This psychopath worked there. We can also check… oh, wow."

"What is it?" Daiki came closer.

"This girl made it to fifteen! I mean her psycho pass. It's amazing. That was…. three years ago."

"You must be kidding me," Katashi frowned and shook his head. "Fifteen? That means she can basically work anywhere. Why did she come here? She could even make more money at some major company."

"She doesn't care about money," another male voice made them turn around.

Kougami Shinya had been sitting on another couch smoking a cigarette and staring straight ahead, near Kagari Shuusei who was playing a video game on his old PlayStation portable. When he stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray on the small table in front of him, he got up to walk out of the room.

"Standing there... looking at that body... I felt alive."

"You were able to see life as he sees it. You are used to making jumps you can't explain."

"It's not that."

"You brought this case up for a reason, Yashiro."

Makishima Shougo was sitting on a step with one leg up and a forearm resting on his knee, holding a book in front of him. He was dressed as he used to teach at the Oso Academy, in a beige vest and pants, white dress shirt and moccasins, and purple tie. It was night time, but that park was well lit and there were friends having a good time, or couples strolling around holding hands. His long, slender legs were slightly apart, with cold air seeping through his bare ankles. He closed his book and set it down on the step to turn his head towards the woman next to him. His fingers were still resting on his cheek.

"What this killer did to that man... sometimes I feel like I'm capable of doing terrible things like that."

Yashiro had her forearms resting on her thighs, and was fiddling with a black die in her right hand.

"Are you afraid?" he asked in a much deeper, gentler tone.

Her body relaxed, the question weighing down on her shoulders.

"No... I'm not. And that's what scares me. The fact that I'm not afraid of those feelings. This killer is a genius. He saw things the bureau couldn't. He solved cases they missed," her face brightened despite having dark circles under his eyes.

"Have you always felt like this?"

Yashiro turned to him, and a fleeting smile escaped her mouth as she recognized that he did not reek of cologne, like many other men. He had a natural scent, not synthetic at all. She nodded and looked down.

"I think so. Even as a child. It sickens me what they do, but how they do it… how their minds work… honestly…" her voice trailed off, and she sighed.

Makishima's eyes narrowed and a smile instantly covered his lips. They looked straight ahead again, oblivious to some children playing in the distance with a barking dog.

"I read your works. They're fascinating," he shook his head and raised an eyebrow. "Do you think that those who created the Sibyl System… were extraordinary like the men you mention in your article? Because, Yashiro… if that were true, I wouldn't even need to destroy it."