His lungs inhaled the freezing night air. But for Lin, this was just the normal state—unable to feel the temperature, unable to even confirm his own breathing. He was simulating Erwin's state before he died.
In Lin view, there were three entry points for solving the case: time, clues, and state. Vil-V's time of death was confirmed to be around 4:00 PM—she was killed immediately after Prometheus received an order and left her. Erwin's time of death was 5:00 AM. These two points were far apart, making it impossible to find a connection, which fit the killer's MO—no pattern.
Clues were also non-existent. With only sporadic, disconnected clues, it was difficult for Lin to think of how to combine them into evidence pointing to the killer.
Finally, only "state" remained.
Lin took off his helmet and went to the deck at 5:00 AM. He walked to where Erwin's body was found, but after careful thought, he didn't stop. He continued forward for about five paces. From the bloodstains, this should have been where Erwin was slashed. He didn't die instantly but stumbled a few steps following the killer before collapsing.
Erwin was standing here... what was he doing? According to previous reasoning, he would only be here at this time to watch the sunrise. But was it really just a whim? In unsolved cases, "accidents," "whims," and "caprice" are the hardest aspects to investigate. So, even without clues, Lin could only simulate under the premise that Erwin "had a purpose."
Lin stood a bit further from the entrance, closer to the coastline. He gazed at the horizon, waiting for the sky to turn pale and the sun to rise—
Wait. "No." These two words flashed through Lin mind.
He tried walking two steps forward, then retreated to his original position. Then, he scanned the distance he had moved and where Erwin's body lay.
The position was wrong.
If he were there to watch the sunrise, his current position was clearly not the best; it was too far from a spot with a panoramic view of the sea. This middle-ground position... he was waiting for someone?
Yes, this was a "just right" spot. He could see most of the horizon without being too far from the entrance. While waiting, he could relax and enjoy the view, and when someone arrived, he could turn around in time to meet them.
If he was waiting for someone, it meant one of the people who contacted Erwin at the ball had lied. Would it be Pardo? As the only one among them who had gone missing, suspicion naturally pointed to her. But even with a suspect, another thing was missing.
Motive.
As mentioned before, the hardest part of an cold case lies in "accidents" that cannot be explained by logic. If applied to a person, "sudden mental illness" might be a better description. Simply put, it's like a heroine in a romance game suddenly going on a killing spree right before entering her route—such a nonsensical event is impossible to predict and defies logic.
Was Pardo suffering from some kind of mental illness? Lin thought of the clues Vil-V had left.
Consciousness pollution...
...
September 18th, 5:53 PM. Outside Chiaki's room.
Lin had investigated everything he could think of, but he was still confused and had made no progress. Who was Erwin waiting for? Where did Pardo go? What did the message Vil-V left actually mean?
Over the past few days, Kevin had nearly turned the headquarters upside down but still hadn't found Pardo, and the surveillance footage could not be restored. No matter how much Kevin acted like a block of ice, he was now losing his composure and was at his wit's end.
And Lin could only come to find Chiaki one more time. There was no reason; if he had to say one, it was that Chiaki perfectly fit the criteria for "consciousness pollution." She had undergone a sudden mutation on September 12th, the day after the ball. Her mental state plummeted, and after being interrogated, her distrust of Fire Moth and the people around her reached a peak.
This was just an irresponsible guess of his, but it was the last clue he could think of.
Knock, knock.
Lin knocked on Chiaki's door and stood quietly. Prometheus was not following him today. In fact, after investigating Vil-V's body, she hadn't looked for Lin again, assisting Kevin with the search instead. Perhaps when one loses part of their senses, the remaining parts become exceptionally sharp. Even with Fire Moth's high-tech soundproof walls, he could hear some sounds inside the room.
Getting up, stumbling steps, coming to the door, and then... Lin suddenly thought of something. If Chiaki was the one whose consciousness was polluted, then what signal was his presence here sending to her?
In the next instant, the door was pushed open from the inside. Lin consciousness dissipated rapidly.
...
"..."
Lin opened his eyes to see the interface inside his helmet and heard his own heavy but steady breathing. He... fainted? Lin struggled to prop himself up. He looked at the top left corner of his display. The time showed 6:25 PM. The skipped time was clearly the period he was unconscious.
His memory cut off after the door to Chiaki's room was pushed open. For this illogical fainting, there was a very logical explanation. He checked his body—no problems, not even a wound, meaning Chiaki hadn't done anything to him after knocking him out.
He looked around alertly. He was inside Chiaki's room. The door was tightly closed, and Chiaki was nowhere to be seen. At that moment, a wave of intense unease submerged Lin.
It was back—that indescribable "gut feeling" that made him want to vomit. But this time, Lin knew where it came from. He stood up and pushed open the door.
Walk. Turn a corner. Walk. Reach the R&D Department. Push open the door.
Colorless blood. A corpse. A corpse. A corpse.
The beautifully executed, one-hit-kill wounds appeared on every body he saw. Lin numbly stepped over the wide-eyed corpses of Hua and Sakura and arrived at the door of Mei office. Blood spreading from the crack under the door seemed to be manifesting something.
Push the door. Kevin's wooden face appeared, but it had lost its life force. He lay not far away like a cold puppet. And Mei, her body nearly cut in two, leaned against the wall, silent.
That person stood in this hell, a long blade resting at her feet. If Lin guessed correctly, it was a weapon Vil-V was currently developing.
What on earth is all this... That was the only question left in his mind.
Soon, Chiaki turned her head. A warm smile hung on her face. In the next second, she knelt down and picked up the blade. Lin reflexively drew his gun and fired.
September 18th, 6:30 PM. Lin: confirmed dead.