"Human sacrifice..."
Although Yukino Yukinoshita and Saki Kawasaki hadn't specifically studied paranormal matters, they had both heard of so-called human sacrifice.
In ancient times, to pray for blessings from heaven or deities, people would offer various kinds of sacrifices.
Material offerings like gold, silver, and treasures went without saying, as did livestock such as cattle and sheep.
But what was called human sacrifice involved offering living people as sacrifices to the gods.
Things like binding virgin girls and throwing them into raging rivers to seek the river god's protection - such exceptionally cruel acts were considered completely normal by people of that era.
Yukino Yukinoshita finally confirmed the suspicion in her heart, turning to look at Ye Xing as she spoke in a low, grave voice.
"If I'm not mistaken... that serial killer has also heard the story about the Sunny Girl..."
Yukino pressed her lips together, but no matter what, she couldn't shake off the horrified, shocked feeling in her heart.
Forcing herself to remain calm, she slowly said, "The true motive of the Sunny Doll Killer... is to carry out a brutal, inhuman human sacrifice..."
At this point, Yukino's expression suddenly changed.
"If that's really the case, then isn't Amano in great danger!?"
Although even now, Yukino Yukinoshita still found it hard to believe that a fifteen-year-old human girl could actually possess the ability to change the weather.
But at this moment, that question was no longer important.
To outsiders, Hina Amano was the genuine Sunny Girl.
How could that deranged serial killer, who used human sacrifice to alter the weather, possibly overlook such an obvious target?
"I'm not entirely convinced."
Ye Xing's fingers lightly tapped the counter as he spoke calmly.
"Yukinoshita-san, you're still too superficial, confined to normal thinking patterns without considering the killer's perspective."
Hearing this, Yukino frowned slightly.
"How could a normal person possibly think from a madman's perspective? Unless they're mad themselves."
"Well now, what a coincidence."
Ye Xing replied with a smile, as if he'd been waiting for this exact response.
"As it happens, I'm not exactly mentally stable either."
Yukino Yukinoshita was utterly speechless.
"Why do you look so proud of that?"
"Ah, just a minor talent, not worth mentioning."
Ye Xing waved his hand dismissively before continuing with a smile.
"Coincidentally, I have another friend who's also not quite right in the head. He's quite professional when it comes to tracking down criminals."
As he spoke, Ye Xing took out his phone and dialled a number.
The ringtone sounded only briefly before being answered immediately.
From the other end came Light Yagami's familiar, smiling voice.
"Ye Xing-kun."
Ye Xing skipped the pleasantries and went straight to the point.
"There's something I need your help with."
Without the slightest hesitation, Light Yagami replied immediately.
"Then let's meet tomorrow at 9 AM, at that coffee shop we visited before in Kyoto."
"OK, we'll discuss the details tomorrow."
"Good."
After hanging up, Saki Kawasaki couldn't contain her curiosity.
"Who was that you called?"
Ye Xing replied casually, "An acquaintance from Tokyo."
"Eh?"
Hearing the mention of Tokyo, both Saki Kawasaki and Yukino Yukinoshita were taken aback, speaking in unison.
"He's willing to come all the way from Tokyo tomorrow morning with just that one sentence? That's too..."
Yukino Yukinoshita felt something stir deep within her.
Just being told that assistance was needed, without even knowing what it was about, and he agreed to come from Tokyo to Kyoto first thing tomorrow morning.
To be honest, Yukino was deeply moved.
A relationship like this...
Could it be considered... something genuine?
"What nonsense are you thinking about?"
Noticing Yukino's thoughtful expression, Ye Xing seemed to see right through her thoughts as he emphasised.
"He's male, not female. Don't get any strange ideas."
"Oh, I see."
Watching Yukino Yukinoshita's expression that clearly still held doubts while pretending nothing was wrong, Ye Xing made a silent vow to himself.
One day, I'll make you and your sister both experience my... substantial presence.
...
The next morning, 9 AM.
"Ye Xing-kun."
Seeing Ye Xing enter the coffee shop, Light Yagami immediately stood up from his table and waved with a smile.
"Light."
Ye Xing walked over calmly and sat opposite Light Yagami.
Before he could speak, Light smiled and said first.
"Before we discuss business, let me congratulate you on placing first in the joint exam."
Hearing this, Ye Xing showed little surprise, merely responding with a light chuckle.
"Oh, you already know? You're quite well-informed."
Light Yagami pushed one of the two coffee cups in front of him towards Ye Xing, his face still wearing a warm and friendly smile.
"Of course, my father is, after all, the Criminal Affairs Bureau Director of the Metropolitan Police Department. I've heard he might be promoted further soon. Even within Shuchi'in Academy, there are many children of my father's friends. I've been maintaining contact with them recently."
Ye Xing nodded noncommittally.
"Making friends... that doesn't seem like your character."
"Friends?"
Hearing this word, Light Yagami's smile widened, though his eyes revealed undisguised contempt and disdain.
"How could I possibly become so-called friends with those boring individuals who only care about gaining power?"
"Boys and girls at this age are quite foolish. Combined with my identity as the son of the Metropolitan Police Department's Criminal Affairs Bureau Director, with just a little guidance, I can obtain much useful information."
"I'm merely using them."
Ye Xing didn't comment on Light Yagami's approach at all, getting straight to the point.
"The reason I called you here today is simple."
He looked directly into Light Yagami's eyes and spoke softly.
"Are you familiar with the Sunny Doll Killer case?"
Light Yagami nodded.
"Yes, although I don't currently have the ability to punish criminals outside Tokyo, I've been paying attention to some of the more notorious ones."
Then, Light Yagami's brow furrowed slightly, the smile disappearing from his face.
"Since you're also following this case, does that mean it's not just an ordinary serial murder case? Is there... something supernatural involved?"
"Correct."
Ye Xing nodded slightly and told Light Yagami everything about the strange traces left by the Sunny Doll Killer at the crime scenes, as well as the recent appearance of weather-changing Sunny Girls in Kyoto.
He didn't directly mention Hina Amano's name, instead using Sunny Girl as a substitute, nor did he mention that Hina was one of his assistants.
After explaining the basic situation, Ye Xing picked up his coffee cup and took a sip, saying indifferently.
"Still as terrible as ever."
Then, looking at the thoughtful expression on Light Yagami's face across from him, he chuckled softly.
"This target is quite special. Although they possess power similar to evil spirits, both their methods and mindset are completely those of a human criminal."
"And compared to an exorcist like me, you obviously have more experience dealing with human criminals."
"So, any thoughts?"
Light Yagami pursed his lips, his slender fingers interlaced as he rested his chin on the back of his hands. After thinking for a long time, he finally spoke slowly.
"My father once said that to become an excellent detective, one must be able to think from the criminal's perspective during investigations."
"So, after putting myself in the criminal's perspective, I've discovered something very important."
At this point, Light Yagami paused, looking directly into Ye Xing's eyes as he spoke word by word.
"From the criminal's perspective, the human sacrifices they're performing... are effective."
Ye Xing nodded slightly with an unsurprised expression.
"Indeed."
There was no need to state things explicitly - both of them could naturally arrive at this conclusion.
From the perspectives of those in the know, like Ye Xing, Rio Futaba, and Miko Yotsuya, they all understood that Kyoto's recent weather, which frequently cleared up quickly, was due to the prayers of the sunny girl Hina Amano.
But what if... viewed from the perspective of the Sunny Doll Killer?
Every time it rained, he would sacrifice a young girl in a cruel manner.
And then what?
The weather would clear up.
This was the Sunny Doll Killer's perspective.
In his eyes, the weather clearing proved that his human sacrifices had truly received a divine response.
"However..."
Light Yagami narrowed his eyes slightly and spoke as if murmuring to himself.
"Mere coincidences in weather patterns aren't the real reason he committed these crimes. Even if ordinary people heard legends about Sunny Girls, they wouldn't kill someone just because of abnormal weather during this period."
Saying this, Light Yagami looked at Ye Xing and asked, "Do you have the crime scene photos of the five victims?"
"Yes."
Ye Xing took out his phone, opened the photo album, and handed it over.
On the night he infiltrated the Metropolitan Police Department, he naturally collected the crime scene photos they had in their possession.
File transfers would leave traces.
Therefore, Ye Xing chose the most straightforward method—the primitive screenshot approach.
Taking photos of the screen with his phone.
Seeing such photos, Light Yagami didn't find them amusing or ridiculous. Instead, he looked deeply at Ye Xing, his eyes showing a hint of admiration.
If they were just ordinary crime scene photos taken by the Metropolitan Police Department, they wouldn't be particularly difficult to obtain.
After all, although the investigation process was confidential, even Haruno Yukinoshita could obtain a crime scene photo stored by the Metropolitan Police Department through family connections.
But these photos, taken directly with a phone pointed at a computer screen, were completely different.
This meant Ye Xing had once infiltrated the Metropolitan Police Department and retreated safely without alerting anyone.
Light Yagami searched his conscience and knew that if it were him, he absolutely couldn't accomplish such a thing.
"And the autopsy reports."
Ye Xing also showed Light Yagami the autopsy reports of the five victims recorded in his phone.
Looking at these dozens of case photos taken from various angles showing the victims' bodies and crime scenes, along with those five autopsy reports that were essentially identical except for the different victims, Light Yagami fell into deep thought.
"Ye Xing-kun."
Light Yagami pointed at the relevant photos and autopsy report of the first case, speaking with a serious expression.
"Usually with serial murder cases like this, what deserves the most attention is precisely the first case committed by the killer."
"Criminal activity is also a process that requires continuous practice and refinement."
"The first case will leave the most flaws and expose much information."
"Especially with this kind of serial murder case carrying special meaning - the specific manner of the victim's death, from a certain perspective, reveals the killer's true inner self."
"And the special aspect of this serial murder case lies in..."
Light spoke in a low voice.
"From the first murder case to the recent fifth case, the perpetrator's methods haven't changed at all. This is highly abnormal."
As he spoke, Light fell into thought again, murmuring to himself.
"An unchanging modus operandi, crimes consistently committed during rainy weather..."
"The perpetrator's mental state must be abnormal; that's beyond doubt."
"Firmly convinced of his goals... then his attitude towards the so-called Sunny Girl..."
"A ritual to clear the weather... and not conducted in secret but displayed publicly, aiming to attract everyone's attention and make his crimes widely known..."
Light's eyes gleamed as his thoughts continued to race.
After several minutes, he finally clasped his hands together, looked directly into Ye Xing's eyes, and spoke slowly.
"Ye Xing-kun, I've nearly completed the criminal profile."
Ye Xing replied casually.
"Go ahead then."
Light nodded and presented his analysis.
"A mentally unstable fanatic with antisocial tendencies, though not the typical antisocial personality. Rather, it stems from an inferiority complex, craving attention and expectations."
"This inferiority, combined with the recent abnormal weather and the legend of the Sunny Girl's human sacrifice, has given this suddenly powerful criminal, for whatever reason, a sense of destiny."
"He believes that if he performs enough human sacrifices of young girls, Japan's weather will return to normal."
"The criminal isn't obsessed with the weather itself, but rather his psychological issues drive him to seek something meaningful that can change the world..."
Before Light could finish, Ye Xing waved his hand dismissively, sounding bored.
"I have no interest in understanding the criminal's thoughts or motives. I only want to know his next move."
"Very well."
Light didn't mind the other's attitude, since his analysis of the criminal's motives and psychology was only meant to predict their next actions.
How a human could become a demon that cruelly kills their own kind - he didn't want to understand, nor was he interested.
There's only one fate for evil.
To be mercilessly punished.
Nothing else matters.
"To us who know the truth, the Sunny Doll Killer's human sacrifices are completely meaningless, just coinciding with the real Sunny Girl's prayers."
"But from his perspective, the credit for changing the weather through his sacrifices has been stolen by someone pretending to be the Sunny Girl."
Here, Light paused and changed direction.
"Of course, there's another possibility."
Ye Xing understood his meaning and said softly.
"His target for sacrifice isn't to clear the weather, but to make the rain continue."
"Exactly."
Light nodded with a smile.
"But as mentioned earlier, his true goal isn't to change the weather, but to become the one who changes the weather, thus satisfying his twisted desire for attention and expectations."
"Whether he wants to clear the weather or make the rain continue, that Sunny Girl remains his biggest obstacle."
"I can't predict his next move, but if we want to attract the killer's attention and make him take the bait, we just need to do this..."
...
When he returned home, Ye Xing had just opened the door and hadn't even changed his shoes when he felt something soft pounce directly into his arms.
"Big brother!"
Keika Kawasaki wrapped her arms around Ye Xing's waist, rubbing her little face against him continuously, just like an obedient little kitten.
"You're here?"
Ye Xing smiled and patted Keika Kawasaki's little head, then looked towards the living room where he found Saki Kawasaki, Yukino Yukinoshita, and Marin Kitagawa sitting together, the atmosphere seeming somewhat awkward.
Marin Kitagawa and Saki Kawasaki were both very familiar to him.
One was a gyaru beauty with a strong passion for cosplay, the other was a delinquent beauty who enjoyed making clothes.
After joining the Supernatural Society, the two had become practically inseparable, often going to the shopping district together to select materials needed for making cosplay costumes.
But they weren't very familiar with Yukino Yukinoshita.
According to incomplete statistics.
Among the current members of the Supernatural Society, the person Yukino Yukinoshita had spoken the most words to was Ye Xing.
Second place was Yui Yuigahama.
Every morning when she arrived at the classroom, there would be at least one exchange.
"Yahallo, Yukinon."
"Good morning, Yuigahama-san."
Coming in third place...
Was Kazusa Touma.
Apart from that one argument, Kazusa Touma and Yukino Yukinoshita normally had absolutely no communication.
Even so, she still managed to rank third.
This was the true meaning of being completely friendless and utterly solitary!
"Ye Xing-kun."
Seeing Ye Xing enter the living room, Marin Kitagawa quickly stood up, her expression appearing somewhat nervous and uneasy.
After all, although they were in the same club, they weren't very familiar, and normally didn't even exchange more than a few words.
"Marin-nee, you don't need to be so nervous"
Although Keika Kawasaki was just a little girl, she was actually the most relaxed and composed among the women present.
"Big brother already said to treat this place like your own home. In your own home, you don't need to be so nervous, you know"
Upon hearing this, Marin Kitagawa, Saki Kawasaki, and Yukino Yukinoshita all blushed.
Treat it like their own home?
Keika Kawasaki was ultimately too young, and children speak without inhibition.
How could they not be nervous!
Just then, the front door was suddenly knocked on again.
Ye Xing opened the door and smiled.
"You're here? Come in."
"Mm."
Marin Kitagawa and Saki Kawasaki looked up to see Kazusa Touma dragging two large suitcases, walking in with a calm expression.
The two girls exchanged a glance, having only one thought in their minds.
No way...
Just how many girls had this guy invited to live in his home!?