Unsolved Case (1)
Melkidu, Dorian Village.
Shirone and his party entered the tavern and ordered a simple meal and some beer from the staff.
The man who introduced himself as a detective was named Curtis.
He said he'd come from the Iron Kingdom and had been in Melkidu for two years.
Ten minutes later the food arrived.
"How do we pay?"
When Shirone asked, Curtis gulped his beer, wiped his chin, and said, "Heh. No need to pay. There's no money here. This place is the killers' refuge."
"So?"
"You just leave. As long as you have Crime Points, criminal acts aren't recognized by people. If you steal a beer and run, it costs 2P."
They more or less understood.
"Stabbing someone with a knife is 5P, so that's pretty expensive. Of course, as you cycle more, Crime Points pile up, so it won't be a burden later."
Iruki asked, "When you say cycle, do you mean Melkidu is structured like an orbit?"
"That's right. More precisely, there are two tracks: an outer track and an inner track. The outer track has 468 blocks and most players do missions there. But if you land on certain blocks you can enter the inner track."
"What's the inner track like?"
"It's made up of 197 blocks. You can strengthen your Crime Dice there or buy special items at shops. One thing: you can only run the inner track once. When you finish its blocks you're forced back out to the outer track. There are exceptions—when you first enter Melkidu." Eden asked, "Isn't this Melkidu?"
"Of course it is, but the only place with Melkidu-level symbolism is the Core. Players gather points on the outer track to get into the inner track, and their goal during that single cycle is to reach the Core. If you don't reach the Core, you return to the outer track and keep up this insane killing spree."
"Why do killers try to reach the Core? To avoid pursuit?"
"...It's not that simple." Curtis picked up his beer glass, thought for a moment, then drained the rest. "I've never been there myself, so I can't say for sure. But I've heard rumors. It's why I've been cycling for two years."
His eyes clouded. "She was twenty-seven—my daughter, Edrina. She loved to travel. That day she was excited to go to the beach with friends. I remember it was no different from usual. She packed, put on makeup, kissed her mother and me on the cheek."
'She was his daughter.'
"She was supposed to go with her friends. They were close—Nia, Belita, Daisy. They were going to meet at Thief Square and leave together, and… she disappeared."
Shirone remembered reading the foreign papers back when he attended Tormia's School of Magic.
"Yeah. It was broad daylight. Nia and Belita lived in the city, Daisy uptown. Witnesses said they saw my daughter at Thief Square. She looked extremely anxious; another witness said she was reading something on the bulletin board there. But that's it. After that my daughter never came out into the world again."
"Could it have been someone she knew…?"
"What do you think my job is? I checked everything. But it was useless. What's worse is her friends went missing at almost the same time. Even in the same city, the square is two kilometers away."
Curtis lit a cigarette. "I searched for three years—slums, human trafficking, magic, shamanism, everything. Then I heard rumors about Melkidu and came here."
"You think we could find your daughter in Melkidu?"
"Yes."
He exhaled smoke slowly. "The Core of Melkidu records every crime that's happened in the world. It's the headquarters of permanent cold cases. If you can clear this murder game—"
"What do you mean by that?"
"Why it's the killers' refuge. If you clear this game, what you did in reality becomes a perfect crime. In other words, it becomes a permanent cold case."
It didn't sound logical.
"How could that happen? If it's a real cold case, there are witnesses and evidence… ah."
A thought flashed through their minds.
"Crime Points."
Crimes committed by consuming Crime Points in Melkidu aren't recognized.
"Right. I think this place is some kind of system. Gathering points while circling the tracks seems to act as a special power that can affect reality. A killer who reaches the Core can alter their records and return to reality. In short, they can go out safely and commit new crimes."
Iruki said, "Feels like Habitz's Vanishing. The Hidden Code probably has a similar property. Like bringing an object out of Drimo into reality, this seems like a system that lets you apply Crime Points gathered here to the real world."
Curtis stubbed out his cigarette. "I'll find my daughter no matter what. I'll gather Crime Points and get into the Core. It won't be easy. There are two ways in: accumulate an enormous amount of Crime Points, or be ridiculously lucky. I heard that if you complete certain special missions on the inner track you can enter the Core regardless of points. Of course, information sharing is scarce, so most people dismiss that as a rumor."
'A devil's bible.'
It wasn't unrelated to how Gyorghi had used his ability to lead members of the Catacomb.
As Shirone was sorting through what he'd been told, the tavern door opened.
"Buy candles, buy candles."
"Huh?"
Nade's eyes widened. "Is that woman—?"
She was the person who'd been killed on the street thirty minutes earlier, stabbed in the throat by a killer.
Curtis looked over. "Most NPCs in Melkidu revive. Of course, some event NPCs don't. Revival time varies by mission."
"Hmm."
Once they realized she wasn't a living human, Shirone and the others relaxed a little.
"It's creepy, though. Even if she's fake, the feeling of hitting someone and their reactions are the same as a real person. At first I only cleared missions by hunting villains. This place is eerily like real society. But that method is inefficient. At some point you become numb, like the other killers."
Perhaps that was Melkidu's reason for being.
"There are many methods. You can burn down buildings or mow down crowds in the city with a volley crossbow. But those crimes consume a lot of Crime Points. That killer earlier stabbed his victim with a knife he bought at a weapon shop, right? Dorian's C-rank missions don't pay well. No matter how well you roll the dice, it's hard to get more than 200P. So killers save Points and kill efficiently."
Shirone understood. "So he didn't fight us because he was saving his Points."
"Exactly. The rule that when a Crime Attack occurs between players, Points are automatically deducted until one side hits zero exists to prevent killers from fighting each other openly. Who'd play this game if everyone killed each other? There are people who accept the risk to fight and steal items, though."
Nade asked, "What happens when your Points hit zero?"
"All the crimes you've committed so far become known to the whole world. The guards will chase you. You're thrown in prison, pay a cost, and restart at the starting point. I'm telling you—don't let it get that far. You can't do anything. Without Crime Points you can't even attack the guards."
Eden asked, "How many Crime Points are needed for magic?"
"That's a tough question. I've heard anywhere from 1,000P to 100,000P. Nobody really knows the exact amounts because no one tells others their Points. Remember this: Points are everything. There's no individual combat efficiency between players. The moment you collide, your Points are reduced by however much the opponent has."
A single mistake could wipe out everything you'd accumulated.
"So you only attack when you're one hundred percent certain. And even if you're certain, you don't kill just anyone. You do it because they have a valuable item, because a special mission requires you to, or out of personal desire unrelated to Points."
Curtis fished in his pocket and slipped his Crime Dice between his fingers.
He had three: one eight-sided die and two six-sided dice.
"Early on, if you get into the inner track, I recommend strengthening your dice rather than buying items. Items are essential in Melkidu, but they're not efficient at the start. You'll just become prey for the Point tycoons."
"I see."
"This is also a time game. If you don't gather Points as quickly as possible you'll be eaten. I'm moving to another block now. Ask if you have questions."
Shirone asked, "Why help us? From what you said, isn't this a waste of time? You're not an accomplice."
"That's true. But after two years of cycling I learned you need connections. As you know, a player's path is determined by dice. Precisely because of that, you should build relationships."
You never know where you'll meet someone again.
"The fact I have Crime Dice means I cleared Dorian Village's mission. At Melkidu's start point—specifically the villages numbered two through twelve where the first players jump in—you usually stay a day or two. Veterans are fine, but their intentions are hard to read."
Shirone and the others understood. "So if we meet again in the same block, there's room for cooperation."
"Not with just anyone. You lot have been through a lot. I can tell from your posture and eyes when you meet an enemy. You can't fool a detective's eye. We can exchange information or items, or do cooperative missions. You'll get more Crime Points that way."
"All right. We'll gather whatever information we can. I hope you find your daughter."
They liked that he wasn't a killer.
"Yeah. May the God of Dice be with you. It's a common greeting in Melkidu."
Curtis pulled a card from his left hand. "Wind God. Activate."
The card flashed and vanished, and three dice rolled across the tavern floor.
Three, two, six appeared, and multiplication signs were inserted between them.
The three numbers multiplied together to become thirty-six, and Curtis looked over at the party. "Oh, one more tip. In Melkidu, get into the habit of always closing doors."
As soon as he finished speaking his body flared bright and then vanished in a burst.
Iruki, staring at the empty beer glass left behind, said, "Thirty-six blocks. Even with the God of Dice ignoring him he went far. So Curtis is currently on square forty-two."
Shirone stood. "We can't chase him with the dice we have. Well, we'll just tackle it from the start."
A system message sounded.
- The tavern owner is watching you.
"Huh?"
When they turned toward the counter, the owner was watching them with narrow eyes.
'Come to think of it...'
Unlike other NPCs, the murder victims had been aware of the crime.
"Shall we do it?"
Nade asked.
"We don't have a choice."
One, two...
"Run!"
All four bolted for the exit at once. The owner narrowed his eyes and chased after them.
"Stop right there! You thieves!"
"Ahhh!"
Remembering Curtis's words, Shirone slammed the door as he rushed outside.
"Haah. Haah." He glanced back, tense, but the owner didn't come out.
"What the—? It's quiet."
Shirone exchanged looks with his friends and cracked the door open to peek inside…and the owner stood at the counter, smiling and greeting them as if nothing had happened.
"Welcome. This is Dorian Tavern."
Iruki muttered, "A perfect crime."