hatesviolence | ☣ message box ☣ forgotten tales

[Since it currently wasn't occupied, the room was kept dimly lit, but there just enough light to show it was thematically different from the rest of the home. There were lines of shelves and drawers along the wall for filing documents, a white board and display cases. In the middle of the room was a large table with chairs around it. It was like walking into a strange combination of an archive and situation room you'd see in police stations.

It was still quite bare of use, except for the table. Sitting on top of it was a miniature model of what appeared to be a large town. There were half finished pieces here and there, with an incomplete map drawn off on scraps of paper sitting off to the side, indicating this was still being worked on.]

[Shizuo really isn't one to snoop, but he really can't help but be curious about everything he sees there. So don't mind him as he walks in to take a look, his focus eventually going to that miniature model.

Huh...was Disciple working on this...?]

It's the Index. [Disciple's voice suddenly breaks the long silence as he appears behind Shizuo like some ninja. He held two cups in his hands, with chamomile tea inside.] Parts of it anyway.

[Shizuo had been so focused on looking at the model, he actually jumps a bit when Disciple enters and speaks.]

Eh—? Ah...

[Regaining his composure, he looks at Disciple and then back at the model.]

It's one of those toy models right?

Mm...something like that. [He offers a cup to him.] I just wanted to get a better layout of the land.

[Carefully takes the cup while giving his thanks.]

Wouldn't a map have been easier?

Because this place is always changing, and a map sometimes doesn't reflect that. [He takes a sip from his cup, and then turns on the lights properly, illuminating the model town.]

Having a model helps me visualize a location and space better, and I can personally modify it when I need to.

I see... Wait so—did you buy this or did you just make it all on your own?

[He tilts his head.] I made it. [Said like it was the most obvious thing.]

All of it? Including the pieces?

[That's.......really damn impressive.]

Well...there are a few pieces of junk that I modified, but for the most part, yes.

That's...pretty cool, Disciple. I could never do something like that.

...Is it? [He looks down at the model.] My mentor and I would regularly recreate the crime scene in his office for whatever case he's working on. [It's just business as usual for him, but on a larger scale. ]

Oh yeah? Did it help?

[He nods.] At least it preserves the crime scene before the police have gone through it.

Do you remember what your hardest case was?

. . .Can't say. I only ever stood in court once, as an assistant. But, my mentor was looking into a well known investor who had ties with a criminal organization.

I see... They can be tough to bring down.

...Well, according to my mentor, he lost the case. Eventhough all the evidence pointed to him, the man basically bribed the jurors in his favor. [There's a slight hint of frustration in his voice. Eventhough he wasn't overseeing the case, something about that makes his blood boil. He takes a deep breath and shrugs.]

I suppose the outcome doesn't matter now, since he ended up getting killed in a different incident.

[Bribing jurors—yeah that's pretty shitty and he clearly doesn't like hearing it, but he's also not surprised... He's heard of such things before. But the next part does surprise him a bit.]

Wait, the guy you were following?

[He nods.]

The current case he's working on surrounds his death. That's...what I was helping him on before... [There's a lingering pause after that. He had a puzzled expression on his face.]

[He notices the pause and looks at Disciple a little concerned. He remembers that he has memory issues...]

...Before...?

...I remember a woman. That attorney's legal aide....before I arrived here, she yelled something at me that afternoon. [He was muttering to himself, trying to remember the encounter. It stuck out to him that day, but he hadn't thought about it since he got thrown into this world's mess.]

She called me Kazuma.

Kazuma...

[AH.]

Wait, is that your name?

. . . [The name does not bring anything back to him, no matter how hard he concentrates.]

I'm not sure. I was wearing a mask, but she called me by that name anyway.

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