Angely i demony kruzhili nado mnoj, Angels and demons circle above me,
rassykhali ternii i vechnye puti. through the thorns to the stars.
Ne znaet shast'je tol'ko tot, Only those unable to perceive its call...
kto jevo zova ponjat' ne smog. ...do not know happiness.
Naljubuites', naljubuites'. Watch in awe, watch in awe.
Aeria gloris, aeria gloris.
Naljubuites', naljubuites'. Watch in awe, watch in awe.
Aeria gloris, aeria gloris.
I am calling, calling now,
spirits rise and falling.
Soboj ostat'sja dol'she. To remain myself longer.
Calling, calling, in the depths of longing.
Soboj ostat'sja dol'she. To remain myself longer.
Naljubuites', Watch in awe,
aeria gloris.
What in the world?
The signal is stable. What next?
Show me B14 through 16.
The memories we extracted match her testimony.
That means that she isn't lying.
So she just processed the papers without knowing what they were to be used for.
But it's been established that the overwriting of the memories of the Nanao=A witnesses...
...was carried out under the directions of the legitimate paperwork filed by her...
...from the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare!
If that's the case, isn't it safe to assume that there's...
...a mastermind among the ministry's top dogs?
Plus, the ministry was hacked from the vocational aid center...
...where I blew that undercover investigation.
There's got to be something related to the Laughing Man incident in there...
...that they have to keep secret!
Either that, or the plans of some third party who wants to make us think that.
In that case, dive the ministry's database again!
Ishikawa and Borma have already trawled that data so much they never want to see it again.
They never spotted anything that looked like a falsified record.
The thing about data theft is that whatever was stolen is still there,
so you're gonna have to find another way to go at it.
I'll admit that something is fishy at the MLHW.
But if we're going to start an open investigation,
our quarry will become aware of our activities.
If we're still going to make a move all the same, the return has to be proportionate to the risk.
I'm sorry, I shouldn't bring work to the dinner table...
Try the potatoes, they're delicious.
They're really flavorful today, aren't they?
Yep, they sure are...
The Catcher in the Rye
"Just so people didn't know me,
"and I didn't know anybody."
"I thought what I'd do was,"
"I'd pretend I was one of those deaf-mutes."
What I'd do was... I'd pretend...
Or should I?
Wait a minute!
So, I hear you're pursuing the Salinger angle?
Yes, ma'am.
It's true that he wrote a short story titled "The Laughing Man,"
and there's no shortage of people who point out...
...the similarities between the story and the crimes.
But special investigations HQ has already analyzed all interpretations of that story.
I don't think any interpretation of that work will break the case.
"Art imitates life." The opposite should also be true.
I can't help but think that the young man I met at the aid center was the real Laughing Man.
There have been countless suspects who seemed certain to be the Laughing Man.
In spite of that, what's your basis for thinking that this young man is the real deal?
You know what the words around the Laughing Man logo mean, right, Major?
"I thought what I'd do was, I'd become one of those deaf-mutes."
Word has it that it's a quote from chapter 25 of The Catcher in the Rye.
Right.
Like I wrote in my report, I found part of that quote at the aid center.
At first, I had convinced myself that it was taken verbatim from the book.
But in the sentence I found,
there was something written after "one of those deaf-mutes."
"Or should I?"
As in, "Or maybe I shouldn't." That had been added.
Do you suppose that was a dialogue he was having with himself?
Asking himself if he should break his silence and go back out into the world.
Have you ever felt this way, Major?
For instance, when you try to imitate an artist that you like or whatever,
you want to get closer to the original by imitating it as perfectly as possible.
But this young man who dared to modify the quote from Salinger...
...was able to rewrite the end of the quote because he was the original.
That theory is awfully dependent on your personal views, isn't it?
You realize that it's far too weak to base anything on, don't you?
Despite the fact that the Laughing Man possessed super-A hacking techniques,
he personally kidnapped CEO Serano and pulled a gun on him.
He's a criminal whose anachronistic actions don't jive at all with his technical skills.
Couldn't that mean that the Laughing Man, despite the fact that he's so good at hacking,
or on the contrary, because he's so good, he didn't place any value at all...
...on electronic media, something that can be rewritten?
When you think about it that way, maybe what he was after...
...was information that's stored physically.
In other words, documents stored in a paper medium.
And you want to find this out for yourself?
Yes, ma'am.
If you were doing this out of emotional revenge for the aid center fiasco, I was going to stop you.
But maybe your Ghost has finally started whispering to you, too.
All right, fine.
Do whatever you want. I'll fill the Chief in.
Thank you, ma'am.
Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare
How's it coming?
Finally done.
Or at least I can start looking for the answer now.
I thought you'd give up after the first few days, but you're pretty tenacious.
Well, it's part of the job.
I'm sorry about earlier.
Oh, it wasn't your fault. You were just doing your job.
Found it!
Found what?
Or to be precise, something that should be here isn't.
The "Murai Vaccine Recipient List."
That's the only file that's missing.
You're right... I wonder if it got mixed in with another box?
What's the Murai Vaccine?
A special medicine that's effective against cyberbrain sclerosis.
At the time it was announced, micromachine therapy hadn't been implemented yet,
so it became a hot topic.
But in the end, it wasn't approved for medical use.
Why not?
It appeared that the vaccine had a definite effect,
but the mechanism wasn't clearly understood.
It just works for some reason.
But if the effect isn't clearly paired up with a cause, it won't be approved as a medicine.
Oh, I see.
That's why the drug evaluation council back then couldn't simply approve it on the spot.
Plus, Dr. Murai wasn't a specialist in cyberbrain sclerosis.
It was one of those accidental discoveries.
Well, it wasn't exactly smooth sailing at the very beginning,
After a long period of trial and error, he managed to perfect the vaccine.
And the list of people inoculated with that vaccine is now missing...
I wonder how long it's been missing?
I don't see how stealing something like that would do anybody any good, though.
Can you think of anyone?
You know, someone that file might be valuable to?
Well... If I had to say, I guess the Sunflower Society might.
Sunflower?
I'd better write up a report by tomorrow.
A.D. 2019.
At that time, just when cyberization was starting to become commonplace,
cyberbrain damage of unknown origin became a hot topic in the medical community.
Regions where cyberization had been performed gradually hardened,
ultimately resulting in brain death.
This disease later came to be called cyberbrain sclerosis.
Although the probability of manifesting symptoms is exceedingly low,
anyone who has been cyberized is susceptible,
and because no basic treatment was known once symptoms had manifested,
it was called the incurable disease of the 21st Century,
following in the footsteps of tuberculosis, cancer, and AIDS.
██████████████████████
Enter Keyword
Murai Vaccine
The Murai Vaccine is a tumor suppressor...
...developed by an M.D. named Chitose Murai as a specific medicine for that disease.
However, the medical association back then...
...was dominated by micromachine therapy proponents,
and there were many who voiced the opinion that the vaccine therapy...
...developed by Dr. Murai was a step backwards, and if the research were approved,
it might even set back the development of a micromachine treatment.
Perhaps because of that reason, approval for the Murai Vaccine was shelved,
and in February of 2021, Dr. Murai, who dreamed of a vaccine therapy to the very end,
sadly died a broken man at the age of 68,
without ever receiving a decision from the drug evaluation council.
And then, in April of '21, the Murai Vaccine, which had once been turned down for approval,
was hastily approved as a fee-based clinical trial drug candidate...
...for use in specially designated patients.
The approval was never made known to the general public,
and the official position is that there are no patients who are using the Murai Vaccine.
Even now, one group is still interested in this fact...
The Sunflower Society.
A nonprofit organization that offers support to individuals who want...
...to file suits against major companies and government agencies and take them to court.
In the past, they've repeatedly requested the disclosure of information...
...regarding the Murai Vaccine and those who received it...
...from all related government ministries and offices.
But the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has always turned them down,
using the Personal Information Control Act as a shield, huh?
Maybe I was jumping to conclusions when I thought that there was a connection...
...between the Sunflower Society and the Laughing Man.
That logo, it...
I see...
You've certainly done your homework.
So, you're a freelance journalist?
The fact of the matter is that I lost my father to CS a few months ago.
He received micromachine treatment up until the end,
but after he died, I learned about your work here, and of the existence of the Murai Vaccine.
Oh, I see. I'm sorry for your loss.
If someone had told us sooner about how well the Murai Vaccine worked,
I can't help but wonder if my father might still be alive right now...
The thought is killing me.
Before now, I was never concerned about this sort of thing.
But if it might save those who have the same disease as my father,
I'd like to use my own job to help.
I understand.
We used to get a lot of people with determination like yours.
But each and every one ended in failure.
Why is that?
It means that there are a lot of people who don't want the public to turn away from micromachines.
And these people come from all corners of society.
Just as I thought...
As luck would have it, I have some pull in the entertainment industry.
From what I've heard, there are even people who work in the entertainment industry...
...who have been secretly receiving the Murai Vaccine.
It isn't easy to spread around unpleasant news like this.
To get people talking about it, I suppose you'd need some sort of scandal, wouldn't you?
I see that you didn't come see us out of some passing emotion.
Actually, we just acquired a certain file.
A file?
Contact with the bar association confirmed.
What a crappy code encryption...
Are they messing with us?
I swear, amateurs these days really piss me off.
Arrival in two minutes.
Murai Vaccine Recipient List
Come, take a look.
Isn't he an author?
That's right.
There are also artists, former star athletes,
and this man is a professor at Niihama University's medical school.
I'm shocked... There are even names of politicians.
Yes.
Someone even more critical is receiving the Murai Vaccine.
Can you spot him?
Hisashi Imakurusu...
Chairman of the board of the Central Drug Evaluation Council!
The chairman who rejected the Murai Vaccine is dependent on that same medicine?
This file arrived yesterday from Mr. Imakurusu himself.
What's this all mean?
He says he's exhausted from keeping silent all these years about what they've done.
Even while acknowledging its effectiveness,
he deliberately suppressed the Murai Vaccine out of some ulterior motive,
Imakurusu gave his word that he would go before the court...
...and divulge this reason that's known only to him!
You're saying that the key figure of the Drug Evaluation Council...
...is going to testify about why he suppressed the vaccine?!
Yes. This time, victory is ours.
The DEA's Narcotics Suppression Squad?!
C'mon, hurry up and kill 'em!
We can take our time and look for our target afterwards.
But first, kill everybody!
They work for the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.
Then... they're after this file?
You've got to get out of here.
These people have been systematically trained.
Who are you?
I'm with Public Security.
This way is still clear.
I'll leave the file with you. Tell people what has happened here.
Someone has to let people know the truth that is in this file.
No, that's your job.
Your chances of escaping are better than mine.
Hey, what's the story with that room down there?
For now, let's just get out of here.
Oops. Some of our boys got taken down.
We need to take some losses on our side, too.
That's how reality works.
Right?!
Search the corpse.
A cyborg?!
Now things are getting interesting.
We've got a survivor. Get over here.
Hey, if you don't start running, I'm gonna shoot ya!
Son of a bitch. That's our own truck...
Get down there and kill him!
Chief, the op is complete.
But the item is a copy.
What did you say?!
We know where it came from.
It was Imakurusu.
You're the one who has the original?!
No! It's not me! You've got to believe me!
I've been told that the duplicate file the Sunflower Society obtained...
...was sent to them from your office!
Don't tell me that you're suddenly feeling repentant after all these years.
What do I have to gain by doing that?
Someone was passing himself off as me, that's all.
Then what the hell is your name doing on the list of vaccine recipients?
I...
Answer me! Do you have cyberbrain sclerosis?
For a long time now. They tell me it's already in the final stages.
Why didn't you come talk to me?!
How could you do something as stupid as leaving your records on that list?
I'm sorry.
It's just that the Murai Vaccine really does work.
We've known that all along!
I'll deal with you later!
What would you like me to do? Eliminate him?
Shut up. I'll get back to you.
The final stages?
That fool.
Crap...
Maybe I should've gone full-cyborg, too...
Major... Chief... I've been shot.
I'm so sleepy...
It's raining?
She's so cold and human
It's something humans do
She stays so golden solo
She's so number nine
She's incredible math
Just incredible math
And is she really human?
She's just so something new
A waking lithium flower
Just about to bloom
I smell lithium now
Smelling lithium now
How is she when she doesn't surf?
I wonder what she does when she wakes up?
When she wakes up?