𝘓𝘪𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 - 𝘢 𝘓𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘠𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘪 𝘹 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺

Nine

ˏˋ♥̩͙♥̩̩̥͙♥̩̥̩ ⑅ ⑅ ♥̩̥̩♥̩̩̥͙♥̩͙ˊˎ

Matsuda yelped. "He said he found Kira already!! This is bad..." Soichiro muttered back, "Yes.. They have joined forces..."

L's head perked a little. "No, we can't say they've joined forces yet."

He continued, "Before this, the second Kira has always said they wished to 'meet Kira,' but now he's saying he 'found Kira.' He likely hasn't contacted him yet."

(Y/N) dug her fingernails into her palms. He's right yet again. Did the second Kira even think before sending this tape? They surely know that doing that helps the police, right?

After a moment of silence, L spoke up. "Since we've already come to this point, it's time for us to bait the second Kira. We're going to give him an incentive to lure him into telling us who Kira is. If the real Kira doesn't know who the second Kira is, he may respond to our trap."

Light's head was spinning too, though he had regained his composure. (Y/N) noticed him give a small sigh.

Right. This imposter is frustrating- I can't even think of a way to stop them from baiting him.

L tapped his chin, before saying, "How about we say we'll be more lenient with his sentencing if he helps us arrest Kira, and, perhaps... that he will become a hero to the world?" Soichiro didn't reply, clearly uncomfortable with the suggestion- but L accepted his silence as an agreement.

"Right. Then let's do it quickly. It's 7:30 PM... Let's try to get this on the news by 9." Soicihro nodded and said he'd handle it, standing and walking away.

L looked around. "I think we can be done for the day. Be sure to watch the news tonight at nine sharp."

I should...

By the time (Y/N) stood up, most of the people were gone. She glanced at Matsuda, who was holding the door open for her. She smiled slightly at the gesture, but waved at him instead and took a step towards L. Matsuda shrugged and closed the door.

"Murrell-san? Is something the matter?" L probed. She thought to herself momentarily about what she had planned to say.

She sat on a nearby chair, L swivelling in his desk chair to keep her in view. "I felt the need to confront you about your suspicions towards me."

L raised an eyebrow. "Suspicions? You're sure you want to talk about that?" He didn't sound surprised, monotonous as always- only slightly interested. She nodded.

"Yes, I believe your suspicions of me are hindering the investigation. I'm well aware that speaking to you about this only raises your suspicions- however, this is important to me."

L leaned forward. "I'm listening, then."

She clasped her hands together on her lap, maintaining eye contact. "Normally I wouldn't particularly care about you suspecting me, but in this case I feel the need to defend myself. If you have any questions you'd like to ask me directly, then please do- I'll answer truthfully."

L lifted his cup of tea, dropping sugar cubes in as he spoke. "If you are innocent, then it will prove itself over time. Even so, I'm not suspecting you have any mal intent if it is true that you're allies with Kira- I suspect you'd only have been being manipulated."

The word manipulated sent a little jolt through her, but she ignored it. She shook her head. "I hope you're joking. I would never allow myself to be manipulated." After a second, she continued, "It doesn't matter whether or not I'm being manipulated, regardless. My intentions don't matter. That's why I need to deny your suspicions."