--The Knight Commander's Office, Silver Wing Knights Headquarters.

This is our report for today.
Thanks for your help. It's not exactly another day to solve a case, is it?

　Carmine listened to the report from Sir Bradford, the knight under his command, and got up from his chair at his office desk.

'Let's just get the information straight for now. Help me out.

　The documents are pinned one by one to a large cork board hanging on the wall.

　The contents of these documents are a compilation of information on the investigation of incidents believed to have been committed by the Night Ripper (Night Ripper), compiled for each case individually.

　The results of the investigation using the knights' special skills are also included, and it can be said that this is the latest information, both in name and in fact, at the moment.

''First, the first incident. Although the body was badly damaged and could not be identified individually, at least it's a young woman. When the body was first found, it was thought to be just one victim, but it was later determined that there were two bodies mixed together. It was almost like she was butchered," he said.

　There are no drawings attached to the document, but the spelled out bullet points alone are enough to give you an idea of the horror of the bodies.

The public is supposedly ...... to believe it's a case of one victim for now, as information was stopped from being released to the public shortly after it was discovered, right?
Yes, the remains have been magically preserved in the Wanxin-den Temple. The corpse has been magically preserved in the Banshin-den Temple.
'The Temple Director has been nagging me to pull up and bury him as soon as possible because he's a nuisance, but I'm sorry, but he'll have to put up with it until we find out his identity.

　Carmine didn't seem to feel too bad about it and shifted his gaze to the next document.

''The second case involved the murder of an active A-rank adventurer. At this point, it's believed to be a separate case from the earlier murder, and the damage to the body wasn't as bad as before. It's still in pieces though.
Later reanalysis of the severed surfaces with skills revealed that they were dismantled with the same murder weapon as in the first case.
'The third incident victim was a former A-ranked retired adventurer. Since he held a key position in the Adventurer's Guild, we withheld the information at the guild's request.

　From this point onwards, the documents will be accompanied by a lot of 'confidential' words in the description.

'The victims in the fourth and fifth incidents are also former A-ranked, but this one had retired and become a civilian over twenty years ago, so there was a time lag before they were identified as adventurers.'
His status as a former adventurer has been withheld at the request of the guild.
Yes, but it's too late to hide the fact that there was a murder. But it was too late to hide the fact that there had been a murder, so the nickname "Night Ripper" became popular among the people of Tokyo.

　The first incident--two victims. Identity unknown. Initially misreported as one victim and ostensibly not yet corrected. The bodies are excessively damaged compared to later incidents.

　The second incident--one victim. An active A-ranked adventurer.

　Third incident--one victim. Retired A-ranked adventurer. Guild key personnel. At the request of the guild, the announcement of the incident has been postponed.

　Fourth Incident--one casualty. Retired A-rank adventurer. A retired person over twenty years ago. Ostensibly, a civilian was announced as the victim.

　Fifth incident--one victim. A retired A-rank adventurer. The victim is in a similar position to the fourth incident. This is the latest incident to be released to the public.

　There are four incidents that have been released to the public. Four publicized victims.
　There was one case that was not released to the public. Two undisclosed victims.

　Of the slain adventurers and former adventurers, only one of the current and former adventurers has had that fact made public.

　The other two are announced as civilians, while the case itself is kept under wraps for the remaining one.

　This is the full story of the series of murders known to the public as the Night Ripper.

The common denominator in each case is the weapon used. The similarities in the severed surfaces of all the murders suggest that they are a series of murders committed by the same killer.

　It's not like the world is irresponsibly making a big deal out of 'night rippers'.

　Naturally, there is a reasonable basis for the investigation being carried out as a serial murder.

''Well, if it had ended with this, it would have been a crime aimed at an A-ranked adventurer for sure, but the sixth incident has made things complicated again.

　Carmine tapped the corkboard with a light knock and read the sixth document as if he were spitting it out.

'A sixth incident, as yet undisclosed. It occurred shortly after the fifth incident. The victims were two men and two women who had no connection to the adventurers. Moreover, the murder weapon was the wrong one.

　A different case that destroys the laws that were floating around.

　Of course, there are grounds for thinking that this is part of a series of murders.

'Normally, the Sixth (this guy) is a copycat. After all, the murder weapon is different, you know. Of course, it's possible that the murder weapon was ruined in the fifth case, so he got a new one. ...... There were more similarities that couldn't be ignored than that.

　He taped a large piece of paper to an empty spot on the corkboard and added a description to it with a pen.

'If we are to trust the results of the skill analysis, the two weapons used in the six incidents were both used by the Mi(n)ri(s) in both incidents...'

　Carmine tossed the pen onto the tray attached to the bottom of the corkboard and spread his arms in an exaggerated gesture, his brow furrowed.

'Hey, Bradford. Do you think we can dismiss this guy as an easy coincidence?
'No, sir. Rather, you'd need a basis for treating it as 'coincidental.'
'Oh yes. He did not disclose the fact that mithril was used as the murder weapon. If you're saying that the copycat happened to choose such a weapon, that's the level of evidence you'd need.

　It was undeniable that it was a coincidence, but it couldn't be easily dismissed as a coincidence - the fact that mithril was involved in both of the two types of weapons was so much greater.

　If it were any other metal, mithril would still be a rare metal with a severely restricted circulation.

It's too early to completely dismiss the possibility of being a copycat. There is also the possibility that the information was leaked somewhere, or that the person who knows the real criminal and knows the murder weapon is the copycat.

　Carmine went straight to his office chair and sat down in it, resting his weight on the backrest and looking up at the ceiling.

It's not at all ...... that I'm going to be able to go home any time soon. I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make the most of your time in the city.