"Pesky brat."
"Hmph…"
"Fine, it's more fun this way."
"In the end, prey caught in a spider's web only gets devoured."
8:21 p.m., Ekoda City Museum
The Second Investigation Division hadn't lifted the museum's lockdown. Outside, throngs of media eagerly grilled police on yet another failed operation.
High school detective Hakuba Saguru was swarmed among them.
As cops and Hakuba fielded endless questions, Günter Irei, cloaked in black, slipped from the shadows.
He wore a hooded black coat, hiding his blond hair, and a mask glowing with eerie red light, concealing his upper face.
Turning from the museum, he flashed a mocking smirk.
He'd already clashed with Kaito Kid.
Though a sneak attack, Kaito Kid fell helpless under his illusion. Had Hakuba Saguru not intervened, Kid would be a corpse.
Seeing Kid's limits, Spider wasn't in a rush to kill him tonight.
He moved to leave.
But at exactly 8:36 p.m., Spider paused, then walked off briskly as if nothing happened.
---
The night was still, silent.
A silver E-W210 idled in a secluded alley.
When Günter Irei approached, he headed straight for the car, opened the passenger door, and slid in.
The moment he sat, he spoke.
"The truth of my illusions lies in my imaging device, paired with odorless hypnotic gas."
"The red light it emits induces a fleeting trance, unlocking the subconscious."
"Crafting illusions demands advanced hypnosis skills."
"The gas amplifies sensory perception."
"My aerial tricks use invisible drones and custom spider silk to bind targets or pull myself away unseen."
I see.
A pure tech-based killer.
Hayato Masaki sat in the driver's seat, listening quietly to Spider's confession.
"My coat hides gas-release mechanisms."
"Both gas and silk are made from materials I source myself."
"The gas's key ingredient is venom from a specific spider. Its bite causes disorientation, then hallucinations. Refining it into colorless, odorless gas requires other chemicals…"
"My left-hand ring is a trump card, packed with concentrated hypnotic gas and a one-shot light pulse."
"It's stronger than standard illusions."
"But it's single-use."
Spider spilled every secret of his craft like pouring beans.
The red light and hypnotic gas were key.
Maybe it was his imagination, but Hayato recalled anime where hypnosis pens flashed red, too.
This world was strange…
Big CRT monitors were still common, yet Spider wielded invisible drones. His gear felt straight out of Dr. Agasa's wild inventions, pure Conan-science.
Musing, Hayato smiled. "Thank you for sharing, Günter-san."
"Could you write down the detailed steps for making the hypnotic gas in this notebook? Extraction methods, material sources—everything."
He handed Spider a notebook.
Spider said, "Sure," and began writing.
Five or six minutes later, he stopped.
He was methodical.
Hayato glanced at the notes—replicating it wouldn't be too hard.
The materials and tools weren't tough to get. The techniques, untested, didn't faze him; he'd learn.
Worst case, he'd tap the Organization's channels.
After confirming he had no more questions, Hayato said, "Alright, I'm good."
"You can go. Have a pleasant weekend, Günter-san."
Spider stepped out, leaving his assassin gear on the passenger seat. Hayato gave it a glance and drove off.
Günter Irei
April 27th, 20:36, heads to Alley 16 near Ekoda City Library, entering the passenger seat of a silver sedan, license plate Shinjuku 414-10-02.
Once seated, reveals all secrets of his illusion techniques.
Answers every question from the man in the driver's seat.
After resolving the driver's queries, leaves illusion tools behind and departs.
Thereafter, mass-produces or orders related gear, storing it fifteen days later in safe deposit box 47 at Beika Hotel, leaving the key at the front desk with the code "Spider."
Then, overwhelmed by despair, loses interest in everything and returns to a normal life in the U.S.
On the twenty-second day after his name is written, at 03:55 local time, writes "Rum" in blood on his room's wall.
Commits suicide.
This was Spider's full entry in the Death Note.
Hayato planned to control someone later to retrieve the hotel safe's contents.
Why leave "Rum"? Just to stir trouble for the Organization. A world-class illusionist's suicide would make waves.
He guessed the FBI might know Spider's assassin side—Hakuba Saguru, a high schooler, had sniffed it out.
Rum's codename was conspicuous, easy to link to the Organization.
If the Zoo and the Organization clashed over it, great—but Spider wasn't Zoo-affiliated, so it was a long shot.
"I need to test these new tricks soon…"
And build rapport with Koizumi Akako.
Driving down the empty highway, Hayato pondered.
Per Spider, he'd need to learn hypnosis techniques, too.
***
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