Prologue (Part1)

Somewhere on earth.

Keanu stood in a corner unnoticed not far from the entrance of the neighborhood. A cigarette dangled from his mouth, eyes half-closed as he stared at a house, seemingly deep in thought. As he finished the cigarette, Keanu flicked the butt onto the ground and stomped on it a few times.

He took out the rest of the cigarettes and some cash. As a passerby happened by, he shoved the cigarettes and money into the man's hand. "Here mate, it's all yours," he said. The passerby stood dumbfounded as Keanu swung his bag over his shoulder and moved towards the house.

As he approached the front door, he was stopped by some police officers.

"Just a delivery guy." Keanu pointed to his delivery uniform and the bag on his back. "Where's your vehicle if you're delivering?" inquired one of the officers, truly dedicated to his job. Keanu pointed in the other direction, "It's over there. Some mechanical issues, getting fixed."

"Got your ID with you?" Keanu handed his ID to the officer, "You guys have been pretty strict recently, huh?" "Didn't you hear about the serial killer that's on the loose? Killed a bunch already." "Heard about it, yes. Quite recent, right? Ruthless killer, even mutilated some bodies. Has he not been caught?" "No," the officer replied, returning Keanu's ID after checking it.

With a whistle and a hum, Keanu continued towards the house. Arriving at the front door, he rang the doorbell.

"Who's there?" "Delivery guy. Is this the residence of Conrad Minnie?" A moment of silence followed. The door opened. A middle-aged woman peered out from behind the heavy iron door, her eyes filled with suspicion, "What sort of delivery?" "For Mr. Conrad Minnie." The woman hesitated as she looked at the parcel in Keanu's hand. She opened the door, took the parcel, and muttered, "What on earth is this?" "A death notice", Keanu responded coldly as he pressed a gun against the woman's head.

The Criminal Investigation Department of the police station. A special meeting was convening in the large conference room. Leading the meeting was the Homicide Squad Captain, Bradley, known throughout the precinct for his adept crime-solving skills.

Today, however, his brows were knitted in a severe frown, his demeanor visibly off-kilter. Sucking on his cigarette, he squinted through the smoke he'd been blowing in silent contemplation for what seemed an eternity before finally stubbing the butt into an ashtray. "Let's get on with the meeting. Deputy Squad Captain, why don't you start by briefing us on the case?"

His deputy nodded, picking up the case file. "Most of you are already in the know regarding this murder case, but for those who have just been transferred here, I'll briefly recap. On March 12 of this year, a renowned psychiatrist in our city was killed at home with a bullet to the head.

On March 13, our city's former warden was murdered. On March 14, a judge was shot dead. Initial examinations reveal that all three were killed with the same gun, so the same person is likely responsible for all three murders, hence the decision to investigate the cases concurrently."

Captain Bradley immediately added, "To supplement that, all victims showed signs of being bound before the time of death, suggesting that the killer had conversations with them before their demise. From the arrangement at the scene, ash was found but no cigarette butts. This implies our perp killed leisurely without any tension, indicating exceptional emotional control. No additional prints or tracks were discovered on location, and no valuable leads were left behind, hinting that the criminal is an experienced hand. One other common thread is that all victims were murdered at home, seemingly alone. This implies the killer arrived prepared, specifically targeting the victims."

"The problem is here," the Deputy commented. "We've investigated the victims' backgrounds but found no common interactions amongst them."

"Moreover…" Bradley interjected, "Apart from the deceased victims, there are ten others. However, they weren't killed, but brutally tortured, resulting in some being disabled, others comatose. The nature of these attacks mirrors those on the deceased victims - attacks occurred when they were alone at home. The only difference is that the killer spared their lives. None of them saw the face of the offender as he wore a mask when launching his attacks. All they know is that he's a young man, about six feet tall, and from his speech, appears to be highly educated. Out of the thirty-plus suspects provided by the victims, none matches the characteristics provided."

"The victims share no connections either," commented the Deputy, "Some recognize each other, however, their interactions remain casual at best, with no common enemies. Therefore, identifying a connection amongst all the victims has become our primary issue."

It was a premeditated serial murder case. Oddly enough, the victims spanned across various professions, involving both government officials and regular civilians. Furthermore, the culprit left as many as ten survivors, yet none of them could provide any pertinent clues.

The situation was confounding, to say the least.

Over twenty policemen at the meeting wracked their brains to no avail, unable to discern the motive behind the cases. One of them mumbled to himself, "It's perplexing. The killer targeted over a dozen individuals within such a short timeframe, and each attack was meticulously executed. This surely points to careful prior planning. Given the premeditated nature of the killings, there must be a motive. These victims couldn't possibly be unrelated."

"Why haven't any of the survivors revealed connections to other victims then?" another officer pondered.

"Perhaps there are connections, it's just that they're unaware of them?"

"But how could that be?"

"Another possibility is that they do know, but they're unwilling to share."

"That's even more unlikely. Given the gravity of the situation, if they are refusing to speak, then when will they?"

"Perhaps they're involved in some unspeakable dealings? Maybe revealing these links could worsen their situation. Perhaps they're uncertain and hence, afraid to voice out?"

"Complete nonsense." The theory is met with widespread ridicule among the policemen.

However, Bradley seemed deep in thought.

Just as he pondered, the conference room door was suddenly kicked open with a bang.

"We found it!" An excited yell accompanied the entrance of a young, attractive policewoman, who nearly collided with Bradley.

Bradley jumped to his feet, slapping the table, "What's the matter with you? didn't you see we're in a meeting?"

The young policewoman stuck out her tongue, too frightened to speak.

The Deputy Captain pulled at Bradley's uniform, whispering, "She's new, her name is Nydia."

Taken aback, Bradley shot Nydia a fierce look, however, was softened, "Be more cautious next time and control your restlessness. What's up?"

Nydia smartly saluted, "Captain, I've uncovered a crucial clue concerning the serial murder case. I know you're discussing this case, and I believe my discovery could bring a significant breakthrough."

"Oh, do share," Bradley perked up. "Might as well let everyone hear it."

"Yes, sir!" Nydia unfolded the case file in hand, "On the 12th of March this year, a major murder case occurred in our city…"

Bradley waved his hand dismissively, "Cut to the chase, what did you discover?"

"Yes, sir!" Nydia turned red, "I found the connection among all the victims!"

"What's that?" Everyone stood, visibly shocked.

Bradley too was excited, "You uncovered a link among all the victims?"

"Yes." Nydia tossed the case file onto the table, "I discovered all victims are connected to a case from seven years ago. Here is the case report from back then."

As Bradley skimmed through the report, a photo of a young girl caught his eye which gave him pause.

He quickly went through the document, his demeanor turning grave.

The contained information was beyond shocking.

He peered at Nydia, "How did you come across this lead? Why haven't I seen this film before?"

Nydia responded loudly, "Captain, a peculiar fire broke out in the file room three years ago where we lost many documents. This particular document was among the lost but was suddenly discovered this morning at a corner while I was cleaning the file room."

"This morning? Suddenly found? After a fire three years ago?" Bradley was taken aback. He pointed at Nydia, "So, you're suggesting this document, which escaped the fire three years ago, just happened to appear this morning. You discovered it out of the blue and it's directly related to the serial murder case?"

Nydia shrank back, sticking her tongue out, "Believe it or not, that's what happened."

Bradley eyed Nydia coldly. He flipped to the last page of the file, where photos of three teenage boys frowned back at him.

He then tossed the file onto the table, "Let everyone have a look. This was a rape-murder case from seven years ago. All victims of these serial murders are directly connected to this case. Additionally, some of the survivors, whether directly or indirectly, have connections with this case too. The victim in this case was named Grace, check for close associates of this Grace immediately."

Nydia piped up, "Everyone, I've already checked. There's a guy named Keanu who was the neighbor and classmate of the victim. They maintained an excellent relationship. He's currently a senior engineer at Deutsche Sophisticated, mainly responsible for the design and manufacture of precision instruments. He visited Germany a month before the murders. However, his colleagues found that he only remained in Germany for a day, returning without telling anyone in his company, and subsequently vanished. Since the murders occurred, there have been sightings of Keanu near the victim's home."

Bradley stared at Nydia, "Impressive."

Nydia beamed with pride.

Bradley quickly ordered, "Find this Keanu immediately. Three other suspects from seven years ago have gone off the grid. They are Ben Summerfield, Kay Wesley, and Conrad Minnie. Find their current address and deploy constables nearby. Keanu will show up!"

Right that moment, a police officer burst in shouting, "Captain, two more murders!"

"What?" Bradley spun around, eyes wide, "Who?"

The officer answered loudly, "The deceased are Ben Sonmerfield and Kay Wesley. Four others are severely injured - their parents."

"Damn it!" Bradley slapped his hand down on the table, "Immediately locate Conrad Minnie's home and alert his neighborhood. Keanu's next target will be there. Hurry, as he's probably on his way. It's his final target!"

Officers scrambled about, quickly locating Conrad Minnie's address.

An officer yelled out to Bradley, "Captain, the local police force reported a man named Keanu in the vicinity claiming he was delivering a package. A maid ran out to report that..."

"All with me!" Bradley shouted.

The doors of the police station swung open as multiple police cars flashed their sirens and sped away.

Officer Nydia was lost in thought, gazing out the window. How she wished to be a part of such action. After her significant contribution, the upper brass should consider reassigning her from tedious administrative work, right? With this in mind, she smirked, feeling on top of the world.

She took out her phone, sending a quick text, "Hey, thanks for your help, I accomplished a lot thanks to you."

A reply came fast, "No problem. So, they already know who the killer is?"

"Of course, they're on their way to apprehend him."

"Thanks."

"I should be thanking you. By the way, you said, after the murderer is caught, you'll reveal who you are, so, it's about time, don't you think?"

"Sure, I am Keanu."

Clatter. Nydia's phone drops to the floor, shattering into pieces.