Everyone is searching for a new world
to attain that overflowing dream.
They all jump over the horizon,
regardless of what lies beyond.
We've run,
we've dived into hope,
and forgotten only courage.
And we've been swept away by the crowd
only to lose something dear to us.
I smile with a twisted face,
and it was the best smile I could put on.
The inside of my mask overflowed with tears
so I covered my wet mask with yet another mask.
I continue to walk through the flat battleground,
and I struggle, unable to warp.
The dream waits quietly on a cape far away.
Even if I fumble around clumsily,
I'm sure I'll still be able to make it there.
That was beautiful!
We've got some time before the show, is there anything you'd like to go over?
You have the set list?
Oh, yeah.
I would like you to prepare candles.
Pass them out to all in attendance.
The lights will fall during this piece and thousands of candles will be lit.
Oh, what a romantic performance.
Perfect for something so petty as a charity concert.
Yes?
Merry Christmas, Rutherford.
In five hours time, you'll be a dead man.
Very shortly, even more dangerous Hunters will appear.
To exterminate the Blade Children.
Your skills are at best an imitation of Kiyotaka's.
You don't even begin to compare to the original.
If you plan to follow in your brother's footsteps,
you'd better be on your game.
Looks like they're my only lead.
Aha! I knew I'd find you up here!
Even on Christmas Eve, you're just as gloomy as ever. Are you ever happy?
What do you want? Make it quick.
Ta-dah!
That for me?
Nope.
Hunters.
So, it's finally beginning.
Tell us everything.
Merry Christmas Rutherford.
In five hours time, you'll be a dead man.
What an elaborate Christmas gift.
Dream it up yourself, did you?
Don't take it so hard. You are the top dog.
So I guess I'll be getting an explosive package soon?
Don't you know? I'd never use a bomb on you Rutherford.
I wouldn't want to mess up your pretty face.
No, it won't be a bomb.
The sudden, terrible death of the great Eyes Rutherford
will be a clear message to the rest of the Blade Children.
Playtime is over.
He's threatening all of us!
A bomb, maybe?
Never. A bomb would be way too simple.
Exactly. The Hunter might realize we'd dismiss it as a possibility
because of it's simplicity. He could use that against us.
There will be no bomb.
The time he indicated is the start of the concert.
With that much time, we could easily find a bomb anywhere on the premises.
Certainly, he would realize that.
But, there's no guarantee that this guy's going to attack
at the time he said.
That's what's buggin' me. He could easily bump you off in any number of ways!
So why go out of his way to inform us about it?
What does he stand to gain by telling us ahead of time?
He must be really confident in himself.
I mean he has the gall to warn us and give us plenty of time to react.
It's like he's just taunting us, basically telling us...
That our resistance is pointless.
And, if he also means for my murder to be a message to the Blade Children,
he'll make it look like an accidental death.
A display of power!
Even with all those people there at the concert,
it could still be made to look like an accident.
He wants to show us just how easy it can be to kill a one of the Blade Children,
doesn't he?
The bastard must think he's some kinda hotshot!
I'll kill him!
You'll do nothing.
I will take care of this myself.
What are you talking about? This isn't about just you!
He's declared war on all the Blade Children.
Rio is still an easy target.
Should anything happen to me,
you and Rio should go and hide.
Rutherford?
Four hours left, Rutherford.
The Hunter?
Abandon any notions of this being a declaration of war.
Our fight is not nearly so clean and simple as that.
Eyes?
You still owe me my Christmas melon.
It's a Christmas present.
From Hiyono?
If you're done, then get out of here.
Sorry, I'm not quite done yet.
Where is my brother?
I have no idea.
Then what's a Hunter?
How do you know about that?
Is this Hunter after my brother as well?
I don't have to answer that. Now just get the hell out!
Just calm down.
I realize you're worked up because your friend is being targeted.
You jerk. You were listening in on us.
It's just like Kousuke says, he's telling the truth.
We have no idea where Kiyotaka is.
Nobody knows where he is.
Why don't you just cancel the concert?
Eyes would never do that. That's exactly what the Hunter would want.
So it's okay to put the lives of the audience at risk too?
Little Narumi, this is a situation you can't expect to understand.
I'm trying to tell you as nice as I can.
Well, if you won't give me any information
then I'll just take it upon myself to stop this Hunter and...
Kill or be killed. That's every single day for us.
Sonobe was the first hunter. Imazato was another.
Do you understand what I'm trying to say to you?
If you're saying there's a reason for what you're doing,
then I have my own reason.
Do as you wish!
There's no way around it. We need Little Narumi's abilities.
Merry Christmas Eve!
I'm here to deliver your Christmas cake!
I don't remember ordering one.
It's from me!
Looks like we'll have the candles here just in time.
Glance over the schedule and make sure it's all right.
What are you doing here?
Thought you might be lonely. Came to keep you company.
There are no signs of the lights being tampered with.
The stage is made of fiberglass, so he can't electrocute you.
What about the piano?
I've checked it. It's tip-top.
So, what?
Can you think of any other possibilities?
Underground.
The gas pipes.
Out of the question, no way!
A flamboyant incident like that
would attract way too much attention from the police.
They'd know it wasn't an accident.
The whole point of making it look like an accident
is to avoid police intervention.
Figure anything out yet? You've got two hours.
Seems I've got two hours.
Damn!
There's a chance he poisoned Rutherford's food.
Did you eat any of that?
Poison effects each person differently.
To determine a specific time of death would be difficult, but...
It is possible.
Geez, how did I get talked into this?
Just have this tested, will ya?
By the way, that crazy girl isn't with you is she?
No, but I heard about you too.
Your little indiscretion... And a police officer at that.
Oh no! I've been threatened!
I'm going to be blackmailed by that kid for the rest of my life.
Maybe.
; The snow fell lightly, Huwa huwa huwa ri, ;
; And drifted tranquilly, Into an angel made of white, ;
Weird song.
So, have you and Ayumu made any sort of plans for Christmas vacation?
No, but Ayumu did volunteer to deliver all of my Christmas presents for me.
Will you quit it? It's become quite annoying.
However you look at it, there's no way to set a trap on stage.
Maybe it is poison.
What is a Hunter?
Why is he trying to kill you?
Keep quiet!
What are the Blade Children?
I said, shut up!
Answer me! Why are you trying to...
I'll tell you why.
Because we're missing one of these!
Kousuke.
What does Rio expect out of him anyway?
How could someone like him be expected to save the Blade Children?
He's just an eyesore.
You're expecting something from him as well.
Otherwise you would not have brought him here.
This is a good chance to ascertain his skill.
Because we're missing one of these!
Our fight is not nearly so clean and simple as that.
The Blade Children, what kind of burden do they carry?
"Wataya"
What did he say?
The food was clean, no poison.
But that doesn't do much to help the current situation.
I think you should consider cancelling the concert.
I will not.
Thirty minutes left.
You will not get away with this!
Incidentally, I don't use poison.
He's bugging us!
He knows everything we've been doing!
Here it is!
Damn it!
This thing doesn't have much of a broadcast range.
The bastard must be close by!
We're at Stand By, Mr. Rutherford!
Call off the show, Rutherford.
This is no time to be stubborn!
Step aside.
I won't let you do it!
We die when we turn our backs on our own fate.
You could be killed if you go out there!
You would do the same as I.
Rutherford!
Let him go!
But why?
What did you bring us out here for?
He may have more than one listening device.
We can't take a chance by talking in there
and having the Hunter hear our plans.
What? So, you know what he's got in store?
Of course. But we're running really short on time.
Rutherford, go back and stall the show by five minutes.
That short of a delay won't make him suspicious.
We'll use that time to incapacitate the Hunter.
What will be the murder weapon of choice?
A sniper attack!
How do you know?
I'll explain it once we've stopped the Hunter!
Just so we're clear, if Rutherford gets killed, I'll kill you.
Right, so the lights come down and...
I'm beginning two minutes early.
Also, I'm opening with this song instead. Rearrange the order for me.
But, we're about to...
Just handle it.
Eyes! I told him delay the show.
What the hell is he doing?
So you're ready to die.
Hurry up! We need to find where the sniper is hiding!
Considering the field of vision and ease of escape,
the front-right lighting tower, facing the stage.
There he is!
I'll try and distract him. Why don't you come around from behind?
Got it!
Curtain call, Rutherford.
Come on!
Don't shoot!
Drop the gun, jerk!
Stop!
Damn!
He purposefully made himself a target. What was he thinking?
It was his way of defying the Hunter.
As if to say, "Take your best shot!"
He's insane. Even though the heat rising from the thousands of candle flames
did create a distortion that blocked the sniper's view,
it was still reckless.
Reckless?
We've had our backs against the wall since the day we were born.
Reckless is simply a way of life for us.
By the way, how did you know it would be a sniper attack?
The bug he used, a pro would've used a more sophisticated one.
He was counting on you finding it under the couch.
The fact that he went out of his way to tell you he was listening
is proof of that.
Once I figured out that much, the answer came to me.
The whole thing was a game to distract us from a simple shooting.
Because you were being so cautious about the Hunter,
you overestimated him and lost your abilities of calm judgment and perception.
As a result, you were lured into the incorrect theory
that he would fake an accidental death.
Check for yourself. There should be another listening device,
one that's much more elaborate and not so easily found.
You allowed yourself to be manipulated by the Hunter,
which made it easy for him to move around us and set up his attack.
It was all a ruse, a ruse to disguise a simple, yet effective sniper attack.
Hello?
- Where in the world are you Ayumu? ;... Jingle bells, jingle bells! ;
- You need to come home right this minute! ;... Christmastime is here, yay! ;
Yeah, alright. I'm on my way. See ya.
Now I'm confused.
Did Little Narumi plan on saving Rutherford from the very start?
A sweet scent washes into my throat
and my feelings continuously overflow...
Don't look at me with that same gaze
that's like you're following a soccer ball.
I've already grown used to my third year at the office,
but did I lose something instead?
Those days long ago when we would talk about anything...
We're finally old enough now
to have those slightly awkward discussions about love.
A single day seems so long, but a whole year ends so quickly.
A whole year seems so short,
but how well will I be able to live the rest of my life?
It's Santa Hiyo-Hiyo's Postcard Corner!
Ho! Ho! Ho!
What did you ask for?
"Please make it snow on Christmas Day. 20 inches would be nice!"
I can't do that!
"Please make it always be winter vacation."
I can't do that, either!
"I want love. Please, give me love. Sincerely, Officer Suemaru Wataya."
Huh?
On the next Spiral: Shimmering Fragrance.
That's all for today's Santa Hiyo-Hiyo's Playhouse!
Merry Reindeer!