"Alright! I understand. I'll be there soon," Light Yagami said before ending the call.
"Is something urgent enough to make you leave now?" L asked beside him, his calm gaze fixed on Light.
"Ah, yes. It's my college friend, Kiyomi Takada. You know her, right? I promised to go out with her some time ago, but I kept postponing it. I guess it's a good time to take a short break. We won't have much time later if we get fully involved in this fight against Kira."
"Hmm, I see. Still, the case of Amane Misa's disappearance is a bit complicated. Be careful not to reveal anything to anyone around you."
"Of course. You don't have to worry."
"Alright then… goodbye."
L kept watching Light as he walked out and closed the door behind him.
A moment later, L leaned closer to the nearby microphone and spoke quietly:
"Send someone to keep an eye on Yagami Light. Be cautious. Don't get too close to him."
Then he leaned back in his chair, thinking to himself:
"I really hope you're not Kira, Light… because you're the only person I can actually call… a friend."
Meanwhile, as soon as Light left the room, his indifferent expression vanished. His eyes turned sharp and serious.
Next to him, the shinigami Ryuk burst out laughing.
"Hahaha! I didn't expect someone bold enough to threaten you like that."
"So, what now?" Ryuk asked. "Are you really going to do what that person asked?"
Light lowered his head slightly as he walked.
"That person wasn't part of my plan… but his interference in kidnapping Misa has actually helped me."
He continued coldly, "If L had caught her, it would've put me in a more difficult situation. As for that man's demands—fine, I can play along. If I can bring him to my side, that would be useful. He's smart and has some courage. But if he doesn't cooperate…"
A small smirk formed on Light's face.
"…then I can erase him anytime I want."
"Misa must have already seen his name, so there's no need to think too much about it. I'll meet him first—and then decide."
******
Light returned home first, then left again a few minutes later. He arrived at a public park late in the evening.
There, on a nearby bench, sat a man wearing a long raincoat—oddly out of place in the warm weather.
Light recognized him immediately; the man had described his outfit earlier during their call.
"You're quite bold," Light said as he sat down beside him. "You know I'm being watched, yet you chose this place to meet."
"I'm a nobody. No one will recognize me anyway, so it doesn't matter," the man replied. His name was Louis, the one who had kidnapped Misa.
"So… did you bring them?"
Light studied him for a moment before taking two torn pieces of paper from his coat pocket.
"You said you wanted to see both shinigami. With these, you'll be able to." He handed the papers to Louis.
"You're cautious," Louis noted. "You didn't bring either of the Death Notes with you, did you?"
"I don't know how you found out about my Death Notes or about the shinigami," Light said coolly. "Care to explain that?"
Louis smiled faintly. "Heh. You didn't even ask about Amane Misa's safety. You really live up to your name, Kira. But I don't have time to chat."
He grabbed the papers, and instantly, two monstrous figures appeared before him—Ryuk and Rem.
"Hooh, so you can see us now, huh?" Ryuk said, grinning widely.
"So you're Ryuk, and you must be Rem. Interesting," Louis replied.
"Now, tell me where Misa is," Light interrupted.
"Heh, did you just remember her?" Louis smirked, then turned toward Rem. "You probably already know where she is, since you're contracted with her. But never mind, I'll take you there anyway."
He stood up and took a few steps forward.
"Oh, I almost forgot," he added casually. "I planted a bomb in the room where Misa is. You have ten minutes to save her. If you don't make it in time…"
He didn't finish. Instead, Louis dashed off at full speed, trying to escape.
"Damn it! You think I'll let you get away?" Light growled, about to chase him, but Rem blocked his path.
"Save Misa first. If anything happens to her, I won't hesitate to destroy you."
"Tch," Light clicked his tongue. "Fine. Lead the way—quickly."
Ryuk watched Louis disappear into the distance and muttered,
"Humans really are fascinating."
******
On the other side of the city, Louis had already escaped far enough. He glanced behind him; no one was following. He ducked into a narrow alley, pulled out the two paper pieces, and took a pen.
Breathing heavily, he began writing:
"Yagami Light, Amane Misa, [L's real name – which he had gotten from Misa earlier], Near, Mello."
But before he could relax, he heard footsteps approaching rapidly. A group of people surrounded him.
"We finally found you, bastard!" one of them shouted. "Because of you, we'll get a bad rating for this system mission. Forget about winning!"
Louis froze. They were the Crow Group, the same players he had met earlier in the waiting room.
"Thanks to you, not only did we fail to catch that girl, but our value to the main police investigator has dropped too!" another said angrily.
"You know that dying in a safe world doesn't cost you a life, but it still counts as a mission failure. And I swear, I won't let you set foot in this world again."
Louis raised his hands quickly. "Wait, I know the true identities of both the detective and the villain in this mission! If you spare me, I'll share that information. Imagine it—revealing both main roles. You'd get double rewards!"
The group hesitated. The offer was tempting. Double rewards in a safe world were extremely rare.
Even Crow, the leader, wavered for a moment. But then he thought,
If he really knew both their identities, why hasn't the system ended the mission yet?
A dark realization hit him. The third hidden main mission… could he have completed it?
Seeing the confident smile on Louis's face, Crow's eyes widened. He shouted:
"He's stalling! Attack now! Kill him—quickly!"
The others were startled by the sudden command but trusted Crow's instincts and rushed forward.
Louis just smiled wider. "Too bad for you. Forty seconds have already passed… I'm the winner this time."
Before the Crow group could reach him, every player in the stage froze where they stood.
Then, a familiar system voice echoed in their minds:
[Ding! Player L.K. has completed all main missions.]
Everyone's expressions shifted—fear, anger, confusion—but Louis's face showed pure satisfaction.
Because all players were competitors, this meant only Louis had succeeded. Everyone else had failed.
Moments later, another message appeared:
[Congratulations! Player L.K., your performance in the world "Death Note" was exceptional.
Time taken: 6 hours and 3 minutes.
All main missions completed.
Final rating: SSS.]
Perfect rating.
The announcement was shown to everyone— even those still waiting in other lobbies.
For a few seconds, the entire community went silent. Then chaos erupted.
After six long years, someone had finally achieved a perfect rating again.
And not just anywhere—but in one of the most notorious safe worlds: Death Note.
Soon, players of all races and regions across the world were buzzing with excitement.