Yuuta still felt as if he was in a daze as the days wore on. Not only did he earn a lot of money because of the merchandise that Shiki was selling, but he also obtained a percentage from the revenues of the videos of him which were released on Youtube. He never expected that Lucid Dream Server Corp. would actually give him money but unbeknownst to him, they actually received few complaints about getting revenues by putting up someone's face on Youtube without their consent. In the end, they didn't have any choice but to give 75% of the revenues to Yuuta. Of course, the money Yuuta received was from his videos of him, not the total revenues that Lucid Dream Server Corp. got from their overall videos. If that were the case, then Yuuta would've been a billionaire by now.
Compared to other players who were famous because of their status in real life, Yuuta was the most popular of them all by a large margin. This was because of his unconventional and old-fashioned approach to the Lucid Dream Server VRMMORPG that made him interesting. While others were trying to get a leg up from everyone, Yuuta was befriending NPC's. Of course, Yuuta would be far more interesting to watch rather than those that are competing with each other in real life and in-game as well.
And even on the official site for the Lucid Dream Server, Yuuta's name occurs more frequently than any other player. Some might even say that he had become the mascot of the Lucid Dream Server itself.
But while all of those were happening... the sixteenth murder happened in the neighboring city of Hekinan. By this time, the other cities haven't heard of the news but apparently, the murder that happened there was connected to the series of murders that happened in the city where Yuuta lived.
"What's this? I swear I've seen this sign before." Hugo, the Chief of Police in the Hekinan Police Department, mumbled as he examined the piece of paper that he got from an unsealed envelope. According to the testimony of the person who found the dead body, the unsealed envelope was placed on top of the body that was found in the middle of the road.
The symbol on the paper was that of a circle with some sort of thread woven in the shape of a spider-web in the middle of it. At the bottom part of the circle, there were three feathers hanging down, as if swaying in the wind. There wasn't anything else on the paper aside from the smear of blood that was painted on the feather in the middle. No words of threats, no other symbols... nothing.
"You know, Chief! That thing! That thing your beautiful daughter hangs on top of the door to her room!" The newbie exclaimed as his eyes sparkled. "I think they call it... Dream Caster! Or something like that."
"Shut up! And you're not allowed to date my daughter! She's off-limits!" Hugo snapped.
"Eh? But we already went on a date!" The young man reasoned.
"A DreamCatcher. That's what it is." One of the private investigators walked towards Hugo and the newbie, interrupting their useless argument. "A DreamCatcher is one of the most popular superstitions in the world. No one knows of its origins. People believe that hanging these dreamcatchers at the top of their door would rid the house of nightmares and bad dreams. That's why people who suffer from nightmares usually hang it on the entrance to their house."
"So, what are we looking at here, Lawrence-san? Are we looking at an organization? Or is it a cult? Or are we looking at a serial killer?" Hugo asked.
"For now we don't have enough evidence to know. However, we believed that this murder is related to the deaths that happened in the neighboring cities. I don't believe that this is done by a single person so one of your hunches may be right. For now, we'll upload this symbol to our database and try to learn everything we can. That's the only evidence left behind, there were no murder weapons, nor any other evidence except for this one. Just like all the other murders, this is also a mystery."
And Lawrence was right. As Hugo looked at the murdered woman a second time, he ended up scratching his head at the sight. That's because the body of the woman was pressed flat on the floor as if she was flattened by a huge rolling pin. Only her head remained intact.
"For now, we'll bring the evidence to the Forensics. As for the body, we'll do the best we can on the autopsy. Apparently, this girl didn't have any relatives in Hekinan. Her parents are currently residing in Tokyo and we already received a heads up for the autopsy. Just wait for now, Chief Hugo. We'll keep you posted."
Hugo nodded and proceeded to go back to the car the newbie was driving.
"Chief," The newbie muttered.
"No can do," Hugo responded.
"But I haven't even asked anything!"
.....
The next afternoon, Rin received a call from the Bank, updating him of his son's bank account. Apparently, Yuuta's account received a huge amount of money, larger than the amount of money he received from the past. And since Rin was the guardian listed in Yuuta's information, they thought that it'd be best if they were to inform Rin about it.
"Can you say that again?" Rin gulped as he tried to keep himself calm.
"Yes sir, the current balance in your son's account is 219, 314, 125.96 yen. Were you aware of this money, sir?" The bank manager relayed. "I heard that your son is playing the game called the Lucid Dream Server. Is he really earning this money in that game?"
'What the- he's got more money than me!' Rin said to himself as he cleared his throat. "Thanks for the heads up and yes, it's more or less like that," Rin responded although he didn't know where his son got 200 million yen.
As soon as Rin hanged up on the phone, the door clicked, and in came Yuuta. He was just arriving home from school. "I'm home." He casually called out.
"Oh, Yuuta, you're home. We need to talk." Rin said in a serious manner.
.....
A few minutes later, after hearing a half-assed lecture from his dad, Yuuta climbed on top of his bed. As if on cue, his phone began to ring.
"Hello?"
"Yuuta, it's me," Miki responded on the other end. Her voice was a bit unclear but if Yuuta were paying attention, then he would've heard the bashfulness in Miki's voice.
"Ah, Miki. Why did you call?"
"I told you I needed to tell you something." She continued.
"Right. Right."
Without further ado, Miki started talking about all the recent murders that happened near Yuuta's place. She must've known that Yuuta doesn't check the news that much since he was blind and she was on point. Unless it was necessary, Yuuta doesn't bother to hear the news. If he needed to know something, he could just ask his younger sister or his dad.
That's why it came as a surprise for him when he heard that there were already a total of sixteen mysterious murders in his and nearby cities. "Are you sure about this?"
"Yes, you can ask your dad for confirmation. Even here in California. It's becoming a big topic." She continued.
"Why is that?"
"A few days ago, the California State Police Department stumbled upon a murder case right in front of the police station. The victim was a middle-aged man who happened to stop by the police to complain about the gang fights near his residence. His body was found five minutes after he got out of the police station. His cause of death was the strangling of the airways inside the neck but there were no external wounds found. And the murder weapon was not found. The only thing they found was an envelope with a drawing of a dreamcatcher."
"A dreamcatcher?"
"Yes, you know, that one that's said to filter dreams that come into the house, letting the good dreams in and the bad dreams a-"
"I know what a dreamcatcher is. But why is it there? Is it some sort of organization?"
"That's all I could say for now... any more and I might endanger myself as well. Also, it'd be best if I tell you that that person who died is connected to the Lucid Dream Server."
"You mean... he's a Dreamer?"
"You'll know soon enough." Miki continued and then she hung up.
And as soon as she did, the door to her room opened and in came his mother. "Miki, are you still talking to that Yuuta?"
Miki nodded, thinking that a scolding was due to her disobedience. She closed her eyes, hoping tha the punishment won't be as severe as being grounded for a month.
"Look, Miki." Akiko sat beside her as she combed her hair with her hands. "You can't tell him everything. If word gets out, then we'll be in danger as well. You'll also endanger Yuuta if you tell him any more than that."
Miki nodded for a second time.
"But telling him about the murders is a good move. Now, he'll start searching for answers and that will be easier for him. Let's wait for him for now."