The evening breeze of Morioh wrapped in damp, cold mist, making Koichi's hands stiff.
He held a missing person poster, printed by Fatty's parents, up to the streetlamp, his fingertips repeatedly tracing the line, "Fatty's last known location: around Morioh Lake."
He then looked up at the lake before him, a sense of bewilderment in his heart.
"Mr. Jotaro, do we really need to search this whole area?" Koichi asked, looking at the vast lake, sounding a bit unsure.
Behind him, a faint "buzzing" sound suddenly emerged, followed by a vibrant green Stand that drilled out, its body covered in a smooth, beetle-like shell.
Several faint silver, soundwave-like patterns were imprinted on its bright green shell, its six limbs were slender yet metallic, and two pairs of transparent, thin wings vibrated on its back, their tips glowing with a faint green light.
Echoes Act 2 had just floated out when it circled Koichi, a faint green light membrane shimmering on its body, looking very joyful.
Jotaro glanced at this Stand, secretly envying its range, unlike his own Star Platinum which only had two meters.
"Yes, that's right. If a normal murderer commits murder, there will always be traces, no matter what. And during the busy lunchtime, he would definitely kill in a secluded place."
"So Koichi, you need to use your Stand to find places nearby with fewer activity traces, and then we'll investigate them one by one."
Hearing this, Koichi nodded. His Echoes had the longest range among them, making it suitable for searching.
"Go, Echoes!"
Koichi pointed his hand towards the distant forest, and Echoes quickly flew out. It didn't fly far, only circling above the forest, then shook its head.
There were people here; in fact, they had tents set up right now. Clearly, this place was not quiet and not suitable as a murder scene.
Seeing this, Koichi also shook his head at Jotaro, then continued walking along the path, preparing to thoroughly investigate the traces around.
After all, footprints, bloodstains, or videos are impossible to be absent, unless a Stand User committed the murder.
Only a Stand User could completely erase a body, or else it would be some kind of criminal mastermind.
Meanwhile, Jotaro stood on a slightly elevated slope, his gaze sweeping over the entire area from the lake to the forest, not even missing the angle of a tilted blade of grass, then he pointed his hand to his front-side.
"Search this area first. The information from the police is that, according to Fatty's classmate, 'he was seen walking towards the lake,' but the exact location wasn't specified. However, no one has seen him since then, so the scene should be nearby."
"I think the crime scene should be over there, and also, pay special attention to the ground."
He paused, then added, "Although this might just be a disappearance, the timing is too coincidental. If we can't find him, then we'll have to wait for the old man to use his spirit photography."
Upon hearing this, Koichi unhesitatingly ordered Echoes to fly in the direction Jotaro pointed. Mr. Jotaro was the most experienced among them; listening to him couldn't be wrong.
"Hmm, something's up!"
Sure enough, Echoes had barely flown out before it discovered something. Koichi's eyes lit up. "Mr. Jotaro, Echoes found a problem with some footprints!"
"What, footprints? Where?"
Led by Echoes, the group quickly walked deep into the forest. There, a line of footprints abruptly stopped in the woods, with only entry traces and no exit traces.
And behind a tree not far away, there were traces of another set of footprints entering and exiting. "Mr. Jotaro, it's here. Echoes found that the footprints here are wrong."
"Indeed, they're wrong," Josuke crouched closest to Okuyasu, Crazy Diamond's blue palm gently moving across the soil. "There are no traces of this person leaving, and..."
He searched the ground, and under Josuke's control, all the soil and stones separated, revealing a… hair.
"Hmm, looking at the size of these footprints, it should be that missing middle school student. Josuke, use your Crazy Diamond, see if you can find him using this hair."
"No, I can't. This hair hasn't decomposed yet, but I can't find his body based on it... which means he is indeed dead, and his body has completely disappeared."
Higashikata Josuke's tone was heavy. His ability had no absolute time limit; as long as the limbs or hair were not completely damaged, he could still use them to find the body and track him, but he couldn't do it now.
Then the person was truly murdered, and the killer was a Stand User. The last time he had this feeling was when Jotaro had just given him a guitar fragment found at a crime scene, and similarly, he couldn't track or repair it.
"Hmm, it seems the person who did this should be the same one."
Jotaro reached up to adjust his hat, his tone calm. Such a traceless murder was almost certainly the work of the same person who killed Otoishi Akira.
"The same lack of traces. This person's Stand is probably very dangerous. I will ask the SPW Foundation to help retrieve surveillance footage from yesterday during this time period, looking for common individuals who appeared at both locations."
"Josuke, Okuyasu, Koichi, be extra careful recently. This Stand User might continue to act, and this Stand User is likely the type to kill indiscriminately."
When Koichi heard this, his face grew even paler. "Mr. Jotaro, should we tell the police? The police will handle this, right...?"
He clutched the missing person poster tighter, the edges of the paper crinkling from his grip, fear welling up in his heart. Echoes Act 2 suddenly pressed against him, its bright green shell rubbing against him as if to comfort him.
Josuke, however, turned to Koichi and shook his head helplessly. "Koichi, you're overthinking. It's very difficult for ordinary people to interfere in the world of Stand Users. Even if they wanted to catch this Stand User, they couldn't."
"Moreover, the Japanese police..."
Watching Josuke suddenly sigh, Koichi also fell silent. Yes, these traces weren't actually that hidden.
Because Kira Yoshikage hadn't fully mastered the killing techniques of this body, he still overlooked some details; no matter how careful he was, he couldn't perfectly eliminate all traces.
In fact, if the police were willing to search, they could still find many clues, but why didn't they?
Compared to diligently searching for people, it was more convenient to pretend nothing had happened. Anyway, no one would hold them accountable, after all, the disappearance rate in this small town had never been low.
But had there been any impact?
Okuyasu patted Koichi's shoulder, scratched his head, and looked at Jotaro. "So what do we do now? We can't just wait here, can we?"
Jotaro didn't answer immediately. Instead, he pulled out his phone from his pocket and called the SPW Foundation.
Once the call connected, his voice remained steady, yet carried an undeniable authority, "I've found a lead here. Send two people to the Morioh Lake area to take turns staking out. Do not get close. Also, coordinate the retrieval and comparison of surveillance footage from the lakeside and intersections to find the same person."
After hanging up, he paused, then looked at the three of them. "The old man will be able to use his spirit photography tomorrow, and he's already on his way by boat. Before then, don't alert anyone. Be especially careful of people wearing suits."
"Watch out for people in suits?" Josuke was stunned. "Mr. Jotaro, do you have a lead?"
"No."
Jotaro's gaze returned to the firm soil. "But someone who can clean up traces so thoroughly wouldn't be a casual person. Regular demeanor, attention to detail—most likely an office worker type."
He then looked at the footprints behind the tree and added, "The person is probably around 175 cm tall and dresses meticulously. Don't actively search, and don't mention to anyone that we're investigating here. The person is very cautious and will immediately change locations if they notice anything."
The wind blew across the lake again, stirring up a few fallen leaves that landed in the trimmed grass.
No one knew that at this moment, behind a dead tree deep in the forest, Kira Yoshihiro, riding a pigeon, was on the phone with Kira Yoshikage, informing him of the situation in real-time.
"Hmm, I understand. As expected of Jotaro, to find so much information from the details I missed... But Father, rest assured, I will win."