sqrrel

You scared the hell out of me. I’m glad you’re awake...

H-How'sthefire?!

Don't move!

And don't worry. The fire's out. You did great.

But now I’m worried about you. The medic says you breathed in a little too much carbon monoxide. You need to get some rest.

Don't move too much, and keep your oxygen mask on.

Oh, wait! Whataboutthatguy?! Whathappened totheguywhowastrapped inthebuilding?! Igotta—

Shaw!

Chief, Icanstill—

It's too late.

Shaw never expected to find such a small room behind the door.

Everything inside has been burned to ashes, which in turn makes the room look that much more open.

There is a safe in the corner of the room. Although warped from the heat, its contents are miraculously intact.

A small stack of LMD bills and a stamp album.

Shaw.

Pack it up.

The fire erupted so quickly. In the end, one person died, with eleven in critical condition.

That was the first time I saw a life extinguished right before my eyes.

Jan 8 \ Showers

I found a pet fowlbeast.

I got distracted during training; got reprimanded. Had to write a self-reflection report.

Jan 11 \ Clear

The investigation into the fire the other day has wrapped up. It was started by a worn-out home-use Originium fire starter device, which set off a chain of explosions. The residents had too many things strewn around the building, which helped the fire spread.

I was commended at the ceremony today.

Jan 13 \ Overcast

I took the day off.

Y-Yousaidyoucouldn'tfindanything?

Right. You were there yourself. His whole life was burned to a crisp. There weren't any clues for us to work with.

We asked around in the neighborhood. All we learned is that the deceased was a single male. No idea what he did for a living or what his relationships were like.

Whatabouthisfamily? Hisfamilyhastoknow.

We put a notice in the papers asking anyone to come forward to claim his remains. We still haven't heard from anyone.

Butwhat... whatifhisfamilydidn'tseeit? Whatifhedoesn'thaveanyfamily inLungmen...?

That's not something we have to worry about.

Wecan'tbeoutofideasnow...

That'sright, hisstampalbum!

Wasn'tthereastampalbum inhisroom?

Oh, that thing, huh? We looked into it.

No idea why he kept it in the safe, but analysis shows it's just a normal stamp album. There aren't even any fingerprints. We couldn't find any leads at all.

Why are you still asking about the fire, Shaw? The investigation must be over by now.

It was a home-use Originium fire starter that burned the place down. Both the L.G.D. and fire department arrived at that conclusion. There's nothing suspicious about it.

Chief... I...

Chief... mayIhavethestampalbum?

If we go by the book, we're supposed to destroy all personal effects left behind by nameless victims. I could give it to you, but what for?

Chief... There'ssomethingveryimportant thatIgottafigureout. Idunnohowtoexplain, but—

*Sigh*, what do I do with you... Come with me.

Thanks!

The guy who lived on the second floor? Didn't you ask me just a couple days ago? I didn't know him!

Every time I had to see that shitty face of his, it was all I could do to keep from punching it in. He never gave anyone the time of day. Why would we care about him?

Look, half my flat got burned down. I don't have the time to worry about some guy. I'm busy. Now leave me alone.

Sorrytobotheryou...

There aren’t many of us in this building, so we all know each other, more or less...

But that guy never talked to anyone. He never left his room during the day, either, so nobody knew much about him...

I met that uncle once. He was really big! He was like thiiiiiis tall!

He smiled at me and gave me a candy, too!

Huh? Was he an uncle or a grandpa? I'm not too sure...

Mio! How many times have I told you not to accept things from strangers?!

I'm sorry, we can't help you. We have some errands to run. Bye now.

Sorryforinterruptingyou, thankyouverymuch, goodbye!

Stillnoideawhohewas...

Jan 15 \ Overcast

I took the day off.

I talked to a lot of people, but no one knew anything about the man.

It was like the fire burned away every trace of his life, like he never existed at all.

No, this isn't in my job description. I can't write about this here...

...Pleaseholdon!

Hello, sorryforinterrupting, doyouwork atthepostoffice? CanIaskyousomething?

Takealook atthisstampalbum!

Oh? If you want an appraisal on your collectibles, you need to make a reservation with the postal collectible specialists, and I'm about to clock out...

No, that'snotit! I'mverysorry, Ijustwantedtoask, wouldyoubeable totellanythingaboutitsowner justbylooking atthestampalbum?

What do you mean by that... It's not yours?

No... ActuallyIguessitkindofis. Anyway, couldyoupleasetakealook? It'sreallyimportant...

Alright, alright. Slow down. Hand it over.

Hm... You don't see a collection like this very often.

Didyoufigureoutsomething?!

Not really. It's just strange. Why would someone collect stamps like this?

W-Whatdoyoumean?

When people collect stamps, they’re usually either limited edition stamps or stamps that have some special significance, right?

But the stamps in here are all very common. There's no value in it whatsoever.

Novalue? Butitsowner keptitverysafe...

I can't tell you what the collector was thinking. The stamps' themes and years are all jumbled up, and he kept both postmarked and non-postmarked stamps together...

A lot of it has Kou-wu landscapes, though. Look, from this page onwards, it's all Kou-wu sceneries.

Now this 'Hui-ch'i Foothills' one is a classic. If my memory serves, it was issued a couple decades ago? They printed a lot of them, though, so it's not worth that much money.

That aside, I couldn’t tell you what's so special about this collection.

Isthatall...?

If you wanted to learn something about the owner from the collection, I'm afraid there's not much.

If I had to give you an answer, maybe he likes the landscapes in Kou-wu?

Gotit... Thanksalot!

Kou-wu landscapes...

Washe... fromKou-wu?

'Kou-wuKitchen...' Thisisit.

Come in, come in. Take a seat anywhere.

Hellothere... Iamwondering... ifyouserveauthentic Kou-wunesecuisinehere?

What? Girl, go ahead and ask every restaurant in Lungmen. See if anyone dares to say they serve more authentic Kou-wunese food than me?!

I-I'msorry, that'snotwhatImeant!

WhatImeanttoaskis... dopeoplefromKou-wu eathereoften?

People from Kou-wu? Of course. We've served many Kou-wunese expats here. All of them say our food takes them right back home.

If you don't believe me, why don’t you try it yourself?

Boss... Iwanttoaskyouaboutacustomer...

He... HewasprobablyKou-wuese... Areallytallman, andprobablykindofhardup. Heprobablylookedalittleangry... maybenot... buthewouldcomefodinner intheevenings, otherwisealwayskeepingtohimself...

Hmm...