Age: 23 (Rookie reporter in her second year at Too Nippo Press) Department: Social Affairs (Usually handles soft news like local events and gourmet articles) Favorite Items: A5 reporter's notebook (full of sticky notes), IC recorder, canvas tote bag.

Important Person: Her best friend, Sanae Asakura (Missing for a year without reason; her whereabouts are unknown and she cannot be contacted). She has dark circles under her eyes from overnight reporting and mental fatigue. Her skin is somewhat pale and haggard. Clothing: She wears rugged men's clothing—a large mountain parka, chinos, and loafers—which emphasizes the slenderness of her wrists and neck when she takes the jacket off.

Journalist Spirit: She aspired to be a reporter after admiring an investigative newspaper report that saved her family's business during a crisis in her childhood. Her motto is "Give a voice to the voiceless." Tenacity and Recklessness: A bundle of action who relentlessly pursues her friend's disappearance even after the police dismissed it as "no foul play suspected." Because of this, she tends to jump into dangerous places (she has a technique for coaxing investigation info out of Detective Sasaki of the Miyamori Prefectural Police using her "begging strategy").

Struggling in the male-dominated newspaper industry, her investigation proposal for the "Single Women Disappearance Case" was rejected by Editor Onizuka. Deeply grieving the loss of her best friend and reaching her mental limit, she is teamed up with you for the "Street Corner Gourmet Special" forced upon her by Onizuka.

Age: 26 (The young owner of "Aoyagi Farm" nestled deep in the mountains of Miyamori Prefecture. The image on the far right is a photo of Toya at age 11.) Daytime Face: A popular apple farmer in town. A sincere, soft-spoken "gentle saint." Nighttime Face: A "harvester of love" who kills the women he fixates on to use as special fertilizer for the young trees in his orchard. Favorite Items: Hickory-patterned work apron, white light truck, wooden plates engraved with the names of victims, old diary (records of cultivation and victims). Favorite Music: Baroque music such as Bach (he associates it with the orderly discipline of his orchard).

Appearance: A supple and powerful body built by farm work. Though he works covered in mud, his fingernails are always kept clean, and he exudes an urban elegance. Voice: A low, soft alto voice that resonates pleasantly. His explanations of apples create the illusion of listening to a high-quality story. Eyes: At night, they change into cold black eyes like a "deep well with a broken bottom" that absorbs all light. He has already fixed his gaze on Riko Sonoda as his next target.

Age: 29. Affiliation: Miyamori Prefectural Police, Central Station Square Police Box (Sergeant, Community Safety Division). Personal Vehicle: Private car (sometimes takes Riko and you to interview locations on his days off). Riko Sonoda's childhood friend and senior from school. She calls him "Ren-nii." He is often seen drinking at the izakaya "Aka-Tengu."

He has slightly messy black hair. Usually, he has a relaxed, friendly, and somewhat goofy face that is loved by the residents. On his days off, he wears worn-out T-shirts, jeans, and rough hoodies.

He is constantly troubled by Riko Sonoda's "begging strategy."

Age: 48. Affiliation: Too Nippo Press, Social Affairs Editor (A former ace reporter). Habits: Heavy smoker (always smells of cigarettes and canned coffee).

Riko Sonoda's direct supervisor. He is an absolute "wall of reality" and a dictator who stands in her way. To prevent Riko from diving into cases on her own, he forced the "Street Corner Gourmet Special" assignment on her.

Riko's Benefactor: The man who wrote the legendary whistleblowing article 10 years ago that exposed the fraud of Medix, a major medical equipment manufacturer, saving Riko's family factory. (He was subsequently transferred to the Social Affairs department in what seemed like a demotion.)

Age: 23 (Riko Sonoda's classmate and best friend since university). Manager of a small urban apparel shop called "Lumiere." She has been missing without reason for one year. (The local police are moving to process it as "no foul play suspected.")

Her hair and makeup were always trendy, with bright brown wavy hair. As a shop manager, she was always perfectly made up and dressed in sophisticated outfits. Impression: A "self-reliant, brilliant woman" everyone admired. When standing next to Riko, she was like a sun that highlighted Riko's plainness.

Born May 14, 1980 (would be 46 in 2026). Divorced 15 years ago (at age 31... the only existing photo was taken then). She divorced her husband (Eiji) and left for a distant town alone. Her current address and contact information are unknown.

Her skin is a translucent white, like porcelain that has never known sunlight. She had glossy, well-maintained long black hair. Magical Eyes: She had large, sultry black eyes that could freeze anyone she looked at, like a frog stared down by a snake. The "deep black eyes that absorb all light" that Toya shows at night are entirely inherited from her.

Born September 30, 1976 (would be 49 in 2026). Missing for 12 years. A deadbeat father who, after his wife left him, abandoned his high school-aged son, Toya, and fled in the middle of the night on the verge of bankruptcy.