This Madam, Something's Not Right!

"Is someone talking about me again...?"

Fujino pulled out a napkin from the side and wiped away non-existent snot, inwardly complaining.

"Brother Fujino, take care to keep warm."

Sitting next to him, Juzo Megure, wearing an old brown trench coat, turned to Fujino and said, "The weather's getting colder lately, remember to wear more clothes."

"Speaking of which, the weather has been quite unpredictable lately..."

Sitting opposite Sato Miwako, wearing a white shirt, nodded. "A lot of people have caught a cold recently."

"Yes."

Juzo Megure nodded, but he cared more about Fujino.

In his memory, it seemed that Fujino had always been wearing this suit.

The old ones were thicker, but the current ones look too thin; you'd only need to wear a thin trench coat over them at most.

This guy is being way too frugal...

Are these the only two pieces of clothing you have?

Megure felt a lump in his throat, a feeling akin to that of an elderly father.

"My constitution is pretty good, I don't catch colds or anything like that, I just had a slightly itchy nose."

Fujino smiled and simply replied.

With his current physical condition, catching a cold is simply not an option for him.

Even riding a bear shirtless in the snow wouldn't be a problem.

Looking up, Fujino glanced around.

This gathering was held in a private room at an izakaya (Japanese pub), and in addition to officers from the Criminal Investigation Department, many officers from other departments also attended.

It's easy to tell them apart: those who haven't been drinking are criminal police officers.

The person who drank alcohol is definitely not a criminal police officer.

Yes, that's a very simple principle.

After all, a murder happens almost every day in Mikasa. If a detective gets drunk while on duty, it could be a real problem when investigating a case...

Even after get off work, drinking is prohibited, and one must be ready to return to the team at any time.

This isn't a rule, but rather an unspoken rule or professional responsibility.

Anyway, all the people from the three departments have followed the rules properly.

As for why people from other departments came, it can only be said that Yumi Miyamoto was being irresponsible. If a perfectly good social gathering didn't have a police officer like Inspector Juzo Megure and started a family, it would just turn into a social gathering.

Fujino knew quite a few of them.

For example, Yumi Miyamoto and her colleagues in the transportation department.

He remembered that these colleagues would probably also be killed off by the Aoyama Gosho in the future...

All I can say is that being a police officer is very risky. If he didn't have the system, he probably would have already sent it.

"Officer Sato, you should also keep warm."

At this moment, Shiratori, who was sitting opposite, wearing a sharp suit, immediately transformed into a sycophant, starting to shower him with concern and care.

"That's right, that's right. It would be troublesome if you caught a cold."

Nodding, Takagi echoed in agreement.

Its reaction speed is a bit slow, obviously a step behind Shiratori.

Just as the two dogs were about to fight over the spotlight, a sudden commotion arose from the side.

"Haa!"

"Bang!"

Yumi Miyamoto, sitting at the long table, slammed her beer mug onto the surface, her cheeks flushed, and roared in a resentful tone, "What 125? What Fujiwara Tofu Shop? To hell with it!"

Upon hearing this, Sato Miwako's ears twitched, and she changed the subject, saying, "By the way, Yumi, haven't you caught those two guys yet?"

"It's not that we didn't catch them..."

Yumi Miyamoto snuggled up to Sato Miwako and said resentfully, "That guy hasn't shown up since he dumped me last time! Honestly, even if I wanted to catch him, he'd have to show up first."

"Alright, Yumi!"

Sitting at the same table was a woman with an oval face and long black Sunflower Seeds. A traffic police officer named Yagi Shiori patted her on the shoulder and said, "Isn't it good that he doesn't show up?"

"But Shiori..."

Yumi Miyamoto was somewhat unwilling. "That guy just provoked us like that, if we don't revoke his driver's license and lock him up in the police station..."

"Even if we encountered them, we wouldn't be able to catch them."

The plump woman with short brown hair and bangs was also a traffic police officer. She took a sip of beer and said with some dissatisfaction, "I don't know if that guy's AE86 has been fitted with some kind of F1 racing engine. He can go over 100 miles per hour just by stepping on the gas. Our little panda can't keep up at all."

"Well..."

With a sigh, Yumi Miyamoto said plaintively, "Those old fogies are really something. Can't they lend us their highway patrol vehicles?"

"It's no use."

Yagi Shiori said helplessly, "Those people treat those sports cars like treasures, we can't get them at all. Besides, with Tokyo's traffic situation, even if the highway patrol cars come, it won't make a difference."

Yumi Miyamoto understood her two colleagues' advice, but she was still a little annoyed. "Honestly, if I catch that guy on the street, I'll teach him a lesson and make Mi-wako lock him up in jail!"

Why do you have to grab him?

Sato Miwako was speechless for a moment. "Besides speeding, what other serious crimes has he committed?"

"Hmm..."

Yumi Miyamoto was speechless for a moment. "That guy doesn't seem to have done anything else besides speeding."

"I can't do that."

Sato Miwako and said, "Unless that guy does something that violates the criminal law, such as murder or kidnapping, I can't do it."

"Mi-wako ~"

With a coquettish laugh, Yumi Miyamoto played the sentimental card. "Those guys who drive like that must have killed someone! We need to investigate them thoroughly!"

"Okay, okay..."

Nodding helplessly, Sato Miwako chose to go along with the drunk Yumi Miyamoto.

Once he's done his drunken antics, he'll probably forget everything that happened today during tomorrow's mahjong game.

Fujino: "..."

As the one who was about to be beaten up, my eyebrow twitched slightly.

So does speeding necessarily mean killing people?

As Old Driver, he has never killed anyone in an accident.

What are your thoughts...?

However, he hasn't been speeding lately.

I never expected that this game of cat and mouse would actually cause them so much distress...

Want to go for another high-speed chase tomorrow?

The sound of water still lingers Araide Clinic.

Vermouth pondered for a moment, then shook her head.

Her idea was merely a guess based on the information she had.

Gin was in charge of handling matters related to the animal organization, and she couldn't easily overstep her authority.

Based on the evidence available at present, there is nothing to prove that a middleman is profiting from the price difference.

As for a thorough investigation, that's not necessary yet. There's no reason to concern ourselves with such matters.

To obtain more information, we need to exchange information with Gin.

She was not very willing to exchange intelligence or anything like that.

Anyway, this matter has nothing to do with her. Even if a fight breaks out, the flames of war won't reach her. At most, Gin will have to work overtime and contribute more to the organization, and he'll just get shot a few times.

The key questions now are: who has that woman in their hands, and who is that guy with the bat mask, and which faction does he belong to?

This is the most important point, but to find these two clues, you'll most likely run into that middleman...

Vermouth felt her thoughts were a bit jumbled.

As I stood up from the bathwater, water droplets fell onto the bubbles on the surface.

She reached out and smoothed her long, soft, golden hair, then rubbed her forehead.

I have a feeling that there is an invisible hand driving everything.

The next day was still a holiday.

Fujino stared at Saturday on his phone calendar, lost in thought.

Okay, yesterday was Saturday, and today is Saturday too.

This weekend has been going to be a bit long...

However, they weren't on the same day.

"Ring ring!"

Suddenly, an unknown caller ID popped up on the phone screen.

Judging from the length of the phone number, the caller must have made the call from a phone booth.

Fujino thought for a moment, then answered the phone.

Soon, a woman's voice came from the other end of the phone. "Excuse me, is this the Fujino Detective Agency?"

"That's right, this is the Fujino Detective Agency."

Fujino responded.

Judging from the voice on the other end, it must be a woman. Her voice was soft and had a steady and mature feel. She must have reached the middle of the room.

As for personality and appearance, he couldn't judge.

After all, there are just too many people with beautiful voices but strange appearances.

However, it is clear that judging someone's appearance by their voice is not within his job scope; what he cares about is the work of a detective.

Since the caller is calling a detective agency, it's highly likely they are the client.

Thinking of this, Fujino asked, "Do you have any requests for me to investigate?"

"Yes, that's right, just as you said, there is indeed a request I'd like to ask you..."

The mature and elegant female voice on the other end of the phone paused for a moment, then continued, "I have a friend who I really want to see again, but I haven't seen him for many years and I've lost his contact information."

"That is, finding someone to commission..."

Fujino pondered for a moment, becoming increasingly adept at handling these kinds of missing person requests. "In that case, do you have a photo of the person you're looking for, and their name?"

"Some."

The woman's voice remained calm. "His name is Shibata Shiro, and I have a photo of him here."

"In that case, if you have time, you can come to my detective agency to discuss this in detail."

Upon hearing this, Fujino felt that this request was quite simple.

They have names and photos. We can just call Megure and dig up his family history for three generations.

"Can't it be today?"

The woman's voice wavered slightly, carrying a hint of distress.

"I do have time, but it mainly depends on whether you have time."

"I see. Actually, I'm already near your office. It would be a bit of a problem if we couldn't meet."

"They've already arrived?"

Fujino was taken aback for a moment, then said calmly, "In that case, let's meet and discuss the clues and the commission fee."

"OK."

The woman on the other end of the phone was standing inside the phone booth.

After receiving confirmation that we could meet, he breathed a sigh of relief, "It would have been troublesome if we hadn't been able to meet today."

After muttering something, the woman fixed her gaze on the detective agency not far away. "I wonder what kind of people those two are."

Detective agency.

After receiving news that his client was about to visit, Fujino changed into a suit, went downstairs and headed straight to the detective agency on the second floor to begin preparations.

He took out the teapot, prepared the documents, and tidied up the sofa—all in one smooth motion.

"Ding-dong!"

Just then, the doorbell of the detective agency rang.

Fujino turned around at the sound of his voice, "Please come in!"

Hearing the sound, the door to the detective agency was pushed open.

A woman exuding an air of nobility walked in.

The woman had fair skin, short brown hair combed high, a small bag in her hand placed in front of her, and wore a dark purple kimono with a white inner lining and a waist support tied with a red rope. She also wore a loose black raincoat and straw sandals with white socks showing on her feet.

In every respect, she can be considered a beauty.

The hairstyle is a bit of a letdown; even if you manage to pull it off, you can only be described as a beauty.

"Fujino, Detective Ikenami, and I'm the one you just spoke to on the phone."

The woman who called herself Ikenami bowed slightly and greeted Fujino very politely and formally, "I heard from a friend that you are the best at finding people, so I came to bother you suddenly."

Fujino: "..."

He stared at the woman in front of him, speechless for a moment.

Why does it look so familiar?

After regaining his composure, he took a deep breath and politely replied, "Since it was an introduction from an acquaintance, I naturally want to help... Let's not talk about that now, please come in."

"Um, excuse me."

The woman who called herself Ikenami nodded and looked around curiously.

The room was exquisitely laid out, with pristine white floors, brand-new, minimalist sofas and coffee tables, and even the ashtrays were empty, with no smell of smoke in the air.

Contrary to her expectations of a dirty and chaotic detective agency, this one was much more comfortable...

Rather than saying it's comfortable, it's more accurate to say it's modern and professional.

It's hard not to wonder if this detective agency actually belongs to the High School Detective in front of you.

With such decor, someone unfamiliar with the place would have thought they had entered the reception room of some large company.

"Please sit down."

Fujino invited him to the sofa, then poured him a cup of black tea and inquired about the request, "Although we just talked on the phone, I still need to confirm the reason why you are looking for someone."

"It's like this..."

The woman, who called herself Ikenami, took a sip of her red tea and said, "The person I'm looking for is actually my classmate from high school. We were both in the kendo club back then. He moved before graduation, so his address wasn't on the roster at the time."

"Hmm, I think I understand now."

Fujino nodded and looked at the other person. "But if I may ask, are you married?"

"Ah?"

The woman who identified herself as Ikenami was clearly taken aback.

That's right.

Fujino looked at the woman's hand. "Your hand is wrapped in bandages. I can't be sure if you are married yet. If you are married, it is very likely that I will get into some unnecessary trouble by taking on this job."

"I see."

The woman narrowed her eyes, glanced at Fujino, and secretly marveled at his terrifying observation skills. After thinking for a moment, she replied, "Actually, I'm not married yet. I got this injury last night while cooking. I haven't used a knife in a long time, so I accidentally hurt myself."

Is that so?

Fujino silently glanced at the other person's hand.

Madam, something's not right with you!

She's clearly married, yet she's claiming she's not. Isn't that a bit odd?

As for why he was able to tell that the other person was already married...

The bandages and stuff are fake; they're just iced tea water.

Hattori Heiji's mother is the real one!

What Ikenami? It's clearly Hattori!