Jiang Xia said, "If all you wanted was to rob a cash-in-transit vehicle, Hirukawa's bomb alone would have been enough. But you wanted more than just cash. After the crime, you wanted to get away perfectly clean and paint yourself as an ordinary citizen.
"So you used the Picture Book sample you had on hand to plan this series of explosions. In the end, you detonated the bomb near Hirukawa and used an 'accidental death' to silence him."
Editor Tomonaga's expression changed several times before he finally chuckled. "You really have a talent for making up stories. Why not quit being a Detective and come draw manga under me? That kind of outstanding imagination may be not a match for reality, but it would be perfect for manga."
Inspector Megure flew into a rage. "What nonsense are you talking about!" Don't go poaching my people!
Jiang Xia remained calm. "Manga is just manga. Compared with those fictional stories, I prefer reality—such as the case you planned right now.
"Your script was good, but there were too many flaws in its execution. I heard the police asked you about the answers to the Brain Teasers in the Picture Book. At the time, you said too much time had passed, and since you had not looked closely at the Picture Book, you couldn't remember.
"But right after saying you didn't remember any of that, you abruptly brought up the Picture Book's ending: 'Tick-Tock Old Man, the protagonist who appeared throughout the entire Picture Book, died of a serious illness. Ten years later, his grandson inherited the family business and became an excellent watchmaker, just like his grandfather.'
"On the surface, that ending had nothing to do with bombs or the Bomber. You mentioned it because you wanted to use Tick-Tock Old Man's