"...So this was why you were still staying by Reika Shifui's side. You wanted to know the truth."
After Kazue Takashi finally got his emotions under control and straightened his back again, Tangze did not turn to look at him. He simply handed him a handkerchief, letting Kazue wipe away the tears and mucus all over his face.
"Yes, I wanted to know the truth. Of course, I knew there was no evidence. Even if Reika Shifui admitted she did it herself, even if I recorded and documented it by every means possible, none of it could be used as evidence in court."
Kazue took the neatly folded handkerchief and roughly wiped his face. His muffled voice came through his fingers, like that of a drowning man.
Tangze nodded and asked softly, "So, was it the truth you craved? Or was it...?"
Kazue's hand paused.
Everything they had discussed before had merely been groundwork. This was the true crux of the matter.
Did Kazue want the truth alone, or revenge that would set him free?
He fell silent. Tangze did not rush him, maintaining the same considerate silence and giving him time to think.
Kazue's predicament was obvious. The reason he had gone down such an extreme path was inseparable from the anguish he had endured over the past two years.
By any reasonable account, Reika Shifui and Nikaido Yuji had committed murder.
Yaeko Nanao had gone out alone in a kayak to save Reika Shifui in that terrible weather because her grandmother had entrusted her with looking after Reika.
Yet she had not known that Reika, who was already involved with Nikaido Yuji at the time, had not been alone on that island. Nikaido had been there too.
They had taken Yaeko's life jacket. To evade responsibility, they had