Tokyo: The Player Behind the Scenes

"The twins Nobi Tomoaki and Nobi Tomoshin transferred to Komagome Academy in 1945 due to their parents' work. As a teacher at the time, it wouldn't have been difficult for Muto Tetsuro to find out the transfer students' birth dates if he wanted to."

"As for why Nobi Tomoaki was chosen, perhaps it's because he's easier to fool? And his personality is easier to fake?"

They learned about Nobi Chiyo's personality from his father.

Nobi's father did not reveal the truth about the will, but he did not hide anything about the personalities of the two.

"The time of the transfer and the time of the murder were very close. At that time, Muto Tetsuro's lifespan should not have been able to continue, which is why he acted so hastily. In short, the Nobi family is just a simple victim in this incident."

"Therefore, the most crucial thing is to find information about Muto's adopted son. The only information we have so far is that he comes from Mie Prefecture."

"But it's already 2040. Finding personal information from 1955 is almost impossible online. It can only exist in the memories of some people, but there are probably no people who lived through that era, know the relevant information, and are still alive."

"However, second-hand and third-hand information is still possible."

"That's troublesome. Doesn't that mean we have to visit people in person?"

Kurosaki Chimei couldn't help but scratch his head, and snowflakes of dandruff fluttered down.

He is quite good at understanding a person and then finding ways to gain their trust, but that also depends on the person.

Hosokawa was easy to deal with in the hospital. Since he was frightened by fear, we could use metaphysics that could combat fear to give him confidence.

As for the housewife who lives next door, he can't handle her, and he doesn't want to.

"We cannot overlook the possibility of another mysterious existence."

"That person could even be a student or teacher at the school. Let's input the prerequisites and let the AI ​​do a screening. Huh? The scope is too broad, what's with the insufficient permissions? Is this advisor's access level really that weak?"

Kurosaki complained.

Heisei Ryu sat in his seat, his eyes fixed on the computer screen, remaining silent to Kurosaki's constant mutterings to himself.

After a while, he seemed to confirm something in the data on the computer, picked up his phone, and made a call.

"Yes, thank you for your help, Manager Yoshino."

As if he had caught a clue, Kurosaki looked up, his eyes shining, and sat down opposite Heisei Ryu: "You found a clue?"

Ping Shenglong offered a reminder.

"You seem to have forgotten that a reporter once interviewed the Nobi family."

Kurosaki's eyes widened, and he slapped his forehead: "I really—I didn't even think of that! AI is unreliable after all; I still need to use my brain more!"

Heisei Ryu was referring to the time when he visited the Kurosaki family, Kurosaki had found an old newspaper with an interview by a reporter with the families of missing students, and the reporter had also visited the area near the Muto family's house.

However, no relatives of Muto were found in the end. They could only confirm through neighbors that he had an adopted son who also disappeared after Muto's disappearance.

The reporter didn't even include the adopted son's name because he wasn't the main focus here, but that doesn't mean he didn't find any relevant information.

Some newspapers require a report to be compiled and archived for each interview.

Coincidentally, this newspaper has been operating to this day.

“Let me think… that newspaper is… Mainichi Shimbun! Japan’s oldest daily newspaper, wow, if it’s this one, there might actually be a good chance of finding it.” Kurosaki marveled at their luck.

It's not surprising that Heisei Ryu was able to contact the people at that newspaper; after all, he was the head of the First Investigation Division of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, so he must have some connections.

Not to mention the Ping family's origins. However, it's true that this family has gone through many ups and downs and has little energy left.

The cell phone rings.

Ping Shenglong looked over in surprise.

Logically, it shouldn't be that fast.

He glanced at the incoming call; it was from his assistant, Sara Takagi.

"Chief, the parents of the victim in the 4.4 case, Yoshikazu Koizumi, attacked Koizumi's class teacher, Eiichi Ikeda, with a knife in a highly emotional state, claiming that he was the murderer of Koizumi. We are now taking Koizumi's two parents and Eiichi Ikeda back to the Metropolitan Police Department. We're almost there."

Takagi briefly explained the situation.

"Okay, I'll arrange an interrogation room. Bring him in directly." Ping Shenglong hadn't expected to get leads even while sitting down.

Kurosaki stood up and said, "I'll go listen in too."

Ping Shenglong nodded.

He first printed out two documents, one about Koizumi's family situation and the other about Ikeda's family situation.

"This doesn't feel like the clue I need." Kurosaki quickly glanced at it, his earlier enthusiasm fading, and sat down with a bored expression.

Heisei Ryu felt the same way, but as a former detective, it was not surprising that he had such intuition. So where did Kurosaki get such keen judgment?

Is this also a kind of bizarre thinking?

“You can see the problem at a glance. Look at Ikeda Rui, who grew up in an orphanage and became a teacher at a prestigious school by excelling in his studies.”

"Divorced, accused of domestic violence, and eventually left with nothing in exchange for forgiveness. This also led to her being dismissed from her original school and coming to Komagome Academy."

“But Ikeda Rui has consistently funded orphanages and nursing homes and devoted a lot of time to volunteering. I don’t think someone with such patience would commit domestic violence. If you insist on talking about isolated cases and possibilities, then there are certainly some, but they are not statistically significant.”

"Coincidentally, just six months before the divorce, an elderly person living alone in a nursing home whom Ikeda Rui was taking care of donated his entire estate to him. It was a considerable sum even after nearly 50% estate tax was deducted."

"Then, less than a month after her divorce, she married Hiroyuki Koizumi, who was in business. Haha, isn't that a coincidence? Koizumi's wife had also just died of illness not long before the woman's divorce."

"What's even more coincidental is that they live in Shinjuku Ward, yet they arranged for their child to attend Komagome Gakuin, where Ikeda Rui teaches. Tsk tsk, do they really not know that Ikeda Rui teaches at this school, or are they planning to use the child for something else?"

"With so many coincidences combined, it's too nauseating. It's all about the despicable nature of human nature and doesn't help our case at all."

Ping Shenglong shook his head slightly: "Intuition must be accompanied by evidence. Relying too much on intuition will only lead to failure in the end."

“I don’t need to solve cases. I deal with ghost stories by thinking about them. Intuition is even better than logic.” Kurosaki nodded.

Ping Shenglong ignored him and took the documents to arrange for people to set up the interrogation room.

Before long, the group was led into the interrogation room and the general questioning room respectively.

"Mrs. Koizumi, what are your reasons for accusing Ikeda Eiji of murdering your son, Koizumi Yoshiichi?"

"No, I... I was just so overwhelmed when I saw him that I completely broke down. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. Please let my husband go! He's just so heartbroken, sob sob."

Mrs. Koizumi looked very uneasy and pitiful. When she wiped away her tears, a bruise was conveniently visible on her forearm sleeve.

The two officers sitting opposite him noticed and frowned, asking, "What happened to the injury on your hand?"

Mrs. Koizumi hurriedly covered her sleeve with her other hand, but accidentally exposed the wound on that hand as well.

"No, no, I... I accidentally got it, it's my fault, it's my fault."

The officers exchanged a glance, refrained from further questioning, and silently made a note of the incident.

"Mr. Koizumi, why were you among the reporters? Did you prepare the murder weapon beforehand? Did you already believe that Ikeda Rui was the murderer of your son?"

"He's just taking revenge! He's taking out his hatred for my wife on my child! He's innocent, innocent, he deserves to die, I only regret not killing him!"

Hiroyuki Koizumi, his face flushed, gripped his bound hands, his voice brimming with barely concealed anger.

Why did he seek revenge?

"Because...because—in short, it was him! It must have been him, only him!"

Koizumi's already flushed face turned even redder, but his anger did not diminish; instead, he became increasingly agitated, and the tattoo on his neck twisted with his roars.

The police officer frowned as he looked at Hiroyuki Koizumi's uncooperative attitude, his expression growing colder.

"Mr. Ikeda, what do you have to say about Mrs. Koizumi's accusations?"

"I was at home that night, and I have 24-hour surveillance cameras at home to prove it."

Ikeda Rui was very calm, with his hands flat on the ground and his eyes fixed on the aluminum alloy tabletop.

Behind the one-way glass, in the observation room, Ping Shenglong moved the microphone to his mouth.

"Ask him why he installed a 24/7 surveillance camera in his home."

"Mr. Ikeda, did you install the surveillance cameras to prevent theft?" The officer in the interrogation room slightly reduced the pressure of his question.

Upon hearing this question, Ikeda Rui tensed up slightly, his already imposing aura becoming even more oppressive. The two officers in charge of the questioning couldn't help but swallow hard, sit up straight, and prepare to subdue the enemy at any moment.

"I suspect I have schizophrenia."

Finally, Ikeda Rui let out a heavy sigh and reluctantly revealed the reason.

Schizophrenia?

“The reason is that his records don’t show any history of mental illness.” Taira no Ryu turned to Takagi Sara. “Go check if he has been to any relevant hospitals, and if his family has any related medical history.”

The officer quietly took a breath to calm himself down after being slightly frightened, and coughed twice: "We've reviewed your file, and you have no history of mental illness. Why do you have such self-doubt? Is it something in your life that's causing this?"

"Then you should know that my ex-wife and I divorced because of domestic violence." Ikeda didn't want to discuss this topic, but he also didn't want to leave any suspicious traces for the police.

"Yes, it happened six years ago."

"But I have no memory of abusing her, and I was prone to mental instability during that period, so..."

"So after the divorce, you suspected you had a split personality, right?"

"Yes."

In the observation room, Takagi returned after checking the data and shook his head at Taira no Ryu.

"Then why don't you go to the hospital for a checkup?"

"My medical records will be sent to the school, and I don't want to lose this job."

Everyone understood that having a teacher who might have a mental illness posed a risk to the school, especially for a private school with high tuition fees.

This is precisely why schools maintain close control over the status of their teachers.

"I have not discovered that I have ever had an illness, nor have I caused any other harm to society. Please keep this a secret for me."

After revealing the biggest secret, Ikeda Rui showed a rare hint of fatigue and made a request.

"The written record will not be made public. Even if you refuse medical treatment because you haven't committed any substantial harmful act, public authorities cannot forcibly intervene, unless your ex-wife formally sues you on the grounds of past domestic violence."

The police officer told the truth.

"Thank you."

Ikeda Rui nodded solemnly in thanks.

After the questioning ended, Ping Shenglong looked at the records of the other two people.

"Ah."

A few minutes later, he let out a cold laugh.

The sequence of events gradually formed a series of images in his mind.

but

As Kurosaki Chimei said, this has little to do with the Komagome Academy case.

"Is Ikeda sure he won't pursue this? Is his wound considered a minor injury?" Taira no Ryu asked Takagi.

"He repeatedly confirmed that he did not intend to pursue the matter or file charges, and was willing to sign a statement of intent. As for the injuries, they were only minor," Takagi replied.

"Minor injury," Heisei Ryu nodded slightly, seemingly lost in thought, before continuing after a while, "Ikeda and Mrs. Koizumi can go back now, and keep their phones on."

"Hiroyuki Koizumi has been temporarily detained and will be awaiting the expiration of his detention period or a decision not to prosecute by the prosecutor's office, in accordance with procedures."

"You could also remind Mrs. Koizumi that since Ikeda has decided not to pursue the matter, if we can get him to sign the statement of inquiry as soon as possible and then get a lawyer involved, there is a greater chance that we can push the prosecution to hesitate to file charges and save her husband from jail."

Takagi nodded: "Understood."

"And... arrange for someone to keep an eye on Ikeda and see if Mrs. Koizumi will contact him," Taira no Ryu added.

Takagi meticulously recorded Taira no Ryu's arrangements, briefly repeated them, and after Taira no Ryu confirmed them, she went to carry out the orders.

Jingle Bell.

"Good evening, Minister Iwaki."

"Yes, I understand. It was my mistake. I will adhere to a scientific approach to handling cases."

After hanging up the phone, Ping Shenglong was slightly lost in thought.

Yesterday, he tentatively asked the Minister of Criminal Investigation whether there was any mysterious agency in the country specifically targeting "special incidents".

The minister did not give a direct answer at the time, but only called now to reprimand him and demand that he trust science.

So during this day's events, Minister Iwaki should have known something and confirmed that the Komagome Academy incident was unrelated to anything special.

And because this department cannot say it explicitly, it uses this method to hint at it.

This news has both good and bad aspects.