Tokyo: Rabbit Police and Her Evil Partner

Chapter 561 The Fifth Victim

Being ordinary is actually a quality.

No matter what kind of person someone is, they will have a distinctive personality.

Their personality is reflected on their face. As the saying goes, "the face reflects the heart." People who are easily angered will have vertical lines between their eyebrows and more pronounced nasolabial folds; people who like to laugh will have more developed cheekbones and a rounder smile; and people who cry easily will have very long eyelashes and their eyes will look pitiful...

In addition, there is the aura created by body language. Confident people always open their hands wider and speak more forcefully; insecure people are always timid and like to hunch their backs; those who admire the strong always stand crookedly and lean on others.

Horie Kei's facial features are all quite ordinary: his eyebrows are neither thick nor thin, his eyes are neither big nor small, his nose is neither high nor low, his lips are neither thin nor thick, and his face is neither long nor short. All these features combined make him look somewhat handsome upon closer inspection.

This is also one of the reasons why Fushimi Shika forgot last night that Horie Kei was also handsome, because Horie Kei's handsomeness was not obvious at all.

There really are people in the world who are good-looking over time. These people's appearances are generally called average faces, like Zeng Xiaoxian, who is neither ugly nor handsome. But Zeng Xiaoxian has a comedic look, so he's not exactly average.

If there were a fixed numerical value for the overall attractiveness of Japan, then Kei Horie would probably be right on the absolute average.

It's not just his looks; his physique, aura, voice, and body language are all remarkable. His only distinguishing feature is his fair skin, but this can be completely concealed by wearing clothes and a hat.

Standing in a crowd is like being invisible.

Watanabe Shun stared wide-eyed for a long time, but still couldn't find anyone. It felt like he was playing a game of spot the difference. Kazama Takusai was even more difficult. He only had one eye, so his eyesight was already worse than others, making the search even more challenging.

Fortunately, Genji was very perceptive and had excellent eyesight. After observing for a while, she finally found Horie Kei in the crowd.

“There!” she shouted, pointing at Horie Kei.

"Where?" Moriki Yalan didn't see it.

"That man in the suit." Yuan Yuzi hurriedly unzipped her sleeping bag.

“The streets are full of office workers in suits,” Watanabe Shun reminded him. “Describe his characteristics.”

Gen Tamako was momentarily speechless; she really didn't know how to describe him, because Horie Kei seemed to have no distinguishing features at all.

Kazama Takusai quickly intervened: "Don't listen to his nonsense, just give us the location!"

"At one o'clock, on the sidewalk near the lamppost!" Yuan Yuzi said immediately.

Everyone turned their attention and finally found Horie Kei on the bustling street. He was walking at a moderate pace, holding a tea egg for breakfast and eating it as he walked.

"Hurry! Change the person following!" Yuan Yuzi urged.

Moriki Arashi already followed him last night, so it's not convenient to follow him again, otherwise it would increase the risk of being exposed. Kazama Takusai is also not suitable for tailing; he's a strange middle-aged man with one eye and one arm, and if he were to follow someone else, he would definitely be discovered.

Finally, Watanabe Shun accepted this glorious mission. Before he set off, Minamoto Tamako encouraged him, "Good luck! If you can solve this case and redeem yourself, you might have a chance to return to the Metropolitan Police Department!"

Watanabe Shun felt more motivated; he was actually dissatisfied with the verdict for soliciting prostitution.

This is at most a minor offense; it's illegal but not a crime. Why would someone get a suspended sentence? There are plenty of predecessors who solicited prostitutes, and they all received demerits! Who gets fired outright?

It's all the fault of those nonsensical reports in the newspapers; they've ruined the current environment. And that judge was unprofessional, clearly biased, and his ruling was unfair. No wonder he was stabbed to death…

Hmm, thinking about it carefully, it seems that all the people who opposed him are dead.

As Watanabe Shun got out of the car, this thought suddenly came to mind. He walked and recalled it, and it seemed to be true.

Since returning to Tokyo from Hokkaido, his life hasn't been entirely smooth sailing, but it's been fulfilling and enjoyable. Most importantly, it seems like the people he dislikes always seem to have an accident soon afterward.

Am I protected by a god?

As Watanabe Shun's thoughts wandered, he followed Horie Kei at a distance. He trailed him all the way, watching Horie Kei enter the convenience store, change into his work uniform, and begin his day's work.

Nothing happened.

The pickup truck quietly pulled up across from the convenience store, and Watanabe Shun got in from the back to meet him. He yawned and said, "I don't think he's a bad guy. We're probably wasting our time..."

“If you don’t want to do it anymore, you can leave,” Kazama Takusai immediately interrupted, lest this guy disrupt morale.

Mori Muyalan chimed in, "I also don't think he's a serial killer. He looks too ordinary. Serial killers usually have some quirks, and they look at people with a cold gaze, but he doesn't have that special aura."

Genji Tamako thought so too; having been a detective for so long, she was quite adept at judging people. She turned to Kazama Takusai, asking the veteran detective for his opinion: "Kazama-senpai, what do you think?"

Kazama Takusai hesitated for a moment, then told the truth: "It doesn't look like it at all."

He could tell what kind of person Fushimi Shika was at a glance. Even without evidence or clues, he could determine from just his eyes that Fushimi Shika was the mastermind behind the shooting. His experience was undeniable.

But experience is just experience. Times have changed, and the experience of using torture to extract confessions is no longer acceptable.

Yuan Yuzi bit her thumb, pondered for a moment, then suddenly took out her pink flip phone and called the police station to ask if there had been any murders recently. She received a negative answer and felt relieved.

“The initial interval between the murders was four days, and yesterday was exactly four days after the last murder.” Minamoto Tamako said, with more confidence: “If the murderer does not commit another crime, then Horie Kei is highly suspicious. As long as we continue to keep an eye on him, we can get new clues.”

That was her original plan, but it was more difficult to execute than she had imagined. It required not cleverness and wit, but unwavering patience.

The others looked at each other and nodded in agreement with this conclusion.

They continued their surveillance, rotating shifts, and two more days passed in a flash. Horie Kei continued working at the convenience store as usual, going home to watch TV after get off work, living a very mundane life.

During this period, the perpetrator did not commit any further crimes, which further increased the suspicion against Horie Kei.

On the evening of the third day, with the deadline for solving the case approaching, Murata An convened a meeting with the detectives at the police station, presumably to prepare for the implementation of backup plans.

Since Minamoto no Tamako couldn't leave her post, she called to apply for fieldwork, and Murata Anzu didn't say much and approved it directly.

Two more weeks passed, and still no murders occurred, making Horie Kei's life trajectory increasingly clear.

He works at a convenience store from nine to five, and after get off work he does a three-hour part-time job at an izakaya. He has two days off a week, and on holidays he chooses to stroll in the park or buy a movie ticket to go to the movies. He has no social life at all, just as Moriki Masaaki said, "Tokyo is a cold city."

Yuan Yuzi and the others' mental state deteriorated. They squeezed into a small truck, eating bento boxes or fast food every day, and there was often garbage and cardboard piled up everywhere.

Fortunately, they had enough manpower; four people took turns keeping watch, which gave them time to shower, use the restroom, and take out the trash. If it were only two people taking turns, the van would have become a biological weapon. "Come on! Victory is just around the corner! The killer hasn't committed any crimes for two weeks, so Horie Kei is the prime suspect! He must have realized someone was watching him by now, which is why he hasn't made a move. As long as we keep waiting patiently, one day he'll slip up..."

Sitting in the passenger seat of the small truck, Yuan Yuzi loudly encouraged the crew, trying to make the tedious surveillance work less unbearable.

Before she could finish speaking, her phone rang. She opened her pink flip phone and saw it was Fushimi Shika calling: "Moshi Moshi, what's up?"

"Why aren't you home yet?" Fushimi Shika asked.

"Didn't I tell you? I'm on a surveillance mission!" Yuan Yuzi was a little happy, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up. She thought that Lu Junyi must have missed her, which was why he called to urge her to come home.

Unfortunately, investigating cases is like a battlefield, and there's no easy way to return. You can't blame her for being heartless!
"Weren't all the cases closed? Didn't anyone notify you?" Fushimi Shika asked in a puzzling tone.

"How is that possible? The murderer hasn't even been caught..."

As she spoke, the smile on Gen Tamako's face disappeared.

There does seem to be a fourth possibility: that the elite investigators caught the culprit, so the culprit stopped committing crimes, and Horie Kei also stopped committing crimes.

Gen Tamako was a little flustered, but she still tried to remain calm and said, "Don't tell such a clumsy lie. How could the Special Investigation Division not notify the team members..."

“They informed me.” Fushimi Shika’s tone turned to pity.

Minamoto no Tamako couldn't sit still any longer: "Wait a minute, I'll go ask first." She hung up the phone and dialed Commander Murata An: "Moshi moshi? Is this Commander Murata?"

The person who answered the phone wasn't her: "I'm her administrative officer. How can I help you?"

Gen Tamako tried to cover her embarrassment with laughter: "Haha, it's like this, I heard from somewhere that the serial murder case handled by the Special Investigations Division has been closed, is that true? You're not joking, are you..."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot to inform you," the officer said without any apology, his tone completely perfunctory. "The case was closed about two weeks ago. The minister doesn't want the case to spread outside, so please keep it confidential after it's closed."

After saying that, she hung up the phone.

Yuan Yuzi was stunned for a moment when she heard the busy tone.

The other three people also heard the conversation, and the carriage suddenly fell silent.

Watanabe Shun chuckled inappropriately, then hurriedly covered his mouth, but it was too late. Moriki Masahiro and Kazama Takusai both cast accusing glances at him.

The soft chuckle struck Yuan Yuzi's heart like a heavy blow. She deflated instantly, like a frostbitten eggplant, listless, and muttered to herself, "Why didn't you tell me..."

Moriki Yalan was the highest-ranking police officer present, and as one of the few female station chiefs, she was more aware of the unspoken rules of officialdom and could see what was going on at a glance.

It seems the deadline for closing the case has arrived, and the Special Investigations Division has no choice but to find someone to take the blame.

This is anything but honorable, and could easily become a stain on one's record. Chief Inspector Kujo would certainly not allow his daughter's name to appear on the case report, and even if she didn't personally instruct her, her subordinate officers would consciously avoid it.

In addition, everyone knows that Minamoto no Tamako is very serious. Even if some people didn't know before, they would know after the variety show aired and would naturally avoid her.

People who are too clean will also be ostracized; that's how it is in officialdom.

These complexities were difficult to explain openly, and Moriki Yalan couldn't think of any excuse to comfort her, so she could only turn her gaze to Kazama Takusai.

Kazama Takusai understood perfectly, but he wouldn't offer any words of comfort; it wasn't his job, nor was it something he should concern himself with.

His only task was to page Fushimi Shika, telling him to quickly take his girlfriend home and comfort her.

Fushimi Shika received a page and personally drove over to pick up Minamoto Tamako. The latter was deeply affected and stopped trying to promote her reasoning process. She felt a sense of 'utter defeat' and didn't even want to go back to the police station to look at the case files, feeling that it would only make her feel worse.

Without much thought, she instinctively assumed that since the case was closed, there must be ample evidence and witnesses, and the real culprit had been apprehended. The mistake wasn't made by the thirty-odd elite special investigation team members; it was only she who had misjudged the situation.

"It's alright. You've already helped the police eliminate the wrong options, which is an outstanding contribution to solving the case," Fushimi Shika comforted her.

He didn't care whether the real culprit was caught or not. As long as the Metropolitan Police Department announced that the murderer had been caught, the housing prices of Sugamo Apartments would rise back to normal, and the city's construction process would proceed normally, then he would consider it a perfect ending.

To soothe Minamoto no Tamako's wounded heart, Fushimi Shika took another day off. It wasn't to slack off; he simply had to skip work to comfort his girlfriend.

He took Minamoto Tamako out to play claw machines, arcade games, movies, and mystery novels... Now Minamoto Tamako has gotten used to dating naturally, and she finds dating Fushimi Shika very enjoyable, which naturally calms her bad mood.

Of course, for Yuan Yuzi, this day did not count as absenteeism. Generally speaking, there is a leave allowance for field work, and if you work in the field for seven consecutive days, you can take two days off in lieu of leave—she had been working in the field for more than half a month, keeping watch every day, so she deserved a day off.

Hira Sakurako was also happy; with neither of them home, she could have the TV all to herself and play games with her friends. Now, Mako had also become a gamer shut-in, spending all her time with Hira Sakurako. Mai, on the other hand, couldn't sit still and always wanted to go out, but she could only defer to the majority.

The next day, Gen Tamako went to work as usual. Nothing seemed to have changed at the police station. Everyone greeted her as usual, as if the fieldwork had never happened.

Fushimi Shika also had to go to work. He sat at his workstation playing his handheld game console and could hear his other colleagues whispering behind Minamoto Tamako's back.

They were talking about the serial murder case, and someone seemed uneasy, whispering, "Isn't this too hasty..."

“What kind of good person could be in the file? He’s a complete scumbag who did bad things and deserves his retribution,” another detective said.

"But this..."

"If you live an honest life, you won't run into this kind of thing. Like Ah Jun, how could you get arrested if you don't solicit prostitutes? I heard he even blamed the judge for giving him too harsh a sentence..."

That made sense. The detective who had first raised an objection nodded in agreement and stopped discussing the matter.

Fushimi Shika was too lazy to meddle in other people's business. He didn't care at all about the petty things happening in the police station, nor did he intend to tell Minamoto Tamako, lest she overhear and overthink things.

It seemed everything had settled down; the murderer was caught, and regardless of whether he was the real culprit, the case was closed. An ordinary murderer would have already fled Tokyo by now, leaving to commit crimes in other cities and become a nuisance to local police departments.

However, the serial killer who wrote "Heavenly Punishment" seemed to be deliberately provoking the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.

That afternoon, a fifth victim appeared.

The words "Heavenly Punishment" and a line of smaller characters are still visible at the scene.

"Not one will be spared; they will all die."

(End of this chapter)