The Tokyo Police Journey Begins with the Ability to See Evil Thoughts

At the end of March, something of moderate importance happened at the police station.

The corridors of Shibuya Police Station were busier than usual. In the break room and corners of the office area, you could always see several officers huddled together, whispering and talking, their tone tinged with envy, and occasionally glancing unconsciously toward the direction of the Criminal Investigation Division.

Kamiya Gen had finished his vacation and was sitting in his office chair in a daze, listening to Takeuchi Takayuki's rambling next to him.

"Inspector Kamiya, are you really not concerned? Inspector Kiha is getting promoted to Inspector! The station is even holding a ceremony to honor him, and I heard even the Chief of Police is going to give a speech!"

Takayuki Takeuchi rubbed his hands together, his face full of envy. "Look at me, I've been doing this for so many years, I'm almost bald, and I've only barely made it to the position of Assistant Inspector. This guy is so young, and he just solved a murder case and got recommended for promotion. His luck is just too good—oh no, he's too capable!"

How could Kamiya Gen not know?

After all, that murder case was on the front page of so many newspapers...

Furthermore, the Criminal Investigation Department has submitted the recommendation materials as required, and the police station's review committee has confirmed that she passed the promotion exam and completed a three-month specialized training. The promotion is just a formality, and there will be more arrangements later.

However, he didn't hear any good news from Kamiya Gen, and he still hadn't secured the Harukawa Trading Company...

Listening to Takeuchi Takayuki's rambling, Kamiya Gen spoke up:

"Inspector Takeuchi, I remember you're going to be promoted to inspector in a few months. Are you really that envious of others?"

Takayuki Takeuchi belongs to the non-professional group. The promotion requirements are more than four years of police inspector experience, passing the promotion exam, plus three months of training and eight months of internship, before he can be promoted to police inspector.

He has now met most of the requirements, and only the last few months of internship are left.

"How can I not be envious..." Takeuchi Takayuki took a sip of tea. "I've been around for so many years, and it seems like she graduated less than five months ago, right?"

As he spoke, he looked at Kamiya Gen: "Also, once I'm promoted to inspector, you'll be promoted right away too, right? It seems like you guys are developing too fast, it's really unfair..."

Kamiya Gen belongs to the professional group, and he only needs to work for a year to be promoted to police inspector. Now he only needs eight months.

"So even I'm jealous, sir...?" Kamiya Gen said speechlessly. "I've been working here all this time, and I've been stabbed and shot. Do you even have a single scar on your body after all these years?"

"I was just joking," Takeuchi Takayuki laughed it off.

As they were talking, Sakamoto, the head of the Criminal Investigation Division, walked out of the office with a document in his hand, a gentle smile on his face, and went straight to Yuzuki's desk.

Muheyou was engrossed in organizing documents, her pen gliding rapidly across the paper. Stray hairs fell across her forehead, partially obscuring her eyes and brows, and she didn't even notice someone approaching.

"Inspector Kihachi, excuse me." Sakamoto spoke softly, as if afraid of interrupting her.

Only then did Muhe You raise her head, put down her pen, and straighten her back: "Inspector Sakamoto, you wanted to see me?"

"That's right."

Sakamoto placed the document on her desk, his tone clearly showing his high regard for her. "Regarding your solving of the intentional homicide case, the approval has been granted. After review, you have passed the promotion exam and completed your training. It has been decided to award you the Blue Ribbon Police Medal of Merit and promote you to Inspector. Tomorrow morning at 10:00, the station will hold a small commendation ceremony. Please prepare your speech."

Muhe You paused for a moment, a hint of surprise flashing in her eyes, then turning serious: "Thank you, Inspector Sakamoto, I understand."

Although she was focused solely on solving cases, her promotion to police inspector meant having more authority and being able to handle more cases, which was undoubtedly something to be happy about.

Sakamoto himself was also very happy.

He has worked at the Shibuya Police Department for many years. Although he has now risen to the position of head of the Criminal Investigation Division, his official rank has always been that of a police inspector.

But in the past few days, he has heard that when the higher-ups were promoting Mu Heyou, they also considered his side.

He might be promoted to superintendent soon.

What does this tell us?

This shows that Sakamoto's attitude towards this police inspector during this period of time has been approved by her family.

Thinking about these things, Sakamoto couldn't help but feel happy. After chatting with Yuzuki for a few more minutes, he returned to his office.

After he left, Muheyou first looked at the documents in her hand, then glanced at Kamiya Gen.

She had asked her family, but strangely, her mother didn't seem to want to talk about Kamiya-kun.

Actually, Kamiya-kun handled 90% of those cases; he didn't contribute much at all...

Even if a promotion is to be made, the position should be given to him.

Seeing Kamiya Gen get up to get water, Kiha Yu quickly grabbed a cup and ran over.

"I just received a message from Inspector Sakamoto saying that there's going to be an awards ceremony for me tomorrow, followed by a promotion to Inspector..."

When it was time to fetch water, Muheyou spoke up.

Kamiya Genji replied, "You're going to be a police inspector? From now on, will I call you Inspector Kihachi?"

"It's just a promotion; I still need to learn more from everyone."

"Learn what? Learn how you crash into the guardrail without even realizing you've hurt your head?"

Kamiya Gen raised an eyebrow and teased, recalling the day she squatted by the roadside, her head bleeding and her face blank, and couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth into a smile.

"I will do my job well and will not let this position down."

Seeing her serious expression, Kamiya Gen stopped teasing her and just waved his hand: "Alright, alright, don't be so nervous at the commendation ceremony tomorrow that you can't speak, or you'll embarrass the Criminal Investigation Department."

Muheyou pursed her lips, said nothing, and simply lowered her head again, watching the water glass gradually fill up.

……

The following afternoon at 7 p.m., in the conference room of the police station.

A banner reading "Inspector Muheyou Commends Merit" hangs on the wall. Several long tables are neatly arranged, with the Commissioner and the heads of each section sitting in front, and the remaining officers seated in order of their departments.

Kamiya Gen found a corner at the back and sat down, arms crossed, looking drowsy, but his eyes kept drifting towards the conference room door.

Not long after, Yuzuki followed Inspector Sakamoto in.

She changed into a brand-new police inspector uniform, the police insignia on her shoulder straps was particularly eye-catching, and her short hair was neatly pulled back, revealing her smooth forehead.

The officers' eyes immediately focused on her, and hushed whispers rose and fell, mostly praising and envious. After all... even jealousy was not something to say at this moment.

Mu Heyou lowered her head slightly, her cheeks were a little hot, but her steps were very steady as she walked to the front of the conference room and stood still.

The director cleared his throat, and the conference room fell silent instantly.

He picked up the prepared speech from the table and began solemnly, "Today, we are holding this commendation ceremony for Muhe Yu's merits, mainly to commend Inspector Muhe Yu of the Criminal Investigation Division for his outstanding performance in the intentional homicide case."

The chief first briefly reviewed the case, emphasizing its seriousness and the difficulty of solving it, then changed the subject, his tone full of praise:

"During the investigation, Inspector Yuzuki remained calm and focused, actively investigated leads, and cooperated with relevant departments to successfully apprehend the suspect and solve this heinous murder case, making a significant contribution to maintaining public order in Shibuya."

"Following the decision of higher authorities, Inspector Muhe You is hereby awarded the Blue Ribbon Medal of Merit and officially appointed as an Inspector, responsible for the Juvenile and Intellectual Offender Investigation Division of the Criminal Investigation Department. It is hoped that Inspector Muhe You will continue his efforts and achieve even greater success in his future work!"

As soon as he finished speaking, enthusiastic applause erupted in the conference room.

The chief gestured for Mu Heyou to step forward to receive the award. Mu Heyou took a deep breath, walked steadily forward, accepted the blue ribbon police medal and the police inspector's appointment letter with both hands, and bowed deeply to the chief.

"Thank you, Director, and thank you, colleagues. I will definitely work hard, stay at my post, and live up to everyone's trust and expectations."

Kamiya Gen sat in the corner, watching her stand in front of him. Sunlight streamed through the window and fell on her, the insignia on her epaulets reflecting a faint light.

This guy, wearing a police inspector's uniform, actually looks pretty convincing...

I don’t know if it’s just a habit, but now when I look at Yuzuki, I no longer feel the same way I did at the beginning. I always feel like she’s a high school student, and she doesn’t fit the image of a police officer at all.

After the commendation ceremony, the police officers gathered around to congratulate Mu Heyou.

Takeuchi Takayuki stepped forward, smiling, and said, "Inspector Kihashi, congratulations! Please take good care of us old colleagues in the future!"

"Thank you, Inspector Takeuchi. I don't know anything about this. I'll have to ask for your guidance in the future," Yuzuki replied politely.

As she spoke, she glanced at the corner and noticed that Kamiya Gen wasn't in his seat. She quickly finished chatting with the people around her and left the meeting room.

In Muheyou's opinion, this might be... that thing called a 'crack'.

Originally, both he and Kamiya were assistant police inspectors, but suddenly he was promoted to police inspector while Kamiya's rank remained unchanged. Although it wasn't obvious from his appearance and they had been chatting normally before, he was actually a little unhappy.

The case had nothing to do with him; he was the one who put in the effort, yet all the credit went to him.

It's all the mother's fault. Logically, we should promote Kamiya-kun first; there's no rush for us...

The evening breeze was a bit cool. Muheyou scanned the surroundings and finally saw Kamiya Gen leaving.

She quickened her pace, caught up with him, and called out, "Kamiya-kun."

Kamiya Gen stopped and turned to look at her: "What's wrong?"

Yuzuki clutched the hem of her uniform, hesitated for a few seconds, and asked softly, "Kamiya-kun, are you unhappy?"

Kamiya Gen looked bewildered, not understanding what she meant: "Unhappy? Why?"

Muheyou lowered her head and explained, "You handled the most cases, but all the credit is given to me. You're still staying on as an inspector, while I was promoted to inspector..."

Kamiya Gen stared at her, remaining silent for a long time.

He didn't even think about it.

In fact, the case was basically handled by the Muhe family. The most difficult part was identifying the target and capturing Nozaki.

If this kind of thing were to be handled by the police, it would be extremely difficult.

Leaving aside the subsequent task of sending someone to Hokkaido to capture Nozaki, just considering the initial target identification, without Rikukawa Harumasa informing them of the situation, no one would have known any clues at all.

Moreover, once Kamiya Gen knew that Miyazawa Yuzuki was alright, he definitely wouldn't bother with the matter anymore.

There is another important point.

The main reason why Muheyou was promoted to police inspector was not because of any case at all.

The case is just a vehicle; since her family is helping, they would have helped her in other ways even without this case.

"I... Inspector Kiha, no, why would Inspector Kiha think that way? Do I look like such a petty person?" Kamiya Gen said.

"Then why are you in such a hurry to leave?" Muheyou asked.

Kamiya Gen said helplessly, "I made braised pork trotters with soybeans at the communal cafeteria in my dorm at noon today, and it's lunchtime now..."

"Just because of that?"

"Otherwise what?" Kamiya Gen retorted irritably. "Besides, do you think I'm the kind of person who'd just smile and congratulate you like everyone else?"

"It doesn't seem like it..."

"I cooked a big pot of stew, and I can't finish it all by myself. It's already after get off work, do you want to come along? It'll be a celebration for you. You might not like the taste, but why don't you give it a try?" Kamiya Gen asked.

"Is that alright?" Yuzuki's eyes lit up, and she asked, "Kamiya-kun didn't do this on purpose, are you just planning to celebrate for me?"

"..." Kamiya Gen felt that she was getting a little too cocky.

"Do you want to buy some wine?" Muheyou followed and asked, looking at the supermarket in the distance.

Kamiya Gen suddenly recalled that unpleasant memory from last time and wanted to stop her.

However, someone had already taken money out of their pocket: "If Kamiya-kun can't hold his liquor, shall we buy some with a lower alcohol content?"

With that, she ran towards the supermarket.

"Kamiya-kun, wait for me here, I'll be right back!"

Kamiya Gen responded and waited in place, kicking the pebbles at his feet idly.

His mind was filled with images of braised pork trotters with soybeans simmering in the dormitory's communal kitchen.

I simmered it all noon, and the broth was thick and the meat was tender and the bones were soft. If I went back any later, it might have dried out.

He didn't take what had just happened to heart at all. Mu Heyou's guilt and the credit for her promotion were all insignificant compared to a pot of pig's feet.

Just then, a slight tremor came from the ground.

Japan experiences frequent earthquakes, and small tremors of this magnitude are commonplace; they usually just shake a couple of times and then stop, so there's no need to worry about them.

The shaking didn't stop; instead, it intensified, causing the ground beneath our feet to tremble slightly and the utility poles along the roadside to sway gently.

Kamiya Gen finally frowned.

He wasn't afraid of earthquakes.

A thought suddenly popped into my head—what if the pots in the dorm kitchen were knocked over?

He stewed pig's feet soup all afternoon, will it all spill on the ground?

The moment the thought popped into his head, he panicked and straightened up, wanting to rush back to the dormitory.

I had just taken a step when I suddenly remembered that Muheyou was still inside the supermarket.

The ground shook again, and people were already running out of the supermarket entrance in a panic.

"Kamiya-kun... I bought it. The owner ran away, so I left the money on his counter." Yuzuki walked out carrying a large case of beer, seemingly quite carefree.

Kamiya Gen quickly waved his hand and said, "Let's go..."

"What's wrong?" Mu Heyou quickened her pace to catch up. "It's just an earthquake, why are you in such a hurry?"

Feeling the increasingly intense tremors, Kamiya Gen stopped and said helplessly:

"My soup... might be doomed."