No one understands the laws of Collider better than me.

Just as Kitahara Masaki was about to bow in apology, Inspector Megure groaned and squatted down, covering his hat.

"Inspector Megure, are you alright?"

I'm the one who got scolded, so why are you the one who squatted down?

"No, I'm fine. The most important thing now is to find the murderer."

Because the case was seen by many department store customers, it has spread online again. Even Matsumoto Kiyonaga, who hadn't been to the scene for a long time, came. As a manager caught between lower-ranking police officers and high-ranking police officers, he had always maintained a "good-for-all" attitude. However, this time he unusually walked up to Inspector Megure and said:

"Megure, you're not still bothered by that case from back then, are you?"

"No, Manager, that's not how it is."

"But I heard you stop Sato's plan to lure the criminal into a trap. Could it be... related to what's hidden under your hat?"

"I've let it go."

"Alright, let's leave it at that. Now that a murder has occurred, I think Inspector Kitahara will find the culprit soon. I hope you won't act rashly."

After saying that, the supervisor went outside to block the reporters, giving the search team time to find the real culprit.

Kitahara Masaki, who had been listening to their conversation, said, "I'm very curious, but it's obviously not something a mature adult should do to pry into other people's past. Why don't we solve the case now and ask them when we're drinking at the izakaya later?"

While waiting for Takagi to investigate the case, the forensic team was about to move the body when the victim's shoes suddenly came off. Kitahara Maki, who saw this, went over. The victim had just sat on the ground with her legs straight, and her shoes were still on. But now it seemed that someone had put the shoes on her feet, which is why they fell off when the body was moved.

"Miss Mori, are you aware that the victim's makeup style is currently trending?"

"Yes, we usually call this kind of makeup 'Shibuya 101,' and we also usually wear platform shoes..."

"Hehe, this murderer clearly doesn't know how to dress. After putting on such striking makeup, how could he possibly wear a pair of pink flat shoes? It looks terrible."

With the sharp critiques of contemporary high school student Ran Mouri and master of disguise Vermouth, Masaki Kitahara finally understood that the murderer probably didn't want others to know that the victim was wearing platform shoes... but what was the reason?

"Kitahara-senpai! I found some information from my colleagues in the traffic department about the car accident that happened a year ago!"

Just as Kitahara Masaki was wondering why the murderer had changed his platform shoes, Takagi called.

"The victim, as the driver, had reduced brake sensitivity due to wearing thick-soled shoes, which led to his inability to stop in time. And! The deceased boy's father was Ding Jin Fangxiong!"

Having obtained the complete information, Kitahara Masaki immediately understood that this series of cases was all about revenge—a father seeking revenge against those who wore platform shoes and drove cars for the sake of his dead child.

Kitahara Masaki looked around. The guard, Mr. Dingjin, who had been there just moments before, was gone. The officer in charge of questioning him said that Mr. Dingjin had left after answering the questions. Kitahara Masaki was helpless, but what was done was done, and he still had to find him.

"Alright, things are clear now. Everyone, get moving and find the suspect quickly, or else..."

Boom!

A bolt of lightning struck, followed by a deafening clap of thunder. The entire department store suddenly lost power, leaving everyone in the underground parking garage in complete darkness. The first to pull out light sources were Kitahara Masaki, Vermouth, and Conan, whose small light sources could only illuminate a small area.

"Is everything alright?"

"Ah! Sonoko went to put the things she bought in the car! Then she said she left something at the department store, and it's probably still there now."

"Masaki! That child's shoes just happen to have platform soles!"

No way...

"Megure..."

"I'll take men to find her right now! Brother Kitahara, you take men to seal off the entrances and exits!"

After saying that, Inspector Megure immediately led his men into the first floor of the department store. His high spirits made Kitahara Masaki even more curious about what the case from before was and what secrets were hidden under Inspector Megure's hat.

I hope he won't be like Kakashi, wearing a mask under his mask.

Chapter 126 He Saved His Future Wife

"You search from the bottom up, I'll lead the men to search from the top down. Make sure you find that child and protect her!"

Kitahara Masaki stood at the main entrance, while the back entrance was locked by the mall. A drone was then deployed to search the mall. The manager, who had been thoroughly harassed by reporters, immediately pushed Kitahara Masaki in front of them upon seeing him, and personally guarded the main entrance. The reporters were overjoyed; they didn't want to be stuck filming a scarred policeman every day, and preferred to photograph handsome, photogenic men. Even with the power outage, they could record audio, so they bombarded the reporters with questions.

With his superb acting skills, Kitahara Masaki quickly dealt with the prejudiced reporters and returned to the mall entrance. Seeing the manager still there, Kitahara Masaki naturally asked the question he was most concerned about:

"Inspector Matsumoto, what exactly happened in that old case you and Inspector Megure were talking about?"

Matsumoto Kiyonaga looked at the pitch-black shopping mall and slowly said:

"That was Megure's first case. At that time, there was a bastard who would drive around hitting high school girls. His targets were mostly delinquent girls wearing custom-made uniforms, which were worn with the pleats deliberately stretched out. There were no surveillance cameras back then, and the culprit would hit someone and flee immediately, so we police had no leads and could only notify the high school girls in the area not to wear those uniforms anymore. Not long after, a high school girl came to the police station and said she was willing to be bait, saying it was to avenge her friend. Of course, we tried to stop her, but the girl was very dissatisfied with the police for not being able to catch the culprit, so she continued to wear those uniforms on the street. At that time, the person we assigned to protect her was Megure."

Kitahara Masaki fell silent upon hearing this, realizing that Inspector Megure also had a story to tell.

"The murderer was in a bloodthirsty rage and intended to run over both Megure and the girl. Fortunately, Megure managed to hold the girl and avoid the fatal blow; otherwise, he wouldn't have survived until the ambulance arrived. We caught the murderer based on the license plate number provided by Megure, but Megure was left with a large scar on his head."

"Really? Because once such an obvious scar is seen, it will definitely be pointed out by others about the origin of their scars. He always wears a hat so as not to relive the memory of not being able to save that high school girl."

Matsumoto Kiyonaga shook his head and said:

"No, no, no, you've misunderstood. Inspector Kitahara, that girl was seriously injured but survived, and later she became Megure's wife. Megure didn't want to recall the past when he failed to protect his wife, so he wore a hat."

Wife... um... um! ?

That high school girl later became Megure's wife, which is truly...

It can only be said that Inspector Megure earned his ticket to becoming a winner in life through sheer hard work.

That said, since Inspector Megure, who has already become a police officer, must be over twenty years old, while the high school girl is only about sixteen or seventeen, then wouldn't that mean...?

After finally understanding what was hidden under Inspector Megure's hat, Kitahara Masaki felt refreshed, as if the mystery had finally been solved.

The search drone happened to locate the floor where Sonoko was, with a man in a trench coat and holding a baseball bat following behind her.

Just as Kitahara Masaki was about to call Inspector Megure, a dark figure darted out from behind the drone's camera and shielded Sonoko. The criminal's baseball bat missed Sonoko but struck the officer on the head.

The figure in the darkness was unclear, but it was still recognizable as Inspector Megure from the flashlight beam. Blood was slowly dripping from the brim of his hat. While the criminal was still in shock, Inspector Megure gripped his baseball bat and asked sternly:

"How does it feel? Does it feel good to hurt others?"

The prisoner gripped the baseball bat tightly, still unwilling to let Sonoko go.

"You might want to use this baseball bat to deliver justice to someone who isn't paying attention while driving, right? But this kid just wants to put something in her car, and she hasn't even graduated high school yet!"

Upon being told the truth, the prisoner's eyes widened, and he couldn't help but release his baseball bat and take several steps back.

"Your actions are not about upholding justice at all!"

It's not about avenging your dead son; you're just taking your anger out on others! Because of your pointless venting, countless police officers are working day and night to prevent this from happening again. Don't you understand that now?!

The blood-stained baseball bat was tossed aside by Inspector Megure. The prisoner, who had been questioned, knelt down helplessly, crying and saying that he didn't want it to be like this, he just wanted the person who bumped into his son to apologize.

But now that things have come to this, he can no longer simply apologize and let it go. This poor man who lost his son will probably have to spend the rest of his life in prison.

Kitahara Masaki reviewed the video footage transmitted back by the drone, thinking that the fixed angle looked like a video recorded by a surveillance camera.

And this is the second young lady of the Suzuki Group who was saved! It seems that Inspector Megure is about to have a second spring in his career.

"Inspector Matsumoto, it seems Inspector Megure has caught the culprit."

Matsumoto Kiyona nodded and told Kitahara Masaki to quickly have Megure bring the prisoner out and explain to the media that the prisoner who would 'randomly' attack women had been arrested.

Inspector Megure quickly brought over the hooded prisoner and said to Kitahara Masaki:

"Brother Kitahara, go and take this prisoner there. My current appearance isn't suitable for appearing on camera."

"No! This look is perfect for appearing on camera. But are you alright right now?"

Half of his face was covered in blood, and you could see traces of blood that had just been wiped away. How could such marks from a fight with a criminal be wasted like this?

Kitahara Masaki pushed Inspector Megure and the prisoner forward. At that moment, power was restored, and the media's raised cameras showed a chubby police officer leading a prisoner with a hood over his head.

The officer's head was still stained with blood, indicating that a fierce struggle had taken place. Reporters surrounded the police officers, asking them various questions.

However, this time the focus is on Inspector Megure, a veteran police officer who has worked diligently for over twenty years, who has finally gained media attention.

Kitahara Masaki hid behind the crowd, thinking that he would have to post the recorded video to various media outlets later, hoping that fewer people would pay attention to the pseudonym 'Kitahara Masaki'.

Chapter 127 Judy, the Arcade Lover

"Shuichi, do you really think he'll stay in Japan?"

"Hehe, the person who assassinated that high-ranking Gaul official was most likely Vermouth in disguise. Yawenyi's style is probably more flamboyant. Rather than letting that official die in bed, he is more likely to snipe him while the official is shaking hands with the model."

"However, the Japanese police have already conducted a search and found that one of the police officers disappeared after the search. So Yawenyi must have killed a police officer and then disguised himself to take his place."

“Judy, how do you explain the testimony of that low-level member we caught in the United States? He should have no reason to lie.”

"No matter what, do you still insist that he's still in Japan?"

The man lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and then touched a scar near his temple.

“That’s right, he was the person who brought me closest to death, and he’s definitely still in Japan—that’s what my gut feeling tells me.”

“Okay, if that’s the case, I’ll continue to follow this line of investigation. But right now, the Japanese organization is frantically searching for the Miyano sisters. If you can find them, Shuichi…”

The FBI recently received information that members of the organization in Japan were frantically searching for a woman, who turned out to be Akemi Miyano, the woman Shuichi Akai had approached while infiltrating the organization. Shortly afterward, the FBI's undercover agent reported that member Sherry had betrayed the organization, and that the organization's research institute and pharmaceutical company in Tokyo had been blown up.

At this point, the FBI finally realized that the Miyano sisters had been rescued by some force. So, in order to confirm this and to track down Vermouth and Yavin, they sent several investigators to Japan.

As always, the FBI and CIA didn't bother to inform other countries before sending a bunch of FBI agents with fake identities to Japan, and one of them became an English teacher.

----------------

"A combat game console? Do such things even exist?"

Having visited the site countless times, Kitahara Masaki looked at the fighting game machine with curiosity, though the corpses on it were in the way.

"Oh! Officer, you didn't know? These arcade machines have a feedback function. When your character gets hit in the game, the sensors on your seat will also transmit a slight impact."

"There are arcade games like this?!"

However, these arcade machines restrict the player's hands and feet during gameplay, which is too dangerous for an undercover agent like Kitahara Masaki.

While Kitahara Masaki curiously observed the game console, Inspector Megure sighed and took over the task of asking questions:

"Hello, may I ask your name? And are you a foreigner? But you seem very familiar with Japanese arcade games."

"Haha, that's right, my name is Jodie Saintemillion, and I currently teach English at Teitan High School. It just so happens that what I love most about Japan is its arcade games, which are very rare in the United States, so I came to Japan to teach so that I can play arcade games in my spare time."

Ah, Inspector Megure noticed the strong foreign accent in the American's Japanese, so he was indeed a foreigner. While his reason for coming to Japan to become a teacher was rather far-fetched, it wasn't entirely incomprehensible.

According to Xiaolan's testimony, they were playing the fighting game machine when the victim kicked them out. The victim then died in his seat while playing against other people in the game.

“I have a question, officer.”

"Hmm? Is there a problem?"