No one understands the laws of Collider better than me.

"Let me go! Let me go now!"

The little black girl, her voice trembling with tears, was truly pitiful. As soon as Vermouth released her, she collapsed to the ground, no longer trying to run away, but simply sitting there, lost and muttering to herself:

"What should we do?"

Yes, this time Xiao Hei is a woman, not the gigolo who harasses married women. Thinking of this, Kitahara Masaki realized that if that were the case, then it would explain President Todo's series of actions.

“Miss, you must be Sayaka Todo, right? I’m Inspector Masaki Kitahara from the Metropolitan Police Department. This is my police notebook. This isn’t the place to chat. Please come down the mountain with us first.”

Vermouth supported her, while Kitahara Masaki pondered how to get this supposedly missing lady to speak.

“Ahem, Mrs. Todo, if you don’t want to talk about it, then I’ll speak first. I think the remains of that gigolo who’s been haunting you—Kumazawa Kazuya—are buried in that cave. After you buried his body here, Todo Company also stopped the excavation plan here. It seems that your father-in-law—President Todo—had you bury the body here, right?”

Seeing that Sayaka Toudou remained silent, Masaki Kitahara continued:

"Did you know? President Todo is now suspected of murder. He killed a former detective who had already uncovered the truth. Did you know that?"

"Huh! How could this happen?"

"The police have already begun searching him, so we hope you can tell the truth as soon as possible. Otherwise, if you continue to hide it, the consequences will be very serious."

The police investigation into President Toudou is still in its early stages, but Kitahara Masaki's words threw Toudou Sayaka off balance. Seeing her still looking hesitant, Kitahara Masaki scratched his head. This young lady didn't seem like someone who had committed murder; she seemed more like a girl who needed guidance.

“Ms. Sayaka, you disappeared three years ago. At that time, your husband cried incessantly when he reported you to the police station, begging the police to find you. And your son, three years have passed. He must have grown a lot taller by now. If he has a girl he likes, he might be embarrassed to discuss it with his father. So please go home as soon as possible.”

Vermouth had no intention of forcing her to confess, but her words immediately caused Madam Dongtang to cover her face and weep bitterly, choking back tears as she recounted the truth of what happened back then:

“At that time, Xiong Ze secretly came to my house and said he wanted to elope with me. I didn’t agree. When I was about to call my husband, he suddenly pounced on me and tried to rape me. I struggled desperately and grabbed something and hit him on the back of the head. He died very quickly. I panicked and didn’t know what to do. Just then, my father-in-law came home. He told me to bury Xiong Ze’s body in the cave that Dongtang Company was planning to dig at that time, and told me to stay there to prevent others from discovering the body. So I worked at a hotel at the foot of Mount Akagi.”

"And was it President Todo who sent you to that cave today?"

"Yes, my father-in-law said that a group of treasure hunters on the internet have found the cave. To prevent them from digging up Xiong Ze's body, he wants me to move the body tonight."

So that's how it is... Based on her testimony, this is what happened. When Mr. Yasuda was working as a security guard at Todo Company, he saw the excavation data from the warehouse. As a former detective, he immediately recalled the strange behavior of the president of Todo back then. Combined with the timing of the excavation work stoppage, he immediately went to Mount Akagi, found his elementary school classmates, and went to Mount Akagi with them to excavate. Unexpectedly, one day he saw Ms. Sayaka, who was supposed to have disappeared, in a hotel on Mount Akagi.

Mr. Yasuda quickly deduced the truth of the matter: he wanted to leave the treasure hunt trio because he didn't want to dig up the body. He wanted to have a serious talk with President Todo first, because his daughter-in-law was hiding here, near the excavation project he had once led. The president must have known about it. However, after the conversation, he was killed by President Todo...

It's a pity that this former detective was a responsible and good person, but he ended up like this...

When Takagi returned to the Metropolitan Police Department with Mrs. Todo, he excitedly told Kitahara Masaki that they had found evidence that President Todo had gone to Mr. Yasuda's residence on the night of the incident, and that a neighbor had even seen him running out of Yasuda's house in a panic.

It seemed the case was closed, and just as he was thinking this, Vermouth suddenly said:

"Shinichi, is there any legal way to allow Sayaka to see her son sooner?"

"Yes, definitely. I can ask someone later. Is what that woman said true?"

"Yes, she did make that sacrifice for her son."

“Alright, since you’ve put it that way, I’ll find someone to pull some strings. I can also contact her husband and tell him the truth. He should be willing to use the connections at Dongtang Company… In short, I will help this mother within the bounds of the law this time.”

Chapter 193 Crime Investigation Lesson

For some reason, the time suddenly changed to New Year's Day. Kitahara Maki was having dinner with Superintendent Odagiri Toshiro at a high-end Western restaurant.

After several rounds of drinks and dishes, Kitahara Masaki left the table to wash his face in the restroom. After all, he dared not show the slightest weakness in front of this veteran policeman who had risen to the top of the non-professional group based on his achievements. Just as he was leaving the restroom to check his phone, he noticed that two important figures had suddenly appeared in the VIP room in the distance.

The two men were Nobuhiro Fujiwara, Secretary-General of the Japan Friendship Association, and Shigeaki Anoda, a member of the House of Representatives and Chairman of the Policy Research Council. Unlike the other lower-ranking members who had been discarded or used as examples by the organization, these two men were backed by entire families, their lineages as illustrious as Yuan Shao's. It wouldn't be an exaggeration for them to mention their family had held high positions for four generations when introducing themselves. Back at the table, Masaki Kitahara casually mentioned it, and Toshiro Odagiri replied:

“Just a few days ago, Representative Nyota joined forces with representatives from various factions to establish an association to eliminate child poverty. However, since the person sitting here is someone from the Keiyuren who can deal with large financial groups, it’s obvious that Representative Nyota wants to get assistance from the financial world. And you said you saw three sets of tableware. Who could the third person be? Well, let’s not talk about that. Inspector Kitahara, thanks to your efforts, our Tokyo headquarters’ murder clearance rate has exceeded 90%. Now that it’s the new year, I’d like to toast you.”

Haha, what new year? It's just that time has gone backwards by a year. Even Conan and the others are still in their first year.

"This is all thanks to Superintendent Odagiri's guidance. You flatter me."

"Haha, young man, there's no need to be so modest. Since you have the ability, why not be more generous? Let me make it clear to you in advance. In the new year, the Metropolitan Police Department Headquarters will undergo reforms. We have secured sufficient funding for the establishment of the database and technology departments. At the same time, a new department called the Crime Investigation Division I will be established, and you will be appointed as the managing officer of the Crime Investigation Division I. In other words, after this New Year, you will no longer be Inspector Kitahara, but Superintendent Kitahara."

However, what the veteran policeman didn't expect was that Kitahara Masaki was extremely reluctant to take on this kind of job that required managing a large number of people, and even felt a deep loathing for it. In his heart, he was already shouting that he should betray the organization and make money quickly.

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

Ah, why can't I eat rice cakes with Xiaolan on New Year's Day?

Seeing Conan's awkward expression, Mitsuhiko quickly said:

"Conan! You can't skip your cleaning duty anymore!"

"Hey! You guys dragged me along to help find someone, how did it become that I wanted to run away?"

"Besides, we were just engrossed in reading comics at the newsstand, and it's already past eight o'clock. I guess we'll get a scolding from our parents when we get home."

"Ahem, you're the only one who gets so engrossed in reading comics! I only stayed at the newsstand because I saw the news that the Metropolitan Police Department was going to sponsor the production of a TV series."

"Oh, the one that Kitahara-kun wrote?"

"That's right, that's right, I wonder what kind of story Kitahara-nii will write?"

At this moment, Conan was about to call Ran to explain why he was going home late, but when he reached into his pocket, he found that his phone was gone!

"Oh no! My phone is gone!"

"Huh? Could it be that he was hit by that drunk man in the park just now?"

Hmm—very likely. Conan's missing phone is the new one, the one used by 'Edogawa Conan', while 'Kudo Shinichi's' phone is still hanging properly around his neck.

"Sorry, Mitsuhiko, why don't you go ahead and I'll go back and look for it."

"What are you saying! Let's go back and look for it together."

The two hurriedly ran back to the park to look for their phones. As they searched, Mitsuhiko suddenly noticed two adult men acting suspiciously in the distance, talking to each other. He slowly took out his phone, intending to take a picture of the two men.

However, because his phone emitted a light while recording video, one of the two men noticed it and immediately shouted in Mitsuhiko's direction:

What are you filming?!

Startled, Mitsuhiko fell to the ground, and Conan, who rushed over, immediately helped him up. Then, without looking back, Conan ran away. After all, it was already night, and there were no streetlights in the park, so even if Conan wanted to use his Martian Power Ball, he wouldn't be able to see where people were. Besides, he didn't even know who Mitsuhiko had messed with.

The two ran to the children's slide and hid in the shadows. At this moment, Conan finally spoke, asking:

"What happened? I saw you suddenly fall backward, and there seemed to be two men in the distance. What did they do?"

"I didn't see it clearly... I originally wanted to record their conversation, but they found out."

Sigh—Conan sighed helplessly, thinking to himself that this was troublesome, and said:

"You need to contact Kitahara-ni right now! No! Wait a minute!"

The man who had caught up looked around. Conan, who had originally planned to have Mitsuhiko call for backup, covered his and Mitsuhiko's mouths, hoping the man wouldn't come any closer. If he did get too close, Conan would have to use his Genius Watch to tranquilize it.

Just as the man was walking into the children's play area, a phone rang suddenly. The man turned around sharply and saw the location from which the sound came.

He picked up a cell phone from among the fallen leaves on the ground, turned it on, and pressed the answer button.

"Hey! Conan! Where did you go?!"

Oh no! That's my phone, and Xiaolan just called!

Conan was shocked. His phone, which he had accidentally dropped, had been picked up by someone who looked like a bad guy. This was really troublesome.

"Conan, why aren't you saying anything? The food I made is getting cold."

The man listened to the sound coming from the phone in silence. After a while, he pressed the power button, turned around, and left.

"I'm sorry, Conan. It's all because of me that things have turned out this way."

"Sigh, it's already happened, there's no point in saying anything now, let's go home first. I'll explain this to Kitahara-nii, and about the video you took on your phone... Come to Professor Agasa's house tomorrow and let him deal with the video."

"Oh, I understand."

The next day, Kitahara Masaki stood speechlessly in Professor Agasa's living room, looking at Conan and Mitsuhiko, who were probably facing another case, and didn't know what to say.

"Conan, why don't you go buy a lottery ticket?"

"Hey! This is clearly not my fault, it's the fault of those criminals. If they had nothing to hide, why would they take my phone? They probably thought my phone was the one that recorded their video, so that's why the man ran away with my phone in such a hurry."

"Well, everyone, don't be in such a hurry. Let me see what Mitsuhiko has bid on first."

Mitsuhiko handed the phone to Professor Agasa, and everyone gathered around the computer desk, watching Professor Agasa show off his skills.

Chapter 194 The Metropolitan Police Department is not my home

"Ah, I really have no other choice. Mitsuhiko's hands must have been shaking the whole time he was filming this video."

"I can't help it, I'm still scared."

Everyone was surprised to see Professor Agasa defeated, except for Haibara, who just smiled and continued petting the cat.

"So, Professor Agasa, you can't identify the people in the video that Mitsuhiko filmed?"

"Yes, the video we took was too blurry... Actually, we can identify the voice through voiceprints, but because I don't have the necessary equipment, I can't separate the voiceprints clearly, so I can't hear what the two of them are saying."

"Hey! Professor Agasa, aren't you an inventor? Why are you still so broke, and you don't even update your computer equipment?"

Dr. Agasa wiped his sweat. In order to develop new inventions, he would quickly spend all the money he had earned, which made his computer equipment relatively outdated. However, since Ai was already a big kid, he had never complained to him. It wasn't until today that Dr. Agasa realized that he really needed to upgrade his equipment.

"Ahem! I can find someone to handle the voiceprint issue, but it may take some time."

"Kitahara-kun, can't we ask the Metropolitan Police Department's technical department for help?"

“Kid! You really think the Metropolitan Police Department is my personal property? If I just said a word, things would be much simpler. But there hasn’t been a case yet, and you’re going to take this video over like this… that’s not in accordance with regulations.”

Normally, doing this wouldn't be a big problem, but now Superintendent Odagiri Toshiro is preparing for Kitahara Masaki's new department and promotion. At this critical juncture, Kitahara Masaki is already being closely watched by the Internal Affairs Department. If he were to trouble the already busy technical department with his personal matters, the resulting trouble would be more than just a matter of saying "I'm being reckless."

Now that Professor Agasa knows someone who can solve the problem, Kitahara Masaki is happy to have some peace and quiet.

"Then I'll leave it to you, Professor Agasa."

Kitahara Masaki's conjecture is that two grown men chatting in a park late at night might be engaged in some kind of underground transaction, or it could be a private dispute that the police cannot intervene in. Moreover, Mitsuhiko only filmed some clips, and such secretly filmed videos are unlikely to be used as evidence in court.

Although he had anticipated that Conan must have encountered some kind of case, it wasn't until three days later that Kitahara Masaki realized he was completely wrong.

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

"Someone died in the port area?"

Three days later, Kitahara Maki did not receive the video analysis results, but instead received a phone call from Inspector Megure.

"Okay, I'll be right there."

When he arrived at the port area, Inspector Megure, with a bitter expression, complained to him:

"This is an unidentified body! We couldn't find anything on him to identify the deceased. The time of death was between midnight and 1 a.m., and it wasn't discovered until this morning. This is where he died."

Inspector Megure pointed to the iron bar next to the body, one end of which was stained with blood. The murder weapon had clearly been taken from the nearby pile of abandoned building materials, thus effectively closing that line of investigation.