Ghost Detectives in the Detective World

He soon learned that the chief inspector, who was also an inspector like Megure, was acquainted with the police in Shikoku.

The chief detective has been working as a criminal investigator for decades; he's spent more time in the First Division than Megure.

His long career as a detective meant he had acquaintances at police headquarters throughout Japan.

Matsuda quickly obtained the phone number of the Shikoku Police Headquarters from him.

However, the call didn't go well.

After Matsuda mentioned wanting to inquire about the Lavender Villa murder case...

The Shikoku police headquarters immediately hung up the phone.

It seems the murder at the Lavender Villa has become a taboo subject at the Shikoku Police Headquarters.

Matsuda reluctantly put down the phone.

"Are you looking to investigate that case from six months ago where the prisoner committed suicide because of police coercion?" the chief officer asked after hearing what Matsuda said on the phone.

“Yes,” Matsuda nodded. “Someone told me that the girl who jumped into the sea was not the criminal; she was framed.”

“Isn’t he a criminal?” The police chief shook his head and sighed. “If this gets exposed to the media, the Shikoku Police Headquarters will be finished.”

"Actually, the police in Shikoku were also misled by a high school detective. What I really want to investigate is the identity of this high school detective," Matsuda explained briefly.

“You want to direct the media attention to that high school detective?” The police chief paused for a moment.

“Whoever makes a mistake should take responsibility. That’s better than that girl dying unjustly,” Matsuda said calmly.

"In that case, you'd better go there in person. You definitely won't get any information over the phone."

The police officer found a pen and left his phone number with Matsuda.

“This is a friend of mine over there. He’s not well-liked at the Shikoku Police Headquarters because of his personality. If you go to Shikoku, you might be able to get some information out of him.”

"Thank you."

After settling these matters, Matsuda immediately contacted Koshimizu.

Koshimizu has been investigating in Shikoku for some time now. With her there, it's better than Matsuda going alone and having to start all over again.

After sending an email to Koshimizu, Matsuda was waiting for her reply.

Then Yumi burst into the office with a bang, placing the newspaper she was holding on Matsuda's desk with a smile on her face.

"Not bad, he actually took advantage of the business trip to ask Miwako out."

“We went out to play again,” Sato said, looking somewhat awkward.

"Miwako, you're still trying to lie to me!" Yumi stepped forward and hugged her friend, complaining, "It's already been published in the newspapers."

Matsuda opened the newspaper Yumi had brought; it reported on the theft of the jewelry necklace from the orca enclosure.

The homepage features a photo of him and Sato standing by the orca pool.

"I just never expected that a criminal would hide the stolen goods there..."

Yumi gave Matsuda a strange look.

"By the way, how did you know he hid the necklace there? Did you also...?"

"Don't talk nonsense!" Matsuda glared at her irritably. "I was just guessing. I tricked him a little before he told me."

"Is that so? I thought you, Matsuda, had that kind of hobby too..."

Yumi covered her mouth, laughing as she nudged Sato.

"Miwako should know this very well, right?"

"I...I don't know!"

Sato blushed, and under Yumi's teasing, she quickly couldn't hold back any longer, grabbed the documents, and ran out.

"I'll go and get the files from yesterday's Yumi case for Inspector Megure."

"Yumi's case?" Yumi pointed to herself in surprise.

"Yes, Yumi, you were in Chiba, but you've already been killed," Matsuda said with amusement.

"what happened?"

Yumi leaned over the table and pressed Matsuda for answers.

“Too close!”

Matsuda raised his hand, pressed Yumi's face, and pushed her back. Then he told her about Mori's case bit by bit.

"They had been in love for eighteen years, and in the end, they killed each other for such a reason." Yumi felt a little melancholy after hearing this.

After saying that, she looked at Matsuda and warned, "You mustn't be like that Officer Nakamichi!"

"What are you thinking?" Matsuda pinched Yumi's cheek angrily. "How could I possibly do that to Miwako!"

"Hmph, you think I don't know?" Yumi glanced at Matsuda sideways. "You haven't succeeded with Miwako yet, have you?"

Matsuda's cheek twitched. He looked up at the office, and seeing that no one else was paying attention, he asked in a low voice, "How did you know?"

"What do you think my relationship with Miwako is?" Yumi scoffed. "We've been classmates and best friends since high school!"

"Miwako will definitely tell me anything that's on her mind!"

"She's still hung up on what happened before, so she's been hesitant to commit to a relationship with you. What if you run out of patience one day..."

Yumi made a face at this point.

“You men, once your patience runs out, who knows what you’re capable of doing.”

"By the way, you..." Yumi suddenly asked casually, "Which friend's house did you stay at the other day?"

Little girl, trying to trick me into revealing information? Do you really think I'm a detective for nothing?

Matsuda blinked, his face full of surprise.

"What did you say?"

"Stop pretending!" Yumi slammed her hand on the table. "Your friend is a woman, isn't she?"

"Friends? What friends?"

Matsuda continued to pretend he didn't understand.

If Yumi, that big mouth, finds out about his relationship with Kujo, she'll definitely make the whole Metropolitan Police Department know.

He won't be able to explain himself to Sato then.

Chapter 78 Investigation in Four Countries

“My friend is actually… a deadbeat otaku just like Chiba!” Matsuda hurriedly pointed to Chiba, who was not far away.

"Hmph, you can't fool me!" Yumi snorted. "That's not just a woman, it's definitely a woman I know!"

"Cough, cough, cough..."

Matsuda was drinking water when he heard her words and was so shocked that he almost choked on his water.

"Hehe, looks like I was right!"

Yumi patted Matsuda's back while sneering.

"I, Detective Yumi, will definitely investigate all your philandering ways!"

"Oh, right, I think I also need to see Inspector Megure!" Matsuda didn't dare to say anything more to Yumi.

He knew better than anyone the importance of speaking too much.

Matsuda hurriedly stood up, grabbed a file at random, and ran to find Megure.

As luck would have it, before Matsuda even left his office, Inspector Megure had already pushed the door open and walked in.

"Matsuda, come out with me for a bit."

"Now? Are there going to be another case?" Matsuda asked in surprise.

“Yeah, the owner of a software company got murdered,” Megure waved his hand. “We’ll have to rely on you again, Matsuda!”

……

At the suspect Mr. Tokito's apartment, Matsuda, having learned the details of the incident from the deceased's spirit, quickly identified the murderer.

"Mr. Tokito, it was you who used hacking software to break into the main computer of your president's home in the Giant Wood Enterprise, changed the temperature control program, and raised the temperature in your president's home. Ultimately, due to the rapid increase in room temperature, and since Mr. Muki was intoxicated, it caused him to have a heart attack."

"The withered flowers in the room, the melted chocolate, the cat hair from Aslan in your room, and the scattered cat litter pellets are all evidence."

"besides,"

Matsuda went to the shelf next to him.

"You probably haven't deleted that program used to hack into President Mumu's main computer, right? Isn't it still sitting here?"

"How...how did you know?" Shi Ren involuntarily took a step back, his face full of shock.

"How should I know? So that means it really wasn't deleted!" Matsuda clapped his hands. "Inspector, have someone take all the floppy disks and computers on this shelf back. That should be enough to find the program that Mr. Tokito used to kill people."

Faced with overwhelming evidence, the suspect, Mr. Tokito, could no longer hold back and finally confessed everything, bit by bit.

Mr. Shi was originally a programmer at Giantwood Corporation.

Two years ago, he resigned from his job and started a software company with a friend.

However, they were maliciously suppressed by the deceased, President Mumu.

Mr. Ren's software company was soon forced into bankruptcy.

Burdened with enormous debts, he had no choice but to return to Giant Wood Enterprises.

However, President Mumu used him as a target to demonstrate the consequences of betrayal to other employees.

They were subjected to constant humiliation and ridicule.

Finally, unable to bear it any longer, Shi Ren ruthlessly took the death penalty.

You really can't go too far with people! Honest people aren't so easy to bully.

Matsuda shook his head.

The deceased's self-destructive behavior made it impossible for him to feel any sympathy for him.