57: Chapter 57: Hardened Professionalism

"I told you before,"

Fujino stated calmly,

"you can never get rid of leeches like him through force or threats alone."

He let out a slow breath.

"Right now, you have two paths. One is to swallow your pride and continue letting him blackmail you... and without any restraints now, his demands will likely become even worse."

"The other path is to report him to the police right now. Use the evidence I have to send him to prison. Then, you can marry Shimazaki next month in peace."

Mamegaki Taeko remained silent for a long moment, then made her decision.

Later that night, the police arrived at the ryokan near the shrine.

After receiving a copy of the video evidence from Fujino, they took the still-unconscious Anzai Mamoru into custody.

Since Fujino's first strike was to stop a crime in progress, and his second was arguably self-defense (given Anzai's subsequent attack), ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the police didn't give either him or Taeko much trouble.

Taeko simply had to go down to the station to give a formal statement.

As for Anzai Mamoru, based on Fujino's understanding of Japanese law, charges of intimidation and attempted rape during the course of blackmail, sentenced consecutively, meant he was looking at a minimum of three years. Furthermore, considering he likely had other blackmail victims besides Taeko, he probably wouldn't see the outside of a prison cell for at least eight to ten years.

[Congratulations Host! An unexpected incident has been resolved. System Reward: +50 Detective Reputation.]

[Reputation needed for next Detective Rank Up: 0/100 -> Rank Up Pending Confirmation]

"So it's true,"

Fujino mused, watching the police cars drive away from the inn.

"Even without a specific system task, solving a case or completing a commission grants bonus reputation?"

He'd suspected this after receiving the unexpected 50 points from Shibasaki Mieko's commission. Part of the reason he'd intervened tonight was to test that theory. Looks like he was right.

"Detective Fujino!"

A voice called out from behind him.

Fujino turned. Yoko Okino approached, dressed casually in a blue t-shirt, khaki jeans, and a blue baseball cap, her hair tied back.

"I saw the police cars when I was walking over,"

she said, reaching him.

"Did something happen here?"

"Was there another case that you solved, Detective Fujino?"

"Haha..."

Fujino felt a bead of sweat form. Good grief. Does she automatically assume police cars mean murder? Wait, why did she say 'another' case? Just how accustomed was she to murders happening around her?

"Mamegaki-san... she's been through ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠so much,"

Yoko sighed sympathetically after Fujino explained the situation.

"To have something like this happen right before her wedding..."

She paused, then smiled warmly at Fujino.

"But it's fortunate you were here, Detective Fujino. If you hadn't intervened when you did, things could have escalated to an irreversible point."

Yoko looked at Fujino with open admiration, like a starstruck fangirl. For a moment, Fujino wasn't sure who the actual famous idol was.

"Ahem!"

Fujino cleared his throat, trying to dispel the awkwardness.

"Speaking of which, Yoko-san, what are you doing out so late?"

"Oh, I was just heading to the convenience store,"

Yoko explained with a light laugh.

"But I saw the police cars near the shrine and came over to see what was going on."

"Want me to walk you?"

Fujino offered.

"It can be dangerous at night these days. Especially with those rumors about gangs kidnapping pretty girls going around."

"If it's not too much trouble, that would be great."

Although Fujino hadn't solved a huge number of cases yet, his reputation was steadily growing. The cases he had solved – the Moonlight Island drug ring, the Italian robbery gang, the Shinkansen bombing – were all high-profile and dangerous incidents. Thanks to subtle nudges from police contacts, his fame was even starting to eclipse that of Kogoro Mouri, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠despite Mouri solving several other recent murders.

Two days later.

The past couple of days had been uneventful, system-task-wise. Fujino spent the time discreetly investigating Maru Denjiro's wife, Maru Inako. He finally managed to obtain definitive proof of her affair.

Interestingly, the timeline seemed to have snapped back to normal again these past two days, which felt almost... weirdly disconcerting to Fujino now.

Maru Denjiro Residence.

The house was enormous, a traditional Japanese estate with multiple buildings set within beautifully landscaped gardens. The rhythmic clack of a shishi-odoshi (bamboo water fountain) echoed periodically.

"Based on my investigation over the past few days, I can confirm that your wife, Mrs. Maru Inako, is indeed having an affair."

Fujino retrieved several photographs from the sports sling bag he carried and handed them to Maru Denjiro.

"Your wife was extremely careful, her disguise quite thorough. It took some time to gather conclusive evidence."

The photos showed a couple, heavily disguised, exiting a hotel. The woman wore a black hat, and both wore glasses to obscure their faces.

Fujino pointed to a distinctive beauty mark on the woman's cheek in the photo, then produced a picture of Maru Inako for comparison.

"Despite the disguise, the mole on her cheek is unmistakable. This is definitely your wife, Maru Inako."

"That... bitch..."

Maru Denjiro gripped the photos, his knuckles white, teeth grinding audibly. He took a deep, steadying breath before asking,

"Who is the man?!"

"None other than your personal physician, Hatano Kikuya."

"Damn it!" Maru slammed his fist on the table.

"I hired him to treat my diabetes! And he ends up 'treating' my wife instead!"

Fujino lowered his head, maintaining a neutral expression. As a professional detective, he possessed the crucial skill of not laughing at his clients, no matter how absurd the situation.

Unless he absolutely couldn't help it.

Ding-dong!

The doorbell rang suddenly.

"Sounds like someone's here..."

Fujino suppressed a chuckle, asking Maru Denjiro calmly,

"Were you expecting ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠anyone else besides me, Maru-san?"

"Oh..." Maru paused, thinking.

"Besides you, Detective Fujino... yes, I believe I invited three other people over today."

Ding-dong! Ding-dong!

The doorbell rang again, more insistently this time.

"Damn it! Where is everyone?!" Maru grumbled irritably.

"Those useless servants... always slacking off..."

He paused again, scratching his head sheepishly.

"Ah, right. I forgot. I sent all the staff away today because you were coming, Detective Fujino."

"Well, since the investigation is essentially complete,"

Fujino said flatly, ignoring Maru's awkwardness,

"perhaps we should settle the remainder of the commission fee?"