Chapter 35: The Gains from Car Shopping

Monday, October 3rd. Following the court session of the previous Friday, a new week had begun.

There were no longer any reporters lurking outside the police station. In part, this was because several days had passed and public interest had waned; in the current information age, internet trends are fleeting, and a scandal like coerced interrogation is lucky to remain the center of attention for more than a few days. Furthermore, after Shirai admitted to the misconduct and submitted his resignation, the storm surrounding the police had gradually subsided. Even those still following the case were now focused on the prosecution and the eventual verdict.

In particular, Komikado had emphasized in court that Shiraishi was "newly appointed," so the reporters who were playing dumb found it difficult to continue targeting him for interviews. Of course, Shiraishi was still holding onto Shirai's resignation letter, telling him not to think about running off until the case was closed.

Meanwhile, the Beika Precinct had not relaxed its investigation. After Shiraishi brought the information from the court to light and opened up new lines of inquiry, the team suddenly had several new directions to pursue. Regrettably, however, the weekend’s investigation yielded disappointing results—they could neither confirm nor debunk anything.

They checked the surveillance footage from the area around the park for the days surrounding the crime, but they could not find Tsubokura nor the female blogger. The surveillance coverage was far from comprehensive, and they had essentially been trying their luck. They did, however, find a record in the coffee truck’s order history for a "Signature Iced Latte" at the same time on the afternoon of the following day. This matched Shiraishi’s hypothesis: the defendant had deliberately mimicked the blogger's attire and ordering habits the day after the crime to confuse the clerk’s memory. But without video evidence, and with the clerk unable to recall the specifics, they could not prove whether the blogger had ordered it on the day of the crime or if it was the defendant the following day.

As for the investigation into the blog’s browsing history, because it allowed anonymous visitors, no useful information was uncovered—only the confirmation that an anonymous account had visited the blog multiple times during the time of the crime, right up until the blogger posted her content. And the digital trail for that anonymous account led back to an unregistered prepaid SIM card.

At that moment, Shiraishi received some unsettling "intelligence."

*Ding-dong.*

Shiraishi heard the notification and glanced at his messaging app. It was a photo from Gina—a young woman with short hair, dressed in professional attire with a pencil skirt, was standing in front of a hair salon, asking a staff member questions while taking notes in a small book. Gina also sent a message: "Is she that 'Side-Part's' assistant?"

"Side-Part" clearly referred to Komikado, whose hairstyle was an extreme side part. Gina was obviously keeping a close eye on the news regarding the case and had recognized the young lawyer. In theory, she wasn't Komikado’s assistant, but rather Tsubokura’s former defense attorney from the Miki Law Firm. However, she was likely being used as a pawn to lure Komikado into a trap.

But the sign of the hair salon in the photo was "shining brightly." Shiraishi recalled that this was the very salon the blogger had mentioned in her posts as a newly opened spot in Kamurocho. Clearly, the other side was already investigating the authenticity of the blog's content. The woman posted every day; if they could prove even a few of those posts were fake, the credibility of her testimony would plummet. After all, she had sworn in court that all her blog entries were written in real-time. To maintain her persona of "loving life" and having "wonderful days," the witness had indeed lied. This was the "fatal flaw" Shiraishi had identified earlier.

[Thanks. What about the thing I told you to report back on after you thought it over?] Shiraishi replied directly. It was already Monday! Gina pretended to be dead and did not reply.

The new salon was not far from the market where the orphanage bought supplies. Shiraishi guessed she was likely helping out at the orphanage, so he didn't press her. The orphanage couldn't provide long-term relief for adults, as funds and resources were limited, but letting her stay for the final two weeks before she turned eighteen was not an issue.

At 6:00 PM, confident that the "prosecution's trump card had been countered," Shiraishi finished his paperwork for the day and paid a visit to the Criminal Investigation Division. Seeing the office bustling with activity, Shiraishi felt a sense of satisfaction. If he ever started his own business, he thought, he would be lucky to have such dedicated employees working overtime for free—he would have no trouble living the life he wanted. The expanded door frame allowed him to walk in without ducking his head.

"Chief."
"Good evening, Chief!"
The officers discussing matters in the office turned to greet him as he entered.

"Are there any other tricky cases recently?" Shiraishi asked directly. Everyone knew he wasn't referring to *that* case, and they all shook their heads.

"Chief, everything else is trivial."

Shiraishi nodded. "Akasaka, come with me." He led him to a small office adjacent to the main area to speak privately. "How is Ms. Hayashida?" Shiraishi asked vaguely.

Akasaka understood what he meant. "Nothing suspicious found."

Ms. Hayashida—the victim’s estranged wife—had been detained for 24 hours, but due to a lack of evidence, they couldn't extend it to 48. If they had pressed her on the fact that she "saw the body but didn't call the police," they could have applied for an arrest warrant. If she hadn't confirmed the victim was dead, she was a suspect for "criminal negligence"; if she had confirmed it, she was a suspect for tampering with a crime scene and "obstructing justice." However, since Tsubokura was the primary suspect and the Prosecutor's Office was unwilling to shift their focus, there was little point in holding her longer, so they let her go. They had her signed statement, so they could bring her back at any time on charges of criminal negligence. After letting her go, Akasaka had Source and Yamada tail her, hoping she would slip up.

Tsubokura was certainly suspicious, with a high likelihood of having faked his alibi, but Ms. Hayashida was just as suspicious. She had gone to the victim’s home, had met with him before his death, and claimed things like "I parked the car there because I didn't want the neighbors gossiping," "I went to the supermarket during the crime," and "I saw the body but was too scared to call the police." If Shirai had been in charge and hadn't found Tsubokura, he likely would have interrogated her until she became the defendant.

"Actually," Shiraishi said suddenly, "I’ve been looking at cars lately. The police station’s vehicles are just too cramped."

Akasaka didn't understand the implication at first—he couldn't be asking for a bribe, could he? What a coincidence, he didn't have any money either.

"I discovered that the Madou S model has parking surveillance," Shiraishi continued, mentioning something he had read in an automotive magazine. "It means if someone approaches the vehicle while it's parked, it records them—not just from the front, but from the sides as well. At the time of the incident, the car was positioned in a way that it almost completely blocked that narrow alley..."

Because this feature wasn't widely known, the police had retrieved the car's GPS records but hadn't thought to copy the onboard surveillance footage.

Akasaka’s eyes lit up. If that were true, and they could obtain the footage, they would have a clear record of everyone who had entered or exited that alleyway on the day of the crime!