CHAPTER 532: CHAPTER 374: A HASTY BET

The next morning, Fushimi Roku was woken up by the sound of a phone.

Minamoto Tamako called him to drop off Sakurako at school and then meet at the police station. Doctor Arima agreed to a home visit, and now they needed to continue questioning the suspect.

Fushimi Roku sensed that Minamoto Tamako’s mood seemed to have returned to normal, and was even more spirited than usual.

"Uh... did you chat with Moriyama Yasurou all night?" he was a bit worried that Moriyama Yasurou might have betrayed him or spoken ill of him.

"Not really, just talked for over an hour. I got back too late and decided to stay over at Yasurou’s house."

Minamoto Tamako paused and added, "Are you on a secret mission today?"

Fushimi Roku initially wanted to slack off, but then reconsidered and asked, "Is Abe there?"

"He is, I asked Chief Kikuchi to have him transferred here to assist with the investigation..."

"Oh, then I’m not going on the mission today," Fushimi Roku said, holding the phone with his shoulder, getting up, and changing clothes, "Wait for me, I’ll be there in ten minutes."

"Eh, so enthusiastic..." Minamoto Tamako was taken aback, "It seems like you have a good relationship with Abe!"

"Why do you say that?" Fushimi Roku splashed water on his face, wiped with a tissue, and considered it washing his face.

"As soon as I mentioned he was here, you hurried over; last night too, when Abe was present, you were particularly active in the investigation... When I called you before, you weren’t so proactive."

Minamoto Tamako was a bit jealous, feeling that as a member of the deduction team, Fushimi Roku should prioritize the captain’s orders, rather than investigating with an outsider.

It’s like Taira Sakurako’s small group — she, Mayu, and Mai are buddies, the so-called little student trio. If one day Taira Sakurako played with Shota, it would naturally cause Mayu and Mai to be unhappy.

"No way... you’re overthinking it."

Fushimi Roku was worried about badmouthing someone behind their back and being discovered. He was close to collecting enough stamps and didn’t want to get deducted again for gossiping.

"It’s fine, I understand, who doesn’t like to show off in front of juniors?" Minamoto Tamako thought she was being magnanimous, "I won’t mind."

Fushimi Roku knew Minamoto Tamako misunderstood, but he didn’t explain, and after a moment of silence, he tacitly agreed.

He changed the subject, chatted for a bit, hung up the phone, took Taira Sakurako to school, and then rushed to the police station to prepare for the case.

Minamoto Tamako arrived at the police station early, wanting to conduct an interrogation, but got stuck in procedural issues. No matter what she said, the criminal police wouldn’t allow it; she had to find Chief Kikuchi, but he said it wasn’t his responsibility and passed her back to the criminal police.

Before she finished the paperwork, Miyazaki Shizuka arrived at the station with Arima Toshio.

The criminal police officer handling the case was Akimoto Masahiko, thirty-one years old, preparing to be promoted to police inspector, a veteran detective, but his attitude towards these two special hires was terrible, making snide remarks and clearly stating that Minamoto Tamako had no authority to intervene;

Arima Toshio didn’t show anger, maintaining a typically gentle smile of a psychological doctor, but turned his head to ask Miyazaki Shizuka what was going on and when they could leave.

Minamoto Tamako was caught in the middle, trying to ease tensions, like a sandwich.

Abe Rokuro wanted to help, but he didn’t have a say here, so he went to entertain Miyazaki Shizuka and Arima Toshio, to calm their emotions and share some of the pressure.

About ten minutes later, Fushimi Roku arrived at the station. Minamoto Tamako, flustered, quickly sought his assistance.

As usual, he invoked the narcotics division, demanding to interrogate the involved personnel in the name of a drug investigation.

But Akimoto Masahiko didn’t buy it, insisting that they go through procedures: first get Chief Higashiyama’s signature, then have Chief Kikuchi approve, and only with the document could they proceed, otherwise it was a no-go.

Fushimi Roku imagined the intrigue involved without even needing to think hard.

They caught a supposed drug addict, but the person wasn’t actually using drugs. How did the case even proceed? Minamoto Tamako was skeptical, but Fushimi Roku was aware of the shady dealings, knowing that Japanese law enforcement agencies have performance targets. When a case can’t be resolved, it’s often classified as ’suicide’ or ’disappearance,’ maintaining a hundred percent murder case closure rate.

If he guessed correctly, the whole scenario probably unfolded like this:

A month ago, Matsuboto Miyaku went berserk on the street, and after arrest, the police discovered he was mentally ill. Normally, the matter would be settled by letting him go to fend for himself.

But the complication arose with the recent spate of random hurting incidents. Public anxiety about social order peaked. The same year, Tokyo introduced a mental health management act, amending legal clauses for mentally ill individuals in criminal cases, granting them exemption from criminal penalties and medical paroles, sparking public outrage.

During this time, groups stood outside courtrooms with signs, claiming mentally ill offenders should also face penalties, without special exemptions.

In such a societal atmosphere, the pressure on the criminal police for releasing a mentally ill person would be immense.

The media would probably spin conspiracy theories, alleging that Matsuboto Miyaku surely bribed the police, posing as mentally ill, exploiting legal loopholes to evade penalties; or they’d criticize the police for being irresponsible, not detaining the mentally ill, not maintaining public order, insisting on apologies from all personnel.

Akimoto Masahiko, deciding it was all or nothing, claimed Matsuboto Miyaku was using drugs, detained him for a while, and sent him directly to a rehabilitation center.

As for whether this incident would be archived or ruin Matsuboto Miyaku’s life, Akimoto Masahiko didn’t care at all... anyway, Matsuboto Miyaku was already insane, what future could he have? Besides, is there a difference between a drug addiction history and a mental illness history? It’s better to rack up some achievements, contributing positively to society after all.