Chapter 78 Once we reach that place...
This is the third time.
Otherwise, I might as well just spend the night at the police station.
Sitting in the police station, Morofushi Kagemitsu mechanically recounted the events, while across from Officer Umeda, a subtle hint of sympathy tinged with disbelief, he thought with a sense of resignation.
[Anti-fraud expert #19: I advise you not to. If that serial killer really gets caught today, you probably won't be able to sleep well.]
Zhu Fujingguang: ...
He was powerless to refute at that moment.
"...So, Mr. Asakawa, you were driving for the rest of the journey?" Officer Umeda confirmed the details with him again, but it was unclear what her purpose was in asking this question.
Could it be that everyone in the car was recognized? But apart from that scammer from northern Myanmar, the others shouldn't have revealed their faces.
Morofushi Kagemitsu nodded. He wasn't lying; for the second half of the journey, he had been driving diligently to create a quiet and comfortable environment for the two young men to defuse the bomb.
Well, in this situation where team battles are crucial, his role inexplicably became that of a driver. No wonder Vodka has always had a subtle hostility towards him; perhaps this guy, besides his hacking skills, really does have extraordinary intuition.
[Anti-fraud expert #11: You're overthinking it. Vodka just has a "big brother mentality"; he simply finds your love story with Gin annoying to air.]
Morofushi Kagemitsu: ...He's really stirring things up. I didn't even write the article. Instead of wasting time getting angry with me, why don't you go find the real culprit, Vermouth?
"Okay, that's all we know about this train hijacking incident." Officer Umeda scribbled on the form, leaving behind whatever he could think of; he couldn't have just been doodling for no reason.
[Anti-fraud expert #26: She wouldn't dare do that on the official form; her several doodle masterpieces are actually in her notebook. And you know what? Her drawing skills are comparable to #66's.]
Zhu Fujingguang: ...
"Are you taking the bus to the city center again today?" Officer Umeda asked tentatively. The man's extremely unlucky experience made her want to say more.
Good question. He doesn't know whether he should continue taking the bus. If he really sleeps at the police station, would there be a place for him?
[Anti-fraud expert #198: Why don't you wait two hours before leaving? It's already 10 PM, the day is almost over, maybe your luck will improve after midnight.]
But it could also be worse, couldn't it?
Morofushi Hiromitsu had prepared for the worst, considering the capabilities of the Tottori police officers that Anti-Fraud Guy had previously explained to him—they probably wouldn't be able to catch the serial killer. In that case, he tried a reverse approach, saying, "I have important business at the company tomorrow."
Officer Umeda glanced at his phone and said, "How about we send someone to take you? If you're willing to wait a bit while we get your car repaired."
If we wait any longer, the car probably won't be ready today.
Morobuchi Kagemitsu shook his head and said, "No need, let me see if I can catch this last train."
"Alright." Officer Umeda didn't insist and got up to see him out.
He nodded politely, said goodbye to Officer Umeda as he reached the gate, and continued walking toward the bus stop.
[Anti-fraud expert #205: Under normal circumstances, you have 10 minutes, which is enough time for you to walk to the bus stop.]
What about abnormal situations?
[Anti-fraud expert #198: This is abnormal... For example, just now, the transportation company received a notice from the police department that the last bus service has been cancelled.]
Zhu Fujingguang: ...
He stood at the station, looking up at the lights surrounded by pink bubbles. He had never realized that getting to that place would be so difficult.
He sat down quietly.
[Anti-fraud expert #148: ...It seems Tottori isn't a suitable place for us.]
[Anti-fraud expert #214: ...We really didn't expect so much bad luck to befall us.]
If we must draw a connection, then I think this is more like a punishment.
[Anti-Fraud Guru #11: Punishment, indeed.]
Your tone sounds like you've completely resigned yourself to your fate. Did you already foresee this situation?
[Anti-fraud expert #198: No exact result has been calculated, but based on previous databases of dealing with "misfortune punishments," we're likely to experience a lot of bad luck today.]
Misfortune and punishment?
What is this thing? Are you sure you didn't just make up this word?
[Anti-fraud expert #19: I swear on my life, this is absolutely not something we made up. We only realized this after we got here; it's very similar to the tactic in "Misfortune Punishment" where they lure you in and then kill you.]
[Anti-fraud expert #205: Changing the future always comes at a price. Consuming energy or merit is only one aspect; the luck of those who make the changes will occasionally worsen. This usually happens without warning and only in the later stages, which is why we haven't talked to you about it much.]
This situation is like traveling through time and space, and another stage has skipped?
[Anti-fraud expert #214: Yes.]
...
Well then, since so many special cases have happened to me, please tell me in advance if there's anything you haven't told me yet, so that we'll have a way to deal with it if anything else happens in the future.
[Anti-fraud expert #148: ...It's not impossible.]
[Anti-Fraud Guru #11: Aside from that incident, there doesn't seem to be much else to say.]
That matter?
[Anti-Fraud Guru #198: This involves life and death, so we can only tell you at the earliest when we upgrade to the next stage. However, you shouldn't encounter that problem before then, unless you intentionally delay the completion of the task.]
How could I procrastinate... Does the task that was accidentally overwritten count as procrastination?
[Anti-fraud expert #26: Don't worry, that doesn't count.]
Finally, some good news! It's been such a long time coming.
[Anti-Fraud Guru #19: So what are you planning to do next? Go back to the police station?]
Otherwise, why would I sit here in this cold wind? Winter isn't over yet, and it's terribly cold outside.
When Morofushi Kagemitsu returned, he unsurprisingly saw Inspector Umeda, whose expression was even more subtle.
She had just hung up the landline when she said to him awkwardly, "Well, Mr. Asakawa, given the terrible incident that just happened on the bus, and the fact that the company's owner is rather timid, so..."
"—The last train has been cancelled." Morofushi Kagemitsu finished the sentence he couldn't say, and said naturally, "I just thought of that, which is why I turned back. I was wondering if I could stay at the police station for a little while?"
Officer Umeda quickly replied, "Yes, yes, please have a seat."
Morofushi Kagemitsu readily sat down, his eyes seemingly scanning the surroundings, and asked, "Speaking of which, what about the others who rode in the same carriage as me? Did they go back too?"
Officer Umeda's expression was somewhat off, and he only said, "Well, we have some more detailed information that we'd like to discuss with them further."
oh?
[Anti-Fraud Guru #148: Haha, that's quite an in-depth look. It seems that the war criminal from northern Myanmar has been identified.]
[Anti-Fraud Guru #11: I just checked the surveillance footage. That scammer from northern Myanmar has been taken to a more heavily guarded interrogation room by the police. Just in case, they've also contacted the Public Security Bureau.]
Good thing, it saves this person from going back to his old ways.
Because of the fact that they had just worked together to save the bus, Morobuchi Kagemitsu didn't report them immediately, but if the police found out on their own, they couldn't blame him.
Officer Umeda breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the man didn't ask any more questions. Just as he was about to pour himself a glass of water, his colleague called him back.
"Umeda, come to the interrogation room for an emergency meeting!"
Officer Umeda smiled apologetically, pointed to the water dispenser next to him, and followed his colleague to the meeting room at the end of the corridor.
[Anti-fraud expert #205: Anyway, I have nothing to do right now, I'll go see if I can avoid the ripples and sneak into the organization's base.]
[Anti-fraud expert #26: I'm so bored, I'll go listen to the emergency meeting.]
[Anti-Fraud Guru #26: Wow~]
What's wrong with you now? You're so easily startled.
[Anti-Fraud Guru #214: Guess what we just heard?]
Since you've asked this question, it feels like it's going to be another unexpected piece of news... You're not going to tell me that they've actually caught that serial killer, are you?
[Anti-Fraud Guru #11: That's right, exactly.]
Haha, I'm not surprised anymore. The colleagues here in Tottori are all quite polite, and they're not as bad as you guys make them out to be.
[Anti-fraud expert #198: We only drew this conclusion from the data, and Kosugi Hayato also had a bit of luck in catching that serial killer.]
[Anti-Fraud Guru No. 148: At the intersection where they were chasing each other, because the snow from the previous days hadn't been cleared, the tires of the car driven by Kosugi Hayato slipped, and it veered straight into the police car. This collision not only prevented him from escaping, but also damaged both vehicles.]
...What a coincidence!
[Anti-fraud expert #214: It sounds unbelievable, but it's true.]
Wait, so Officer Umeda said the car repair was because of this?
[Anti-fraud expert #11: It's true! I found chat logs between Officer Umeda and her colleague who was just on the front lines on her phone.]
Do you think this serial killer has a chance of being sentenced to death?
[Anti-Fraud Guru #19: Uh, you know the character of those politicians too...]
Too.
[Anti-fraud expert #198: Although he won't die anytime soon, he might still be useful to us.]
What do you mean? Is there any valuable clue about him? Or is he connected to the organization?
[Anti-fraud expert #205: The place where Xiaoshan Shun originally worked is the coordinate we're looking for.]
Where does he work?!
[Anti-Fraud Guru #148: Look, it's right here.]
The two maps gradually overlapped in Morofushi Kagemitsu's mind, eventually settling on an inconspicuous company.
Is there anything special about this small company?
[Anti-Fraud Guru #26: Nothing has been found so far. Could it be because it didn't evade taxes?]
...That's not what I meant.
[Anti-Fraud Guru #205: We haven't made any predictions yet. Perhaps we'll know something when the news breaks.]
So, there might be a time travel scenario coming up, right?
[Anti-fraud expert #11: That should be the case. Fortunately, we have time to prepare this time, so we won't be as embarrassed as before.]
Preparation time.
So the question is, how do we get back?
[Anti-Fraud Guru #26: ...Let's wait until tomorrow.]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
