Chapter 14: Shot Eight Times in the Back—It Was Poison! A Self-Inflicted Death!

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"Mr. Masakazu, although the Sumitomo family is very influential, you are still a newcomer in the construction industry. This project won’t be so easy to secure," said a balding old man with a chuckle, patting Masakazu on the shoulder. He looked at Masakazu with a mocking gaze. Without being born into a conglomerate family, nothing goes smoothly. In the construction world, if you don’t drink and charm the right people, how could projects worth tens or hundreds of billions of yen come your way? Acting like a privileged heir won’t get you far; reality will teach you a lesson.

A slightly tipsy President Takeda pushed his driver aside and drove off himself.

"He’s already on a path to ruin," Masakazu said, glancing at the woman dressed in black before him.

The woman frowned and said coldly, "I won’t help you do something like that."

"Why not? Think about your sister. Don’t you want to reunite with her sooner?" Masakazu pressed. "You’d rob a bank for your sister; why can’t you do a small favor for me?"

Akemi Miyano replied icily, "I won’t keep making the wrong choices."

She refused to become a criminal pawn in their hands.

"No matter what, I won’t kill anyone for you."

Masakazu raised an eyebrow, puzzled. "You’re so violent. I just wanted you to intimidate him."

Akemi unconsciously twisted the corner of her garment. You just said it was a path to ruin; that didn’t sound like mere intimidation.

"Where is my sister?" Akemi asked.

"I don’t know. Maybe the organization found her and executed her in secret," Masakazu said harshly.

Akemi clenched her fist. "What exactly do you want to release me and my sister?"

"You’re strange," Masakazu said. "I’m a law-abiding citizen. I only hired you as my personal secretary. You can leave anytime; I’m not restricting your or your sister’s freedom."

His first business competition ended in a crushing defeat. Not only did he fail to secure the company’s first project, but he was also deeply humiliated by rival companies.

Masakazu pulled his secretary along to watch The Godfather and Romance of the Three Kingdoms to learn business warfare tactics.

Akemi was restless. How did these movies relate to business battles? Didn’t he misunderstand what business competition was? Though it involved 'war,' it wasn’t literally warfare.

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Masakazu Sumitomo?" A group of police officers, holding their credentials, entered Masakazu’s company.

"I am," he replied.

Officer Takagi said to Masakazu, "Mr. Taro Takeda died at his home this afternoon. You are a prime suspect. Please cooperate with our investigation."

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Akemi Miyano stared at Masakazu in disbelief. When did he kill someone?

"Officer, I’m a law-abiding citizen," Masakazu said innocently.

...

At the Takeda residence.

Officer Megure glanced at the gruesome sight of Taro Takeda’s body, covering it with a white cloth.

He had been shot eight times in the back.

What kind of hatred could lead to this?

"Officer Megure, there are only three suspects at the moment. First is Taro Takeda’s son, Kazuo Takeda. He recently suffered huge losses in copper trading. Mrs. Takeda said Kazuo asked his father for money, but Mr. Takeda thought he’d just waste it, so he refused.

"Second is the Takeda butler. Mr. Takeda was very short-tempered and often beat the butler, who once had a relationship with Mrs. Takeda. He might be seeking revenge.

"Lastly, there’s Mr. Masakazu Sumitomo from the Sumitomo family. Masakazu has been rebellious since childhood. He recently founded a construction company, but during negotiations, the project was taken by Mr. Takeda. He might harbor resentment, making murder a possibility."

Officer Megure nodded. These three were the main suspects.

He turned to a man with a small mustache beside him and asked, "Brother Mouri, what’s your opinion?"

"Hello, everyone," Masakazu entered, cutting off Kogoro Mouri’s attempt to arbitrarily name the culprit.

Masakazu casually picked a chair to sit in. The secretary, with a sullen face, brought him a cup of tea. He sipped it and handed it back, saying, "Next time, add some sugar."

"Too much sugar is bad for your health," the secretary retorted without sparing him.

Masakazu crossed his legs and waved at Officer Megure. "Carry on. Don’t mind me."

Kogoro Mouri quietly leaned toward Officer Megure and whispered, "Is this guy really a suspect? I met him once at the police station because of that kid Conan. I only know he’s wealthy. Do rich people really kill personally?"

"Of course. He’s definitely a possible perpetrator," Officer Megure replied.

"Does he know he’s a suspect?" Kogoro asked.

"Yes."

"A suspect acting this arrogant? People might think he’s in charge here," Kogoro said, speechless.

Officer Megure shook his head.

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The privileged heir of a conglomerate family is troublesome.

Despite Masakazu enjoying afternoon tea at the scene, Officer Megure asked the coroner, "What’s the examination result?"

The coroner adjusted his glasses and said seriously, "Eight gunshot wounds in the back. The cause of death was suicide."

"What!?"

Conan, searching for clues, stared at the coroner in disbelief.

Suicide with eight bullets in the back? Could it get any more absurd?

Officer Megure twitched his mouth corner. "Death by poisoning?"

"Exactly," the coroner nodded. "The victim had excessive copper in his system and died from copper poisoning. The person who fired the guns indirectly caused the death."

There were eight copper bullets lodged in the victim’s body, none removed.

The coroner seriously spouted nonsense, "Of course, it’s also possible Mr. Takeda poisoned himself."

"The world is so beautiful, why would anyone poison themselves?" Masakazu lamented.

"Yeah, it’s really hard to understand," the coroner echoed.

"What nonsense is this?" Kogoro Mouri smirked.

Officer Megure said, "The killer is likely Masakazu Sumitomo. This coroner probably owes the Sumitomo family some favors to say such things."

Calling a shooting copper poisoning—such blatant lies are impressive.

Even if evidence shows Masakazu fired the shots, he could twist the facts, claiming copper poisoning to defend himself as an indirect killer.

With a skilled lawyer, it’d be hard to convict him.

Kogoro Mouri said angrily, "This guy is definitely the culprit. I won’t let him get away."

Officer Megure patted Kogoro’s shoulder. Few people now dare to oppose the powerful; they need someone like him.

"Hmph!"

Kogoro glanced coldly at Masakazu, who was cozying up to his secretary.

Turning away, his vision blurred. He closed his eyes and slumped in his chair.

"I already know who the killer is!" The ventriloquist, Kogoro Mouri, officially stepped up.

"Brother Mouri!?"