Chapter 39: The Metropolitan Police Department, Corrupted

Conan was taken aback for a moment, but he quickly regained his composure. Neither Sonoko nor Inspector Megure mattered much in the grand scheme of things. He immediately adjusted his bowtie, switching his voice to that of Inspector Megure.

After a brief cough, he said, "Actually, Nagamune is right. Sayuri was indeed attempting suicide."

"What! Megure, are you out of your mind?" Kiyonaga Matsumoto stared at the inspector in disbelief. Just moments ago, you were preventing Nagamune and Masakazu from closing the case as a suicide, and now you’ve changed your tune? I actually thought you were a man of integrity.

"Superintendent, Sayuri did indeed willingly drink the lemon tea containing sodium hydroxide," 'Inspector Megure' stated.

In the Metropolitan Police Department, it was common practice not to fear those in power. Forensic expert Nagamune dared to speak bluntly to the Superintendent, and Inspector Megure dared to openly contradict him as well. Such righteous people in the force gave Masakazu a sense of relief.

"Megure, you had better provide me with a reasonable explanation," Kiyonaga said. Whether or not Megure had become Masakazu’s pawn was not something Kiyonaga wanted to dwell on right now, but if he were trying to use his daughter’s incident to pledge loyalty to Masakazu, Kiyonaga would never let them off the hook!

"Ahem, if Toshihiko had placed the sodium hydroxide there, perhaps Sayuri might have drunk it herself," 'Inspector Megure' suggested.

"Me?" Toshihiko pointed at himself.

"That’s right. Everyone, please take a look at the videotape Ran recorded."

"Wait!" Masakazu interrupted the 'Inspector's' deduction. He looked at Megure with a smirk and said, "Inspector Megure, you haven't watched that tape since you arrived in this room, have you? May I ask how you knew there was evidence inside?"

"Uh..."

Hiding behind a chair, Conan was momentarily speechless. *Damn it, I wasn't careful enough with the details. I've been found out.*

Kiyonaga’s gaze toward Megure turned dangerous. *Has he started fabricating lies just to clear Masakazu of suspicion? No... maybe it’s not entirely fabricated.* Kiyonaga glanced at Ran. Kogoro Mouri was Masakazu’s personal detective, and his wife was the personal lawyer for Masakazu’s company; that whole family was untrustworthy.

The things filmed by Kogoro’s daughter must also be suspicious. Then, he looked at Masakazu with deep suspicion. *If you are trying to clear your own name, why are you the one pointing out the loopholes?*

"Ahem, Conan told me. He saw clues in the video," 'Inspector Megure' said, attempting to remedy the situation.

"I suspect you saw it yourself, didn't you?" Kiyonaga remarked.

Conan’s heart skipped a beat. *Have I been exposed?*

Kiyonaga said, enunciating every word, "But you didn't see it just now. You saw the footage on the tape before you even arrived at the wedding."

Kiyonaga’s words left Conan even more bewildered. *What on earth is he talking about? Why don't I understand any of this?*

"Superintendent, what are you talking about?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about!" Kiyonaga glared at Megure. The Metropolitan Police Department had become tainted. Originally, there was only one small forensic expert fawning over Masakazu. Now that the forensic expert had received a promotion in such a short time, many in the department were restless, and even a veteran officer like Megure had turned this way.

Conan, unable to make sense of it, decided to ignore him for the moment. He secretly used the remote control to start the video, drawing everyone's attention to the screen, hoping to move past the awkwardness.

The tape did indeed record crucial information. The lemon tea Sayuri held before and after were not the same bottle; she had mistakenly picked up Sonoko's bottle later, and it was Sonoko's bottle that contained the sodium hydroxide. The only people who had touched that bottle were Sonoko, Sayuri, and Toshihiko. Excluding the possibility of Sonoko wanting to commit suicide, Toshihiko was the only one who could have added the sodium hydroxide.

"Speak! Did you do it?" Kiyonaga grabbed Toshihiko by the collar.

Toshihiko gritted his teeth, pushed Kiyonaga away, and shouted, "That's right! I did it!" He made no attempt to conceal his actions, admitting to it outright.

"Did Masakazu make you do it?" Kiyonaga demanded furiously. Although he didn't particularly like his son-in-law, he knew the man's character—he was certainly not the type to act lawlessly, or he wouldn't have reluctantly agreed to his daughter's marriage. Thus, the only possibility was that Masakazu had instigated it. He knew he wasn't capable of managing the conglomerate himself, and if he wanted the Takasugi family legacy to continue, he had to rely on Masakazu's help.

"It has nothing to do with Masakazu," Toshihiko replied. However, thinking of how Masakazu had said when he arrived that he would provide his wedding gift next time he got married, a hint of hesitation flickered across his face. Kiyonaga caught that hesitation with sharp eyes.

Feeling the murderous aura emanating from Kiyonaga, Masakazu quietly stepped behind Ai.

Toshihiko regained his composure, pushed thoughts of Masakazu aside, and said to Kiyonaga, "Twenty years ago..."

He revealed a grudge spanning two generations. Twenty years ago, Toshihiko's mother died in an accident caused by Kiyonaga while he was chasing a criminal. At the time, Toshihiko had begged Kiyonaga for help, but Kiyonaga hadn't even noticed him; Toshihiko had to watch his mother die in his arms. That was why he pursued Sayuri—to make Kiyonaga experience the feeling of losing a loved one.

"That woman was truly a fool. She had no idea that I only approached her to take revenge on you!" Toshihiko roared.

Hearing this tragic story, Ai felt a wave of melancholy. She thought of her own foolish sister, who had been similarly used by Shuichi Akai to get close to the organization. Although she wasn't killed by Akai in the end, her death was inextricably linked to him; Gin would never have let someone associated with an undercover agent go.

After a moment of despondency, she brushed away the hands that had been resting on her shoulders. *My sister was killed because of you; I don't need your comfort!*

Masakazu patted Ai's head and said, "Don't be sad. There's a plot twist coming."

No sooner had Masakazu spoken than Sayuri's best friend rushed over and slapped Toshihiko across the face.

"You idiot, you don't know anything! When you were pursuing Sayuri, she told me you looked exactly like her first love, so she asked me to look into your background. She knew about what happened twenty years ago, and she knew you were her first love. Sayuri... she must have drunk that poisoned tea on purpose," the friend said.

"Sayuri... she..." Ai’s mouth hung open. There really was a plot twist. She looked at Masakazu with suspicion. *Why do you know so much? Is there truly no string-pulling from you behind all of this?*

However, while there was a twist in this story, there would be no such reversal for her sister.