Conan: I'm really not the mastermind behind the scenes

Chapter 73 Can't Turn Back
Police Department.

Although a press conference was being held, other police officers who were not scheduled to attend were still doing what they were supposed to do.

During the lunch break, in the corridor of the criminal department office, Katsutoshi Teraoka, the director of the fourth search section, was talking on the phone with someone.

"...Those reporters are really outrageous and they talk nonsense! Seniors, please don't take it to heart!"

Mouri Kogoro on the other end of the phone made an indignant voice.

Teraoka Katsutoshi heard the noise from the TV opposite and guessed that the other party was watching the live broadcast of the press conference. He was angered by the reporter's question and called him.

Mouri Kogoro was his junior student in college, two grades younger than him.Because of this friendship, after Mouri Kogoro became a criminal police officer, he took great care of him. Even though the other party had resigned, he was still in contact with him all these years.

"I'm used to it." Teraoka Katsutoshi said helplessly, "Kidnapping cases are the most difficult cases."

For criminal police, cases of theft, injury or even homicide are not "terrible" because they have already happened and they only need to catch the criminal.

Kidnapping is different. This is an "ongoing" case. Every move of the police, a successful prediction or a mistake, is related to the life or death of the hostages.

Once a hostage dies or is injured, no matter how many external factors influence the situation, they must publicly apologize and accept all kinds of criticism and accusations from the outside world.

Mouri Kogoro had never taken on a kidnapping case before leaving his job, but he had encountered a hostage-taking case - the one who was kidnapped was his own wife - and he had a deep resonance with it.

Teraoka Katsutoshi naturally thought of the case a few years ago: "How are you doing recently? Are you still separated from your wife?"

"This... of course is the same as before."

Mouri Kogoro laughed a few times and admitted the terrible family situation: "Has the prisoner been caught?"

"The stepmother of the young victim has been arrested. The forensics department recovered her previous emails and determined that she had contacted the killer twice. She is also suspected of a major crime this time."

Teraoka Katsutoshi sighed: "However, she always insisted that she was innocent."

"Prisoners are like this. Even if there is irrefutable evidence in front of them, they will not admit it!" Mouri Kogoro said with experience.

"Yes." Teraoka Katsutoshi smiled, "It seems that after resigning from the police, you solved a lot of cases as a detective."

"Those I checked were all foreigners...ahem." Mouri Kogoro awkwardly changed the topic, "Now that the criminal has been caught, the case must be closed soon, right? Then those reporters will shut up!"

"That's not necessarily the case." Teraoka Katsutoshi's tone became even more helpless, "Mrs. Kawajiri is the wife of a congressman who took bribes. Too many people are involved, and subsequent investigations may not be under the jurisdiction of the Criminal Division."

Opposite him, Mouri Kogoro fell silent.

He was criticized for being a confused detective, but after all, he had been a policeman for several years and knew the process clearly. Certain cases were prone to "emergency situations" - important people were involved, and the public security police descended from the sky to snatch the case away.

"Those four lessons now..."

"Still investigating." Teraoka Katsutoshi said, "One of the killers is a member of a violent organization and was the subject of my past investigations, so in the afternoon I will visit the restaurant he used to frequent."

Mouri Kogoro immediately expressed concern: "Senior, you should be more careful!"

"Of course."

Teraoka Katsutoshi smiled and looked up at the time: "I'm leaving soon. I won't talk to you anymore. Say hello to Xiaolan for me. By the way, if you are free this weekend, would you like to come to my house for barbecue? ?My wife said my skills surpassed hers."

"Of course I have time, so I won't bother you when the time comes!"

After finishing the pleasantries with his junior, Teraoka Katsutoshi hung up the phone, and the smile on his face gradually disappeared.

He looked up at the glass window at hand. A cold and gloomy face was reflected on the clean and transparent window.

He won't be going for an ordinary visit later, but going to kill people.

——He was going to kill the gang member who had bribed him for a long time.

……

The first time Teraoka Katsutoshi received benefits from the underworld and leaked internal police information to them was seven years ago.

In Japan, being a police officer is a well-paying job. In addition to salary, there is an annual bonus, and special allowances for housing and raising children are equally generous.As for why they still need to accept bribes when they are treated so well, the reason is quite simple.

They give way too much.

As long as you disclose information once, even if it is very trivial information, the reward you get can match the total income of a year of hard work.

Sometimes depravity is as simple as a little temptation, and a person can voluntarily step into the abyss of crime.The saying that greed is the origin of evil is absolutely true.

Teraoka Katsutoshi has seen too many criminals who took risks due to greed, and he himself became one of them early on.

Over the years, he has provided a lot of information to the other party, but now, he wants to terminate this cooperation and completely cut off contact with the other party.

It wasn't that he suddenly woke up and began to repent of his mistakes, but that someone was willing to give him more.

The only trouble now is that the "former employer" Matsuyama is suspected to be related to the kidnapping case in Cupido Town, and the police have listed him as a key target for investigation.

It would be bad if he was caught and confessed, so Katsutoshi Teraoka decided to strike first and silence the opponent as soon as possible.

Teraoka Katsutoshi entered the office of Search Section [-] and sat down behind his desk.

He opened one of the drawers and took a careful look inside.

Under those seemingly unimportant items, there was actually an unrecorded sidearm that he secretly picked up during a mission.

"...Department Chief?"

The sudden shout made Teraoka Katsutoshi's body tremble heavily.

He raised his head suddenly and saw one of his subordinates, Bai Jiu Jiujiu, looking at him from the front.

……

Baijiu is a subordinate that Teraoka Shengtoshi likes very much.

He is conscientious, hard-working, obedient to orders, and highly motivated, which is rare in Japan where career advancement is difficult and many young people like to lie flat.

Teraoka Katsutoshi was very optimistic about him and knew that he had been working hard to get promoted.The quasi-professional group cannot rise as fast as the professional group, but if they accumulate enough merit or solve a major case, they can get an exceptional promotion. Therefore, he will try his best to take him with him when encountering any important cases.

Baijiu once had a good opportunity. He caught a foreign spy on the Aegis ship.

At that time, the head of the Kyoto Prefectural Police Headquarters was very happy and wanted to transfer him there, and promised that he could be promoted to a police officer by two levels after he went there, but Baijiu himself refused.

Katsutoshi Teraoka wondered why he would do this.

Especially when Bai Jiu mentioned this matter again later, the expression on his face was one of pain and anger that he was desperately suppressing, as if he was forced by someone.

At this time, the subordinate was standing at least 3 meters away from the desk, and Teraoka Katsutoshi breathed a sigh of relief.

With such a long distance and the drawer being in the blind spot of his sight, he would never notice anything unusual about himself.

"Baijiu, this time you take Takadao and the others to the small steel ball shop where the suspect often goes, and I will take another team to the restaurant where he often goes."

Teraoka Katsutoshi knew Matsuyama's current location. This was told to him by his "new employer". The person who called him at that time was a female voice that sounded very comfortable, and he believed it without much doubt.

...It's a pity. If Songshan hadn't been involved, this important case could have brought Baijiu away.

Teraoka Katsutoshi sighed in his heart, and the frown of his subordinate standing in front of him gradually relaxed.

"I understand, principal."

Bai Jiu's expression was very strange. He seemed to have planned to say something, but suddenly gave up. Now there was a trace of gratitude and worry on his face.

"Please be careful on the road."

(End of this chapter)