A Genius In The World Of Conan

Chapter 16: The Second Inquiry

During the period when Kousuke Akikawa was receiving treatment, the Metropolitan Police Department had concluded their investigation.

Afterward, Takagi Wataru brought the relevant documents to the hospital.

"In the past, case investigations would take a considerable amount of time, but this time, it was unexpectedly simple," Takagi said to everyone in the room.

"This is because neither the victim’s nor the suspect’s social relationships were complicated."

"Akikawa Ryoko had divorced long ago, and her ex-husband passed away years ago due to an accident."

"In addition to Kousuke Akikawa, Akikawa Ryoko had a daughter, who followed her father after the divorce."

"When the police contacted Akikawa Ryoko’s daughter, she was deeply shocked to hear about her mother’s death."

"However, since she had lost contact with her mother after the divorce, she had no knowledge of her mother's social connections."

"Furthermore, we found Akikawa Ryoko’s medical records at Kousuke Akikawa’s home, which confirmed that she had been diagnosed with schizophrenia."

Upon hearing this, Conan and the others were slightly surprised, but not entirely shocked.

After all, a mother who would imprison her own child was likely to have some mental issues.

"By the way, Officer Takagi," Conan looked up at Takagi Wataru.

"Was the victim diagnosed with schizophrenia before or after the divorce?"

"Before the divorce," Takagi confirmed after checking the documents.

"Hmm… then how did a person with schizophrenia gain custody of the child?"

"Was it a case of domestic violence or something similar?"

"No— dwelling on this might not be meaningful. The ex-husband is already deceased, and they divorced a long time ago," Conan muttered to himself, eventually concluding that the victim’s past with her ex-husband was unlikely to contribute to solving the case.

"Later, the MPD visited the restaurant where the victim occasionally worked. Upon hearing of her death, everyone there was greatly shocked."

"Almost all of Akikawa Ryoko’s coworkers said that she was usually quiet, socially withdrawn, and barely spoke to them."

"Even though she had worked at that restaurant for three years, she had no friends."

"When the police asked if anyone had ever noticed signs of mental illness in her, they all gave negative responses."

"Additionally, Akikawa Ryoko didn’t work very frequently—about four times a week."

After hearing this, Sera Masumi lowered her head and began analyzing.

"Four times a week… even if she worked eight hours a day at Tokyo’s minimum wage, she would only make around 130,000 yen per month."

"And besides rent, they also had a car, which means monthly parking fees, plus three types of insurance..."

"They were renting an apartment, so could they really sustain their living expenses on such an income?"

Sera was puzzled.

"Although the income was low, it was still enough to survive, since Kousuke Akikawa’s food expenses weren’t significant," Sato Miwako replied.

"Huh? Sera-san, how did you know they were renting an apartment?" Takagi asked curiously.

"Isn’t it obvious? People who frequently move wouldn’t buy property."

"Oh, I see," Takagi nodded.

"As for the suspect, Kousuke Akikawa, the police contacted his former elementary school, but no one there maintained contact with him."

"Given the earlier findings that he had been confined by his mother, he seems to have had no social relationships at all."

"This concludes the information the MPD has gathered regarding the case."

"That’s all?"

Upon hearing this, everyone in the room frowned.

"Given her impoverished lifestyle, it's hard to imagine anyone hating Akikawa Ryoko to such an extent."

"A revenge killing by an outsider can basically be ruled out."

"So the only person who could have had enough hatred toward her and stood to gain from her death… is Kousuke Akikawa?"

Conan analyzed in a low voice.

"But if that's the case, it contradicts Kousuke Akikawa's own statement, because he claimed that his mother was killed by someone on a motorcycle," Sato Miwako added.

She had heard Nakajima Takuto’s report and knew that Kousuke Akikawa had insisted that the perpetrator was someone else.

"It seems the most likely scenario is still that Kousuke Akikawa is lying."

<+>

After four hours of treatment, Kousuke Akikawa was once again sent back to his hospital room.

Even though he had only been in this world for a single day, it felt like an entire week had passed.

Maybe it was because too many things had happened in such a short time.

‘Liver dysfunction, anemia, severe malnutrition, a fractured right hand, a head injury, multiple bruises all over my body…’

‘Am I really supposed to live the rest of my life in this broken body?’

Although Kousuke Akikawa understood that getting a second chance at life after death was something he shouldn’t complain about, he still couldn’t help but feel exhausted the more he learned about his condition.

‘Come to think of it, as long as I complete the system's tasks, I can receive direct upgrades... I even saw an item called a [Recovery Card] earlier. That should be able to fix all my old injuries, right?’

‘The fact that a child could end up in this condition under his mother's care is just absurd…’

As Kousuke Akikawa lay staring at the ceiling, lost in thought, a sudden knock on the door interrupted him.

He turned to see a tall woman in a suit enter, followed by the familiar faces of Sera Masumi and Conan.

‘Another detective? She seems to be ranked higher than that Nakajima guy.’

‘And Nakajima isn’t here this time… Guess he was taken off the case after what he pulled during interrogation.’

‘Speaking of which, that handsome detective next to Conan has ridiculous combat skills…’

Kousuke Akikawa mentally complained.

(Note: Sera Masumi always refers to herself using the masculine pronoun 'boku', and the Japanese honorific 'san' used by others doesn’t reveal her gender, making it difficult to determine.)

"Good evening, Akikawa-san. I’m Detective Sato Miwako from the Division 1 of the Criminal Investigation Section of the Metropolitan Police Department Violent Crimes Investigation Unit 3."

Sato Miwako made no attempt to conceal her identity as she stepped forward and displayed her police badge.

"First of all, I want to apologize on behalf of Officer Nakajima for his inappropriate conduct toward you earlier."

"Even though this may not be enough to earn your forgiveness, I want you to know that Officer Nakajima will face disciplinary action at the MPD."

"Oh."

Kousuke Akikawa responded indifferently, looking at the beautiful police officer bowing sincerely before him.

As for the so-called "punishment" she mentioned, he didn’t really believe it.

After all, whatever disciplinary action Nakajima received was an internal matter for the police.

‘Not that I actually hold a grudge against Nakajima… If anything, I have him to thank for helping me detach myself from this case.’

‘So, am I about to be taken to the MPD for interrogation now? As long as I don’t end up in the same room as those detectives, things shouldn’t be too bad…’

Kousuke Akikawa pondered silently.

Then, he heard Sato Miwako straighten up and continue speaking:

"I apologize for disturbing you so soon after your surgery, but I would like to ask you a few questions regarding this case."

"Eh?"