A Genius In The World Of Conan

Chapter 14: The Will to Resist

Kousuke Akikawa was sent off for a medical examination and treatment.

Meanwhile, Nakajima Takuto, Conan, and the others were escorted by Detective Chiba Kazunobu to a room temporarily prepared for them in the hospital.

Nakajima assumed the room would be empty.

However, as soon as he pushed open the door, he realized there was already someone inside.

It was none other than the beautiful detective nicknamed the “Flower of the Metropolitan Police Department” — Sato Miwako.

Sato Miwako held the same rank as Assistant Inspector Toda, who had previously given instructions to Nakajima.

She was the second-in-command of the Violent Crimes Investigation Unit 3 within the Division 1 of the Criminal Investigation Section of the Metropolitan Police Department.

As such, she was a superior Nakajima Takuto absolutely could not disobey.

At that moment, the beautiful detective was resting her fist lightly against her lips, reviewing the documents on the desk.

When she heard the door open, she turned her gaze toward them.

Upon noticing Nakajima’s uneasy and guilty expression, as if he’d been caught doing something wrong, her elegant brows furrowed slightly.

“Chiba-kun, what happened?”

Sato Miwako didn’t question Nakajima directly but instead asked Chiba Kazunobu, who was one rank below her.

Chiba then briefly explained what he had learned about the situation on the way back.

“Thank you, Sera-san, for stopping Takuto-kun.”

Sato Miwako softly expressed her gratitude to Sera Masumi.

“Pardon me, but could I ask Sera-san and Conan-kun to step outside for a moment?”

Sera and Conan both nodded and left the room.

“Nakajima is probably about to get scolded by Detective Sato,” Sera commented. “I’ve heard from Detective Takagi before that Detective Sato can be really scary when she’s angry.”

‘No, Detective Sato’s nothing compared to you,’ Conan muttered internally.

He vividly recalled an incident during a past case when Kaitou Kid nearly got kicked to death by Sera Masumi after provoking her.

“By the way, Sera-san, weren’t you a bit too impulsive? Nakajima is a detective, and what you did might be considered assaulting an officer.”

“So what if it’s assaulting an officer? Are you saying I should’ve just stood by and let Nakajima coerce a confession?”

“No, I’m saying you could’ve handled it in a gentler way.”

“That’s why I didn’t punch him in the face.”

“...”

Conan fell silent for a few seconds before speaking again.

“Since Nakajima looked so agitated, I guess Kousuke didn’t confess to being the culprit.”

“But I’m curious about what happened in the hospital room while Nakajima was away.”

Sera speculated silently, a smile creeping onto her lips.

However, the smile didn’t last long on her delicate face.

Just a few seconds later, her expression turned icy again.

“Even though he lacks sufficient information on both the victim and the suspect, he was impatient and resorted to coercion and force to make the suspect confess.”

“And yet, he said he wouldn’t use coercion.”

Sera had no patience for people who broke their promises.

Much less someone like Nakajima Takuto, who, as a police officer, engaged in actions explicitly forbidden by the law. It disgusted her to no end.

Although neither Sera nor Conan knew exactly what had transpired between Nakajima and Kousuke during their conversation, Nakajima’s final, furious demeanor was enough to guess that his coercion attempt had failed.

<+>

“Conan-kun, Sera-san, you can come back in now.”

Moments later, Chiba Kazunobu poked his head out and called Conan and Sera back into the room.

When they returned, they noticed that Sato Miwako’s expression hadn’t changed at all from earlier.

Nakajima Takuto stood to the side, head hanging low, as if he had been caught doing something wrong.

‘Looks like she scolded him even harsher than I imagined,’ Conan thought to himself.

"I'm here to share information the Metropolitan Police Department has gathered about this case," Sato Miwako began softly, glancing briefly at the dejected Nakajima.

"The police conducted interviews with the neighbors of both the victim and the suspect. We learned that the Akikawa mother and son moved into their current apartment three years ago."

"Unfortunately, most neighbors said they didn’t interact much with the Akikawas."

"However, there was one point on which all the interviewed neighbors were consistent: they believed the suspect, Kousuke Akikawa, was abused by his mother, Akikawa Ryoko."

Sato continued, "As evidence, they noted that while the victim, Ryoko, would occasionally leave the house to work, they almost never saw the suspect, Kousuke, leave the apartment. Moreover, their impression of Kousuke was that he always appeared malnourished and extremely frail."

"This aligns with Sera-san’s earlier deductions."

"Did the police ever receive reports about this?" Sera Masumi asked.

"No," Sato Miwako replied.

"When we asked the neighbors, most said they didn’t want to interfere. They mentioned they never heard screaming or received any calls for help from Kousuke."

"This situation is understandable," Sera analyzed, pressing a finger to her chin. "If Kousuke had been confined by his mother since elementary school, over a decade has passed, likely eroding his will to resist."

"Furthermore, the neighbors mentioned that while they rarely interacted with the Akikawas, they occasionally saw Kousuke looking frail and malnourished. This suggests that he wasn’t entirely confined to the house recently."

"This would indicate that Ryoko was confident Kousuke wouldn’t escape or seek help from others," Sera continued. "It indirectly proves Kousuke had lost the will to fight back."

"But if he’d lost the will to resist, how could he have killed his mother?" Chiba Kazunobu asked, puzzled.

"Perhaps Kousuke simply lost faith in the neighbors," Sera speculated. "For instance, maybe he tried seeking help as a child but to no avail."

"After all, Detective Sato mentioned that the Akikawas moved into their current apartment only three years ago," Sera added. "Kousuke didn’t attend school or go outside, and Ryoko didn’t have stable employment, only doing odd jobs. Under such circumstances, there wouldn’t have been any real need to move."

"So one possibility is that Ryoko moved them whenever she noticed someone becoming aware of the abuse," Sera concluded. "After several relocations, Kousuke would naturally lose the will to resist."

As Sera Masumi explained, Sato Miwako, Chiba Kazunobu, and even Nakajima Takuto, standing silently at the side, nodded repeatedly.

They couldn’t help but be impressed by Sera’s ability as a detective, always picking up on details that the police overlooked.

With just a few small clues, she was able to piece together the bigger picture.

"But I still find it hard to believe," Chiba interjected. "Would a child like that really kill his own mother?"

"Detective Takagi and the others handling the investigation had the same doubts," Sato Miwako replied.

"But when they searched the apartment where the victim and suspect lived, they found this."

Sato placed three documents on the table for everyone to see.

"These are insurance policies," she explained. "The policyholder is Akikawa Ryoko, and the beneficiary is Kousuke Akikawa."

"Counting the mandatory liability insurance, these policies are from three different companies, with a total death benefit payout exceeding 100 million yen."