Idol's Peril 7

'The suave and sophisticated Meitantei Kogoro Mouri, futatabi sanjou!' Kogoro exclaimed in his head, as he opened the door to Hinata's office in the Rising Star Talent Agency building.

Inside the room, Hinata, Rukia, and Yuko sat on one side of the conference table, while the police officers led by Inspector Megure were sitting on the opposite side, close to the window. Miwako sat beside the Inspector, while Officer Chiba and Officer Takagi flanked them.

"It's been a while, Megure-keibu! Did I make you wait?" Kogoro cheerfully greeted, only to be met by an awkward silence, his former leader glared grumpily at him.

"Of course you did! Look at the clock, it's half past twelve now! How long do you think we're waiting, Mouri-kun?"

Kogoro rubbed the back of his head, "A-ahaha, I see, my apologies for that! But Keibu, you'll understand what held me up once you see this."

Kogoro gestured for his assistant to set up the monitor, and Velma rushed to do so at his command.

Once she had everything set up, Kogoro began.

"As you already know from my previous report, I had some doubt that Sugimoto-san was the one behind the death of Akiyoshi Fujie-san. That doubt led me to check the CCTV recording from the surrounding cameras of the murder scene. This-"

Kogoro gestured to the video played through the projector. It was the same one he watched earlier this morning. "-is what I found. The murder happened without a sign of Sugimoto-san in the scene. Then, this recording showed how he came from the opposite sides of where the murder weapon was thrown from."

Except for Miwako, the others were seeing the gruesome murder for the first time. Kogoro's civilian lovers all flinched from the killing hit, while Inspector Megure, Officer Chiba, and Officer Takagi were able to keep their calm.

"Based on the fact that the police came just ten minutes after the body was found, we can conclude that the man was not involved in the crime. He did not have the time, nor the reason to kill the deceased Fujie-san!"

As they listened to his explanation, the eyes of the people inside the room widened, but only Inspector Megure's gaze immediately narrowed. "Then do you have any idea of who did this, Mouri-kun?"

Kogoro confidently gestured to Velma, who opened the file they prepared before. While their investigation of Kenichi Katou turned into an anal fest, Velma was able to gain access to Katou's phone when he went in the bathroom after Natsume left the hotel. From there, they turned their attention to the owner of the top two numbers Kenichi Katou was calling the most for the last three months!

"As you can see from the screen, my assistant had listed the names of the people attending the party across the street of the murder scene!"

The party was held by Rising Sun, the production company behind the latest movie starring Yoko Okino. Beside the former prime suspect Sugimoto- san, her name, alongside her manager, was listed on the screen. Also, somewhat supporting her claim of sexual harassment was the presence of the malicious brothers, Kenichi and Takeshi Katou! The total number of names on the screen was twenty seven.

"The next page, as all of you can see, listed everyone who had Sugimoto-san's phone number!"

More than three-fourths of the people listed on the first page were missing from the second one, containing only two male, and three female names. Yoko Okino, Chou Yamagishi, Kenichi Katou, and Takeshi Katou were still amongst them. But Kogoro was not done!

"Furthermore, with the help of Sato-keiji, we were able to retrieve the security camera's recordings from the party's venue!" Kogoro pointed the time of the murder, and showed his audience the clip at the exact same time the murder happened. By now, almost all the occupants were leaning forward on their seats, their attention captured by his presentation. Only Inspector Megure was still sitting straight, his experience forced his nerves to calm down.

"During the whole night, the only one on the previous list who was not caught by the camera before Sugimoto-san went out of the building…"

Velma then hit the right arrow on her keyboard, and the screen changed, now only showing one photograph, with the real killer's name written below the picture.

"...was Chou Yamagishi-san." Finished Kogoro with a somber tone. The room was quiet, and there was a sense of disbelief in the air.

"But… Why did he kill Fujie-san?" Officer Chiba asked, scratching his short hair in confusion. Unlike before, Kogoro was hesitant at first, before he sighed in regret, and handed several stacks of papers out to the police officers.

"...The answer to that question is in the diary the deceased left behind. I prepared several copies, so you can all read it at your leisure."

***

"So that's what happened…"

Kogoro regaled his daughter on the closure of his last case. He was lounging in the living room, finally free from all the urgent tasks he had to do. He slouched on the sofa, with Ran right next to him. His eyes were trained on the television, but his mind was focused on something else.

For Kogoro, it was the tragic fate of Akiyoshi Fujie. In the canon timeline, he took his own life because of misunderstandings that kept happening between him and the people he met. Even though some events changed because of Kogoro's arrival in this world, Fujie still ended up dead, killed by the same guy who told him to give up his girlfriend years ago.

It was practically impossible for Kogoro not to feel sorry for the guy. After all, he remembered his past life like it was yesterday. The awkward relationship he had with his first girlfriend in middle school, and the awful ways he tried to convey his feelings, only to inadvertently hurt her. Or how hard he tried to move on, but ended up missing the indirect confession from his senior in highschool.

In this life, even if Kogoro was lucky enough to marry his childhood sweetheart Eri, she left him and their daughter for ten years. Only the awakening of his past life's memories and the system allowed him to reestablish his relationship with his wife.

But Akiyoshi Fujie taught Kogoro two things. One, if he wanted to live a harmonious life with his loved ones, he needed to eliminate all possible threats! Lecherous bunch like Kenichi and Takeshi Katou, control-freaks like Chou Yamagishi, or the cold-blooded sharks like the Black Organization!

And two, if Kogoro wanted to die without regrets, then he should not hesitate to grasp what he wants!

Kogoro glanced to his right, and Ran appeared to watch the drama broadcasted on the TV. But a quick look to her flushed face, and the smooth babydoll she was wearing told him what's on her mind. The stray hand subtly stroking on his thigh made it all the more obvious.

Yes. He should not hesitate, and should just take what he wants, especially if what he wants, wants him back!

Like his daughter, for example.

~To Be Continued~

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A/N: As always, thank you to my patrons Dragon_knight240, phil, and XOL, and to the loyal readers of KMPE. If you want to read the next chapter, or want to have a bit of a say in how my writing should go, please check the links on my profile!

Appreciate you all; keep nuttin'!

segalengko69