Tokyo: Rabbit Officer and Her Evil Partner

After the interrogation, Fujiwara Homare honestly signed the statement.

When Lawyer Kikuta heard about this, he hurried over with a sky-is-falling expression. His gaze towards Minamoto Tamako was different, feeling that this guy looked naive on the surface, but had a black heart, and unknowingly used some vicious means that forced his client to confess... Hmph! The cops at the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department all have the same nature!

He glared at Minamoto Tamako fiercely, planning to call and shake some connections to resolve this case. After all, his client is the only son of the Fujiwara family, and handling this beautifully would add some shine to his personal record.

After Lawyer Kikuta left, Minamoto Tamako wrote the case closing report at the police station, planning to give it to Chief Kikuchi first thing tomorrow morning, and if there were no issues, sign it, then hand it over to the prosecution, and send it to court for trial.

While writing, she suddenly remembered that when investigating the murder case earlier, she had made a bet with Mr. Fushimi — she bet that Fujiwara Homare didn't kill, while Mr. Fushimi bet that Fujiwara Homare did.

How careless.

Although she successfully solved the case, she lost the bet.

In the future, when investigating cases, I can't be prejudiced and can't let plots from novels and TV dramas influence my judgment...

Minamoto Tamako guessed that Mr. Fushimi might have already forgotten about this matter, maybe he didn't take it seriously at the time; just act like nothing happened.

Sigh, Fujiwara Section Chief is really disappointing, how can a Criminal Police Section Chief knowingly break the law?

Actually, she also hoped that Fujiwara Homare hadn't killed. The sense of achievement from solving the case wasn't as strong as she imagined; she was mainly happy because it proved her ability, surpassing the idiot assistant Mr. Fushimi... She didn't feel any self-satisfaction regarding the suspect Fujiwara Homare, but rather felt a deep regret. Uploaded by the M|V|L(EMPYR) team.

Every murder case taken over by the police station represents a fresh life fading away.

The state of mind when Minamoto Tamako wrote the case file was completely different from when she read the case file.

Recalling her experiences over the past six months, she no longer looked forward to all sorts of strange cases happening in Sugamo. On the contrary, she started to hope the murder cases would decrease... everyone living in peace and safety is more important than anything.

More than forty minutes later, Minamoto Tamako finished organizing the case files, locked them in the drawer, and then pushed the half-asleep Fushimi Roku home.

Fushimi Roku's body clock was very accurate; as night fell, he got sleepy. In his groggy state, he felt a jolt between his legs, suddenly awake, realizing it was Minamoto Tamako pushing the wheelchair, he heaved a sigh of relief, subconsciously rubbing his eyes and asked: "What time is it?"

"A little past three... almost four, I think."

Minamoto Tamako was a bit sleepy too. She was a bit too lazy to push Fushimi Roku but was worried he'd stay stuck and not leave if she didn't. She thought, having pushed him all day already, this little bit won't hurt, so she braced herself, grabbing the handrails on the wheelchair back, pushing Mr. Fushimi along the quiet street.

"So late already? The case is settled, right?" Fushimi Roku glanced at his watch, "Then I'm not going to work tomorrow."

"Why?" Minamoto Tamako yawned.

"What do you think? Won't you be sleepy tomorrow?" Fushimi Roku felt she had too much energy.

"It's fine, Chief Kikuchi said if we work late into the night, the next day we can sleep at our desks, that's an invisible perk of Nakagawara Police Station!"

"That's considered a perk?" Fushimi Roku couldn't even be bothered to retort, "Anyway, I'm not going to work tomorrow."

"Don't you want the super reward? This is just the first day clocking in!"

"It's already past midnight; does this still count as the first day? Put your hand on your heart; I stayed up with you until four, and you're not allowing me to catch up on sleep tomorrow? Even beasts need rest time, right?"

"Don't say it so harshly, you can sleep at the police station tomorrow morning!"

"If I'm going to sleep there anyway, why not just sleep at home? Just to show some diligence in front of the boss? That's just performative!"

On this note, Fushimi Roku's resentment grew heavier, his morning grumpiness erupted, slapping the wheelchair armrest loudly, complaining, "Do you know why that bastard Kazama Tatsuya tricked us into going back home today? It's because after I got back, the mental stress was too much, and he suspected I had psychological issues, forcing me to undergo a mental check!"

"Huh? Is that so?" Minamoto Tamako was dumbfounded.

"What else? If I'm lying, I'll be struck by lightning!"

Fushimi Roku clutched his chest with a face full of anguish, "Can't you tell how much psychological trauma those experiences on Cat Island caused me? My fragile little heart has been under such moral torment, whenever I close my eyes, images of Om... cough, cough, Fox Princess's tragic death flash across my mind... and in this state, you still force me to work every day."

At last, he fiercely added, "Someday if I get depressed and commit suicide, I'll curse you in my suicide note!"

Minamoto Tamako was startled, feeling a bit flustered.

If it were in the past, she would have surely knelt for forgiveness; but now she was well aware of Fushimi Roku's temperament and had set the principle to 'only believe half of what he says.' Despite her panic, she remained skeptical.

Seeing no response from her, not even an apology, Fushimi Roku pressed aggressively, "Don't believe it, huh? Then go ask Kazama Tatsuya!"

With that, he ignored Minamoto Tamako, crossing his arms while sitting in the wheelchair, clearly unwilling to communicate further.

Minamoto Tamako tried coaxing him a bit, but it was to little avail, as he wouldn't respond at all. Not wanting to face a cold shoulder, she had no choice but to quickly wheel him back to the apartment, then knocked on Senior Kazama's next-door room.

Kazama Tatsuya hadn't slept either; he couldn't fall asleep these days without drinking. Hearing the knock, he instinctively drew his gun (bought from the black market), crept near the door against the wall, and peered briefly through the peephole. Only after confirming it was just Minamoto Tamako did he put the gun back in his waistband and open the living room door. "What's up? Staying up this late will affect your training condition tomorrow."

"Well, I wanted to ask you something..."

Minamoto Tamako relayed Fushimi Roku's exact words from earlier.

Upon hearing them, Kazama Tatsuya's face was full of mixed emotions; he truly hadn't expected Fushimi Roku to use such an excuse to skip work.

It was indeed he who mentioned this matter, so there was nothing to hide. He explained in earnest: according to convention, when a criminal police officer fires a gun for the first time and kills someone, they need psychological guidance. Armed officers also need regular mental health checks... but the police station has always disregarded these regulations. Most psychological counselors in police stations are just for show, with some even collecting pay without working at all.

Only then did Minamoto Tamako recall the related regulations. When she accidentally killed a believer in a gunfight, she had nightmares for a long time, unable to forget the incident, resulting in a psychological shadow that persists to this day.

If she had received psychological guidance at the time, she wouldn't have been left with a mental scar.

Thinking of this, she realized that Mr. Fu Jian truly needed some time for recuperation. Forcing him to go to work was really inappropriate... if she put herself in his place, she would have surely locked herself up to heal.

For Mr. Fu Jian to be willing to continue investigating with her, he must be under immense psychological pressure!

The more Minamoto Tamako thought about it, the guiltier she felt, her face going pale.

Seeing her like this, Kazama Tatsuya guessed she was worried about Fushimi Roku's mental state, and so he added, "You don't need to worry, he won't feel pressured by these things..." he stopped abruptly, swallowing the second half of his sentence.

— 'His mental issues stem from other reasons.'

If he had said that, it would have meant breaking the confidentiality agreement.

Minamoto Tamako didn't take his words seriously, thinking Senior Kazama was just comforting her, or perhaps he overestimated Fushimi Roku's resilience.

She had read in men's magazines about inspirational sayings like "Men must be strong," "Men don't easily cry," and how Showa spirit must be inherited, which made it seem like if men share their feelings, they'd be ridiculed by those around them. Just thinking about it made her feel stressed to the point of numbness.

Maybe Senior Kazama thought the same way. If Mr. Fu Jian expressed his guilt about killing to him, he'd surely be pressured like "When I was your age, I'd already killed ten suspects," "It's just protecting your comrades, don't feel sad about this," and "Don't be so feminine, can't you act like a man?"...

Minamoto Tamako hurriedly thanked him and then said, "I, I'll head back now."

Kazama Tatsuya didn't know what she had imagined. After she left, he closed the living room door and locked it. In the dark, he sat on the living room sofa, took out the gun from his waistband, and tapped it idly on his thigh.

Since returning from Cat Island, he had experienced intense phantom pain. Until now, his back, arms, and thighs still retained the throbbing sensation of the "Silent Needle."

When he deliberately used his willpower to accept the punishment back then, it was not without consequences. The bald monk knew his limits, hence he was even more terrified of voluntarily accepting the punishment.

Whether it's mental or physical, any overextension will bounce back doubly.

During the quiet of night, uncontrolled memories of the past often flood him, most filled with pain, cruelty, and things he would rather forget, while the joyful memories grow increasingly blurry... Nowadays, drinking with Watanabe Shun brings him no joy, just a sense of numbness at best.

Kazama Tatsuya took out the revolver's cylinder, unloaded the bullets one by one, then inserted a single bullet, and with a flick of his right hand, closed the chamber.

He sat silently for a moment, then suddenly tossed the gun onto the coffee table and covered his face with both hands, sighing:

"What am I doing..."

...

On the other side, Minamoto Tamako returned home. She glanced around the living room, seeing no sign of Fushimi Roku. Presumably, he had already retired to his room to sleep.

Minamoto Tamako felt the need to make it up to Mr. Fu Jian, but she was at a loss on how to comfort him in such a situation.

So she returned to her room and started flipping through books. Thanks to Sakurako, there was all sorts of random magazine literature at home — like "100 Tips to Enhance Intimate Relationships," "Psychology of the Sexes," "Super Person-Reading Techniques," "How to Make Your Classmates Your Dogs"... Wisdom lies in books, and Minamoto Tamako planned to find ways to bring joy from them.