Chapter 6: The Mi Hua Police Actually Have Regular Working Hours

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As usual: wake up, wash up, go to work.

In the corridor of the Metropolitan Police Department, Kiichi could clearly sense quite a few people sneaking glances at him. As for who they were, he actually had a pretty good idea.

Just as Sato was immensely popular among the male officers, Kiichi was equally a favorite among the female colleagues.

Young, handsome, part of the Golden Watch Unit, highly capable, and it was no secret that his late father had a close relationship with Director Shirouma. Among his peers, perhaps only the slightly older probationary officer Nijusaburo Shiratori could rival him in various respects.

However, compared to the somewhat arrogant Shiratori, Kiichi’s silent and perhaps slightly brooding demeanor seemed more attractive. Not to mention Shiratori’s relatively complicated aristocratic background made most people feel he was out of their league, and the openly expressed admiration Shiratori had for Sato since joining the force.

In any case, during the few group activities Kiichi had participated in, he had more than once overheard Sato jokingly complaining that her close friend and fellow Traffic Division officer Yumi Miyamoto often asked her to discreetly find out Kiichi’s preferences.

Kiichi usually just smiled without saying much.

Even after all these years, he still found it hard to accept the idea of someone deliberately tailoring themselves to please him.

If he had to choose, he preferred to see the other person’s true self.

“Yesterday, Higashino cracked the case again so effortlessly,”

Just as Kiichi sat down with his coffee, his good friend Miwako Sato popped her head over the partition at his desk.

“It was a pretty simple case,” Kiichi smiled, beginning to review the schedule for the day.

Even without new cases coming in, it was still quite busy.

After all, in the “real world,” police work was never just about catching criminals on the scene. Even Inspector Megure, who often relied on “summoning little brother” to solve cases, had to conduct extensive follow-up evidence collection after the detectives cracked the case. Any law-savvy viewer knew that many pieces of evidence pointed out in Detective Conan were actually circumstantial—like the frequently used “death information” code. Using that as evidence was risky; defense lawyers could easily dismantle it without needing the expertise of Eri Kisaki. A slightly experienced defense attorney could easily cause a headache.

That was why Kiichi hadn’t immediately used the “death information” on the cabinet as evidence last night. Who knew if the culprit would just deny it? Although the psychological logic behind the crime was airtight, legally, it was useless if the culprit insisted the cabinet’s scratches were planted by someone else.

The blood-stained clothing was the real ironclad evidence.

Compared to that, detectives finding evidence at the scene and handing it over to the police was less straightforward. After all, it was procedurally acceptable for “enthusiastic citizens” to submit clues to the police. This practice was even documented in the legendary detective documentary “The Chaoyang Masses.”

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The real issue was that evidence submitted by “enthusiastic citizens” usually required them to testify in court. But...

It was hard to imagine Uncle Mouri clearly explaining what he did.

Though maybe he secretly took his record-keeping seriously just so he could testify in court...

Back to today’s schedule, Kiichi had an appointment with prosecutor Reiko Kujo to review a previous case, ensuring the evidence was sufficient and legal before proceeding with prosecution.

He actually quite enjoyed working with Reiko Kujo.

Although in the original storyline she was just an unlucky character overshadowed by Eri Kisaki, in reality, Reiko Kujo was highly capable and could keep up with his pace. She never gave him the frustrating feeling of trying to explain something only to be met with a blank “Huh?”

Kiichi had very little patience for that, and he would often snap when encountering such situations.

Hence, there were even small whispers within the police department that he was not exactly easy to get along with.

This was where the advantage of a strict hierarchical order showed: as an inspector, it was acceptable to occasionally yell at subordinates, and no one found it odd.

Anyone familiar with various crime dramas, especially American ones, knew how important it was to have someone “on your side” within the legal system.

Take yesterday’s case, for example. He was able to have someone search Yuji Suwa’s dojo because of his relationship with Prosecutor Kujo, who could quickly secure a search warrant from a familiar judge.

Otherwise, the process would have been much slower: first detain Suwa based on indirect evidence from the scene, then wait for the judge to approve a search warrant, and only then conduct the search.

Though it seemed like a minor difference, those few hours could mean the world.

Of course, this also explained why his track record was so trustworthy. If it were Megure, no matter how good his relationship with the prosecutor was, no one would approve a warrant without substantial evidence.

The morning flew by in discussions with Reiko Kujo.

There were no issues; after all, in the world of detective studies, unless the criminal’s defense lawyer was Eri Kisaki, there was almost never a case of recanting testimony. The defendant’s attitude was so sincere that even in past judicial systems, it would make detectives shed tears and prosecutors fall silent. DA’s in American dramas would call this heaven.

Plus, Kiichi paid great attention to detail, so the cases he handled were ironclad.

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The cooperation remained pleasant. After Kujo left, Kiichi prepared to eat directly in the cafeteria.

He had to make the most of his time; no one knew when the grim reaper online would strike next.

He didn’t want to work hungry. While it was touching to have his duty interrupted for a meal, he didn’t want to be the one to inspire such pity.

As he walked down the corridor, he suddenly overheard several people discussing something about “marriage” and “weddings.”

Kiichi instantly became alert. Had Director Ko already taken action at some wealthy political figure’s wedding?

I haven’t even eaten yet!

Fortunately, no one came looking for him. Kiichi figured it probably wasn’t a big deal; if it were, he would be 100% sent to the scene.

“Finished the meeting with Prosecutor Kujo?”

While waiting in line, Kiichi ran into Shiratori.

Actually, the two got along fairly well, both being in the same cohort. Even though Kiichi had the shortest probation period and had already been confirmed, and Shiratori had not yet, Shiratori didn’t seem bothered, carrying the ease of a wealthy heir.

As for future promotions, Shiratori seemed completely unconcerned. Perhaps being a cop was just “finding a job he liked” for him.

Damn privileged scion!

“Yeah, we finished. Everything went smoothly; we just need to follow the process to prosecute.” Despite inwardly severely despising Shiratori’s luck in life, Kiichi answered politely.

“You know, Prosecutor Kujo is actually pretty great,” Shiratori suddenly said out of nowhere.

“?” Kiichi slowly typed out a question mark. What was Shiratori talking about? Kobayashi-sensei hadn’t even appeared yet.