Chapter 32: A Tone That Fits the Role
"On the evening of June 9th, did Åshima Masaki mention to you that he might be in danger?" Kishida Masayoshi asked after a moment of thought.
Åshima Mana shook her head at first, then paused to consider. Her tone became uncertain. "He didn’t say it explicitly, but if I think about it in that direction, he did seem a bit strange. He was in a hurry, and when he left, he told me not to tell anyone he had been here."
Kishida fell silent after hearing this. The more he investigated, the more convoluted the case seemed. If Åshima Masaki had sensed danger, why would he go to the hot spring inn? And why would he end up in the room reserved by Hasebe Koichi?
Next, Kishida asked if Åshima Masaki and Hasebe had any conflicts. Åshima Mana replied that she didn’t know, as she paid no attention to her brother’s dubious friends.
At this point, Kagehara Tetsuya suddenly interjected, "Excuse me, aside from June 9th, when was the last time you saw Åshima Masaki?"
"Hmm... probably at the end of May, either the 27th or the 28th," Åshima Mana replied after a moment of thought. She then began to complain, "That day, my brother also came to ask for money. He was drunk and said some strange things. Eventually, my husband came home and chased him away. Before he left, he cursed at me with some really nasty words."
Tetsuya did a quick calculation. May 27th or 28th—that was before Åshima Masaki had swapped faces with Hasebe Koichi. So, the person Åshima Mana had met that day was indeed her brother. He asked, "You mentioned that Åshima Masaki said some strange things. What exactly did he say?"
"At first, my brother seemed to be in a good mood. He said he was about to make it big or something like that. But after I refused to give him money, he got angry. He said I’d regret looking down on him and brought up how he had taken care of me when we were kids. It was all very frustrating and selfish—he never considered my feelings."
Tetsuya understood. By that time, Åshima Masaki had likely already learned about Lord Mask-Taker’s power. His first thought had been to use it for personal gain.
Unfortunately, while he was focused on profit, others were focused on his life.
However, Tetsuya knew this, but Kishida, standing beside him, did not. To mislead the detective, Tetsuya deliberately pressed further, "So, Åshima Masaki was implying that he was about to come into a large sum of money. Is that correct?"
Åshima Mana hesitated, then nodded.
"Did he often say things like that? Also, do you know how he might have planned to make money? For example, was he involved in some kind of business with someone?"
"My brother always avoided talking about his future. Even when I tried to bring it up out of concern, he would just scold me as if he were still the older brother. He never seemed to think about these things, so when he suddenly mentioned making it big that day, it struck me as odd. But at the time, I just thought it was another excuse to ask for money."
"As for whether he was about to come into a large sum of money, I don’t know. But if he was, I doubt it was through legitimate means. If he was working with someone, it would probably be one of his friends."
Tetsuya noticed Kishida jotting something down in his notebook. He wondered if this would be enough to establish "Hasebe Koichi’s motive for killing Åshima Masaki." Even if it wasn’t sufficient, it should at least raise some suspicions.
"Did Åshima Masaki know any high school girls?" Kishida asked, perhaps wanting to prevent the girl beside him from speaking further. "Or have you ever seen him with someone around that age?"
"High... high school girls?" Åshima Mana’s eyes widened. "I’m not sure. I’ve never seen my brother with a high school girl. But if he really was associating with someone that age, he wouldn’t have told me about it."
She seemed hesitant to continue.
Kishida noticed. "If you have any thoughts, please feel free to share."
"Well, just by looking at my brother, anyone could tell what kind of person he was. So... normal students would probably avoid him from a distance, right?" In other words, any high school girl who associated with Åshima Masaki probably wasn’t a decent person either.
"I see," Kishida nodded slightly. He then took out a photo from his pocket and slid it across the coffee table to Åshima Mana. "Do you recognize this person?"
"It’s him!" Åshima Mana looked surprised, then quickly explained, "This boy is Kagehara Tetsuya, right? Don’t misunderstand—I don’t know him. I just read about him in the news a year ago. It seems this case involves him too. Is he a suspect?"
"We’re still investigating the details. Aside from the news report, have you ever seen this person in real life? Or have you seen Åshima Masaki with him?" Kishida avoided mentioning whether Kagehara Tetsuya was a suspect.
"I haven’t seen him. But to be honest, I didn’t see my brother very often, and when he did visit, he never brought friends along." Her response was appropriately vague.
After that, Kishida asked a few more questions that, in Tetsuya’s opinion, were completely irrelevant and unhelpful.
So, Tetsuya decided to take matters into his own hands. "Excuse me, aside from coming to you, did Åshima Masaki also ask other relatives for money?"
Åshima Mana sighed. "A few years ago, maybe. But now that my brother is in his thirties and still doesn’t have a proper job, no one besides me would be willing to give him money. If he showed up at their doors, they probably wouldn’t even let him in."
That’s perfect, Tetsuya thought to himself. Since Åshima Masaki had no one to rely on among his relatives, Hasebe Koichi definitely wouldn’t have entrusted any "chips" to them.
With all the information he needed confirmed, Tetsuya stopped asking questions. He figured Kishida was probably done as well.
Sure enough, a few minutes later, Kishida closed his notebook. "Thank you very much for your cooperation. If you remember anything else related to Åshima Masaki, please feel free to contact us. I’ll take my leave now."
Åshima Mana escorted them to the door. "No need to be so formal. After all, he was my brother. If possible, I’d like to see this case resolved quickly as well."
After a round of polite exchanges, the two returned downstairs. It was now rush hour, and the streets were noticeably busier with cars and pedestrians. Watching the girl walk ahead without a care, Kishida caught up and said, "We agreed earlier that you were just here to observe and not to ask questions randomly. Why didn’t you keep your word?"
Tetsuya turned around, clasping her hands behind her back, and replied nonchalantly, "What’s the big deal? Didn’t I get a lot of useful information? For example, maybe Åshima Masaki was killed over money."
"Don’t underestimate detectives just because you’ve read a lot of fiction. I was going to ask those questions too—they’re already written in my notes!" Kishida retorted, clearly annoyed, as he showed her his notebook.
Tetsuya tilted her head and smiled with satisfaction. "Not bad, Mr. Officer. That tone really suits the role of a detective."
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