The Logmaster - Chapter 12

The next morning, when Tadashi Misumi opened the heavy door to the Unidentified Consultation Room as usual, he found an unusually large visitor there. The face was familiar, but the man seemed out of place in this department.

Kakuta Akira is a detective belonging to the Criminal Affairs Department’s First Investigative Division.

For Mitaka, he was one of the few juniors during his career, and also one of the few “allies.”

While the other detectives avoid any involvement with the demoted Sankaku like he’s a jinx, Kakuta alone remains the same as before, and in fact is strangely familiar with him; for better or worse, he is a straightforward man.

“Sankaku-senpai! Hey! I’m going to be late!”

Kakuta threw his legs on the desk, creaking his armchair, and greeted Misumi in a loud voice. He was noisy in the morning.

“You’re too noisy, Tsunoda. This isn’t the First Investigative Division. Be a bit quieter.”

Mikaku heads to his seat with a disgusted look on his face.

“Oh dear, senpai! There’s been another incident! A new Buddha! And it’s that same homeless guy again! Please hurry up and get some success and come back here! Without you, the First Division won’t be as cohesive!”

It seems that Kakuta still truly believes that Mikata can get back on track in his career.

That carefree attitude was sometimes infuriating, but sometimes I felt a little relieved.

During the fraud allegations that led to Sankaku’s demotion, Kakuta openly declared, “My seniors are not wrong!”, which resulted in him being shunned by higher-ups and receiving a “punishment” in the form of a suspension of several weeks.

However, he still remains involved and shows no signs of being discouraged, so in some sense he may be a big shot.

“Okay, I get it. Anyway, what do you want? Just leave the detailed case documents here and return to the Criminal Investigation Division. This is not your place.”

Misumi brushed Kakuta off lightly and reached for the documents he must have brought with him.

“Well, you see, senpai. For some reason, this accidental death just doesn’t make sense to me, or something bothers me.”

Kakuta’s usual playful face suddenly changed, and he began speaking with a slightly serious expression.

“The victim was an elderly man who lived in a tent village on the riverbank, and the cause of death was drowning. The circumstances were that he was completely drunk last night, slipped and fell into the river…”

“…But, what is it?”

“This old man looked forward to the early morning cooking of ‘whale soup’ that takes place once a year at this time.

He told his friends enthusiastically, “This is why I’m alive. And that soup kitchen was held today.”

“…I see.”

“Right? So, on the morning of the event you’ve been looking forward to the most all year, would you go all the way to the riverbank, drink heavily until late at night, and end up slipping and dying? If it were me, I definitely wouldn’t want to oversleep, so I’d avoid drinking the night before and go to bed early to prepare.”

Kakuta has a simple way of thinking, but when it comes to cases, he has a strangely sharp nose. As he was looking through the documents, Misumi had the same question.

At that moment, Kakutani, who had been sipping his tea in silence up until then, began to speak in a leisurely tone.

“Well, if I’m going to die, I want to die with something tasty in my stomach.”

(That’s not what I meant, this old man…)

Misumi completely ignored Kakutani’s irrelevant comments and focused on the report that Kakuta had brought. The victim’s personality, the circumstances of the discovery, and… the testimony of those involved. Among them, there was one sentence that caught Misumi’s attention.

“A few days before the victim’s death, several of his associates saw him talking to an unfamiliar man in a suit in front of a tent.”

(…Again?!)

This is the fifth case. A series of suspicious deaths of homeless people in Tokyo occurred in a short period. And a mysterious man in a suit has been seen in the vicinity of each of these incidents. It’s too much of a coincidence.

Tsunoda asked, noticing the change in Sankaku’s expression.

“Senpai? Is something wrong?”

“Kadota, do you remember the accidental death of the homeless man, Sato Yukio?”

“Ah, you mean the person who got hit by a garbage truck in the park? If I remember correctly, you were the first one to say that something was wrong, the person who started this whole series of incidents…? Unlike the other cases, that person was the victim of a traffic accident.”

“Ah, so, is it still possible to get hold of the security camera footage from that time?”

Tsunoda’s face suddenly clouded over.

“Well… it was treated as an accident, and a lot of time has passed since then… Also, I don’t have permission to view it, so in my current position, I would need to ask my superiors to let me know… To be honest, it’s going to be pretty tough…”

Sankaku knew all too well the reason why Kakuta was hesitant.

— Inspector Kuroishi Daisuke, 34 years old

He was once Mikata’s colleague, but is now Kakuta’s direct superior.

He was the man who used the corruption that Sankaku exposed to curry favor with those above him, and ultimately rose to prominence by kicking Sankaku out of the running.

He also helped cover up the crime, and is now said to be a favorite of the superintendent, spending his days entertaining him every night.

There is no way that Kuroishi would allow cooperation in an investigation that would lead to the demoted Mikata. He doesn’t even like Kakuta, who is close to Mikata, and will likely try to bring him down if he gets the chance.

Kakuta’s grandfather was a former superintendent general of police, and they are afraid of his influence and cannot intervene, but a timid person like Kuroishi is surely always watching for an opportunity.

(…Impossible…)

Misumi sighed softly. Gathering evidence through proper investigative channels was just too difficult for him at the moment.

(…This organization, and the world, really are rotten…)

“I understand. Thank you, Tsunoda. You can go back now.”

Filled with anger and a sense of helplessness that he had no outlet for, Mikaku urged his juniors on.