Conan: Chief of Rice Flower's Science Points

Chapter 405 A mere 500 million
"Citizens can rest assured that my colleagues in the police force and I will continue to protect everyone's safety as always!"

The press conference ended amidst Shiraishi's "high-profile" remarks.

Although his colleagues in the police force, especially those in higher positions, might not approve of Shiraishi, a mere local police chief, making such a high-profile move, they have to admit that Shiraishi turned what was supposed to be a critical and questioning press conference into a passionate rally...

While the press conference was underway, on the other side... today in Dongdu, there was also a "charity gala" that was not widely known to ordinary people, but had a significant impact among celebrities and socialites, which was also being held as scheduled.

Two people who seemed out of place at the charity gala were also present—Tetsuya Hatano and Jun Suda. Just two weeks ago, Hatano was working part-time at a camera shop and inventing things in his spare time, while Suda was a programmer who looked to be in his late thirties…

One of them was recognized by the research institute for his inventions, and the other appeared on the cover of Time magazine for organizing social activities and being enthusiastic about environmental protection!
That's right, the reason this game was able to be arranged was indeed thanks to Miwako Kobe, and it could even be said that she planned it all, with her true intentions being something else entirely.

but……

To say that this game was fake wouldn't be entirely true.

After all, Miwako Kobe didn't hire shills; she genuinely orchestrated this whole scheme—those titles that sound impressive to ordinary people can actually be manipulated.

Suda and Hatano never dreamed they would be able to attend such an event... at least one of them never imagined it, while the other fantasized about surviving the statute of limitations, laundering the money, and gaining a higher social status!
After all, someone who can endure until the statute of limitations expires has a plan for their life.

Of course, they both look glamorous now, but they are actually in dire straits in private—for no other reason than that they owe money to violent organizations!

Both of them would sometimes lose themselves in the clinking of glasses, thinking they were some kind of important person, and at other times, their eyes would twitch when they saw someone wearing dark sunglasses squatting and smoking on the roadside outside the wall, seemingly waiting for them...

But then...

Miwako Kobe even added her honey trap!

Both men were now accompanied by beautiful women, who, ostensibly, had become enamored with them at the banquet that day and were now pursuing them…

A single honey trap might not be enough to extract money, but the problem is...

There are still debt collectors squatting outside!
If either of them were the real robber, and Mingli were to suddenly become tempted and not want to lose face in front of the beauty, there's no guarantee he wouldn't impulsively take out his "family fortune."

If that doesn't work, then Miwako Kobe will soon be out of options, since there's only one day left before the retroactive period ends!

As for simply resorting to violent debt collection...

Not to mention that Miwako Kobe was unwilling to be so violent, the nature of this "entrapment" meant that it couldn't be turned into a real operation—after all, those debt collectors were hired.

We can't really instruct them to use violence, can we?

Moreover, violence may not be effective in such situations.

After all, this criminal has been hiding for so many years, and violence alone may not be enough to make him submit.

Therefore, after discussing it with his grandfather, Kobe, inspired by his grandfather, improved the plan.

It has to be said that Kiku Kobe is truly an expert at ripping people off...

After the banquet ended, both Hatano and Suda came out accompanied by beautiful women, but it was clear that they both looked somewhat embarrassed.

Sure enough, at that moment, both of them were stopped by thugs...

"Hey kid, you have no money to pay your debts, but you have money to chase girls? You bastard..." the debt collector said with an exaggerated, rolled "l" sound.

"Hmm? Professor Hatano, do you... still owe money? How much? I have 200,000... is that enough?" his female companion asked with concern.

"Two hundred thousand isn't even enough for today's interest! Little girl, who are you to him? If you want to pay off his debts, I can think of a way for you..." the thug said, sounding like a bad guy.

"Wait a minute! It has nothing to do with her..." Hatano said quickly upon seeing this.

"It's none of your business!" The thug then tried to bypass him and entangle himself with the woman.

Hatano gritted his teeth and said, "Stop! I... I can pay you back! Come with me..."

After finishing his sentence, Hatano grabbed his female companion and ran back to his car...

"Kid! Don't run away!"

"Stop right there... You have to pay me back today!"

The debt collectors quickly got on their motorcycles—even though they didn't know the truth, they had already received the money and had to do it anyway.

Meanwhile, after hearing what Hatano said through the listening devices on the two of them, the police officers lying in ambush at the scene were also very excited—they had finally given themselves away!

At this moment, Haiya immediately called on everyone to follow Hatano, but not too closely, so that as soon as he went to get the stolen money, they could catch him red-handed!

but……

On the other side, Suda was also being stopped by some thugs. Just as he was feeling wronged and about to back down, he suddenly saw many people around him hurriedly getting into their cars and driving in the same direction, like extras leaving a stage. He was immediately puzzled.

"What are you looking at? Hurry up and pay back..." The debt collector continued his act with great professionalism.

“Alright, Mr. Suda’s debt has been cancelled,” Kobe said, stepping forward.

"Huh? Then..." The debt collector was taken aback.

"Go collect your money," Kobe said calmly.

Kobe set up this loan company as a trap, not actually to scam people out of money...

"Miss Kobe, this is..." Suda was stunned upon seeing this.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Suda, but I’m actually a police officer,” Kobe said truthfully.

"Police officer? Ah! Is it because of that case?" Suda realized at that moment.

Suda has been through that case several times over the years, so it's not surprising that he would come to his senses now.

Then Suda said sullenly, "So... all of this is fake, right?"

“No, all of this is true! Ah… if I had to say, the only thing that’s fake is the loan.” Kobe said matter-of-factly. “I-Is that so…” Suda didn’t seem particularly happy to hear that.

"And this is fake... I'm sorry." Seeing that her "sugar daddy" had closed the deal, the female companion stopped accompanying Suda.

"Mr. Suda, you don't need to worry about the loan or the subsequent interviews with international journalists. Just prepare well." Kobe emphasized again that it was all true.

“That kind of thing…it’s alright! By the way, Ms. Kobe, since you’re a police officer, don’t you need to chase after them?” Suda asked at this moment.

Upon hearing this, Kobe said with some regret, "No, everyone doesn't want me to take the risk, sigh."

“Then let’s go after him in my car! I also want to see what kind of guy has caused me to be investigated by the police so many times over the years.” Suda said matter-of-factly.

"This...that's very kind of you!" Kobe actually wanted to chase after the criminal himself.

And so, Miwako Kobe got into Jun Suda's car...

As Suda drove, Kobe felt increasingly uneasy and couldn't help but ask halfway through, "Mr. Suda, are we... going the wrong way?"

"Don't worry, the direction is fine."

click-

As Suda spoke, he locked the passenger door.

Kobe: ...

Miwako Kobe realized something was wrong, but firstly, it was too late, and she didn't dare to do anything at the current speed; secondly... she really had no experience dealing with this kind of situation!

It was only her usual refined demeanor that prevented her from appearing too flustered; as for a solution... there was none!
Especially since she was wearing a formal dress at the time, it was impossible for her to be carrying a gun...

Kobe quickly realized Suda's destination—the place where he usually organized social activities, which was also the mountain where he stopped the construction of the landfill!

"Get out of the car." Suda brought Kobe, who had been partially kidnapped, down with him.

Suda dropped the pretense and said directly, "Actually, you've got it wrong. Although I don't know what's going on with that guy Hatano, the robber who stole the 500 million yen wasn't Hatano, it was me."

"Huh? So all those social activities were just a smokescreen?" Kobe became a little nervous upon hearing this, but looking around, she saw that there were hardly any people around. Although they were both rich kids, Kobe Miwako didn't use money to arm herself, but only to carry out some plans. At this moment, she also lacked the ability to protect herself!
"No, that's not it... I buried the money here back then, intending to take it out and enjoy it after the statute of limitations expired, but... that despicable garbage disposal company actually used this place to dump garbage!" Suda said, still somewhat annoyed.

That's exactly why Suda is so passionate about environmental protection and public welfare—even if it means not going to work, he'll organize protests by the surrounding residents...

"Thanks to your help, they finally managed to move some of the trash, and now I've dug out my money," Suda said, looking at an empty space nearby.

Although the other party hired a very capable lawyer, but...

Suda had previously borrowed money to hire Komikado!
With Komekado involved, the lawsuit is in the mediation stage and has achieved significant results, with the situation beginning to favor the protesters.

Even though the waste disposal company had hired the "Miki Law Firm," they still had to promise to reduce the area of ​​waste dumping, improve the quality of waste disposal, and most importantly, increase compensation to the surrounding area!
Not long ago, Suda encountered his biggest challenge yet...

Everyone came here for the money. The surrounding residents just wanted more compensation, but his money is still down there!

Therefore, Suda had to put in a lot of effort to keep everyone calm, especially to continue "performing" environmentalism, so that he would have a reason to push Komekado harder—after all, Komekado was someone he had hired with borrowed money, and even if everyone else was convinced, Komekado would have to find a way.

In the ensuing tug-of-war, the waste disposal company has finally made some concessions, and the portion of waste that has been removed includes the location where he buried the money.

It was only today that this mountain of garbage was moved, which is why Suda was able to come over and spout such nonsense—theoretically, as long as it's past midnight, he can dig the money out of here!
Furthermore, the statute of limitations has already expired, even for civil cases; even if it were brought up again, it would be difficult to compel him to pay compensation...

Furthermore, after the police closed the case, even if everyone suspected where his money came from, the police couldn't investigate.

but……

"Then bring me here now..." Kobe became somewhat nervous at his boastful words.

"Yes, I'll have money soon. I'll dig it up and then... bury you in it!"

The usually timid Suda still had his cowardly air about him, but he started saying some tough things.

"Huh? Why?" Miwako Kobe was utterly baffled—it was baffling enough that he would kill someone for a mere 500 million, let alone the fact that she couldn't stop him from getting the 500 million anyway!

"Because... you rich people are really despicable! Do you know how long I planned for this 500 million, and how long I endured it? In the end... even if I got the money, it would be very difficult for you to do it, but you did it so easily, and you even lied to me... It's really too despicable!" Suda said somewhat excitedly.

That's right, Suda's defenses have been breached.

Suda had also considered using the 500 million yen to gain social status—the ability to plan and execute a robbery and then escape unscathed, and even to remain inactive until the statute of limitations expired. Suda was certainly not a thief who acted on impulse, but rather someone with brains.

Even recent events have made him, after calm reflection, consider whether to give up on the 500 million and pretend it never happened...

After all, he already has a social status. The achievements he has made in the past few days are something that 500 million yuan could not have accomplished in his plan. So... why not just pretend that there was no such thing as 500 million yuan?

More than the 500 million yuan, he cares about "success". Even if he gets the 500 million yuan, he does not plan to use it for luxury consumption, but to help himself "succeed".

But then, Kobe told him that it was all her arrangement...

Suda was immediately thrown off guard!
This is a question of whether it's real or fake. If it's fake, and everyone is a shill, Suda might just be normally angry, but...

What broke his defenses the most was that these were actually real?

The five hundred million heist I painstakingly planned turned out to be just a “mere five hundred million” in your eyes.
You actually managed to "arrange" something that I would have had an extremely difficult time accomplishing even with 500 million?
So, Suda, whose defenses had been breached, wanted to vent his frustration!
"Ah! Help me..."

"You can scream your lungs out and it won't..."

Just as Suda was about to utter his classic line, a flashlight beam suddenly shone down on him.

Suda was momentarily blinded by the light, and the next moment, against the backlight, he saw a gigantic figure...

Without comparison, it's hard to know how huge it is, but now there is a comparison—that extremely eccentric lawyer is actually right next to this huge figure!

"See, I told you... how could a protest like this not be about money? There was definitely something fishy going on, wasn't there?" Komekado said matter-of-factly—that's right, Shiraishi was the one he brought in...

(End of this chapter)