No one understands the laws of Collider better than me.

Mrs. Nagata asked, puzzled.

Kitahara Masaki sighed, not answering her question directly, but continuing:

“Hiroto Nagata was arrested at 4 p.m. the day before yesterday. You reported the case to the police station at 8 p.m. and then received threatening phone calls from the perpetrator. Don’t you think that’s a bit late?”

"No, we went to look for the child ourselves first!"

"Ahem, sorry, what I mean is that the perpetrator's actions were a bit too late. Although he said on the phone that we shouldn't call the police, if a primary school student hasn't come home by eight o'clock, his parents have probably already called the police. It's as if the perpetrator was deliberately waiting for you to go to the police station to report the case! Considering the two suspicious points I just mentioned, the only thing I can think of is that one of you two has been in contact with the perpetrator."

"How is this possible!"

"Please watch your words!"

Faced with the Nagata couple's roar, Kitahara Masaki simply pulled out a stack of documents and continued speaking without changing his expression:

"At the time, only the officers I personally contacted and the two of you knew about the last-minute change in the deployment plan. Due to time constraints, I didn't notify the other officers in the investigation headquarters. So, just to be on the safe side, I investigated the phone call and text message records of everyone who knew about it. Sure enough, I discovered that you were the mole who colluded with the criminals!"

Kitahara Masaki then handed the Nagata couple some documents containing text message records from Mr. Nagata's phone.

Faced with irrefutable evidence, Mr. Nagata knelt on the ground, while Mrs. Nagata beside him burst into tears of disbelief. However, the most important thing now was the identity of the criminal, so Kitahara Masaki grabbed Mr. Nagata by the collar and lifted him up, saying:

"Explain to me clearly what happened, why you became an accomplice, and if you can't explain it clearly—"

Under pressure from Kitahara Masaki, Mr. Nagata revealed the truth:

"Six months ago, an unknown number contacted me suggesting I make an investment. The investment failed, and I needed money to cover the losses, so I planned this incident. But after the transaction in front of the locker was canceled, I haven't been able to contact him since..."

Kitahara Masaki immediately realized that the investment was probably a setup for the kidnapping, a series of traps set to lure in a good-for-nothing like Mr. Nagata. After investigation, it was found to be true. The perpetrator's phone number and the investment from six months ago were useless clues, and the perpetrator could not be traced at all.

So, the only way to catch the real culprit is to wait until the next ransom payment.

Kitahara Masaki, who always preferred to maintain control, was at a loss for what to do. The perpetrator had clearly been planning this for a long time and was an experienced criminal. Moreover, rescuing the hostages was the most important thing. This left Kitahara Masaki feeling deeply frustrated.

However, Kitahara Masaki is not the only one feeling depressed today; Akai Shuichi is also among them.

In fact, this afternoon, Shuichi Akai also went to the vicinity of the locker mentioned by the kidnappers. However, he knew nothing about the kidnapping case. But because of his keen intuition, he sensed that there was danger there, so he pretended to be a tourist to observe what was happening there.

As for why he came here, it was because he was there to retrieve something from the locker. Just a few days earlier, the FBI had made a deal with a local Japanese gangster—to buy a gun, and the task of retrieving the gun was naturally assigned to Shuichi Akai.

Just as he sensed danger and thought the gangsters were planning to double-cross him, a familiar face appeared near the locker! That person was none other than his younger sister, Sera Masumi.

When he saw his sister and another woman standing by the locker, chatting and laughing with milk tea, he couldn't help but frown, because he could tell at a glance that his sister was wearing a wig and was pretending to be a delinquent girl.

Although this was Shuichi Akai's first 'offline' meeting with his sister, he recognized her at a glance, as he had been keeping an eye on his mother's situation and naturally knew his sister.

In fact, he had received intelligence a few months ago—his long-lost father, Tsutomu Akai, had appeared in London, England! With his keen intuition, he naturally knew that this was likely a conspiracy by the organization, but he estimated that his mother might go to London to investigate, so he also rushed to London.

However, when he arrived in London, he received new intelligence—that a woman had fallen into the water at Vauxhall Bridge a few days earlier, and that MI6 had also received intelligence that the previously seen Tsutomu Akai was actually a member of the Black Organization in disguise.

Shuichi Akai deduced that his mother must have jumped into the river to escape. At the same time, news arrived from Japan that the Miyano sisters, members of the Black Organization, had defected, and that Yabun-e was located there. Furthermore, his father had once said that Japan was relatively safe and easy to enter. Naturally, Shuichi Akai went to Japan without hesitation, searching for traces of the Black Organization while also looking for his mother and sister.

However, today Shuichi Akai encountered his sister while on an FBI mission, which finally put him at ease. However, judging from Sera's appearance, she was spying on him, and the object of her spying was a locker!

This frustrated him greatly, because his sister was accompanied by a woman whose background he didn't know, and as an FBI agent who had come to Japan without informing customs, it wasn't convenient for him to show himself in front of outsiders.

Shuichi Akai, who was waiting for an opportunity, never got the chance to reunite with his sister. However, he later saw his sister and a woman who also looked like a high school student leave the locker with heavy expressions and get into a taxi.

Shuichi Akai naturally got on his motorcycle and followed. The location he finally arrived at surprised him, because Sera ended up in a police station, which meant that Sera was now involved with the Japanese police!

This fact made Shuichi Akai smile wryly. He was being chased relentlessly by the Japanese Public Security Bureau, while his sister had become an accomplice to the police.

But that's good, it means her safety is guaranteed.

However, Shuichi Akai may never know that Sera's boss is Masami.

Chapter 281 is all about fancy stuff.

Just after Mr. Nagata was taken away, Kitahara Masaki had already begun to prepare for the worst. However, the kidnappers called again that day. It seemed that the kidnappers were willing to do anything for such a large sum of money. Even without such an important pawn as Mr. Nagata, they still wanted to get the 300 million.

"Tomorrow at 12 o'clock, bring the money to the Ferris wheel on the roof of Putian Dongtie Department Store. All the money will be paid in 1000 Swiss franc notes."

He hung up right after saying that, just like the previous times, and the address obtained by tracing the signal yielded no results.

Kitahara Masaki lay on the sofa, pondering what the prisoner was up to this time. Why the ransom was exchanged for Swiss francs was suspicious, as was the fact that the location and time for the ransom payment were still specified beforehand, even though he clearly had no more pawns left...

The reason this cautious prisoner was able to carry out such a bold action may be because he still had access to intelligence from the police!

Kitahara Masaki jumped up from the sofa and looked at the more than fifty police officers in the investigation headquarters. He couldn't help but feel a headache coming on. After all, it was unreasonable to suspect a colleague without evidence.

"Inspector Kitahara, what are you worried about?"

The two girls, now dressed like normal people, looked up slightly at Kitahara Masaki. Koshimizu Nanatsuki seemed to have put on light makeup, which gave her originally childlike face a unique attraction; while Sera Masumi looked like a curious child, but since she was still not very familiar with Kitahara Masaki, she just quietly looked at him, and from Kitahara Masaki's perspective, he could see her cute canine tooth.

Snapped!

Kitahara Masaki slapped his face, feeling dizzy. He hadn't had a proper rest for several days, so his thoughts kept wandering in a bad direction.

"Tell Mrs. Nagata to use a fancy bag for the ransom, and hang a big bow on it. Then—you can just go shopping at the department store in your everyday clothes."

"Huh? Are we going to play tomorrow?"

"Well, you guys go play there in the morning first, and when it's almost time to pay the ransom, go to the Ferris wheel. I don't have any hope for these old men in terms of plainclothes surveillance."

Moreover, Kitahara Masaki intends to take action personally this time, and he must catch the culprit!

"Inspector Kitahara, if there's a mole among the criminals here, wouldn't you be exposed by going to the scene?"

"Yeah! I didn't even think of that! I need to go and replenish my energy."

Kitahara Masaki called Vermouth, and the two of them went to the department store beforehand. After finding that there were no special exits, he felt relieved and went with Vermouth to a dessert shop in the building for afternoon tea.

Just as Kitahara Masaki was enjoying the sweetness he hadn't tasted in days, Vermouth suddenly said:

“At that time yesterday, I was with that kid in a nearby building watching the alley. Although no one approached the lockers at four o'clock in the afternoon, there was a strange man at the intersection staring at the lockers. Later I found out that the people he was watching were the two policewomen.”

"Hey! Why didn't you say so yesterday?"

"First, he showed no signs of answering the phone when Mrs. Nagata received it; he wasn't holding a cell phone or wearing headphones. Second, after the police retrieved the ransom and withdrew, he left for a while, then returned and took a heavy-looking bag from the locker."

"So you think he was someone who happened to be making a transaction in that locker as well?"

"That's right, and he was very alert. Even though I was standing by the window on the eighth floor, he seemed to notice me. I only found out about his actions by recording them on my phone."

Kitahara Masaki nodded. This person was indeed different from the perpetrator in this case. The perpetrator in this case was extremely cautious and undoubtedly a calm and collected person, after all, he had planned for a full six months to carry out this kidnapping case.

The man Vermouth saw knew someone was watching the locker, yet he still took something from it... He was also staring at Koshimizu and Sera...

Hey, is this guy supposed to be Shuichi Akai?

After telling Vermouth about his speculation, she also looked incredulous.

"That girl named Sera is actually Shuichi Akai's sister?"

"Yes, perhaps this is fate. The Akai family always seems to encounter all sorts of unexpected events."

"Cough cough, I fed Akai Mary a pill of drug A a few months ago, and we still haven't found her body!"

Kitahara Masaki, trying to hide his expression by eating cake, mumbled incoherently:

"If she were still alive, she would be a smaller version. It would be a good thing that she didn't die."

"Indeed, if she died, I would have become mortal enemies with Shuichi Akai. I only fed her the drug developed by her sister to complete the mission... Well, judging from your expression, you should already know what I'm doing, right?"

"Haha, don't worry about leaving it to me."

Kitahara Masaki naturally wouldn't allow Akai Shuichi to disturb his happy life.

------------------

Kitahara Masaki, having replenished his energy, was full of enthusiasm, but the hostage's mother was on the verge of collapse. First, her son was kidnapped, and then she discovered that her husband was also an accomplice. Today, she would have to deliver the ransom again.

Anxious and worried, she looked around. At this moment, Mrs. Nagata was naturally standing under the Ferris wheel. A man wearing sunglasses and a mask slowly approached her and reached out his hand to ask for the bag containing the ransom.

"Where is Guangdou? Where is Guangdou?"

Mrs. Nagata's reaction seemed to startle the man, but as if he had thought of something, he grabbed the bag and snatched it away, then quickly walked towards the department store exit.

The surrounding police officers kept a close eye on the man, and Kitahara Masaki saw everything through the miniature camera on Koshimizu's chest (drones cannot be used when the distance is too far), and immediately issued an order.

“Don’t worry about Mrs. Nagata. Koshimizu and Sera follow him on foot. Everyone else, get in the car quickly. No one should act rashly. We’ll only make a move when he takes us to Hiroto’s location.”

The suspicious man walked to the bus stop, and Koshimizu immediately notified Kitahara Masaki.

"Yue Shui, you two go up with them, and then go up with two more police officers!"

Using a miniature camera, Kitahara Masaki saw the suspicious man sit down, but unfortunately all the seats around him were occupied, so the four officers following him had to stand and monitor him.

"Yue Shui, don't move. The camera will be pointed over there."

As Kitahara Masaki watched the video, he unconsciously leaned forward, his brow furrowing more and more as he looked at the suspicious points.

Combining the two points of doubt from before, Kitahara Maki finally understood where the incongruity came from!

Drop drop drop.

Koshimizu and Takagi received text messages from Kitahara Masaki one after the other. This was naturally to prevent eavesdropping by an insider, so Kitahara Masaki issued instructions to the two officers who would never betray him via text message.

Having seen through the criminal's trick, Kitahara Masaki took a deep breath and began his own one-man show.

Chapter 282 This section is already full.

After two stops, the suspicious man got off the train with a bag of money. After walking a little further, he threw the bag into a trash can and then pulled out a 10,000 yen Japanese yen bill from it.

The officers following him immediately picked up the bag the suspicious man had thrown down, only to find it contained a bunch of books tied up in a pile.

Two officers quickly arrested him, then ripped off his sunglasses and mask, discovering that the suspicious man was just a high school student!

"What! The ransom has disappeared!"

Kitahara Masaki shouted loudly immediately after receiving the report from the police officer.

"So that's it! The criminal had the ransom exchanged from Japanese currency to francs not to escape the country, but to make it easier to switch the money! The real culprit is the person sitting next to the high school student; they switched the francs for books on the bus. Everyone immediately tracked down the person who got off at the previous two stops!"

After issuing the command, Kitahara Masaki immediately sent out the actual command via text message.

Those who received Kitahara Masaki's true instructions had already begun tracking down the real culprit. Koshimizu and Sera rode motorcycles, while Takagi and Chiba drove a car to pursue them.

Kitahara Masaki had sensed something was off the moment he felt something was amiss, and he immediately thought the person sitting next to the man who had taken the money was very suspicious. The person seemed to be afraid of being seen, as he was wearing a mask, hat, and glasses, and was carrying a large travel bag.

Furthermore, since the ransom in francs was not bulky and could be easily contained in a bag, Kitahara Masaki immediately thought of switching it and sent a text message to a trusted police officer to track down the new suspect.

As expected, the old suspect's bag was empty, so the ransom naturally ended up in the hands of the new suspect.

However, in order to deceive the criminal who knew the police's movements, Kitahara Masaki began his performance, acting as if he had just discovered that the ransom had been switched. The instructions Kitahara Masaki gave were all a beat late.