I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

At this point, Terasaka seemed to recall some terrible memory, and a stern look appeared on his face.

"Although I dare not call myself a master swordsman, I consider myself to be quite skilled."

"As a result... when Rakshasa used his sword-drawing technique, I couldn't even see the path of his sword..."

“Not only me, but even the renowned ‘Fire-Bearing Hound’ was powerless against Rakshasa’s ‘Sword of Divine Speed’.”

"With just one strike, Rakshasa cut Jinze Zhongfu into a critically injured state, leaving him only able to lie on the ground and wait to die."

"As for Jin Zeqin... we never intended to kill her."

"She was just unlucky..."

“She happened to be next to Kanazawa Tadatsugu when we went to kill him… so we had no choice but to kill her as well.”

"The people who killed Kanazawa Tadashi and Kanazawa Koto were all demons."

"The rest of us, including myself, didn't even draw our swords. We just surrounded Kanazawa Tadashi and Kanazawa Koto to prevent them from escaping."

Before Terasaka could finish speaking, Nishino immediately pressed for an answer:

"Could you describe what that Rakshasa looks like?"

Terasaka nodded:

"He was very tall, nearly six feet long, with fairly handsome features, neither fat nor thin, and his head was not shaved. The sword at his waist was a red-handled, red-sheathed katana."

"Does he have any particularly noticeable features? For example, birthmarks, moles, scars, etc."

Terasaka shook his head.

Do you know where the Rakshasa lives?

Terasaka shook his head again.

"Were the others who accompanied Rakshasa in the murder of Kanazawa Tadashi and Kanazawa Koto all henchmen of the Shimizu clan, just like you?"

"That should be true..."

"Do you know anything about your companions? Their appearance, their addresses, anything."

"I'm sorry... I know nothing about this..."

Terasaka sighed.

"To prevent information leaks, the Shimizu clan forbids its henchmen from interacting with each other."

"When we go on missions, we all wear masks and don't know each other's backgrounds."

……

Afterwards, Nishino asked Terasaka many more questions.

Terasaka, having given up resistance, completely transformed into an honest and obedient child.

No matter what Nishino asked, he answered truthfully.

After asking no more questions, Nishino let out a long sigh.

"The Shimizu Clan... Rakshasa..."

Nishino looked up, gazing thoughtfully at the ceiling.

……

……

Nishino strode out of the interrogation room.

He had barely stepped out of the interrogation room when he bumped into the subordinate he had just ordered to leave.

"Lord Nishino, how is the situation?"

"Not bad, quite fruitful."

After saying that, Nishino glanced at the other person, then changed to a half-joking tone:

"Nakano-kun, your acting skills still need improvement."

“Just now, when you said ‘Lord Nishino, but…’ you should have shown an even more surprised and shocked expression.”

"Yes."

The subordinate smiled wryly.

"I will work harder to hone my acting skills and strive to play the 'bad cop' better in the future."

"Yes, keep up the good work."

Nishino patted his subordinate on the shoulder, then stopped lingering and walked straight ahead.

Soon, Nishino left the magistrate's office alone.

The gentle winter sun enveloped Nishino's entire body.

Feeling the fresh air surrounding him, so different from that in the interrogation room, Nishino took a deep breath and repeated it several times.

Just then, a strange male voice with a drawn-out tone at the end of a sentence reached Nishino's ears from not far away.

"Oh my~ Isn't this Nishino-kun? What a coincidence~~"

Nishino looked in the direction of the sound and saw a handsome, tall figure.

It was "Fire Dragon": my grandson, Tadashi Tadashi.

"My grandson?"

Nishino raised an eyebrow.

Why are you here?

"Haha, what 'why' could there be? I came to find you~ to ask how your interrogation of that Terasaka Juheiji went~~"

Upon hearing this, Nishino's face immediately showed understanding.

Terasaka Juheiji was captured by Nishino and my grandson together.

Without my grandson's assistance, it's uncertain whether Nishino could have successfully captured Terasaka.

To thank my grandson for his help, they made a pact: if Nishino obtained any important information during the interrogation of Terasaka, he would immediately report it to my grandson, who wanted to know who had killed the Kanazawa siblings.

"I never expected to run into you at the main gate of the North Zone Police Station so soon after I arrived! Hahaha, what a coincidence!"

Nishino glanced at my grandson a few times, gradually fading the look of suspicion from his face.

"Yes, it is indeed a coincidence... I also happened to have something I wanted to talk to you about."

"Oh?"

This time it was my grandson's turn to raise his eyebrows.

"You need something from me? May I ask what brings you here?"

"This is not a good place to talk."

Nishino glanced around at himself.

"Let's go somewhere else."

"That's true~~"

My grandson smiled.

"Then... come with me, I happen to know a teahouse nearby that serves really good tea."

……

……

Edo, a certain place, a certain teahouse—

"Welcome! What would you two like to drink?"

"A cup of black tea, please."

"A cup of green tea."

"Oh, sir, I'm sorry, we're out of green tea. Is black tea the only option?"

"can."

Nishino came to talk to my grandson about business, not to have tea, so he didn't really care what kind of tea we had.

Perhaps because there were fewer customers at the moment, it only took a short while for Teshiro to return to Nishino and my grandson with two steaming cups of black tea.

"Here comes the black tea! Be careful, it's hot!"

Teshiro placed two cups of black tea in front of Nishino and my grandson, then quickly left with the tea tray.

"Nishino-kun, you should try this! I highly recommend their black tea! I don't know if it's because of their excellent brewing technique or because they use high-quality tea leaves, but their black tea is absolutely delicious!"

After saying that, my grandson took the first sip of his drink.

Nishino picked up his teacup right after my grandson and took a small sip.

Nishino knew nothing about tea; he couldn't tell the difference between good and bad tea leaves.

Therefore, he couldn't tell at all what made the cup of black tea he was drinking different from the black tea he had drunk before.

After gulping down a few mouthfuls of tea, Nishino put down his cup, raised his eyes, and stared straight at my grandson.

"Alright, my grandson, if you want to drink tea, you can have it later. Let's talk about business now."

Upon hearing this, my grandson nodded happily and then put down his teacup.

"Anyway, let me answer your question first—my grandson, you've come at a very opportune time today. Just now, Terasaka confessed."

"Oh?"

My grandson's eyes lit up, and his upper body involuntarily leaned towards Nishino's direction, striking a pose of "all ears."

Nishino spoke slowly and deliberately:

"Terasaka Juheiji did indeed participate in the murder of Kanazawa Tadatsugu and Kanazawa Koto. However, he was merely following orders; the real culprit behind the murders of Kanazawa Tadatsugu and Kanazawa Koto was someone else."

My grandson: "..."

Nishino: "..."