Chapter 97: Dealing with Human Relationships is Difficult

After some questioning, Senichi and Officer Takagi left the Katori residence.

They had been running around all morning and it was now lunchtime.

First, they drove back to the police headquarters and handed over the fur from the coat they had taken off at Mrs. Matsushita's mansion entrance. They submitted it to the forensics department for analysis before going to the cafeteria to have lunch.

Although the analysis would take some time, as the forensics department had other evidence from different cases to process, they patiently waited.

Fortunately, they were not in a hurry. After having lunch, they each took a short break before resuming their activities.

The "evidence" they had collected was discreetly obtained by Senichi without consulting the owners. After all, they didn't want to create an unpleasant situation right after entering the house.

If they had asked for permission to collect evidence, it would have been akin to saying, "I suspect you're the culprit." Naturally, the person wouldn't have reacted kindly, and they would have probably been kicked out after collecting the evidence, not to mention the subsequent questioning.

So, although this "evidence" had no legal effect and couldn't be used as proof of identification, Senichi wanted to confirm something.

If there were materials on the deceased matching the ones he had collected, Senichi could directly apply for a search warrant and openly gather evidence to arrest the person.

No one would willingly cooperate with the police after being suspected as a suspect. There might be important evidence that could be missed because of it.

That's why, for the sake of investigations, even though the detectives knew that secretly collecting evidence was futile, they still persevered. It helped reduce conflicts between them and "important witnesses."

Like what often happened in TV dramas, carefully preserving a handkerchief when exchanging business cards or taking a used cup from the other party—these were all part of this tactic.

Even when dealing with influential figures in society, conducting secret investigations like this could prevent them from exerting pressure from above and causing unnecessary trouble for the investigation.

After a short lunch break, the two of them resumed their activities.

The afternoon was spent purposefully visiting and investigating. After learning about the deceased's greedy behavior from Mrs. Katori, Senichi and Officer Takagi visited two other ladies.

In their separate meetings, the ladies finally revealed what they knew to Senichi and Officer Takagi.

As expected, they were aware of Mrs. Sannitori 's behavior. Based on their recollections, Senichi made a list of all the items Mrs. Sannitori had taken from Mrs. Matsushita.

Thanks to this, they now confirmed a fact: the deceased was truly a greedy person.

Just from the items remembered by the three ladies, there were about ten different things she had taken. It was way too much!

In ordinary friendships, except for your spouse, parents, or lover, even relatives wouldn't give you so many things!

And it was said that Mrs. Sannitori shamelessly asked for them, and Mrs. Matsushita, with her good temper, actually gave them to her.

This situation felt off. Even the easygoing Officer Takagi couldn't help muttering, looking at the list of items in his notebook, "It's amazing how Mrs. Matsushita put up with all this."

This excessive taking indeed made Senichi and Officer Takagi suspect Mrs. Matsushita, the person who had a motive for murder, for the first time.

Anyone would feel dissatisfied with such excessive demands, let alone the sarcastic attitude when making requests.

There was also one aspect that made Senichi feel something was amiss.

Looking at it from a different perspective, the fact that Mrs. Sannitori's greedy demands had never stopped indicated that Mrs. Matsushita had never put a stop to such behavior.

On the contrary, Mrs. Matsushita's "giving" was also excessive.

After summarizing this information, the afternoon had passed.

As for any other important leads or significant discoveries, they had none. Most of their time was spent on the road, but it was necessary.

Confirming evidence required steady and practical verification. The afternoon visits served as a supplement to and confirmation of Mrs. Katori's testimony.

The next morning, Senichi and Officer Takagi arrived at the forensics department, habitually bought breakfast, and brought it with them.

"Thanks for the breakfast. Here's the analysis report you requested," said Toshiro, handing the file to Senichi.

"It seems there are no hairs from a gray mouse among them." After taking it, Senichi discovered that the hairs collected from the three sets of clothes yesterday were different from the material found on the deceased's body.

"Thank you, Toshiro, we'll take our leave now." This result was already within Senichi's consideration, so he wasn't too disappointed. After looking at it, he intended to say goodbye and leave.

"Ah, wait." Just then, Toshiro, who was having breakfast on the side, called out to Senichi and Officer Takagi. He turned around and handed them two bags of coffee from the desk drawer. "You always treat me to breakfast whenever you come, so this is my return gift."

"Thank you, you really went through the trouble." Senichi expressed his gratitude.

"No, no, it's from my wife."

Toshiro, who was eating breakfast, waved his hand and said, "A few times when I went back, I told her that you treated me to breakfast, so she didn't have to prepare it. After she found out, she asked me to prepare this as a return gift for you.

In my wife's words, interpersonal relationships require careful attention and effort. It's about reciprocation. After all, I always enjoy the breakfast you bring me. It's not right to keep enjoying without expressing gratitude. But I don't understand these things, it's all my wife helping me.

In my wife's words, I'm a blockhead, a typical science guy."

Although he said that, anyone could see the happiness and pride on his face.

"I see..."

Senichi didn't feel jealous due to Toshiro's display of affection. Instead, his words reminded Senichi of something. "Compared to the one who gives, the one who takes may be thinking more."

"Thank you, Toshiro. We'll take our leave now."

After Senichi finished speaking, he grabbed Officer Takagi's arm and walked straight out of the forensics department. He couldn't wait to verify what he had in mind.

...

Returning to Mrs. Matsushita's residence once again, as soon as Senichi and Officer Takagi got out of the car, they saw Mrs. Matsushita coming out.

"Detective-san..."

Seeing the two of them again, Mrs. Matsushita looked somewhat puzzled. "Is there something you need?"

"We were very grateful for your cooperation yesterday. We came today to ask you about a couple more things." Senichi smiled and said, "But it seems like you're about to leave?"

"Yes, my daughter's piano class is over, and I'm going to pick her up."

"Well, can we go together then?" Senichi smiled politely, without any awkwardness, and made this somewhat sudden request.

"Huh?"