Chapter 65: Biting the Hook

"You've guessed it!"

Kyouji Toda observed Nishihara Koichi's reaction and thought to himself.

He kept a kind expression on his face and spoke in a soft tone:

"Speaking of which, when I was in the Metropolitan Police Department's Organized Crime Countermeasures Division, I encountered many very vicious criminals with unusual ideas."

"For some criminals who are extremely arrogant and have high self-esteem, if they are attacked, their first reaction is definitely not to call the police."

"Because for them, leaving the matter to the police will make them seem very incompetent and unhappy."

"So their first reaction is often to 'get revenge'."

As Toda Kyouji spoke, he was observing Nishihara Koichi's reaction.

He could clearly tell.

After hearing his story, Nishihara Koichi was in a very tangled state.

Kyouji Toda knew.

Nishihara Koichi's resolve had begun to weaken.

Only a little more remained before he would fully lower his guard.

"Nishihara-kun, you must remember that none of our conversations have been recorded, so it will not be recorded."

"Because as a criminal police officer, I can't tell you these things as a prisoner. That would be a serious violation."

"I did this only to express my sincerity."

"Because, for me, I don't want criminals to keep escaping justice, and I don't want anyone, not even those who have committed murder, to suffer unreasonable disasters."

"I firmly believe that even those who have committed murder will be accepted and recognized by society in the future, as long as they sincerely repent and reform conscientiously."

"So, I want to help Nishihara-kun."

"From my guess, it is possible that Mr. Nishihara acted impulsively and made a mistake."

"But it's possible that others 'added to it,' which increased the severity of the crime."

"If this is indeed the case, you can definitely report the other party."

"This could not only be seen as 'paying the penalty for a meritorious service,' but in the eyes of the prosecutors, it would also be seen as a 'good attitude in admitting mistakes.'"

"Additionally, I promise you, Nishihara-kun."

"If Nishihara-kun can be honest, I will do my best to remove the unfavorable content from your [confession statement] and try to make the facts seem more like a crime of passion."

"Considering that Mr. Nishihara didn't do anything excessive to the deceased, and that he has a good attitude of remorse personally recognized by me, the police officer, Mr. Nishihara will be released from prison in less than five years."

"I am thinking seriously about Mr. Nishihara. I wonder if Mr. Nishihara can trust me."

As Toda Kyouji spoke, he helped Nishihara Koichi untie the handcuffs from the chair.

His expression was sincere, his tone genuine, and nearly every word with emphasis struck a deep blow to Koichi Nishihara's heart.

After Toda Kyouji said this, he extended his hand to Nishihara Koichi, who was obviously shocked.

"You... are you telling the truth?"

Nishihara Koichi held back his inner excitement and asked aloud.

"Of course, it's the truth. If I didn't have this intention, why would I turn off the camera and talk to Nishihara-kun about so many things?"

"Wouldn't it be enough to simply finish the interrogation with your refusal to confess? That would save a lot of trouble."

Toda Kyouji smiled at Nishihara Koichi.

"Yes... yes."

Koichi Nishihara also showed a smile, and then, with a grateful expression, he took Toda Kyouji's extended right hand with both of his hands.

"I bit the hook."

Toda Kyouji sneered inwardly.

With a calm expression on his face, he sat back down in front of Koichi Nishihara.

"So, Nishihara-kun, may I ask you to tell me in detail what happened yesterday?"

"Please, tell me the whole truth about what happened yesterday."

"Only in this way can I help you, Nishihara-kun, think about how to avoid the mistakes you made as much as possible."

Kyouji Toda took a pen and whispered to Koichi Nishihara.

"Eh."

Nishihara Hiroshi nodded.

He began to believe that Toda Kyouji really was thinking about him.

Because so far, Kyouji Toda had no intention of turning on the camera.

This meant that the confessions he made during this period had no legal effect.

There was no risk of being induced into confessing.

He began to slowly recount:

"The first time I heard about Akikawa Kyusuke was from Miss Yoko. I accidentally overheard Miss Yoko saying that she hoped Akikawa would leave the company."

"Then, after researching Akikawa's information, I found out that he had signed up for the same play audition as Mrs. Yoko."

"So I thought of comparing myself to him."

"I don't know why, but I lost the election."

"This incident made me feel very humiliated because this Akikawa is obviously a new artist who just signed a contract, and his training results were still at the bottom. I started my career as a child star, and my status in the Japanese film and television industry is higher than his by quite a lot."

"I didn't expect Akikawa to be so stupid."

"He even came to thank me for my guidance during rehearsal. Now that I think about it, I'm afraid he came to provoke me on purpose."

"During the subsequent rehearsals, I noticed that Akikawa's acting skills were surprisingly good, which made me feel even more unhappy."

"It just so happened that at that moment I also noticed that Mrs. Yoko had a very ugly expression because of Akikawa's acting skills."

"Obviously, Mrs. Yoko didn't like Akikawa's acting skills either."

"So I went to see Mrs. Yoko. I thought we'd have something in common, but I didn't expect the bitch to warn me not to approach Akikawa again."

"From that moment on, I decided that simply letting him die wasn't enough. I had to ruin him and make him leave the Japanese entertainment industry in the most disgusting way possible."

When Nishihara Koichi said this, a sinister, wicked smile appeared on his face.

"So I randomly chose Uesugi, a boss who had nothing to do with me, and whose disappearance wouldn't have much impact."

"After knocking him unconscious, I lured Akikawa into the laundry room. After knocking Akikawa unconscious, I strangled Uesugi to death."

"Then I put the rope, the weapon used for the strangulation, into Akikawa's hand, wiped Uesugi's blood on Akikawa's clothes inside and out, and then left the laundry room."

"But it's puzzling."

"Obviously, I didn't make any sounds or show any appearance while acting, but Akikawa identified me and said he heard the killer's voice and judged that the killer was a man."

"For some reason, the detective determined that Uesugi died around the third act before the second act."

"The rope that was originally the weapon used for the strangulation was also missing. It turned into a wig and appeared in my bag."

"To prevent the police from judging that I was incompetent to commit the murder, I deliberately controlled my strength and left Akikawa unconscious. The wound on his head seemed to have inexplicably become very severe."

"But it was Uesugi who was knocked unconscious and strangled to death by me, yet they said he had his tongue and jaw broken, so the detective considered that I had tortured the deceased."

"Of course, I also made many mistakes. I had no idea that the strangulation posture of the deceased could be judged by the strangulation marks."

"That Akikawa must have framed me for all of this! I think he's the kind of person that Officer Toda just described!"

The more Nishihara Koichi spoke, the angrier he became.

Few people in the world have experienced the feeling of being wronged after committing murder.

Now that he had finally met such a good detective, Koichi Nishihara told the whole story.

"This is the truth of the matter. Believe me, Officer Toda!"

"Yes, of course."

Kyouji Toda smiled and nodded, then closed the notebook.

He then stood up, opened the interrogation room door, and called for Takuto Nakajima.

After seeing Takuto Nakajima enter, Koichi Nishihara turned the camera back on.

Kyouji Toda sat back down in front of him, smiling.

Koichi Nishihara knew that the next step was for Kyouji Toda to conduct a new interrogation based on his confession from earlier.

All he had to do was honestly answer the carefully crafted questions by Kyouji Toda to avoid responsibility and ensure Akikawa Kyousuke would also be punished.

Hiroshi Nishihara looked expectantly and seriously at Kyouji Toda.

He felt a deep affection for this detective in his heart.

Then he heard Kyouji Toda, sitting in front of him, look up and ask after reviewing the case information:

"I will interrogate you next."

"Excuse me, Mr. Nishihara, do you admit to killing Misaki Uesugi with a wig and torturing him brutally?"

"Eh?"

When Nishihara Koichi heard this, the expression on his face froze in an instant.

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(End of this chapter)