Takagi and Megure both glanced at Mouri Kogoro, finding it a little strange. Ever since entering the house, Mouri had been unusually quiet. Even when Takayanagi Ichiro had confronted Conan earlier, Mouri hadn't spoken up.
"Mouri, are you acquainted with Takayanagi-san?" Megure asked.
Since Ichiro had deliberately shifted the focus, Mouri had no choice but to answer. "I've dealt with Takayanagi-san before. He's a clean and honest moneylender."
Hearing Mouri speak in Ichiro's defense eased some of Megure and Takagi's suspicion. They knew Mouri had once been a police officer, and on matters like this, he wouldn't lie.
"Even with Mouri's word, would you mind letting us see your loan contract with Naoto Mizukami?" Megure requested.
Ichiro had the right to refuse, but he wanted to wrap this up quickly and rest. So, he went to retrieve Mizukami's contract—it had just been organized earlier.
Ichiro's cooperation put Megure and Takagi in a better mood, and the suspicion that Mizukami's crime had been instigated by Ichiro faded.
Megure skimmed the document and then handed it to Takagi, who examined it more carefully. "Inspector Megure, there's no problem with this contract—it's legally binding."
At that moment, Conan and Mouri Kogoro returned from the bathroom. Assessing the situation, Conan casually moved over to Takagi's side and glanced at the contract on the seat. "Officer Takagi, if you were going to lend money to Mizukami, you'd first check if he had the ability to repay, right? But the Mizukami Uncle Mouri caught today clearly isn't someone who could pay back 300 million yen."
Conan's words made Megure, Takagi, and Mouri's eyes light up. Ran, however, quickly pulled Conan behind her, knowing Ichiro had no fondness for him.
"Conan-kun is right," Megure agreed. "Mizukami had no job, no family property back home—he couldn't possibly repay 300 million yen."
"Who knows? When he came to borrow money, he claimed he'd gone to a shrine for a good luck charm, planning to use the loan to win big and double it. So I lent it to him." Ichiro explained his reason before looking at Conan. "Kid, save detective games for school. Unless, of course, you've got the soul of an adult in that body."
Ichiro's comment surprised both Megure and Takagi. Talk of "souls" belonged to the realm of the supernatural. Mouri stepped forward, stood next to Ran, and smacked Conan on the head. "Exactly! This brat's a hundred years too early to play detective."
Puffed up with frustration, Conan retreated silently. After all, his true identity was high school detective Kudou Shinichi—now shrunk to a child's body after being poisoned by the Black Organization.
"Conan, don't interrupt the adults," Ran said, though her mind was elsewhere, and she began keeping a little distance from him.
With Mouri having handled Conan, Ichiro didn't press further. "Actually, you don't have to go through all this trouble. Just have the phone company pull up the call records between me and Mizukami. That'll tell you the truth. I authorize you to check them."
With Ichiro offering that much, Megure abandoned any deeper pursuit. He stood and said, "Takayanagi-san, while your lending business is legal, I hope you can maintain some conscience when making loans."
"I don't know what level of conscience you mean, Inspector, but I have my own bottom line in doing business. If you want to shut down the Takayanagi family, you'll have to speak with my uncle at the main house—and I don't think you're qualified. At the very least, you'd need the Superintendent-General himself."
Ichiro's words startled everyone except Ran. The Superintendent-General was the highest-ranking officer in the entire Metropolitan Police Department. If Ichiro was telling the truth, even if he had done something shady, Megure wouldn't dare to act rashly.
"Of course, I'm not looking for trouble. I'll cooperate with any reasonable investigation," Ichiro added, still giving them some face. After all, he planned to keep living in Tokyo.
(End of Chapter)
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