Hiro narrowed his eyes slightly as he weighed the truthfulness of those words.
Onizawa had deliberately sidestepped his first question and answered only the latter one instead. It was an act of avoidance.
'He really is as cunning as an old fox. I can't let my guard down around him. Since you enjoy putting on a performance, then I'll play along.'
Hiro wore an equally flawless smile as he said,
"I'm simply quite interested in you, Onizawa-san. You're young, accomplished, and you've married such a beautiful and virtuous wife. It's not just the single officers at the MPD who envy you, even those of us at the National Police Agency do as well."
He suddenly changed the subject, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head with a sheepish grin.
"Speaking of that, I don't think I've properly congratulated you on your marriage yet. We may have opportunities to work together in the future, so... when you have some free time, how about letting me treat you to a meal? Don't underestimate the cooking skills of a man who lives alone."
'Bringing the conversation around to Akemi on purpose? He's trying to gauge whether our relationship is harmonious, then use that to determine exactly what I'm hiding.'
It seemed Hiro had already begun to suspect a connection between him and Augier.
The only reason Public Security hadn't started interrogating him through official channels was because they still lacked concrete evidence.
Pretending not to catch the implication, Ritsu smiled.
"You're too kind, Morofushi-san. Then when I have the chance, I'll gladly sample your cooking."
"Sounds good, I'll be waiting."
"Then I won't disturb Public Security's deployment any longer. Excuse me."
Hiro watched Onizawa walk away, his brows knitting tightly together.
'Just what kind of secret are you hiding?'
Even if he really was the same person as Augier, he didn't seem like the Organization's loyal hound. Instead, he gave Hiro a strangely familiar feeling.
The same scent of justice that he and the others carried.
Touching the earpiece hidden beneath his hair, Hiro quietly asked,
"Kazami, did you find anything about Richard Lavelle like I asked yesterday?"
Kazami's voice came through the earpiece.
"Richard's records are exceptionally clean. His immigration records are all perfectly normal as well. But beyond that, there's nothing else. He doesn't own any property in Tokyo, nor are there any hotel records under his name."
'So you're really avoiding us, Ritsu. What exactly happened to you? What could have happened that made you unable to face even us?'
Hiro let out a heavy sigh.
"I understand, there's no need to continue investigating. If you find any information regarding Lupin, let me know."
"Morofushi-san," Kazami asked curiously, "are you suspecting those two are actually the same person?"
"Don't worry about that, Kazami. I'd appreciate it if you kept this confidential."
Kazami pursed his lips, hesitating for a moment before nodding.
"I will."
"Thank you."
Hiro slipped both hands into his pockets and walked toward the floor-to-ceiling windows. Watching the gradually darkening sky, confusion filled his grayish-blue eyes.
Rei had told him everything.
At the time, Ritsu's body had been taken away by the Organization member codenamed Curacao.
Given Rei's abilities, it was impossible that he wouldn't have noticed any chance that Ritsu was still alive.
If even Rei had been deceived, then the Organization must have been the one pulling the strings.
'But why... Why did they choose Ritsu? Where did they take him? And what did they make him do?
Surely it couldn't have been because his cover had been blown...'
Hiro turned around and looked toward Yoshiaki, who was standing below the stage. For now, there was no point dwelling on questions he couldn't answer.
What mattered was completing the task Ritsu had entrusted to him.
Protecting Yoshiaki.
Meanwhile, Mio, dressed in a black evening gown with a white pearl necklace around her neck, stepped onto the stage. Looking out at the assembled guests with a smile, she announced,
"Thank you all very much for taking time out of your busy schedules to attend the opening ceremony of the Tokiwa Group's Twin Towers skyscraper.
To liven things up, I'd like everyone to participate in a little game."
Standing below the stage, Ritsu listened to the rules with little interest. His eyes never left Pisco.
'Will he make his move now? Probably not. He'll most likely wait until one of the ceremony's segments where the lights are turned off.'
Besides, Public Security officers were currently staying close to Yoshiaki. If Pisco wanted to act, he'd have to wait until Yoshiaki was alone.
Otherwise, trading his own life for the target's wasn't exactly worth it.
As Mio continued explaining the rules, Ritsu couldn't help thinking that the Twin Towers skyscraper had indeed brought the Tokiwa Group tremendous success.
For a businesswoman only in her thirties, she really was quite capable. She certainly knew how to win people's hearts.
"Onizawa-san, would you like to participate as well?" Sawaguchi approached with a smile.
Ritsu politely waved his hand.
"I'll leave the opportunity to everyone else. I'll pass."
Sawaguchi lowered her gaze toward the two children who had walked over beside him.
"Then what about you two?"
"We're not participating either!"
Conan smiled, clasping his hands behind his back before walking over to Onizawa.
"Sensei, I secretly slipped backstage earlier and found something interesting. Take a look."
Ritsu glanced down and saw a length of piano wire resting in Conan's hand. Squatting down helplessly, he sighed.
"Don't tell me you've developed kleptomania. Can't you find evidence using more normal methods?"
Haibara carefully scanned their surroundings.
Still wearing the black-framed glasses that disguised her appearance, she immediately added another jab.
"My, my, it's not like this is his first offense. As a child, he runs around crime scenes all the time and has even planted wiretaps on suspects.
If someone catches him someday, you'll end up dragging the Professor into it too."
Conan laughed awkwardly as he stuffed the piano wire into his pocket. His important discovery suddenly felt completely worthless.
Looking off to one side, he noticed Kisaragi staring coldly at Mio while leaning on his cane. Stepping closer to Onizawa, he whispered,
"Sensei, I think he'll probably use that pearl necklace. He might be planning to hang the victim."
"Tone it down while I'm here."
Ritsu warned coldly.
"And don't forget what I told you. There's a codename member of the Organization inside this banquet hall. If you're exposed, the consequences will be disastrous."
'A codename member of the Organization?!'
Haibara had never heard Conan mention that. No wonder she'd been feeling an inexplicable chill down her spine.
'So there's really an Organization member here. Who is it? Will they recognize me?'
Noticing the fear on Haibara's face, Ritsu discreetly glanced toward Pisco, who was still seated at the bar.
After confirming the old man wasn't watching them, he bent down and quietly reassured her.
"There's no need to be afraid. As long as I'm here, I won't let anything happen to you."
"...?"
Haibara blinked in surprise. Looking up at Onizawa in confusion, she wondered,
'Does he genuinely love my sister? Is that why he's willing to protect me as well?'
But that fleeting sense of gratitude disappeared the moment another memory surfaced. She shot him an annoyed half-lidded glare.
"Then why did you scare me back when you were in the Organization? Was that really so entertaining?"
"Uh..."
Ritsu laughed awkwardly.
"W-Well... I had to keep up appearances for everyone else."
'I can't exactly tell you that my original plan was never to let you know Augier was actually one of the good guys.'
Haibara folded her arms across her chest and frowned.
"Really? Then why don't I remember anyone else being around when we first met? Weren't we almost always alone?"
"I..."
"All right! The guest over there holding the blue flag, congratulations! It's Mouri-senpai!"
The sudden burst of applause around them instantly gave Ritsu the perfect excuse to change the subject. Feigning surprise, he said,
"Oh my, Kogoro-san is certainly lucky. He actually won the grand prize."
Conan's lips twitched.
'Sensei... your ability to change the subject still needs a lot of work.'