Chapter 17: The Moonlight Sonata Plan

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That afternoon, a ferry was navigating through the misty waters toward Tsukikage Island. The ship's horn blared as Fujino, dressed in a black vest suit, stood at the bow, letting the sea breeze blow over him. His mind was filled with thoughts.

Just that noon, 500,000 yen suddenly appeared in his system account. It was undoubtedly the commission fee from the 'mysterious person' who had tasked him with investigating the truth behind Keiji Aso's death.

Originally, Fujino had planned to head to Tsukikage Island the next day. However, upon asking at the dock, he learned from the boatman that the ferry to Tsukikage Island only operated every two days. So, he hurriedly boarded the boat.

If he missed this trip, he would have to wait another two days. The system task was set for three days. If he didn't board today, only one day would be left after two days, making it impossible to complete the task in time.

As for school, he had already called Hiratsuka-sensei to report his leave. Although she was somewhat reckless and had a strong sense of justice, when it came to caring for her students, she was exceptional. Upon learning about Fujino's leave, she coerced a certain school doctor to grant Fujino an extended leave for health reasons. He could return whenever he wanted as long as it wasn't excessive.

In terms of handling matters, this woman was indeed quite similar to Fujino. To be honest, Fujino was a bit touched by her care, though she was somewhat too violent.

**Tsukikage Island Village Police Station.**

After disembarking, Fujino didn't follow the foolish Mouri's example of running to the village office and asking around. Instead, he went to the island's police station and started chatting with the only elderly policeman there.

During the chat, to avoid alarming anyone, Fujino disguised himself as a music major student visiting Tsukikage Island to search for traces of the famous musician Keiji Aso.

Mentioning Keiji Aso, once the island's pride, even the elderly policeman's eyes lit up with pride as he recounted Aso's past. Aso, born on Tsukikage Island, had risen to global fame, becoming a leading musician before the age of forty and a source of pride for everyone on the island.

However, twelve years ago, tragedy struck. After returning to Tsukikage Island to hold a concert, Keiji Aso locked himself in his house and set it on fire after the concert, committing suicide.

He first killed his family with a knife, then played a piano piece in his house, seemingly in despair, until he was burned to death. The only thing left was a score locked in a safe.

By the end of his story, the pride in the old policeman's eyes had faded, replaced by a sigh of regret. Just as Aso had perished in the flames, the island's future had plunged into dark stagnation.

After hearing about the score, Fujino's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately asked to see Keiji Aso's score. The old policeman naturally agreed.

**That afternoon, in a hotel on Tsukikage Island.**

"With this, things will be easier..."

Fujino muttered as he flipped through the photos of the score on his phone, a slight smile forming on his lips. Although he couldn't understand the score, he knew its contents very well.

This score contained evidence of the Tsukikage Island drug trafficking gang's crimes and a list of its members. Current village chief Tatsunori Kuroiwa, the island's richest man Hideo Kawashima, former village chief Isamu Kameyama, and a former prominent family member Takeshi Nishimoto were all key members of the gang. Moreover, if Fujino remembered correctly, the current village chief's secretary, Kazuharu Hirata, was also a member of the gang, responsible for transporting drugs to the island.

"Sending drug lords to prison is quite troublesome."

Fujino put away his phone, walked to the window, and looked out at the island's scenery, pondering silently. His task this time was to solve the suicide case from twelve years ago, which would earn him one million yen, an almost effortless reward. The challenging part was sending those drug lords to prison. To call the police, he would need to gather enough incriminating evidence beforehand, meaning he would likely face the drug trafficking gang on the island directly.

Fujino wasn't confident in dealing with such dangerous criminals, so on his way here, he had been devising a plan to take them down one by one. It wasn't until he got the score that he perfected his plan, which he preliminarily named "The Moonlight Sonata Plan."

**That night, Fujino took action.**

Sneaking through a small path to the community center, he hid in the nearby grove, waiting. According to the information he had gathered from the island's gossip network, Hirata should have just returned from abroad. Fujino guessed that Hirata had gone abroad to purchase drugs and would be here for a transaction within the next two days. The transaction location was the piano in the community center, which Aso had used to hide drugs twelve years ago.

At midnight, under a full moon, cicadas chirped on the trees.

"Damn, why hasn't he shown up yet?"

Fujino checked the time on his phone, frowning. "Could it be that he's not going to make the transaction tonight?"

After waiting a while longer with no sign of anyone, he sighed, ready to go back to sleep. But just as he was about to leave, a figure appeared in the distance. Seeing this, Fujino quickly hid himself and pointed his camera at the approaching figure.

Under the faint moonlight, the figure gradually became clear. It was a middle-aged man in a beige suit and frameless glasses, with an honest and sincere look. This was undoubtedly Fujino's target for the night, Kazuharu Hirata.

Despite Hirata's seemingly honest appearance, he was a core member of the island's drug trafficking gang. After ensuring no one was around, Hirata entered the community center's piano room, took out a package of white powder from his inner pocket, and placed it in the piano's hidden compartment. Relieved, he then left the community center, whistling nonchalantly.

From the grove, Fujino silently recorded everything with his phone. Once Hirata left, Fujino approached the community center, opened the piano compartment, and photographed the package of white powder inside.

Satisfied with the evidence, Fujino put away his phone and smirked.