Chapter 7: The Traitor Detective

Five minutes later, inside Fujino's apartment.

Fujino sat on the brown sofa in his bedroom, silently observing the woman in front of him—Chouno Yoko, who was currently explaining how she had recently been stalked. He couldn't help but feel speechless.

Just moments ago, Ikegawa Yuko had left, and now Chouno Yoko arrived right after.

Good grief, you two didn't arrange this together, did you?

Faced with Chouno Yoko's request, Fujino couldn't help but feel a bit troubled.

He had just accepted Ikegawa Yuko's commission to dig up dirt on Chouno Yoko.

And now Chouno Yoko had come to him, asking him to investigate whoever had been stalking her lately.

Wasn't this getting a bit too convoluted…? This was going to be tricky.

"If Detective Fujino can uncover the truth behind this, we're willing to offer 400,000 yen as commission."

Seeing Fujino's distracted expression, Chouno Yoko's manager, Yamagishi Eiichi, immediately realized what was going on and tried offering the fee for this commission.

Four hundred thousand yen?

Upon hearing that, Fujino's ears perked up.

Well, as long as he didn't disclose his client's personal information, technically this wasn't betraying anyone, right?

Besides—400,000 yen! That's sincerity if he ever saw it—heaven and earth could bear witness to that.

"So Miss Yoko, you're here to hire me to find the person who's been stalking you these past few days?"

As usual, Fujino poured a cup of black tea for Chouno Yoko.

"Mm."

Chouno Yoko nodded slightly.

"It's not just some tabloid paparazzi, is it?"

"No…"

Chouno Yoko took the tea, frowning slightly. "If it were just paparazzi, I could deal with it… But this time, it's gone way too far."

"Every time I come home, I find the furniture has been moved."

"I often get silent phone calls, and the day after the calls, photos taken of me secretly will be sent to my house."

"Just last night… someone was chasing after me like a lunatic…"

As she spoke, tears of fear welled up at the corners of her eyes. "I don't know what to do anymore. If this keeps up, I won't even be able to sleep at night…"

Fujino carefully studied Chouno Yoko's face and noticed the faint shadows under her eyes.

For an idol, lack of rest was a very serious matter—especially for someone like Chouno Yoko, who was currently at the peak of her popularity.

"What a monster…"

Fujino cursed under his breath.

But thinking back—if he wasn't mistaken, the one responsible for all of this was probably Ikegawa Yuko.

And Ikegawa Yuko had just hired him…

Crap. Turns out he was the monster here.

Cough cough!

Fujino cleared his throat to dispel the awkwardness.

Quickly changing the subject, he reasoned, "If Miss Yoko's description is accurate, I believe what you're dealing with… is probably a Sasaeng fan."

"Sasaeng fan?"

Chouno Yoko blinked in confusion. "What kind of food is that?"

"Not food, not rice. 'Fan' as in fanatic supporter."

Fujino explained, "It refers to obsessive fans who pry into the private lives of idols. We call them 'sasaeng fans'—they use stalking, hidden cameras, breaking, peeping, and other extreme methods to invade an idol's privacy."

"I've never heard of that term before…"

Chouno Yoko, sitting on the sofa listening to Fujino's explanation, tilted her head slightly with another innocent question—

She looked exactly like a little kid raising her hand in kindergarten to ask a question.

"You've never heard of it because the term 'sasaeng fan' is something I came up with myself."

Fujino explained guiltily, "Before you came here, I had already helped countless idols like Miss Yoko who have suffered from the torment of sasaeng fans…"

Upon hearing this, Yoko Okino looked at Fujino with admiration. "Since that's the case, Detective Fujino, you must have a way to deal with it, right?"

"Of course."

"I have a special method for dealing with sasaeng fans."

"What method?!"

Yoko Okino looked at Fujino with sparkling admiration.

"Catch them and send them to prison for reformation—once and for all."

"Isn't there any other way?" Yoko Okino frowned slightly. "Even if that fan is an extreme sasaeng, I still can't bear to see them sent to prison."

"Sigh… Miss Yoko, you are too kind-hearted... In that case, this is going to be a bit troublesome."

After speaking, Fujino let out a sigh, his gestures filled with helplessness, looking embarrassed.

He looked exactly like someone fishing for a higher fee.

Yoko Okino didn't understand the hidden meaning, but standing off to the side, her manager immediately saw through it.

Troublesome didn't mean impossible. Showing a troubled expression—was just hinting to raise the price.

"If Detective Fujino can resolve this discreetly without anyone finding out, we are willing to add another 100,000 yen to the commission."

"After all, if this matter gets exposed, it could cause serious damage to Yoko's reputation."

Looks like this kid gets it. Promising, very promising!

Nodding slightly, Fujino made a decision that betrayed his... detective's conscience: "Since that's the case, then I will treat this as a top-level confidential case and investigate it thoroughly."

Looking at Fujino's upright and righteous demeanor, Yamagishi Eiichi suddenly felt like he'd boarded a pirate ship.

This guy… is an unscrupulous detective.

But it couldn't be helped.

For anything priced under a million yen, there wasn't a detective in all of Tokyo with better confidentiality than this guy… It was well-known in the industry.

He was here because of a friend's recommendation.

Helplessly, he could only sigh, "In that case, I'll leave this matter to Detective Fujino."

As he spoke, he took out an envelope from his pocket, stuffed full of ten thousand bills.

It was the deposit.

Fujino took the bulging envelope, pulled the cash out, and started counting it right on the spot.

One hundred thousand yen. Not a yen short.

Fujino glanced at Yamagishi Eiichi's face filled with despair.

Feeling a twinge of guilt, he paused for a moment, then pulled out fifty thousand yen and handed it back. "I'll only take one-tenth of the advance. You can take the rest back. That's my rule."

"Thank you very much."

After Yamagishi Eiichi took back the fifty thousand yen, he bowed deeply to Fujino.

Looks like he had misunderstood this detective… Could this be that difficult a case?

"No need for thanks, no need, it's just business."

Besides, it'll all be mine eventually anyway.

"Since I've already accepted this case, there's no time to waste. Let's head to Miss Yoko Okino's home as soon as possible to begin the investigation."

With that, Fujino slowly stood up, speaking firmly, "The sooner we uncover the truth, the sooner Miss Yoko can finally have a peaceful night's sleep."

"Mm!"

Yamagishi Eiichi nodded vigorously, very satisfied with Fujino's efficiency.

As expected, a friend's recommendation never goes wrong. This detective is absolutely professional and reliable.

(End of this chapter)