On the way to downtown Osaka, Officer Otaki received a phone call.
On the phone, the Police Officer in charge of the investigation informed Officer Otaki of the results of the situation that Takato had asked the Police to investigate again.
Hanging up the phone, Officer Otaki revealed the investigation results.
"Just now, the Police Officer went to ask the drivers who did not take the tunnel road on the day of the incident, and they all gave the same answer: when they drove to a point 1000 meters from the tunnel entrance that morning, they found a large sign in the middle of the road that read 'Construction ahead, no thoroughfare,' so they had to turn back and take other roads."
Hearing this answer, Takato showed a look of understanding.
"Sure enough, it's just as I thought."
Hattori Heiji, who was beside him, also seemed to have thought of something from this clue. After a moment of contemplation, he suddenly showed a surprised expression, looking at Takato with some disbelief.
"Hey, Detective Brother, no way! If that's the case, how many people would it take to cause this car accident?"
"How many people is not the problem. Now that the nature of the entire incident has changed, the Police's original direction for searching for the hit-and-run truck was wrong."
Takato said.
"That's right. If the Police initially thought the truck was a hit-and-run, then in such cases, the Police generally believe the hit-and-run driver hides the vehicle and then finds someone to repair the collision marks. But now that it's confirmed this incident was a deliberate conspiracy, then this truck was most likely destroyed."
Hattori Heiji continued the conversation, but Officer Otaki, who was driving, was completely bewildered.
"Heiji, do you two know what this incident is all about?"
Officer Otaki asked.
"Yes, if nothing unexpected happens."
Hattori Heiji said, "The current problem is to find that hit-and-run truck. Officer Otaki, do you have a map?"
"Only a traffic map of Osaka."
Officer Otaki said, taking out a map from the car's armrest and handing it to Hattori Heiji in the back seat.
"Thanks."
Hattori Heiji took the map and started looking through it with Takato, who was sitting next to him.
"But the Police have been looking for that truck for so long and haven't found it. Can you find clues just with a map?"
Officer Otaki asked doubtfully.
"Because the Police's initial investigation direction was wrong. If it was a premeditated crime, then it's very likely this vehicle was destroyed nearby."
Hattori Heiji said, finding the location of the tunnel where the incident occurred on the map, and then searching along the direction of the tunnel.
"They went to great lengths to make this car accident look like an accident, and they mobilized so many people. If they stayed on the main road for too long, they would risk exposure if other passing vehicles saw them."
Takato, who was beside him, said, changing the direction of the route extension from the main road to a small road, and in the direction the small road led, there was a lake.
"You think they sank the car in the lake?"
Hattori Heiji said in surprise, "Although doing so can indeed dispose of the vehicle quickly, and the Police wouldn't think of looking here in a short time. But such a big action like sinking a car, even though the area is sparsely populated, there are still some residential houses nearby. What if people here saw it?"
"Didn't you ask how many people it would take to cause this car accident? Then do you think the number of people in the nearby houses is enough?"
Takato said.
"This... no way!"
Hattori Heiji was somewhat incredulous about Takato's conclusion, but upon closer thought, he couldn't find any reason to refute it.
"Um, excuse me for interrupting, but how did you two determine that this car accident was man-made?"
Officer Otaki still couldn't help but ask, after all, Takato and Heiji's current conversation was based on this conclusion, but Officer Otaki couldn't imagine how someone could intentionally cause this car accident.
"To complete this case, there are two prerequisites: first, you need to know when the car will pass through the tunnel; second, when the car reaches the tunnel entrance, it must already be daylight."
Hattori Heiji began to explain, "You must know approximately when the car will pass through the tunnel to prepare inside the tunnel beforehand; and when the car arrives, it must already be daylight to ensure that the car does not need to turn on its lights before entering the tunnel."
"Why is that?"
Officer Otaki was even more confused after hearing this.
"Do you remember what that Director said? He didn't see any vehicles at the entrance before his vehicle entered the tunnel."
Takato took over the explanation.
"Of course he couldn't see a car at the entrance, because the entire tunnel entrance was blocked by people using a black curtain! Because when a vehicle enters the tunnel from outside, the tunnel entrance appears completely dark, so the driver didn't notice anything unusual."
"But this method has a prerequisite, which is that the vehicle cannot have its lights on. Once light from outside the tunnel shines into the tunnel, the existence of this curtain will be discovered. Therefore, it must have been daylight at the time of the incident, and the vehicle must not have needed to turn on its lights on the road!"
Hattori Heiji further explained.
"But what if other vehicles passed by at that time?"
Officer Otaki continued to ask.
"Therefore, to implement this method, someone must be responsible for checking whether the victim's car has arrived, and someone must be responsible for putting up and taking down warning signs!"
Takato said, "On the day of the incident, several vehicles that usually passed through that tunnel at that time chose to take a detour because they found a warning sign about a thousand meters from the tunnel entrance."
"After figuring this out, the whole thing seems especially simple."
Hattori Heiji said.
"Place a large truck inside the tunnel entrance, and then hang a large black curtain at the mouth of the tunnel. Because someone is responsible for putting up and taking down warning signs, this section of the road ensures that only the target vehicle will drive to the tunnel. And when the car drives over at high speed, it will have almost no suspicion and will crash straight in!"
"This is also why there were no brake marks on the vehicle and why that Director didn't see a large truck before the accident!"
Takato explained the cause and effect of the incident.
"And afterwards, the perpetrators only need to collect the warning signs and the curtain, load them onto the truck, and leave!"
Hattori Heiji said.
"Considering it from another angle, to accomplish this method, one must know the vehicle's itinerary for that day to make so many plans beforehand! And considering the matter of Mr. Nishikawa's will, the most suspicious person can only be that person!"
Takato agreed with this conclusion:
"Moreover, Mr. Nishikawa, who was originally struggling with whether to search for his illegitimate child, chose to initiate a plan to search for his illegitimate child after the accident. He probably guessed that his car accident was caused by his current son, Nishikawa Hiroaki!"
"Challenge Mission Completed. Stage Three Settlement Begins."
As soon as he finished speaking, the settlement panel suddenly appeared!