VOICE: "Hey! If it isn't Jinguji!"
JINGUJI: "That voice..."
KOBAYASHI: "It's been a while, hasn't it? How have you been?"
That man is... Detective Kobayashi, the notorious Police Sergeant, who joined Yodobashi's Police Department the same year as Kuma.
JINGUJI: "I've been doing fine, thank you. You look like you're doing well yourself, I'm glad."
KOBAYASHI: "Hahaha! You know me, it's just one of my many strong points."
KOBAYASHI: "Oh yeah, come to think of it, Kuma told me it's your birthday today."
... Why is Kuma going around telling everybody?
KOBAYASHI: "I know, I know. Once you get to your age, there's nothing to celebrate. Haha!"
JINGUJI: "Exactly, every birthday is just a bummer."
KOBAYASHI: "It's gonna get worse. A man's real struggle begins when he reaches his middle age."
MALE VOICE: "Detective Kobayashi, there's a call coming in to the Criminal Affairs Division..."
A man calls out to Kobayashi from the back.
KOBAYASHI: "Huh? Is it for me?"
MALE VOICE: "No, it's..."
MALE VOICE: "It's for some guy named Kusabi... It seems that everyone else from Criminal Affairs is out at the moment, would you mind taking the call?"
KOBAYASHI: "Kusabi...?"
KOBAYASHI: "Oh, they got the wrong number again... Damn, they got me..."
JINGUJI: "What's wrong?"
KOBAYASHI: "Recently... we've been getting calls meant for a completely different station..."
KOBAYASHI: "And the callers are always suspicious people... I'm having a hard time dealing with them."
JINGUJI: "I see... so that's why they left you holding the phone."
KOBAYASHI: "It gets worse. Apparently, when people try to call our station, they sometimes end up calling the other one..."
KOBAYASHI: "I have no idea what could be causing it... but it's a real bother."
JINGUJI: "Yeah, that's really weird. The phone lines must have gotten crossed or something..."
KOBAYASHI: "What's even weirder is that it only seems to happen on a specific day of the month."
JINGUJI: "Huh? A specific day?"
KOBAYASHI: "Yeah, what was it... I think it had something to do with the numbers 2 and 4..."
JINGUJI: "2 and 4...?"
KOBAYASHI: "Exactly. And you have to put a '*' between the numbers..."
MALE VOICE: "Uhm... Detective Kobayashi, Sir, the caller's been waiting for a while and he started to shout, 'get me Kusabi already'..."
KOBAYASHI: "Hold on! I'm coming!"
KOBAYASHI: "See you around, Jinguji! Dinner's on you next time!"
JINGUJI: "S-sure..."
Inspector Kobayashi waves at me and quickly disappears into the backroom.
............ So, these strange calls happen... when there's a '*' between a 2 and a 4...
And a * means......
I'll call Kuma directly at his office in Yodobashi Station.
KUSABI: "Yes, Heinous Crimes Division..."
JINGUJI: "...??"
KUSABI: "Is this a prank call? Huh?"
That's odd, I'm sure I called Kumano's number...
JINGUJI: "I was trying to reach Yodobashi Police Station."
KUSABI: "And have you even considered you might have gotten the wrong number? Don't be fucking rude."
KUSABI: "So, what's up with you?"
JINGUJI: "I'm just a private investigator..."
KUSABI: "Huh?? A P.I.??"
KUSABI: "Us police detectives are getting a bad rap for relying too much on private eyes."
KUSABI: "You hear things like, for every dumb detective there's a smart P.I. doing his job for him..."
KUSABI: "Is that what you think of me?"
KUSABI: "You think I'm just some dumbass detective, huh? Is that it?"
KUSABI: "If you're looking for a dumbass detective, I've got the perfect guy for you."
KUSABI: "Hey, Sumio, come here..."
KUSABI: "Oh? He's not here..."
KUSABI: "Now, Jinguji..."
JINGUJI: "Wait, how do you know my name?"
KUSABI: "I got it from old man Kumano, that guy at Yodobashi Police Station."
He knows Kuma...?
KUSABI: "The legendary detective Jinguji Saburo..."
KUSABI: "It must be an honor to work with such a man..."
JINGUJI: "............"
KUSABI: "Well, I said my piece."
KUSABI: "It may have happened by mistake, but I feel this was a fated encounter... We'll meet again someday."
KUSABI: "Until then, don't get too reckless."
KUSABI: "One day, we'll have to deal with a certain incident called 'The Silver Case'..."
KUSABI: "When the time comes, I'll ask for your help."
JINGUJI: "The Silver Case......"
KUSABI: "Oh... that dumbass detective's back..."
KUSABI: "Alright, enough with my bullshit. Sorry to waste your time."
KUSABI: "I enjoyed our talk. In fact, it was an honor."
KUSABI: "Take care, legendary detective."
That must have been the phone line mix up Kobayashi told me about... I was sure I was calling Kuma.
But instead, I got that guy... How the hell did he know my name...?
I feel like I've heard his voice somewhere before...
MANAMI: "Hey, Jinguji. Would you like me to tell your fortune for tomorrow?"
JINGUJI: "My fortune?"
MANAMI: "Yes. According to our costumers, my fortune telling is almost always accurate."
JINGUJI: "Hmm..."
MANAMI: "What do you say? As a reward for continued patronage, we offer this service for free to regular customers."
[Yes.] No.
JINGUJI: "I might as well take advantage of your expertise."
MANAMI: "Alright then."
MANAMI: "Just pick one of these four cards, your fortune for tomorrow will be written on it."
[Red Card] - White Card Blue Card - Green Card
MANAMI: "Five stars! That's awesome!!"
MANAMI: "I'm sure that something amazing will happen tomorrow! Congratulations!!"
MANAMI: "And what's more, if you look around the bar, you might find something good even now. Hehe."
JINGUJI: "So, does this stuff actually work?"
MANAMI: "Only God knows that. I haven't got a clue."
JINGUJI: "That doesn't sound reassuring... but I got it done for free, so it's not like I can complain."
There's over a hundred types of liquors lined up on the shelves.
The sheer amount of choice is one of the reasons I love this bar.
JINGUJI: "Huh? What's this...?"
KASUMI: "Oh, that one?"
KASUMI: "It's a liqueur called 'Kümmel', we started serving it recently at the request of a customer who comes in every once in a while."
KASUMI: "Would you like to try it, Jinguji? We can make a cocktail with it..."
JINGJI: "Sure, I'll have that..."
KASUMI: "Alright."
And in just a second, a silver cocktail with a slightly blue tint is sitting in front of me.
JINGUJI: "Silver Bullet..."
KASUMI: "Now that I think about it... that customer said he knows who you are, Jinguji."
JINGUJI: "He knows who I am?"
KASUMI: "Yes. He also told me to serve you this cocktail..."
MANAMI: "Oh, I remember the customer you're talking about. He seemed like a strange person, but in a different way than Jinguji."
JINGUJI: "..............."
JINGUJI: "Speaking of which, Kümmel is made out of Caraway, right...?"
MANAMI: "Caraway?"
KASUMI: "It's a type of plant native to North Africa. Its seeds are generally used as a spice."
MANAMI: "I see... So, what do you think, Jinguji? Is it nice?"
JINGUJI: "It has a strange taste... it's sour, but also slightly sweet."
MANAMI: "Hmm... apparently it has some medicinal properties."
KASUMI: "Among 17th century American settlers, it was believed that Caraway seeds could help cure mental disorders caused by sexual dissatisfaction through their aphrodisiac properties."
MANAMI: "Wow... sounds pretty lewd..."
JINGUJI: "A Silver Bullet, huh..."
JINGUJI: "Silver bullets are also said to ward off evil."
KASUMI: "Yes. That customer... he did say that this cocktail would suit you, Jinguji."
JINGUJI: "Suit me...? Did he say why?"
KASUMI: "Because you look like a man possessed..."
JINGUJI: "Hmph... he may be right."
MANAMI: "Hey, sis. Now that I think about it, didn't that customer mention something about a... silver case, I think?"
KASUMI: "That reminds me..."
KASUMI: "He also said that if you really want to know about heinous crimes, you should call the Heinous Crimes Division... but I have no idea what he meant."
JINGUJI: "............"
JINGUJI: "Well... in any case, I'm grateful for this. It's a great cocktail, and a great talisman."
JINGUJI: "Hopefully it'll keep the Grim Reaper off my back..."
■ From Tokio to Jinguji ■
Honestly, I think of lending and borrowing a smoke as something of a taboo. I've had some unpleasant experiences with it in the past.
But hey, it'll be fine if it's only once in a while. That's what I thought back then too.
I can see that neither of us is the type to throw polite greetings at each other.
You and I are badgers of the same hole. We're bound to meet again someday.
Speaking of badgers, in old folk tales they were said to be animals that bewitched humans.
But I think nowadays badgers need to step up their game. Human beings are far more wicked.
Be well, my friend. Don't get yourself killed.
To Jinguji, with my best wishes. Tokio.