Koizumi Akako's reaction was just as Hayashi Yoshiki had predicted.
For the past two days, newspapers had been saturated with reports about the charity gala hosted by Mahogany Promotions Company. The released guest list, featuring celebrities from all sectors, stirred widespread discussion.
There were also glowing articles about how the donations were actively supporting charitable causes across the country.
In the midst of the praise, Hayashi Yoshiki, recently in the spotlight, was suddenly dragged into the narrative. When someone "coincidentally" noticed that Beniko Suo had mentioned on her website that she had invited Hayashi to the gala — yet his name was absent from the final guest list — the tide quickly turned.
Once staff from Hongyan revealed that Hayashi Yoshiki had directly refused the invitation, the uproar grew louder.
Headlines and Hostility
The Selfish Detective
While You Rise to Stardom, Don't Forget Charity
The Hypocrisy of the Great Detective!
Some articles were filled with baseless speculation. Others targeted Hayashi Yoshiki directly.
Part of this was clearly orchestrated by Beniko Suo, but rival publishing houses jealous of Futaba Publishing's success likely joined the fray as well. And of course, some media outlets simply fanned the flames for higher sales.
Even celebrities who had attended the gala dropped veiled comments on talk shows, intentionally or not.
Hayashi Yoshiki could only chuckle grimly — the entertainment industry was exactly as ruthless as expected.
Clearly, Beniko Suo, wounded by his blunt rejection, was hellbent on retaliation. While refusing a charity event wasn't a crime, the media was already spinning the narrative.
Though the reaction wasn't entirely one-sided, the sheen of Hayashi's recent fame had been noticeably smudged.
The recent newspapers infuriated Kisaki Eri, who slammed the table several times, her elegant features flushed red with anger.
"You don't have to be so worked up, Aunt Eri,"Hayashi Yoshiki said with a chuckle.
"Yoshiki! Why didn't you tell me something this big was happening? If Ran hadn't mentioned it, I'd still be in the dark!"
"It's not that big of a deal."
His indifferent tone only agitated her more, but upon realizing the storm he was enduring, she softened.
Taking a deep breath, Eri swept her bangs back and composed herself.
She had foreseen this kind of thing when Hayashi declared his desire to become a detective. Back then, she imagined a case where he failed, and the media ridiculed him mercilessly.
But this wasn't so different.The media doesn't care about fairness — it only cares about profit.
Even though it was past office hours, Eri immediately called her secretary, Kuriyama Midori:
"Midori, compile a list of newspapers that published slander about Yoshiki. I want to sue them."
"And dig up anything on Hongyan Advertising. Any dirt or black files — I want them on my desk tomorrow morning."
"I'll give you a big bonus later."
She didn't stop there. After hanging up, Eri began scanning her address book for more contacts.
As the undefeated queen of Japan's legal world, Kisaki Eri had built a formidable web of influence.
Yoshiki, watching her spring into action, couldn't help but smile. He stepped onto the balcony, letting the cool air hit his face.
His phone had been buzzing all day. A flurry of texts and calls had come in:
"Yoshiki-oniisan, are you okay?""Don't worry about the papers! All the girls in my class think it's total garbage."
"I'm SO MAD!!!""I asked my parents for info on the gala, and now I've got someone investigating them.""Ran said she'd tell Aunt Eri too, so don't worry!"
"What happened?"... (second message came 30 minutes later)
"Hang in there, Yoshiki!"
"What's going on, Yoshiki-kun? I asked someone to look into it!""I have a talk show tomorrow — I'll publicly support you on-air!"
Even Ayumi, Inspector Megure, and Kaito Kuroba had sent messages of concern.
Hayashi Yoshiki stared at the screen in silence.
How to describe this feeling...?
At that moment, he felt oddly comforted.
That feeling, however, quickly shifted the moment he picked up his second phone.
The Black Organization Responds
"Wait.""The organization will handle your situation."
"...What are you going to do?"
At the Black Widow Bar, Gin calmly cleaned his Beretta M92F while Vodka typed furiously at a laptop beside him.
"Boss, we traced the money — the editors-in-chief of those papers all received hefty deposits recently. They were clearly paid off to slander Cointreau."
Gin's fist slammed the counter, rattling the bottles.
"Someone dares mess with our guy?!"
Tequila snarled, his fury boiling over.
Vodka didn't react, instead glancing at Gin again:
"Investigate that washed-up diva. You know what to do."
"Heh… If I can't find anything, I'll forge something. And those celebrities who spoke out — I'll deal with them too."
His sunglasses glinted as his grin widened.
Cohen, ever the blunt one, quietly pulled out his sniper rifle.
"Why don't I just take her out?"
Gin barely looked at him.
"I'll decide later. You won't be needed."
Cohen sulkily put the gun away.
Chianti, silent up to now, smirked as she typed on her phone:
"Aww, poor Cointreau~""Tsk tsk tsk~""Want me to take you for a ride to blow off steam?""Or we can drop by that old hag's place — I'd love to see her brain splatter."