When the Fujiwara family displayed filial piety, a similar scene was unfolding at the police station.
Minamoto Tamako and Fushimi Roku’s testimonies were too bizarre for the police to accept, so they had no choice but to have an identification officer conduct a urine test.
Even though Minamoto Tamako repeatedly insisted it was true and vividly described the situation at the time, it was still to no avail and instead raised concerns among others.
Fushimi Roku remained more composed, speaking with an air of ’believe it or not,’ making the interrogation officer guide the questioning involuntarily: "Is it possible that you ate something hallucinogenic..."
"I don’t know, I’m not sure, but I was completely sober at the time."
Whenever questioned about food poisoning-related matters, Fushimi Roku started to equivocate. If he killed Fukuyama Toshin in an uncontrollable state, he might be held legally responsible.
The officers could neither confirm nor refute this and had to consult their superiors for guidance.
Privately, the investigating criminal officers sought the views of Kujo Yua and the Director of Police, ultimately adopting half of the testimonies: The involved parties had food poisoning and, after regaining clarity, were attacked by the poisoner and had no choice but to defend themselves... In short, as long as everyone was blameless, it worked.
The only issue was how to explain this to the princess.
The investigating officers thought of four or five plans. Considering the close relationship between Ono Ken and Princess Nakako, using them as scapegoats was not an option, so they racked their brains trying to find someone to take the blame, just to quell the victim’s resentment. The pressure from the imperial relatives was making them crazy.
However, after awakening, Princess Nakako did not pursue the matter.
"Let it burn; it’s better that it’s burnt, then it’s over."
She lay on the hospital bed, smiling with relief in response to inquiries from relatives and criminal officers, saying she should gather herself and continue to look forward.
But when everyone else left the ward, leaving her alone with her father, Kawashima Noriko burst into tears, curling up in her father’s arms and sobbing quietly.
Meanwhile, Yazaki Momo was still undergoing interrogation.
As an involved party, she couldn’t write the report and was forced to accept interviews from colleagues, feeling very troubling and depressed for quite a while.
After enduring for four or five days, she left the police station, planning to cash a check at the bank, only to find that all of Oogami Nui’s assets were frozen.
It meant she couldn’t get a cent after all her efforts.
Yazaki Momo walked home alone, passing by a newsstand, where she saw the headline of the main article "Burning Wulin Temple: Japan’s Foremost Spirit Medium’s Waterloo."
She bought a newspaper for 100 yen, reading it as she walked. Nowadays, the police were already closing the case, and an official announcement would likely come out in the next few days. Even such a sensational case eventually calms down, leaving everyone to just mention it during idle chats without keeping it in mind.
And how the parties feel is like drinking water—they know for themselves whether it’s warm or cold.
"Major Criminal Case at Kyoto Wulin Temple: Spirit Medium Dies Mysteriously, Royal Family Member Seriously Injured, Strange ’Tree Man’ Suspected of Causing Fire Leading to Multiple Casualties..."
"Police establish a task force to investigate..."
"According to initial police investigations, on the night of the incident, renowned spirit medium Oogami Nui (female, 42), at a private commission, held a ’Spirit Summoning Ceremony’ in Wulin Temple..."
"Around 4:15 am, a fire broke out inside the temple, quickly spreading, causing severe damage to the main building and courtyard. The fire department spent two hours extinguishing the flames, but the ’tree man’ remains and some key evidence were completely burned..."
"Police state: Excluded natural disaster, rejecting feudal superstitions, focused on man-made factors..."
"Experts call for stronger supervision, folklore scholar Yamada Yukichi points out that in recent years, irregularities in the folk ’mysterious industry’ have been frequent, with some practitioners abusing hallucinogens or mechanical devices to create ’supernatural phenomena’ to profit, which may have led to this tragedy..."
"Kyoto University Chemistry Professor Nakamura Ryosuke analyzes that the ’tree man’ might be an artificial synthetic bionic device, combined with a flammable gas spray effect, but the specific technical path requires further verification..."
"Currently, the area around Wulin Temple has been fully sealed off, and the identities of the victims and the commissioning party have not been disclosed."
At Sugamo Apartment, Minamoto Tamako put down the newspaper with great dissatisfaction, saying, "This is completely papering over the cracks!"
She was interrogated at the police station for a day, and afterward, there was nothing more to do with her. Because of the high-profile case, they needed to be suspended for a while, avoid appearances, and could only return to work after the case closed.
Fushimi Roku was pleased with this outcome, another short vacation time, meaning he could slack off but without pay this time.
His savings were running low, should be thinking about making money, but right now, he wasn’t interested in taking care of those material things; instead, he wore workout clothes and focused intently on doing one-arm push-ups.
Minamoto Tamako sat cross-legged on his back, looking indignant, her cowlick bobbing up and down as she loudly complained about the inaction of the local police station.
This kind of cowlick, once broken, is replaced by new hairs; Minamoto Tamako only needed a nap for the cowlick to be back in full swing.
During the first few days back, Mr. Fushimi suddenly changed, abandoning his usual laziness and starting to exercise at home actively, which made it unacceptable for her at first, thinking Mr. Fushimi must have been traumatized at Wulin Temple. She insisted that Mr. Fushimi see a psychologist, and if not that, a physical examination at a hospital.
The latter adamantly refused, claiming that hospital checkup programs were money-grabbing scams, the corruption of healthcare by capital, and traps set by unscrupulous doctors for innocent patients... Overall, no matter what was said, Fushimi Roku wouldn’t go.
Minamoto Tamako worried for a few days, seeing him still vibrant, so she stopped overthinking it.
"What artificial synthetic bionic device, the experts didn’t even investigate thoroughly; how can they speak so recklessly?"
Minamoto Tamako kept talking about it; she thought this case had no unspeakable secrets, and as long as the police took some effort, the truth could come to light, thus warning those desperate people addressing the wrong person and making society better... In short, even if no one noticed, pursuing the truth was a very meaningful job!
Fushimi Roku continued to exercise alone, nearing his physical limit, signaling Minamoto Tamako to quickly get off.
Hearing, Minamoto Tamako stretched out her tender little foot, stepping into her plush slippers. Turning around, she saw that Mr. Fushimi’s back workout clothes had an imprint like a peach, quite round.
Her face flushed, she quickly reached out to smooth it out; Fushimi Roku could feel something moving on his back and asked breathlessly, "What are you doing?"
Minamoto Tamako used the newspaper to cover her face. She was pondering how to change the subject when suddenly the doorbell rang. She slipped away to answer the door to ease the awkwardness.
"Coming, coming... who is it?" Minamoto Tamako opened the living room door.