Hearing Hayashi Shuichi's promise, Mr. Aso finally relaxed, his tense body going limp all at once.
Shuichi untied the ropes binding the couple and their daughter, then immediately dialed the police and emergency services.
Mrs. Aso held her daughter tightly, her face filled with the relief of surviving a disaster. Tears swirled in her eyes, and her lips moved slightly, seemingly reciting silent words of gratitude.
The little girl snuggled into her mother's embrace, her small face pale, her body still trembling occasionally.
Mr. Aso, dragging heavy steps, walked slowly into the kitchen. Looking at the four men lying on the ground—some dead, some injured—a look of deep sorrow appeared on his face.
"The five of us grew up together on Moonlight Island. We were best friends. I never imagined... that it would turn out like this..."
"It's not your fault," Shuichi consoled him. "From the moment they chose to traffic drugs for profit, their fate was already sealed."
"I know, but..." Mr. Aso nodded slightly, a trace of confusion and loss lingering in his eyes.
At that moment, the sound of police sirens rang out from outside.
Shuichi opened the door to find that Inspector Samezaki, Superintendent Matsumoto, and Inspector Megure had already arrived with about ten officers. Kisaki Eri was with them as well.
Back at the Metropolitan Police Department's First Division, after Inspector Samezaki received Shuichi's call for help, he had immediately reported the situation.
Superintendent Odagiri took the matter very seriously and arranged for a boat so Samezaki could lead a team to Moonlight Island to provide backup.
Eri, worried that Shuichi might be in danger but afraid she would be a burden if she tagged along, had been waiting at the dock for the Tokyo police support to arrive.
After the groups met up, guided by Eri, Inspector Samezaki was able to lead his men straight to the Aso residence.
"Shuichi!"
When Eri saw the bloodstains on her childhood friend's chest, she instantly panicked.
"I'm fine. This is Village Chief Kameyama's blood."
Seemingly afraid the girl wouldn't believe him, Shuichi lifted his shirt to show Eri his uninjured chest.
"...You're such a jerk. You make me worry every time!" The girl's eyes reddened, and she punched Shuichi angrily a few times.
Once the young couple had their moment, Inspector Samezaki asked, "What's the situation?"
"The four men in the kitchen are the masterminds behind the plan to sell drugs," Shuichi explained. "Mr. Aso here refused to agree to their plan of using his overseas piano performances to smuggle drugs, so they tied up his family of three..."
Before he could finish, Inspector Megure, who had led men inside to secure the scene, ran out in a panic. "Inspector, there are two critically injured men inside. One took a bullet to the chest, and the other has a kitchen knife stuck in his chest."
"Those four were about to start a fire to burn down the Aso house and kill everyone to silence witnesses. I rushed in to save them..." Shuichi briefly recounted the events. "I've already called for an ambulance, but I don't know if those two can be saved."
The only police officer stationed at the Moonlight Island precinct, having received Shuichi's emergency call, finally arrived, panting heavily.
"The doctor on the island won't be able to handle this! He can only treat minor illnesses," the local officer said hurriedly. "Usually, everyone goes to Tokyo for serious medical treatment."
"Have him go in and stop the bleeding first," Inspector Samezaki ordered. "After that, we will immediately transfer the suspects and the injured to Tokyo."
With the immediate actions arranged, Inspector Samezaki sternly turned to Shuichi. "Hayashi-kun, you were far too reckless this time! Since you already had information about the drug trafficking, you should have notified us sooner!"
"Drug criminals are usually desperate and crazy. If Village Chief Kameyama hadn't taken that bullet for you, you would be the one lying in a pool of blood right now!"
"Exactly!" Eri chimed in. "You're not even an adult yet, and you're not an official police officer. Why do you have to take such risks every time?"
Facing their scolding, Shuichi knew they meant well, so he could only nod and promise there wouldn't be a next time.
In reality, he had no other choice. If he had informed the police about the drugs beforehand, given their habit of needing to catch criminals red-handed, they would have secretly surveilled Kameyama and his group. They would have waited for Mr. Aso to use the piano to bring the drugs back, then arrested everyone together to secure the evidence.
If they did that, Mr. Aso would have had no way back; he would have been counted as one of the traffickers.
Shuichi had come alone because he wanted to see Mr. Aso's reaction. If Aso had chosen to traffic the drugs, Shuichi would have washed his hands of the matter and left it all to the police.
Fortunately, in the end, Mr. Aso turned back from the wrong path, making Shuichi's risk worthwhile.
The injured Kameyama and Kawashima, along with the unconscious Kuroiwa and Nishimoto, were all taken aboard the police boat.
The Aso family, as victims, also returned to Tokyo with the police.
Eri had originally thought that with the case solved, she and Hayashi Shuichi could spend a romantic night alone on Moonlight Island.
She hadn't expected that Shuichi would take her to Shimizu Masato's house to grab their luggage and insist on taking the police boat back immediately.
On the deck, Eri looked back at Moonlight Island, grumbling unwillingly. "Why the rush? We finally finished everything. It was just the two of us. Staying one night on the island and going back tomorrow would have been fine..."
"I didn't want to leave either," Shuichi said helplessly. "But do you think the island residents would welcome us after what happened tonight?"
Eri looked puzzled. "You did a good thing. Why would the villagers blame you?"
"You don't understand the mindset of people in small places," Shuichi said, leaning against the railing. "Moonlight Island is too small. The residents here are all interconnected; many are relatives. Even if Kameyama and the others committed crimes, they are still their family."
"From their perspective, life on the island was peaceful until we arrived and stirred up trouble. Someone is bound to blame everything on me. Rather than staying on the island and getting cold stares, it's better to leave early."
"But..." Eri bit her lip in frustration. She had made quite a few preparations for this weekend of 'us time,' and now none of it would be used.
"Reiko isn't home tonight, so why don't you just stay at my place? Your parents think you're on Moonlight Island anyway," Shuichi said with a grin, wrapping his arm around the girl's slender waist. He leaned close to her ear and whispered, "That sexy lingerie you bought... you can wear it for me when we get home."
"H-How did you know about that?" Eri's face instantly turned bright red.
"For the past few days, you've been reading Charm Woman magazine. And the day before yesterday after school, you said you were going to the library to return books, but you actually ran to the commercial district to buy lingerie," Shuichi laughed. "Did you think I didn't notice?"
"You're the worst!" Eri glared at her childhood friend with a mix of embarrassment and annoyance. "Why do you have to keep such a close eye on these little things..."
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