In an office closest to the temporary detention room at the Beika Police Station.
Toshiro Odagiri's eyes were bloodshot, with deep bags under them, as he stared intently at the clock on the wall.
Every tick of the second hand made his heart tremble.
Only less than 12 hours remained until the 72-hour detention limit.
During this time, he hadn't closed his eyes once, hadn't eaten, and had only drunk a stomach full of water.
On the table in front of him, Identification reports piled up like a small mountain.
These reports were the result of nearly two days and two nights of tireless work by elites gathered from various laboratories, pharmaceutical companies, and even forensic departments of neighboring police stations across Tokyo.
However, all the reports pointed to the same conclusion.
That is, the goods from Cunning Hares were not mixed, contained no hidden items, and showed no trace of drugs whatsoever.
This made him incredibly irritable.
Scratching his head, Toshiro Odagiri sighed deeply.
Originally, even if this incident turned out to be a false alarm, it wasn't a big deal.
Although embarrassing, with proper handling, it wasn't irreversible.
Leveraging the charm of journalism, it could be packaged as a successful anti-drug exercise to demonstrate the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's firm resolve and high efficiency in combating drug-related crimes.
But... just thinking of that 'but,' Toshiro Odagiri wished he could slap himself twice!
To claim credit and create momentum, he had specifically called in a camera crew from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's publicity department on the day of the operation.
The shocking images of armored vehicles, police officers on high alert, and mountains of 'drugs' had already been meticulously edited.
As a glorious achievement of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department in cracking an unprecedentedly large drug case, they had been prematurely reported to several closely connected media outlets.
Although detailed reports hadn't been released, explosive headlines like 'Police Seize Eight Tons of Drugs' and blurry photos had already spread on some evening newspapers and online media.
Now, he was in a predicament!
If it was ultimately announced to be rock sugar, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department wouldn't just be embarrassed, it would become the annual joke of the global law enforcement community!
His future promotion..., Toshiro Odagiri's, would be uncertain.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!" He roared, slamming his fist on the table, making the report papers rustle.
Just then, the office door was pushed open.
Mouri Kogoro walked in, his face flushed with excitement, followed by Conan, who looked a bit apprehensive.
"Oh, Chief Odagiri! You've worked hard, you've worked hard! I wish you a promotion!"
Mouri Kogoro's voice was loud and full of excitement. "I heard this kid, Conan did a great job this time! He helped the police solve a shocking major case! So... Uh... about the bonus money..."
He rubbed his hands, his eyes gleaming, "You see, Conan is still a child, and such a large sum of money would be safer if I, his guardian, temporarily kept it for him, wouldn't you agree?"
Toshiro Odagiri looked up, his bloodshot eyes coldly sweeping over Mouri Kogoro. A promotion, indeed—wasn't he just bringing up a sore subject?
Conan ignored Detective Mouri's greed, he was more concerned about the results, asking eagerly, "Officer Odagiri, are all the test results back? Did you find anything?"
Toshiro Odagiri took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to curse.
"Most of them are back."
He pointed to the mountain of reports on the table,
"No drug components were detected."
He paused, then added with a last glimmer of hope,
"Only a small portion of samples, due to the local laboratory being overloaded, were sent overnight to an external institution for testing, and the results haven't been transmitted back yet."
Mouri Kogoro's smile faltered. He looked at the stack of reports, then at Toshiro Odagiri's drained appearance, and immediately understood—
The bonus was in jeopardy! And seriously so! He might even end up in trouble himself.
"Uh... this... haha..."
Mouri Kogoro let out two dry laughs and subtly moved a step to the side, distancing himself from Conan, as if to say this child and I are not very close, trying to disassociate himself.
"Chief Odagiri, look at this mess... children, you know, they sometimes make mistakes... His parents aren't in the country either, so he lacks discipline."
Conan's heart sank at this moment, his small face turning a little pale.
Could it be... he really wronged Cunning Hares?
Thinking of Nicole's righteous demeanor selling rock sugar, he began to waver in his judgment.
Mouri Kogoro's eyes darted, trying to find a way out for Toshiro Odagiri.
"Chief Odagiri, don't be too discouraged! Even if those people weren't drug dealers, selling rock sugar for 8,000 yen a gram—that should at least count as disturbing market order or price gouging, right? That could still get them charged!"
Toshiro Odagiri looked at Mouri Kogoro as if he were an idiot, waving his hand weakly.
"Detective Mouri, Cunning Hares is too cunning. They sell rock sugar bundled with tea leaves.
Tea leaves themselves don't have a clear market pricing standard. Pu-erh from '82 can fetch exorbitant prices, while crushed tea bricks are worthless—that's normal.
They bundle their sales, insisting their tea leaves are high-grade. No matter how high the price, as long as the buyer willingly pays, it's legally difficult to define it as fraud or market disruption. At most, the market supervision department would issue a warning and education."
"Then... then they're selling rock sugar as crystal meth! Aren't all those buyers going for drugs? That should count as fraud, right?" Mouri Kogoro wouldn't give up.
"That's the problem!"
Toshiro Odagiri rubbed his temples in frustration,
"We interrogated several buyers we arrested. Guess what they said? Every single one of them insisted they were only looking for premium rock sugar and health-preserving tea! They completely denied wanting to buy drugs.
They said the 8,000 yen per gram was for health and quality! And Cunning Hares clearly stated in their chat records that they were selling rock sugar, even attaching a test report!
We have no evidence to prove they were trading in illegal substances! How can you charge them with fraud?!"
He slumped back into his chair, looking at the ceiling, his eyes vacant.
"It's over... it's all over..." Toshiro Odagiri mumbled to himself, as if he could already see his future, ruined and condemned by the media.
Just then, a phone rang in the office.
Toshiro Odagiri, with a last ounce of hope, forced himself to grab the receiver, his voice tinged with a final shred of luck. "Hello?... It's me! What are the results?!"
The voice from the other end of the phone was loud, clear enough for even Mouri Kogoro and Conan nearby to hear:
"Reporting, Chief! All the test reports from the external laboratories have been transmitted back!
No drug components were detected in any of the submitted goods! All goods were edible rock sugar, ordinary multi-enzyme tablets, and low-grade green tea bricks! No prohibited items whatsoever!"
Crack!
It was as if something simultaneously shattered in the minds of Toshiro Odagiri and Conan.