Chapter 45: A Final Conversation

Although they hadn't reached an agreement with those three film companies, as a responsible boss, he would never burden his employees with his worries.

"Masakazu-san, did you want to see me?" Yoko Okino carefully opened the door to Masakazu's office.

"Yes." Masakazu nodded, poured her a cup of tea, and asked, "I heard you're quite close with Kogoro Mouri?"

"Not really close, I just hired him to help investigate a case," Yoko replied.

*He's practically your personal detective, how could I possibly dare to be close to him? Getting too cozy with your henchman is definitely asking for trouble.*

"Since you're well-acquainted, that makes things much easier."

Yoko Okino: "..."

Masakazu continued, "Since you're good friends, why don't you invite him to visit the set more often? Oh, and make sure to tell him to bring his family."

"Huh?" Yoko looked at Masakazu in surprise.

The movie's special effects and editing were already complete; what was the point of inviting Kogoro Mouri to look at anything?

"I know, I'll invite him to the wrap party," Yoko said.

"That's fine. Just remember to tell him to bring his kids, especially that little boy."

"Mm-hmm."

Yoko nodded.

He had specifically mentioned that little boy, and coupled with the little girl who was always by Masakazu's side, it seemed Masakazu was quite fond of children.

"You can go now."

"Yes."

Yoko left the office with light footsteps.

After giving instructions to Yoko Okino, Masakazu took out his phone and called the representatives of the three film companies one by one:

"Hello? Is that Takeshita? I'd like to invite you to the wrap party for *The Ring*, and by the way, we can have one final chat about revenue sharing and screen allocation. Oh, and feel free to bring along some good 'friends'."

They had no reason to refuse Masakazu's invitation.

Yet, all three men who received the call felt their nerves stretched to the breaking point, unable to stop their imaginations from running wild. Could this be the final ultimatum?

This was a society ruled by law, after all.

No matter how arrogant that guy was, he wouldn't commit murder without at least trying to cover it up, right?

Masakazu put down his phone and looked out the window.

He couldn't help feeling like he was hosting a Feast at Hongmen Gate, although he hadn't arranged any executioners with broadaxes; he had simply invited the Family of the Grim Reaper.

Right, the Family of the Grim Reaper had been invited by Yoko Okino.

That made him, Masakazu, even more innocent and pure.

*Sigh*~ Whenever the Grim Reaper's family goes out, heaven knows how many people will meet an untimely end.

...

"Koike."

"Editor-in-chief."

Koike sat up from his chair, looking respectfully at the editor-in-chief.

He had already received his bonus for the previous month, and the amount was astonishingly generous.

Not only could he uphold the justice in his heart, but he could also earn enough to put bread on the table. Koike had never imagined such a wonderful thing could exist.

"Sumitomo Masakazu's Justice Film Company is about to release *Midnight Terror*. Go write an article to promote it," the editor-in-chief said.

"What?!" Koike stared at the editor in disbelief.

It felt as though his faith had been trampled upon.

Had the editor-in-chief also turned his back on their ideals of justice?

Wait!

"Justice Film Company?" Koike noticed the familiar name.

"Hmph!" The editor-in-chief snorted coldly and said, "That scoundrel Sumitomo Masakazu shamelessly registered his company as the 'Justice Group,' and all of its subsidiaries are named Justice Something-or-Other. Shameless, utterly devoid of shame, trampling on the very name of justice!"

The editor's words left Koike confused once again.

*Are we actually a newspaper under the Justice Group? Then why is the editor-in-chief constantly cursing Sumitomo Masakazu?*

"Sigh!" The editor patted Koike on the shoulder and said, "Our newspaper used the name first; they are guilty of blatant copyright infringement, and we are already suing them in court. However, the lawsuit will be a long one—it'll probably take a year to get a result. During this year, we just have to endure sharing the same name as them."

*So that's how it is.* Koike had a sudden epiphany.

"Then why are you still helping them promote their movie?"

The editor-in-chief didn't answer; he simply pulled out a photograph.

The content of the photo was chilling: a man dressed in black, holding a handgun and pointing his finger at the director of *The Ring*.

The director's face was taut, not daring to look back, keeping his eyes firmly fixed on the computer screen.

The photo possessed a cinematic quality.

"What is this?" Koike asked, puzzled.

"The director of this movie was brought here at gunpoint under Masakazu's orders," the editor-in-chief said.

Koike was deeply shocked.

It was hard to imagine that such things still happened nowadays.

Yet, considering the things Masakazu had done in the past, it somehow felt acceptable. After all, he had only pointed a gun at the director's head; it wasn't like he actually shot him, right?

"Editor-in-chief, I understand what you mean," Koike said.

*It's utterly despicable—a ruthless trampling of the law.*

He was determined to let more people know just how lawless that guy truly was.

"Editor-in-chief, do you think we can contact this director and get him to step forward and expose Masakazu's crimes?" Koike asked.

"Just write the news piece first. Whether or not to contact the victim is something for me to consider," the editor-in-chief said.

*You're just a reporter, don't let your imagination run wild; it won't do you any good.*

...

"Miss Yoko actually invited me to her movie's wrap party!"

Kogoro hugged Yoko Okino's poster with a goofy, infatuated expression.

Ran asked, "Is that the movie from Masakazu-niisan's company?"

"Masakazu-niisan?" Kogoro Mouri and Conan looked at Ran with simultaneous suspicion. "When did you get to know him?"

Suddenly thrust into the hot seat, Ran took a step back and said, "I ran into him with Sonoko, we exchanged contact information, and we've kept in touch a bit since then."

"Why would he stay in touch with you?" Conan asked eagerly, sounding even more agitated than Kogoro as a father.

"Just asking about Ai-chan," Ran replied.

Recently, Ai had been learning karate from her and often conducted experiments in the chemistry lab, all of which Ran had reported to Masakazu via email.

Masakazu-niisan must be a wonderful older brother who cared deeply for his little sister.

Conan let out a slight sigh of relief. *Just asking about his sister, huh? Then it's fine.*

Kogoro muttered, "You'd better not associate with that guy. He's no good. Don't trust people so easily."

"But I trust Daddy's deduction more," Ran said with a smile.

"Didn't Daddy's deductions prove every single time that Masakazu-niisan had no problems and never did anything bad?"

Kogoro's eyebrows arched, and the corners of his mouth curled into a smug smile.

"Well, naturally, my deductions are infallible..."

"Alright, Uncle, we need to head out to Yoko-neesan's wrap party," Conan interrupted.

*Good grief, I was the one who solved all those cases, you know. Can you please stop acting so full of yourself?*