Chapter 4: Chapter 4

My First Client Is Not Who I Expected!

[Marrow-Cleansing Pill (1x): Removing impurities from the consumer, thus restoring their body to the peak condition possible.]

[Free Gift Draw (1x): A chance of drawing a random gift from the System.]

These two items were a godsend for the current Kogoro. Although he was quite a confident man by nature, the fact that his parameters had been reduced because of his lifestyle was weighing on his mind.

He didn't know how much the Marrow-Cleansing Pill would improve his stats, but he was ready to try it now!

"Baa-chan, how do I take out items, again?"

[Despite the host's dumb question, the System will not deduct your intelligence further. To summon an item, please think or vocalize the word Inventory, and then concentrate on the item's picture]

Kogoro frowned, "Hey, there's nothing wrong with asking dumb question! At least it's better than wailing in despair if I make stupid mistakes because I'm not asking. Anyway, I don't have time for chit-chat. Inventory!"

Instantly, a panel with 10 boxes appeared in front of him. Focusing on the one in the upper right corner, a white pill fell into his palm.

"Well, only one way to find out if this works. Bottoms up!"

Kogoro swallowed the pill and washed it with water.

"Hmmm, I don't feel any different? How co- FUCK!!"

Kogoro fell to his knees, his whole body was twitching in pain. He never thought that the pain would be so unbearable!

'Damn it… How long will it last?'

The agony he felt was unlike anything he ever felt before. His nerves were burning, his bones were cracking, and his skin was melting. But they were also being healed afterwards.

After what felt like hours, but in reality was just a couple seconds, Kogoro wobbly stood up, his whole body felt cool all of a sudden!

But then…

'The smell!! I've been splashed with sewage water before, and this is a hundred times worse!'

Kogoro couldn't help but curse the System for not telling him about the side effects of the medicine. Then again, he should remember this stuff, since the novels he read often feature 'shedding impurities' scenes.

Looking at the clock on the wall, Kogoro cursed again. 'Just fifteen minutes left till Mrs. Hinata arrived! I'd better clean this mess up quickly.'

***

After a frantic burst of cleaning spree, Kogoro sat down on the couch. He noticed that although he ran all over the room cleaning, he wasn't out of breath at all.

'What a godly medicine!' Kogoro praised, then opened his attributes page. The number displayed made his jaw drop!

[-

Constitution : 15/16 (Constitution of a dog! You can keep going even after your partner is unconscious.)

Strength       : 9/10 (Strength of a dog! You may not be the strongest, but your power belies your stature.)

Intelligence  : 14/15 (The combined mental strength of two dogs! Or as the saying goes, a genius is just a smart man with the instinct of a dog!)

Agility          : 8/9 (The speed of a dog! What's the similarity between a detective and a dog? Both are fast enough to catch a running criminal.)

-]

Looking at the numbers, Kogoro roughly calculated a 20% increase from his previous max potential stats, which made him a little bit over the moon. However…

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'What the hell is wrong with those comments? Baa-chan! I know I was wrong calling you grandma, but you should be more positive! Think of it as I respected you, and stop comparing me to a dog!'

Just as Kogoro was complaining to the System, a knock on the door alerted him of his client's arrival.

"Please wait a second!"

Kogoro walked to the entrance, looked through the peephole, and after confirming her identity, opened the door.

"It's been a while, Detective Mouri."

Hinata Hanaoka greeted him first, her previously tranquil smile was a bit stiff this time.

Kogoro smiled gently, trying his best to set the mood for the conversation they would have.

"Indeed. But please come in first, Hinata-san. I hope you are okay with tea."

"I won't be polite then. And tea is perfect, thank you. I haven't had any drinks yet, so I'm a little bit thirsty."

She entered the office, and Kogoro closed the door behind them. The two of them went slowly to the sofa, and he served the steaming tea in front of her.

Taking the cup in her slightly trembling hand, she took a sip, and exclaimed.

"It's still warm!"

Kogoro chuckled to the cute way of drinking tea, and said, "I just brewed it after our call, so of course it's still warm."

Taking a sip of his own, Kogoro leaned back slightly, before speaking,

"Please don't be nervous, Hinata-san. Although what I'm going to tell you can't be considered good news, you can rest assured that I will be assisting you till this matter is closed."

Hearing that, Mrs. Hinata tried to put on a smile, but didn't say anything in response. She put down the cup of tea, and left her hand on her lap. The dark brown nail polish contrasted strongly with her pale skin.

Kogoro sighed when he saw her reaction, and leaned over the table in front of him. He put his hand on top of hers, which startled her. Their eyes locked onto each other, turning the tense atmosphere into an ambiguous one.

"Your concern about your husband's infidelity… is true!"

Pausing to observe her face, Kogoro started to sweat from his back when she didn't change her expression from his verdict.

'Is something wrong?'

"Not only that, I found out that he has been passing his student's works as his own for the past year. Hinata-san, if you want, we could use this-"

"Mouri-san!"

Mrs. Hinata cut him off from saying anything further. Her beautiful pale face was even paler, and it finally showed her feelings. There was grief and anger, but strangely, also regret. She clenched her fist, her eyes dropped down to her hands, and finally uttered something that Kogoro would have never expected from her.

"I… I killed my husband!"

~To Be Continued~

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A/N: Well, did you guys see that coming? Because I didn't. Chapter 5 of KMPE is already up on my patréon and ko-fi page!

Once again, thank you for reading!

segalengko69

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