Some things just can't have too much discussion.
After Senichi finished speaking, they walked a dozen meters, and traces resembling high-heeled shoe imprints appeared on the ground.
"Is this... footprints?"
"I didn't expect to find them!"
While Haruka and the others marveled at the discovery, Senichi didn't echo their sentiments. Instead, after preliminarily confirming the possibility of this being the crime scene, he activated his super smell.
Footprints alone couldn't indicate much; after all, they could be from any passerby. However, if bloodstains were found, then this would undoubtedly be the crime scene. Given the severe impact on Yoshiko Terazumi's head, it would be strange if there were no blood splatters at the crime scene.
With his super smell fully activated, Senichi amplified all the scents around. The fresh air of the forest mixed with the earthy smell of the ground entered his nostrils. Amidst these pleasant odors, a hint of pungent blood scent stood out abruptly.
"Found it!"
Senichi crouched beside the footprints, and with gloved hands, he sifted through the leaves on the ground, eventually finding a leaf with bloodstains on its back.
"So, this is the real crime scene?" Takagi asked as he observed the surroundings, immediately taking out his phone. "I'll contact the forensics team right away."
"Yeah, have them come over to secure this area."
Senichi removed his left glove, took out an evidence bag from his pocket, and placed the leaf with bloodstains inside. "Compare this blood with Miss Yoshiko Terazumi's blood. If they match, this is definitely the crime scene."
"Unfortunately, it seems like the murder weapon has been taken away." Senichi glanced around the environment, not overly disappointed, as leaving behind the murder weapon would have been too careless.
However, this search was not entirely fruitless. When Senichi looked at a nearby tree, his keen insight quickly identified something that didn't quite fit in with the surroundings.
"Is this... a button?"
Seeing Senichi pinch the item and place it in the palm of his hand, Takagi exclaimed, "Could this be something left by the culprit?"
"Mmm... at least the possibility of it dropping from Yoshiko Terazumi is very low."
With his powerful memory, Senichi recalled the clothing Yoshiko Terazumi was wearing and didn't find any outfit with this kind of button decoration.
On the other hand, Haruka remained silent. She looked at the button in Senichi's hand, her deep black eyes becoming profound, as if pondering on something.
"So, what should we do next?" Excited by the consecutive discovery of crucial clues, Takagi asked.
"Well, in terms of the overall investigative direction, I suggest we start by looking into people who had conflicts with Yoshiko Terazumi." Senichi replied, "From what we see now, the possibility of personal grudges is quite high."
"Huh? Personal grudges?" Takagi was momentarily surprised. "Why? Do you suspect that the two women who came looking for trouble yesterday are the culprits?"
The ins and outs between the deceased and Haruka, and the disturbance caused by Miyako Miura and the other woman yesterday had already been explained to Takagi. However, Senichi didn't base his judgment on that alone.
Although the two women had significant conflicts with the deceased and said dangerous things yesterday, making them key subjects of investigation, harboring preconceived suspicions was a major taboo in an investigation.
The real reason Senichi considered the possibility of revenge killing was the environment.
"The environment?" Takagi looked around the sparsely-traveled forest, somewhat puzzled. "Is there anything strange here?"
"Don't forget, Yoshiko Terazumi is a woman. Generally, women wouldn't come alone to a place like this." Senichi smiled as he reminded them.
"Ah!" Takagi, prompted by Senichi's reminder, suddenly realized. "So, Miss Terazumi came here to meet someone she knew!?
In that case, the possibility of the culprit being someone she knew is indeed quite high!"
On this note, Takagi scratched his head. "Although we shouldn't have any preconceived notions, if the investigation is in the direction of revenge killing, Miss Miyako Miura and the other woman are the prime suspects, right?"
After all, they were acquainted, and although they had conflicts, it was precisely because of this that Yoshiko Terazumi might have chosen to meet them to address the harassment issues. From any perspective, the motives of Miyako Miura and the other woman were indeed significant.
"Shiratori and Chiba have already set out to find those two. I believe they will bring them in for questioning soon. What do you think? Should we go back and conduct the interrogation?" Takagi inquired.
"Bring them in for questioning? Well, that does seem like the right thing to do... After all, the suspicion on those two is quite significant on the surface..."
Senichi rubbed his chin. "And the timing is too coincidental, making it hard for people not to link this current case with the one a year ago.
However, limiting the suspects to just those two is a risky move.
Moreover, there was a sentence Miss Terazumi said yesterday that caught my attention..."
"Huh? What did she say?" Takagi quickly asked.
"It's not the right time to say it now."
Senichi glanced at Haruka, who had been silent since earlier, and then turned to her. "We can stop here. You should go back now."
Upon hearing this, Haruka didn't insist further, nodded, and turned to leave.
"Okay."
Watching Haruka's departing figure, after searching the suspected crime scene without finding anything, Senichi called for Takagi to leave.
"Uh, so where do we go now? Back to the police department to find Miyako Miura and the others?" Takagi asked as he followed Senichi outside.
"No, we're going to Yoshiko Terazumi's place."
Senichi handed the tree leaf with bloodstains and the button, the two pieces of evidence, to Uncle Tome, who had hurried over to secure the scene. After that, he and Takagi got into the car and headed to Yoshiko Terazumi's apartment.
After presenting their credentials and explaining the situation, they arrived at Yoshiko Terazumi's apartment. Following the standard procedure, they informed the landlord and obtained the key, allowing them to enter her room smoothly.
Upon entering the room, their first impression was of cleanliness.
This apartment was entirely different from the messy homes Senichi had encountered in previous cases, and one could even say it was the complete opposite.
"It's strange; something that should be here is missing."
After a brief survey of the clean living room, Senichi spoke.
"Huh? What is it?" Takagi, still processing, asked with confusion. "Senichi, it seems like you just took a quick look around the room... Is there something unusual?"
"Exactly because I stood in the center to confirm the surroundings that I noticed a discordant element in the overall layout of this room," Senichi said with a slight smile.
"Then, what's missing?" Officer Takagi looked around, finding everything normal. "There doesn't seem to be anything strange."
"No, haven't you noticed?" Senichi pointed to the desk nearby. "There, a computer is missing."
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