Tokyo Psychic

Page 156

at the same time.

The Toyokawa family mansion.

Toyokawa Shoko looked at the taxi driver in front of her, whom she had met once before, with a subtly strange expression.

"Are you really a psychologist?"

“Young lady, here are my degree certificate, qualification certificate…” Maruki Takuto actually took out a bunch of certificates from his pocket and stacked them on the table.

It has to be said that the saying "clothes make the man" is quite true.

After donning a white lab coat, Maruki Takuto indeed transformed from a mild-mannered taxi driver into a refined scholar.

Toyokawa Shoko's eyelids twitched slightly. "I heard you're also leading that 'Cognitive Science Technology Application' department within the group, conducting research?"

"Yes, Miss."

"Was it a coincidence that you drove a taxi near my house before?" Toyokawa Shoko's eyes suddenly sharpened.

Maruki Takuto frankly said, "Of course it's not a coincidence. The young lady should have met many of the group's employees on her way home."

Toyokawa Shoko's fists clenched tightly. "So... that day when the gangsters broke into my house..."

Maruki Takuto's expression turned serious. "That was a coincidence. The personnel responsible for guarding the area happened to be 'negligent' due to an accident and let them into that apartment. Please rest assured, Miss, all those who were negligent have been dismissed and have received their due punishment."

Toyokawa Shoko's emotions immediately calmed down a bit. She looked at the scholar in front of her with a strange expression. "Anyway, I need to make a diagnosis for my friend tonight, do you understand?"

Maruki Takuto pointed to his employee badge hanging on his chest, the TGW Group logo standing out prominently.

......

The matter of finding a psychologist has been settled.

When Toyokawa Shoko pushed open the door, she saw her maternal grandfather walking towards her.

Toyokawa Sadaharu didn't ask Toyokawa Shoko why she went home or why she wanted to see a psychologist. He simply nodded calmly at her and walked into the living room.

The door closed, and in the space where Toyokawa Shoko could not see or hear anything, Toyokawa Sadaharu took out a device that resembled a thermometer and handed it to Maruki Takuto in front of him. "Mr. Maruki's latest gadget developed in the laboratory is very useful."

Maruki Takuto looked down at the thermometer, which had reached full reading, and shook his head helplessly. "But it's broken."

Is this a good thing?

"For the Toyokawa family, this is certainly a good thing. It shows that the son-in-law you have chosen is truly a 'dragon among men'."

"How does it compare to that 'Goro Akechi'?" When the duo of Masayoshi Shido and Goro Akechi were causing trouble all over Tokyo, they left a really deep psychological scar on these zaibatsu.

Maruki Takuto gave a gentle smile, then poked the bottom of the thermometer with his index finger, and then raised it slightly higher. "He's probably around here."

"Where is Shido Justice?"

"He doesn't have that superpower."

"What about 'Ren Amamiya'?"

Upon hearing this question, Maruki Takuto raised his finger along the top of the thermometer and pointed to the ceiling above his head, "There it is."

Toyokawa Sadaharu paused for a moment, "Are there any conditions or occasions for this power to be used? Can we make use of it?"

Maruki Takuto shook his head, "The Toyokawa family can only become a part of it, providing it with conditions that its competitors cannot provide in reality."

"I'm all ears."

"For example... a clean and honest work environment."

"It sounds out of place for a large corporation."

“Only in this way can the Toyokawa family be passed down for a longer period of time,” Maruki Takuto said incisively. “You probably don’t want to experience the tragedy of your heir being assassinated by an unseen force again, do you?”

Toyokawa Sadaharu's face darkened instantly. "Speaking of which... you mentioned asking that 'Detective Prince' to investigate 'Akechi Goro' before. Is there any result?"

"It's completely impossible to detect any fluctuations in Mr. Akechi's mental state anymore. In terms of cognitive science experiments, he's completely dead on a spiritual level; the person lying on the emergency room bed is nothing more than an empty shell. The Toyokawa family's desire for revenge is a bit too late..."

Toyokawa Sadaharu interrupted Maruki Takuto, "I know that hospital has been acquired by the Tsurumaki family and is now being used for 'research'."

“Yes, the body of ‘Akechi Goro’ is now the property of the Tsurumaki family,” Maruki Takuto said with a sigh.

Toyokawa Sadaharu's gaze turned somewhat unfriendly. "The Toyokawa family gave that 'Detective Prince' so much funding for his operations; surely this isn't all they've achieved?"

Maruki Takuto sensed Toyokawa Sadaharu's anxiety, so he took out a briefcase from behind him, which contained a thick stack of photos and printed papers. "After this period of investigation, Ms. Shirakane has brought back some information, though late, that might make you feel a little better."

Toyokawa Sadaharu opened his briefcase and began reading its contents. His gaze froze, and the wrinkles on his face seemed to deepen, making him appear as if he had suddenly aged ten years.

"Please tell me, he..."

“Yes, the reason your son-in-law suffered losses of tens of billions of yen in the course of his business was precisely because of the involvement of Masayoshi Shido,” Maruki Takuto said. “What’s both gratifying and infuriating is that that councilor Shido was shot and killed in the street while giving a speech.”

Toyokawa Sadaharu seemed to have suddenly lost all interest in chatting. He slumped to his forehead, took a few deep breaths, and then left his seat. "The research funding for the Cognitive Science Technology Application Department will double starting next quarter."

Maruki Takuto sat up straight. "I understand."

Toyokawa Sadaharu shook his head. "You don't understand."

His once upright back seemed to suddenly become hunched over, and his once happy and fulfilling family was shattered by a crazy attack when the politician named "Lion Boy Justice" revealed his incredible assassination skills and endless ambition.

The daughter died because she became "useless," and even the son-in-law, who worked hard after his daughter's death, was brutally murdered...

Even Xiangzi… Toyokawa Sadaharu thought of the low-life gangsters who had kidnapped her. Fortunately, they had been released from prison some time ago and were now part of Tokyo Bay forever, having made a small contribution to the city with the rest of their lives.

Just as Toyokawa Sadaharu was about to push open the door and leave, as if he had made up his mind, he turned back and asked Maruki Takuto, "If I can find a way to make everyone in the conglomerate clean, can I keep 'Amamiya Ren'?"

Maruki Takuto calmly replied, "Of course."

"What will happen to the Toyokawa family after I die?"

"He will think about his family when the time comes."

"That's good."

The door closed behind Toyokawa Sadaharu, letting out a gust of hot summer wind.

Maruki Takuto looked down at the porcelain cup in front of him, where the black tea rippled in circles.

Everyone has their struggles...

He took out his phone and opened the electronic calendar.

Today is May 15th.

The lonely doll neither became a twisted sinner attempting to control everything, nor a desperate witch.

Ah, that's wonderful! The fragile city of Tokyo can hold on until the next semester.

Maruki Takuto leaned back against the soft sofa, staring wearily at the ceiling.

The apocalyptic scene from the last playthrough flashed before my eyes—

Nimrod, the symbol of the devil, built the Tower, a symbol of calamity and disaster, yet he ruthlessly betrayed the Tower he created.

And so, in despair, the towering pylon collapsed.

He could never forget the heartbreaking expression on the face of the girl named Mutsumi Wakaba in the phantom thief's arms.

But this time... she should be able to find her own salvation, right?

Maruki Takuto is sincerely looking forward to it.

After all, even Toyokawa Shoko, who was completely "the devil" in the various interpretations of the Tarot cards, was completely changed by the phantom thief.

......

The glass windows of the corner grocery store were covered with a thin layer of dust, and the billboard for "Wumian Internal Medicine Hospital" looked like faded mint. When a breeze swept through, the stainless steel wind chimes shattered the gloom in the room.

A beautiful woman in a white coat sat on a plastic stool by the edge, wiping the sweat from her brow as if wiping uncured glaze from a white porcelain surface. Before her sat a glass, dried plums, their salty creases holding last year's rainwater. In the distance, the chimney of the bathhouse emitted pale blue sighs, mingling with the abrupt, rustling sound of an ice shaver from a shop, weaving a translucent cocoon in the rising steam.

The pickled plums were a thank-you gift from the family of a patient who had been cured a few days ago.

Takemi took a slow sip; it was neither too salty nor too bland, but rather a very mild flavor.

Like the gratitude of the little girl who was brought in with a high fever in the middle of the night, it slipped down her throat and disappeared without a trace.

A boy suddenly walked by on the street opposite the clinic, accompanied by a girl who was as beautiful and quiet as a doll.

The girl seemed very curious about everything, constantly looking around.

Wu Jianmiao met her gaze.

The doll seemed surprised that there was such a beautiful, aloof woman in such a remote corner of the street, someone who should be on the cover of various fashion magazines. So it gently tugged at the sleeve of the boy next to it.

"Lian, look over there..."

"what happened?"

"I've seen her before."

"Dr. Takemi, I know her. Was she some kind of famous person before?"

Akira Kurusu didn't actually try searching for Takemi Tae online.

Wakaba Mutsu nodded, "It's been on the cover of many medical science journals."

"How did you know?"

"I ran into her when I was working with Minami."

Akira Kurusu asked the network expert in the Phantom Thieves group.

[Attic Thinker: Navi, are you there?]

Sakura Futaba sent a terrified cry: [Navi: Pervert! You molester! You're not allowed in my house! I won't see you!!!]

She had obviously overheard Akira Kurusu and Sojiro Sakura's conversation some time ago and knew that the other party was about to break into her house at any time... Although she greatly admired this "psychic thief" who roamed the city, as a homebody who was extremely bad at interpersonal communication, she had to keep her distance from "Ren Amamiya" whose love life was chaotic.

A 14-year-old girl with exceptional hacking skills can't help but peek into the private lives of superpowered individuals...

Then Sakura Futaba felt like she was living in a 24-hour urban romance drama every day.

Good heavens, the entire Shigenjaya is practically overflowing with girls sending him messages online expressing their admiration.

Sakura Futaba's computer had nearly 100 gigabytes of memory occupied by chat logs between those girls and Kurusu Akira. These were almost all messages sent unilaterally by the girls to Kurusu Akira—of course, most of these 100 gigabytes were memes, photos, or videos.

Putting aside his admirers, Akira Kurusu seems to be flirting with a group of beautiful girls of different styles every day...

She could easily count on her fingers at least five of the girls she talked to the most.

For example, he got his hands on "the Yoshizawa sisters who are first graders", or "Yamada Ryo of Hideka", "the granddaughter of national idol Anwa Tendo"... He even got his hands on the most important one, "Toyokawa Shoko, the heir to the Toyokawa Group".

Originally, Futaba Sakura still had some positive feelings towards the "psychic thief" image, but after experiencing the shock of the "phantom thief's love life" during this period, that so-called filter was shattered without a trace.

[The Thinker in the Attic: ?]

[The Attic Thinker: What would I do with you?]

[Navi: You are only 412 meters away from me at your current coordinates!!!]

[Attic Thinker: Enough talk, help me gather information on "Wumian Miao".]

[Navi: ??? You finally couldn't resist making a move against the famously cold beauty of the Four Teas?]

[The Attic Thinker: Watch your language, kid.]

[The Attic Thinker: Watch out, I'm coming to knock on your door right now.]

[Navi: I am so sorry! Respected and great Phantom Thief, the despicable and ignorant Futaba Sakura presumptuously assumed your will...]

[Attic Thinker: Which doujinshi's script contains this line from? Send it to me for my opinion.]

(Navi uploaded a set of pictures.)

[Navi: Here you go.]

[The Attic Thinker: Go and look up information about "Wumian Miao" for me.]

[Navi: Yes, sir!]

After putting down her phone, Akira Kurusu asked Mutsuka Wakaba beside her, "Should we go say hello to Dr. Takemi?"

Wakaba Mutsu tilted his head and thought about it seriously for a moment, "I'm not familiar with her."

"Was it just a one-time meeting?"

"Hmm." Wakaba Mutsu nodded, as if she had thought of something very important. She actually let go of Kurusu Akira's hand and then ran towards the clinic where Takemi Tae was.

No one knows what Wakaba Mutsu said to Takemi Myo, but Takemi Myo suddenly raised her head, looked at Kurusu Akira with a somewhat amazed gaze for a while, and then returned to the consultation room, took out some small boxes and pills, put them in a plastic bag, and handed them to Wakaba Mutsu.

After a while, Wakaba Mutsu returned carrying a small plastic bag.

She carefully handed the plastic bag to Lai Xixiao.