Rika and Reika

"Ugh, my body still aches," a bandaged up Rika groaned as she lounged in a chair by the bar.

"Your doctor said you'd be out of commission for at least a week," Masaru glared.

"Don't worry, I'm way too sore to even think about trying to cook."

Suddenly, Reika Yuzume entered the restaurant and approached Rika and Masaru with a smile on her face. "Hello, I'm Reika Yuzume from the Tokyo metropolitan police. I was wondering if I could ask you some questions," she smiled.

"Huh? Weren't you here last night?" Rika growled.

"Correct. I wish to converse with you because I know full well who you are, Miss Korosekai."

Rika instinctively stood up and went on guard, but found herself pinned to the floor before she knew it.

"Your loss was quite predictable given your current physical and mental state. Though I should make clear the point that I am not here to arrest you, so long as you are compliant," Reika sternly stated.

"So the hell is it!? I'm not in a good mood!" Rika glared.

"First off, an unrelated question, did you kill Kazuya Takeda?"

"...!"

"Your expression tells me all I need to know. Well, we can't exactly build a case against you considering Kiji Myouchi, the main suspect in the case, was killed as he attempted to flee and thus branded the killer. That and there is little to no evidence to convict you of the crime. Now, how familiar are you of the corruption within the police? This question also applies to you too Mr. Ryono."

"Huh!? What do you mean?" Masaru asked.

"Hmm, it seems you truly are clueless. And you?"

"No clue. I know of some corrupt officers, but that's it," Rika replied.

"Good, seems like you're clean. That means I can trust you a bit," Reika smiled as she unpinned Rika.

"Whoa whoa, how the hell did you just assume all that!?"

"I'm the greatest detective in Tokyo, that's why. Now I hate to jog your memory, but could we discuss the Noveau Neo bust you were apart of about two months ago?"

"What about it?"

"You and two other civilians assisted Commissioner, then Superintendent, Rikuma in a large scale bust of Noveau Neo. However, through my own private investigation, I came to the find that a massive drug trade between an officer from the raiding force, and a member of the demon queen cult occurred. I was wondering if you might know anything."

"Wait what!? I heard the cult dabbles in drug smuggling, but you're saying an officer made a trade with them!?"

"That is the mystery. I found traces of drugs the cult is most infamous for trading in the storage room of the station. Since the cult's drug trading business isn't exclusive to female customers, my search includes every single officer that was present during the raid. I also considered the possibility that you and your two friends from the outside were involved, but it appears that you at the very least are not. Though are your two friends associated with the underworld in anyway?"

"No, those two are normal. We aren't on the greatest of terms though, so that's why I recruited them."

"So you were the recruiter then. There is a contradiction in your statement though, an officer I interviewed mentioned that Helga Hepburn, whom was posing as a food dish, was able to trade blows with Krokow the Canterbury cannibal."

"That was me, I just swapped places with her."

"Interesting, then why'd you carry Helga out over your shoulder in a crude manor?"

"Shit, I don't know this one. Dastard's the one that ultimately carried her out. I only saw them leave nor do I remember any details from back then," Rika nervously thought.

"I told you it was because we were not on the friendliest terms at the time. That's why I carried her like that," Rika stated.

"You're covering for someone. The officer reported that you allegedly princess carried Miss Hepburn out rather than in the manor I described. Since you appeared to be truthful when covering for Helga, and due to the fact that your claim would logically explain the account, leads me to believe that the "you" that brought Helga out was someone else in disguise. If that person is indeed the one I suspect it might be, then I'm afraid this mess will become far more troublesome," Reika glared.

Rika went pale. "Shit, this woman's good. Not only is she sharper than any of my knives, she's also demonstrated she can easily take me down in my current state. Sure my mental state's improved a bit, but my body still hasn't recovered from that clash. Shit, I'm trapped," Rika nervously thought.

"Your hypothetical partnership with the notorious thief, Dastard, is a hindrance, but his involvement would suggest a scenario I was hoping would not come to be," Reika stated.

"Is it-"

"If Dastard truly able to disguise himself as one of your allies, then that would suggest that our intel regarding the fact that disguises would be seen through was inaccurate and that there was a far more nefarious purpose for the banquet. Thus my hypothesis is that the true purpose of the event was to..."

Rika's and Masaru's eyes went wide upon hearing Reika's hypothesis.

"No way, that's messed up!" Rika gasped.

"This comes as no surprise to me," Masaru sighed.

"Now the ball is in your court. Will you cooperate with me? If you do, I can see that you are pardoned for your past crimes," Reika asked.

"You said yourself that you can't build a-"

"There is the murder case from 9 years ago at Hie cryogenics lab. The statue of limitations has not expired and we DO have proof to convict you of that murder."

"What do you-"

"I was there years ago. Remember the middle school girl with the bobbed hair in the car?"

"Wait, that was you-...!"

"Commissioner Rikuma may not be aware that the girl from back then was you, but I certainly am. Your knife that you used to kill that researcher is still in police custody. I'm not asking much of you, in fact, I'll even give your restaurant my patronage as sort of a give and take for your cooperation. That and I'll also ensure no one else accidentally stumbles upon the revelation about the cryogenics lab case."

"Alright, I get it. I'll be your bitch," Rika glared.

"Perfect, your cooperation is much appreciated. Now take out your phones so I can contact you both. And with that, I will order some honey pancakes," Reika smiled.