"Court is now in session!"
"All rise."
At the loud command, everyone in the public gallery stood.
A group of judges walked out from the inner chamber and sat in their respective seats.
"Prosecution and defense, please enter."
Eri Kisaki led Kazuha out from the side room, while Reiko Kujo entered from the other side with her assistant.
Both sides took their positions.
"Please be seated."
Everyone sat down.
"Bring in the suspect."
Officer Shiratori was brought out from inside, looking despondent, followed by two police officers.
After glancing down at the documents in his hands, the Chief Judge spoke.
"Next, the prosecution may present its opening statement."
Kujo Reiko stood up.
"The suspect, Shiratori Ninzaburo, formerly an Assistant Inspector with the Metropolitan Police Department, committed a revenge killing while intoxicated—breaking the law despite knowing the law. Therefore, I ask the court to sentence Shiratori Ninzaburo to life imprisonment for intentional homicide. That concludes my statement."
After speaking, she glanced provocatively at Eri Kisaki.
"Defense, you may speak."
Eri Kisaki organized her documents and stood up.
"Based on the information I possess, the allegation that Shiratori Ninzaburo killed someone while drunk remains at the stage of suspicion. Until conclusive evidence appears, I submit that a sentence should not be handed down so hastily."
"Objection."
Kujo Reiko stood up abruptly, frowning at Eri Kisaki.
"When Shiratori Ninzaburo killed the victim, the surrounding residents can all testify. Moreover, the bullet recovered from the victim matches the same type of ammunition found in his service pistol. Those two points alone are sufficient to identify him as the murderer."
"Objection sustained. Defense, please present more compelling evidence."
Kujo Reiko looked at Eri Kisaki triumphantly and sat down slowly.
Eri Kisaki's expression remained indifferent.
"Kazuha, give me the materials."
Kazuha deftly pulled out the documents Eri Kisaki needed from a pile of files.
"Your Honor, these are photographs taken at the scene."
"And this set shows the surrounding area around the crime scene, which I asked someone to photograph after the incident."
Kazuha handed the two sets of photos to a female court attendant.
The judge flipped through both sets.
"Your Honor," Eri Kisaki continued, "based on the location of Shiratori Ninzaburo's apartment, there should be open ground directly beneath the balcony. Logically, if the victim was struck from Shiratori Ninzaburo's position, then the place where he fell should have been on that open ground—not in the flowerbed off to the side."
Her words instantly caused an uproar throughout the courtroom; whispers rose from every corner.
"Order!"
The judge struck the gavel several times before the courtroom slowly quieted down.
"What the defense has said makes sense."
Hearing the judge's words, Kujo Reiko frowned and stood up abruptly.
"Objection."
"Prosecution, you may speak."
"Your Honor, even if the victim's final landing position differs, it proves nothing by itself. Perhaps he struck something during the fall, or perhaps wind affected him… There are too many accidental factors in the process. It cannot serve as persuasive proof."
"The prosecution has a point. Defense, please present more convincing evidence."
The judge looked at Eri Kisaki.
Kujo Reiko smiled confidently. Lawyer Kisaki—looks like your undefeated record is about to be broken by me.
Eri Kisaki smiled faintly and stood up.
"Your Honor, I request permission to call a witness."
"A witness?" Kujo Reiko couldn't help muttering under her breath.
The judges conferred briefly among themselves, and the Chief Judge nodded.
"Permission granted. The defense may call its witness."
A person walked out from the inner chamber.
Officer Shiratori's eyes widened in shock as he stared at the newcomer.
As a prosecutor, Kujo Reiko was naturally familiar with Heiji. Seeing this high school detective, the absolute confidence she had moments ago wavered—if only slightly.
"Who is the witness?" the judge asked.
"Your Honor, his name is Hattori Heiji. He is a detective."
Hattori Heiji?
Eri Kisaki's words triggered another wave of commotion in the courtroom.
The Chief Judge struck the gavel several times, his expression stern.
"Order. Now, the defense witness will state his testimony."
Heiji ignored the room as he stood at the witness stand. After a cool glance at Officer Shiratori, who still looked stunned, he turned to Kujo Reiko.
"Prosecution, please repeat what you said a moment ago—why you believe the clue about the victim's landing position is unimportant."
Kujo Reiko frowned.
"Objection. The witness does not understand his position. He has no right to question the prosecution."
"Objection sustained."
"Objection!" Eri Kisaki stood up and spoke forcefully. "The witness's testimony is directly relevant to the court's judgment. Why is the prosecution refusing to cooperate?"
Kujo Reiko frowned and shot a glance at Eri Kisaki.
"During the fall, the victim might have struck something on the balcony, or been pushed off course by wind… Accidental factors like these could also change where he landed."
"May I ask," Heiji interrupted, "struck what, exactly?"
"Like a water pipe protruding from the balcony," Kujo Reiko said.
"But I already asked the forensic officers at the scene," Heiji replied. "They did not find bloodstains anywhere. And aside from the gunshot wound to the heart, the victim also had no signs of scrapes or abrasions on his body."
"Then perhaps it was the wind," Kujo Reiko pressed on.
"That's also impossible," Heiji said. "The victim weighed at least fifty-five kilograms. To be meaningfully shifted by wind while falling from the fifth floor would require typhoon-level force—at least a level 12 storm. But on the night of the incident, wind strength did not exceed level 5. This can be confirmed through the meteorological department."
Heiji's words brought the entire courtroom to silence; everyone began to think.
"Objection," Kujo Reiko said sharply. "These are only Mr. Hattori's one-sided claims. Please produce evidence."
"Since we're talking about evidence," Heiji said confidently, "then I'd like to ask the prosecutor—what is your evidence?"
"The testimony of the surrounding residents and the bullet lodged in the victim's heart. Both are ironclad evidence."
"Please maintain order in court," the Chief Judge said, striking the gavel once.
Heiji's smile vanished. He looked at Kujo Reiko with calm indifference.
"The ammunition type can be forged, obtained, or traded illegally. As for the residents' testimony—did they say they saw it with their own eyes?"
At his words, Eri Kisaki's eyes lit up, and she quickly lowered her head to flip through the residents' statements.
Kujo Reiko's expression shifted as well, and she began doing the same.
The courtroom fell silent again.