"There's no way," he stuttered. "That's impossible."
"I think you can see the evidence clearly enough yourself," Nishimura said, "so unless you've suddenly turned blind, face reality and explain yourself."
After watching his expression as he fumbled to come up with an answer, Nishimura turned to Lloyd and Makoto.
"It could just be an unfortunate coincidence, as he claims," he said.
"But I doubt that," he continued. "So check all the other bags too."
They nodded and, starting with the bag Lloyd had opened just moments before, began moving them all outside.
As they did, the other guards appeared, reporting that they had found nothing in their respective searches.
"No need to worry," Nishimura said calmly as he faced them, with the merchant, Mr. Suzuki, and his servants standing close by. "We have found the evidence we were looking for. Now all that's left is to confirm the quantity and variety, then we can take him in."
"Should we help them out, sir?" one of them asked as he watched Lloyd and Makoto carrying the heavy bags out by themselves.
"Leave them be," Nishimura replied. "This is their catch, so we'll let them take it all the way."
It took nearly ten minutes to pull them all outside. In total there were twelve bags, but only the contents of one had been confirmed.
Nishimura dug into his robe and pulled out a small knife, which he handed to Makoto to help him cut the ties as quickly as possible.
They ripped open the first one and, as expected, it contained the same low-quality mixture. But as Lloyd passed his hand through it, he discovered something worse.
Thrips.
There were many of them, and after a failed attempt to bite Lloyd, they scattered in every direction.
Lloyd turned to the merchant as Makoto opened the third bag and saw him standing there with both hands clutching his head.
With his enhanced hearing, Lloyd could hear him whispering to himself.
"How is this possible? I never bought these bags. How did they get in here?"
He almost stopped listening before he heard something that caught his attention.
"Could it be them?" he whispered, his eyes widening as if struck by a sudden realization. "Is it because of what I said at the council... about exposing them to the public? Is that why they're doing this?"
"I thought I had more time."
"Expose?" Lloyd thought as he poured out the contents of the fourth bag. "Does that mean this entire operation is just a reason to confine him?"
"Then who was it that planted these bags without his knowledge?" he thought as he looked back at the merchant.
As he did, he accidentally made eye contact with one of the male servants, who immediately looked away.
"Was he the one who did it?" Lloyd thought as he too turned away," a grudge maybe."
"No there is no way he could've acquired all of this on his own. He must just be a pawn in someone else's game, but who is that 'someone'."
"He mentioned something about the council, so it could be as simple as them trying to protect their own interests... or it could be that whatever he was about to expose would have had a much more severe effect on the town."
"Either way, this is my first real lead on what's going on, so I have to make sure I follow up on it."
"Though showing any sudden interest now would be way too suspicious."
After the two of them finished checking all the bags, they both stood up straight beside them.
"We've confirmed the mixtures in the bags to be the same as the ones circulating in the market," Makoto said. "Though that is just based on our own experience. A deeper examination by more qualified individuals may still be warranted."
"Yes. Nice work, you two," Nishimura said, applauding them. "I knew I was right to call on you for this assignment."
"We're honoured to have your favour, sir," Makoto replied.
"Now round up all the bags and take them in as evidence. We'll leave ahead with Mr. Suzuki in hand," he said. "I'll leave four guards to help you bring them in."
"Sir!"
"That's it! I've had enough!" Suzuki yelled. "There is no way I'll let you do this to me."
"Do you think you can accuse me and get away with it?!" he shouted, veins bulging across his forehead. "Do you know who I am?!"
Nishimura slowly turned to him and looked him dead in the eye.
"Frankly, I don't care who you are," he said. "You could be a newborn or someone's grandmother and we'd still take you in. So stay quiet."
Suzuki's gaze faltered under the stare, and out of nowhere he suddenly turned and ran.
"Screw you all!" he yelled. "You can't lock me away if you can't catch me!"
Nishimura didn't even bother following him with his eyes.
Instead, he turned to Lloyd.
"Shirobane. Go get him, and make it quick."
Lloyd hesitated for a second before taking off after him.
The chase didn't last long.
Before Suzuki could even reach the estate gate, Lloyd had already pinned him to the ground, his stomach pressed against the dirt with Lloyd's knee firmly on his back.
Twisting his head to the side, Suzuki pleaded,
"Please... let me go. I'll pay you anything you want."
Lloyd didn't answer.
That only made the man more desperate.
"Please, let me go. I haven't done anything wrong, and you know it."
"They're all trying to pin this on me," he continued, almost sobbing. "The council... the Doshin... all those bastards at the top."
"All because I threatened to expose where the power really lies in this town."
"What do you mean?" Lloyd asked unconsciously, loosening his grip ever so slightly.
"I mean that for years the Merchant Council haven't been the ones pulling the strings around here," Suzuki replied. "The epidemic, the food shortage crisis, the rising violence..."
"They cause all of it, then use those same connections to fix the problems and take all the credit."
"All so they can stay dear in the eyes of the people."
"Who is it?!" Lloyd demanded, almost shouting. "Tell me who it really is! Stop beating around the bush!"
"I'll tell you... but please let me go," Suzuki begged, a tear rolling down his cheek.
Lloyd noticed three other guards approaching from behind.
"Please..." Suzuki whispered. "I have children."
All Lloyd could do was close his eyes and look away.
"I'm sorry," he thought. "I really am."
A moment later the other guards arrived, and Lloyd was forced to step aside as they restrained Suzuki and dragged him away.
Lloyd returned to Makoto and the others, helping them lift the bags while watching the man struggle helplessly in the distance.
He couldn't help but think,
"To stay dear in the eyes of the people..."
"Who could that be?"
"It has to be them. I'm sure of it now," he thought. "But is it just simple puppetry to keep up their support... or are they after something else?"
"I guess it's up to you two to find out."