When the officer arrived at the scene, he found both vehicles burned down to their skeletal frames, twisted and deformed beyond recognition. However, judging from the two charred remains inside the wreckage, the victims appeared to have died instantly without suffering.
The officer immediately had his team establish a perimeter and ordered onlookers to clear the area. In truth, protecting the scene was largely pointless—the ground had been trampled first by those fighting the fire, then again by the Mid Night club members. Any meaningful evidence had long since been destroyed.
Still, setting up the cordon was standard procedure.
Although he suspected the accident victims were from prominent families, the officer needed to confirm their identities officially. He called out:
"Does anyone know who the two people in the cars were?"
Neither the Mid Night club members nor the Midnight Racing Team responded. Conan started to speak up but was quickly silenced by Gustave's restraining hand.
Finally, Tsukiko stepped forward:
"The accident victims were Takuya Fujiwara, second son of Fujiwara Group's president, driving a modified Dodge Viper SRT. The other was Hajime Saionji, second son of Senate Speaker Saionji, driving a modified Pagani Zonda F."
Officer Maeda realized immediately that this was far beyond his authority level. The son of a major corporate leader and a high-ranking politician—this required immediate escalation. He pulled out his cell phone.
"Hello, Chief?"
"Maeda, it's three in the morning! You woke me up for this. If you can't give me a damn good explanation, you know what the consequences will be."
Gustave, standing nearby, could hear every word clearly. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's Traffic Bureau Chief was obviously furious, but his anger would soon turn to ice-cold dread.
"Chief, I'm calling about a traffic accident on the Metropolitan Expressway, location Hakozaki PA. Two fatalities—Takuya Fujiwara and Hajime Saionji. Both deceased."
The moment Officer Maeda finished speaking, there was a crash from the other end of the line, as if something had been dropped.
"Chief? Chief?"
Maeda called out several times before hearing a trembling response:
"The two people you're talking about—that's Takuya Fujiwara, second son of the Fujiwara family head, and Hajime Saionji, second son of Senate Speaker Saionji?"
As a senior official in the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, the Traffic Bureau Chief had to be familiar with the children of high-ranking politicians and corporate leaders. Otherwise, if his subordinates accidentally offended one of them, he'd be the one making apologies.
"Chief, I'm certain of the identification. The information came directly from Tsukiko, son of National Police Agency Commissioner."
"It's over. We're finished. Completely finished..."
The Traffic Bureau Chief felt like the sky was falling. He swore this was the most helpless moment of his entire career.
"Chief, what are my orders? I've secured the scene."
"Maeda, maintain that perimeter at all costs! I'm calling Deputy Commissioner Moroboshi and Superintendent Hakuba immediately. We'll be there as fast as possible."
From the voice coming through the phone, Gustave could practically visualize the unfortunate Traffic Bureau Chief frantically wiping sweat while trying to maintain composure.
After hanging up, Officer Maeda released a heavy sigh. What a nightmare situation. This incident would definitely cost several people in the Traffic Bureau their careers.
After a few minutes, Maeda approached Tsukiko:
"Mr. Tsukiko, did anyone witness or record the accident?"
Hearing this, Tsukiko turned and called out:
"Sato! Have your TV station people bring over all the live broadcast footage and turn it over to the police!"
"Right away."
Officer Maeda felt his headache intensify. Obviously, this Sato was the son of some television station director. Moreover, the entire event had been recorded live—this could be career suicide for him. Still, having video evidence was actually beneficial. Even with the physical evidence destroyed, they could analyze the footage to determine the accident's cause.
While waiting for the video footage, Maeda noticed the massive crowd and vehicle blockade choking the highway. He addressed Tsukiko again:
"Mr. Tsuki, could you help disperse the crowd and vehicles? Otherwise, it'll be impossible for us to conduct our investigation."
Tsukiko considered this briefly, then turned to address the crowd:
"Everyone, let's clear out and make some room!"
But the Mid Night club members didn't respond to his request. Instead, someone called back:
"No! We're staying until Fujiwara and Saionji are properly taken care of!"
Then other voices joined in:
"That's right! We're not leaving until they're properly honored!"
"We stay until Fujiwara and Saionji are taken care of!"
Now even Tsukiko found himself in an impossible position. Takuya Fujiwara and Hajime Saionjicommanded tremendous respect within the Mid Night club. Even with his father's position as National Police Agency Commissioner, he wouldn't normally challenge the group's solidarity.
Officer Maeda faced an even worse dilemma. He couldn't forcibly disperse this collection of elite young men the way he would handle ordinary citizens. He needed another approach. Suddenly, inspiration struck, and he stepped in front of the crowd:
"Everyone, I understand your feelings about Fujiwara and Saionji, and I won't force you to leave. However, if you block the road, our Metropolitan Police Department vehicles can't get through, and we won't be able to properly recover their remains!"
After hearing Maeda's heartfelt appeal, murmurs rippled through the crowd. Finally, someone responded:
"Alright, we'll make space for you!"
Immediately, the Mid Night members began moving toward their vehicles. Gustave also returned to his Aston Martin and joined the repositioning effort. Within minutes, they had cleared a two-lane corridor.
Seeing this development, Officer Maeda finally allowed himself to breathe easier. Apparently, appealing to these car-loving young men's emotions was the key to cooperation.
Shortly after the vehicles were moved, a convoy of police cars arrived with lights flashing. Among them were two black Lexus LS sedans carrying the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's top brass—Deputy Commissioner Moroboshi and Superintendent Hakuba.
The moment these two officials had received the Traffic Bureau Chief's call, they'd leaped out of bed and mobilized numerous senior Metropolitan Police Department officials. This incident was potentially catastrophic.
As soon as Deputy Commissioner Moroboshi and Superintendent Hakuba stepped out of their vehicles, they surveyed the crowd surrounding the accident scene. They recognized this group—elite young men from various powerful families, unified by their common backgrounds of overseas education in Europe and America. This shared experience also explained their preference for high-performance European and American imports.
Deputy Commissioner Moroboshi and Superintendent Hakuba exchanged knowing looks. The inevitable had finally arrived. The Metropolitan Police Department was about to experience a major upheaval.