Chapter 22
“Ha…”
Chase scoffed, as if to say, ‘As expected,’ and whispered while watching the back of the Director’s secretary who was just leaving.
“Well, if I had really intended to kill you, I would have secretly punctured the air cushion.”
It was an inappropriate remark for an investigator, but it was clearly a joke. Chase would have known that even if he punctured the air cushion laid out in the garden, it would be discovered from the moment air was pumped in.
“Tsk…”
Chase suddenly burst into laughter. Then, he folded the newspaper and fanned himself with it, his face flushed.
I know why he’s acting like this. He’s recalling the commotion that happened on top of the air cushion that night.
“Let go of me!”
Even with handcuffs on, Thieving Crow did not readily submit to the arrest.
“Hmph!”
She suddenly pulled out a kitchen knife from thin air and swung it.
Thwack!
The next moment, something unbelievable happened again. A solid iron chain was cut with a single swing of the kitchen knife.
Thieving Crow tried to escape by cutting the handcuffs that bound Raven’s wrists and her own together.
Do you think I’d let you escape?
Raven immediately grabbed the woman’s legs, who was on top of him, and flipped them over.
The positions changed in an instant. Even as she was pinned beneath him, the woman instinctively moved the kitchen knife away. So as not to graze Raven’s neck.
She doesn’t want to be arrested, but she dislikes hurting her enemy even more?
Humans are complex creatures, but Raven had never seen a human as complex as her.
“Ah, you’re heavy. Get off!”
Even as she swung the kitchen knife as a threat, if the blade was about to truly graze Raven, she would instinctively dodge it herself. So, how could it be a threat?
Clang.
The knife, finally snatched away by Raven, was thrown far off.
“Hnnngh!”
Still, Thieving Crow didn’t give up and tried to stomp on Raven’s legs with her knees.
As he dodged, creating a brief opening, the woman turned her body and began to crawl out of the cushion.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“Where are you grabbing? Let go!”
He grabbed the ankle of the fleeing woman and pulled. The woman, who was dragged back in an instant, was flipped onto her stomach. As he held both her wrists behind her back, he realized he didn’t have spare handcuffs.
“Damn it…”
He had no choice but to quickly tie her wrists with the necktie he’d taken off his own neck.
Yet, Chase watched all of this unfold without helping. After the situation concluded, when Raven said something, Chase only spouted insane remarks.
“I thought it would be an even stranger picture if there were three of us involved.”
A madman.
Even now, days later, Chase would bring up that insane remark whenever he had the chance.
“It felt like I’d peeked at a fiery lovers’ quarrel, my face is still burning.”
To compare the physical struggle between a criminal and a police officer to a lovers’ quarrel. What a level.
Raven glared, but Chase didn’t stop his annoying fanning. He even went a step further.
“It’s a joke. Smile a little.”
It wasn’t even a laughing matter, and even if it had been a genuinely funny joke, Raven was in no position to laugh.
“You should laugh when things are like this.”
He knew that, yet he was deliberately taunting her. However, ignoring him was the best response Raven could manage.
The reason Chase acted like a victor despite losing the confrontation was the same reason Raven, despite winning, was no different from a loser.
Because Raven’s subordinate was the criminal.
“My… a wanted criminal worked at the Police Bureau, and in the very unit that was in charge of me. Claire is truly a bold woman. No wonder her fans are going wild.”
With no one around, he was now openly calling Thieving Crow Claire. This was also an attempt to provoke, but Raven had no words.
The Police Bureau was ashamed of being infiltrated by a criminal, and the Central Investigation Bureau found the Police Bureau pathetic.
And the higher-ups were troubled.
It was a major scandal that would increase distrust in the government and cost many officials their heads, so directives came down from the central and city governments.
Do not reveal the suspect’s identity or face.
As it was an order from the higher-ups, everyone kept their mouths shut. Even Chase, who would have relished Raven’s public humiliation more than anyone.
Of course, he didn’t keep his mouth shut in front of Raven.
“The identity of Thieving Crow… you’ll get hurt if you know?”
Chase rummaged through the newspaper, picked one up, and read the headline aloud as if to make sure he heard it.
“I will get hurt. Inspector Raven Hunt of the Eden City Police Bureau.”
While it was the Police Bureau’s responsibility, it was natural that Raven, as the criminal’s direct superior, bore the greatest responsibility.
“The fall of Thieving Crow…”
This time, Chase read another newspaper article.
“And the rise of Raven Hunt.”
This too was mockery. This arrest wasn't Raven Hunt’s rise, but his downfall. Raven had fallen along with Thieving Crow that day.
“Tsk, there’s an error in the article. Forget a special promotion, I can’t even dream of a regular promotion from now on… Isn’t that right, Inspector for life?”
He had never wanted special promotions or advancements, nor did he need them. All Raven wanted was to remain a police officer and walk the path of atonement for the rest of his life.
He was a hero, yet a traitor. Even when he caught a criminal, he was a sinner.
Every time he apprehended a notorious criminal, everyone called him a hero and showered him with praise, but Raven always privately called himself a traitor and a sinner.
But this time, others saw him as a traitor and a sinner too.
“Director.”
The Director’s cold gaze, as he had just entered, was proof of this.
“Mr. Hopeless.”
Mr. Hopeless, accompanied by his secretary, entered, following the Director. Hopeless did not return Raven’s greeting and passed by, glaring at him.
Hopeless, who doesn’t know Thieving Crow’s identity, glaring coldly at Raven must be because he sees Raven as the enemy who put the woman he adores in prison.
“If the lady wishes it, I must give it to her.”
It had been unusual from the moment Hopeless, two days after receiving the warning, met Raven and happily fiddled with the ring made of the problematic diamond, saying those words.
“You mean you’ll give it to her…?”
“I intend to propose to her. I have no intention of inviting the police to my engagement ceremony, so please leave.”
To marry a criminal and chase away the police. The rumors that Hopeless had gone mad because of the cursed diamond were starting to seem believable.
The police were indeed unwelcome guests for Hopeless. After all, it was his butler, not himself, who had reported the warning.
“I will not interfere. Propose. However, the moment she refuses your proposal and steals the ring, that lady will be a suspect, not a bride.”
Raven persuaded Hopeless, who was reluctant to cooperate with the police, with the promise not to interfere. Although it seemed like a concession, what Hopeless was trying to do was not entirely disadvantageous to Raven.
It would serve as a smokescreen, preventing them from noticing the trap he had set.
And Hopeless played that role perfectly.
Today’s meeting was to express gratitude to Hopeless for cooperating with the arrest operation. As everyone sat in the Director’s office, the Director offered his thanks.
“We were able to catch the thief who had been active for ten years thanks to Mr. Hopeless’s active cooperation. From our Police Bureau to the central government, we express our sincere gratitude to Mr. Hopeless.”
Throughout the expression of gratitude, Hopeless wore a displeased expression. The Director glanced at the fist-sized blue bruise on his left cheek and added,
“We are very sorry for the unexpected injury sustained during the cooperation process.”
Sorry. It meant regrettable, but not our responsibility.
It was fortunate that Raven had obtained a waiver in advance stating that the Police Bureau would not be responsible even if Hopeless sustained injuries during the arrest operation.
Still, he had thought it would be a mere formality, so he was surprised when an injury actually occurred.
The reason he felt no guilt was likely because it was all brought about by Hopeless himself.
‘I clearly warned her not to make physical contact with the criminal.’
Thieving Crow, who only resorted to violence when absolutely necessary while evading the police, would never strike a civilian. If she had done so, it was clear that he had done something to provoke her.
