Chapter 11: Chapter 11: Crime Never Sleeps
Castelia City Police Station
Hugo and Officer Jenny waited idly for the interrogation to end.
Although there weren't many officers present during the evening's arrest operation, the night shift at the station was unusually crowded.
It didn't take a detective's keen eye to notice that all the officers were utterly exhausted, ready to collapse at any moment. Many of them had bandages wrapped around their arms and were busy spraying medicine on their Pokémon's injuries.
Anyone familiar with the place would recognize it as the Castelia Police Station, but to outsiders, it might look more like a temporary Pokémon Center for trauma cases.
"Were all today's cases this intense?" Hugo suppressed the urge to complain about the lack of manpower during the arrest of a murderer.
Finally, the interrogation for the incineration case was over.
A middle-aged officer in charge of interrogating the female delinquent walked out of the room, brimming with excitement. He hurried toward Officer Jenny and, with heartfelt gratitude, clasped her hands.
"The case unfolded exactly as you predicted, Officer Jenny! At first, the suspect wouldn't admit to anything, but thanks to your deductions, we had already gathered the full set of evidence. When we used the fingerprints collected from it to demand an explanation, her psychological defenses quickly collapsed, and she confessed to everything!"
The officer shook Jenny's hands enthusiastically, clearly impressed by the junior officer from the security division.
"I never imagined someone as skilled at solving cases was hidden among us. This case was so complex that even my team would've taken at least a week to figure it out, let alone capture the perpetrator. You've done us all a tremendous service—truly worthy of being part of the Jenny family!"
"No, actually, the reasoning was done by a detective I hired—" Jenny tried to explain.
But it was a futile effort.
"I get it, I get it," the officer said, cutting her off. "You don't want to ride on your family's coattails to rise in rank. You're trying to earn recognition through your own merit—how admirable! But even so, there's no need to give the credit to some private detective. Those outsiders wouldn't know real reasoning if it hit them in the face."
"No, I really—" Jenny stammered, struggling to argue. "Hugo, come over here and explain! Wait, where is he?"
The detective in the white coat, who had been quietly lingering by her side, was nowhere to be seen.
That didn't make sense. Someone like him would normally stick to her like gum on a shoe until the payment for the case was settled.
Could it be that the overwhelming presence of officers at the station had finally gotten to him? Like a Snorunt caught in midday sun, had he slunk off to a dark corner to hide?
After managing to shake off the overenthusiastic officer, Jenny began searching for the detective throughout the crowded station.
Not in the interrogation room. Not in the waiting area. Had he left the station entirely?
She tried calling Hugo's phone, but there was no answer.
"What's going on? How does someone just disappear under the watchful eyes of so many officers?"
With no other options, Jenny prepared to use her last resort to find him: summoning her Zebstrika in the restroom and having it comb the station using a combination of Plasma Shower and Screech.
Just as she turned toward the restroom, Jenny stopped in her tracks, rubbed her eyes in disbelief, and then rubbed them again.
In one of the station's offices, a few officers from a different division were gathered in a circle, discussing the day's cases. That wasn't the surprising part.
In the middle of their circle sat a young man with messy black hair, draped in what appeared to be a borrowed police jacket. He lounged comfortably in a single-seater sofa, nodding earnestly at their discussion and occasionally chiming in with comments. He seemed to have even assumed the role of a pseudo-leader within the group!
Jenny's anger boiled over. She barged through the crowd, grabbed the fake officer by the back of his collar, and dragged him out of the office.
Once they reached a secluded corridor in the station, Jenny glared at Hugo and demanded answers.
"Hugo! Instead of helping me explain the case to my superior, why are you running around here impersonating an officer?"
Hugo rubbed his temples, looking pained. "I had no choice! My white coat was way too conspicuous among all these uniformed officers, so I had to borrow a jacket to blend in."
"That ratty coat of yours stands out no matter where you are!" Jenny snapped. "And blending in isn't an excuse for impersonating an officer! What's next—are you going to claim you're a Kecleon from the Hoenn region?"
"Let's not dwell on the coat. Let's settle the payment for my services instead," Hugo said cheerfully, shifting the topic.
"Don't act so excited about collecting fees! It's annoying for the person paying!" Jenny shot back. "Now, explain what you've been up to!"
"The unidentified corpse case—2,000 Pokedollars. The urgent capture of the suspect—an additional 200. That brings us to 2,200 Pokedollars. I accept electronic payments. Thank you for your patronage!"
Hugo's "Detective Agency" was now open for business, completely ignoring Jenny's interrogation.
"Don't ignore my questions! And do you really have a price list for every crime imaginable?"
"Not exactly. It's more of an intuition thing. This case felt like it was worth 22 servings of Castelia Ice Cream."
"Don't use my favorite local treat as your unit of measurement!"
"Since it's you, Officer Jenny, I'll round it down to 2,199 Pokedollars."
"I'm only worth one Pokedollar to you? Do you want a fight? I'll have Zebstrika assist me!"
"Unbelievable—resorting to Pokémon to settle things! Looks like you learned something from today's murderer." Hugo scowled in mock dismay.
"If I accidentally end up killing you, I'll make sure to incinerate the evidence and dump you in the sewer, Mr. Hugo," Jenny retorted.
Just as Jenny was pulling out her wallet to pay him, Hugo suddenly said something cryptic:
"There's no rush to settle the payment just yet. You might want to hire me for another job."
"What job? Catching a suspicious man in a white coat who's infiltrated the police station?" Jenny quipped, still in sarcasm mode.
In the dimly lit corridor, Hugo's gray eyes sparkled. "Haven't you noticed how unusual the station's personnel shifts have been all day—no, all month?"
Jenny frowned, reflecting on his words.
"Now that you mention it, yes. Before the incineration case came in, multiple groups of officers were already dispatched to mediate disputes between trainers. On their way, they encountered malicious battles and couldn't return in time. That's why we were so short-staffed during the arrest, nearly letting the Liepard and the suspect escape the hospital."
"Allow me to share the intel I gathered while 'blending in' with the officers," Hugo said, leaning casually against the stair railing and raising a finger. "It starts with the female suspect's motive for murder."
Jenny nodded, ready to listen.
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