None of the spectators in the stands behind them noticed that someone had just been shot twice and collapsed.
The fans were too engrossed in the game, ignoring everything else around them.
"That makes things easier."
Miwako ended the call and let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Not long after, three fellow officers arrived carrying a stretcher.
"Officer Sato."
"Yeah. Get him out of here quickly. Don't let the crowd notice what happened. It could cause mass panic."
This wasn't the place to talk. The fact that a gunman had been inside the stadium had to be kept under wraps. Letting the public see a corpse dragged out would only trigger chaos beyond imagination.
The officers all nodded. Wearing gloves, they carefully placed the gunman's body onto the stretcher. After securing it with straps, two officers took point while the other two carried it away discreetly through the crowd.
In reality, the audience hadn't noticed that what was being carried was a corpse. And even if someone had, they probably assumed it was a staff member who collapsed. The next moment, their attention was back on the game.
Outside the stadium, in a corridor away from the spectators, Inspector Megure and several officers were waiting.
As soon as the group arrived with the stretcher, Megure rushed over.
The stretcher was set down, the straps undone, and Megure opened the man's coat. Sure enough, the dead suspect's hand still gripped a handgun under his arm, ready to fire at any time.
"Phew... We finally found him."
Megure let out a long breath. Seeing the gun still in the corpse's grasp, he realized that if he hadn't allowed Miwako to act independently, the situation might have spiraled into a disaster.
"Nice work, Officer Sato."
Relaxing just a bit, Megure praised Miwako's solo operation.
"If you hadn't found the suspect, this could've turned into something completely uncontrollable."
As for the now-dead armed criminal, there was no issue.
The fact that he was armed and ready to harm civilians was more than enough justification for the use of lethal force.
His death wouldn't cause any legal problems.
"Not at all. This was all thanks to your leadership, Inspector Megure."
Miwako stood at attention and shifted the credit away from herself. Then she gave Megure a playful wink.
Megure blinked, then quickly understood her meaning. He let out a helpless sigh.
"Not that it'll get me promoted anyway."
As a non-career track officer, Megure knew that reaching the rank of inspector was his limit. No matter the merit, further advancement was unlikely unless he gave his life in the line of duty.
The same was true for Miwako. As a fellow non-career officer, she had just been promoted. Even with more achievements, there was nowhere left to go up.
Looking around at the rest of his subordinates, Megure sighed again. Clearly, no one else could take the credit either.
"We'll talk about the rest later. Get the body back for further investigation. Chiba."
Chiba, who had been waiting nearby, stepped forward.
"The other suspect who fled earlier is being tracked, right?"
"Six of our guys are on him. Three made it look like they lost him. The other three have tailed him to his temporary hideout."
"Good. Move in. Don't wait any longer."
Megure gave the order to proceed with the arrest.
The five hundred million yen handed over earlier couldn't just be written off.
Just because the police had no choice but to release one suspect didn't mean they had no way of capturing him.
Splitting the surveillance team was standard. The visible tailing team existed to distract the suspect and make him careless, letting the hidden team follow without being noticed.
This was exactly why they had a backup plan in case the armed suspect was killed before they could extract information.
"Leave one team here to keep coordinating with the event organizers. Then—"
"Inspector Megure, I'll stay behind."
Miwako stepped forward to volunteer.
The officer left behind would handle follow-up. Mostly, that meant explaining the situation to the event organizers and scheduling a time for them to visit the station for statements.
But being left behind also meant not being part of the official merit list. The most prestigious position was at the front lines.
Miwako's volunteer effort made her stance clear.
"...Alright then. Officer Sato will stay here and keep in touch with the organizers. Everyone else, return to HQ."
Since Miwako insisted, Megure had no choice but to agree.
And so, the two suspects who had threatened an entire stadium were taken care of without the public knowing anything.
The police left with the suspect's body, but they had much more work ahead of them.
Only Miwako remained at the stadium.
After watching her colleagues leave, she finally pulled out her phone.
[Miwako: Situation on my side is resolved.]
[Ren: I saw it. I gotta say, sharper than I expected, especially the part where you shot him in the head.]
Miwako rolled her eyes at the message.
[Miwako: If I shot his head first, the bullet might've passed through and hit the field. A hit to a lower vital point is more effective at disabling. Even then, he almost managed to draw his gun.]
[Ren: Adrenaline... The human body has some amazing responses. Match still has about 20 minutes left. Are you heading back already?]
[Miwako: Nah. I just got promoted, so no need to go back and claim credit. I gave it to Inspector Megure. I'm staying to coordinate with the organizers and schedule their trip to the station for statements.]
[Ren: Since you're still here, want to come up? There are some things you should hear.]
[Miwako: Location?]
[Ren: VIP room on the top floor. Take the elevator. I'll be waiting at the entrance.]
[Miwako: OK.]
With that final message, Miwako put away her phone.
She already knew where that elevator was.
(To be continued.)