“Lately, every time I come home, the furniture has been moved around, and I’ve been receiving these bizarre, inexplicable photos in the mail.
There are silent phone calls every single day…
It’s truly terrifying.”
This was what Okino Yoko told Mouri Kogorou when she sought him out.
Upon learning that his beloved idol was being stalked by some unknown creep, Kogorou flew into an uncharacteristic rage.
He immediately accepted the commission and accompanied Yoko back to her apartment to conduct a secret investigation.
Seeing her father acting like an unreliable, starstruck fanboy, Ran felt incredibly uneasy.
Using the excuse that she wanted to see an idol’s room, she tagged along, naturally refusing to leave Conan home alone.
But the moment Yoko opened her front door, she let out a piercing scream.
“So, this man was already dead when you returned?”
After rushing to the scene, Inspector Megure first took photographs of the corpse on the floor before turning to question Yoko and the others.
“Yes, he was already dead right here when we got back,” Yoko said.
“Do any of you recognize the deceased?” Inspector Megure asked.
“Let me take a look first.”
Yamagishi Eiichi glanced at the body, his pupils shrinking slightly.
In his momentary lapse of attention, he slipped on a puddle of water on the floor and face-planted directly onto the corpse.
Scrambling off the dead man, Yamagishi said, “I don’t know him.
Yoko, you don’t know him either, right?”
Yoko nodded.
Inspector Megure asked, “Do you have a spare key?”
“Mr.
Yamagishi does have a spare key,” Yoko replied.
“Then the killer is definitely you, Yamagishi Eiichi!” Kogorou declared.
“It’s not me!”
Yamagishi threw his hands up in a panic, flustered.
“I did have a spare key, but I lost it a few days ago.”
His eyes darted away evasively.
He had lost his spare key right after meeting with Shouichi.
Yoko seemed to realize something as well, her eyes widening in realization.
Conan frowned as he looked back and forth between Yoko and Yamagishi.
He had a nagging feeling that they were hiding something.
While investigating the apartment, Conan and the police uncovered several clues.
They brought in fellow idol Ikezawa Yuuko and interrogated her at length.
In her quest to dig up dirt on her rival, Yuuko had familiarized herself with various lock-picking techniques.
When she broke into Yoko’s apartment to snoop, this very man had grabbed her from behind, and it took everything she had to break free and escape.
Furthermore, the victim’s identity had been brought to light.
Yoko personally confessed that he was her ex-boyfriend from high school.
Conan paced around the room, convinced that things weren’t as simple as they seemed.
Putting on his most innocent, childish voice, he asked, “Uncle Yamagishi, why didn’t you change the locks if the spare key was missing for so long?
I remember when my mom lost her key once, she was so scared a bad guy would find it that she changed the lock that very same day.”
Hearing Conan’s words, a flash of inspiration struck Kogorou’s brain.
He had figured out the truth.
“So the killer really is you after all!
You definitely murdered him, dumped the body in Miss Yoko’s apartment to frame her, and made up that whole lie about losing the spare key, didn’t you?” Kogorou yelled, grabbing Yamagishi by the collar.
Yamagishi cried out, feeling deeply wronged.
“I didn’t!”
“If you didn’t, then why didn’t you remind Miss Yoko to change her locks?”
“Because I didn’t think anyone would pick it up!
And even if someone did, there’s no way they could trace it back to this apartment!” Yamagishi pleaded.
Kogorou roared, “You think I’d believe that kind of nonsense?”
Pushed to his limit, Yamagishi’s face twisted in a struggle before he gritted his teeth and blurted out, “Yoko and I only realized the key was missing after we met with Young Master Shouichi!
I assumed he was the one who picked it up, which is why…”
“So what if he picked it up?
Couldn’t you just ask for it back?” Kogorou demanded.
Yamagishi shot a glance at Ran and Conan.
*’Are you sure you want me to spell it out so clearly in front of your daughter and son?’*
Kogorou seemed to connect the dots as well, instantly flying into a towering rage.
“The killer is definitely Sumitomo Shouichi!” he declared furiously.
“Inspector Megure, bring that bastard here immediately!
He is absolutely the murderer!”
Inspector Megure wiped the sweat beading on his forehead and said, “Mouri, my boy, don’t let your emotions cloud your judgment.
Mr.
Shouichi has absolutely no motive to commit a murder in Miss Yoko’s apartment.
Speaking of which, is the AC in this apartment always set this high?”
“He is definitely the killer!” Kogorou continued to roar.
This left Yamagishi completely dumbfounded.
*’Didn’t the rumors say Mouri Kogorou was Young Master Shouichi’s lackey?
Why is he suddenly biting the hand that feeds him?’*
Yamagishi felt a deep sense of unease.
Sitting on the sofa, Yuuko remarked in a ghostly, mocking tone, “Miss Okino Yoko truly lives up to her reputation as a famous female idol.
When Young Master Shouichi wanted to enter the entertainment industry, you were the very first person he sought out.
It’s a pity you rejected him.
Though, now that a scandal like this has happened, I doubt Young Master Shouichi will have any interest in you anymore.”
Kogorou’s spirits flared up again, and he shouted loudly,
“Doesn’t that give him a motive?
That guy was definitely humiliated and enraged after being rejected by Miss Yoko!
So he murdered her high school boyfriend just to intimidate her!
After all, that guy has a track record of this exact kind of thing!”
Inspector Megure stared at Kogorou, utterly speechless.
*’Don’t just spout nonsense, you idiot.’*
The murderer in Miss Yotsui Reika’s death was clearly Ichieda Takashi.
*’You were the one who solved that case yourself!
What, are you going to overturn your own deduction just to pin the blame on Shouichi?’*
“Go summon Shouichi,” Inspector Megure said to Satou.
It was already getting late, and at this hour, he wasn’t even sure if the guy would be willing to show up.
Meanwhile, at Shouichi’s house.
Shouichi was currently tutoring Ai with her homework.
Ai’s pen flew across the paper.
She just wanted to finish as quickly as possible so she wouldn’t have to spend another second with this guy.
“Ding-dong!”
“Coming.”
“Hello, I am Satou Miwako.
You are connected to an ongoing case.
Please cooperate and come with us for the investigation,” Satou said expressionlessly.
This guy absolutely refused to show up for a phone summons; he practically demanded a private chauffeur to pick him up.
Inspector Megure really had an endless amount of patience for him.
As long as he was willing to come, dispatching a police officer to fetch him was perfectly fine.
“Give me a second.”
Shouichi returned to the living room and said to Ai, “Stop doing your homework.
The chauffeur is here.
Let me take you out to get something to eat.”
Ai tilted her head in utter bewilderment.
The living room wasn’t far from the front door.
She had been eavesdropping the whole time.
Wasn’t the person at the door a police officer?
When did they turn into a chauffeur?
Standing at the door, Satou’s face darkened with thick black lines of annoyance.
*’Since when did I become your personal chauffeur, you bastard?!’*
After pulling Ai along and settling into the backseat of the police car, Shouichi casually told Satou, “Take us to the Beika Hotel, please.”