"They played me for a fool, so why can't I kill them!"
Ishikawa Kiyoto's eyes were bloodshot, his voice hoarse and exhausted as he questioned the world. It was like a heavy hammer blow, instantly plunging the scene into a deathly silence.
Hayashi Shuichi was also rendered speechless. He had initially thought this was a simple case of a cuckold killing the adulterous couple in revenge, but he hadn't expected Ishikawa Kiyoto's situation to be far more tragic than he imagined.
"After killing them and fleeing, I threw everything else into the river, except for this ring."
Ishikawa Kiyoto laughed miserably, his trembling fingers rubbing the ring. Tears slid down his cheeks, dripping onto the metal band.
"Several times I wanted to throw it away, but in the end, I gave up..."
"...No matter what, you shouldn't kill people!" Inspector Samezaki coughed dryly. "Since you've killed someone, you must bear the consequences. Take him away."
Two officers stepped forward, skillfully handcuffing Ishikawa Kiyoto.
The moment the cold metal locked onto his wrists, Ishikawa Kiyoto seemed to lose all his strength, stumbling as he was escorted into the police car.
"Sigh, to think such things happen," Officer Morimura sighed, his eyes full of emotion and lament. "Marriage..."
There was a hint of confusion in his voice, as if he had new thoughts on the word 'marriage'.
"Hey, don't overthink it!"
Inspector Samezaki patted Officer Morimura firmly on the shoulder.
"Women like Ishikawa Kyoko are ultimately a minority."
"I know, it's just that my feelings are a bit complicated," Officer Morimura shook his head. "Marriage is supposed to be a major event in life, but seeing such a tragedy inevitably makes one feel uneasy."
"Don't let this give you pre-wedding jitters," Inspector Samezaki teased amusedly. "Ms. Shinkawa is a good woman; don't let her down."
"Haha, how could I," Officer Morimura blushed, scratching his head in embarrassment.
"Pre-wedding jitters?" Hayashi Shuichi asked curiously. "Officer Morimura is getting married? Didn't you just get a girlfriend?"
"Actually, Waka and I have known each other for a long time."
Officer Morimura's gaze softened. Recalling the past with his girlfriend, the smile on his lips grew gentler.
"We were high school classmates and have been very good friends all these years. But it wasn't until two months ago that I finally worked up the courage to confess my feelings to her."
"I was originally worried Waka would reject me. I didn't expect her first reaction would be to tell me angrily that she had been waiting for this day for over ten years."
"Only then did I realize that the reason Waka hadn't married or dated anyone was actually because of me."
"Hayashi-kun, don't learn from this kid," Inspector Samezaki laughed heartily. "If he had confessed earlier, his child would probably be starting elementary school by now."
"Because I realized I had already delayed Waka for so many years, I wanted to get married sooner," Officer Morimura said full of anticipation. "Waka also agreed to my proposal. Our wedding date is set for next month."
"Congratulations," Hayashi Shuichi offered his sincere blessings. "I hope your life after marriage will be happy and fulfilling."
"Thank you," Officer Morimura showed a happy smile.
Gunma, the village where the film crew was located.
Under the starlit night sky, Yukiko was sitting alone on a large rock at the village entrance, sulking. She had been severely scolded by the director earlier for being distracted during filming.
"Damn it! It's not enough that Orikasa Midori came to the shop, now even my seat at school has been taken by someone else!"
Yukiko angrily pulled up a handful of wild grass and threw it forward with force.
The grass swirled and drifted down in mid-air. The girl suddenly felt a surge of loneliness in her heart.
Apart from her, everyone else in the crew was an adult.
Although she was extroverted and got along well with everyone, those were just work relationships.
Now that she had troubles, she didn't even have a friend to confide in.
"Shuichi and Hiromi aren't here. Even that Meganekko (glasses girl) would be fine!"
Yukiko muttered softly, then shook her head angrily.
"No! That annoying Meganekko... if she hadn't told me a transfer student came to the class and took my seat, I wouldn't have been distracted during filming earlier!"
"Meganekko definitely did it on purpose. She just wants to annoy me!"
While complaining, Yukiko picked up a small pebble beside her and threw it hard toward the woods ahead.
The pebble hit a tree with a thud.
Immediately after, a little boy's dissatisfied shout came from the woods: "Who threw the rock!"
"Sorry, are you okay?"
Yukiko was startled, thinking she had hit someone, and hurriedly ran over to apologize.
She saw a little boy wearing a straw hat and a red vest, holding a flashlight, walk out from behind a tree. It was Yamamura Misao, a child Yukiko had met in the village.
"Yukiko-neechan?" Yamamura Misao complained angrily. "I was catching rhinoceros beetles. I finally found a big one on that tree over there and was just about to catch it, but the rock you threw scared it away!"
"I'm sorry," Yukiko gave a dry laugh. "Neechan didn't mean to. Anyway, as long as it didn't hit you, that's good."
"Yukiko-neechan, did you get dumped or something?" Yamamura Misao looked up and asked curiously. "Is that why you're throwing rocks to vent?"
"What nonsense are you talking about! I didn't get dumped!" Yukiko gritted her teeth in anger, her fair cheeks flushing red. "Kids shouldn't make random guesses!"
"Really?" Yamamura Misao scratched his head. "Little Hiro told me before that after girls get dumped, they like to take it out on things around them, throwing and smashing stuff."
Yukiko didn't want to discuss this issue anymore and hurriedly changed the subject: "Hiromitsu? Why haven't I seen that kid coming to play with you these past two days?"
"Little Hiro hasn't been in a good mood lately," Yamamura Misao said with some concern. "A few days ago, his school went on a field trip. A girl in his class who often played with him suddenly got 'tail inflammation' sickness. Although she was sent to the hospital, she still died."
"Tail inflammation? Since when do humans have tails?" Yukiko tilted her head in confusion, then suddenly realized. "You mean appendicitis, right? Acute appendicitis is indeed very dangerous."
"I think that's the name," Yamamura Misao nodded. "Little Hiro has been sad for her lately. I'm catching rhinoceros beetles just to give to him, to make him a little happier."
"Passed away at such a young age..."
A wave of emotion surged in Yukiko's heart. Compared to that little girl who had suddenly passed away, her own little troubles really didn't amount to anything.
"I've been catching them for most of the day," Yamamura Misao looked at the woods regretfully. "I don't know if I can still catch such a big rhinoceros beetle."
"It's okay, Neechan will help you. When I was little, I was the Bug Catching King of the village!"
To make up for her mistake, Yukiko hurriedly patted her chest.
"Wait here for a moment. I'll go back and get a flashlight right now. Tonight, I will definitely help you catch a super big rhinoceros beetle!"
Early the next morning, Hayashi Shuichi yawned as he walked into the classroom and sat down.
Two banknotes were slapped onto his desk with a snap.
"Found your wallet?" Hayashi Shuichi asked casually.
"Hmph hmph, look at what this is?"
Koizumi Akane looked triumphant. She took out a pink wallet from her pocket and waved it in front of Hayashi Shuichi.
"After I went home last night, I used my crystal ball for divination and discovered that after someone picked up the wallet, they sent it to the security office at the gate."
"After arriving at school this morning, I immediately went there, and sure enough, I found the wallet!"
"How about it? I didn't lie to you, did I? Is my divination very accurate?"
The girl's voice was full of pride and confidence, as if waiting for Hayashi Shuichi's praise.
Hayashi Shuichi looked speechlessly at the smug Koizumi Akane, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly. "What kind of divination is that?"
"If something lost in school is picked up by a student, it's usually sent to the security office. There's a lost and found there!"
"You didn't tell me that yesterday!" Koizumi Akane was stunned.
"Did I not?" Hayashi Shuichi waved his hand. "I probably forgot, but asking other people would have been the same."
"I didn't ask anyone else! I really found the wallet through divination," Koizumi Akane glared angrily, her eyes wide. "Do you still not believe I can divine? I brought my divination cards today! Name something, and I'll divine it for you right now."
Hayashi Shuichi couldn't dissuade her. "Then divine what I encountered after ten o'clock last night."
"Last night at ten o'clock..."
Koizumi Akane's expression turned solemn as she earnestly shuffled the divination cards in her hand.
Then she had Hayashi Shuichi randomly draw three cards, and she carefully placed the remaining cards on top of the ones Hayashi Shuichi drew in a specific order.
"How is it? Can you divine where Shuichi went last night?"
Mouri Kogoro came over to join the fun.
Although Kisaki Eri, sitting one seat away, looked disdainful, her pricked-up ears and occasional sidelong glances clearly showed she was also curious about the divination result.
Koizumi Akane fiddled with the divination cards for a long time. Her initially focused expression became increasingly peculiar, and her brows furrowed tightly. "...So strange, why can't I see your fate?"
Hayashi Shuichi lay on the desk, too lazy to care about the divination result. Having worked hard for most of the night, he just wanted to take another nap before class started.
Mouri Kogoro wondered, "What do you mean you can't see it?"
"From the divination results, he is either dead, or shouldn't exist in this world."
Koizumi Akane's exquisite features scrunched up, her eyes full of confusion.
"But this guy clearly exists and is living just fine. How could the divination result be like this?"
"Haha, your divination must be wrong," Mouri Kogoro laughed. "Shuichi is such a big living person, how could he not exist?"
"Tch, Shuichi really wasn't wrong," Kisaki Eri muttered softly. "She really is a little scammer."
"I am not a scammer!" Koizumi Akane bit her lip unconvinced, her eyes full of stubbornness. "Wait until tomorrow when I bring my crystal ball. I'll divine for him again then. I don't believe there will still be no result."
The girl's words were full of fighting spirit; she was determined to prove her ability!
While the three of them were noisy, Hayashi Shuichi, lying on the desk, was secretly alarmed.
Fortunately, he was lying down, so no one saw the complex expression on his face.
The real Hayashi Shuichi had died long ago in the car accident at the age of four.
The current Hayashi Shuichi indeed shouldn't exist originally.
From these two points, Koizumi Akane's divination result was obviously correct.
Does she really know how to divine?
Hayashi Shuichi couldn't help but mutter in his heart, The Conan-verse really is magical.
At this time, Mouri Kogoro also wanted Koizumi Akane to divine for him.
It just so happened that Koizumi Akane also wanted to test if there was something wrong with her divination cards. "What do you want to divine?"
Mouri Kogoro thought for a moment. "Just divine when I will get married, okay?"
"Who is the partner?" Koizumi Akane asked. "Just the name is fine."
"Doigaki Ruri," Mouri Kogoro's face was full of showboating, his voice loud enough for the whole classroom to hear. "She is my girlfriend."
Following the same sequence as she did for Hayashi Shuichi, Koizumi Akane repeated the process.
"How is it?" Mouri Kogoro asked impatiently. "When will Ruri and I get married?"
"...Are you really boyfriend and girlfriend?" Koizumi Akane looked up. "From the divination results, between the fates of you two, not only is there no marital relationship, but you aren't even boyfriend and girlfriend. At most, you are just friends..."
"Impossible!" Mouri Kogoro retorted emotionally. "I've already kissed Ruri, and even touched..."
Halfway through his sentence, Mouri Kogoro realized that most of the classmates were staring at him, faces full of gossip, clearly waiting for him to continue.
"If Ruri finds out what you just said, you're dead," Kisaki Eri reminded him grumpily.
"I was joking, joking!"
Mouri Kogoro felt his face burning. After hastily brushing it off with a few words, he quickly sat down.
Although Mouri Kogoro denied it, Koizumi Akane could tell from his earlier reaction that he didn't accept her divination.
The girl instantly felt unconvinced and reached out to push Hayashi Shuichi's shoulder. "Hey."
Hayashi Shuichi remained motionless, as if asleep.
"Hey!" Koizumi Akane reached out again.
"My name isn't Hey!" Hayashi Shuichi spoke impatiently.
"Hayashi-san!"
"Call me Monitor."
"Monitor!" Koizumi Akane clenched her fists, forcing down her anger as she spoke. "Are Mouri-san and that Doigaki Ruri really dating?"
"Genuine article," Hayashi Shuichi sat up with a sleepy face. "They have been dating for almost a month."
"My divination was wrong again?" Koizumi Akane scratched her hair irritably, her face full of confusion. "How can this be? It was always accurate before."
Mouri Kogoro's fate was changed by me long ago. Her divination being inaccurate wouldn't be because of this reason, right?
Hayashi Shuichi muttered to himself.
Although she missed the mark twice in a row, the classmates, especially the girls, were still very interested in Koizumi Akane's divination.
In the subsequent divinations, the female classmates exclaimed one after another that Koizumi Akane's results were ridiculously accurate.
There's nothing wrong with the divination cards?
Koizumi Akane turned her head in confusion to look at Hayashi Shuichi, who was sleeping on the desk, her eyes full of puzzlement.
So strange. Why is it accurate when divining for others, but wrong when divining for this guy and the people around him?
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