"Inspector Yumitsu, are you saying the police have investigated this man before?" Mori Kogoro frowned, staring intently at the photograph.
If the police already had their eye on him, and he had been spotted at the fourth arson site as well, his suspicion level was off the charts.
"Yes. His name is Takanori Genda," Inspector Yumitsu nodded, his expression grim. "Just as you suspected, he runs an antique shop in Haido Town."
During the first arson case at the Rashin district, Genda was spotted among the crowd of onlookers. As the flames roared, he had been seen muttering strange things to himself, seemingly calling out for his father.
A subsequent investigation revealed that Genda's father had been a firefighter. When Genda was still in elementary school, his father had died in the line of duty, trapped in a burning building while trying to save someone.
"Don't tell me..." Heiji took a sharp breath. "He's doing this because of that?"
"We considered it," Yumitsu said with a sigh. "The theory was that he missed his father so much that he started fires, thinking his father would come flying back to put them out. But frankly, that kind of psychological leap felt a bit thin, even for us."
"So, we have four suspects. Three of them have rock-solid motives for murder, while the antique shop owner feels... off," Tsuneo interjected, speaking between slurps of ramen.
The small shop next to the Metropolitan Police Department really did serve a legendary bowl.
Based on the police reports, the motives were clear for the others. First, there was Akira Morozumi, the victim's husband. A psychiatrist by trade, he had wanted to tear down their villa to build a private hospital, but his wife—the actual owner of the land—had flatly refused. Burning the house down would solve his problem, and if he had discovered her infidelity, he had every reason to want her gone.
Then there was Keiko Gondo, the sister. She was the victim's only living relative. According to their late father's will, she would inherit everything if her sister suffered a fatal 'accident.'
And finally, the Feng Shui Master, Souo Tsugami. As Mrs. Morozumi had explicitly told them, she possessed a videotape of their affair and was using it to blackmail him. Burning the house to destroy the evidence was a classic move.
In contrast, Takanori Genda's motive for arson seemed almost flimsy.
"We should confirm Genda's current location first. Let's bring him in for a chat," Heiji said. Watching Tsuneo eat was starting to make his own stomach growl.
"You guys were the ones who said you weren't hungry earlier," Tsuneo reminded them, noticing Heiji's lingering gaze on his noodles. These detectives were far too absorbed in the case to remember their basic needs.
Inspector Yumitsu dialled the number for Genda's antique shop. "He was at the shop around five o'clock and then went home?"
"Yes," the clerk on the other end replied. "He said he was exhausted. The manager has been out since this morning handing out product catalogs and promotional keychains."
"Keychains?" Yumitsu's eyes darted to the evidence bags on the table. "Don't tell me they feature a rider on a..."
The clerk confirmed it. The promotional items Genda had been handing out were indeed Guan Yu riding the Red Hare. However, because they weren't popular, the shop had recently switched to Maneki-neko (lucky cat) keychains. Apparently, the Guan Yu design had been a personal passion project of Genda's.
The pieces were clicking into place. Yumitsu immediately ordered a team to pick Genda up.
"WHAT?!"
Mori Kogoro's sudden shout echoed through the room as he clutched his phone. "You're saying someone gave you a Guan Yu keychain?!"
On the other end of the line were Ran and Kazuha. Kogoro had called to explain they would be home late, but he hadn't expected the news that the two girls had received the exact same keychain while riding the bus earlier that day!
"Detective! Where is the agency located?" Heiji's face went pale.
"District Five," Tsuneo answered, finishing the last of his ramen broth in one go.
Following the fire in District Four of Haido Town, it seemed the chaos was ready to move to District Five of Beika—right to their front door.
In the living quarters above the Mori Detective Agency, Ran and Kazuha hung up the phone.
"What did they say?" Kazuha asked, bringing over two glasses of water.
"Dad said they're coming back right away and told us to go wait outside..." Ran looked confused. Her father hadn't explained much, but his tone had been uncharacteristically tense and grave.
"Go... outside?" Kazuha hesitated. "Actually, I thought I heard someone moving around outside the entryway just a moment ago. I figured it was just my imagination..."
"It doesn't matter. We can handle ourselves," Ran said, tightening her fists. The two "female war gods" of the high school karate and aikido world marched toward the front door together.
Ding-dong!
The doorbell rang just as they reached the door. Looking through the peephole, they saw the portly man from the bus. He looked like a nervous wreck.
"Can I help you?" Ran opened the door. Unless the man was concealing a firearm, he stood absolutely zero chance against the two of them.
"Please... please give me back the keychains I gave you on the bus today! I beg of you!" Takanori Genda blurted out, dropping into a deep, desperate bow.
He had been wandering the neighborhood for hours. He had only managed to track them down after seeing the two of them go downstairs to buy groceries earlier that evening.
"Why?" Kazuha asked, her brow furrowed. The man's behavior was erratic, and the fact that he had tracked them to their home without knowing their address was deeply unsettling.
"Because... because a fire will happen here! I'll end up coming back to burn this place down because of that Guan Yu statue..." Genda began to sob uncontrollably.
Ran and Kazuha exchanged a look of utter confusion. They knew how to handle a mugger or a thug, but they had no idea how to deal with a middle-aged man weeping on their doorstep. If he had pulled a knife, they could have at least taught him a lesson in manners.
"Hey, shouldn't we call the police?" Kazuha whispered. The man's mental state seemed... more than a little fractured.
"Yeah..."
"Inspector, why didn't you guys conduct a more thorough investigation into Genda before this?" Heiji asked as they raced back toward the agency.
He had just learned that the very first arson site was right next door to Genda's own house, and the victim had been a long-time customer of his. Despite being so obviously linked to the cases, the police hadn't moved to arrest him.
"To this day, I still don't believe he's the arsonist," Yumitsu said, shaking his head.
The two cars pulled up outside the agency one after the other. As they stepped out, they were met with the sight of two officers escorting a handcuffed Takanori Genda down the stairs. It seemed Ran and Kazuha had already made the call.
Inspector Yumitsu walked over to the patrol car and looked at Genda, who was slumped in the back seat. "Genda... those arsons. Did you really do them?"
"I'm... I'm sorry!"
Genda lowered his head, refusing to say another word.
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