"Mr. Fukuyama!"
"Mr. Fukuyama!"
Everyone rushed to the manor's study and banged on the door, but it was locked from the inside and couldn't be opened.
The butler said in a panic, "Please wait, guests, I'll go get the spare key!"
With that, he quickly ran off.
Toru just watched the butler leave. With his abilities, he could easily kick the door open, but he didn't.
After years of firearms training, Toru was extremely sensitive to gunfire. He could tell that the sound they'd just heard wasn't from an actual gun. It was a recording.
In other words, if he was right, Fukuyama wasn't dead yet.
If he forced the door open now, there was a chance he could still save the man.
He had already guessed who the culprit was, even before the crime had fully taken place. It had to be the butler who just ran off.
Why did criminals these days always like to pull off flashy tricks? They insisted on creating "locked room" murders, not realizing that the more complicated the method, the more evidence they'd leave behind.
Toru didn't stop the butler.
Even if he did, then what? Once the man got another chance, he'd just find a different method to kill Fukuyama.
Unless Toru was willing to eliminate the butler preemptively or guard Fukuyama indefinitely, the man's fate was sealed.
While everyone waited in growing anxiety, the butler returned, panting and holding a ring of keys. His fingers trembled as he unlocked the door.
The door swung open. Fukuyama lay on the ground, a bullet wound in his chest, blood seeping from it.
...
"Inspector Megure, why are you in Gunma Prefecture?"
Seeing the familiar face of the detective in front of him, Toru felt speechless.
He was increasingly convinced that he had caught some kind of curse from Conan. Every time he went somewhere, someone died... and Megure appeared.
"Haha, isn't this my younger brother Fujiwara!"
Megure laughed heartily and came over, clearly surprised.
Back during the library incident, Megure had been the first to lead a team inside, only to find Toru standing over a group of subdued thugs.
Later, Megure learned that Toru was the son of Chairman Fujiwara.
However, the reason Megure was so friendly wasn't because of Toru's identity.
Megure was a man of strong justice. He had only reached the rank of Inspector at his age partly due to his background, but mostly because he refused to flatter superiors, which kept him from being promoted.
Even now, he still had to personally lead younger officers in the field.
He respected Toru because, if not for him taking out those thugs that day, many people in the library would've been killed.
"I came here for a joint discussion on criminal cases with the Gunma Prefecture force. I happened to be around when the murder occurred, so I tagged along."
Gunma's officers were already putting up police tape, photographing the body, collecting evidence, and controlling the scene for questioning.
A bald officer caught sight of Yukiko and immediately cried out excitedly, "A-Are you Ms. Yukiko?"
Yukiko smiled politely, looked him over, and replied, "May I ask who you are?"
"My name is Yamamura Misao, a detective from Gunma. Ms. Yukiko, you're the pride of Gunma Prefecture, a big star. When I heard you retired and got married, I was depressed for a long time."
"I've seen every movie and show you've made! I grew up watching you!"
Yamamura rubbed his hands, grinning ear to ear.
Yukiko's smile twitched. "...Hehe... grew up watching my movies."
The man in front of her was a balding, greasy-looking uncle in his forties. Saying he grew up watching her movies basically meant she was in her fifties or sixties.
"Ah, no, no, that's not what I meant. Actually, I'm about the same age as you, haha..."
Yamamura scratched his head and laughed awkwardly. He knew he had messed up.
"Yamamura! Stop standing there babbling and get to work!"
An inspector nearby barked at him. Yamamura looked like he'd been rescued, apologized to Yukiko, and quickly ran off.
"Eri, am I really that old?"
Yukiko's forehead twitched with irritation.
"Someone just died. Finding the killer is more important. Whether you're old or not doesn't matter."
"No! My age is way more important than the killer!"
Yukiko said indignantly, clenching her fists.
Toru watched their exchange with Megure. Megure turned to him and asked, "Fujiwara, what do you think about this case?"
Toru gave him a look that said, How are you even an Inspector?
Did you rely on Kudo's help to solve all your past cases?
He asked, "Can I take a look at the body?"
"Of course!"
Megure didn't hesitate to bend the rules. Letting a civilian touch the body? Completely disregarded. He was a kind man, but not the most by-the-book.
Toru walked into the study, circled the body, then squatted down to closely examine the gunshot wound.
He already knew who the killer was. Now he just needed evidence.
For some reason, Megure trusted Toru completely and followed close behind.
"There's a surveillance camera in the study. I've already reviewed the footage with the others."
"In the video, Mr. Fukuyama raises his hands toward the window, likely because he saw the killer."
"Then he was shot. While it happened, the living room camera showed you, Ms. Kisaki, Ms. Kudo, and the butler were all present, so you all have alibis."
"There are other servants in the house, and the officers are questioning them now. The killer is either one of them, or someone snuck in from outside and escaped after committing the murder."
"If it was an outsider, then the case becomes very troublesome. Oh, right. Fujiwara-kun, would you like to check the surveillance footage?"
Toru took a few steps in the study and said, "No need. I already know who the killer is."
"What? You already know?"
Megure was stunned. This guy's deduction speed was even faster than Kudo's! He barely looked at anything and already had an answer?
Yukiko, who was nearby, also blinked in surprise.
But then she remembered that someone from the Organization had said Toru's true identity was with the CIA, and suddenly it all made sense. He was a professional.
"If I'd known Fujiwara-kun would solve it this quickly, I'd have had him tell me the answer so I could show off a little."
Yukiko muttered under her breath.
"Are you a child?"
Eri rolled her eyes.
"Keeping a youthful mindset keeps you looking young, Eri. That's why you've got crow's feet and I don't."
Yukiko smirked playfully.
"What?! I have crow's feet?"
Eri panicked and immediately grabbed her phone to use the front camera to check.
After seeing no visible wrinkles, she said angrily, "You're messing with me again!"
Yukiko burst into laughter.
Meanwhile, Megure turned back to Toru, eager. "Fujiwara-kun, what's the situation? Who's the killer?"
Toru pointed. "It's obvious. The killer is the butler."
The butler froze for a moment, then chuckled. "Mr. Fujiwara, you must be joking. I was in the living room with you and the two ladies when he died."
Megure nodded in agreement. "Right. He has a perfect alibi. It's impossible."
Toru could only sigh. So having an alibi automatically made someone innocent?
He pointed to the wound on Fukuyama's chest. "You can tell from this, even without measuring the bullet's trajectory. Fukuyama was already lying on the ground when he was shot, not standing."
"You'll find this out easily with proper trajectory analysis."
Megure's expression changed. He furrowed his brows. "So the time of death was wrong? But why did Fukuyama raise his hands on camera and then fall over?"
Toru replied, "Simple. He always stretches after a video call. I'd bet that's what you saw in the footage. And since the camera's resolution is probably low, you couldn't clearly see that he wasn't reacting in fear."
"As for why he collapsed, that's even simpler. He was drugged. Check the coffee cup next to him for traces."
"If it's not in the drink, it's in something he ate. Either way, an autopsy will confirm what was used."
He paused for a moment.
"I'm sure the first sound we heard was a recording, not a real shot."
"But Fukuyama was definitely shot, and we didn't hear any other gunfire. That means the killer used a suppressed gun. A 9mm pistol silencer can be bought new in Pennsylvania for about 750 dollars. Once attached, the sound is minimal."
"The killer won't leave prints on the weapon and might toss the gun somewhere else. But he wouldn't dare discard the silencer. Doing so would expose the sound difference and give everything away."
"So if I'm right, the silencer is still on the butler. Search him, and you'll find it."
Toru walked over to the window and looked outside.
"The garden's just beyond the window. When I first arrived, the butler's pants were spotless. But now, there's soil on them."
"Compare that soil to the garden's. That will prove he was here."
Toru had just performed a deduction scene straight out of Conan's world—effortlessly unraveling the whole mystery.
In fact, even without him, the police could have discovered everything through a standard autopsy.
Wait, what? The police in this world don't even conduct autopsies or ballistics checks in murder cases?
This place really is a paradise for criminals.
Toru had always complained about the unrealistic flaws in anime murder cases, flaws that could be solved with basic forensic science.
But now, seeing those flaws happen in real life was genuinely shocking.
The police force seriously needed reform. If this wasn't a breeding ground for crime, what was?
Right then, the background music kicked in, and the butler fell to his knees.
(To be continued.)