Detective Conan: I, with my magical powers, am going to destroy the world!

Hattori Heiji put on white gloves, reached into the corpse's mouth, and removed the fish scale.

"Her finger was bleeding, so it's very likely that her blood was also on this fish scale."

"In addition, the deceased's wound was most likely cut by fish scales, so there is likely to be fish scale tissue residue inside the wound."

"If the two DNA test results match, it is enough to prove that this fish scale is indeed a message of death left by the deceased."

"However, judging from the condition of this fish scale now, it seems that no further identification is needed."

Conan leaned over to take a look.

Upon seeing a trace of blood on the fish scales, Conan immediately smiled.

"I see. After the deceased swallowed this blood-stained fish scale, it probably stuck directly to her palate, so the blood inside wasn't diluted by the saliva and was preserved."

"So, our reasoning must be correct!"

Conan and Heiji Hattori both had smug smiles on their faces.

Suddenly, footsteps and sobbing came from the side.

A middle-aged man ran over, saw Ebihara Toshimi's body, and collapsed to the ground, sobbing as if he had lost his soul.

"Sumimi, how could this happen!"

"He is Sumi's father. Sumi's mother passed away when she was young, and she was raised by Mr. Ebihara."

Shimabukuro Kimie quietly introduced the visitor's identity.

Everyone looked at Shoumei's father, who was weeping, and fell silent.

Just then, Masaki Kobayashi suddenly walked over and said, "We just contacted the Fukui Prefectural Police Department, but they said the sea is too rough right now and they can't send anyone over!"

Hattori Heiji glanced at Kotobuki's father, then stroked his chin and said:

"Since that's the case, there's no other way. We'll conduct a simple autopsy and take photos first, and while we're at it, thoroughly investigate the area around the crime scene to see if we've missed any clues. Also..."

"Mr. Kobayashi, you work at the village office, right? Could you please make a list of everyone on the island whose name, occupation, and life are related to fish? We'd like to visit them one by one later to confirm their alibis!"

"Uh, okay, no problem." Masaki Kobayashi nodded in agreement.

"By the way, are you guys still going to Saori's house? Speaking of which, Saori's father, Mr. Benzo, is here too."

As Shimabukuro Kimie spoke, her gaze drifted to a certain spot.

Conan and Heiji Hattori followed Kimie Shimabukuro's gaze.

A man with a small bottle of liquor and a drunken expression stood in front of the waterfall, looking around with a dazed expression.

"Isn't that the third person to draw the Dugong Arrow? I never expected that he would be Kadokawa Saori's father." Hattori Heiji frowned.

Conan frowned slightly: "Seriously, a murder has occurred here, and that guy is still drinking. Judging from his drunken state, it seems we won't get anything out of him."

"Let's investigate the suspects tonight and visit them tomorrow."

Thank you to 回忆 and WJZ513 for the monthly tickets.

Chapter 398 Perhaps this is fate

Conan turned to Kimie Shimabukuro and said, "By the way, Kimie-neechan, may we visit Grandma Longevity later?"

Shimabukuro Kimie paused for a moment, then nodded.

"Of course you can. However, because of the celebration today, my great-grandmother must be very tired, and I don't know if she would like to see you."

"How about this, I'll go home and check on things first. If my great-grandmother is willing to see you, I'll inform Mr. Kobayashi and have him take you to my house."

"Okay, thank you for your help." Conan and the other bowed together.

More than half an hour later, at Kimie Shimabukuro's house.

Conan asked, puzzled, "You don't know where the mermaid skeleton is either? Didn't you ask your friend to bury it?"

"Yes, I really don't know."

The old woman's face, as weathered as tree bark, wrinkled, and she said in a low voice:

“I just didn’t want anyone to continue disturbing the deceased’s remains, so I asked a friend to help me bury the bones on the mountain.”

"As for where he was buried exactly, I don't know, since I can't get up the mountain with my legs."

As the old woman spoke, her cloudy eyes looked at Hattori Heiji.

"I'm telling you, you don't also think those are mermaid skeletons, and you want to find them to realize your dream of immortality, do you?"

"Haha, how could that be!"

Hattori Heiji shook his head. "We just felt that the skeleton might be related to the murder of Ms. Kotobuki, so we wanted to investigate."

"Is that so?" Granny Changshou responded in a deep voice. "If you really want to know, go ask that guy Kawakami. He's the one who buried that skeleton."

As she spoke, the old woman grabbed her cane and used it to stand up, then slowly moved toward the door.

"I'm a little tired and want to rest for a bit. You can have Junhui take you to Mr. Kawakami's house. Junhui! Junhui! Please take the guests to Mr. Kawakami's house in a moment."

Just as he finished speaking, Shimabukuro Kimie's voice suddenly came from outside.

"What? Mr. Kawakami? He passed away last year. I even attended his funeral on your behalf. Have you forgotten?"

Upon hearing this, the old woman stopped in her tracks.

A few seconds later, he continued walking towards the door, muttering to himself:

"Yes, I almost forgot. Kawakami always lived alone, and now that he's dead, nobody knows where his remains are buried. Maybe it's fate."

Conan, Heiji Hattori, and the others' expressions changed upon hearing the old woman's words, and they frowned: "Damn it! How could this happen? The clues have gone cold again!"

"Yes." Conan nodded.

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she asked, "By the way, Granny Changju, are you sure Mr. Kawakami buried the remains in the mountains?"

“Of course. Kawakami would never disobey me.” Granny Changju said, finally walking to the door.

Hattori Heiji stroked his chin thoughtfully and said:

"Conan, do you think we should ask an Onmyoji to help us with divination? His magical powers are quite high, so he should be able to find out the truth easily."

"Hattori, can't you have a little more confidence? We're two high school detectives, is it appropriate for us to ask an Onmyoji for help to solve a case?" Conan said with a dark face.

Outside the door, the old woman suddenly stopped, leaned on her cane, changed direction, and continued walking towards the room next door.

At the entrance of Shimabukuro's house, Conan, Heiji Hattori, and Masaki Kobayashi, who brought them there, bowed to Kimie Shimabukuro to say goodbye.

Shimabukuro Kimie smiled and said, "You're all too kind. I still need to help my great-grandmother with her bath, so I won't see you off any further."

"Okay, please stay here."

Conan and his companion turned and left.

After walking a distance, Hattori Heiji turned around and looked at the Shimabukuro residence, only to find that Shimabukuro Kimie was no longer there.

He scoffed, "After removing her heavy makeup, that longevity woman looks like a dying old woman! Judging from her pale face, she probably won't live much longer."

Conan immediately nudged Hattori hard with his elbow. "Hattori, that's incredibly rude of you!"

Masaki Kobayashi didn't seem to blame her. He smiled and said, "Haha, it's nothing. If the old woman was healthy and free from illness, she wouldn't have passed away so easily."

Conan and Heiji Hattori both gasped and turned to look at Masaki Kobayashi upon hearing his words. "Mr. Kobayashi, what do you mean by that?"

"Uh, it's nothing." Masaki Kobayashi realized he had misspoke and quickly coughed lightly to change the subject.

"By the way, everyone, we've narrowed down the suspects to about a dozen people. Which one should we go find now?"

"Okay, let's go with the closest one." Hattori Heiji glanced at his watch. "Let's hurry and try to visit everyone before midnight."

Chapter 399: Is there an adult version of the mermaid costume?

The next evening, the sky was covered with dark clouds and rumbled thunder.

Outside the house of Ebihara Toshimi, many villagers stood together, waiting to go inside and offer incense.

A scream suddenly came from behind the house.

Conan and Heiji Hattori ran over upon hearing the noise.

"What's wrong? What happened?"

A villager pointed ahead and said with a hint of fear, "There's someone there!"

Everyone looked ahead, but all they could see was pitch blackness!

Suddenly, a series of lightning bolts struck down from the sky.

Under the bright flashes of lightning, a person could be seen kneeling on the ground with their hands bound on a fishing net between the yard and the sea, their head bowed.

Conan and Heiji Hattori looked at the people in the fishing net, their expressions changed, and they became serious.

"That person is... Ms. Naoko Kuroe?!"

Heiji Hattori walked over, reached out and touched Naoko's neck, then shook his head with a complicated expression.

"Damn it! Miss Naoko has no pulse, she's dead!"

"Hattori, look, there's a ligature mark on the deceased's neck, and her pupils are dilated, she looks like she's in pain, and her tongue is sticking out a bit. She was probably strangled!"