Detective Conan: The Ultimate Growth Space

This puzzled Zhiyong greatly.

The furniture in the living room is now in a different position than before, and it's all far away from Uchida Asami.

The fire is currently burning around Asami Uchida, but it hasn't reached her yet.

However, if too much time passes and she doesn't receive rescue, even if she doesn't burn to death, she will suffocate.

Looking at the situation inside the room, Zhiyong felt something was off.

However, this only flashed through his mind for a moment.

Saving lives is the priority right now; there's no time to think about anything else.

Zhiyong ran to Uchida Asami's side, took off his helmet, and put it on Uchida Asami's head.

As Zhiyong stood up, he saw the spot where he had previously placed the phone.

There was a stool there, and on the stool was a cake that had already deformed a bit.

Zhiyong went over to take a look and found that the candles on the cake were almost gone.

What caught Zhiyong's attention was the candles on the cake; these candles were different from the ones he had seen before.

This appears to be a specially made candle.

There were still pieces of paper that hadn't been completely burned nearby.

Zhiyong understood something after reading it.

He hurriedly took out a camera, which was a disposable camera.

Zhiyong placed some items in the space so that he could use them at any time.

Zhiyong first took a picture of the phone, and then took a picture of the spot where Uchida Asami was lying.

Just then, he heard footsteps.

Zhiyong picked up Mami and walked out, where he saw Ran and Sawai Manabu, with Conan following behind.

Zhiyong shouted, "Let's get out of here quickly!"

With that, Zhiyong grabbed Mami in one arm and Xiaolan with the other and ran outside.

With his memory, Zhiyong easily found the best escape route.

The group made it outside safely, thankfully without any injuries.

What surprised Zhiyong the most was Conan.

Damn, Conan really does have the protagonist's halo.

Despite going in and out of the fire repeatedly, he was perfectly healthy except for sweating profusely.

Looking at the villa engulfed in flames, Zhiyong thought to himself, "With Conan's death-dealing nature around, going out to play is really not an option."

Another incident has occurred, but this time no one died.

Zhiyong sensed the sinister intent behind tonight's events.

After all, Conan is here, so it's normal for things to happen.

Just now, when Zhiyong entered the living room...

Asami Uchida should have been lying on the sofa, but now she was lying on the floor.

All the furniture in the living room was moved to one side, far away from Uchida Asami.

It's like someone knew a fire was going to happen and made some preparations in advance.

Another point is the placement of the cake.

Zhiyong pieced together all these clues, and slowly he began to make some guesses.

If Zhiyong's guess is correct, then that person is the most suspicious.

However, this is still just speculation at the moment, and there is no actual evidence.

While thinking with wisdom and courage.

By then, the fire trucks and ambulances had also arrived.

Looking at Uchida Asami, who was still unconscious.

Zhiyong asked Xiaolan and Yuanzi to go to the hospital to take care of him.

He whispered to Ran and Sonoko, "Mami-senpai should be fine. When we get to the hospital, have the doctor check if Mami-senpai has taken any sleeping pills."

Ran and Sonoko were taken aback.

Sonoko asked suspiciously, "You mean, Mami-senpai took sleeping pills and set the villa on fire? Did she want to commit suicide?"

Zhiyong rolled his eyes at Sonoko before saying, "Looking at Mami-senpai today, does she seem like she's going to commit suicide? We'll talk about the specifics later. Let me know as soon as the hospital has any news."

After watching the ambulance leave, they found Kogoro Mouri and pulled him aside.

Zhi Yongcai said to him, "Uncle Maoli, you stay here and keep an eye on these people. I'm going to the karaoke bar again."

"What's wrong? Did you forget something?" Kogoro Mouri asked curiously.

Zhiyong happened to see Conan also coming over to listen, so he grabbed Conan and pulled him over.

He then whispered, "I suspect this fire was set by someone."

"What?" Kogoro Mouri exclaimed in surprise.

"When I went into the living room to save Mami-senpai, I found her lying on the floor in the middle of the living room. All the furniture in the living room had been moved away from Mami-senpai."

"If such a thing could happen, then who could have done it?" Kogoro Mouri asked in confusion.

"I suspect it's Manabu Sawai; at least for now, he's highly suspicious."

“Sawai Manabu, what’s suspicious about him?” Kogoro Mouri asked.

“When we got here earlier, I heard him say, ‘The fire is already so big, it’s probably too late.’ Although the fire was already quite large at that time, how could he say something like that if he didn’t know where the fire started?” Zhiyong explained.

Kogoro Mouri asked, "Sawai Manabu has been with us the whole time, so how did he manage to set the villa on fire?"

"When I went in, the scene was still relatively intact, and I happened to discover his method. I also took photos with my camera. Now I'm going to find someone to develop them, and we also need evidence to prove that it was him," Zhiyong explained.

"Alright, go ahead. I'll keep an eye on things here, nothing will happen," Kogoro Mori nodded.

"Conan, you're a kid, Sawai Manabu won't notice you. Go and keep an eye on Sawai Manabu in a bit, no matter what he does, don't let him take anything off his person. Even if he goes to the toilet, don't let him use even a piece of toilet paper," Zhiyong said sternly.

“Okay, I’ll keep an eye on him,” Conan replied.

Conan actually wanted to go too, but he was still a little unsure about Zhiyong's abilities.

……

Chapter 93 Analyzing the Criminal's Methods

Zhiyong first found a photo studio and took out his instant camera.

He paid the other party five times the price and asked him to develop the photos as quickly as possible.

After waiting for the photos to be developed.

Zhiyong then went to the supermarket next to the karaoke bar and asked the supermarket owner some questions.

Now the mystery of why this villa caught fire has been revealed.

The prisoner is the one who said those words at the scene of the fire.

When Zhiyong returned to the villa, the fire had already been extinguished.

"The fire started at 2:50," Kogoro Mouri asked.

"Yes, because the people living near this villa saw smoke in the vicinity, and at first they thought it was a campfire, so they didn't pay any attention," a firefighter said.

"Are there any signs of arson?" Kogoro Mouri asked again.

“We didn’t find any ignition devices inside the villa. The fire started in the living room, and the cause was the candles on the cake. I think they forgot to blow them out, which ignited the gift wrapping paper scattered on the floor. Eventually, the curtains caught fire as well,” the firefighters replied.

"Why didn't you put out the candle?" Sawai Manabu angrily accused Hayasaka Tomoko.

Zhiyong saw Sawai Manabu's behavior and felt utterly disdainful.

The arsonist was Manabu Sawai.

Now, Sawai Manabu is trying to clear himself of suspicion by crying wolf.

Hayasaka Tomoko angrily shouted, "Don't talk nonsense! I clearly extinguished the candles on the cake!"

"Stop arguing. Everyone left in a hurry, maybe..." Noguchi Shibahisa advised.

"I already said, I really did put out the candles," Hayasaka Tomoko interrupted before Noguchi Shibahisa could finish speaking.

In Zhiyong's opinion, Noguchi Shibahisa was clearly biased towards the enemy.

"We found that most of the candles had burned down to the bottom," the firefighters added.

"Since the candles were extinguished when we left, could it be that Mami relit them herself?" Yoshinobu Morimoto asked doubtfully.

"You mean to say that Mami-senpai had suicidal thoughts, which is why she lit the candles and caused the villa to catch fire?" Zhiyong asked.

"Isn't that right?" Morimoto Yoshinobu asked, puzzled.

"The absence of an ignition device doesn't mean it wasn't there. That's where the culprit's cunning lies, because it's something we never even considered. Is the university's reasoning club just for you to design murder cases?" Zhi Yong sneered.

Sawai Manabu said angrily, "What do you mean by that? Are you trying to say that someone among us started the fire?"

Now, Sawai Manabu has changed his purpose; he wants to incite resentment towards Tomoyuki among several people.

Sure enough, his classmates' expressions turned very unpleasant upon hearing this.

Zhiyong pointed at Sawai Manabu and said with great disdain, "The culprit I'm talking about is you. Sawai Manabu, don't try to sow discord. You're the one who designed the trap."

"It's the chairman? How could it be?" Yoshinobu Morimoto asked in surprise.

"But our president risked his life to run into the fire to save Mami. If he wanted to kill Mami, why would he rush in to save her?" Miyazaki Chinatsu said angrily.

"Don't talk nonsense. Why would I harm Mami?" Sawai Manabu said angrily.

“Yes, you can’t just make things up without evidence,” Hayasaka Tomoko added.

“There are two explanations for Sawai rushing into the fire. First, you didn’t intend to kill anyone. You wanted to play the hero and save Mami-senpai from the fire so that she would be grateful to you and you could win her heart,” Zhiyong explained.