Detective Conan: The Ultimate Growth Space

It would be too embarrassing to rent a place outside.

Time passed slowly, and more than two hours went by as Zhiyong drifted into his own thoughts.

Kogoro Mouri finally couldn't take it anymore and stormed out of the room, saying, "No, I don't want to wait any longer. Ran, you guys wait a bit, I'm going to find him up ahead."

After saying that, he went to the front yard to find Maru Denjiro.

Not long after Kogoro Mouri arrived at the front yard, a woman's scream came from there.

Upon hearing the shouts, Conan and Ran immediately rushed towards the source of the sound.

Zhiyong, however, was not in a hurry and simply followed slowly behind.

Upon arriving at the front yard, just as Zhiyong had suspected, it turned out that Kogoro Mouri and the family's maid had a misunderstanding.

The antique collector's wife, Inako Maru, has returned and is talking to Kogoro Mouri.

The maid's scream came from not far away again.

Zhi Yong thought to himself, "Damn it, she's screamed twice already."

Could it be that the body of an antique collector has been discovered this time?

Zhiyong also hurriedly ran towards the direction of the sound.

This time, they really did find a dead body.

There stood the antique collector, Maru Denjiro, covered in blood, by the cabinet.

Maru Denjiro held a katana in his hands and had another katana stuck in his body.

The room was covered in knife marks.

Zhiyong thought to himself, "Damn it, this isn't a movie shoot, and you guys aren't martial arts masters. Why leave so many knife marks in the room? Isn't this obviously telling everyone that you're trying to cover something up?"

Everyone was shocked when they saw the body.

Kogoro Mori hurriedly said, "Chiyuki, call the police quickly!"

Zhiyong didn't say much, and immediately took out his phone and called Inspector Megure.

After all, Inspector Megure was already an old acquaintance, so calling him was faster than calling the police.

……

Chapter 113 The Untrustworthy Antique Dealer

Inspector Megure arrived quickly with his men after receiving a call from Tomoyuki.

When the police arrived at the scene, they didn't need to give any instructions; they simply performed their duties by taking photos and collecting evidence.

Inspector Megure looked at the knife marks all over the house and said, "Does your husband practice kendo regularly?"

Mrs. Maru Inako looked at the photo on the wall of Maru Denjiro holding a sword and said, "Yes, he has already reached the third dan in kendo."

Inspector Megure nodded and said, "Oh, your skills are quite impressive. So, is the knife your husband is holding also his?"

Mrs. Maru Inako replied, "Yes, those are decorations on the alcove."

Inspector Megure said strangely, "Judging from the mess and numerous knife marks in this room, it seems he had a fierce battle with the assailant. If that's the case, the assailant must have been a very skilled fighter."

Zhiyong said calmly, "Inspector Megure, I don't think that's the case."

"Oh, what's your opinion, Sato?" Inspector Megure looked at Tomoyuki with a puzzled expression.

"The victim was only a third-dan in Kendo, not a ninth-dan. Look at the situation in the room. Even if it were a fight between masters, it would be impossible to leave so many knife marks in the room. This is not a movie. In my opinion, these knife marks are more like those caused by someone wildly slashing around."

Do you think these knife marks were deliberately faked by the murderer to mislead the public?

“That’s right, that’s what I think. Besides, the other party must be a master. So many knife marks in the room couldn’t have been caused by an ordinary person,” Zhiyong replied.

Inspector Megure nodded. Suddenly, he noticed a notebook on the ground. He picked it up and asked, "Is this the victim's notebook?"

Looking through today's records, I remarked, "The schedule is packed."

After reading through the notebook, Inspector Megure said, "The people scheduled to meet today are Kogoro Mouri, Yuji Suwa, Ikuya Hatano, and Makoto Akutsu."

Just then, a voice came from outside: "Officer, we've spotted a suspicious person."

"What?" Inspector Megure walked out of the room in surprise.

There was a policeman at the door, holding a man's hand, saying, "This man has been lingering in front of this house and won't leave."

The man hurriedly said, "I'm not a suspicious person."

Mrs. Maru Inako hurriedly said, "It's Dr. Hatano."

"Hatano? Is that Mr. Hatano Ikuya from this notebook?" Inspector Megure asked in confusion.

“Yes, he is my husband’s attending physician. My husband invites him to come here for a check-up every week,” Mrs. Maru Inako replied.

“Oh, it’s a doctor,” Inspector Megure said.

"Let me go, let me go. I told you to let me go, didn't you hear me?"

Then a man's voice came from not far away.

Inspector Megure went to the place where the sound came from and saw two police officers holding a man.

The man said, "Do you know who I am? I am the great artist Akutsu, a sculptor."

"Akutsu, is that Akutsu Makoto? So now there are three out of the four people in the notebook," Inspector Megure said.

Kogoro Mori shouted, "I know! Since the culprit has already come, it must be Yuji Suwa, who didn't show up."

What's wrong with me?

Suddenly, a voice came from beside Kogoro Mouri, startling him.

Kogoro Mouri turned around and saw a man standing not far from him.

The man then said, "I am Suwa. What exactly happened? Why are there so many police officers?"

After he finished speaking, he felt someone pull his hand. He saw a little boy holding his hand and asked, "What's wrong with this child?"

When Conan arrived at the scene, he couldn't stand being alone and ran around everywhere. When he saw Yuji Suwa arrive, he grabbed his hand and started looking at him.

Kogoro Mouri saw Conan and angrily said, "What, it's you again?"

Ignoring Kogoro Mouri, Conan asked Yuji Suwa, "Uncle, you practice kendo, don't you?"

Inspector Megure and Kogoro Mouri both looked at Yuji Suwa.

Yuji Suwa calmly replied, "Little boy, how would you know?"

Conan, feigning cuteness, said, "It's about looking at Uncle's left hand."

Suwa Yuuji asked in confusion, "Left hand?"

Conan said slyly, "Look, Uncle's left hand has a thin scar, right between his thumb and forefinger. People who practice Japanese kendo often get cuts in this area when they put their swords away. That's why I asked Uncle if he practices Japanese kendo."

Inspector Megure asked doubtfully, "Is what he said true?"

Yuji Suwa said frankly, "That's right, this scar is from when I was practicing kendo."

Kogoro Mouri pointed at Yuji Suwa and shouted, "You really are the murderer!"

Yuji Suwa exclaimed in surprise, "Murderer, what nonsense are you talking about?"

Inspector Megure and several others returned to the scene and saw Maru Denjiro's body, much to their surprise.

Yuji Suwa pointed at the corpse and said, "Are you saying that I did this?"

Kogoro Mouri pointed into the room and said, "After you see the scene, you'll understand. The murderer is quite skilled with a sword. In other words, you are the murderer."

Yuji Suwa explained, "This is a misunderstanding. I'm just here to return the money to Mr. Denjiro, which is the five million yen I borrowed from him."

Kogoro Mouri asked in confusion, "Have you come to repay a loan?"

“I have the money with me too,” Suwa Yuji said, taking the money out of his pocket.

Kogoro Mouri hesitated when he saw this.

Inspector Megure pushed Kogoro Mouri aside and said, "The crime occurred between 3 and 5 o'clock. Where were you at that time?"

“At that time, I was probably meditating alone in the dojo,” Suwa Yuji replied.

"At that time, was there anyone who could vouch for you?" Inspector Megure continued, asking.

Yuji Suwa replied somewhat nervously, "Well, at the time I was alone, so it seems like no one can prove it."

Kogoro Mouri, standing next to Inspector Megure, said, "That's strange."

Xiao Lan chimed in, "By the way, I think something's a bit strange."

When everyone looked at her, she pointed at the corpse and said, "Look, the way that sword is held is reversed, isn't it?"

After looking at it, Conan pointed to Maru Denjiro's kendo photo hanging in the room and said, "That's right, look at that photo, the corpse is upside down."

Inspector Megure said, "So, someone deliberately made the corpse hold this sword."

Kogoro Mouri said, "It seems that the murderer's purpose is to shift the blame onto Mr. Suwa, who is practicing kendo."

Zhiyong didn't listen any further. He asked the maid for a camera and took a picture of the cabinet.

He pulled Conan over, handed him the photograph, and pointed to the cabinet, saying, "See this cabinet? The drawers have been rearranged. Use this photograph to piece it together again; there should be information left by the deceased on it."

Conan asked curiously, "Really? How did you know?"

“Look at all the sword marks in this room, and then look at the sword marks on this cabinet. Don’t you think the sword marks on the cabinet are strange? The murderer must have done something to cover it up later,” Zhiyong explained.

……

Chapter 114 A Very Unexpected Gain

Conan looked at the cabinet, suddenly realized, and said, "That's right, I can put it together right away."

Zhiyong handed the puzzle over to Conan and then left it to Conan.

He approached Inspector Megure and overheard him ask, "So, what brings you here?"

Kogoro Mouri asked curiously, "You mean me?"

Zhiyong didn't give Kogoro Mouri a chance to speak and immediately interjected, "Inspector Megure, I already know who the culprit is."