No one understands the laws of Collider better than me.

After hearing these words, Akiba Reiko nodded silently, feeling an indescribable joy in her heart. Lately, music had been her primary focus, with the handsome police officer in front of her being her second most important thought.

Because the concert hall seats were all pre-sold, and Domoto didn't welcome Kitahara Maki, Kitahara Maki went outside to wait.

But that's exactly what he wanted.

Yesterday, after killing Fu and Takumi, he immediately had Haibara hack into the old man's computer and phone to check for any other plans. They discovered a truly terrifying scheme—to blow up all the load-bearing pillars of the concert hall and kill everyone inside. The bombs and sensors were already installed, and the bomb's switch was even connected to a key on the organ. This meant that every time that key was pressed during the concert, the bomb would detonate.

The repertoire was pre-arranged, and the piano key had to be pressed exactly 24 times. There were exactly 23 load-bearing columns outside, and the final bomb was naturally inside the independent concert hall.

This method of explosion is quite interesting, except that the murderer was originally going to be inside during the concert, meaning that the old man planned to die inside from the beginning and also planned to take a large group of people with him.

A criminal this insane is practically a movie character, except that Kitahara Masaki dismantled most of his bombs last night, and also removed the sensor that connected the piano keys to the bomb switch. Now there are only a few bombs left in the concert hall, and they are all under Kitahara Masaki's control.

Therefore, Fu and Takumi's suicide plan has now become a major event for Kitahara Masaki to increase his favorability. All the information about Fu and Takumi's plan to detonate the Domoto Concert Hall has been completely deleted, and the only person who knows that he wants to use this plan is the hardworking Ai Haibara.

The hidden cameras placed inside the concert hall had already seen that the concert had officially started. Like Kitahara Masaki, many police officers waiting there were cursing Domoto Ichiki for not understanding human language. After all, everyone knew that the old man, Fu and Takumi, might have planted a bomb in the concert hall. However, the police officers, who could not find any evidence in the criminal's home, could only persuade him, not force him.

"Brother Kitahara, how long do these kinds of concerts usually last?"

"You're asking me? I've never heard of a concert like this before."

"Is that so? I thought you would go to the concert with your girlfriend."

Haha, they generally prefer to fire bullets together, in every sense of the word.

Feeling that the time was almost up, Kitahara Masaki pressed the detonation button in his pocket. The loud bang startled the police officers on guard outside. A wave of scorching heat rushed out, and the fire caused by the explosion turned the first-floor lobby red-hot. When firefighters and police officers tried to go in to rescue people, they found that the rubble and debris blocked the entrances, both the concert hall entrance and the staff entrance.

"Damn it! Takagi! Go ask the fire department how long it will take to clear this rubble!"

"Inspector Megure, they said it will take at least an hour."

"Is it possible to contact the people inside?"

"No, there's no signal inside the concert hall, and it's soundproof, so the audience and musicians inside might not even know that a bomb has exploded!"

The police and firefighters dared not make any rash moves. What if they stupidly rushed in and got blown up? Besides, there was no entrance for them to enter.

However, Kitahara Masaki had already called for helicopter support, and Koshimizu Nanatsuki, who was sitting in the helicopter, pulled him up and said to him:

"Although the explosion caused a small fire, it will only take the fire department a short time to extinguish it, and then the citizens inside the concert hall can be evacuated by helicopter."

The Domoto Concert Hall occupies a huge area, and naturally its rooftop is just as large. Even if it's not a dedicated helipad for helicopters, the area alone is enough to park three helicopters.

"Officer Kitahara, the fire down below hasn't been extinguished yet, and the helicopter can't land due to the heat wave!"

"It's alright, lower the rope."

Kitahara Masaki descended along the rope. Others might be frightened by the explosion, but for Kitahara Masaki, it was just a show he directed and acted in. Moreover, he had planted the last remaining bomb behind the organ.

After entering the concert hall from the top floor, I found that the soundproofing was surprisingly good. All the audience members inside were still immersed in the music and seemed completely unaware of what was happening outside.

She walked straight onto the stage, took the microphone from Akiba Reiko, and told everyone inside that there was a fire outside and that they had to be evacuated by helicopter.

The people who were initially engrossed in the concert were thrown into chaos, each talking over their own words, like a group of panicked moles who had found they couldn't dig a hole any further.

Seeing the crowd about to descend into chaos, Kitahara Masaki fired a shot at the ceiling, immediately silencing them like geese with their necks being choked.

Chapter 327 Bach is here, I'm going to blow him up too.

The evacuation went very smoothly. The audience members were quickly evacuated in small groups, with only Akiba Reiko, who volunteered to leave last, and Domoto Kazuki, who did not want to leave.

"Mr. Domoto, please accept reality and leave with us immediately!"

"This is the organ that Bach played! How can I just leave it here and ignore it!"

"Please stop being so stubborn! If you had accepted the police's suggestion to postpone the meeting from the beginning, things wouldn't have turned out this way! Besides, a musical instrument is nothing compared to your life!"

Reiko Akiba tried her best to persuade Ichiki Domoto, but the old man was as stubborn as his deceased companion and refused to leave.

"Reiko! It's time to go!"

"But Mr. Domoto—"

"Sigh, it seems we'll have to be a bit rough. Reiko, you go first. I'll go get Mr. Domoto and get him out of here. Then it'll be just the three of us."

"Well, I see."

Just as Kitahara Masaki was walking towards Domoto Ichiro, he quietly pressed the remote control in his pocket. The last bomb detonated instantly, and a heat wave swept through the entire concert hall. The organ that was said to have been played by Bach was blown to pieces.

Domoto Kazuki was closest to the bomb and took the brunt of the impact, while Kitahara Masaki dodged the first blast before the explosion. As Akiba Reiko stared in shock at the collapsed walls and the completely destroyed organ, Kitahara Masaki struggled from under a pile of seats, as if he had been crushed.

"Officer Kitahara!"

"Don't come any closer! Get out of here! This place is about to collapse!"

"I do not want!"

Akiba Reiko pulled hard on Kitahara Masaki's hand, and after Kitahara Masaki pretended to struggle a couple more times, he immediately climbed out. Then, naturally, he picked Akiba Reiko up in a princess carry and hurriedly ran outside with her.

"Are you stupid? I can get out by myself. What if you get hurt because of your recklessness!"

After boarding the helicopter, Kitahara Masaki loudly berated Akiba Reiko. Although there was an element of acting involved, there was also some genuine feeling. After all, Kitahara Masaki had lied to her, and if this woman had left just now, Kitahara Masaki might have felt a little better.

"sorry."

"Oh well, never mind. It's good that you're alright."

"But Mr. Domoto—"

"Don't even think about it, he's definitely beyond saving. It's like the bomb exploded right in front of him. Do you think he could have survived that kind of impact?"

"That's true."

When Akiba Reiko heard that Domoto Issei had died, she was deeply saddened because witnessing someone die tragically in front of her was something she had never experienced before.

Kitahara Masaki reached out and hugged her, whispering:

"It's all over now. It's all finished."

"Well, I see."

Reiko Akiba cried on Masaki Kitahara's shoulder, while the helicopter pilot stared straight ahead, as if he hadn't seen anything.

----------------

A few days later, after investigation, the police pinned the blame for the concert hall bombing on the deceased Fu and Takumi, as well as Domoto Kazuki. The press conference first presented evidence that Fu and Takumi were the perpetrators of the previous serial murders, and then released a video of Kitahara Masaki suggesting that Domoto Kazuki should postpone the event.

Although most people felt that the police were trying to shift the blame onto the deceased, whose indisputable guilt was undeniable, the evidence was irrefutable.

Kitahara Masaki had no interest in these pointless attempts to shirk responsibility; he was only thinking about when to have Akiba Reiko help him create an anti-brainwashing audio recording. He did feel sorry for the emotional deception, but the anti-brainwashing audio was crucial for him to be fully prepared before destroying the organization, as it could become one of his methods to divide the organization.

"So what do you think I should do, Ai?"

"Heh, die, you scumbag."

"Ahem, I was just a little gentler with her than with the others, but I didn't gain any advantage."

"Oh, yes, he's already calling her 'Lianzi' so sweetly, he must have completely captivated that female singer. I'm afraid he'll be calling her that at her house next time."

Kitahara Masaki was speechless. He would naturally avoid such a thing, after all, he just wanted a musician who could help him create anti-brainwashing software.

"I'll bring this up with her next time we meet. Is everything else ready?"

"Of course, the disk of Itakura Taku that you snatched before, the software he designed has a lot of reference value. As long as you know how the organization's internal software is written, writing a countermeasure program will not be a problem. Also, please don't change the subject. I remember what the benefit of helping you with this matter was?"

"Alright, alright, it's right here. It's a cassette tape sent from South Korea, a total of twenty tapes, all sent by your sister."

Unlike Haibara, who loves novelty and follows trends, her older sister, Miyano Akemi, prefers more nostalgic things. After all, it would be fine to make a video out of just recordings and send it over, but she asked Kitahara Masaki to send all the tapes over.

"Masaki! I saw on the news that there have been more explosions in Tokyo these past few days. An entire concert hall was destroyed. It's really dangerous."

Just as Kitahara Maki had sent Haibara away and was about to lie down on the sofa to rest, he suddenly heard a familiar voice again.

"Vermouth, you're back from Hokkaido so quickly? And what about Curaçao?"

"I've already taken her back to the safe house, and you seem to be saying you don't want me to come back so soon."

Kitahara Masaki scratched his head, realizing he couldn't hide anything from her at all, and then confessed everything to her.

"Sigh, so you thought that singer was a mean person, but it turns out she was just a tsundere, so now you're feeling a little regretful about your actions, right?"

"Yes."

"Hehe, it's just a small matter. If you had explained it to me earlier, it would have been resolved by now. And you don't think of me as the kind of high school girl who gets angry when she hears this kind of news, do you?"

After entrusting the task to Vermouth, only one day later, Akiba Reiko diligently cooperated with Haibara to develop the anti-brainwashing software.

As expected of a witch, she uses magic on people.

Chapter 328 Not enough suspects

hiss--

Kitahara Masaki felt a stomachache, which worsened when he saw the four women walking in front of him.

After Vermouth returned from Hokkaido, she said that he needed to carefully examine the women around him, and then directly contacted Reiko Akiba, Nanatsuki Koshimizu, Sera Masumi, and even Ai Haibara was brought over. Together with Masaki Kitahara, the six of them went to Ryusui-tei for a meal. However, the entire meal consisted of the five of them talking; Masaki Kitahara had absolutely no chance to speak. In fact, Vermouth didn't give him a single opportunity to say anything.

In just the time it takes to eat a meal, the five of them had already formed a small circle, practically unrelated to Kitahara Masaki. However, all they talked about was him, which really gave him a stomachache.

It would be better to let him see Conan and quickly bring out a case to distract him.

what----

A scream came from not far away, which relieved Kitahara Masaki from his current uncomfortable state. When he ran over to check what was going on, a terrified woman was kneeling in front of the house from which the scream had come, her sleeves stained with blood. Beside her were Uncle Mori and Conan, who were asking what had happened, and a young police officer was following behind them.

"What happened?"

When Kitahara Masaki went over to ask what had happened, he saw the patrolman's nervous expression and thought to himself that all the police officers must recognize Kitahara Masaki's face.

"Inspector Kitahara! We just heard this young lady's cries, so we came to check on her."

"Well, let's not delay, let's go in and take a look."

Just as Kitahara Masaki was about to go inside, the gaze from behind him stung him painfully.

"Ahem, you guys go in and check the situation first."

Upon seeing Kitahara Masaki suddenly return, Vermouth asked:

"Why don't you go in? Work is far more important, not to mention it could be a matter of life and death."

"Ahem, I'm a police inspector now, so I'll leave this kind of crime scene investigation to the younger generation."

Just as the other two adult women were concluding that work was indeed more important, Kitahara Masaki stayed behind, giving them a sweet, almost sinful feeling—a feeling they couldn't escape once they were hooked. Vermouth noticed this and smiled silently.