Conan, I'm an actor

As for Professor Agasa's request for him to leave behind a pill for research, he had long forgotten about it. What could he possibly research with just one pill?

Just then, Ishihara Aki walked in from outside. She cleared away all the plates and placed teacups in front of everyone, clearly intending to serve black tea to end the banquet.

However, at that moment, Shinjo took the cup that Ishihara was about to hand to Koshimizu and asked with a serious expression, "Besides you and the chef, who else went into the kitchen today?"

“No one’s here. Mr. Shinjo, do you have any questions about the black tea? I can make green tea, or other drinks. The chef didn’t have any preferences for the beverages,” Ishihara Aki said cautiously.

"Is there something wrong with this teacup?" Yue Shui realized immediately.

"Could you please take a look at this?" Hattori, who was sitting on the other side of the new town, said as he reached out to take the cup.

“Look at your own teacups. They’re all the same.” Shinjo asked, staring at Moriarty at the head of the table, “Did you make these?”

Senma Kouta immediately realized something, and her expression changed slightly. Fortunately, everyone's attention was focused on Shinjo and Moriarty at that moment, and no one noticed her strange expression.

“If you’re talking about poisoning the teacup, then it really wasn’t me.” Karen, inside the mannequin, let out a wild laugh. “I bought this villa from a detective named Oogami Shuzen through some shady means. He was also eyeing the treasure inside. By the way, this detective gathering was also a product of my plagiarism.”

Shinjo stared at Ishihara Aki and asked, "What's the chef's name?"

"I don't know either." Ishihara Aki's face was deathly pale. She never imagined that the teacup she had brought was poisoned. If it weren't for Mr. Shinjo's timely discovery, she might have become the murderer of these detectives.

Xincheng's face turned ashen. He had already kicked Da Shangzhu Shan out, but he didn't expect that this guy would still be so greedy.

I don't know where this guy found out about the detective meeting that was going to be held at the annex, but he sneaked back, disguised himself as a chef, and was going to kill everyone here.

"Is this the guy?" Harufumi Mogi took a photo out of his wallet and placed it in front of Aki Ishihara.

“It’s him, no doubt about it,” Ishihara Aki said with absolute certainty.

“Things seem to be getting more interesting.” Mogi shrugged and placed the photo on the table. “The gourmet detective, Oogami Shuzen, is quite a well-known figure in Japan.”

“I’m quite curious why you have his picture in your wallet,” Ikumi Gunda said with a smile.

“Of course it’s because he’s my target. Just a few months ago, he sold all his assets. My client asked me to investigate his current situation and see if there’s any room for further price reduction.” Mogi shook his head. “It can’t be because I like him.”

"You're almost 40 and still not married, so that possibility can't be ruled out," Granny Qianjian said with a smile.

"That guy is too ugly, he's below average in appearance. Even with my bizarre taste, I wouldn't choose him."

"So it's because he's ugly. Looks like handsome guys are still on your list." Ikumi Gunda smiled and changed the subject.

"That's enough, buddy of yours." Mogi turned to Shinjo. "But Shinjo Tetsuo, how were you so sure the cup was poisoned?"

Shinjo took Ishihara Aki's teapot, poured a cup of tea directly into it, then took out a copper coin from his bag, burned it with a lighter, and threw it into the teacup.

Just as he was about to take it out, someone beat him to it. Hattori Heiji directly pulled out a copper coin, "There's an oxidation-reduction reaction, this is..."

“Potassium kaempferol,” Shinjo said with a dark face. “Also known as potassium cyanide, it’s slightly soluble in air and forms hydrogen cyanide. It’s colorless, but it has a bitter almond smell. My nose is quite sensitive, so I can smell it.”

"Is it really something you can smell?" Kaito placed the teacup in front of him and sniffed it, but he couldn't smell anything.

“The concentration isn’t high enough; a normal nose can’t detect it. But if you add water and let it sit for a while, it will develop a smell. I was able to detect it earlier because I smelled it a lot.” Shinjo stared at Moriarty in the main seat. “Can you tell me the reason for doing this?”

There are cameras in the kitchen. He installed them later without the knowledge of Oojo Shuzen and Senma Kōta. This was so that Karen could monitor the entire villa.

That guy, Ooue, probably didn't know the camera was there. When he was poisoning her, he probably only avoided Ishihara Aki. He probably poisoned her right under Karen's nose.

It's very suspicious that Karen didn't explain such important information beforehand!

“If you can’t even find this, then none of you detectives here deserve to participate in this competition,” Moriarty said slowly. “In that case, you might as well die.”

The faces of everyone present changed, because they were certain they couldn't detect the potassium cyanide in the teacups. If Xincheng hadn't discovered it beforehand, that black tea, laced with potassium cyanide and emitting a bitter almond smell, would already be in their stomachs. Even if the car hadn't exploded, they would have been beyond saving by the time they got to the hospital.

"Such a sweet voice uttering such vicious words." Mogi sighed, putting on his hat while releasing the safety of his pistol.

"What are you going to do?" Ikumi Gunta asked, frowning.

“That guy Ooga is probably hiding somewhere. He’s not satisfied with not killing us at the party, and he’ll definitely try to kill us again later,” Mogi Harufumi said with a smile. “I’ll go and find him.”

“Then be careful. There are quite a few guns hidden in this villa. If I’m not mistaken, Daisuke should also have a gun on him,” Chizuru said slowly. “You’re not afraid of a head-on confrontation, after all, even the Mafia isn’t a match for you, but right now the enemy is in the dark while we are in the light…”

“Grandma, I’m not like you. Even when I’m seventy or eighty, I can still handle a gun. Knitting in an armchair isn’t for me.” Mogi Harufumi walked to the door, smiled at Shinjo, and asked, “Hey, boy, interested in playing a game of cat and mouse?”

Chapter 82 Group Operations and Codes

“One cat is enough to catch mice, unless it’s a stupid one. And I have to warn you, this mansion is huge. If we search it all, it makes no difference whether there are one or two people.” Shinjo silently took out two Glock 18s and tossed one to Mori. “I’ll wait until dawn. If you can’t catch him before dawn, then I’ll make my move.”

“That’s true.” Harufumi Mogi smiled and walked out the door.

"In that case, congratulations Mr. Mogi for triggering the hidden mission." Just as Mogi reached the restaurant entrance, Moriarty's voice rang out again, "As long as you catch the hidden detective before dawn, my promise to you will still stand. Just don't die."

"You said it yourself, I'll remember it well." With that, Harufumi Mogi walked out of the room.

"What should we do next?" Mori asked, looking at Shinjo.

"Take Ran back to her room first, and come out again after dawn. Miss Ishihara, that guy is a very dangerous one. Kogoro Mouri is a former detective, so his protection should be enough for you. You go to the room with him." Shinjo looked around at everyone and then said, "As for the rest of you, pair up. I'll be in a pair with Koshimizu."

“Then I’ll team up with the old lady. You don’t mind, do you?” Kaito said immediately.

His best option was actually to team up with his classmate, Hakuba Saguru, but he had seen the guy among the police officers chasing Kaito Kid. Now, with the situation fraught with danger, he wasn't sure he could hide his identity as Kaito Kid from that monster, Hakuba Saguru.

“I’m getting old, and my legs aren’t as nimble as they used to be. I can still crack codes, but my mobility is far inferior to that of young people.” Senma Shota looked at Kaito with a kind expression and said, “Weren’t you going to look for clues in your father’s case?”

“This guy might not even know. Besides, Mr. Shinjo said that the Phantom Thief Crow also knows clues about those people,” Kaito said. “Everyone here wants something. Even if we fight with all our might and defeat these monsters, we might still end up with nothing. Rather than that, I’d rather go find that Crow.”

"You're more open-minded than I am," Granny Senma said, nodding in agreement to Kaito's request to team up.

“In that case, I’ll team up with you, young master,” said Ikumi Gunta. “Young master, please protect this weak woman.”

"I've heard a lot about Ms. Gunta's marksmanship," Hakuba Saguru said with a smile. "In the end, it's still uncertain who will protect whom."

All six people had formed teams, leaving only Shinichi Kudo and Heiji Hattori in the entire hall.

The two exchanged a single glance before turning away from each other. Even if they disliked each other, they were forced to team up when only two remained.

"Now that the teams are formed, let's begin the competition." Moriarty's voice was filled with excitement. "The code is—"

Two travelers, hurrying along, look up at the sky at night.

The demons descended upon the castle.

The king, carrying the treasure, fled.

[The princess wept as she poured out the holy chalice, praying for divine mercy.]

[The soldier, breathless, drew his sword and committed suicide; the earth changed color.]

After speaking, Moriarty's dummy stopped talking and went into a complete shutdown.

“If I remember correctly, Moriarty said there were no mobile base stations here. I just tested it, and there really is no signal.” Hattori Heiji reached out and grabbed the mannequin’s head, yanking it up. “So how did you manage to communicate with us?”

The expected electrical wires did not appear; Hattori pulled the dummy's head out directly, causing it to lose its balance and tilt to one side.

"Hey, hey, hey, it's very impolite to play with a lady's body like that," Moriarty's somewhat angry voice came from inside the head.

"Is this a satellite phone? It doesn't look that big." Hattori peered inside the head. "What are all these things?"

Shinichi Kudo glanced at it and said, "This should be something related to the internet, but that's not the point right now. We need to confirm whether this guy has really cut off our escape route."

"Fine." Hattori slammed the head down on the table.

"Hey, hey, hey, can you be a little gentler? Like, put this head back in. I'm really not used to this perspective," Moriarty's head protested.

"You just stay put!" Shinjo picked up a black plastic bag and covered the head with it.

"Uncle Shinjo, aren't you coming with us to take a look?" Kudo asked, standing at the door.

“Not for now, Yue Shui sprained her ankle.” Xin Cheng picked up a napkin, wrapped it around an ice cube, and started applying it to Yue Shui. “Besides, there’s a newbie and an old lady here who need to be taken care of.”

"Then I'll have to trouble you." Hattori pushed Kudo directly towards the door. "Hurry up, stop dawdling. You're supposed to be a famous detective from Kanto."

Shinichi was speechless under Hattori's gaze, but he could understand Hattori's feelings. If he were the Shinichi before he shrunk, he would definitely be excited about this showdown between the strongest high school detectives from Kanto and Kansai.

However, after experiencing the shrinking incident, the Shinkansen incident, and the Tsukikage Island incident, he began to consider safety issues.

Without a doubt, Karasuma Renya's old residence was inherently dangerous, not to mention that there was also Oogami Shuzen, who coveted the treasure, and Moriarty hiding behind the scenes.

The two pushed and shoved each other as they left the restaurant. Not long after, they arrived at the parking lot in front of the villa, which was now engulfed in flames, with several cars burning fiercely.

"Thank goodness, my motorcycle wasn't parked in the parking lot, otherwise I would have had to buy a new one." Hattori breathed a sigh of relief.

"Why don't you ride your motorcycle down and take a look, see if that suspension bridge has been destroyed?" Kudo asked, frowning.

“Do you think I didn’t want to?” Hattori shook his head. “My car got a flat tire from a nail just after crossing the suspension bridge. I thought I’d go up the mountain to see if there was anywhere I could get my tire repaired, but it turns out there’s only this one villa in the mountains.”

"If I remember correctly, you arrived quite early..."

“This place is too remote. Everyone drove here. With so many people, they should all have tire repair kits in their cars.” Hattori sighed. “I was planning to ask if anyone had any at the party so I could borrow them, but it turns out everyone’s cars are…”

After saying that, he pointed helplessly to the vehicle that had turned into a torch. With the car gone, there was no point in thinking about the tire repair tools that were inside.

Chapter 83 The Piano in Scarlet and the Phantom Thief

"We probably don't need to look at the suspension bridge anymore; what that guy said is probably true." Shinichi was also a bit troubled at this moment. "You should have already figured out the answer to that mystery, right?"

“Yes,” Hattori Heiji said, staring at the flames, “but are you really going to tell Moriarty this? This villa holds a treasure that even Karasuma Renya covets. After obtaining the treasure, he might not just hand it over; the most likely thing he'll do is…”

“Kill them to silence them, kill everyone who knows the truth.” Kudo’s face darkened. “Just like Karasuma Renya killed those scholars.”

"So, what are you planning to do?" Hattori nodded. It seemed this high school detective from Kanto was quite something.

“Tell him the answer just before dawn,” Kudo said with a smile. “If he really is Karasuma Renya’s enemy, he certainly won’t care about the value of the treasure. It doesn’t matter whether I tell him sooner or later, since the treasure is no longer his concern. But if he’s lying, then the loss of this wealth will be an unbearable price for him.”

"Just as I thought, let's consider this a response to that guy's refusal to help," Hattori said, looking down. "But now there's an even bigger threat, and that's the guy hiding in the annex."

"May the Emperor bestow blessings?"

"That's right, it's him."

"Then let's go find this detective who wants to kill us."

On the other side, Hakuba Saguru and Yata Ikumi arrived at the door of a room, led by Walter Seng.

"Young Master, what are you doing..." Ikumi Gunta asked, somewhat puzzled, "Looking for something?"

“Watson is quite sensitive to the smell of blood.” Hakuba Saguru shrugged. “I wanted to see if those scholars had left us any clues. You probably noticed them too, right?”

“Yes, those codes weren’t complicated, you could even say they were quite simple.” Ikumi Yagami nodded. “Back then, Renya Karasuma invited a large group of top scholars, and some of them must have deciphered the codes, but why wasn’t the treasure found in the end? This…”

Gunda Ikumi stopped mid-sentence, stunned. At that moment, Walterson was standing on the keys of a piano, his two paws seemingly pawing at something.

"It seems that Walter has found some incredible clue." Hakuba Saguru went straight over, took out what Walter had torn apart, and his pupils contracted sharply the moment he saw the code.

"What's wrong, young master?"