Conan: I'm really not the mastermind behind the scenes

It is terrifying to suddenly come face to face with a corpse in the middle of the night, but fortunately, the three people who saw the corpse were already seasoned veterans.

Even Ran Mouri, the most timid of them all, skillfully dialed the police number after a brief scream. Kogoro Mouri rushed up to the third floor to see if he could break down the door, while Conan Edogawa went to find the butler and asked him to quickly contact the head of the family, who was on his way to the hospital, to come back and open the door.

Amidst the chaos, everyone in the entire house was summoned.

The client and the police arrived almost simultaneously. His face was even more pale than when they first met that afternoon. He opened the door to the bedroom on the third floor with trembling hands.

"The deceased's name was Toshimichi Sekiguchi, and he was 43 years old. The estimated time of death was four hours ago, which is between 8:30 and 9:00 pm last night..."

This time, the team was led by Matsuda Jinpei, who was still wearing his black suit and sunglasses. Takagi Wataru was also with him. He looked at the bodies being pulled from the ground and gathered initial information.

Kogoro Mouri wasn't familiar with the young policeman and asked in confusion, "Why isn't Inspector Megure here?"

Matsuda Jinpei remained calm: "The Metropolitan Police Department received other cases this afternoon, and he and Sato are investigating them."

Other cases?

Conan Edogawa had been watching Matsuda and Takagi ever since they came in, and now that he had grasped this key point, he was also taken aback: Could this be the reason why Officer Takagi and the others had not responded for so long?
Matsuda Jinpei noticed a low gaze, and his eyes swept over it, stopping when he saw the top of Edogawa Conan's head: "What's wrong with your head?"

“That kid,” Kogoro Mouri glared at Conan Edogawa, who had a big bump on his head, “The client came back a few minutes earlier than you. After he opened the door, we immediately pulled Mr. Sekiguchi upstairs and confirmed that he was dead. Then this kid started rummaging through his clothes without permission.”

Matsuda Jinpei was speechless: "I told you not to disturb the scene... Did you find anything?"

This question was directed at Conan Edogawa, but Kogoro Mouri, thinking it was directed at him, quickly handed over a card.

"This is it, it's in the inside pocket of the clothes."

Matsuda Jinpei looked at his bare hands, silently took out a pair of thin gloves and put them on before taking the evidence from Mouri Kogoro.

He saw the words above and read them aloud: "The crimes of 13 years ago will be repaid here...?"

As soon as the words were spoken, the expressions of the people standing nearby changed instantly.

Matsuda Jinpei looked over and saw that it was the clients, Mr. and Mrs. Kunitomo, and he walked towards them with the card in his hand.

What was the relationship between the deceased and you?

He didn't ask about the card directly, but instead, like in a typical murder case, he started by asking about the most basic interpersonal relationships.

“He was my wife’s former classmate. His security company is located nearby. We gradually became acquainted, and I asked him to install the fingerprint scanner at the entrance,” the client said.

Matsuda Jinpei moved a little closer: "Where were you between eight and nine o'clock when the incident happened?"

“My wife accompanied me to the hospital. I have a heart condition and need to have a check-up every month.” The client coughed. “Mian Yin drove us there. There are security cameras in front of my house; you can check them.”

Upon hearing about the surveillance footage, the forensic personnel nearby beamed with joy. Surveillance footage is highly objective evidence, far more reliable than human testimony.

Matsuda Jinpei still didn't react. He studied their faces through his sunglasses and then glanced at the anxious servants beside him.

He held up the card in his hand: "Then what's going on? This murder is very likely a revenge killing."

The butler, who had been listening in, was stunned: "Murder? But he hanged himself in an empty room. Shouldn't it be suicide?"

“No, that’s not it,” Conan Edogawa interjected. “The rope around the deceased uncle’s neck was very close to the railing, almost tightly wrapped around it. If it were really suicide, he should have left some distance so that it would be easier for him to jump down after being tied up. We could have seen his dangling legs as soon as we entered the room.”

The child's slightly innocent voice described the horrifying scene, and the butler felt a chill run down his spine: "Is...is that so..."

Matsuda Jinpei glanced at Edogawa Conan again, then turned to the people involved: "What exactly happened here thirteen years ago?"

After the question was asked, the atmosphere became increasingly strange. The couple who were the clients exchanged glances, but neither of them spoke. "It's that shipwreck, isn't it?" Kogoro Mouri stared at the equally silent butler. "You mentioned it to us at dinner, and the timing matches up."

Matsuda Jinpei also looked at the butler. After a few seconds of stalemate, the butler stepped forward.

"……Yes."

A bitter expression appeared on his round, kind face.

"Thirteen years ago, my husband took everyone out to sea, but unfortunately, a shipwreck occurred. My wife, Mrs. Senzaki's husband, Mr. Watanabe's father and younger brother all perished in that shipwreck. My husband, Mrs. Senzaki, and Mr. Sekiguchi, who was on the trip with us, boarded a lifeboat and were rescued by other passing ships."

Upon hearing that four people had died, Matsuda Jinpei's brow twitched, and he said in a subtle tone, "Oh? Your own family members have died, and you're still working here?"

The housekeeper choked, then subconsciously glanced at another female housekeeper, the cook, and the driver not far away, stammering, "After all, it was just an accident, and we all have some minor health issues, making it difficult to find work outside..."

Matsuda Jinpei gave a perfunctory "hmm," completely adopting an attitude of "go ahead and make things up, I'll admit defeat if I believe you."

“You can all leave now. Then we’ll arrange an empty room for you. We’ll be taking statements from each of you later.” He looked at Takagi Wataru and, seeing him leave the forensic personnel, continued, “Did you receive any threatening letters before? Hand them over as well.”

The couple who were in charge, along with the servants present, did not suspect anything, assuming that someone had mentioned it casually when they called the police. The housekeeper took out the photo and handed it to Matsuda Jinpei.

"I'm sorry, officer, the original items have been disposed of, only this photo remains," he said somewhat awkwardly.

Matsuda Jinpei took it, casually waved his hand, indicating that they could leave.

Conan Edogawa glanced at the suspects who had walked out, then at the body still lying on the ground, which hadn't been moved yet, and wanted to go over and examine it again.

Just as he was about to take a step, a pair of large hands suddenly pressed down on his head.

“Conan-kun.” Matsuda Jinpei released his hand, leaned down slightly, and looked directly at him through his sunglasses: “Can we talk? I have a few questions I’d like to ask you.”

Conan Edogawa: "...?"

Ran Mouri walked halfway and realized no one was beside her. She turned around and saw them all standing next to the corpse: "Conan, don't cause trouble for Inspector Matsuda and the others!"

“It’s nothing,” Matsuda Jinpei said first. “I’m just going to chat with him. I’ll take it back to you later.”

Hearing him say that, Ran Mouri had no choice but to leave with Kogoro Mouri. As she stepped out the door, she looked back worriedly.

Matsuda Jinpei and Takagi Wataru exchanged a few instructions, then led Edogawa Conan to a corner. Perhaps to shorten the distance between them, he even squatted down.

Conan Edogawa had a strange, bad feeling.

"Officer Matsuda...?" He blinked. "Did you see the email I sent you in reply?"

“I saw it,” Matsuda Jinpei said. “That’s important, thank you for the message. But I’m calling you now to ask about something else.”

He took his phone out of his pocket, pressed a few buttons, and a photo popped up on the screen.

This is a somewhat blurry photo, seemingly a street scene casually taken by someone sitting in a car. In the center of the picture is a man in black, wearing long sleeves and trousers despite the hot season. He turns his head to look in the direction of the camera, and his gaze seems to meet the photographer's.

Conan Edogawa looked surprised when he saw the man's reddish-brown eyes.

"This is the guy we met at the Full Paradise Games launch event."

Matsuda Jinpei spoke calmly.

"Do you know him? Why did you talk to him back then?" (End of Chapter)