Conan: Chief of Rice Flower's Science Points

Chapter 536 The Triumph of Science

Late at night on August 6th.

Because it was too late, Ayako didn't go back.

“Since there are no ghosts or monsters, then… was Mr. Hayami’s death really due to auditory hallucinations?” Ayako had just finished sweating and was lying in Shiraishi’s right arm.

Although Ayako usually prefers to be on the left, even though Chihiro Ayasato says she doesn't know anything normally, Ayako still instinctively avoids using her left arm.

"Possibly, but we still need to investigate further," Shiraishi said calmly.

Shiraishi was already used to Ayako bringing this up at times like this.

This was a common pastime for the two of them "afterwards"...

"Can't we rule out human error?" Ayako asked, somewhat puzzled.

“Although no human intervention has been found yet, we cannot rule out human intervention until the cause of the auditory hallucinations is determined. Besides, I always feel that Hayami’s pattern of illness is a bit strange.” Shiraishi’s tone was also somewhat odd.

"What caused the auditory hallucinations?" Ayako asked, puzzled.

"Well, generally speaking, auditory hallucinations can be simply categorized as pathological, psychogenic, or pharmacological... Among these, the pathological explanation is somewhat far-fetched, as no psychologist or psychiatrist has diagnosed it, and pharmacological causes have been largely ruled out, leaving only the psychogenic cause..."

After a pause, Shiraishi said, "His mistress committed suicide because of him, so Hayami does have a reason to experience psychotic hallucinations, but... if it's just psychotic hallucinations... this reaction is a bit too exaggerated."

"Ah! Right, could it not be a hallucination? Aren't there those directional sound systems?" Ayako suddenly thought.

“No, those kinds of speakers are too uncontrollable. They could easily be heard by others, and... when he hears a sound that scares him, Hayami also covers his ears... but this doesn't make the sound disappear, and it doesn't even affect him. That's why he was diagnosed with auditory hallucinations,” Shiraishi said, shaking his head.

After thinking for a moment, Ayako said, "Ah! Could it be like Koizumi-san? Can't you two communicate with just your eyes?"

"Huh? Eyes? You don't need eyes?" Shiraishi was taken aback.

Ayako:……

“Oh, maybe I’m not used to it yet, which is why we always exchange glances when we’re communicating telepathically,” Shiraishi explained. After a moment of silence, he said, “It’s certainly not impossible, but… we still can’t think of it that way.”

If every "unexplainable" case is attributed to "supernatural forces," then many solvable cases will remain unsolved!
"I'll go see Koizumi-san tomorrow," Shiraishi said, just in case.

If it's a ghost seeking revenge, Chihiro Ayari is a professional, but...

If it was done by someone with supernatural abilities, then that's Koizumi Akako's specialty!
After all, while "spiritual mediums" are skilled at dealing with ghosts, when it comes to magical combat, they are at the bottom of all supernatural abilities. If there is any truly powerful character doing something, Chihiro Ayasato really can't tell.

In contrast, the "Red Witch" is the complete opposite; she is a war goddess among supernatural ability users, especially Koizumi Akako, who is also very strong. In terms of combat, she can be said to be among the top in the world...

As for Bai Shi...

He can fight, but even Hongzi might not be his match.

However, they lack experience, and now they need to investigate whether "someone with supernatural powers is causing trouble," so Hongzi is more reliable.

"Magic is truly amazing, but unfortunately I don't have the talent," Ayako said regretfully.

Upon hearing this, Shiraishi comforted him, saying, "Magic is ultimately just a detour in human development. Just like now, what magic can do, basic science can also do."

Yes, in modern society, "being rich" is the most supernatural ability.

Upon hearing this, Ayako pursed her lips and said, "Really? Then I'd like to spare no expense to customize a device that can transmit sound directly into a person's mind. How should I do that?"

Shiraishi smiled awkwardly upon hearing this, knowing that Ayako was just being coquettish.

Since that's the case, Shiraishi followed up by saying, "Well... let me think... First of all, 'sound' is actually a translation of 'signal' by the auditory system in the brain."

"To achieve private sound transmission, the signal cannot be the original sound wave. Bone conduction is also easily detected. Hmm... the lowest level of contact should be at least on the cochlea. If it touches a more superficial organ, it will be easily detected by others."

"There are actually quite a few ways to send signals directly to the cochlea. For example, you can use microwave pulses to heat the brain to a temperature of one ten-thousandth of a degree Celsius, which will generate pressure waves in the skull. These pressure waves are what the cochlea can receive and translate..."

"Huh?" Shiraishi was stunned when he said this.

At first, Shiraishi was just trying to appease Ayako, and then he went on to talk about "scientific knowledge"—after all, money corresponds to scientific power, and it's common knowledge that the rich rely on technology...

but……

As Baishi spoke, he increasingly felt that this method was indeed feasible!

This method wasn't invented by Shiraishi; there's a specific term for it: "microwave auditory effect," also known as the "Frey effect."

Simply put, it involves heating the brain with microwaves, which in turn stimulates the cochlea. The cochlea then processes this signal as a sound signal, so the person "feels like they've heard a sound," but this sound appears directly in the brain.

As for why it was such a "perfect coincidence"?
Of course, if it weren't "just right," this phenomenon wouldn't be noticed...

This phenomenon was first discovered during World War II, when communications soldiers who always worked near radar would inexplicably hear strange noises that they couldn't cover up, and that's when it was discovered.

Compared to sound waves, both modulated microwaves and pulses are easier to target precisely and should be more suitable for miniaturization!

Yes, "should".

Shiraishi has a legitimate degree in "health medicine," so he understands this Frey effect, but...

Asking him to handcraft something usable and put it into practice would be asking too much of him.

Physics and mechanics are not Shiraishi's strong suits.

then……

"What's wrong?" Ayako asked, puzzled when she saw Shiraishi pause in his speech.

"It's nothing... I just suddenly thought I could give it a try," Shiraishi said vaguely.

It was too late, so Baishi didn't make any arrangements.

After resting with Ayako for the night, Shiraishi knocked on Ai's door early the next morning...

"Ai, I'm giving you a craft project for the holidays!"

Ai: ? ? ?
……

On Friday, Shiraishi handled his official duties as usual, and the case of Hayami Tatsuro also progressed normally, with additional evidence being added... but there was no significant progress!
Suicide or accidental death remains the primary cause of death...

However, there has been great progress on Shiraishi's side!
After a day's work, Ai had finished her "craft project." Looking at the small box, the size of a mobile phone, Shiraishi was very satisfied.

……

On Saturday, Shiraishi came to the police station to work overtime. Besides observing an arrest technique training session for a while and handling some unfinished official business from the week...

In the afternoon, Shiraishi specifically called a meeting with several detectives in charge of the Hayami Tatsuro case, as well as Fuji and Kawai. Fuji was indeed a patrol officer involved in the investigation, so it wasn't surprising that she was called in.

only……

After listening to the report, Shiraishi suddenly stood up and said, "I would like to remind everyone of something: besides spontaneously generated auditory hallucinations, there is another way to produce a similar result."

"Huh? If it's not a hallucination... that's impossible, right?" Ashiya was taken aback by what he heard.

Just then, everyone suddenly heard a noise. Looking in the direction of the sound, they saw that Teng's expression was not very natural.

Not only were the papers and pens on her desk a mess, but her expression was also somewhat strange...

"Hmm? Minister Fuji, what's wrong?" Kawai asked in a low voice from the side.

Fuji looked at Kawai with a puzzled expression and asked, "What are you guys doing? Really... didn't you hear me?"

"What did you hear?" Kawai asked, even more puzzled.

"Fuji, what's wrong?" Haiya asked directly—why did you suddenly start talking to yourself during the investigation meeting?
Teng instinctively covered her ears, and finally... even seemed a little scared and wanted to shrink away.

Shiraishi then stopped, looked at the thing in his sleeve, and said, "See? Even if it's not a hallucination, it can still make people hear the sound, right?"

"Eh?"

"Teng, what did you hear?"

"Really? You're not the chief's shill, are you?"

"Minister Fujii? You really heard that?"

Based on Fuji's reaction just now, the other detectives understood what Shiraishi meant—it seemed that Fuji had just heard something.
only……

It's really strange that only Teng could hear it when everyone was in the same office.
But what shocked Fuji himself even more than everyone else was!

"Director? That voice just now was..." Fuji looked at Shiraishi in disbelief.

Yes, Fuji himself knew that the reason he was "taking the blame" on himself was probably because he had teased Ms. Suzuki last night.

“That’s right, just like this.” Shiraishi said, then pointed his cuff at Gen…

Yuan's expression immediately tensed up, and he exclaimed, "Huh? Uh... this..."

Then Yuan also started rubbing his ears while forcing a smile—even though the director had made it clear that he was the one causing trouble, hearing this sound still made Yuan uneasy.

The sound is eerie, but the key issue is that you can't tell where it is at all, and even if you rub your ears, the sound is completely unaffected!

"Really?" Yamada looked at Shiraishi with a puzzled expression.

Gen immediately breathed a sigh of relief, and then Yamada became timid...

Shiraishi begins to "punish" everyone who doesn't believe!

"Chief, what exactly is this?" After hearing it, Ashiya finally believed it, even though he couldn't quite believe it.

"The Frey effect... This is a device that emits highly directional microwaves that physically affect your brain. The resulting intracranial pressure waves are translated into sound by your auditory system..."

"As long as you reverse-decode, you can record a specific sound. After turning it on, you can use this to remotely point it at the target's head and make the target hear a specific sound. Of course, this is not caused by sound waves or eardrum vibration. Naturally, covering your ears or other methods will not affect the sound appearing in your mind."

As Shiraishi spoke, he took out something hidden in his sleeve—it wasn't a miniature machine, but it was portable enough.

"There's actually something like this... Wait, Director, where did this come from? It shouldn't be... a mass-produced commodity, right?" Ashiya asked hurriedly.

"No, I had it custom-made." Shiraishi didn't say that Ai made it, otherwise it would be too shocking.

"Huh? Then... is there anyone else who can do it? Or... has your friend done it for anyone else recently?" Ash Valley asked quickly.

“No, it’s not as technologically advanced as you might imagine, and... Hayami Tatsuro’s company uses this kind of microwave transmitter in its information security services,” Shiraishi explained.

In addition to firewall defenses, information security must also consider how adversaries can directly decipher computer network signals.

Therefore, the detection of this special microwave is also part of the services provided by the company!

Upon hearing Shiraishi's words, the detectives immediately took notice—in other words, the company's employees, especially the technical staff, could all have put together something like this.

If Shiraishi initially presented this as merely a possibility, its connection to the company's business greatly strengthens the suspicion!

Yuan then astutely asked, "Director, what is the effective range of this thing?"

“This is only about ten meters. I’ve seen the signal transmitter their company uses. If you modify it, it’s only about twenty meters,” Shiraishi said.

"Huh? Twenty meters?"

Several detectives in the conference room began flipping through files, mainly looking at screenshots of the surveillance footage of the fall into the sea…

"If it's twenty meters... that charlatan should be in one of those two shops next door, right?" Ashiya immediately confirmed this.

Previously, since there was no one on the main road, no one thought it might be human.

Now it seems that if you're affected by this thing, you can't judge direction at all. The deceased was just looking in front of him out of habit...

There was no one else on the main road in front of him for a hundred meters, so the person who plotted against him must be indoors.

Within a 20-meter radius, there are those two small taverns...

After giving a brief hint, Shiraishi didn't say anything more.

Then comes what detectives excel at...

Search for suspects—either company employees or people associated with them—who were in the two bars at the time of the incident!
Once the suspect is identified, the next step is to specifically look for a motive. With a motive and evidence from the scene, they can be brought back for questioning...

Unless they are "well-trained prisoners", they can usually find flaws in their statements.

As for evidence...

As long as the criminal reveals where his murder weapon is, such a special item can be considered direct evidence!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Dongdong: Today is September 14th, the 657th anniversary of the Ming army's capture of Dadu (Beijing) and the fall of the Yuan Dynasty under the leadership of Xu Da. Please vote for me! Please vote for me! Please vote for me!

(End of this chapter)