Traveling back thirty years to Conan, intercepting Princess Eri

The main building of the Mito family villa is a three-story gray-white stone building with arched windows and a pitched roof, in a classic style.

Guided by a police officer, the two passed through a foyer with a crystal chandelier and arrived on the second floor.

The corridor was covered with a deep red carpet, and oil paintings and decorations hung on the walls on both sides, creating a solemn atmosphere.

The closer you get to a room deep in the corridor, the more obvious the strange feeling in the air becomes.

Before they even reached the door, the two heard Ikenami Takeshi's deep voice coming from inside the room, his tone clearly showing surprise.
"...Are you sure this is the same wire saw used to cut the hotel railing last night?"

Lin Xiuyi and Chi Bojinghua exchanged a glance and quickened their pace to the door of the room.

The door was wide open, and a strong smell of blood wafted out.

As the two stepped into the room, the first thing they saw was not a corpse, but in the center of the room, Chief Inspector Takeshi Ikenami was standing with his back to the door, slightly bent over, intently looking at something held in the hand of a forensic officer wearing white gloves.

It was a rather professional-looking hand-operated wire saw. The officer was carefully pointing out the slits in the saw blade and certain parts of the handle, reporting to Takeshi Ikenami.
"Minister, we found a small amount of embedded sawdust in the gaps between the saw teeth and in the grooves at the handle connection of the wire saw."

"Its color is very similar to the wood chip sample collected last night from the broken railing of the River View Hotel balcony."

"Of course, to definitively confirm whether it is the same type of wood, it needs to be sent back to the laboratory for microscopic comparison, but the preliminary judgment is that this wire saw is very likely the tool used to damage the hotel railing."

Takeshi Ikenami nodded solemnly, and was about to ask something when he heard footsteps at the door and turned around.

Upon seeing that it was Ikenami Shizuka and Hayashi Hideichi, he showed a "just in time" expression, but then frowned slightly, as if remembering something.

"Uncle, what tool? Did you find the murder weapon? Mito Hayato, he..."

Ikeba Shizuka asked urgently, while subconsciously glancing inside the room, searching for the body.

Her gaze swept over the messy bed, the overturned chair, and some personal belongings scattered on the floor...

Then, the camera focused on the area near the window on the inside of the room, the area marked off by the police.

The next moment, Ikeba Shizuka's words came to an abrupt halt. The color drained from her face in an instant, her eyes widened suddenly, and her breath caught in her throat for a moment.

In that area, Mito Jun's body had not yet been removed and was lying on the carpet in an extremely contorted position.

Near the artery on his neck was a horrific, bloody laceration, seemingly caused by repeated rubbing and cutting from something rough. This caused a large amount of blood to spurt out, staining his expensive silk pajamas a horrifying dark red, and soaking the carpet with a large pool of dark blood.

Because of the extreme pain he endured at the time of his death, Mito Hayabusa's face was severely contorted by the pain and suffocation. His eyes were wide open, his mouth was slightly agape, and his tongue was slightly protruding, making his death extremely gruesome and terrifying.

"vomit……"

The intense visual and olfactory impact sent a churning through Ikeba Shizuka's stomach, who had never witnessed such a gruesome death up close before.

She turned around abruptly, reached out and covered her mouth tightly, forcefully suppressing the gagging that was about to spill out.

"Jinghua! How many times have I told you not to rush into a crime scene recklessly!" Seeing this, Chibo Gangsi scolded her in a low voice, feeling both distressed and helpless, and quickly signaled to a female police officer next to him.

The policewoman understood and quickly stepped forward to support the swaying Ikebo Shizuka, leading her away from the room door to a well-ventilated area in the corridor to rest.

Only then did Ikenami Tsuyoshi turn his gaze to Hayashi Hideichi, who had been standing silently to the side since entering, with a hint of barely perceptible surprise in his eyes.

Although I had heard from my niece that this young man from Tokyo was a "special investigation consultant for the Metropolitan Police Department" and had been involved in many cases.

However, Ikenami Tsuyoshi did not take it completely at first, thinking it was just an exaggeration among young people or some kind of privileged arrangement.

After all, Lin Xiuyi is too young and handsome, more like an academic than a practical fighter.

However, Lin Xiuyi's performance at this moment forced him to reassess.

Faced with the gruesome body of Mito Hayato, a corpse so horribly mutilated that even some of his inexperienced young officers couldn't help but look away or suppress their discomfort, Lin Xiuyi's expression remained almost unchanged from the moment he entered until he witnessed the entire scene.

There was no fear, no nausea, no deliberate averting of gaze, and even his brows were only slightly furrowed. It was a solemn expression of focused observation and analysis, not fear.

This composure and professional observation, beyond his years, is not feigned; it can only be honed through experiencing similar situations.

Ikeba Tsuyoshi thought to himself: It seems that Jinghua was right this time, and she didn't exaggerate. This young man named Lin Xiuyi is indeed something.

To remain calm in the face of such a tragic situation requires either an exceptionally strong mental fortitude or a wealth of experience.

“Lin-kun,” Ikebashi Takeshi spoke first, his tone more formal and acknowledging than before, “as you can see, the situation has taken an unexpected turn. Our initial assessment is suicide, but…”

He pointed to the wire saw in the forensic personnel's hands.
"We've found another item that might be related to last night's hotel case, and there are quite a few inconsistencies at the scene. Since you're here, why don't you share your thoughts?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiuyi nodded, his gaze once again falling on the cold corpse and the wire saw covered in fine wood shavings that might connect the two deaths.

Overnight, the suspect became the victim.

Suicide? Or homicide?

"Minister Ikenami, were any suicide notes or anything like that found at the scene?" Lin Xiuyi stood in the center of Mito Hayato's bedroom, his gaze sweeping over the messy bed and scattered clothes, and asked with a slight frown.

Takeshi Ikenami turned to the bedside table against the wall, where a dark velvet tablecloth was laid out and a transparent evidence bag was placed on it.

"Yes, a suicide note was found over there."

He gestured to the officer beside him to bring the evidence bag, and as he handed it to Lin Xiuyi, he explained,

"It says that the trap on the balcony of the Riverview Hotel last night was set by Mito Hayato in order to kill his father, Mito Shinzo, and seize the family property. Unexpectedly, he ended up killing Minamino Momoko by mistake."

Lin Xiuyi took the evidence bag and examined it closely. The suicide note was written with a black fountain pen; the handwriting was crooked and there were many ink smudges, indicating that it was indeed written in a state of extreme emotional agitation. (End of Chapter)