Daily Spy Life in the Detective Conan World

Chapter 318 Amuro Tooru's Suspicion

In the morning, the sun is just right.

Rice Krispies Hotel.

The explosion last night has been cleaned up, and even the roads were repaired overnight by a construction team. The incident did not reduce the number of people coming to the Mihana Grand Restaurant; on the contrary, it increased the number.

These people were either journalists or people who wanted to find out if Kenzo Masuyama had really been killed by a mysterious person.

The car company was one of the top businesses in Japan. Upon hearing the news of the death, many people were eager to get a piece of the pie and sent their most capable associates to find out what was going on.

The idea is good, but it's a bit far-fetched.

Since Gin dared to make a move, it means he was fully prepared.

He had long ago arranged for peripheral members to infiltrate the car company, and those major shareholders were actually peripheral members of the organization. This is the main reason why Pisco was able to embezzle public funds and leak intelligence to the outside world.

Not only do the Red Team know how to plant spies in the brewery, but Gin also plants spies among people they don't trust.

Especially those organization members who have official identities.

Pisco is a thorn in Gin's side. This year, Gin completed a major overhaul of everyone in the car company except Pisco, either replacing them with his own people or threatening them by kidnapping their families.

In short, Pisco's death may cause the car company to face temporary criticism in the media and public opinion, but in the long run, it will still be an invaluable cash cow for Gin.

There won't be any problem with that.

Furthermore, with the Hiromoto Group suddenly providing full support to the car company, very few people actually benefited from Pisco's death.

"Good morning, Manager Amuro."

"Hello."

Amuro Tooru greeted the passing waiters warmly.

He just got promoted!
My current position is lobby manager at Mihua Hotel.

Last night, he successfully kept a large number of reporters out of the door, and made clear arrangements for all matters after the incident. He dealt well with the police from the Metropolitan Police Department, all of which were observed and received unanimous approval from the hotel's shareholders.

"Although I won't be staying here for long, this identity is indeed quite good."

Amuro Tooru's smile faded as he walked towards the monitoring room.

Xia Chuan was clearly present at the scene last night, but I only saw him once when he entered the room, and I didn't see him again after that, which is very strange.

Therefore, he planned to go to the monitoring room to check the surveillance footage and see if there were any scenes that couldn't be seen. If so, he would collect them as evidence of the crime after the boss was apprehended.

The old security guard in the monitoring room didn't recognize Amuro Tooru, but he recognized the words "Lobby Manager" on the other man's chest.

Upon noticing the lobby manager arriving for an inspection, he immediately greeted him with a smile: "Manager, is there anything I can help you with?"

"I want to see the surveillance footage from last night. After the police took the footage away yesterday, we should have a backup, right?"

The security guard looked a little strange. Actually, many people had asked him for surveillance footage, but no police officers had.

Some people even asked for exorbitant prices.

But he was destined not to earn that money.

"To be honest, the police didn't come to retrieve the surveillance footage. Instead, many strange people wanted to view it. However, starting from 6:30 pm yesterday, the surveillance signal line seemed to have been chewed through by rats, so there was no surveillance footage at the time of the incident."

Amuro Tooru's face darkened. The Metropolitan Police Department is so stupid. Such a big case happened, and they didn't even think to check the surveillance footage. Are they out of their minds?

He was worried that if the police found out about the organization, they might lead to Gin's assassination attempt. Now it seems he was overthinking it.

"Did a rat chew through the surveillance signal cable?"

"Yes, after the police left, we worked through the night to repair the wiring and found that the internal wiring in the ceiling had been chewed through by rats."

Amuro Tooru didn't believe in such a coincidence. He might have believed the reason that a rat suddenly chewed through the signal wire under normal circumstances, but on such an important night, he didn't believe it. Someone must have tampered with it.

But one thing is for sure: this has absolutely nothing to do with Gin.

The memorial service had just begun at 6:30 p.m. last night, and Gin wasn't even there at that time.

The other party arrived here through the back door, and deliberately avoided surveillance throughout. If it were him, there would have been no need for him to go through all that trouble.

But if it were someone else, who would it be?
The images of Natsukawa and Princess Thorn suddenly appeared in Amuro Tooru's mind.

There should only be two groups of people capable of doing this.

It's either Xia Chuan, a special investigator from the IRS, or the group led by Princess Thorn. He still cares a lot about that sniper.

"If I remember correctly, Xia Chuan appeared at the Mika Hotel around that time, right? The surveillance cameras just happened to break down when he appeared. What a coincidence!"

Amuro Tooru frowned as he pondered.

Xia Chuan seemed to have done nothing last night. Apart from seeing the other party once at the door, he didn't go to the crime scene afterward, nor did he see the other party at the rooftop gin, and he wasn't on the hotel's guest list.

So, he couldn't have really come here just to see Shigehiko Tonoguchi, could he?

Then you left after seeing the other person die?
Princess Thorn is also suspicious, but Gin said that Sherry must have installed the listening device in his car after 3:30 p.m.

Even if Shirley knew that Pisco was planning to kill someone and came over intending to do something, she wouldn't be able to figure out the signal cable distribution of the surveillance equipment at the Mihana Grand Hotel so quickly.

It can be said that there is very little doubt about either of them.

But the possibilities are only between these two; there are no other possibilities.

"Manager, there's something I need your help with."

The voice of the receptionist came through the walkie-talkie, interrupting Amuro Tooru's thoughts.

The voice sounded urgent, indicating that something had happened at the front desk that the other party couldn't handle.

Suppress your doubts for now and bring them to the forefront.

Before even getting close, Amuro Tooru heard a man standing at the front desk shouting loudly, his words agitated as if some argument had taken place.

"I just want to check the surveillance footage, why can't I!"

"what's going on?"

Amuro Tooru carefully examined the other person. The man had slightly dark skin, wore a hat, and had a camera bag around his waist. His complexion was not good, and his eyes were very bloodshot, indicating that he had not slept well all night.

"who are you?"

The man muttered something, then his eyes lit up when he saw the nameplate on Amuro Tooru's chest.

"You're the lobby manager, right? I'm going to report you!"

"report?"

To be honest, Amuro Tooru felt that this person looked familiar. If he remembered correctly, this person also attended Director Sakamaki's memorial service yesterday!
He remembered that this guy had been taking pictures of a man and a woman from the very beginning; if he remembered correctly, they were the two people in the photo that exposed the murderer.

Hmm, if that's the case, wouldn't Pisco be caught in the crossfire of this paparazzi?
Logically, they should be overjoyed to have such a photo taken. How could this happen? Did the newspaper not pay them? That's none of the restaurant's business.

"Sir, who do you want to report?"

"Yesterday I encountered a thief here who stole my film!"

Amuro Tooru let out a soft "hmm," showing interest, and invited the man to his office for a talk.

The man sat down and immediately stood up again, saying urgently, "Someone stole my film yesterday in the lobby lounge. Your hotel needs to give me an explanation. How can such a big hotel tolerate a thief? You must find that person for me!"

Amuro Tooru gestured for the other party to calm down, a certain guess forming in his mind.

He grabbed a newspaper left behind by the former manager and pointed to the photo on the front page, saying, "Was this photo among the rolls of film you lost?"

The man immediately became agitated, his eyes turning bloodshot and his face contorted in a ferocious expression.

"This is the photo. After the incident yesterday, I was thinking of leaving to compile and send the photos I had taken to the newspaper. But when I got home, I found that the film was missing!"

I thought about it for a moment. After I finished taking the photos and left the venue, someone tripped me as I passed the lobby rest area. That person definitely did it on purpose! They wanted to steal my film.

Do you remember what that person looked like?

Amuro Tooru was actually even more excited than this person, but he didn't show it on his face.

If this person hadn't posted that photo, Pisco probably wouldn't have been exposed so quickly.

"I don't remember much. I only remember that he was wearing a black coat. Because I was thinking about posting the photos when I got back, I stood up, turned around and left without paying attention to what he looked like."

The man calmed down at this point. "That's why I came to the restaurant today. I wanted to check the security footage. I remember there are security cameras in the rest area. If I check the footage, I'll definitely be able to find out who that person is."

"A black coat?" Amuro Tooru muttered, then shook his head and said, "The hotel's security cameras were broken last night. If you want the footage, I'm sorry, even the police didn't get the video from last night."

"How can it be"

"This is a theft case. Perhaps you could contact the Metropolitan Police Department. They have a list of people who entered the hotel last night, so they might be able to find some clues. Or you could ask the police to check the surveillance footage of a nearby convenience store; they might find something."

Amuro Tooru was indeed offering his advice earnestly, and the man clearly believed him.

After seeing the man off, Amuro Tooru went to the rest area.

"Wearing a black overcoat, he remained seated in the rest area."

He remembered that Xia Chuan was wearing a black coat when he arrived, but how could he know that the reporters had taken pictures of Pisco?

"I was at the venue the whole time, and I didn't see Xia Chuan there at all."

"and many more!"

Amuro Tooru suddenly paused, a flash of inspiration crossing his mind!
He did leave for a while.

It was during the time when Conan and Ai Haibara were being escorted away from the venue!
If Xia Chuan happened to enter the venue at this time, then it's indeed possible that he just happened not to see her.

"Could it be that at that time, Xia Chuan blended into the crowd and then saw Pisco shoot and kill people?"

As far as he could remember, the venue went dark shortly after he went in, and if the other person had sneaked in at that time, he probably wouldn't have noticed.

If I remember correctly, when he returned to the scene, there was indeed a flash of light. I hadn't noticed it before, but now that I think about it, it was probably at that moment.

Natsukawa's target was also Tonguchi Shigehiko. He likely happened to notice Pisco's murder, discovered that someone might have filmed it, and then carried out his subsequent actions.

But what is the other party's purpose? What benefit would Xia Chuan gain from Pisco's arrest? Is it really for the sake of the IRS's performance?
Can't figure it out.

"Sister, sister!"

A clear, childlike voice reached Amuro Tooru's ears.

Amuro Tooru felt the voice was somewhat familiar and turned his head to look.

A blue suit jacket, a red bow tie, and a big head topped with huge glasses. Good heavens! Isn't this Conan, the culprit who made him miss Natsukawa?
If we hadn't sent him out, we might have known Xia Chuan's purpose and wouldn't be making wild guesses here.

"What's wrong, little one?"

Amuro Tooru gestured for the receptionist to continue working, then squatted down and looked at Conan: "Little boy, did you find your father yesterday and come here today to thank your older brother?"

Conan rolled his eyes when he realized the other person was the waiter from yesterday.

If he hadn't been singled out, he might have solved the case long ago. If he had been there, he would have noticed that someone was taking pictures. The root of the problem lies with the waiter in front of him!

Huh, he actually got promoted?

Conan noticed that the other person's name tag had changed from waiter to lobby manager, and he looked even more upright than yesterday.

Speaking of which, he was a waiter yesterday, how come he's a lobby manager today?

Conan has questions about the advancement mechanism of the Beika Grand Hotel.

Wait, now is not the time to think about such nonsense.

Conan shook off his chaotic thoughts and asked in a cute, childlike voice, "Yes, but besides that, there's something else I need your help with, brother. Can I see the security camera footage from last night?"

When Conan saw Anya holding a camera this morning, he suddenly remembered that there were many surveillance cameras at the Beika Hotel, and maybe the cameras had captured images of Gin and the other three.

If we could find out what the other two look like and show it to Ai Haibara to confirm their identities, it would be of great help in catching the Black Organization later.

So, as soon as the first class ended, I secretly slipped out.

"No!"

Amuro Tooru waved his hand in refusal: "The hotel's surveillance videos are not for just anyone to see, and besides, something like that happened yesterday."

Conan was prepared and said confidently, "Actually, I am the son of the famous detective Kogoro Mouri. After I went home yesterday, I told Uncle Mouri about it, and he also wanted to do his part in this case, so he asked me to come and ask about the surveillance footage."

Uncle Mori is a nationally renowned detective; you must have heard of him, right, brother?

Kogoro Mouri is invincible, and Conan believes that as long as he invokes the name of the famous detective, the other party will definitely eagerly take him to retrieve the surveillance footage.

However, after waiting for almost a minute, he found that the lobby manager in front of him did not react at all. Thinking that the other party had not heard him clearly, he repeated himself.

Amuro Tooru still didn't give Conan the kind of reaction he wanted.

It's like they don't know anything about Kogoro Mouri.

"It shouldn't be."

Conan scratched his wise head, thinking that the other person might be intimidated by the name of the famous detective, and quickly said, "Don't worry, Uncle Mori was authorized by the Metropolitan Police Department. Giving the video to Uncle Mori is the same as giving it to the police. Beika Restaurant must also want to solve the case as soon as possible."

Amuro Tooru rolled his eyes. What do you mean by handing it over to a detective and handing it over to the police are the same?

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department may be in decline, but it shouldn't be this bad! Unable to find the real culprit in a case, they actually resort to hiring detectives to solve it. How can they regain the public's trust after this?

He was already a little angry when he heard that the Metropolitan Police Department hadn't asked the security guards to check the surveillance footage, but now they've sent a detective directly. How can he tolerate this?

His inherent sense of justice and his legal awareness as a police officer told him that this behavior was wrong.

The Metropolitan Police Department is incompetent and unable to find the murderer, but it cannot arbitrarily allow detectives to get involved or even take clues home directly.

"No, the law stipulates that surveillance in public places must adhere to the principle of confidentiality."

Amuro Tooru refused again.

Although there was no surveillance footage, that didn't stop him from instilling the correct legal concepts in the child: "If I give the video to Mr. Mori, I'll be harming him! If the reporters find out, they'll probably say the Metropolitan Police Department is negligent. You don't want Uncle Mori to have a falling out with the Metropolitan Police Department because of this, do you?"

Conan walked out of the Beika Restaurant in a daze, but even after being bombarded with legal knowledge, he still didn't give up.

I just happened to see a fire safety map, and the location of the monitoring room is marked. Now, as long as I enter the restaurant through the back door, I can bypass that lobby manager who keeps saying he cares about Uncle Mori and go straight to the monitoring room to steal the surveillance footage!

Conan circled around and slipped in through the back door.

Following the map I remembered, I found the location of the monitoring room.

Click.

The door to the monitoring room was unlocked. The security guard inside heard the door open and turned around. Before he could see who opened the door, he suddenly felt a mosquito bite on his neck, and a feeling of weakness and soreness began to spread. His vision began to blur.

Moments later, the security guard lay on the ground like a dead pig.

Conan carefully stepped over the security guard and went to the surveillance computer to start checking.

"That's strange, why does the surveillance only go up to this morning? What about yesterday's footage?"

Several rewinds showed the time in the upper right corner as being today; going further back resulted in a black screen.

Conan tried dragging the progress bar further ahead and found that the surveillance was working normally again!
The surveillance cameras seem to have broken down around 6:30 p.m. yesterday, which is probably when he appeared here.

"Damn it! The Black Organization must have sabotaged the surveillance beforehand!"

I was hoping to find out who the two men and women with Gin were, but now I've made a wasted trip.

"As expected of Gin, someone who's willing to blow up his own car, I actually think he'd leave behind the huge plot hole of surveillance footage!"

The result was not as expected, but Conan had no choice but to accept it and leave disappointed.

Shortly after he left, Amuro Tooru slowly appeared in the monitoring room.

"Conan Edogawa"

Amuro Tooru narrowed his eyes as the other party's information surfaced in his mind.

She suddenly appeared at Kogoro Mouri's house a few months ago. She is a distant relative of Professor Agasa, and her mother's name is Fumiyo Edogawa.

It's hard to imagine how a small child could be so intelligent.

As it turns out, Kogoro Mouri is no ordinary person either.

However, why did he use such a strange title as the Sleeping Detective?

"Hmm, it's worth investigating."

(Ask for monthly ticket)

(End of this chapter)