Daily Spy Life in the Detective Conan World

Chapter 561 The Oxidized Bronze Bell
"I think you might need to figure out the answer to the first sentence. The two travelers in a hurry looked up at the sky at night. Could it be related to the clock tower at the top of the hall? That's the highest point in the annex. If I were to look up at the sky, I would definitely choose that place."

Xia Chuan reminded.

This is not a reminder, but rather a misleading statement.

Conan and his friends are moving a bit too fast.

Forty years ago, Karasuma Renya painstakingly invited so many people and spent half a year without getting an answer. Now, a few detectives solve it in one night, which is somewhat disrespectful.

Karasuma Renya might even think it's a trap.

At the very least, shouldn't we investigate for a full day and night? If the case closes before Karasuma Renya arrives, then all our efforts will have been in vain.

“Indeed, we don’t think we’ve ever been to the clock tower. Maybe something is hidden up there. Besides, the person behind it all told us to tell him the answer through the computer in the room under the clock tower after we solve the mystery. Let’s go check it out.” Kaito nodded slightly.

The entrance to the rooms below the clock tower is at a bend in the corridor on the second floor of the hall, where there is a narrow spiral staircase that leads directly to the fourth floor of the clock tower.

That is, the computer room.

Pushing open the door, the square-shaped room came into view.

The room was square and unremarkable, and completely empty except for a large CRT computer placed in front of the opposite window.

The computer screen glowed with a bluish light, hovering over a chat window. The chair was slightly pulled back, as if waiting for the detective to sit down and input the correct answer.

"This room is empty, and there are no stairs upstairs. How are we supposed to get upstairs?"

Kaito picked up a stick from somewhere and started poking at the ceiling piece by piece.

“It’s a solid wall; there are no hidden passages.” He got this answer a minute later.

“Perhaps we could try going out through the window behind the computer and then climbing up,” Xia Chuan said.

The group looked at each other in bewilderment. There was nowhere to stand outside the window; how were they supposed to get up there?

"Don't look at me, I'm afraid of heights." Kaito waved his hand and then pointed to Vodka behind Amuro Tooru: "Since he's your assistant, he should be capable, right? Let him handle this."

Vodka:
Do you really treat him like a subordinate?
Once the mission is complete, wipe them all out, leave no one alive!
"I'll do it."

Before anyone could react, Joel pushed through the crowd, stepped over the computer, and jumped directly onto the windowsill.

A cold wind howled outside the window, blowing her smooth black hair and revealing her curves under the moonlight.

Hearing a few sounds of swallowing, Xia Chuan's expression darkened slightly.

"As expected, there is a ladder leading to the clock on the upper edge of the window."

"I'll go up and take a look first."

Xia Chuan was not entirely at ease with Yoel, so he told Anya to stay put and then followed after her.

The mountain forest was shrouded in mist at midnight, with raindrops faintly sliding down one's cheek. The ladder was damp and chilly, covered in rust. With a little effort, Xia Chuan managed to pry off a small piece of rust, revealing a pale yellowish-brown underneath.

This should be gold, but it shows signs of oxidation due to years of corrosion from its rusty surface and moisture.

Even the ladder is covered in gold, which shows that Karasuma Renya is very wealthy.

No wonder, even without this villa, Karasuma Renya could still conduct drug research and establish a worldwide chain of breweries.

But this is normal.

Over the centuries, Japan has produced numerous gold mines, and the Karasuma family, a powerful daimyo clan that has existed for centuries, is understandably wealthy.

Xia Chuan sighed and arrived at the top of the clock tower.

"Hey, have you found anything?"

Amuro Tooru and Conan peeked in to ask questions.

Kaito muttered under his breath from behind, "Seriously, why would Kogoro Mouri, a former detective, have a fear of heights?"

He also really wanted to go up and see what was going on.

"There is a large brass clock on it, but it is probably just for decoration, as it doesn't even have a striking hand."

"Is there no firing pin?"

Amuro Tooru and Conan were intrigued and climbed up the ladder.

The clock tower was already small, and it felt even more cramped with four people crammed on top.

After examining it for a while, the two shook their heads in disappointment.

The clock is perfectly normal; its surface has turned a bluish-green from oxidation, and no strange patterns can be found by careful examination.

Originally, the two thought there should be clues pointing to the two travelers, but there were none.

"Could the secret lie in the missing pendulum? Look, there's a hook here where the pendulum was kept." Xia Chuan continued to mislead, "Such a large bronze bell must have a very large pendulum. Maybe it holds clues about the two travelers, or even the answer itself?"

Back in the computer room, Kaito asked anxiously, "How is it?"

Amuro Tooru shook his head. "It's not on the clock face, but the pendulum is missing. Let's see if we can find the pendulum anywhere. Maybe we can get the answer by hanging it back."

Vodka frowned slightly, then turned and left.

He needs to report the situation to his older brother.

As for the signal issue, we are, after all, members of the code name. Our mobile phones are satellite phones, unless there is a jammer here.

But clearly, Da Shang Zhu Shan did not take this into account.

Anya let out a soft "hmm" and secretly tried to follow them.

Xia Chuan naturally refused. Although Vodka was stupid, he was also ruthless and vicious. If Anya were discovered, she might die.

Anya sighed and could only give up, then turned back to listen to Conan and Amuro Tooru's inner thoughts. Amuro Tooru: Strange, I feel like Natsukawa is guiding our deductions. Does he already know something? But why is he guiding our deductions? Is he the mastermind? But isn't the mastermind the one who wants the answer? If Natsukawa is the mastermind, his behavior makes it seem like he has already solved the mystery.

Such a huge treasure should be hidden away after the mystery is solved. Why let us come here? Isn't this just showing off?

Conan: There are obvious signs of oxidation on the hook of the bronze bell, which means that the pendulum has been lost for a long time. Could it have been taken away by the scholars who knew the answer forty years ago?

But they clearly can't leave the villa, does that mean the pendulum is still inside the villa?

Kaito: This is so boring. How long am I supposed to keep pretending to be stupid? Can't I just go into my sleeping Kogoro mode and have Natsukawa push me around?
Each of the three had their own thoughts, but Anya listened with pleasure.

"Ania thinks the pendulum is still in the annex, maybe in one of those rooms."

“That makes sense.” With Anya’s confirmation, Conan immediately solidified his guess and then ran out of the room.

Amuro Tooru and Kaito followed them out.

“Let’s follow them and see,” Joel said, slightly curious, and was the first to step out of the room.

Anya and Xia Chuan were behind.

"What's wrong?"

Natsukawa could tell that Anya seemed to have something to say to him. Based on his understanding of his daughter, he knew she should be able to run as fast as Conan.

That damned tendency to join in the fun.

"Just now, Uncle Amuro Tooru suspected that you are the person behind the curtain."

"."

"That's called the person behind the scenes."

“Although their appearance is related to me, I am not the one behind it.” Xia Chuan shook his head, hugged Anya in his arms, and removed the poison needle from the doorknob before leaving.

This is cyanide poison; anyone who gets pricked by it will surely die. It's best to remove it first, in case you accidentally poison yourself with vodka.

After all, this might not necessarily bring out Karasuma Renya, so Vodka's presence is still very important.

—The Insider Version of Gossip.

In the living room, Hakuba Saguru and his two companions, having just finished inspecting the room, sighed deeply.

Things were more complicated than they had imagined.

The answer that so many people searched for forty years ago but couldn't find was indeed not so simple.

"What's going on with you guys? Did you find something?"

Seeing that Kogoro Mouri and Yoshun Mogi looked hurried, Hakuba Saguru was the first to ask.

"When you were looking around the room, did you see something that looked like a pendulum? It was roughly a ring at one end, a cone in the middle, and a round body at the other end."

Conan's descriptions are very vivid, and everyone here is a renowned detective who understands immediately.

"Have you found any clues?" Da Shang Zhu Shan asked excitedly. "Could the riddle be related to that oxidized bronze bell?"

Conan and Amuro Tooru were slightly taken aback, then nodded solemnly: "That's a possibility."

A pendulum?

Ikumi Gunda brushed a strand of curly hair from her forehead: "If it's this, I have seen it before."

"where?"

Everyone looked on with curiosity.

"Hanging next to the vanity mirror in the women's restroom, I thought it was a decoration or a towel rack."

“Uh” × N
"So that's what it is?" Joel said thoughtfully. "But I can't see anything carved on it either; it's very smooth."

"Could it only appear after the pendulum is hung up?" Anya mimicked Conan's tone and continued with an "Ah-le-le" sound: "I saw some mechanisms like this in 'Spy Bondman'."

"I'll get it."

Da Shang Zhu Shan rushed out in a hurry, not even noticing how conspicuous his actions were.

"Did you notice?" Amuro Tooru squinted.

"Found."

The other detectives nodded in unison, even Kaito nodded.

Joel looked at Xia Chuan with a puzzled expression.

“Just now, Da Shangzhu Shan mentioned the oxidized bronze bell,” Xia Chuan explained.

"Is there a problem?" Joel asked again.

"Everyone arrived at the Twilight Villa today. After Ogami Shuzen arrived at the villa, he stayed with Hakuba Saguru and the others until they went to the kitchen to cook. Then there was the meal and the search. He shouldn't know about the bronze bell."

If you knew it was a bronze bell, then it would be understandable if you saw it while parking.

But he mentioned the word 'oxidation,' which indicates that he knew the bronze bell had been oxidized, but the degree of oxidation was not visible unless one was standing right in front of the bell.

"Mr. Natsukawa is indeed very perceptive when it comes to reasoning. It's such a waste that he's working as an investigator for the National Tax Service."

White Horse Scout gently shook his head, feeling sad that his father had not been able to obtain a reliable ox or horse.

(Ask for monthly ticket)

(End of this chapter)