Detective Conan: Is Miss Haibara planning to assault a police officer again today?

11:47 AM.

The emergency call went directly to the Metropolitan Police Department.

Another murder case.

However, this time it seems to be relatively easy to solve, because the murderer was sleeping soundly in the victim's room and was caught by the first person to discover the body.

Inspector Megure is going to give his quarterly performance review today, while Shiratori Ninzaburo is on his way to Karuizawa for a vacation.

As a result, the police officers dispatched were a combination of Higashino Ning, Takagi Wataru, and Sato Miwako.

To be honest, if possible, Higashino Ning would very much like to give his good friend a chance to investigate the case alone with Sato Miwako.

But... cough cough, we just spent some money, so we need to replenish our reward points.

The crime scene was located in room 504 of a building.

"Officer Takagi, you seem a little uneasy?"

Inside the elevator, Sato Miwako looked around in confusion.

Upon hearing this, Takagi Wataru immediately stiffened and scratched his head, "N-no... I'm actually quite relaxed, haha..."

Although he cannot create an opportunity to solve the case alone, Higashino Ning can provide assistance from other aspects.

For example, they could occupy the elevator entrance and leave Takagi Wataru and Sato Miwako behind them.

The distance between the two is only twenty or thirty centimeters. If there is any accident in the elevator, Takagi Wataru can immediately pull Sato Miwako into his arms.

Unfortunately, the elevator was in good condition.

The door opened, and Higashino Ning immediately saw the two men waiting in the corridor.

He strode forward. "Which one of you is Mr. Kitagawa Kaede, the one who called the police?"

The taller, thinner man immediately raised his hand, "That's me."

Although Sato Miwako was one level higher in rank, she still preferred Higashino Ning to be in charge of the operation.

So Higashino Ning got to experience being a police inspector early, and had Mr. Kitagawa lead them in to inspect the scene.

Since it was driven by the volatile racing legend, Miwako Sato, the forensic team will have to wait a while before they arrive.

"Please follow me. The body is in the bathroom, and Mr. Higashida on the sofa should be the murderer."

No sooner had Kitagawa Kaede finished speaking than Mr. Higashida, who was clearly still hungover, stood up agitatedly, shouting, "I didn't kill anyone!"

Upon hearing this, Kitagawa Kaede immediately shouted, "Who else could it be but you? The first thing I saw when I came in was Miss Muranishi's corpse and you lying on her bed."

"I was the one who asked the manager to open the door to the room. It's ridiculous for you to say you didn't kill him!"

Higashino Ning patted Kitagawa Kaede on the shoulder, "Calm down, take me to see the body first."

Takagi Wataru immediately went to Higashida Yuichiro's side to comfort him.

The body was in the bathroom, and there were no signs of dragging.

The cause of death was most likely suffocation, and there was something that looked like a videotape signal transmission cable wrapped around the body's neck.

Higashino Ning put on gloves and conducted a preliminary examination of the body, concluding that the time of death was likely last night.

After carefully inspecting the bathroom, he said, "Then I'll trouble you, Mr. Kitagawa, to wait outside the house. The female police officer Sato outside will ask you some questions. Please make sure you do not hide anything, so as not to cause trouble for yourself."

Soon, the forensic team arrived.

Higashino Ning arranged for them to conduct a thorough investigation of the entire room, and the body was also sent to the forensic doctor for a detailed examination.

To be honest, there are really very few forensic doctors in Japan.

During Conan's most active periods, there were even queues for submitting bodies for examination.

During the investigation, Higashino Ning was naturally not idle; he was also carefully observing the unusual things in the room.

Based on the patterns observed in Detective Conan studies, the culprit can be almost certainly identified as Kitagawa Kaede, who reported the incident.

However, conviction requires evidence; it's not as simple as arresting anyone.

“Officer Higashino, there are signs that the furniture in the room has been moved, but it’s very slight, not like a large-scale move.”

"Officer Dongye, the door lock has been confirmed to be undamaged, but fingerprints have been found on the door handle and chain lock, and we are taking rubbings."

"Officer Higashino..."

Clues gradually reached Higashino Ning's ears.

It would be even better if "police officer" could be replaced with "police inspector".

Ah... why is progress so difficult!

Two hours passed in a flash.

The search of the room was basically complete, and the questioning of Kitagawa Kaede and Higashida Yuichiro was almost over.

"Higashino, the fingerprint comparison results are in."

Takagi Wataru put down the phone with a serious expression. "The signal transmission line wrapped around the deceased's neck, as well as the fingerprints on the doorknob and chain lock, all match Mr. Higashida's."

"I think this must be a case of impulsive murder committed while intoxicated."

Chapter 72 What about companionship and love? Will they be lacking?

Takagi Wataru felt there was no room for a turn of events.

But Higashino Ning shook his head, "The case will not be closed for the time being; further investigation is needed."

He looked at Kitagawa Kaede and said, "Mr. Kitagawa, please do not leave Tokyo in the next two days. I suspect you are also a suspect in the murder."

"What?!" Kitagawa Kaede immediately became angry. "What nonsense are you spouting, you damn cop! Tell me, how could I be a suspect!"

A glimmer of hope immediately appeared in the eyes of Higashida Eiichiro, who had been looking dejected.

Higashino Ning's expression remained cold. "First warning. Watch your words."

He walked over to Higashida Eiichiro's side and said, "Although all the clues currently support that Mr. Higashida is the murderer, there are still some doubts."

"For example, the off-white bed sheets and curtains that were deliberately hidden in the closet."

"The room, including the decor and various household items, is mostly off-white. It's clear that the deceased, Ms. Muranishi, really liked off-white, which makes the gray sheets and curtains look particularly jarring."

"I think Ms. Muranishi, as your boss, should have the financial means to buy extra off-white items to replace them."

"Furthermore, the calendar on the wall next to the bed has been taken down. It was full of schedules. I don't think the deceased would have taken it down on his own without a special reason. As for whether someone else took it, we don't know yet."

"Third, there are slight signs that the furniture in this house has been moved, and not just one or two pieces. For someone like Ms. Muranishi, who is extremely particular about room color schemes and has obsessive-compulsive disorder, she probably wouldn't have changed the furniture's position casually."

Higashino Ning said a lot in one breath, then turned his scrutinizing gaze to Kitagawa Kaede.

"In short, these suspicious points are unlikely to be something that a drunk person like Mr. Dongtian would do."

"My suspicion that there is an unseen third party involved in this incident is not just a random guess. Please cooperate with the investigation."

Kitagawa Kaede's expression was grim, and he gritted his teeth. After a long while, he suddenly felt relaxed and smiled casually, "Fine, you can be as suspicious as you want. I don't care. You can investigate however you want."

"By the way...you seem to be that police officer who rose to fame not long ago, right?"

Kitagawa Kaede slowed down her speech, "I hope you don't stumble over such a small case."

Higashino Ning nodded, "No need for you to worry. Take them all!"

His air of authority was quite impressive, and Takagi Wataru instinctively wanted to reply with a "Yes."

"Higashino-kun, shall we conduct the investigation together from now on?" Sato Miwako asked, moving closer.

Higashino Ning immediately slapped his forehead. "Takagi, come back. I'll take the culprit back. Please work with Officer Sato to conduct the follow-up investigation."

Upon hearing this, Takagi Wataru scratched his head sheepishly, "Huh? I..."

"What do you mean, 'you'!" Higashino Ning interrupted directly. "I ordered a car and will pick it up after get off work, so I'm just asking you and Officer Sato for a little trouble. Thank you very much."

Takagi Wataru patted his chest and laughed heartily, "It's alright."

Sato Miwako smiled and nodded, "Higashino-kun, be careful on your way home after picking up your car."

Higashino Ning: "......"

Who in the family understands?

The wingman, who had been working tirelessly to bring them together, even had to thank the two pieces of wood!

Having me is truly a blessing for you!

The process of taking the prisoner back to the Metropolitan Police Department was a bit boring.

Because no one spoke.

Two hours after returning to the Metropolitan Police Department, Kitagawa Kaede was released and left.

We can't keep them; we can't keep even a single one.

It was getting dark.

Higashino Ning dialed Ai Haibara's number.

"Guess who I am?"

"Higashino is a big idiot."

"Tsk, how can you talk like that? It's very rude of you."

"That... is Higashino-nii!"

"Never mind, it's too sweet, Miss."

"Tch, so hard to please. Are you coming home for dinner tonight?"

"Yes, also... I bought a car."

"What?! You idiot, you really don't know how to spend money, do you?!"

"I have money, don't worry. You won't lack food, drink, shelter, clothing, or accessories."

"Then... will you lack companionship and love?"

Higashino Ning's CPU burned through on the spot!