No one understands the laws of Collider better than me.

"After you finish this job, resign and take that child away from the red-light district, understand?"

Completely stunned, Kakuta nodded hastily, speechless with shame. Even in his efforts to solve the case, he had indeed exploited Kento Waki's desire for revenge against the yakuza. As a police officer protecting the citizens, he had failed in his duty; as a father who should have provided a good environment for his child to grow up in, he had been unfit. Kitahara Masaki was indeed right this time; these were all mistakes Kakuta himself had made.

Chapter 250 What did I promise you?

"Inspector Kitahara, thank you so much for your assistance. I didn't expect you to get Kakuta to resign on his own. But now the people in Section 4 will understand that there should be limits to how lenient they are with informants."

After Kakuta resigned, Hyakuto brought Kuga along to express their gratitude. However, Kitahara Masaki looked at them coldly, which made them feel scared. This powerful figure in front of them dared to punch his colleague directly, and was not afraid of the Ministry of Internal Affairs' investigation. Moreover, when questioned by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Kakuta even said, "Officer Kitahara woke me up." This made the rumors about Kitahara Masaki even more terrifying in the Metropolitan Police Department. It was said that he could not only make women willingly throw themselves into his arms, but also punch people into mental impairment. It can be said that the rumors have gradually transformed from a famous police officer into a superpowered person.

"No need for thanks. On the contrary, I'd like to ask you why the Life Safety Department would investigate Section Four?"

"Ahem, what are you saying? As a colleague who also manages underground casinos, I was quite troubled after hearing the rumors about Inspector Kakuta, so I came to you for advice, and you promised us at that time—"

"When did I agree to that? What did I promise you?"

The two suddenly realized that Kitahara Masaki hadn't actually agreed to anything; he had just been using ambiguous statements to fool them, and as a result, they had even been tricked into providing various documents.

Most importantly, Kitahara Masaki, as a police inspector, is their superior in theory. Now that their plot has been exposed, he can't help but start to fear that he might also be punched.

"Hyakuto, you must be very dissatisfied with Inspector Tsunoda's actions, because you've been making huge profits by buying and selling licenses, while ignoring the fact that your informants are also illegally operating underground casinos. So you certainly don't want Inspector Tsunoda to clean up so many casinos. Besides, his amiable appearance has won over many opportunists. Your business must have suffered quite a bit by now."

After speaking about the seasoned veteran who profited from his position, Kitahara Masaki then addressed another young man, Kuga:

"And then there's you—Inspector Kuga, you completely disregarded the underground casino business, didn't you? You were once an elite member of the National Police Agency, but now you've been relegated to a marginal department within the Metropolitan Police Department. You must have been very unwilling, so you thought of encouraging me to clash with Section 4 and then curry favor with some high-ranking official in the Metropolitan Police Department, hoping to use this opportunity to return to your original position. However, I should also thank you. Although I know that there must be someone in the higher-ups who is dissatisfied with me, I never knew who it was. Now you've given me a hand."

After kicking out the two ashen-faced, easily tidy men, Koshimizu Nanatsuki sat down in a wheeled office chair and asked:

"Masaki, didn't I do a good job this time?"

"Yes, thanks to your covert investigation, I learned the true purpose of these two people. However, these two are not very bright to begin with. After obtaining the license, Bai Teng's informant immediately opened three stores, openly telling everyone that he made a lot of money from the underground casino. Jiu Ga was even more foolish. In order to get that executive to know him better, he actually knocked on the executive's office door during working hours. If he had been willing to communicate by phone, you wouldn't have discovered his purpose so quickly."

The way Koshimizu Nanatsuki spoke, first praising and then criticizing, made her purse her lips. However, she was more curious about why Kitahara Masaki would actually get so angry because of Kakuta. When she first heard that Kitahara Masaki had punched Kakuta, her first thought was that it was fake news, but she later found out that it was indeed true. And because of this incident, the good impression that Kitahara Masaki had been building up was gradually eroded, and many police officers stopped saying "Kitahara Masaki is a jerk".

"By the way, why did you get angry at Kakuta? You usually don't do things like that."

"Heh, maybe it's because he turned a child's childhood into a con artist's daily routine. I just can't stand his behavior."

"There's no need to punch him on the spot. Now, under that high-ranking official's guidance, people in the Metropolitan Police Department are starting to say you're a spy sent by the United States."

Ah, they may think deep down that they are spreading rumors, but the truth is actually far more outrageous than they imagine.

"Heh, how can I vent my anger if I keep looking back and forth? I won't be satisfied until I give that guy a punch."

Sigh, Nanatsuki Koshimizu found the police inspector in front of her to be a real nuisance, yet she couldn't do without him. Looking at Masaki Kitahara's leisurely back, she knew that this man didn't care about reputation at all; being a 'good cop' was just a disguise he wore when necessary.

After Inspector Kakuta resigned, Kitahara Masaki found Kakuta, who was now unemployed, and also saw Kazuki, who was by his side. The two were indeed like a father and son.

Seeing Kitahara Masaki punch his adoptive father and take his police badge, the young boy, who had just come of age, looked resentful, but he merely clenched his fists and silently glared at Kitahara Masaki.

"Heh, kid, you have such a big problem with me? Fine, I'm here for the intelligence channels you have. Give them all to me, and this check is yours."

Originally, the kid was going to refuse with a straight face, but under the influence of Kitahara Masaki's money, he obediently gave up the list of people and their phone numbers related to the underground casino. Some of them even had their favorite hotels found out, and how much alcohol they usually drank before they would black out. It was almost as detailed as a 'monster encyclopedia'.

After getting this kid out of the gray area, Kitahara Masaki received a call from another kid.

The kid on the other end of the phone spoke in the same tone as an old man telling a story.

"Brother Kitahara, I think I saw a guy who wanted to kill someone yesterday!"

"What do you mean by 'wanting to kill'? If he made any dangerous moves, why didn't you just call the police?"

"Well, because he was squatting at the bottom of the shrine steps with a flashlight in his hand, his expression completely gave him away. As a result, he left in a hurry after I called out to him."

As Kitahara Masaki listened to the kid talk about 'criminals' and looked at the list of underground casinos he had compiled, he sighed and remarked that there was indeed a difference between children.

"I just cleaned up an entire street of underground casinos. And now you're telling me about a guy who might have attempted murder? Sigh, I'll have Officer Takagi help you out. I can't possibly say I'm working overtime because of your suspicions. Goodbye."

After hanging up the phone abruptly, Kitahara Masaki nodded in satisfaction. This brat deserved to suffer more.

Chapter 251 The Man Who Wants to Recreate the Old Case

"So—Conan, that man who wanted to kill you taught you about celestial bodies?"

"Yes, I asked him what he was doing squatting there, and he said he was looking at the stars. But it was a cloudy day yesterday, and when I said that cloudy weather was not suitable for stargazing, he told me that stars are classified from first to sixth magnitude, and he even pointed out Fomalhaut to me. He even said that he had discovered a star, and then I found the star he was talking about on the National Astronomical Observatory website."

"Oh! And then you found that strange man based on this clue? That's amazing! No wonder you're Kitahara-senpai and Mori-san's apprentice!"

Heh, Conan stared at Takagi with his crescent-shaped eyes. He had originally planned to call Kitahara Masaki over, thinking that the man's aura would surely stop the murderer. But now his assistant was Takagi. It wasn't that Takagi was bad, but Conan had to act like a brat in front of him, which made him feel extremely ashamed and exhausted. However, for the sake of solving the case—these things could be overcome!

Now, Conan has brought Takagi to the gate of a university because the discoverer of that star is named Hoshino Ryo. According to information found online, Hoshino is a very talented astronomer whose paper has been recognized by a research group in the UK. He is currently preparing to go to the UK for academic exchange.

"But Conan—you said that man might be planning a murder, do you have any evidence?"

"Of course! First, the investigation revealed that some kind of chemical that can freeze quickly had been poured on the steps; second, the streetlights next to the stairs had been sprayed with a liquid that flies like; and finally, he was crouching at the bottom of the steps at that time, holding a flashlight. So my reasoning is this: at night, when the person he wanted to kill walked down the steps, he would quicken his pace because of the insects, and then Hoshino would turn on the bright flashlight and shine it into that person's eyes. That person would be caught off guard and lose their balance, stepping on the frozen and particularly slippery steps."

"Oh! The person who slipped will naturally fall down the steps, and yesterday's weather forecast said it would rain heavily tonight, so the evidence will be washed away by the rain, and the police will only think it was an accidental death! This... he's planning the perfect crime!"

That's right. If it were just an ordinary murderer, Conan would only give him a powerful punch, but this criminal clearly wanted to make all the evidence disappear through some means!

However, when Conan and Takagi arrived at Hoshino's office, they were told that Hoshino had already left and hadn't said where he was going.

"Oh no! Conan, is he planning to kill someone again?"

"Don't rush, let's go to his office first and look for clues. Maybe the method he wants to use is recorded in his office."

After some searching, Conan and Takagi actually found a notebook with many reports in the astronomer's drawer. The reports were all about past cases, especially the methods used by the shrine.

"Officer Takagi! Look at this! This is a case from 1980—a man..."

A highly conductive sodium chloride solution was sprinkled on the aging cable, and then the cable was covered with a blue plastic sheet. Anyone standing on the plastic sheet, even if wearing leather shoes, would definitely be electrocuted.

During the subsequent police investigation, it was assumed that the blue plastic sheeting had been blown there from a nearby construction site, and that the sodium chloride solution would quickly evaporate in the sunlight, given that this was the top floor of a rooftop.

Hoshino Ryo was excited, thinking that today he would finally get rid of that annoying guy who kept asking him for money. He had reached his limit of patience after being blackmailed for so long.

However, after he answered the phone, he immediately realized he had made a mistake—he had called the person he wanted to kill to Building 3, but he himself had come to Building 2 to prepare...

Although the astronomer had solid theoretical knowledge, it was inevitable that he would make some mistakes during the preparation stage. Just as he was feeling disheartened and went downstairs to prepare for his next murder, a little boy ran up, followed by a man who looked like an honest person.

"Mr. Hoshino! Do you still remember me?!"

"You are... that child from yesterday, how could you...?"

Yesterday, when his murder plot was exposed, Hoshino Ryo didn't pay any attention to this bespectacled boy. But now he's here, followed by people. He wouldn't...

“This building is old and is using degraded 440-volt cables, so after seeing that newspaper briefing, I knew where you were planning your next murder. I even brought the police with me. Give up those crazy plans. It’s wrong to imitate past cases!”

"Who...who exactly are you?"

"Edogawa Conan is a detective!"

Officer Takagi then stepped forward, identified himself as a police officer, and warned the astronomer that although he had engaged in suspected criminal activity, he could not be taken back to the police station due to insufficient evidence, and even if he were taken back, he would have to be released after two days.

Watching Hoshino leave in a hurry, Takagi sighed and said:

"Thanks to you, Conan, otherwise that astronomer might have committed murder. I really don't understand, he's about my age and has a bright future, why would he do something like this?"

Conan pointed to a person who came down to the first floor from another building. The person was wearing sunglasses and had dyed blond hair, so he was very conspicuous.

“Officer Takagi, Hoshino might be the one who wants to kill that person, and I don’t think Hoshino will give up. We should keep a close eye on him recently.”

Officer Takagi immediately understood Conan's meaning. This time, it wasn't that they arrived at the scene in time, but rather that Hoshino had made a blunder, which was why no one was killed.

"Okay, I'll ask my colleague to keep an eye on him. Let's investigate the identity of that blond man."

Back at Hoshino's university, Conan learns from Hoshino's colleagues that a blond man did indeed visit Hoshino and they even talked about their high school reunion six months ago.

Takagi immediately took Conan to Hoshino's high school to investigate. When asked if Hoshino had attended a high school reunion six months ago, the teacher, Mita, who received them, said:

"Six months ago, there was a memorial service for the seventeenth death anniversary of a female student [1], and Hoshino also attended. It was his first time attending. The deceased was a female student named Nagumo Chie. She was a member of the Physics Research Club. Hoshino was also in the club at that time, and I was the advisor teacher for that club."

"I see. Then could you tell us the reason for Nagumo's student's death?"

The advisor sighed and led Conan and Takagi to the activity room of the physics research club, where traces of an explosion still remained on a table.

Conan saw photos of the memorial service on the teacher's phone. The attendees were all gathered around a photo of a female student, and Hoshino was among them. There was also a man with dyed blond hair.

"Officer Takagi, this is the man!"

[1] The day of Neon's death is considered the first anniversary of his death, and the event commemorating the 16th anniversary of his death is called the 17th anniversary.

Chapter 252 A Complete Unlucky Guy

"Wakatsuki Yuge was in the same grade as Hoshino Ryo. That was his first time there, and the advisor saw Wakatsuki and Hoshino arguing. Wakatsuki even said that 'Nagumo was killed by Hoshino.' It seems that Wakatsuki used this incident to blackmail Hoshino, and Hoshino, unable to tolerate it, planned this series of crimes, wanting to kill Wakatsuki through the previous case."

After getting the information from the high school, Conan went back to the Mori family home for dinner. He was thinking of calling Kitahara Masaki, but since no one had been killed yet and Hoshino, who wanted to kill, was under surveillance, he decided that he didn't need to rush. He would rest for now and investigate tomorrow.

The next day, Kitahara Masaki called Conan and said:

"One of the people you're investigating is dead."

After putting on his glasses, Conan arrived at the crime scene. Led by Takagi, he approached Kitahara Masaki and asked:

"It was Mr. Wakatsuki who died! Then what about Mr. Hoshino?"

"We've already sent people to look for him. There weren't enough people to monitor him yesterday. This university professor knows the campus much better than the police. I guess he sneaked out last night and then planned another murder. This blond guy fell down the stairs. I guess he fell and died while trying to pick up that envelope."

Kitahara Masaki has already learned about the investigation from Takagi. All that's left is to find evidence to arrest Hoshino. However, the scene does look like the blond guy fell to his death down the stairs. There's an envelope with 10,000 yen in cash next to him, but Holmes' magnifying glass hasn't given any clues.

Without Conan's prior information, at first glance, this blond guy would look like an unlucky guy who tried to pick up money but ended up falling to his death.

Sigh, Kitahara Masaki scratched his head. These kinds of cases are really frustrating. Even if you know who did it, you can't find evidence to convict them. Like the last sushi murder case, there was still circumstantial evidence, but this time there probably isn't even that.

The on-site investigation was left to the specialists to handle, and Kitahara Masaki unusually allowed Conan to accompany him throughout the entire process.

When I arrived at the university, it was already deserted. There was nothing in the office except for a suspicious postcard. The cardboard piece was in the drawer, but I didn't try to hide it.

"You're the one who confused hydrochloric acid and sulfuric acid!"

"Oh! Hoshino might be the one who caused that explosion back then. Wakatsuki is using this to blackmail him because he mixed up the reagents, which caused the accident involving Ms. Nagumo. But... Wakatsuki could have just said it on her phone. There's no need to make Hoshino attend the event. Is it to make him feel ashamed? That's really strange."

That's right. If Wakatsuki knew about this, she wouldn't have needed to send this postcard to Hoshino. And why did she wait a full seventeen years to use this to blackmail him?

To uncover the truth behind the accidental experiment years ago, Kitahara Masaki went to Nagumo's house and visited the girl's mother, hoping she could show him Nagumo's belongings. Examining the old notebook, Kitahara Masaki saw that the people responsible for arranging the reagents that day were Hoshino and Wakatsuki, meaning that only these two could have mistakenly placed the hydrochloric acid and sulfuric acid in the wrong containers.

What surprised Kitahara Masaki even more was that Nagumo had once written a letter to his advisor. Although it seemed like an ordinary thank-you letter at first glance, when the sentences were read together, it turned out to be 'Mita-sensei, I like you'.

Seeing this unexpected new clue, Kitahara Masaki immediately asked:

"Mrs. Nagumo, may I ask if you have given this letter and the notebook containing the experimental records to Professor Mita?"

"Yes, about half a year ago, after looking through her daughter's belongings, Ms. Mita said she was not worthy to accept them and then left."