Conan, I'm an actor

Meanwhile, a few blocks away

"The victim's name was Shingo Numao, 35 years old, a repairman at Taiyo Motors located in Beika-cho 3-chome." Takagi read out the information that had been investigated. "He suffered considerable injuries all over his body from the fall, especially to his head, and died almost instantly."

"Yeah, he fell from over there." Inspector Megure looked at the broken part of the handrail and took out his walkie-talkie. "How is it, Chiba?"

“That’s right, he fell from here.” Chiba said, looking at the body on the ground. “The handrail was completely rusted, and there were no signs of any struggle at the scene.”

"I see." Inspector Megure hung up the walkie-talkie, his eyebrows furrowed tightly. Could it be that the deceased Mori was talking about wasn't Numao?

Several hours later, in the Metropolitan Police Department's morgue

Kogoro Mouri looked at the man in the morgue with a sorrowful expression. "Numao, how could it be you?"

"Do you know him?" Xiaolan looked at her father with some curiosity.

"Yes, it was thanks to Numao's intelligence that I was able to arrest Himuro," Kogoro Mori said resentfully.

"Reiji Himuro, he was a notorious bank robber, wasn't he?" Inspector Megure looked at the corpse, then suddenly remembered something. "I see, Numao, he really was..."

"That's right, he and Himuro were accomplices, practically his subordinates. He was just a gofer, nothing more. He's naturally timid and completely subservient to Himuro. I persuaded him to stay on the wrong path." Kogoro Mouri suddenly remembered something. "By the way, where is Himuro now?"

"Inside the interrogation room, Sato is interrogating that guy." Inspector Megure shook his head. "But that guy seems to have suffered some kind of trauma; his mental state isn't very good, and he's having a hard time cooperating with the interrogation. By the way, I heard he was shot at the Hokubu Department Store. Is that true?"

“It’s true, but I was there.” Kogoro Mouri frowned and asked, “Does this person have any enemies?”

"Probably not." Inspector Megure wasn't entirely sure either. "Although he robbed the bank, he didn't kill anyone, and the stolen money has already been recovered. That's why he was released so quickly."

“Not necessarily. This guy might have killed someone.” Kogoro Mouri frowned and said, “I remember when I was talking to Numao, Numao mentioned that he was an accomplice in the murder. At the time, I didn’t pay attention and was fooled by his argument that it would end up like that sooner or later. Now it seems that the two of them really might have killed someone back then, they just didn’t say it.”

"You mean, the victim's family hired a hitman to attack him?"

"That's possible."

"Why didn't they just call the police? If the police had started an investigation..."

“We might lose the case due to insufficient evidence,” Conan said seriously. “Moreover, there have been very few cases with death sentences in recent years, and even those with death sentences have had very few executions. In the last ten years, the number of executions has not yet exceeded double digits, and many prisoners who committed more serious crimes than Himuro Reiji have not been executed.”

"So they resorted to hiring someone to kill as revenge?" Inspector Megure felt a headache coming on. "Brother Mori, what do you think should be done in this situation?"

"Are you a policeman or am I?" Maori suddenly asked.

Chapter 327 Methods and Evidence

“Of course I’m a police officer. I’m just asking for the advisor’s opinion.” Megure said matter-of-factly.

“It’s a normal procedure. The Metropolitan Police Department’s normal detention period is how long. Once the time is up, we’ll send him out of the Metropolitan Police Department,” Kogoro Mouri said coldly. “The fact that the other party hasn’t taken any retaliatory action for so long means that the prison is safe.”

"You want this assassin to force Himuro Reiji to confess his crimes and send you to prison?"

"You said that, I didn't."

"I understand, that's indeed a good choice." Inspector Megure nodded seriously, instantly giving Mori a thumbs up. As expected of Mori, he could come up with such a wicked idea.

The atmosphere in the interrogation room was extremely tense.

On one hand, he wanted to leave the Metropolitan Police Department's interrogation room as soon as possible; on the other hand, he was afraid that after leaving the interrogation room, he would not be able to get the protection of the Metropolitan Police Department and would be shot in the head by the assassin hiding in the shadows.

Moreover, the police officer named Sato in front of her was rather strange. This woman had used some interrogation techniques on him before, but after being called out once, she returned and started practicing silence, seemingly not very interested in him.

Two more hours passed, and the ice chamber finally couldn't hold it in any longer.

Himuro slammed his hand on the table and said, "Miss Officer, don't you have any questions for me?"

“That’s all. You can leave now.” Sato shrugged. “The door’s over there. You can go out. Nobody’s stopping you.”

Himuro stood up. "Now that things are over here, I'm going to report this to the police. Someone is trying to kill me!"

"This is the interrogation room. Case filing isn't done here," Officer Sato said, pointing to the door. "Take the elevator downstairs and go to the front desk to file a report."

Now that things have come to this, Himuro understands that these guys just want to force him to confess something; they already know that someone outside wants his life.

However, his plan to take revenge on Kogoro Mouri had not yet succeeded. He was unwilling to accept that the guy had become a celebrity while he himself was back in prison.

“Oh, right, there’s something I need to remind Mr. Himuro. We’re going to be off work in three hours,” Sato said. “That means you only have three hours left.”

"You guys are ruthless!" Himuro picked up his things and headed downstairs to the police station.

However, filing a case takes time, and the police cannot provide Mr. Himuro with protection immediately. Himuro has many complaints about the Metropolitan Police Department's attitude, but since others are following the rules, he can't say anything.

As he walked out of the Metropolitan Police Department, he saw Kogoro Mouri's family. He originally wanted to say something provocative to enrage Kogoro Mouri, but the wound on his head made him not in the mood for it.

The top of a building 700 meters from Beiwu Department Store

"According to Mori's statement, the gunman fired from this spot towards Hokubu Department Store." Inspector Megure looked at Hokubu Department Store in the distance, feeling a headache coming on.

A rifle couldn't possibly graz someone's scalp at that range, so it must be a high-precision sniper rifle like a marksman rifle, and the user must be quite skilled.

"What did that guy do to provoke such a terrifying opponent?" The mobile team member who followed picked up his binoculars. "At this distance, if I were to snipe him, I'd likely miss. He might be a sniper from the military; only they could do something like that."

"Have you found the source of the sniper rifle?" Inspector Megure asked, looking at Takagi beside him.

“No, but there is one possibility.” Takagi swallowed hard. “That organization has several secret warehouses in Japan where weapons are stored.”

"You mean, it was done by remnants of that organization?"

"Or rather, someone inherited the organization's legacy." Takagi was also somewhat troubled. "If the source cannot be found, this is the best possible source."

A sniper rifle has appeared in Tokyo, and it's in the hands of a dangerous individual, putting the Metropolitan Police Department under considerable pressure.

The Director of Police has given them orders to find the source of the sniper rifle within two days, which is why they were able to bring the SWAT team with them on the case.

Megure nodded. Takagi's words coincided with his thoughts, but how could this kid say it in front of others?

"Inspector Megure, don't worry. Takagi and I are friends, and I won't meddle in things like this," a member of the SWAT team said with a smile. "Besides, exaggerating a little is good for our SWAT team too."

With such an enemy appearing in Tokyo, it will inevitably be the riot police who have to deal with it. The stronger the enemy, the more prepared they can be. Even if they are no match for the enemy in the end, they will still have a way to exonerate themselves.

"Let's just report it like this," Inspector Megure sighed.

What he didn't know was how much suffering those criminal suspects arrested on the Suzuki Express would endure after he reported it.

At this moment, Conan arrived at the place where Numao fell. Although a patrol officer witnessed Numao's fall and confirmed that it was an accident, he still felt it was necessary to investigate.

"Kid, what are you looking for?" Kogoro Mouri asked impatiently.

"Look at the rust marks, are they different from the ones around here?" Conan said, holding a flashlight. "Although this building is dangerous and at risk of collapsing at any time... we found it."

“This is…” Kogoro Mouri looked at the marks at the break, his face turning ashen, “an oxidation-reduction reaction.”

"That's right, it must have been left by strong acid. This section of the railing was specially modified so that if Numao runs upstairs, he will fall down here. Without holding the handrail, any normal person would panic, especially in a tense situation."

"A tense situation?"

"Yes, we need to find a way to ask that patrolman what Numao was doing when he was found, and why he ran away when he saw the police."

“Okay.” Kogoro Mouri immediately started making phone calls to find the patrol officer.

The patrol officer had already gone off duty, so we'll have to wait until tomorrow to ask.

"Why are you off work already?"

"They're just patrolling, not some professional police academy graduates," Conan said with a laugh, taking a picture of the oxidation and reduction marks on the railing. "Why work so hard when they only get such a meager monthly allowance?"

"The problem is, we don't even have any compensation for our incompetence, so why should we help the police investigate a case?" Kogoro Mori suddenly realized, "Wouldn't that make us look like suckers?"

“Uncle, some things can’t be measured by money. Besides, are you really at ease if you don’t send Himuro Reiji to jail?” Conan put away his phone. “This time it was just a witness who provided you with evidence. Next time it could be Ran, or someone else who is closer to you.”

“That’s true.” Kogoro Mouri sighed. “That’s why I resigned.”

Conan rolled his eyes. Being a policeman means offending people, but being a detective means you don't offend people, right? I don't know what's going on in this guy's head. Why did he ever think of quitting his job to become a detective?

Inside the hotel in Beikacho 4-chome, Himuro Reiji drew the curtains and dared not turn on the lights, fearing that the assassin hiding in the shadows would discover his presence.

A rooftop of a tall building 430 meters away

"Boss, they've already drawn the curtains, we have no chance." Stout operated the drone, observing the surroundings. "Besides, there are police downstairs at the hotel. If we make too much noise, we won't even have a chance to escape."

"Oh?" Xincheng responded dismissively, seemingly not taking Stout's words to heart at all.

Another ten minutes or so passed, and the prosthetic eye collected all the data.

Shinjo pressed the call button on his headset. "Karen, are there any voices targeting Mori online right now?"

“Yes, the scene in the mall that day was filmed by someone with ulterior motives and uploaded to the internet, and there's even a video.” Karen’s voice came through the headset. “It should be an online troll he hired. I’ve already banned the relevant accounts and reduced the buzz. We’ll see how much money he’s willing to spend after that.”

"Is everything prepared? I didn't expect they even have online trolls." Xincheng said, staring at the room through the scope. "Give him a heads-up and tell him we've arrived."

While half-asleep in his room, Himuro Reiji heard his phone ring. He instinctively reached for it, but then heard the sound of shattering glass, felt a sharp pain in his hand, and then lost consciousness.

Screams echoed in the room. By the time the police officers and waiters waiting downstairs rushed into the room, he had already fainted from excessive blood loss and shock.

"The bullet must have come in through the window and shattered his hand," Chiba said earnestly.

"This isn't the time to talk about that. You two should contact the hospital immediately and get him there. While you're at it, see if his hand can be reattached." Shiratori's face was ashen.

They had already begun protecting Himuro Reiji, but they hadn't informed him because they believed that even if they were to protect him, they couldn't do it any better than Himuro Reiji.

Having moved to a new residence, even if the assassin were to follow him, he wouldn't be able to quickly locate his room. Furthermore, the curtains were drawn, making it impossible for anyone outside to see inside and thus hindering any sniping operation.

But in that very situation, the guy hiding in the shadows shot off one of his hands.

"What does the phone seem to be displaying?" Chiba scratched his head. "Could this guy have been seen lying in bed playing on his phone and someone outside saw him?"

"Do you think such thick curtains can let in any light?" Shiratori asked, holding the curtains with a hint of helplessness.

“That’s true.” Chiba frowned. “I’ll come again.”

"What do you mean, 'again'?" Shiratori tensed up instantly.

"It seems to be a text message from that assassin. He said he'd come back, which means he guessed this assassination attempt would fail, so the police are preparing for the next one." Chiba looked at Shiratori. "Should we tell him this?"

“I don’t think it’s necessary, unless you want to drive him crazy.” Shiratori shook his head.

"Officer Shiratori, what should we do in this situation?" Chiba asked Shiratori. "If we continue to let Himuro wander around outside, he might die on the street one day."

Shiratori's face darkened. "Don't ask me, I don't know either."

According to normal procedure, they should now send someone to protect the unfortunate Himuro Reiji, but whether out of personal feelings or practical considerations, this is an unacceptable solution.

The entire Metropolitan Police Department now despises Himuro Reiji, the criminal. After all, nobody likes a guy who's just been released from prison and is already thinking about revenge against the officers handling his case. The Metropolitan Police Department is hoping that the hitman will get rid of Himuro Reiji so he can stop coming out and bothering people.

The second reason is that they lacked confidence in protecting Himuro Reiji; that assassin was too strong.

Thinking of this, he took out his phone and made a call to Inspector Megure, asking him what to do next.

Inside the hospital