Isn't it very scientific to use the Death Note to kill people?

"Aki's other assistant?" Kogoro Mouri looked surprised. "What are you doing here? Didn't Ms. Koshimizu say you took the day off?"

As he said this, his gaze shifted suspiciously between the pale-faced Conan and the cold-faced Amuro Tooru. "What... are you doing? The atmosphere is strange."

Amuro Tooru's cold mockery quickly faded, replaced by his usual cheerful expression, albeit with a hint of apology. "It's nothing, Mr. Mori. I just saw on the news that the Boss had been taken away by the police, and I felt something was off, so I came to check it out. I happened to run into Conan-kun and we chatted for a bit. We both thought that the Boss might have hidden some clues in the yard."

His explanation sounded reasonable, but the tense atmosphere on the scene, which was almost breaking, did not fool the usually carefree Kogoro Mouri.

His eyes still held suspicion.

Conan pursed his lips and remained silent, staring intently at Amuro Tooru with his still scrutinizing gaze.

"As for the courtyard, I've already searched it. Mr. Lin shouldn't have left anything there."

Koshimizu Nanatsuki shook her head in response.

She was, after all, a competent detective; how could she not have thought of the things the two of them could think of?

The atmosphere fell silent.

Just as Kogoro Mouri was about to ask Amuro Tooru, this seemingly suspicious guy, another question, Nanatsuki Koshimizu seemed to remember something, looked at Amuro Tooru with a slight frown, and hesitated before speaking:

"Mr. Amuro, do you know something?"

Why do you ask that?

"There was a period of time before when you left the firm without saying a word for a long time, wasn't there?"

"..."

That was the period after Amuro Tooru left the agency after being "exposed" as Bourbon in front of Hayashi Yoshiki.

“During that time, Mr. Lin only said that you had taken leave, but I found that things were not so simple.”

After hesitating for a while, Koshimizu Nanatsuki decided it was best not to mention to outsiders or Amuro Tooru, the person involved, that Hayashi Yoshiki had told her not to trust Amuro Tooru. However, she couldn't ignore these things: "There was something strange between you and Mr. Hayashi during that time. Was... something unpleasant happened?"

These words were like lighting a fuse!

Kogoro Mouri seemed to have grasped something, his anger erupting instantly. He stepped forward and grabbed Tooru Amuro's collar: "I knew it! It must have been you! Amuro! Was it you?! Because you had a conflict with that kid Itsuki, you held a grudge and took the opportunity to frame him! Not only did you make the bomb, but you also stuffed those damn oceanfront maps into his computer! Right?!"

The more he thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed, and he became so angry that he glared and puffed out his beard: "I knew Ashu wouldn't do such a thing! It turns out it was you, you traitor, who did this! Letting you work here was like inviting a wolf into the house! You bastard, I never realized you were so treacherous!"

Toru Amuro: "..."

He looked at Kogoro Mouri, who was jumping up and down in anger, then glanced at Conan beside him, who was frowning and, though his eyes held some doubt, also suspected that he was the culprit, and at Nanatsuki Koshimizu, who seemed lost in thought. A rare and overwhelming sense of speechlessness welled up inside him.

He opened his mouth as if to explain something, but in the end it turned into a very soft, almost inaudible sigh, swallowing back all his defenses.

What good would it do to explain?

Should we tell them this is a police strategy? Or is it Lin Jiashu's own choice?

Or should we tell them it's for the greater good and that we have time to find the murderer?

They won't understand, and they can't understand.

Just then—

"Mr. Amuro..."

Xiao Lan's voice trembled noticeably, interrupting the tense standoff.

She stepped forward, her eyes red and brimming with tears, which she stubbornly held back. Those eyes, always full of gentleness and kindness, were now shrouded in immense worry and sorrow, gazing pleadingly at Amuro Tooru.

“Mr. Amuro…please…” Her voice choked with sobs, a heartbreaking ache in her voice, “If you know anything…if you have any way to help Yoshiki-nii…please tell me, okay? I know…I know Yoshiki-nii would never do such a thing! He must have been framed! He really needs help right now…”

Large tears finally rolled down her pale cheeks uncontrollably.

"Please, Mr. Amuro..." she almost begged, "Whatever it is... even the slightest clue... please..."

Seeing Ran's tears and listening to her pleading filled with trust and despair, Amuro Tooru's carefully maintained calm mask finally cracked.

On the phone, he could calmly tell Yoshiki Hayashi, "This is a necessary strategy," and "This is for a greater justice." He could rationally analyze the pros and cons, regarding Kogoro Mouri or other civilians as pawns that could be moved on the chessboard or even temporarily sacrificed for the greater good.

But at this moment, when faced with the vivid sadness, tears, and painful trust of those around Lin Jiashu who were caught up in it... those cold theories and calculations suddenly became incredibly pale and... glaring.

He saw the most direct consequences of his ideas—not the plans on paper, but the suffering of living people.

Did Lin Jiashu anticipate this moment when he chose to jump in? Did he foresee that he wouldn't be able to face these things?

Amuro Tooru's Adam's apple bobbed, and a complex, almost wavering light flashed in his eyes.

He avoided looking into Xiaolan's tearful, pleading eyes, his jawline taut.

There was a long silence.

In the end, he said nothing.

He glanced deeply at Ran, who was still sobbing, then his gaze swept over the furious Kogoro Mouri, the wary Conan, and the worried Nanatsu Koshimizu.

Then, he abruptly pulled away from Kogoro Mouri's hand that was gripping his collar, turned around, and walked across the courtyard without a word, his figure quickly disappearing into the deepening twilight.

The four people left behind at the firm were immersed in deeper confusion, anger, and unease.

Amuro Tooru's somewhat hasty departure seemed to confirm certain speculations more clearly than any explanation.

Conan's brows furrowed tightly.

Amuro Tooru's final silence and departure were too unusual.

He didn't seem like someone whose conspiracy had been exposed and who was fleeing in panic. Instead, he seemed more like someone who was carrying some kind of heavy pressure that he couldn't express.

What role is this guy playing?

Kogoro Mouri was still yelling angrily, shocked that he had let that guy get away so easily. He furiously pulled out his phone and dialed Inspector Megure, shouting, "I need to tell Inspector Megure that the real culprit has been found! It's that bastard Amuro Tooru… Damn it, answer the phone, Inspector Megure, you bastard—"

What did you say, Mori-kun? Why did you suddenly call me a bastard?

"Ah, Inspector Megure!"

Kogoro Mouri was immediately thrown into a panic.

Koshimizu Nanatsuki stepped forward, gently patted Ran's shoulder, and handed her a tissue.

Conan noticed Ran's obviously overly sad reaction, and only then did he turn around and notice these things. He was stunned for a moment, but said nothing.

Chapter 34: Gin's Reaction

"So, traces of access to the on-site gas valves were found on the computer at Lin Jiashu's office?"

"...Yes, that's what the Cybercrime Countermeasures Division's report said."

"Then we can confirm that Lin Jiashu infiltrated the scene, opened the cabinet door, and tampered with the high-voltage cable."

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's conference room was still packed with people.

Under the watchful eyes of the police, Kazami Yuya stood up and reported his "discovery" in as calm a voice as possible.

of course.

These so-called traces were all created by him; as a public security officer, Kazami Yu was also very good at doing this kind of thing.

"Wait a minute, if that's the case, the surveillance cameras should have captured Brother Lin!"

"Imperial Megure slammed his fist on the table and shouted!"

"That's not necessarily true, Inspector, because the network at the scene was only activated yesterday."

"...!"

Megure felt a lump in his throat after being rebuffed by Kazami Yuya's words.

He sat in his seat, his eyes fixed on the other person, thinking that there must be some other things the other person had overlooked—Kazami Yuya's attitude was very strange, as if he was determined to pin the blame on Hayashi Yoshiki.

Megure Juzo could understand that this incident during the summit put a lot of pressure on the Public Security Bureau and caused them to be criticized... but doing things this way was simply too disgusting.

Sitting below, Shiratori Renzaburo, Sato Miwako, and others glared angrily at Kazami Yuya.

The latter remains steadfast in its position.

It wasn't until Toshiro Odagiri, who had been silent until then, that he suddenly spoke up: "I don't think he... would do that, as a consultant. But as police officers, we can't act based on personal impressions; if there's suspicion, we must investigate. What did he say during the interrogation?"

"Lin Jiashu insists on denying the charges, but even if he denies them, the case can still be sent to the prosecutor's office."

"They're sending it to the prosecutor's office without even knowing the motive?!" Inspector Megure was getting impatient. Sending it to the prosecutor's office meant that the case would enter the core judicial process, with the prosecutor initiating a public prosecution against the suspect.

“If the evidence is complete, it should be sent for testing. As a police officer, this is the only right thing to do.”

"Wait a minute! Something feels off. This is too suspicious—"

"Does Inspector Megure really need to mobilize so many investigators to handle a case with such complete evidence based solely on your subjective conjecture?!"

Kazami Yuya's voice overpowered Megure Juzo's.

His resounding words caused many officers outside Tokyo's main ward to whisper among themselves, a phenomenon that once again left Inspector Megure speechless, as if choked up.

During the Tokyo Summit, a large number of non-local police officers gathered here. Under the watchful eyes of so many colleagues from other regions, the explosion on the beach was enough to make the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department lose face...

However, Toshiro Odagiri remained unperturbed: "Mobilize as many units as needed!"

Kazami Yuya was taken aback.

Megure Juzo came to his senses and looked at him with surprise.

"minister?"

“I don’t think the consultant would do such a thing… especially since he left such obvious evidence, which is not only an insult to the police… but also an insult to himself.”

Odagiri Toshiro rose from his seat, his solemn face etched with authority, and looked directly at Kazami Yuya:

"We are not part of the public security system, so we don't know about your intricacies in this incident. But if the police don't take a fact-based approach to the doubts in the case, how many wrongful convictions will we create? And now the outside world's attention is focused on this. Haven't you paid any attention to the public opinion surrounding the consultants?"

"..." Kazami Yuya narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Furthermore, if it weren't for the consultant solving the mystery in the Moriya Teiichi bombing incident and the bomb monster incident, the uproar back then might not have been any less significant than the impact on the Ocean Shore today! If we don't even give them a chance to prove their innocence now, don't the officers present feel ashamed?!" Odagiri Toshiro said, then shouted again, "Megure."

"exist!"

"You are now in full charge of investigating this matter!"

"Understood, Minister!"

"..."

Meeting Odagiri Toshiro's sharp gaze, Kazami Yu remained silent.

To be honest, Toshiro Odagiri is a high-ranking official in the Metropolitan Police Department and has no authority over the Public Security Bureau, which is under the National Police Agency. If the Public Security Bureau, represented by Yuya Kazami, insisted on sending Yoshiki Hayashi to the prosecutor's office, the former would not be able to stop them... However, although the Metropolitan Police Department and the National Police Agency are nominally parallel lines that are not subordinate to each other, that is only in name... Moreover, this matter was only to buy time to find the real culprit, so Yuya Kazami did not insist.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Deep inside the organization's bar, the air remained as cold as ever.

The smells of cigarettes, alcohol, and a faint hint of gunpowder mingled together, creating a calm yet chilly atmosphere amidst the sounds of records and the bartender shaking the shaker.

Gin sat like a statue in the darkest booth, his long silver hair hanging down, the ends of which and the black brim of his hat obscuring most of his expression. Only the cigarette between his lips flickered, reflecting a sliver of crimson light.

"Big, big brother!"

Vodka's slightly hurried footsteps broke the deathly silence.

He almost jogged over, his thick fingers clumsily swiping the phone screen, his face showing obvious surprise and doubt.

"This is bad!" His voice stammered with urgency as he shoved his phone screen at Gin. "Look at this! It's a news flash! Jundu... he's been arrested by the police!"

hum-

Almost the instant Vodka finished speaking, Chianti, who was idly wiping sniper rifle parts at the other end of the bar, looked up. Not far away, Tequila, who was drinking alone in silence, suddenly put down his glass, while Cohen, who was as silent as a stone in the corner, picked up the remote and turned on the TV.

The television set placed in the corner was showing the news channel.

Gin's movements did not pause for a moment.

He took a drag of his cigarette before slowly raising his eyelids, his dark green pupils sweeping over the phone screen that Vodka had handed him.

In fact, you don't need to look at the news broadcast on the TV next to you to understand:

[It has been reported that renowned detective and mystery novelist Yoshiki Hayashi was formally arrested by the Metropolitan Police Department's Public Security Bureau this evening in connection with the recent "Ocean Beach" bombing...]

Police found a detailed schedule for the Tokyo Summit on the detective agency's computer, along with an internal floor plan of the Ocean Shores Convention Center.

The news anchor delivered today's hot news stories in a calm but rapid-fire manner.

Gin's gaze fell on the photo on the phone that Vodka handed him. The photo showed Yoshiki Hayashi... Jundu being surrounded by reporters with their cameras and escorted away wearing a police coat. Gin's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly as he witnessed this scene. His first reaction was not shock or anger, but rather an extremely impatient suspicion.

"...What is he up to now?"