Chapter 324

Here's the situation.

Recently, Kiel has noticed that his house seems to be under surveillance.

At first, she had some doubts about whether Potts had said something to the organization, but the organization still assigned her tasks as usual, and they were quite important tasks. So she ruled out the organization and began to suspect other factors.

Previously, she cooperated with Vermouth's mission by doing some things, but now that Vermouth has been exposed, she might seem a bit suspicious, for example, by visiting the hospital where the doctor Vermouth is disguised works quite frequently...

To dispel suspicion, she decided to hire a detective to investigate her home, so that she could appear to have a clear conscience.

At this time, her colleague Yoko Okino recommended the famous detective Kogoro Mouri to her.

"Huh? A prank doorbell?" Kogoro Mouri exclaimed in shock. "Ms. Minami, do you want me to catch the culprit behind this prank?"

Kir—whose real name was the host named Rena Mizunashi—said with a wry smile, "I'm sorry, entrusting such a small case to you is really too impolite, isn't it?"

Yoko Okino, wholeheartedly concerned for her friend, tried her best to persuade Kogoro Mouri to take the case: "It's not just about ringing the doorbell, there's something else! It's like, even if you open the door right away, you can't see anyone... It's terrifying!"

The case sounded a bit supernatural, and Kogoro Mouri, out of curiosity and out of respect for Yoko Okino, accepted the case and followed Rena Mizunashi back to her apartment.

Since Kogoro Mouri went to the TV station today to be a guest on Yoko Okino's show, and Ran Mouri and Conan Edogawa also went to join in the fun, everyone simply went along to see what was going on.

“The prank started two months ago. Every Saturday morning, someone would ring the doorbell, but when I opened the door, no one was there.” Rena Mizunashi explained the situation in detail. “If I had to pinpoint what happened two months ago… well, it was probably that my 7 a.m. livestream was rescheduled to Sunday evening news…”

Conan Edogawa asked, "So, for the past two months, every Saturday morning, the doorbell has been rung?"

Rena Mizunashi thought for a moment: "I don't think I heard it last Saturday, but I was on a business trip abroad from Monday to Friday, so I was probably too tired to hear it."

Although she didn't encounter any doorbell harassment that Saturday, she ran into Potts on her way home from work!

She's just incompatible with Saturdays!!!

After discussing it for a while, including experiments and what to do, no one really had a clear idea.

There's nowhere to hide right outside the door, so how can someone just disappear after ringing the doorbell?

Kogoro Mouri felt challenged: "Miss Mizunashi, please allow us to stay the night. I will definitely catch the culprit!"

Conan Edogawa squinted, thinking that Kogoro Mouri might not have been as effective as the bugging device he had stuck at the door.

Rena Mizunashi agreed.

Letting the detective stay at your house for one night would probably make you seem more compliant.

However, since there was no progress in the case, Rena Mizunashi did not intend to keep chatting with him, but instead started organizing the magazines and newspapers.

Ran Mouri enthusiastically went over and said, "Let me help you. Do you need me to tidy up the room?"

"No, tomorrow is recyclable waste collection day. I sorted it out today and put it at the door so I won't forget it when I go out tomorrow. I can just take it downstairs... Since I'm the last resident on this floor, putting it at the door won't bother anyone else." Rena Mizunashi explained as she tied the books, newspapers, and other items into bundles with rope.

Conan Edogawa noticed several stacks that had already been bundled up. Since the key to solving a case sometimes lies in certain details, Conan Edogawa figured he had nothing else to do anyway, so he went over to take a look.

"Huh?" Conan Edogawa actually noticed some strange marks. "Mina-neechan, there are some really weird scratches on your books."

"What?" Rena Mizunashi paused, stared at the stack of books for a few seconds, and then had a look of sudden realization. "Ah! I know, those are cat scratch marks, right?"

Ran Mouri immediately perked up: "Eh? Miss Mizunashi actually keeps a cat? I've never seen one before!"

Conan Edogawa denied the guess: "She probably doesn't have one, right? After all, Minami-nee-san just said that she was even away on a business trip for almost a week last week... People with this kind of job wouldn't keep pets, and there's no trace of pets in her house."

Rena Mizunashi admitted, "I don't actually own a cat. I just found an injured kitten on my way home from get off work last Saturday, so I picked it up and bandaged it up..."

"And what about the kitten now?" Ran Mouri asked curiously.

"Uh... I gave it away."

Conan Edogawa noticed that Rena Mizunashi seemed to drift off every time last Saturday was mentioned.

He had a feeling that Rena Mizunashi was hiding something.

Although Kogoro Mouri didn't sense that Rena Mizunashi was hiding something, he felt that Rena Mizunashi should explain things in more detail.

Last Saturday was the only Saturday that the doorbell didn't ring. If there's anything special about it, of course we should tell you so we can solve the case!

Sometimes clients withhold crucial information, causing cases to remain unsolved for extended periods...

So Kogoro Mouri asked, "Speaking of which, was there anything different from usual that didn't happen last Saturday, besides finding the cat?"

Conan Edogawa: "..."

The doorbell rang in the morning, so picking up the cat after work must have happened after the doorbell rang, right? This isn't really that relevant to the case...

Rena Mizunashi clearly thought the same thing; she smiled but remained silent.

Just then, her phone rang. Rena Mizunashi stared at the caller ID, a little hesitant.

Botnis called her a few years ago, and she saved his number as "TBG"—an abbreviation of The Botanist Gin.

Over the years, Potts hadn't called her, and she had almost assumed he had changed his phone number. She never expected him to call her now.

Rena Mizunashi instinctively wanted to find an excuse to go somewhere secluded to answer the phone.

After all, despite what Potts was like, he was still a member of the organization, and it wasn't appropriate for him to accept the invitation in public; who knew what the other party might say?

But then Rena Mizunashi thought about it again and suddenly realized that she could actually use this to her advantage and do the opposite! If something unexpected happened, she could just pretend to have touched the hang-up button.

So she calmly answered the phone: "Hattori-kun, what's up? I'm a little busy right now, I'm entertaining guests."

Hattori?

Conan Edogawa paused for a moment, but didn't take it seriously.

After all, Hattori is a common surname in Japan, and it's not like it's exclusively owned by Hattori Heiji.

I don't know what they said on the other end, but Rena Mizunashi calmly replied, "...Um, um, I understand. Then please send me some photos, thank you... um, goodbye."

After hanging up the phone, Rena Mizunashi breathed a sigh of relief.

Great! Potts didn't say anything weird at all. He just asked her if she wanted to see pictures of kittens... I never expected that the well-known You Know Who in the organization would be a cat lover. He won't cause trouble if there are cats around!

She's so lucky.

Out of courtesy, she answered the phone in front of others and explained the situation: "Hattori-kun called to ask if I wanted to see pictures of cats... I found the cat last Saturday and gave it to Hattori-kun to raise."

Ran Mouri smiled and said, "I see."

Conan Edogawa, who was standing nearby, heard the leaky sound from the phone and his expression became somewhat subtle: "I feel like Hattori-kun's voice sounds familiar..."

Ran Mouri quickly dragged Conan Edogawa over: "Even if you overhear someone's phone call, don't say it out loud. That's very rude."

Kogoro Mori frowned: "That sounds familiar? Could it be that brat?"

Conan Edogawa asked with keen insight, "Hey, Mizunashi-neechan, what's that Hattori-nii's name? Maybe he's someone I know!"

Rena Mizunashi was somewhat surprised.

She thought it was unlikely that she would run into someone Bottega Veneta's acquaintance by such a coincidence, especially a famous detective like Kogoro Mouri... But what if it was?

Currently, it's only Potts who knows about her, so she's in a very passive position. If these people really knew Potts's identity in normal society, she might be able to get some useful information.

Anyway, since Potts specifically gave her the "name she uses in front of outsiders," he must have been prepared for others to find out, right? You can't blame her; she didn't reveal any information about the organization.

So Rena Mizunashi replied with a smile, "Ah, his name is Hattori Heiji."

Conan Edogawa: "…………"

Ran Mouri: "Huh? Is that really Hattori-kun?"

Kogoro Mouri wondered, "Could it be a case of the same name?"

"Uh, do any of you know someone with this name?" Rena Mizunashi looked at the others with a surprised expression.

The Mori father and daughter reacted normally, they seemed to be acquaintances, but this elementary school student... why is his expression so strange? Is there something wrong with his name?

Ran Mouri said shyly, "If the voice is familiar and the name is Heiji Hattori, then it's probably a friend we know."

"Tch, just a brat," Kogoro Mouri muttered. "He thinks he can get away with anything just because his dad's the Osaka Prefectural Police Chief..."

Rena Mizunashi: "...???"

Huh?! Potts' real identity is the son of the Osaka Prefectural Police Chief?! The organization's infiltration is that extensive?!

Wait a minute, why does this identity sound so familiar...?

Just as Rena Mizunashi was reminiscing, Conan Edogawa spoke up.

Conan Edogawa, who had been somewhat suspicious, was now completely certain that the voice he heard belonged to Usui-san. Unable to bear seeing yet another person deceived by a false identity, he asked, "Um, what does Hattori Heiji, whom Mizunashi-nee knows, look like?"

"Eh?" Rena Mizunashi said, puzzled, "It's difficult to describe this..."

Ran Mouri asked, "Is he a high school student with dark skin and a Kansai accent?"

Rena Mizunashi paused for a moment: "...No, he has fair skin and speaks with a Tokyo accent...he's a college student with silver hair and green eyes, right?"

Everyone else fell silent as well.

Even someone as oblivious as Kogoro Mouri couldn't help but feel that this plot seemed vaguely familiar. It seemed like Hattori had previously complained about his identity being stolen at a game launch event…

Ran Mouri remembered too, and chuckled twice: "So, Usopp-kun used Hattori-kun's name again?"

Rena Mizunashi: "...Again???"

—What's wrong with Potts?! How can he be so adept at impersonating the son of the Osaka Prefectural Police Chief?! Why hasn't the police arrested him yet?!

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Bonus chapter!

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The name sounded familiar because a few years ago, Usoha had shown off a photo with Hattori in front of everyone in the organization, and even directly revealed Hattori's identity, implying that he was suspicious.

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Once the cat's injury heals, I'll give it to someone else to raise. I don't have the patience for that, otherwise I'd end up raising a Scottish Finch and a Bourbon...