Chapter 393

Under Sera Masumi's watchful eye, Kanakawa Shinryu spoke very politely.

"Come on in."

Sera Masumi: "...? What am I doing here?"

"Find the person in charge to monitor it."

Sera Masumi then remembered that her original purpose was indeed this... Uh, could it be that this person came here to have someone monitor the people entering and leaving the annex?

Indeed, if it were really to delete surveillance footage, then such a blatant act would be far too obvious. It seems she misunderstood.

Although she realized her deduction was flawed, Sera Masumi didn't dwell on it too much. After all, what detective hasn't made a mistake? Anyway, she didn't say it out loud, so she avoided any awkwardness.

After thanking the other party for making way, Sera Masumi quickly continued to look for the person in charge.

Usui Saiki was quite pleased: [Sera Masumi did all the running around work, so it saved me so much trouble!]

The system exclaimed in shock: "You actually did some work..."

Normally, you'd never see Bo Yezhai actively seeking out surveillance footage! Anyway, if he really wanted to solve the case, he wouldn't rely on that. It didn't matter whether it was there or not; the police would just pull it out when they arrived anyway, so why bother?

Usakabe Saiki remained calm: [Shocked? Good, everyone else will be just as shocked.]

system:【……】

Actually, to be precise, Usoppei didn't go that far; it was all on the first floor. In fact, the one who actually did the work was Sera Masumi. After finding the person in charge, Sera Masumi immediately rushed to the rooftop.

Usakabe Saiki was different. He did nothing but continue walking towards the parking lot outside, and finally met up with Ran Mouri and Sonoko Suzuki.

"Mr. Kankawa!" Ran Mouri reported the situation promptly, "Someone fell! And just now, a witness said they saw someone on the rooftop, so Inspector Hagiwara and his sister both ran up there! Conan told us to stay here and keep an eye on the scene..."

Bo Yezaki nodded: "I'll go with you."

System: 【...You're just too lazy to go upstairs!】

Usakabe Saiki: [Anyway, I've already farmed all the places where I could raise suspicion, and with so many police officers and detectives around, I don't need to do anything.]

Just as Usakabe Saiki had predicted, all the police officers and detectives in the hotel, except for him, were now on the rooftop.

Sera Masumi also officially appeared as a detective, giving her analysis and concluding that the case was a homicide rather than a suicide.

"The criminal should be caught soon, because I was already here before I even came up..."

As Sera Masumi spoke, she walked to the edge of the rooftop and looked down. She could see Kagawa Shinryu standing below, arms crossed, looking up as if he were staring directly into her eyes.

She looked away as if burned, then turned to the others on the rooftop and continued, "Before coming up, I went with that dark blue-haired guy downstairs to find some people to keep an eye on who's coming in and out, and to check the security footage..."

"Huh?" Kenji Hagiwara asked in confusion.

Conan Edogawa couldn't help but show a somewhat shocked expression.

Hagiwara Chisato wasn't very familiar with Samikawa Shinryu, so she was a little confused: "What's wrong?"

Kenji Hagiwara paused for a moment, then decided to maintain his friend's image in front of his sister: "It's nothing, I was just curious where he went. Turns out he went to work."

Hagiwara Chisato casually remarked, "Kanakawa-kun is quite proactive."

Conan Edogawa: "..."

That can't be right!!! Hanakawa Shinryu is clearly not the type of person who likes to do hard work!!!

I've never seen Han Chuan Shenliu be particularly enthusiastic at events before, so what's wrong with him today? Is there some problem he's overlooking?

Conan Edogawa begins to contribute points of suspicion.

Sera Masumi had been paying close attention to Conan Edogawa, and Conan usually didn't know how to control his expressions, so Sera Masumi couldn't help but think a lot as she looked at Conan's serious expression.

He was very satisfied with the result, as he had only taken a short detour of a few dozen meters.

Since there were no more clues on the rooftop, the group went back downstairs, preparing to wait for news from the surveillance cameras while waiting for the police to arrive... After all, Kenji Hagiwara was still on vacation, and they had to go through the proper channels to report the incident to the police.

"Even if we don't catch them, as long as we can see the surveillance footage, we're done for." Sera Masumi was quite optimistic.

Han Chuan Shenliu suddenly spoke up: "I don't think so."

Sera Masumi narrowed her eyes slightly: "Why?"

"Because in my experience, the surveillance is usually broken in these situations."

Shiliang Zhenjun: "..."

She paused for a moment, then looked at Kenji Hagiwara and Chisato Hagiwara as if seeking confirmation—she already knew they were police officers from the introductions on the rooftop: "Is that so?"

Kenji Hagiwara gave an awkward smile: "Well... after all, surveillance cameras and such are electronic devices, and they do need maintenance and such..."

Sensing the unspoken meaning, Sera Masumi's lips twitched: "...Is the rate of CCTV malfunction in Japan really that high?"

She used to spend more time in the US and UK, and while there were times when the surveillance cameras malfunctioned, that was within the normal range! What's going on in Japan?!

Sonoko Suzuki nodded seriously: "That's why we have so many detectives in Japan. After all, surveillance can solve everything, so what's the point of having detectives?"

Sera Masumi: "...That sounds reasonable."

Conan Edogawa wanted to shout, "That's not how it is!", but when he thought back to the cases he had handled, how many times the surveillance cameras were either in normal use or happened to record the crime... he remained silent.

Sure enough, the person in charge soon came to report apologetically that only the deceased had lived in the villa, and no one had left the villa. As for the surveillance cameras... the deceased had destroyed them himself.

Sera Masumi asked with a blank expression, "Did the deceased destroy it himself?"

"Yes." The person in charge coughed. "Because too many people came to collect debts recently, that gentleman went crazy and sprayed paint everywhere. The security cameras were also vandalized around that time, so nothing can be seen..."

The deceased was the hotel owner's son. He had been prosecuted for fraud, but was released due to insufficient evidence. Victims who had been defrauded and reporters frequently came to him.

Of course, he refused to admit his crimes and refused to pay back the money. To avoid being harassed, he took advantage of the fact that it was his own hotel and started to act crazy, scaring away everyone in the other hotels and leaving him all alone.

The three people who first discovered the body and screamed were the ones who had come to find the deceased, hoping to make him confess to his crimes.

The three of them came up with a theory: "Could it be the work of a ghost?"

"ghost?"

"It is said that there is an old man's ghost in the annex who rides in a wheelchair and takes the elevator... Many people have seen it. It is because of the ghost rumors that the people who originally lived in the annex moved out so quickly."

Sera Masumi was puzzled: "They've already confirmed he's an old man?"

The woman who had previously reminded Suzuki Sonoko that the elevator led to the annex said, "It's because of my father. After my mother was scammed by that guy, she was traumatized and has been hospitalized and bedridden ever since. To make her feel better, my father moved into the annex next to that guy's room and often pushed him in his wheelchair to see him. He didn't even intend to make him pay back the money; he just wanted him to apologize to my mother, but..."

She paused for a moment, then said, "My mother died in the hospital before she could receive an apology, and my father committed suicide in the villa... So the rumors about the ghost in the wheelchair may be influenced by my father's suicide."

The atmosphere suddenly became very somber.

The silence was suddenly broken by Hanchuan Shenliu's voice: "This time it's a proof question."

Everyone looked at Han Chuan Shenliu with suspicion: "What proof question?"

Hanchuan Shenliu looked at the woman who had just recounted how her parents had died one after another because of a fraudster: "She is the murderer."

Others: "Huh???"

The woman's face instantly changed: "You're making baseless accusations! Just because my parents died because of him, does that mean I have to be suspected of being the murderer? He's killed so many people! There are countless people who want to kill him!"

Kenji Hagiwara was already quite used to Shinryu Kakeru's style: "What's the basis for Shinryu's statement?"

"Nothing, I'm just familiar with the scent of murderers."

Everyone: "…………"

Sera Masumi looked at Sukawa Shinryu with extremely complicated feelings.

The people on the rooftop introduced themselves, but no one helped introduce Sugawa Shinryu as well, so Sera Masumi still remembers what Sugawa Shinryu, the advisor, said.

Now, listening to what the other person said... uh, why is he so arrogant? But he seems to know the police very well... could it be that I've misunderstood again...?

Sera Masumi hesitated, wondering if this person was one of those high-IQ criminals who, when the police couldn't find evidence, could only play the emotional card by getting close to people and keeping a close watch on them.

Because of Hanchuan Shenliu's statement, coupled with his inexplicably awe-inspiring aura, even without any evidence, people were inexplicably convinced. However, it was not appropriate to convict someone based on just one sentence, so the atmosphere became tense and turbulent.

The suspect identified by Hanchuan Shenliu was also getting a little anxious, because she was indeed the murderer. However, out of human nature—she felt that her criminal plan was quite perfect—she decided to resist one more time.

She glanced at the positions of the two policemen and Han Chuan Shenliu, and said hesitantly, "You...are you a policeman? If a policeman says such things without any evidence, I will file a complaint against you!"

Upon hearing this, even Kenji Hagiwara was shocked and showed a moved expression: "You actually think he's a policeman?"

Prisoner: “…………”

Why am I so moved...? Could it be because he was often questioned before, and he's actually a policeman? It doesn't seem like it at all!!!

Yes, although she said she would file a complaint if Shinryu Hanakawa was a policeman, she didn't really believe it. She just said it to bolster her confidence and show her determination, but she was caught off guard by Kenji Hagiwara's reaction.

Han Chuan Shenliu said considerately, "I'm not a policeman, so a complaint won't work. But you can report me as the criminal who's trying to get away with this and is turning around and accusing me—don't worry, I have hundreds or even dozens of such reports against me, so one more won't make a difference."

Prisoner: “?!?!?!”

Hagihara Kenji: "…………"

Sera Masumi: "…………???"

—What's wrong with this person?! Japan is so complicated; she's starting to miss England…

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Hagiwara was touched; someone actually thought Kanekawa was a policeman the first time they met without being introduced.

.

Han Chuan thoughtfully taught people how to report themselves.