Chapters 3512 & 3524 [What to Choose?] Requesting monthly votes (づど)

“Conversely, if I do nothing, that thug will definitely go out into the streets and hurt people again after he’s let go.” Ayumi Yoshida said solemnly.

"So what we need to do now is not to worry about future safety, but to do everything we can to send that uncle to prison!"

After speaking passionately, Yoshida Ayumi paused, glancing at the three men outside the car window—men with similar builds, voices, and even the only visible feature—and lowered her voice guiltily, "Well, even if I don't recognize them, there's still Jiang Xia-gege, isn't there..."

Ai Haibara paused, then muttered thoughtfully, "You mean, you believe that Jiang Xia will ultimately prevail?"

...

In terms of utilizing detective skills, some police officers are far more adept than some elementary school students.

After asking about the three people's situations, Officer Sato casually moved next to Jiang Xia and asked, mimicking his superior's manner, "What do you think?"

Jiang Xia: "You'll have to ask those forensic officers."

"Forensic Science Division?" Officer Sato followed his gaze and saw three colleagues carrying suitcases approaching. She paused, looking at them with some confusion. "What are you doing here?"

"Of course we're here to check the keyholes." The forensic officer was already familiar with these police officers who handled murder cases every day. Hearing this, he patted his box. "Mr. Jiang Xia said that one of these three cars had its door opened with a bloodstained key, so we brought reagents to test it."

Officer Sato was bewildered for a moment, then realized: "I see!"

Just as Yoshida Ayumi was about to muster the courage to get off the bus, she looked at the commotion and stopped in her tracks, puzzled: "..." Huh?

...

"What are you trying to do?" the blond-haired man asked warily, looking at the three policemen who were walking towards his car. "You're not planning to ransack my car until you find my lost original key, are you? — I'm warning you, this is an invasion of privacy!"

"Don't worry, there's no need to check the inside of the vehicle yet," the forensic officer said, placing a light-shielding device over the door lock. "We're just checking here for bloodstains, as Mr. Jiang Xia suggested."

Diagonally opposite, in that vehicle packed with children.

Ayumi Yoshida gripped the doorknob, unsure whether she should open the door and get out: "...What are they doing?"

"Of course we're looking for the culprit." Conan smiled. "When that person fled the scene, they were in a great hurry and probably didn't notice the blood on the key before using it to open the car door."

"Therefore, blood will also get on the lock of the driver's seat—even if it is only a very small amount, it will not escape the test of the reagent."

"However, afterwards, the criminal must have discovered the bloodstains on the key and realized that the blood on the keyhole would be detected—to hide this, he deliberately lied and tampered with it a little."

"Lying? Tampering with something?" Officer Takagi, who was standing guard by the car, couldn't help but ask, "Who lied? What did he do?"

The more listeners there were, the more focused Conan became. He said to the group, "Think carefully back to what those three people said and did just now."

Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya pondered: "The blond college student on the far left said he wanted to drive up the mountain for a spin. The uncle at the mechanic shop in the middle said he was going out to test if the car was fixed. And the uncle at the locksmith shop at the end said he was going out to find a customer..."

Officer Takagi: "..." Everything sounds suspicious; I can't tell who's lying at all...

After pondering for a moment, he suddenly remembered something, and his eyes lit up: "Was it the locksmith shop manager? — The car was so clean, which shows he's a very organized person. Because the customer couldn't describe the address clearly, he was forced to waste a lot of time on the street, and in the end, the customer simply stood him up... So in a fit of anger, he went out into the street and stabbed a young woman who looked just like the customer!"

“You seem to have a good understanding of the psychology of these criminals,” Conan said tactfully, “but that’s not right.”

Officer Takagi, who thought he had guessed correctly after hearing the first half of the sentence: "..."

He scratched his head, then a thought struck him: "That must be the college student! He drives up the mountain every day, and his car is always covered in mud and scratches, but when the mechanic was about to open the door and get out, he was actually worried that the other man would scratch his car!"

Conan: "That makes a lot of sense, but..."

"What are you muttering about!" Before he could finish speaking, the blond-haired man suddenly interrupted. He had actually overheard Officer Takagi's words and angrily shouted:

"Can the scratches I made be the same as the ones someone else made? My scratches are normal wear and tear, but what's the point of him scratching me? Besides, my scratches are all near the chassis, covered by mud, so you can't see them at all. But if there are scratches on the car door, it's so conspicuous, wouldn't I have to go to the repair shop?"

Inspector Takagi: "..." What is all this nonsense? He really can't understand the thought processes of these suspects...

"Ahem." Conan cleared his throat, breaking the awkward silence.

"Actually, what Officer Takagi said is very close to the truth."

"When you see a car parked so close to your own, and the other driver is about to open the door and get out, any car owner would worry that the other driver will scratch their car."

"So what's strange isn't the college student, but Mr. Fukuchi who deliberately parked his car right next to another car."

Officer Takagi was stunned: "But, didn't Mr. Fukuchi park the car like that because he's a bad driver?"

Conan shook his head: "How could someone who is good at repairing cars be so bad at parking that he can't even park properly?"

"Even if there were such a person, it wouldn't be Mr. Fukuchi—it's not an easy thing to park your car right next to another car."

"If Mr. Fukuchi is really a bad driver, then he either crashed into it while parking, or he stopped halfway because he was scared."

"But when he parked the car just now, he parked it in one go without any hesitation or pause."

"In other words, his driving skills are not as bad as he claims—he parked the car like that simply because he wanted to block the keyhole in the driver's seat to prevent anyone from noticing the problem."

"in addition……"

Conan looked at Ayumi Yoshida: "How did you practice when you were learning to ride a bicycle?"

Upon hearing this, Ayumi Yoshida felt a sharp pain return to the spot where she had fallen during practice. Touching her knee, she recalled with lingering fear, "My mother took me to a quiet alley with few people, held the seat for me, and then let go..."

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