Chapter 289
The bloodstains on the playing cards were just a minor incident. After all, a huge bloodbath had occurred in this castle, and it is said that almost everything from that time has been preserved here, so it is normal for such problems to occur.
After discussing the bloody history of the "Twilight Mansion," the maid came over and said that dinner was ready. So the group followed the maid to the restaurant.
On the way, they also met Matsuda Jinpei, who was returning from investigating the castle, and he joined the group without any sense of incongruity.
"Have you found anything? Isn't this the detective guy?" the curly-haired woman inquired.
After all, everyone present was either a detective or very interested in the castle, and the others also put an ear out, ready to listen for any clues.
"Hmm..." Matsuda Jinpei pondered, "Time was limited, and I didn't find anything."
Because of Usuiba Saiki's attitude, Matsuda Jinpei is now suspicious of everyone and has become more conservative, keeping all information to himself first... Of course, he will share it with Usuiba Saiki, even though he thinks Usuiba Saiki probably already knows.
The others didn't say whether they believed it or not, and the group went into the restaurant.
After all, the entire castle was European in style, and the dining room was furnished with long tables. However, strangely, at the end of the long table, in the host's seat, sat a guy wearing a mask, whose face could not be seen at all.
"Welcome to my 'Twilight Mansion.' Please take your seats."
As everyone cautiously sat down, the mechanical voice continued, "I invited you all here today mainly to ask for your help in finding the immense wealth that has accumulated here over many years... I'm willing to bet my life on it!" (*Note)
Kaito Kid, using Kogoro Mouri's face, feigned a shocked expression: "Life?!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than a loud "boom" came from outside the window, like something had exploded.
Everyone's expressions changed immediately. Someone stood up and questioned them, but the mechanical voice continued unhurriedly.
"Don't worry, I've just restricted your movements a bit."
"Did they blow up our car?!"
In that instant, as if they had thought of something, everyone subconsciously looked at Usui Saiki—including Matsuda Jinpei.
Matsuda Jinpei was greatly shocked. Even with the warning, he never expected that someone would actually blow up the car!
This is such a classic "locked room" tactic!
Are you kidding me?! Aren't you afraid of being sued?! Restricting someone's movement is illegal! You'd win every time you're sued!
If any of them survive, they will definitely sue the person who invited them, unless the person who invited them intends to kill them all here...
But that wasn't all. The mechanical voice continued, "I've blown up the bridge too. You can't cross even if you have a car. There are no telephones here, and no cell phone signal..."
Matsuda Jinpei: "…………"
The bridge was blown up too! This is for real! If he had driven over there...
"Kankawa." Matsuda Jinpei patted Usui Saiki, who was sitting next to him, on the shoulder, and said with a rare sincerity, "Thank you, both me and my car."
Is that all you wanted to say?!
The tough detective with the thick chin couldn't hold back any longer and started ranting.
"So why were only your cars spared from being blown up?! What was his reason for insisting on coming up here?! Could it be that he already knew the cars were going to be blown up?! Or is he actually the one who invited us, and the one who decided to blow up the cars?!"
Ran Mouri fidgeted: "No, Mr. Kankawa wouldn't do such a thing. He must have a reason... right, Mr. Kankawa?"
Conan Edogawa was also very curious as to why Shinryu Samakawa had Jinpei Matsuda stop the car on the road.
The curly-haired woman also said, "Then please explain, Mr. Hanchuan!"
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the young man with deep red hair leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms, and looked around with a smug expression, tapping his index finger on his arm: "I have no need to explain myself to you."
"You bastard!" The tough detective, who had been hunted by the Mafia in Chicago, dared to slam his fist on the table even in the face of someone like Kagawa Shinryu. "It's you!"
Matsuda Jinpei was speechless. Feeling that sitting down wasn't enough to project authority, he stood up and slammed his fist on the table: "Is this how you conduct a detective?! You come up here and convict someone without any evidence?!"
The tough detective argued, "Then let him explain! If he doesn't explain, who knows if it's because he can't? Besides, they've already restricted our movements; we can't get out, so it makes sense that he's not even willing to pretend anymore, right?"
There are no fools here; everyone can see that while the tough detective has his suspicions, his words are merely a provocation, a way to get Hanakawa Shinryu to explain his suspicious behavior and eliminate any distractions.
But Usoppō Saiki was just trying to raise suspicion, so he didn't explain. He just sat there nonchalantly, watching everything with an expression as if he were watching a farce.
Matsuda Jinpei was already used to his quirky behavior, so he naturally explained for him: "That's not what he meant. He probably just thought you wouldn't believe him even if he explained."
"Oh? So you seem to know?" Old Mrs. Senjang joined the conversation.
As the mastermind behind it all, she desperately wanted to know why Han Chuan Shenliu was doing this! After all, it concerned whether she had been exposed!
Matsuda Jinpei took a deep breath, his face dark, and said, "His reason for telling me was that he felt this scene was like a locked-room mystery, and he was worried that he would blow up the car, blow up the bridge, and cut the phone line..."
Everyone: "…………"
Everything came true!!!
Conan Edogawa's lips twitched: "Um, Mr. Matsuda, you listened to him and walked halfway through the rain just for this reason?"
Matsuda Jinpei's face darkened even more: "...Yes, is it not allowed? You don't understand, so you find it strange, but his suggestions in this regard have always made sense. This is based on my experience, and now it's proven, isn't it?"
The curly-haired woman was exasperated: "Well, how should I put it? This reason feels so flimsy, and the fact that it actually came true doesn't prove he had foresight. On the contrary, it makes it even more... Mr. Matsuda, we can't control whether you want to believe him or not, but this doesn't prove he didn't stage it himself!"
The food detective agreed: "When I saw this castle, I also thought of these things, but even if I did, I wouldn't actually walk there in the rain just to make that guess..."
Matsuda Jinpei said impatiently, "But doing this won't do him any good, will it? It will only arouse suspicion. The real mastermind won't be so obvious, will they?"
"How is there no benefit? We kept the car, didn't we?" Phantom Thief Kid retorted.
Matsuda Jinpei glanced at him: "That's my car, I'm the one who benefits."
Others: "…………"
The curly-haired woman wouldn't let any suspicious detail slip by: "What if you're in cahoots... after all, even Phantom Thief Kid has assistants..."
Kaito Kid pondered for a moment, figuring that Kogoro Mouri's brains were too limited to guess his code, so he feigned a bewildered expression: "Huh?"
The curly-haired woman then began analyzing the code with the others.
The mechanical voice, ignored by everyone, continued its diligent speech: "...Please enjoy your dinner..."
The tough detective, unable to bear it any longer, rushed over and ripped off the bizarre hood: "You're so annoying with all that rambling! The rhythm of your speech doesn't match what's happening at the scene at all! It's obviously a recording!"
Sure enough, after the hood was removed, a mannequin was revealed with a microphone on its head, playing a pre-recorded audio message.
At this point, the curly-haired woman finally finished explaining the situation.
Matsuda Jinpei rolled his eyes: "I'm not, and neither is he. Instead of doubting us, let's think about how to find the organizers and leave here."
As they were talking, the maid started serving the dishes.
She explained, "Because the time, location, and order of serving are all predetermined..."
Everyone let her serve the dishes and continued their discussion.
Conan Edogawa said, "I don't think Mr. Kankawa is the organizer, because it's really obvious. Even if he has some motive, being constantly suspected and watched by everyone, unable to do anything, is useless, right? Besides, Mr. Matsuda is a policeman..."
Those who were unaware of the situation immediately looked at Matsuda Jinpei: "Police? Why didn't you say so earlier?"
“No need, I’m on vacation.” Matsuda Jinpei crossed his arms. “Besides, I’m not some detective in charge of solving cases, I’m a bomb expert in the explosives disposal unit. I can be of help if I go and check on the bombs later.”
After being persuaded by Ran Mouri and Conan Edogawa, everyone reluctantly put aside their condemnation of Shinryu Saikawa and started discussing a different topic.
"So, should we eat now? Could he have poisoned it?"
The consensus was that although it didn't seem necessary—after all, they were being asked to search for treasure—it would be better to wipe down the cutlery and plates.
As for the food, the food detective who cooked swore he had been watching it closely and there was absolutely no problem, so everyone just believed him for the time being.
Since everyone was quite hungry and had a lot of work to do, they finally started eating.
As they were eating, that idiotic recording started again.
"How was the dinner I prepared for you all? Now I'll tell you why I went to such lengths to acquire this house... Please pick up your cutlery..."
Since it might involve the treasure and clues to leaving this place, everyone readily agreed.
Ran Mouri picked up the spoon and looked at it: "Hmm, it looks like there's a bird mark on it."
Even Matsuda Jinpei frowned: "Indeed, what kind of bird is this?"
Conan Edogawa realized something and muttered, "Crow..."
He suddenly turned his head and looked at Han Chuan Shenliu.
When everyone was observing intently, pondering and speculating, seemingly filled with a desire to explore, the young man's dull and uninteresting attitude seemed out of place.
The young man, with a dangerous air about him, rested his chin on one hand and fiddled with the knife in the other, seemingly unconcerned about being discovered by the others.
As if sensing Conan Edogawa's gaze, he suddenly looked up, his eyes, the color of freshly dried blood, meeting his gaze.
After Edogawa Conan broke out in a cold sweat from nervousness, he seemed to have no interest in Edogawa Conan and indifferently withdrew his gaze.
Looking at this young man, Conan Edogawa couldn't help but feel a sense of doubt.
The old crow... he roughly understood what it meant, but what about the Golden Nest? Did it mean the same thing he thought it meant?
If that's what he thinks, then why did Mr. Hanchuan come in the first place?
What exactly is it about this place that attracts Mr. Hanchuan?
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To celebrate reaching 100,000 favorites, there will be an extra chapter tonight!
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Matsuda: Kankawa! Thank you, both me and my car!
Others: Is that all you wanted to say?! You ignored all those other suspicious points?
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Note: Original work, abridged.
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