Chapter 418

Compared to the police and detectives who need to focus on evidence, the magicians who can identify the murderer just by knowing the motive have indeed determined the identity of the murderer long before Sherlock took Edogawa Conan with him to set off - and based on the reason of preventing Sherlock from being misled by the possibilities existing in the case, they conveyed the truth to Sherlock through John.

"Can you take me to the scene of the first case to confirm it first?" Sherlock asked Ayanokouji Fumimaro.

"Okay." Ayanokouji Fumimaro nodded and took the lead to get out of the cordon around the scene. "The body over there has also been taken away - the hotel is very close to here, we can walk back the same way we came here."

"Then please lead the way." John thanked Ayanokouji Fumimaro with a smile.

Meanwhile, Holmes asked the few people who remained in the office:

"Which items can restrain the dead's movements and prevent them from escaping by brute force? Which one is the best for the murderer to obtain?"

"Come to think of it, when you initially examined the bodies, you found traces of restraints on the wrists of the first body, right?" Sherlock stood in front of the area of ​​the bodies drawn with chalk, turned his head and asked the three people who first discovered the bodies, "What was the specific shape? Can you describe it?"

"Excuse me, please allow me to interrupt for a moment. Regarding this point, the autopsy report mentioned that the same form of compression marks were found on the ankles of the deceased." Ayanokouji Fumimaro spoke up and told everyone the details that were omitted in the previous report. "They suspect that the marks were caused by the deceased himself."

"The death was caused by himself!?!" Conan Edogawa, who was following Hattori Heiji, showed a surprised expression.

"Ah... Indeed, considering that the deceased was skilled in kendo, it makes sense to explain the existence of those marks." Hattori Heiji turned his head and looked at the several people who were practicing kendo like him at the scene. "As a means of protecting themselves, sometimes they would tie bandages around their joints - the wrists and ankles are the most common parts."

"After all, not everyone wears sports protective gear like wrist guards. Those who prefer the old-fashioned style prefer bandages or cloth strips."

"Hattori-kun, you're going to make us feel sad when you say that." Okita-kun smiled and changed the subject, pointing out another problem at the crime scene, "But we didn't see this thing on his wrist at the time, did we? If it was the deceased's own thing... why wasn't it left at the scene?"

"Because that was the murderer's weapon?" John casually suggested a possibility.

"If it was taken away and abandoned by the murderer for this reason, we police should be able to find it by searching the nearby area." Ayanokouji Fumimaro pointed out, "But we haven't found any similar items until now--"

"You're looking in the wrong area," Sherlock reminded them lazily, chewing on a cigarette, "The murderer didn't throw that thing away at all."

“Eh…?”

Everyone looked at Sherlock in surprise, who had squatted down at some point.

"That means we have to search the remaining three suspects again?" Ayanokouji Fumimaro frowned.

"No." Sherlock shook his head, stood up, and took out the unlit cigarette from his mouth. "Just like the murder weapon is the victim's own knife, the murder weapon chosen by the murderer must also be with its original owner."

"The original owner?"

"After all, he is a murderer who pays so much attention to ceremony." Sherlock walked out of the scene with a smile and lit a cigarette. "However, even if we find that thing, we can't prove that the murderer is the murderer - just like even if Professor Moriarty in the Sherlock Holmes series appeared at the crime scene in a dignified manner, Sherlock Holmes couldn't prove that he was the mastermind behind many cases."

——Hey, hey, the murderer this time isn’t that difficult.

Conan Edogawa glanced at Sherlock with distrust, but found that Sherlock's expression was still at ease.

"But there is something different about the murderer this time." Sherlock slowly exhaled a puff of smoke and turned his head to look at the people who were still at the scene. "Because this guy did it himself, so as long as we can witness the crime scene, we can prove that this guy is the murderer."

"Does that mean we are going to withdraw the personnel used to protect the three suspects?" Ayanokouji Fumimaro raised his eyebrows.

"Even if they were surrounded by police, the third case would still happen." Sherlock chuckled and replied to Ayanokouji Fumimaro, "Not to mention that they are still protected now - but, although from the situation of the second case, the murderer has become impatient... but I suggest that we wait for the autopsy report to come out before taking action."

"Since we know the third case will happen, shouldn't we race against time to stop the murderer?"

The detective and the policeman both showed disapproval expressions.

Conan Edogawa, who had been somewhat led astray by some members of Heroes of the Storm, showed his speechless half-moon eyes.

"Conan." Sherlock suddenly called out Edogawa Conan's name, "If you were a hunter, how would you catch your prey?"

"Prepare the trap, set the bait, and then wait for the right opportunity." Edogawa Conan answered Sherlock's question skillfully, and took over John's explanation work. "After all, at least before midnight today, the murderer will not strike again - Mr. Sherlock knew this and suggested that we wait for the report before taking action."

Over a long period of time, not only the three people who are the fulcrum of rebuilding the world in the future have changed, but even the Heroic Spirits and the staff of Chaldea have also undergone some subtle changes - everyone is gradually being stained by the people around them with colors that did not originally exist in themselves.

In this process, Sherlock, who is the "Detective "Sherlock Holmes", is also stained with colors that would never have appeared in the past by William, who is the "Crime Minister "Moriarty".

——Just like what William did on the Nocdia in the past, except that he would save the person chosen by the killer.

- After all, no matter what evil deeds they had committed in the past, as long as the laws of this era would make a judgment for it, no one could lynch them.

"Hunting...?"

Toyama Kazuha, who was confused by the out-of-character conversation between Sherlock and Conan Edogawa, was quietly taken by Ms. Okita by the wrist to a place where she could not hear the conversation clearly; but the detective and the police had already understood what Sherlock meant, so they showed even more intense opposition to this plan.

"This is tantamount to gambling with the lives of ordinary citizens - as a police officer of the Kyoto Prefectural Police, I cannot allow this to happen." Ayanokouji Fumimaro frowned and objected to Sherlock's proposal, "Waiting until the third case occurs to catch the murderer, this plan is too risky!"

The squirrel perched on Ayanokouji Fumimaro's shoulder also made a cooing sound to echo his opinion.

"No, no, no! How can we use this plan?..." Hattori Heiji was so anxious that he almost revealed the true identity of Edogawa Conan. "Conan-kun won't agree with it, right?! "

"I disagree." Conan Edogawa glanced at Hattori Heiji, "Although Inspector Megure and his team have rejected Mr. Sherlock's proposal many times... but Mr. Sherlock always enforces it. The reason why Mr. Sherlock has not been directly arrested and taken to the Metropolitan Police Department is probably because he always appears out of nowhere to save the victim."

"Of course, the prisoner was caught by him alone - Mr. John was occasionally present at the scene, but most of the time Mr. Sherlock acted alone."

"Let's not talk about this for now." Ayanokouji Fumimaro sighed deeply, and for the first time, he began to worry about the safety of his colleague at the Metropolitan Police Department. "Why do you say that the murderer will definitely commit a third crime, and why do you say that the murderer will definitely not commit a third crime before midnight today?"

"Should I start from there?" Sherlock tilted his head in confusion and looked at Ayanokouji Fumimaro, "Then I'll explain it this way. Suppose there is a portion of your favorite food in front of you. Whether you eat it now or later, you will definitely eat it, right?"

"...Yes, considering the shelf life, I will try my best to eat it before it expires." Souji Okita looked at Sherlock and gave the answer subconsciously.

"To the murderer among the suspects, these two are just like that." Sherlock spread his hands and glanced at Okita-kun and Okita-san who were standing in different directions. "At the same time, in the murderer's mind, there is also a timeline that is equivalent to the shelf life of food, and he must kill them all."

"However, judging from the circumstances of these two cases..."

"You mean to say that there wasn't a long gap between the first case and the second." Sherlock crushed his cigarette and looked at the young high school detective, "But that's because the first case was discovered too early - so early that the murderer was forced to advance his plans."

"When the second case was discovered, the victim's blood was still flowing, right? Wasn't it discovered faster than the first case in the hotel?" Hattori Heiji looked at Sherlock in confusion, "The murderer should continue to speed up and try to kill the remaining two people as soon as possible before being discovered by the police--"

"But didn't the officer arrange for police officers to protect the remaining three suspects?" Sherlock sneered and turned his head to look at Ayanokouji Fumimaro. "This is to notify the murderer. In fact, the police haven't found any clues pointing to the murderer. It is precisely because they don't know who the murderer is that they need to protect all three people..."

"That's why the murderer slowed down his pace. And, to kill someone under police surveillance without arousing suspicion, it would take a lot of careful preparation."

"Besides, this situation is very suitable for the murderer to clear his suspicion - because everyone is protected by the police, so the murderer cannot be among them." Sherlock crossed his arms and pointed out the suspicion that Ayanokouji Fumimaro had considered before, "Just like when you ruled out the suspicion of the three children who pointed out the details of the knife."