"Are you sure it's 'good-looking' and not 'terrifying'?" Kogoro Mouri scrutinised the photos, frowning. He even asked again, just to be sure he hadn't misheard.
"This is a popular style right now, you know!" Sonoko gave him a strange look. "Uncle, you don't even know this?"
"This is called a 109 Gal; a lot of girls these days really like this kind of makeup," Officer Sato Miwako explained smoothly, seeing Kogoro's puzzled expression. She chuckled lightly, "This style is certainly exaggerated. I'm not a fan of it myself, to be honest."
"Exaggerated, I can see that…" Kogoro Mouri still seemed confused. "But why is it called a 109 Gal?"
"109 is the name of a department store. You can see it right outside Shibuya Station. Shibuya is basically the fashion hub of Japan, and the 109 department store is considered a landmark there, which is why they're called 109 Gals, or sometimes Shibuya Gals," Fujino explained. He had looked into this case before and was familiar with the "109 girl" term.
"That's right," Sonoko nodded, agreeing. "Ran and I go to that department store, the 109 department store."
"But what does 109, Shibuya, and 'Gals' have to do with each other?" Kogoro Mouri scratched his messy hair, clearly struggling to connect 109, Shibuya, and "Gals." He felt like he understood young people less and less these days.
He gave up trying to figure it out, then stroked his chin and started thinking about the case. "However, I feel like we've had cases of men attacking young girls before… like that continuous hit-and-run against high school girls. I remember that case, it was even before I became a police officer. The culprit was absolutely despicable."
Beside him, listening to Kogoro Mouri, Inspector Megure's face gradually darkened, as if Kogoro's words had brought back some unpleasant memories.
"Anyway, let's continue investigating," Inspector Megure stood up, leaning his hands on the table. "Let's catch that culprit first…"
"Then I'll go prepare…" Officer Sato Miwako hadn't finished speaking when Inspector Megure, turning around, sternly stopped her. "There's no need to pretend to be bait to lure the culprit anymore. We'll go back and re-examine the characteristics of these three victims and try to find some common ground…"
"Huh?" Officer Sato Miwako was stunned. "But the culprit…"
"No 'buts'," Inspector Megure's tone suddenly became much stricter. He turned to Fujino and continued, "Fujino-kun, you come help too."
"Alright," Fujino responded, standing up. He naturally understood why Inspector Megure's attitude had changed so quickly. The case Kogoro Mouri had just mentioned was one that Inspector Megure had investigated in the past. The culprit drove a car into high school girls, and a girl named Midori – who is now Inspector Megure's wife – volunteered to be bait and was then seriously injured by the car. He must have recalled that incident, which is why he wouldn't let Officer Sato Miwako continue acting as bait. Looks like old man Mouri hit a nerve again…
"Ding-a-ling!"
Just then, Sonoko's phone rang. She pulled it out and saw it was Ran.
"Sonoko, what do I do? I can't find the exit!" Ran's distressed voice came through the phone as soon as she answered.
"Can't find the exit?" Sonoko clicked her tongue, as expected. "Where are you right now? I'll come find you."
"I'm in the underground parking lot."
"You can't even find the exit in a parking lot?" Sonoko sighed softly. "Why do I feel like your sense of direction is getting worse?"
"Hey, Sonoko-neechan!" Conan suddenly called out, looking at the bracelet on Sonoko's wrist. He shouted loudly, "Where did you buy that ring, necklace, and bracelet?!"
"Huh?" Sonoko was clearly startled. "Those are just the free gifts from the 109 company that Fujino-senpai just mentioned. If you spend over 10,000 yen, you can pick any one for free."
"So that's it!" Inspector Megure also noticed this and quickly grabbed Sonoko's wrist. He turned to Takagi, "Well?"
"You're right!" Takagi pulled out the photos of the girls from his inner pocket. "Those accessories are on all of them!"
"All three of these victims were customers of that company," Officer Sato Miwako pondered. "That means the culprit is targeting people who shop there…"
"Ah—!"
Just then, Ran's scream suddenly came through the phone.
"??!!"
Everyone present was startled by the sound. Fujino pulled out his phone and checked the time. It seems Ran has encountered a body because of her terrible sense of direction… Hmm, I wonder if the unicorn girl is lucky or unlucky. To encounter something as rare as getting lost and finding a body… Even though he had expected it, Fujino couldn't help but sigh. As expected of the Conan-blessed unicorn girl.
"What's wrong, Ran!" Kogoro Mouri snatched the phone, anxiously questioning Ran on the other end.
"There's a girl lying in the parking lot with her head covered in blood?!" Ran's stuttering voice came through the phone.
Hearing this, the atmosphere around everyone instantly dropped to freezing point.
Underground parking lot of the 109 department store.
"Click, click!"
Camera flashes went off. Since the police were already on site when the body was discovered, the forensic team didn't even need to come with the detectives. They just brought their equipment directly to the crime scene.
This victim shared the same characteristics as the previous attacked girls: dark skin from UV tanning, blonde hair, a pink, cool high-neck sleeveless sweater, and a dark blue mini-skirt.
However, unlike the previous attacked girls, this victim had truly been beaten to death.
"Did the culprit get serious this time?" Inspector Megure observed the body, his face slightly grim.
"We haven't released the characteristics of the attacked victims yet," Officer Sato Miwako pondered. "This incident happened in the underground parking lot of this department store. It's almost certainly retaliation against this company."
"Tae! Tae!"
Just then, a few shouts suddenly came from the crowd beyond the police tape. Everyone turned to look and saw a man in a blue suit with a white shirt underneath being held back by the police, trying to force his way through the tape.
"Who's that guy?" Inspector Megure turned his head, looked at the man, and asked Takagi beside him.
"I heard he's the girl's boyfriend, named Shirakawa," Takagi quietly explained. "The girl was supposed to meet him here today…"
Before Takagi could finish, the man continued to shout hysterically, "What are you all doing?! Why haven't you caught that serial attacker yet?!"
"Well, although we've already…" Inspector Megure slowly walked forward, explaining with a bitter smile.
"This was done by that serial offender, too, wasn't it?! What exactly are you police doing?!"
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