"Because when I took out my handkerchief, it slipped out of my pocket and fell to the floor," Kaede Katagiri quickly explained. "I just bent down to pick up my handkerchief!"
"I was just serving according to the rules at the time..." Sachiko Eguchi also added.
"Inspector Megure!" A police officer hurried in, subconsciously glancing at Chi Feichi sitting in the distance. He walked over to Juzo Megure and leaned in to speak in a low voice.
Hissashi, who had been watching the show, suddenly perked up. "Here it comes, here it comes, it's finally here, they're too slow!"
Chi Feichi: "..."
Looking forward to becoming a crime suspect with his pet snake, this experience is truly rare...
As Juzo Megure listened, his expression gradually became serious. Then he nodded at the reporting police officer and walked over to Chi Feichi. "Brother Chi, may I ask what you were discussing with Mr. Kikuto and Butler Shigematsu before dinner started?"
The restaurant fell silent, and everyone looked at Chi Feichi.
Heiji Hattori and Conan suddenly remembered Chi Feichi's previous remark—
'I'm recusing myself.'
Chi Feichi met everyone's gaze, his expression still calm. "I refuse to answer that question."
Juzo Megure said with a serious expression.
"A servant said that after you left Mr. Kikuto's room and came to the restaurant for dinner, Butler Shigematsu told him to clean up Mr. Kikuto's room. At that time, he saw the room in a mess, with ornaments broken. If you had an argument before, then you have a motive for murder. Although you were sitting in a position where you couldn't reach the victim, not explaining the situation is very disadvantageous for you!"
"No," Yurie Morizono quickly said.
"Feichi and Kikuto get along very well, they... they..."
She suddenly remembered that Chi Feichi had indeed come to see Akio Shigematsu earlier and didn't know what to say anymore.
Chi Feichi insisted.
"I promised to keep it a secret."
Juzo Megure looked directly at Chi Feichi, stared for a while, and finally compromised. "Alright, but if necessary, the police have the right to request your cooperation in the investigation."
Chi Feichi nodded, indicating that was fine.
Juzo Megure then looked at Sachiko Eguchi.
"Ms. Sachiko Eguchi, I heard your daughter works at a research institute and conducted research on the medicinal use of snake venom a year ago. Is that true?"
"Yes, yes!" Sachiko Eguchi admitted, then explained. "However, after I divorced my ex-husband, my daughter has been living with her father. She only calls occasionally and hasn't been in contact for a long time."
"I understand!" Kogoro Mouri showed a look of sudden enlightenment and looked at Chi Feichi and the other two seriously. "Mr. Chi has a motive for murder but no opportunity to act, Ms. Eguchi can obtain snake venom, and Miss Kaede can act as cover or the perpetrator. This is actually a cooperative murder! The three of them agreed to kill the people they wanted to kill for each other!"
Chi Feichi: "..."
Heiji Hattori: "..."
Conan: "..."
This theory is excellent!
Juzo Megure looked at Kogoro Mouri, speechless. "But Mr. Chi is very knowledgeable about snake venom. Before this, it was he who determined that the amount of snake venom injected was problematic, and according to what we've learned from the hospital, the amount of snake venom injected does not seem like the amount injected after a venomous snake bite. He could have easily faked an accidental snake bite, so why would he leave such a flaw and make everyone suspect that the toxin was injected deliberately?"
"That's precisely to use Inspector Megure's way of thinking to clear their suspicion," Kogoro Mouri said. "To make us think that someone knowledgeable about snake venom wouldn't make such a mistake, but in fact, this is also part of the plan to mislead us!"
Chi Feichi sighed with emotion.
"It's a real shame Mr. Mouri doesn't write detective novels."
"Big Brother Chi, writing detective novels isn't that easy, okay?" Conan immediately spoke up for his dad's profession. "To write an excellent work, you also need logic and to write a reasonable final answer based on the clues already revealed."
Chi Feichi realized that saying that was indeed a bit unfair to people like Yusaku Kudo. "Sorry."
"Hey, hey," Kogoro Mouri felt somewhat offended and stared at Conan with distaste. "I said, what does a kid like you understand? You talk as if you can write!"
Conan chuckled inwardly. Sorry, he couldn't write, but his dad was a world-renowned detective novelist, and he had read many detective novels...
"Dad, Conan was just saying." Ran Mouri defended Conan.
Juzo Megure saw the topic getting more and more off-track and rubbed his temples with a headache. "Matters unrelated to the case can be discussed later!"
Silence.
Everyone stared blankly at the suddenly enraged Juzo Megure.
After shouting, Juzo Megure also felt a bit of regret. It seemed many of his subordinates were looking at him meekly. Would they misunderstand that he was a short-tempered boss? He was clearly very good-natured. "Ahem, for now, the priority is to solve this case."
"Yes!" The group of police officers immediately responded with serious expressions.
Juzo Megure: "..."
"Occasionally establishing an authoritative image is beneficial for management," Chi Feichi summarized.
Juzo Megure: "..."
Don't frame him, he didn't think that at all!
This guy Chi Feichi is really something. He doesn't say what he should, and says what he shouldn't, misleading everyone about their perception of him. He's not that kind of scheming boss.
"Uh, but, Miss Kaede has no reason to want to kill her fiancé, does she?" Wataru Takagi finally got back to the main point. "Moreover, none of their personal belongings contain anything like snake fangs that could be used as a murder weapon..."
"The murder weapon is indeed a problem," Heiji Hattori said in a low voice to Conan. "But Miss Kaede might not be without motive. The atmosphere between her and Mr. Kikuto is a bit strange; they don't seem like a couple about to get married, but rather like... two people in the middle of a cold war after a fight. You feel the same way, right, Kudo?"
No response.
Heiji Hattori looked up and realized that Conan was walking towards Chi Feichi, thinking with his head down, and felt speechless for a moment.
Isn't it better to discuss the clues they have with him?
He just had to go find Chi Feichi...
However, after thinking about it, he still followed. It might be good to ask Chi Feichi. Chi Feichi arrived a day earlier than them; he might know some clues.
Conan stepped forward, walked up to Chi Feichi, and tugged at Chi Feichi's sleeve. With a blank face, he asked softly. "Hey, the culprit is Ms. Eguchi, right?"
"Mm." Chi Feichi confirmed.
Heiji Hattori: "..."
These two already know who the culprit is?
Isn't that a bit too fast? It must be fake!
"The culprit deliberately chose snake venom to shift suspicion onto you. First, you had a conflict with Mr. Kikuto and Butler Shigematsu, and then you let the snake bite someone. That way, it makes perfect sense. When you said you were recusing yourself, it was because you discovered the culprit's intention. So, the other party should know about your conflict with Butler Shigematsu and Mr. Kikuto. Miss Kaede has been with us all along and couldn't possibly know about this, which leaves only Ms. Eguchi," Conan analyzed, but he wasn't happy at all, since he didn't deduce the culprit from the clues, but from Chi Feichi's attitude. "When did you know Ms. Eguchi was the culprit?"
"The moment something happened, I noticed the expressions of the people around me," Chi Feichi said. "Although the others looked surprised at the time, they also had confusion and bewilderment, while Ms. Eguchi showed a look of astonishment."
"Just because of that?" Conan was a little disappointed. He thought Chi Feichi had grasped some key clue.
In that kind of situation, Chi Feichi was still observing other people's expressions. What was this guy thinking...
"Even knowing she's the culprit is useless; we still don't know the murder weapon, let alone the evidence," Heiji Hattori tilted his head, secretly observing the items on the table. "To create the illusion of a snake bite, first, you need a conical object with a pointed tip and gradually widening back, like a snake fang. After that, you need something like a syringe to inject the toxin. Ms. Eguchi's personal belongings only include her phone and handkerchief in her apron pocket. Something similar must be hidden somewhere else by her. However, something like a snake fang isn't easy to buy, right? The only things I can think of are pens, metal skewers..."
Chi Feichi asked Heiji Hattori.
"How many types of cake decorating tips do you know?"
"Cake decorating tips? Why ask that? I don't know much about that. My mom doesn't bake cakes with cream very often..." Heiji Hattori paused, his face instantly becoming serious. "Is there a cake decorating tip that resembles a snake fang?"
"I've seen the most complete set of cake decorating tips, a total of 108. There are quite a few cake decorating tips in the Morizono family kitchen. Although many decorating tips are wide at the back, some are slender and sharp," Chi Feichi reminded him. "Also, you can use a piping bag to make cream cakes."
"I see!" Conan immediately understood, stroking his chin and sorting out his thoughts. "So, the smooth execution of the crime would be: first, prepare two slender decorating tips, then seal the tip of the piping bag well, put in the snake venom, leave some air, and tie it tightly. Then, put a decorating tip on the tip. The items can be hidden in the apron and brought into the restaurant. While we're not paying attention, fix the decorating tip to a corner of the dining cart, and open the seal at the tip of the piping bag. When passing by Butler Shigematsu, let the decorating tip pierce him, and then press the piping bag with her foot to inject the snake venom through the wound."
"To do all this takes only a very short time, and she doesn't need to bend over or squat down when passing by Butler Shigematsu," Heiji Hattori followed closely. "Then, continue pushing the dining cart, pass by Butler Shigematsu, and when serving Mr. Kikuto, bend down to take food from the lower layer of the dining cart, and take the opportunity to retrieve the decorating tip and piping bag. Then, using the cover of leaning over to carry dishes to the table, block the view of Miss Kaede, who is sitting to Mr. Kikuto's right, and use her left hand on her side to pierce Mr. Kikuto's waist with the decorating tip, also pressing the piping bag to inject the snake venom..."
"Because the police will focus their search on syringes or conical objects, it's easy to overlook flat objects," Conan looked at the dining cart. "After that, all she has to do is stuff the piping bag into the decorating tip, flatten it, and tuck it onto the metal dining cart. If you're not paying attention, it's hard to find. It could be in the skirting around the lower layer of the dining cart, or near the wheels..."
End of Chapter