The painting is fake, it's been swapped!
Looking at the completely flawless painting in front of him, Senichi's brain began to spin rapidly.
If the painting is swapped, then when did the crime occur?
Today is the first day of the exhibition, and according to the chat I had with uncle Jirokichi before, the painting should have been delivered a day earlier to be set up by the organizers.
And now it's still morning, the beginning of the exhibition, and under everyone's eyes, it's unlikely that anyone could have swapped the painting.
Which means the time when the painting was swapped should be during the time it was handed over to the museum for safekeeping yesterday during the day.
After figuring out the approximate time when the painting was swapped, Senichi didn't immediately think about starting the investigation.
After all, how to deal with this matter beforehand is more important.
It's worth noting that this is a highly anticipated international art exhibition. If such a big scandal were exposed on the first day, it would likely cause a huge uproar in society.
And more importantly, it might alert the criminals. If they realize they're being watched, they might flee overseas with the painting or hide it in a safe, never to be seen again.
Afterwards, Senichi informed the people around him of the situation and stopped Sonoko from panicking. And then they quietly found Suzuki Jirokichi who was resting in the VIP room.
"Oh, how come you guys are here?" Suzuki Jirokichi smiled when he saw them and said, "You shouldn't have finished the tour yet since the exhibition has just opened, So how come you have time to come and find an old man like me?"
"Uncle Jirokichi, something bad happened." Sonoko said in a panic, "The Mirror Lake has been stolen!"
"What!! How is that possible?!" Hearing this news, Suzuki Jirokichi stood up from the sofa instantly, furious, "Could it be that damn Kaito Kid stole my painting!?"
"No, if he wanted to steal the painting, he would have sent you a notice beforehand and stole Mirror Lake openly." Senichi shook his head and said, "But the Mirror Lake hanging in the exhibition room has been secretly swapped."
"Swapped?" Suzuki Jirokichi was taken aback, "How did you..."
Halfway through his words, Suzuki Jirokichi changed his tone, "Was it because the smell of oil paint was different? So you realized the painting had been secretly swapped?"
"That's right." Senichi nodded, "When we went to see the painting together before, Uncle Jirokichi, the oil paint on it was all natural pigments. But this time, what I smelled was acrylic-based paint. Obviously, it's a swapped fake."
Suzuki Jirokichi's face turned pale at Senichi's words. Naturally, he believed Senichi's words; he knew about Senichi's superhuman sense of smell, and besides, he was his nephew-in-law, so he couldn't possibly lie to him.
So, there was only one truth: the painting was lost in the museum. After all, he had seen the handover with his own eyes.
And just overnight, the painting turned into a fake. Naturally, he had to ask the museum director about it.
At the same time, they needed to inform the authorities. They didn't want to cause a big commotion, so handling it discreetly was the best option.
However, what surprised everyone was that the museum director, a man named Hashiyama Koji, was absolutely convinced that it was an authentic piece.
"Our security system is absolutely flawless," the bald-headed museum director assured them confidently, "You can trust me on that."
"But Senichi-kun's judgment is also reliable," Suzuki Jirokichi frowned.
"Are you referring to your nephew-in-law?" Hashiyama chuckled, "Although he's exceptional in solving cases, he probably doesn't have much authority in the art world.
Look at all the paintings around us; perhaps the scent from those works by the new generation of artists got mixed up with Mirror Lake, leading to a mistaken judgment."
Suzuki Jirokichi frowned at this remark and was about to say something, but Hashiyama waved his hand to stop him, "Well, Mr. Suzuki, since you don't believe me, how about I invite an expert from Russia to come and authenticate it?
After all, we need evidence in investigations, right? Oral testimony is not enough; we need solid evidence to be credible, don't we? Don't worry about the cost; I'll take care of it."
"Then, let's do it this way." Suzuki Jirokichi nodded, accepting this compromise.
Although he was somewhat dissatisfied that the other party completely refused to believe what he said, he could understand it.
After all, from another perspective, what Hashiyama, the museum director, did was understandable, and it could even be said to be very sincere.
After all, he believed Senichi's judgment, but others don't usually believe the words of a stranger, especially without any evidence.
A stranger claiming the painting was stolen would surely be met with immediate denial from anyone, regardless of who they were.
But the other party didn't outright deny it. Whether it was out of consideration for his status or not, their compromise was respectful enough, leaving him speechless.
Senichi, on the other hand, looked at Director Hashiyama thoughtfully.
His perspective was different from others'. If others were seeing things in 2 dimensions, he was viewing them in 2.5 dimensions, much like those characters in American comics who could see "beyond the walls."
Given that the crime had occurred, according to "Conan World's Law," most of the people appearing before him at the moment should be suspects.
Though it seemed irrational, Senichi knew solving the case required evidence. However, that didn't stop him from analyzing the behavior of the focal individuals.
Director's actions clearly caught his attention. Perhaps it was his suspicious nature, always seeing everyone as potential suspects, that made him feel something was off about the Director's actions.
But specifically what was off, Senichi couldn't quite grasp.
Director Hashiyama's actions didn't seem to have any flaws, and they showed enough respect towards Suzuki Jirokichi.
However, from another perspective, Director Hashiyama's attitude in this matter was quite firm, unreasonably denying the fact that the painting was fake.
If Senichi's determination that the painting was a forgery was based on his sense of smell, what was the basis for Director Hashiyama's denial?
Also he outright denied it, and then said that he would invite an expert from Russia to authenticate it.
Unless he could influence the expert, this move would only delay time.
However, obviously, a genuine expert wouldn't tarnish their reputation. So, whether it was real or fake would be determined after authentication, which was contradictory.
Overall, Senichi currently felt like he was seeing flowers through a fog, unable to see it clearly.