Chapter 171: Internal Strife?
Another half hour passed, and the police finally obtained the hotel's check-in list.
Besides the list, a receptionist was also called in for questioning.
"Inspector Megure, just look at today's check-in list," Conan suggested, seeing that Inspector Megure was preparing to check from three days ago. "Their itinerary was changed at the last minute; they couldn't have booked rooms in advance. It could only be today."
"Yes, Conan's thinking is sharper," Inspector Megure nodded in agreement, flipping to today's check-in list.
Then, Takagi handed three photos to the receptionist and asked, "Have you seen these three people today?"
Names might be fake, and the list might not be accurate, but appearances wouldn't lie.
Asking the receptionist directly was more convenient than combing through the list, especially since it involved one woman and two men booking a room together—the receptionist would definitely remember something like that.
The receptionist looked a little nervous, but still took the photos and carefully examined them.
"Have you seen them?"
Several minutes passed, and seeing that she hadn't answered, Takagi became anxious.
They were racing against time; the sooner they confirmed the situation, the sooner they could make the arrests.
The receptionist nervously scanned the photos, finally speaking after a moment: "Actually, some guests wear masks and glasses when they check in, so I can't really recognize them. I'm sure I haven't seen these three specific faces before, but I can't rule out the possibility that they've covered their faces, making it impossible for me to identify them."
The receptionist's answer made Takagi a little uncomfortable. "Take a closer look. Are there any similarities in their ears, forehead, lips, eyes, or neck?"
The receptionist shook her head, indicating she couldn't give a definite answer. "There have been at least ten people who booked rooms today without showing their faces. I can't give you a specific answer—I can only say that I haven't seen these three faces before. Nearly two hundred people have checked in today so far, and looking at these individual features alone, I simply can't identify them."
This was the level of observation an ordinary person possessed. Some people, even if they'd met someone once, would forget them after a while, let alone trying to identify someone from a single feature. It was too difficult—even Takagi, a police academy graduate, wasn't quite at that level.
The Beika International Hotel was doing excellent business, with hundreds of guests checking in every day, many of whom didn't want their faces seen.
Especially those having affairs.
The questioning reached a stalemate.
"Miss, do you recall any instances of a woman and two men booking a room together—just one room—somewhere between 1 PM and 2:30 PM?"
Conan pondered for a long time, then asked in a low voice while Kogoro Mouri and Inspector Megure were checking the guest list.
He was afraid of getting smacked if he raised his voice.
"One woman and two men, booking a single room, between 1:00 and 2:30?" The receptionist recalled for a moment, then her eyes lit up.
"Speaking of which, there were indeed three unusual people.
It was around 1:30 or 2:00 PM. Three people booked a room together, but they only got one room.
I found it strange at the time.
It was clearly two men and one woman, but they only booked one room, and it was a single bed. These three left a deep impression on me.
They were very well covered up, but I remember the woman had long hair, and of the two men, the one who handled the booking spoke in a more mature voice—probably over forty. The other one didn't speak, but judging from the fair, clean skin on his arm, I'd guess he was between twenty and thirty years old."
The receptionist's expression became somewhat uncomfortable. "I was even joking with my colleagues about what kind of... arrangement they had going on. Now that you mention it, they're very likely the three people the police are looking for."
Inspector Megure and Kogoro Mouri, who were standing nearby, perked up upon hearing the receptionist's explanation.
There shouldn't be any mistake—it's them!
The personal information they'd found at Miyano Akemi's residence matched up perfectly.
Immediately afterward, Inspector Megure picked up his walkie-talkie and began to mobilize the police force.
Now that it was confirmed the robbers were indeed at the Beika International Hotel, only a few officers needed to guard the parking lot; the rest needed to quickly set up surveillance throughout the hotel.
Kogoro Mouri, with a serious expression, looked at the receptionist and asked, "Excuse me, which room did those three people book?"
The receptionist took the list from Takagi and began to check, quickly finding a name.
"This is it—Matsuda Miyabi. Their room is on the 27th floor, room number 2714."
"Definitely a fake name!"
Conan secretly memorized the room number, then tugged at Natsukawa's sleeve, saying, "Uncle Natsukawa, let's hurry. If we're too slow, they might notice something's up. The police have been setting up surveillance here for a while now; if they're observant, they might spot something."
Conan realized that, without even noticing it, there were far fewer obstacles when working with Natsukawa.
Based on his usual experiences, he'd have been in serious trouble just trying to participate in the investigation.
But with Natsukawa, he didn't have that worry.
Now, he was in charge of showcasing his intelligence and deductive reasoning, while Natsukawa could handle the physical confrontations when they encountered criminals. The two of them worked together perfectly.
It was even more comfortable than solving cases with Hattori Heiji.
Conan was now a little hesitant about whether to tell Natsukawa his true identity, hoping to get even more help.
However, considering Natsukawa's unknown background, his unemployment status, his impressive fighting skills, and his apparent connection to Kaito Kid, he'd temporarily abandoned that plan.
He needed to figure out Natsukawa's true identity before he could reveal his own.
Besides, he felt like he couldn't hide it from Natsukawa for much longer anyway.
Anya had that video of him knocking out Uncle Mouri, and Natsukawa might see it someday.
"That's possible!"
Natsukawa's eyes lit up. He was still thinking about how to extract Miyano Akemi from the encirclement. If he and Conan went upstairs before Inspector Megure, maybe he could find an opportunity to let Miyano Akemi escape.
From an angle where no one was watching, the two quietly slipped away, without attracting the attention of Inspector Megure or Kogoro Mouri.
Upon entering the hotel, Conan quickly ran to the elevator and pulled Natsukawa inside.
Holding hands, they looked like father and son, which made them less noticeable.
They pressed the button for the 27th floor. Just as the elevator doors were about to close, a hand shot through the gap.
The elevator's safety sensor activated, and the doors reopened.
Takagi Wataru grinned and slipped into the elevator. "Natsukawa-san and Conan-kun haven't forgotten about me, have you? We're partners today, after all. Those robbers have guns—it's too dangerous for you two to go up there alone."
Sharp-eyed Takagi had spotted the two sneaking away and, suspecting something, followed them. Sure enough, the pair was preparing to act alone.
His instincts told him that following Natsukawa and Conan wouldn't be a mistake.
After half a day of interaction, their performance had impressed him greatly.
This gave him an opportunity to earn recognition. He was still a rookie in the Metropolitan Police Department and desperately needed to prove himself. Taking risks was the only way to achieve results—Takagi knew this well.
"It's normal for police officers to take risks," he reassured himself.
The elevator continued to ascend. Takagi silently pulled out his pistol, released the safety, and carefully placed it in his inner jacket pocket.
As the elevator rose, Takagi's excitement turned to tension. It was his first time apprehending an armed criminal, and he felt uneasy.
Ding.
The elevator stopped at the 27th floor, and the doors slowly opened.
The corridor was deserted; the entire 27th floor was quiet.
The hotel corridors were laid out in a cross pattern, with the elevator entrance at the intersection in the middle.
The three stepped out of the elevator. Conan glanced back at another elevator and noticed that the floor indicator above the door had reached the 26th floor and was descending.
"What's wrong?" Officer Takagi asked.
He was now paying close attention to Conan's expressions. This kid always seemed to notice details that ordinary people missed, so checking in with him would be helpful in solving the case.
"It's nothing, let's go to 2714 first," Conan shook his head, indicating that everything was fine.
Surely the suspects wouldn't leave the moment they arrived? There's no such thing as that kind of coincidence.
Takagi, as the police officer, walked at the front, one hand on the wall and the other in his inner pocket, walking like he was sneaking through enemy territory.
Natsukawa and Conan felt a bit embarrassed watching him.
This was way too obvious. They might as well have pulled out their guns—then at least they could shoot faster if they ran into someone. Right now, this posture only attracted attention.
Room 2714 was located at the very end of one of the corridors, and since no one seemed to be coming out at this time, Takagi hadn't been spotted yet.
"This is it, right?" Takagi's arm trembled slightly. If he hadn't been leaning against the wall at the entrance of 2714, he probably would have been shaking visibly.
"Don't be nervous, relax. The robbers definitely won't expect that we've already found them," Natsukawa reassured Takagi while considering how to let Miyano Akemi slip away later.
The other two were expendable, but Miyano Akemi absolutely couldn't be caught here.
There was definitely a mole from the Organization among the police. If Miyano Akemi was arrested, Gin would definitely send someone to assassinate her, and his Tequila persona would also disappoint Gin.
Even if he wasn't suspected of being a traitor, Gin certainly wouldn't trust him as much as he had this time.
It wasn't a big problem. Seeing Takagi's flustered appearance, Natsukawa felt much more at ease.
Sorry, Takagi, you might have to take the blame for letting the robbers escape this time. Who told you to be so eager to make a name for yourself?
He just needed to engineer a situation where Takagi got taken hostage, and Miyano Akemi would have a chance to escape, right?
That was also why he didn't stop Takagi from taking the elevator.
Conan silently activated his watch-shaped tranquilizer gun, his gaze fixed on the door of room 2714.
The corridor was cleaned a little too thoroughly, so he couldn't find a suitable object to kick, rendering his power-enhancing shoes useless for now.
"Should we wait for Inspector Megure and the others? There are three of them, and they're probably all armed."
Takagi hesitated as he approached the door. "My instructor at the police academy always said that being a police officer isn't about lone heroism—it's about overwhelming the enemy with superior numbers."
"I think the instructor makes a lot of sense." Takagi swallowed hard, regretting his impulsiveness.
But he was right to be cautious, especially since there were two civilians with him.
"Conan, your watch seems broken. Do you want to go downstairs and get it looked at?"
Seeing Conan and Natsukawa staring at him silently, Takagi tried to change the subject.
"It's a watch-shaped tranquilizer gun. I can help take down one of the robbers."
Despite Conan's earnest explanation, Takagi didn't believe him.
How could a child have such a thing? The watch must be malfunctioning. Let's go downstairs and get it fixed.
He took a step to the side, ready to pull Natsukawa and Conan away.
However, Natsukawa, standing on the other side of the door, was eager to make his move and wasn't going to give Takagi any more time to hesitate.
Now was the best time to act. Otherwise, if Inspector Megure and the others arrived, Miyano Akemi might not be able to escape.
Taking advantage of Takagi's hesitation and distraction, Natsukawa directly knocked on the door of room 2714.
Knock knock.
The knocking was fairly loud—the person inside must have heard it.
"Natsukawa-san!"
Takagi felt his heart jump into his throat, and cold sweat broke out on his hands gripping the gun.
"Hello, is anyone there? I'm a guest from room 2814 upstairs. My laundry that I hung out to dry on the balcony accidentally fell down, and it seems to be hanging outside your balcony."
Conan could only think that this excuse was typical of Natsukawa—he could come up with such an outrageous story on the spot.
However, there was no answer from inside the room.
After about ten seconds, Natsukawa knocked on the door again. "Hello, is anyone home? If no one's there, I'll ask the front desk to come up and open the door for me."
Still no response.
This time, even Natsukawa's brows furrowed.
This shouldn't be happening!
Miyano Akemi should be here. Although he hadn't booked this room himself, the check-in list shouldn't be wrong.
Had Miyano Akemi run away beforehand?
What about the other two peripheral members?
Curious, Natsukawa glanced at Takagi. "I'll try to open the door. You be ready."
As he spoke, Natsukawa turned the doorknob.
Click.
The door opened.
Natsukawa leaned against the wall, quickly pulling his hand back, quietly waiting for any reaction from inside.
"..." ×3
Conan was about to peek out when he heard light footsteps. Instantly, he raised his watch-shaped tranquilizer gun, ready to fire.
Click.
The door next to them opened, and a shirtless man poked his head out.
"Hey man, what are you doing? I'm trying to sleep—can you knock more quietly?"
The man was about to continue complaining when he suddenly realized something was off.
What were two men and a child doing pressed against the wall like that?
His gaze gradually moved downward, preparing to scrutinize the three more carefully.
"A gun?!"
"Sorry, I didn't see anything."
The man quickly withdrew his head, and the door slammed shut.
Then, with a distinct click, the lock turned.
"..." ×3
The three looked at each other, somewhat exasperated.
But where were the people from room 2714?
The door was open, and with all that commotion, it would be far-fetched to think the robbers in 2714 couldn't hear anything.
After waiting a moment longer, Natsukawa gestured for them to stay quiet, then slowly peeked inside.
The scene inside the room gradually came into Natsukawa's view from left to right, until he saw a man slumped in front of the TV stand. Natsukawa suddenly understood.
Internal strife!
That was Natsukawa's first thought.
His view continued to widen, until only the area around the bed was obscured by the bathroom, preventing him from seeing everything.
However, the two legs sticking out from the foot of the bed completely confirmed Natsukawa's suspicion.
Seeing that Natsukawa had fully exposed himself to the room, Conan became extremely nervous.
However, several seconds passed, and there was no sound from inside, as if no one was there at all.
Only then did Conan poke his head out to check the situation, and the scene that came into view made his expression change drastically.
"Oh no!"
(End of Chapter)
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