"I see… so that's how it happened."
By the time Inspector Jūsaburō Megure arrived at the scene and learned the full story, he said gently, "Detective Takagi, there's really nothing you could have done. Don't take it to heart."
"It wasn't your fault—it was the killer being too cunning!"
"Who could have predicted he'd murder them along the way?"
Just as Chiba had said earlier, Megure wasn't looking to assign blame to Takagi.
"Detective Takagi, I didn't expect you to be so capable… you actually managed to wrestle the sniper rifle from the killer's hands," Sergeant Miwako Satō remarked, examining the weapon with a newfound respect.
Takagi hadn't expected praise from Satō; his face lit up with pride.
But just then, Inspector Renzaburō Shiratori spoke bluntly:
"Sergeant Satō, that rifle wasn't taken from the killer by Detective Takagi—it was deliberately left behind!"
"Oh?" Satō immediately turned her attention toward Shiratori.
He calmly explained his reasoning: "The distance from the van to the sniper's position was roughly five hundred meters."
"Detective Takagi's dash toward the building gave the killer just enough time to descend and escape."
"Yet Takagi collided with him on the stairs."
"This indicates the killer was waiting for him."
"Besides, I can't understand why Takagi would have bumped into him on the stairs otherwise."
Takagi froze, realizing Shiratori's logic made sense.
Satō frowned. "So… what was the point of that?"
"Nothing personal," Shiratori replied. "Just arrogance. The killer clearly didn't respect the police at all. He's supremely confident in his own abilities."
"By leaving the rifle, he wasn't worried the police could trace it."
The other detectives listened and nodded in agreement; it made perfect sense.
Satō raised an eyebrow. "So… the killer is really that cocky?"
Megure sighed. "Looks like this is going to be a headache. I can already imagine how the higher-ups will react."
Seeing more reporters swarming the scene, he instructed officers to quickly secure the area and restore traffic flow before reporting back to superiors on how to handle this incident.
The next day at noon:
Ren Kuroda carried his bento into Class 2-B, looking for Ran Mouri, Shinichi, and Sonoko to have lunch together.
Shinichi couldn't help but blurt out, "Ren, something big happened! Did you catch yesterday's emergency news?"
"Huh? What news?" Ren asked curiously as he pulled up a chair.
"Breaking news! The two kidnappers you caught yesterday… were killed!" Shinichi's voice rose with excitement. "And it happened in the van!"
"12.7-millimeter sniper rounds, one shot, two targets!"
"That shooter is incredible!"
According to Detective Takagi's eyewitness testimony, the culprit was a man wearing a white shirt, light blue trousers, and a mask covering half of his face.
Shinichi immediately began theorizing: "The killer must be an accomplice of those two kidnappers. As soon as they were captured, he took swift action."
"Clearly, he's professional… this isn't his first time."
"Strange though… why didn't the killer act when the kidnappers were initially captured?" Shinichi's brow furrowed as he pondered.
"This is terrifying," Ran muttered anxiously. "Even the police couldn't protect them."
"Exactly. My mom told me to head straight home after school these past few days—no hanging out," Sonoko grumbled. She had been hoping to meet Ren for a few dates, now interrupted by this chaos.
"Looks like everyone should be extra careful for the next few days," Ren said, his tone calm as he observed Shinichi's reaction.
Seeing the Heisei-era detective in action without any insight put him at ease.
During their casual chatter, Ran suddenly asked, "Ren, do you have time after school?"
"I do. What's up?" Ren replied, tilting his head curiously.
Even Sonoko and Shinichi looked at Ran with surprise.
"I want to train with someone strong before the upcoming competition," Ran quickly explained. "Yesterday, I saw how skilled you are—effortlessly taking down those two kidnappers. I thought maybe you could help me train at the karate club after school."
Shinichi nodded in understanding.
"Sure, no problem," Ren said cheerfully. He was happy to help.
He remembered Ran's finals against Hina Wada in anime tournaments—Ran had been the underdog, nearly defeated until Shinichi gave her the push she needed to unleash her full potential. Otherwise, Hina would have taken the championship.
Ran's struggle wasn't her fault. Hina and Makoto Kyogoku were from Cupido High, officially ranked at S-class in skill, while Ran was only at a modest B-class.
Even with guidance from her senior, Kazumi Tsukamoto, Ran's abilities simply couldn't match Kyogoku's. Their "coaches" weren't even in the same league—Ran's skill disparity was unavoidable.
"Really? That's great!" Ran cheered with joy.
Shinichi huffed beside her, visibly jealous. "Why ask Ren? Why not me?"
"It's not like that. I was just afraid you'd refuse," Ran said, turning to Shinichi. Clapping her hands excitedly, she continued, "If you want to come too, then after school, we all go to the karate club together!"
"Deal! And no running away after school!" she added with a grin.