Chapter 111: Even Dogs Can Solve Cases |
"Based on my observations, there are two known rules so far."
"First, the suspect Mouri Kogoro initially points out is highly unlikely to be the real killer."
"Second, as long as we keep our eyes on the grade-schooler Conan, we will definitely find the crucial evidence."
"So by using the process of elimination, we can rule out one incorrect option right off the bat. Then, we start with the evidence, apply pressure to the culprit, and wait until they drop to their knees to confess while the background music swells. Once that happens, we can consider the Murder Case solved."
"Indeed," Misty Rain Traveler agreed, adopting a thoughtful expression.
The two of them chatted as they headed downstairs and got into Endo's car.
Soon, they arrived at the Crime Scene. This time, it was located in a traditional Japanese courtyard. The Corpse was hanging inside an old tatami room decorated with calligraphy scrolls. There was an obvious stab wound over the heart; the cause of death was clearly a sharp weapon piercing the heart.
However, the murder weapon was nowhere to be found. Only the Corpse remained, suspended in the air like a teru teru bozu doll.
Blood dripped steadily, pooling on the tatami mats and creating a chilling, macabre atmosphere. Just like before, there were three suspects: an elderly man, a woman, and a middle-aged man.
Since the cause of death was incredibly obvious this time, there was no need for Bai Mu and Misty Rain Traveler to perform a complex Forensic Doctor examination. The time of death was also very recent. According to Mouri Kogoro's family, the victim had been drinking tea with them just half an hour ago.
Bai Mu and Misty Rain Traveler had practically nothing to do. They could guess the ensuing developments with their eyes closed: Conan would find the evidence, tranquilize Mouri Kogoro to reveal the truth, and then the killer would break down in tears and confess to end the whole charade.
Going through the motions of his role's required duties, Bai Mu announced to the crowd, "Initial judgment indicates that the killer stabbed the victim through the heart from behind with a sharp weapon, resulting in death from excessive blood loss."
Inspector Megure began mobilizing the detectives to search the courtyard for the murder weapon. Using this as an excuse, Bai Mu strolled out to the garden. He focused on locating Conan, only to spot the elementary schooler squeezing into the narrow crawlspace beneath the tatami mats, before darting off toward the tea room a moment later. The kid truly was everywhere at once.
'Is he also looking for the murder weapon?' Bai Mu thought, noting how the boy was intently searching for something.
"But I remember the police force clearly having police dogs. Why aren't they bringing them out at a time like this? Is it really just to manufacture dramatic effect? After all, letting a dog solve the case with its nose seems a bit too easy."
"Let's go give it a try. A dog's nose is far sharper than a human's."
Bai Mu had raised a dog of his own before, so he knew full well that when it came to finding things, a good dog was vastly superior to any human.
He instructed Misty Rain Traveler to stay behind and tail Conan, while he went off to find Endo.
"You want to borrow a police dog?" Endo asked.
"Exactly. If we let a police dog get a scent of the Corpse's blood, it should be pretty easy to track down the murder weapon, right?" Bai Mu replied.
"That's true. Why didn't I think of that before?" Endo scratched his head, looking completely bewildered.
Regardless, Bai Mu successfully borrowed a police dog named Akita. Ironically, it was a white Labrador with a rather gentle temperament. Its ears drooped on either side of its head as it panted, looking a little goofy.
Holding the leash, Bai Mu led the dog back to the room where the Corpse was located. By this time, Mouri Kogoro was still loudly arguing with the elderly man, sporting a steadfast expression that practically screamed, 'I know you're the killer!'
Bai Mu brought the dog over to sniff the Corpse, then patted Akita's head. "I'm leaving it to you, Akita."
"Go find it."
Akita swiftly began the search. It bolted forward, straining against the leash, as Bai Mu followed it through a maze of twists and turns. Eventually, they stopped in the courtyard at what appeared to be regular flooring, but was actually the cover of an old, openable well.
The well's opening was secured by a rusted iron padlock. However, this posed no challenge for Bai Mu. Playing a role in the Script only restricted his abilities to their base states, but his passive lockpicking mastery was an innate starting skill.
Using the small scalpel he carried as a Forensic Doctor, he jimmied the lock. With a sharp click, the cylinder popped open.
Below was a pitch-black, deep shaft. Sure enough, the bloodstained kitchen knife had been discarded at the very bottom of the well.
The well was about ten meters deep, roughly the height of a three-story building, which wasn't too high.
Popping a Health-restoring candy into his mouth, Bai Mu decisively jumped down.
Taking a fall from three stories up caused him to lose thirty percent of his Health, but the candy quickly brought his vitals back up.
He picked up the kitchen knife, slipped it into an evidence bag, and then braced both hands against the walls of the well to climb his way back up.
By the time he returned to the surface, his Health had practically regenerated to full.
He checked his phone and saw a text message from Misty Rain Traveler.
"Sleeping Kogoro has already started his deduction. How are things on your end? This case should be wrapped up any second now."
"On my way," Bai Mu replied.
He let Akita sniff the bagged knife, and the dog immediately took off running again, leading him straight back.
Even outside the room, he could hear Mouri Kogoro's voice.
"The real killer is not Mr. Kuroki."
Right at that moment, Akita darted in through the door. Slipping free from its leash, the dog lunged forward and clamped its jaws onto the woman's kimono.
"Ah!" the woman shrieked in terror as the nearby officers scrambled to pull the police dog away.
"What is the meaning of this? Why is there a dog running around in here?" Inspector Megure asked, furrowing his brows.
"Inspector Megure, this is Akita, a police dog from our precinct," Bai Mu announced as he strode into the room, holding up the evidence bag containing the knife. "After I let Akita catch the scent from the Corpse, we found this kitchen knife. This is the murder weapon."
"And as for this lady over here—Akita biting your clothes proves only one thing! Your scent is the strongest on the murder weapon. You are the killer who murdered the victim!"
"This..." Inspector Megure was utterly dumbfounded. Even Sleeping Kogoro, who had been right in the middle of delivering his grand deduction, was left stunned.
"This is Irrefutable Evidence. What more do you have to say for yourself, ma'am?!" Bai Mu demanded, applying pressure with righteous indignation.
Unable to withstand the mounting pressure, the woman instantly collapsed to her knees and began her confession. She tearfully detailed her entire process—which genuinely amounted to just stabbing the victim to death with a kitchen knife and hoisting the Corpse into the air.
"I... I didn't have any other choice... That's why I had to kill Kazuhiko..."
As the familiar background music swelled once again, Bai Mu couldn't help but think that the killers in Beika Town were remarkably ruthless. For a woman who appeared so frail to possess enough strength to effortlessly pierce a grown man's heart, coldly string up his Corpse within mere minutes, and do it all without getting a single drop of blood on herself—it was absurd.
Whether it was her psychological fortitude or her physical prowess, the woman was undeniably in the top tier of humanity.
Ultimately, after laying bare her motives and the details of her crime, she was escorted away in handcuffs.
"Excellent work, Ishikawa my boy!" Inspector Megure gave a hearty thumbs-up. "You've finally won one back for the police force! We managed to solve a Murder Case this time without relying on a Detective. Still, to think that even a dog can solve cases... It's such a simple method; why didn't I think of it before?"
[Because you have altered the daily routine of Beika Town, "???" has increased their attention on you. Current Attention Level:
20%.]
After the incident concluded, Bai Mu heard a system notification chime.
An unknown entity had taken a greater interest in him.
'Who could this person be?' Bai Mu pondered, trying to guess their identity.
Regardless, it seemed he was heading in the right direction.
As long as the Main Quest didn't fail, altering the flow of a Murder Case could indeed break the established conventions of the Script.
Upon returning to their apartment, he shared this discovery with Misty Rain Traveler. Misty Rain hadn't received any notification chimes, indicating that only the person who actively initiated the changes would get a progress update.
"Looks like I'll have to give it a try next time," Misty Rain Traveler said, rubbing their hands together eagerly. "I didn't expect this Script to actually have hidden content. I'm guessing that once the attention level rises high enough, new content or quests will trigger. As of now, this seems to be the best way to improve our Script rating."
"I'll leave the next one to you, then," Bai Mu said.
"Deal," Misty Rain Traveler replied.
However, when another case occurred the following day, they discovered something incredibly bizarre:
Every single police dog in the precinct had vanished without a trace.
"It seems there was a massive smuggling case down at the port. All the police dogs in Beika Town were reassigned there."
"Huh? You're asking when that happened? I think it was three days ago? Or maybe a week ago?"
Endo wore a confused expression, completely unable to remember. The chaotic temporal rules of Beika Town had scrambled the timeline into a complete mess.
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