The Phantom Thief of Heart! But Conan.

The murder occurred close to midnight, and the deceased lived near the Mori office.

However, the company where the deceased and the two suspects worked was located far away in Kanagawa, and Enomoto Sugito was even further away.

The photo itself is very ordinary, yet it proves that around the time of the incident, Enomoto Sugito, the prime suspect, was in his apartment.

"Snowy days are not a good time to travel," Tang Ze said with a smile. "Are you accusing Mr. Enomoto Sugito of driving through heavy snow to the city in less than an hour, committing murder, and then fleeing?"

"Eh, eh?" Enomoto Azusa took back her phone and stared blankly at the photo on the screen.

There was indeed snowfall three days before the incident, but it stopped very quickly and was not considered by the police as an environmental condition to be taken into account.

However, this brief snowfall became Enomoto Sugito's best alibi; he could not have predicted the drastic change in weather, and the photo was indeed taken and sent by him at the time.

“Furthermore, Miss Azusa’s brother really couldn’t be the murderer.” Conan pushed up his glasses and stood next to Tang Ze. “Miss Azusa just said that he argued on the phone that he had only ever used a shotgun and would never use a rifle. This means that he had no idea how the victim actually died, right?”

"What do you mean?" Enomoto Azusa, holding her phone and unable to keep up with the conversation, lowered her head blankly.

"The murder weapon was a rifle, but it didn't say the killer shot the person." Conan pointed in Kogoro Mouri's direction. "Didn't Uncle just mention the bloodstains? They didn't obstruct the shooting because..."

"Because the deceased was killed by the murderer swinging the gun barrel and being smashed to death by the butt of the gun." Takagi Wataru, who had already understood the situation, rubbed his forehead.

Previously, this was one of the more puzzling aspects of the case, because the gun that was used as a club actually contained live ammunition.

The deceased's gun was not merely a collectible; it was a hunting rifle he actually used, and spare ammunition was stored in the gun's storage and maintenance area.

There was a gun and bullets. Even if someone didn't know how to use it, wouldn't they have committed a crime by attacking the victim at such close range using such a brutal method? Now, all the questions finally have an answer.

"I'm afraid you're quite troubled too, Mr. Kawase." Conan grinned, revealing several large teeth, and said rather bluntly, "You probably didn't expect that there would be an idiot who would pick up someone else's gun and point it at himself."

It is clear that Kawase Touji's choice of Enomoto Sugito as his scapegoat was premeditated. The reason he chose a rifle instead of other weapons was because only with this weapon could he be sure that the other party's fingerprints would be left.

Then, he deliberately cultivated a closer relationship with Enomoto Sugito, entered the other's apartment, found an excuse to get a shirt, wore the shirt to commit murder, and then, in order to completely shift the blame onto Enomoto Sugito, he encouraged the panicked Enomoto Sugito to run away...

Although sufficient conclusive evidence has not yet been found to prove this inference, these doubts are enough to classify Kawase Touji as a suspect as well.

More importantly, that email was indeed sufficient to serve as an alibi for Enomoto Sugito, and it would be even more so once he was found, his phone contents were checked, and the original photos were confirmed.

"I think that's why Mr. Kawase is so concerned about you." Seeing that Conan had already covered most of the issues, Tang Ze patted Enomoto Azusa, who was still in a daze, with sympathy. "Originally, everything was flawless. As long as he killed your brother as well, there would be no one to testify, and his criminal plan would be perfect. But then your brother sent out this photo..."

With an insatiable desire to share, the optimistic yet careless Enomoto Sugito unwittingly shared details of his life with his newly acquainted friends and sister, which became a flaw in Kawase Touji's plan.

This is probably part of why people who smile a lot tend to have good luck.

When Kawase Touji, who was surrounded by police, heard this, his brow twitched violently a few times.

At this point, Enomoto Sugito's suspicions could be largely cleared with the photos, but then Kawase Touji was moved up one spot to become the prime suspect.

The key points raised by Tang Ze are undeniable.

This includes his access to Enomoto Sugito's shirt and his witnessing the entire process of the other man leaving his fingerprints, which gave him ample opportunity to frame the man, clearly obstructing law enforcement, and suggesting that the suspect's family prevent the suspect from reporting the crime to the police, etc...

These issues became apparent after Enomoto Sugito provided an alibi.

"...So you're now trying to convince me I'm the murderer?" A hint of malice flashed across his face, but Kawase Touji quickly composed himself, sneering, "I think you're trying to exonerate someone you know and frame me. Do you have any evidence to prove your deduction is true?"

“Once you have a clue how to solve a case, the evidence can be verified in reverse.” Tang Ze smiled. “Mr. Kawase, this isn’t some mystery novel about a murder in a snowstorm. In actual criminal investigations, evidence doesn’t follow the logic of a mystery novel.”

As he said this, Tang Ze looked in the direction of Kogoro Mouri.

He's an amateur when it comes to deduction, but when it comes to criminal investigation...

“Indeed.” Kogoro Mouri stood up, clutching the photo of the blood-stained clothes, and pointed seriously in Touji Kawase’s direction. “In the process of criminal investigation, the police do not only present evidence related to the case. During the investigation, they must collect all evidence, big and small, without exception. After obtaining new information, many pieces of physical evidence that were not originally worth discussing will have new significance. It is impossible to get away with it.”

“That’s how it is.” Tang Ze nodded. “Solving criminal cases requires a lot of manpower and resources. The reason why detectives are so highly regarded is not because the police also use this method to solve cases, but because detectives are easily like what we are doing now…”

As he spoke, he looked around the coffee shop.

The police officers who were originally sitting in the cafe for surveillance and monitoring are now all out in action.

Wataru Takagi and Kazunobu Chiba, one restrained Touji Kawase, the other stood beside Karasawa and Azusa Enomoto, on guard against the other side attacking important witnesses, while the others also surrounded them, blocking the entrances and exits, and completely surrounding Touji Kawase.

Faced with a huge disparity in manpower, Touji Kawase had virtually no chance of putting up a fight.

"...Improve police efficiency and apprehend the murderer on the spot." Tang Ze crossed his arms. "This is the only thing I admire about you. You knew that the police were watching Ms. Enomoto Azusa, and you even knew that she worked downstairs from the Mori Detective Agency. How dare you do that?"

Do you think your criminal plan is absolutely perfect, and now it's time for your defense?

Kawase Touji opened his mouth several times to refute, but was choked back by his words: "..."

It wasn't until Takagi Wataru took out the handcuffs that Enomoto Azusa, who was still in a daze, blinked rapidly and exclaimed in disbelief, "So, he's framing my brother... Oh no, then my brother is in danger!"

It's not hard to piece together the cause and effect of the matter from the statements of the group. Kawase Touji had been planning this murder and the subsequent framing for a long time.

In order to confirm Enomoto Sugito as the murderer, he was extremely cautious and had been planning for at least a month.

Now, Enomoto Sugito has fled at his urging and has not contacted anyone. The police have not been able to find him, so it is very likely, very likely that he has already...!

"Don't worry, Miss Zi, your brother is definitely still alive." Conan patted her arm, glanced at Tang Ze a few times, and then explained, "He may have originally intended to kill him, but didn't your brother send that email? He wouldn't dare to kill your brother directly before he had dealt with that information."

What came next was a bit scary, so Conan didn't continue.

Even if one were to commit murder, it would have to be done only after confirming that Enomoto Azusa could be dealt with.

Given the Enomoto siblings' tendency to easily trust others, it wouldn't have been difficult to lure her out. Unfortunately, Kawase Touji's own plan worked, resulting in Enomoto Azusa being surrounded by police both on and off her way to and from work.

Kawase Touji was both angry and anxious, and he knew that the longer he dragged it out, the worse it would be for him. Enomoto Azusa might learn about the suspicious location and time of the crime during her communication with the police, and then provide the emails to the police to clear her brother's name. So even though he knew that doing so was very risky, he still had to take the risk and contact Enomoto Azusa directly.

He needed to know where the police investigation was at, and he also needed to confirm that Enomoto Azusa was still under his control.

Even if Tang Ze hadn't intervened, Conan had originally planned to follow Enomoto Azusa all day to ensure her safety, and also to use this opportunity to find Enomoto Sugito, who had been hidden somewhere by Kawase Touji...

"So how do we find him now?" Enomoto Azusa asked anxiously.

Aside from Kawase Touji himself, the one who persuaded him, it's unlikely that anyone else knows Enomoto Sugito's whereabouts.

Kawase Touji has been exposed, and he's about to be arrested by the police. In his last stand, he probably won't be willing to easily reveal anything.

Losing contact and not knowing where they're being held could be life-threatening if this drags on...

Upon hearing this, Kawase Touji, who was already handcuffed, showed a slight improvement in his extremely gloomy expression.

Enomoto Azusa is right; he does have some cards up his sleeve.

Besides him, probably no third person would know Enomoto Sugito's whereabouts, and given Enomoto Sugito's stubbornness, it's unlikely he would dare to leave his hideout for help before receiving a definite signal.

Even if some deadly evidence is found, you'll still have a hostage in your hands...

"Don't worry, Ms. Enomoto." Tang Ze's voice rang out again, completely shattering his last shred of hope. "He drove here, right? He said that himself after he came in. That means his car is nearby. Check the dashcam footage, or you can retrieve the surveillance footage of his license plate to confirm his activity route over the past three days..."

Before ensuring everything goes smoothly, Kawase Touji must keep the Enomoto siblings calm.

He was determined to exaggerate the seriousness of the situation and intimidate the two men, making them afraid to communicate with the police. Therefore, he had to bring supplies to support Enomoto Sugito, who was terrified and didn't know where he was hiding.

Considering the distance between the crime scene and his company, and the fact that he has to work and commute, and that Enomoto Sugito is currently unable to contact the outside world, he cannot achieve this effect without using a car to transport him back and forth.

As expected, Kawase Touji's back completely collapsed upon hearing this.

This state was not much different from the suspects they had seen at various crime scenes who had already resigned themselves to their fate, and Conan immediately felt much more at ease.

Being surrounded by police officers while eating is really unappetizing; this way is much more pleasing to the eye!

Thinking of this, he glanced again at Tang Ze, who was smiling and patting Enomoto Azusa's back, seemingly finding the scene quite pleasing to the eye as well.

...And, someone said they didn't mind the police coming, but it seems they actually do mind.

"So, what was his motive for committing the crime?"

After eating and drinking their fill, Conan and Ran sat side by side, holding their sodas and desserts, watching Kogoro Mouri wolf down his food across from them.

The pasta that Enomoto Azusa almost fed to the floor survived, but in the end, it still failed to satisfy Kogoro Mouri.

Because the incident happened so suddenly, the other people who provided reasoning and testimony were either elementary school students, and it was too embarrassing to drag them to the police station to participate in the discussion, or Tang Ze, and they dared not take him away. In the end, the one who was dragged away to participate in the follow-up work of the case was naturally Kogoro Mouri, the detective who had already won the trust of the police.

Tang Ze ate the pasta under the pretext of not wanting to waste it, while Kogoro Mouri was forced to miss his mealtime and is now here taking revenge by eating his first meal of the day.

This is probably the chain reaction of being too lazy to cook; it's really pathetic.

"A very corny reason." After taking a few big bites and finally feeling alive again, Kogoro Mouri raised his head. "He embezzled company funds to speculate in stocks."

"Huh? Miss Azusa's brother works in finance and accounting?" Ran Mouri exclaimed in surprise. "I had no idea..."

"Does this line of work really require a lot of brains? Aren't most people in finance just good at using office software?" Kogoro Mouri looked at his daughter with a puzzled expression.

Conan, biting on a straw: "..."

So you're basically assuming Ran means that Enomoto Sugito seems like an idiot and couldn't possibly do a high-IQ job, right...?

"Anyway, according to him, he did make some money at first, so he became bolder and bolder. Last quarter, he gained access to the trading account and lost 1 million yen in three months. The hole was too big to cover up." Kogoro Mori continued to recount the case. "When it came time to settle the accounts, his superior, Torii, found out. He said he would compensate and begged Torii not to report him directly."

"And then Mr. Torahira agreed?" Ran Mouri was surprised again.

“Yeah.” Kogoro Mouri pursed his lips. “He turned around and went to prepare.”

"Preparing to raise money?"

"Preparing to kill."

“…Well, it seems like you really don’t need brains to work in finance,” Ran Mouri sighed sincerely.

Look at how this person got into finance; they'd rather kill someone than make money from stocks...

Conan, sensing the strange atmosphere of the conversation, was speechless.