The Phantom Thief of Heart! But Conan.

"You said you thought Arisawa-senpai and her husband would cause trouble today?" Ran Mouri was shocked. "W-what's going on..."

Tang Ze's words were very tactful, implying that Yuko Aizawa's emotions were abnormal and that Eri Kisaki was paying attention to their marriage, suggesting that the couple's relationship must have encountered serious problems. Ran Mouri, on the other hand, didn't hold back and directly summarized the situation.

"Will something bad happen today?" Conan wasn't that surprised, just a little wistful. "It's happening faster than I expected..."

"You noticed the problem too? Is it that obvious?" Ran Mouri turned to look at Conan again, unconvinced. "I think I'm pretty good at psychology these days..."

How come I can't see anything wrong?

"The field of psychological counseling often relies not on observation skills, and the standard for a qualified psychological counselor is not Sherlock Holmes," Tang Ze said gently, reassuringly. "As for Ms. Yuzawa Yuko, I guess she already has a plan in mind."

"Relying on that phone call this afternoon?" Conan pursed his lips and pulled out his notebook. "I made some notes, but I didn't expect to use them when I wrote this."

Yuko Arisawa's sudden hands-free call naturally caught Conan's attention.

He just didn't understand what Yuko Arisawa wanted to do, nor did he understand what role this phone call could play, so he simply jotted it down as an everyday puzzle.

“Even if she had a plan to harm her husband, what effect could this phone call possibly have?” Conan stroked his chin as he looked at the notes. “This definitely wasn’t a recording made by Arisawa Yuko, right? Auntie Hizawa and the other person have already spoken, and the conversation is very natural. I don’t think Ms. Arisawa could have predicted every word Auntie Hizawa would say in advance and prepared the recording to this extent…”

At this point, Conan couldn't help but glance at Tang Ze.

Of course, if the other party is the Phantom Thief of Hearts, then one can be suspicious. With a top-tier program like Noah's Ark, creating false evidence is not as difficult as it is for others—which is why he couldn't help but turn his suspicious gaze to Tang Ze.

"Her husband didn't seem to be coerced. The conversation flowed smoothly, except for her deliberately insisting that we hear it with her; otherwise, it was just a normal phone call. I did wonder if she was trying to fabricate some evidence, but..."

Conan looked at the suspicious points he had listed and crossed out in his notebook, but still couldn't figure it out.

If Yuko Arisawa wanted to harm her husband, what purpose would this phone call serve? Would she use their dinner together to create an alibi? But Arisawa Tsuguro said on the phone that he was too far away to come.

“I think you could ask Uncle Mori for advice.” Tang Ze pushed his empty plate forward, rummaged in his bag for a while, and, under the silent gaze of the two, took out a small rice ball and started munching on it. “There must be a reason why Youzi is so resistant to letting Uncle Mori get involved in this case. Why don’t you ask him?”

"Ask him? What advice could he possibly give..." Conan said quietly, watching Ran's expression.

Anyway, everyone at the table knew that "Sleeping Kogoro Mouri" was up to something, so there was no need for him to hide anything.

It goes without saying that Kogoro Mouri has mediocre talent in detective work, and Conan has never even considered that he could provide clues.

However, thinking that Tang Ze's suggestion must have a reason, Conan dialed Kogoro Mouri's number with some skepticism.

With Tang Ze's rhetoric as a cover, they naturally shifted their focus from investigating Yuko Arisawa's problem to worrying that Eri Kisaki might be taken advantage of and suffer losses in this case, and suggested they ask the famous detective Kogoro Mouri for advice.

"You said her husband was at the funeral parlor? Describe the details?" Since it concerned Eri Kisaki, Kogoro Mouri's tone was quite serious.

Conan recounted the details of the sounds he heard, including Arisawa Tsuguro's statement that he could not meet with Eri Kisaki at the agreed time, and Eri Kisaki's failure to notice the problem during the call.

After a moment of silence, Kogoro Mouri on the other end of the phone asked another question.

"Is Eri's client, Yuko Arisawa, wearing a wedding ring?"

"Hmm?" Conan, who hadn't expected this question, was puzzled for a moment. After thinking for a while, he gave a definite answer, "She was wearing a wedding ring, on her right hand. A plain gold ring."

Yuko Arisawa's style and temperament don't seem like the type to wear jewelry, but the only accessory she has is still quite memorable.

"Tang Ze thinks she's not very willing to talk about her husband, right?"

"That's what Brother Tang Ze said."

“I understand now.” Kogoro Mouri’s voice came out calmly. “It is indeed a videotape, but it’s not Yuko Azawa using the videotape. It’s her husband. Her husband is using the videotape to fake the sound of the funeral hall. He’s probably having an affair. In any case, it’s definitely not something that would let his wife know where he is.”

Kogoro Mouri's voice on the phone was so confident that Conan felt like a stranger.

"So, Ms. Yuko Arisawa was at that time..."

"Ah, do you even need to ask? She definitely found out." Kogoro Mouri snorted. "Don't underestimate a woman's intuition in this area. Changes in relationships, subtle lies—at times like these, every woman is a world-class detective."

"Uncle Mori..." Conan, who had finally come to his senses, couldn't help but look at the call screen on his phone.

This story sounds like it actually happened.

To be able to react to the situation so quickly and be so certain that Yuko Sawa's behavior stemmed from some kind of logic, it's possible that Kogoro Mouri did the same thing to Eri Kisaki in the past, and was caught by his wife and severely punished...

Seemingly sensing that Conan's tone, tinged with disdain yet also a hint of sympathy, revealed that he had been seen through, Kogoro Mouri suddenly sped up his speech considerably: "In short, she put the phone on speakerphone on purpose so you could hear her, and that conclusion is most likely correct. You guys, be careful and let me know if anything happens."

The phone call ended, and the three people at the table looked at each other, as if they all understood something.

"He must have been secretly making fakes, and he probably got caught going out partying behind Mom's back before," Ran Mouri pouted. "That Dad..."

"I don't even need to explain anything to Aunt Fei, she'll understand anyway." Conan shook his head.

Halfway through shaking his head, Conan couldn't help but turn to look at Tang Ze.

Kogoro Mouri's quick reaction is based on his experience, but what about Karasawa? How did Karasawa realize this?

How dare you doubt me? Are you completely innocent on this issue?

Tang Ze glanced disdainfully at Conan, whose eyes were filled with suspicion and who was about to veer into conspiracy theories again. He rolled his eyes, sat up straight, and imitated Yukiko Kudo's affected high-pitched voice: "'Shinichi? I'm video chatting with him!'"

This was a performance by Yukiko Kudo and others who helped Ran Mouri cover up her suspicions about Conan Edogawa's identity when she couldn't control herself and directly questioned him.

Tang Ze's assistance played a significant role in this.

He helped set up a backdrop that looked like it was in a foreign country, and then acted as a go-between, introducing Kaito Kuroba himself to them. Without Kaito Kuroba, Conan's disguise drama would have been impossible to continue.

Conan, quickly recalling what Tang Ze was imitating, broke out in a cold sweat: "..."

Before Ran Mouri's eyes turned dangerous and the moment of reckoning arrived, Conan quickly cleared his throat and swiftly steered the conversation back on track: "Anyway, what Uncle Mouri means is that Yuko Arisawa immediately realized her husband was lying, and then she used this to her advantage, letting us overhear the conversation?"

“Yes. She might know her husband’s whereabouts very well and deliberately let us hear those things so that we can testify for her.” Tang Ze temporarily let Conan go and continued the topic of the Arisawa couple. “So many of us heard Arisawa Tsuguro say those things with our own mouths. Under normal circumstances, if he really became a victim, we wouldn’t consider the possibility that he was lying, right?”

It was said in a very polite way, but the implication was that Yuuko Arisawa was planning to kill her husband.

After all, the dead cannot reveal to them whether what they said is true or false.

"Sigh, what is this? Is it reaping what you sow?" Ran Mouri pondered the logic behind this for a while and sighed.

This couple is like this. You could say they have a good relationship, but they're suspected of having an affair and their marriage is on the verge of collapse. You could also say they don't have a good relationship, but they seem to understand each other's little tricks perfectly. I really don't know what to say about them.

"A cautionary tale about how being unable to keep your mouth shut can not only lead to divorce, but also potentially death," Tang Ze said, shrugging. "You two should be careful too."

"Hey, what did you say...?"

"Hmph, did someone hear that?"

"..."

After stirring things up, Tang Ze leaned back in his chair.

Hoshikawa Teru glanced at the two noisy people as he passed by, adjusted his headphones, and walked straight toward his destination without turning his head back.

Yuko Arisawa chose this restaurant partly because it was one of her regular haunts, but the main reason was that she knew her husband had arrived earlier and was having dinner with another woman. The car she mentioned parking in the parking lot was actually the one Arisawa Shiro had driven there to have dinner with someone.

It's true that Arisawa Shirou has a strong sense of time, so it's impossible for him to break his promise to Eri Kisaki.

The reason he couldn't get home in time today was, of course, because he hadn't actually been harassed, much less summoned a top lawyer to do the house cleaning for the bugging device. That was a reason fabricated by Yuuko Arisawa to have Eri Kisaki accompany her.

In this way, after killing someone, she can shift the suspicion to this non-existent stalker. Currently, the discussions surrounding this topic are all laying the groundwork for what will happen later.

Preventing it from happening isn't that complicated. Eri has already stalled Yuko Arisawa, so what they need to do is, of course, distract the other party.

After leaving the hall where Tang Ze and the others were, Asai Narumi turned a corner and pretended to be chatting and laughing with Hoshikawa Teru. She then pretended to be so engrossed in talking to her companion that she didn't notice the road ahead and bumped into a waiter who was carrying a tray and walking steadily.

The waiter is holding a bowl of soup, an essential part of kaiseki cuisine.

The waiter panicked and tried to steady the tray, but was then elbowed by Hoshikawa Teru, who pretended to pull his companion back from falling.

So he suddenly spun the tray in his hand, and the soup bowl on it flew out, splashing the scalding soup onto an unfortunate man sitting by the window.

"Hiss—" Arisawa Tsugurou, who was absentmindedly poking at the sashimi on his plate with his chopsticks and forcing a smile, never expected such an attack. He didn't even have time to dodge before being drenched in the scald.

"Oh dear, Tsugurou!" Mrs. Kajimoto, who was sitting opposite him, stood up anxiously. "Did you get burned? Are you alright?"

"I'm so sorry!" Before the man could even react, Asai Narumi was already all smiles, pulling out a handkerchief to wipe the soup off his face, her words dripping with politeness. "I'm so sorry, it was my fault. I didn't notice I bumped into someone... Are you burned? Is it serious? Do you need me to take you to the hospital? I'll pay for your clothes and the meal too..."

As he spoke, he had already put the wet handkerchief aside, taken out another towel from his bag, and then, without saying a word, pulled out a few banknotes and handed them over.

Before Arisawa Shirou could even speak, he was overwhelmed by this whole combo. When he came to his senses, Asai Narumi and Hoshikawa Teru were already supporting him and leading him to the restroom.

"We're so sorry to have disturbed your meal. We really didn't mean to. Anyway, it needs to be cleaned up." Asai Narumi walked very quickly, so fast that Arisawa Tsuguro was practically being dragged along, but her tone remained respectful. "I used to be an emergency room doctor, so I know how to handle and assess these kinds of things. Let me clean it up for you. It's hard to tell if there are burns like this; at least you should get it rinsed..."

In less than five minutes, Arisawa Tsuguro, who had been sitting at the table chatting with Mrs. Kajimoto about family issues with a troubled expression, was dragged into the bathroom.

Yuko Arisawa, still leaning against the vanity with a cigarette between her fingers, glanced curiously at the bathroom entrance before looking away, and sighed again under Eri Kisaki's disapproving gaze.

"Don't you think this is all my fault? If I hadn't wanted to get closer to Kajimoto-senpai, our two families wouldn't have been interacting so frequently. Tsugurou wouldn't have had the chance to meet Yana at all, and he wouldn't have ruined senpai's family. It's all my fault..."

As she spoke, the tips of her fingers holding the cigarette began to tremble, her emotions seemingly suppressed to the extreme.

“I don’t think this is your problem, Yuko. Cheating is primarily the fault of the cheating party. At most, it can be attributed to problems in your relationship, but you are not the one who intentionally destroyed someone else’s family…” Eri Kisaki frowned, half advising and half speechless, “In this matter, it is your husband who has wronged Mr. Hajime Kajimoto. If you attribute it this way, the situation will only get worse.”

According to her, when her husband met Kajimoto Yana, her child was already seven or eight years old, and both of them had families. The biggest culprits in this affair were definitely Sawa Tsuguro and Kajimoto Yana themselves, but nothing happened to them. You, the one who was cheated on, should feel guilty towards the other one who was cheated on...

What kind of play is this? And why are you arresting me, your lawyer, to give you advice? Are lawyers just a part of your emotional experience?

“Kajimoto-senpai’s family was the kind of perfect, happy, flawless family. Do you understand what I mean, Eri? Like a family of three that you only see in magazines.” Yuko Arisawa turned her melancholy gaze to Eri Kisaki and smiled bitterly. “Now it has a flaw, and the reason for this flaw is me. If I hadn’t had the thought of getting close to my idol, they should have been parallel lines that would never have met… I can’t get over this hurdle in my heart.”

Fei Yingli: "..."

I'm telling you now that I don't understand, can you let me leave?