Two Suspects

To her left lay a silver-white pistol.

On her right wrist, she wore a watch that looked very expensive.

This must be what Takagi meant by the strange thing.

Just as Takagi wondered.

If it were a home invasion robbery, the robbers shouldn't have let this watch go.

'Left handed?'

Looking at the watch on Aragi Mako's right wrist, Fujino suddenly remembered something.

The watch is on my right hand, and the pen holder from the writing desk is on my left.

These are all characteristics of left-handed people.

If Aragi Mako is left-handed, then the bullet hole on her left temple can be explained.

But why are the pistols scattered next to the right hand?

As he pondered, Fujino tried to stand up, but his body involuntarily froze.

Just as he stood up, he saw a small gray button in the gap between the coffee table and the sofa.

Fujino examined the small button and frowned.

He immediately picked it up and handed it to Sato Miwako: "Officer Sato, I have made a new discovery."

"Buttons?"

Sato Miwako received from Fujino and guessed, "It must have fallen off Ms. Araki's clothes, right?"

I don't think so.

In response to Sato Miwako's guess, Fujino interrupted, "Officer Sato, could you please check if Miss Araki has the same button in her wardrobe?"

Sato Miwako agreed to Fujino's request.

She then walked to the wardrobe, opened the door, and began to look through the clothes inside.

While she was inspecting the wardrobe, Fujino began to examine the ashtray placed on the coffee table.

He felt a little surprised as soon as he entered the room. Indeed, the cigarette butts in the ashtray were clearly not right.

These cigarette butts come in two varieties: one is a thin Seven Stars women's cigarette, and the other is a thick Marlboro.

It's obvious that the Seven Stars cigarettes were left behind by Aragi Mako, but the other one clearly wasn't smoked by her.

And then there's that one button...

A moment later, Sato Miwako checked the wardrobe and replied to Fujino, "Fujino- kun, there is no clothing in Ms. Araki's wardrobe that matches this button."

"If that's the case, then this is not a simple case of burglary."

Fujino said in a deep voice, "If my guess is correct, before she was murdered last night, Miss Araki should have received guests in this room."

"Guest?"

Takagi Wataru asked Takagi Wataru confusion, "Detective Fujino, how did you figure that out?"

"Officer Takagi, didn't you notice the ashtray?"

"Ashtray?"

Takagi seemed a little puzzled. "What's so strange about an ashtray?"

"Is Fujino- kun referring to the cigarette butts in the ashtray?"

Sato Miwako turned her gaze to the ashtray on the coffee table. "There are two kinds of cigarette butts in the ashtray, which is indeed a bit strange."

"I recognize these cigarette butts. They are a women's Seven Stars cigarette and a thick Marlboro. The Seven Stars cigarette should be the one Ms. Araki smokes, and the other Marlboro is something Ms. Araki, who smokes women's cigarettes, would never smoke."

Fujino continued his reasoning in a deep voice, "Considering the buttons scattered at the crime scene that do not belong to Ms. Araki, I think that Ms. Araki must have received guests in this room before she was murdered last night."

"I see!"

Upon hearing this, Takagi suddenly realized, "In other words, this case may not be a case of burglary and murder, but a deliberate murder!"

The murderer was the guest that Ms. Araki entertained last night.

"They are only suspects; the real killer is still unknown."

After a pause, Fujino continued, "And I think Ms. Hiroya might also be a suspect."

"Is Miss Honggu also a suspect?"

The two looked puzzled upon hearing this.

"That's right, although she claimed she had been attending a photography retreat for the past two days, as the one who discovered the body..."

Looking at the two puzzled people, Fujino asked in return, "Don't you two think her behavior is too abnormal?"

Sato Miwako understood the meaning behind Fujino's words. "In other words, Ms. Hiroya may have already known that Ms. Araki had died in the bedroom, which is why she chose to call the police."

"Correct answer."

"In that case, Takagi, take some people to investigate the area and see if there are any eyewitnesses who saw anyone come to this villa last night. Fujino and I will go and question Kodani Yayoi."

The living room of the villa.

"Miss Honggu, may I ask what time you returned to this villa this morning?"

In the villa's living room, Sato Miwako asked Kodani Yayoi, who was sitting opposite her.

"I don't remember that very clearly."

Wearing pajamas, Kodani Yayoi pondered for a moment before replying, "Before nine o'clock, it's probably after eight fifty."

Sato Miwako continued, "Could you elaborate on what you did before calling the police?"

"After returning to this villa from the photography training camp, I first took my suitcase to my room, unpacked my belongings, rested for a bit, and changed into my pajamas. Then I knocked on Mako's bedroom door, intending to tell her about my training camp experience over the past few days..."

After a pause, Kodani Yayoi continued, "But no matter how much I knocked on the door and called out, I didn't get a response. I was worried that something had happened to Mako, so I was about to push open the door to check on her... but the door was locked... In desperation, I called the police."

"Ms. Hiroya, how can you be so sure that Ms. Araki was in that room at the time, and that something happened to her?"

At this moment, Fujino suddenly interjected, "After all, it's possible that she just went out."

Are you doubting me?

Upon hearing this, Kodani Yayoi frowned, her words carrying a hint of displeasure.

"Of course not."

Fujino chuckled lightly, "It's just a reasonable suspicion."

"She and I have been old friends for many years..."

Kodani Yayoi took a deep breath to calm herself down. "Before she leaves, she usually leaves me a note or something. Is that a problem?"

"Of course, no problem."

As she spoke, Fujino recalled the page that had been torn from the notebook and asked again, "Didn't she leave you any message?"

"Of course not. If she had, she would have left it on the coffee table between the two sofas we are sitting on. If there had been a note, I wouldn't have worried about her safety and called the police for help."

"Ms. Honggu, you said you and Ms. Xinmu have known each other for many years. Could you tell us how you met?"

At that moment, Sato Miwako was taking notes, looked up and asked Kodani Yayoi a question.

"I met Shinki five years ago while traveling in the United States. Perhaps because we shared similar interests, we quickly became friends. After returning to China, we rented this house together."

"So that's how it is."

Sato Miwako nodded upon hearing this and continued, "Does Ms. Araki currently face any financial difficulties?"

"Economic pressure... Although her income is not high, it is definitely not low either."

After pondering for a moment, Kodani Yayoi suddenly said, "However, she did borrow some money from me a while ago, but she paid it back quickly..."

I recommend a book, a Detective Conan fanfiction; I think it's quite interesting.