The Impostor Kogoro Mouri

"What kind of magic is this? No wonder you're the famous Eagle-Eyed Detective! No, I think you should be called the Detective of a Hundred Faces!" In less than half a minute, this elite police officer had completely put aside his doubts and trusted Jiang Hang completely.

Even Jiang Hang couldn't help but think that this guy was too easy to fool. He hadn't even shown him anything real yet, and the other party was already staring at him with admiration. Who knows if the other party would kneel down and beg to become his apprentice if he saw those more advanced skills?

Seeing Conan's somewhat speechless expression, Jiang Hang decided to ask Conan later if he had always been like this.

But for now, let's ask Misao Yamamura what he's here for?

Is it another suicide in the vicinity, or has some kind of murder occurred?

Upon hearing Jiang Hang's question, Misao Yamamura seemed to have absolutely no sense of secrecy. He even began explaining the reason for his visit in front of Kogoro Mouri, another famous detective.

Not long ago, an employee of the Aoiya Inn discovered a body in the forest while out gathering the last of the autumn vegetables.

As a suicide hotspot that has suddenly "flourished" in recent years, there are quite a few corpses in Togami Forest. Although the Gunma Prefecture police have tried many methods, they have not achieved much so far. Therefore, the police can only come here to make a record when they find a corpse.

As for why Assistant Inspector Misao Yamamura made a special trip for this body, it's because quite a few problems have been discovered with the body so far.

"The deceased appears to have died by suicide, but there are still a few questions. First, there were car keys on the deceased, but no driver's license was found." Misao Yamamura honestly stated the plot he had obtained.

"I have cigarettes, but I can't find a lighter."

"Most importantly, he died in the summer, but he was wearing a sweater from autumn and winter. I came here specifically to investigate these things."

As Misao Yamamura said this, Kogoro Mouri was frantically making faces at him, as if telling him not to say any more.

But Misao Yamamura seemed to ignore Kogoro Mouri's winking and gesturing.

Or perhaps he misinterpreted Kogoro Mouri's winking as something else entirely.

"It's quite a coincidence, actually. I was checking to make sure no clues were overlooked in this case, while Kogoro Mouri was also hired by the owner of this hotel to investigate the truth of another case. And according to our reasoning, the common thread between these two cases is likely the victim who committed suicide four years ago!"

As he spoke, he recounted the case information he had discussed with Kogoro Mouri in the car—

The request that Kogoro Mouri received came from the owner of this inn, Toda Yoshiro.

According to the owner, about five years ago, he was suddenly greeted by a strange guest one day.

They were men dressed in red, with hair pulled back, and looking somewhat weathered.

He spent 100,000 yen at the Aoiya Inn, then handed the owner a briefcase and a letter, asking him to do some things for him.

"I'll give you 100,000 yuan. You keep this briefcase and envelope safe for me."

"Even if I die a year later, someone will come and collect it."

"If I'm the one picking it up, give me the briefcase. If it's not me, give the envelope to someone else. And don't forget my red coat and long hair!"

Misao Yamamura really did have a bit of talent; he vividly simulated the words spoken by the person who committed suicide, and even gave people the feeling of a vengeful spirit returning to life.

However, this kind of thing might scare Ran Mori, who is afraid of ghosts, but it obviously wouldn't scare Jiang Hang.

He nodded, indicating that Misao Yamamura should continue, as this level of ghost story posed no challenge for him whatsoever.

Misao Yamamura continued speaking:

"The body we recently discovered was that of a man with long hair. Furthermore, the boss only hired a detective to investigate after learning about this man's body. Therefore, it seems that both cases involve the same person."

Jiang Hang was referring to the newly discovered body.

Meanwhile, Misao Yamamura continued to explain his "reasoning".

"If that's all there is to it, then there's a problem."

"Why would someone who paid 100,000 yen to have these briefcases stored away five years ago commit suicide on his way to retrieve them a year later?"

Just listening to Misao Yamamura's description, Jiang Hang could already sense the strong undercurrent of homicide.

"So you did an autopsy on that body?" Jiang Hang's first question immediately caught Misao Yamamura off guard.

After a long while, Misao Yamamura shook his head somewhat awkwardly. "There have never been many forensic doctors. We have tried our best to apply, but we still haven't been able to get one. So the body is still at the police station waiting for someone to claim it. If no one claims it, it will probably be disposed of after a while."

At this opportune moment, Jiang Hang gave UDI a good opportunity to advertise, promoting the research institute that was established solely to eliminate unnatural deaths.

Hearing that such a powerful organization already existed in Tokyo, Misao Yamamura, though not a qualified police officer, could still do the job of a messenger.

I believe that after this case is over, when he returns to the police station and chats with people, he will be able to spread the word about UDI.

But for now, let's focus on this case.

Jiang Hang thought for a moment, then brought the topic back to the case.

"Speaking of which, since there was no autopsy or dissection, how did you know that the deceased died four years ago?"

This is a crucial question.

If the other party died four years ago, then the truth behind his death may still require some discussion.

But if the victim didn't actually die four years ago, but even earlier, and it was deliberately staged, then that would be quite interesting.

As expected, the Gunma Prefecture Police determined that the deceased had died four years prior, based primarily on a shopping receipt found on his person.

The item listed clearly showed what the deceased had purchased at a convenience store near the Togami Forest before entering it.

A bottle of milk, a piece of bread, and some other snacks.

These items have obviously expired long ago, and the expiration dates are clearly written on them.

It looks like irrefutable evidence.

But a little thought will reveal the problem here.

If the murderer deliberately returns to the location of the victim's body at a time when no one knows, changes the items on the body, and ensures that the body will not be discovered for several months afterward, then the murderer can achieve his goal and mislead the police investigation.

After all, don't the contradictions in the deceased's life prove this point?

Hearing Jiang Hang point this out without hesitation, Conan, who was standing to the side, thought it was quite normal. Detectives like them were supposed to be vigilant and suspicious of everything that came their way.

People like Kogoro Mouri and Misao Yamamura, who believe whatever others say, wouldn't really notice this.

Misao Yamamura looked at Jiang Hang with an admiring gaze, even feeling that this Eagle-Eyed Detective's thinking seemed a bit clearer than that of Kogoro Mouri beside him.

As for Kogoro Mouri, after a moment of awkwardness, he simply coughed lightly and then said that he had actually noticed this a long time ago, but deliberately did not point it out as a test.

In short, Jiang Hang will just believe it for now.

Anyway, judging from Misao Yamamura's enlightened look, he probably really believed it.

Chapter 462: Chapter 458: The Imposter Kogoro Mouri

Although Jiang Hang had noticed the problem with the case, he had not yet seen the corpse that had turned into a pile of bones, so he could not be 100% certain of the possibility.

But as long as Misao Yamamura isn't lying, the details about the corpse having car keys but no driver's license, cigarettes but no lighter, shopping receipts on it indicating summer, and the person wearing autumn/winter clothes... should be true.

If so many problems can be found on a corpse, then someone must have tampered with the remains.

Previously, the Gunma Police Department had only treated the case as a routine matter, treating the corpse as a suicide case, without giving it much thought to the possibility of homicide. So now, if Misao Yamamura were to consider the possibility of homicide, he wouldn't be able to figure out who the murderer was.

Jiang Hang had only just learned about the case, and without even knowing the identity of the deceased, he naturally couldn't deduce who had killed the victim.

On Kogoro Mouri's side, after Jiang Hang made his conjecture, Jiang Hang's thoughts flowed freely as he speculated on the reason for the appearance of the corpse. From feuds in the martial arts world to love and hate, Jiang Hang very smoothly eliminated several possibilities from Kogoro Mouri's conjecture.

Conan, somewhat exasperated by Kogoro Mouri's impromptu deductions, immediately offered a suggestion. "Let's go inside the hotel first. The person who found the body was a hotel employee, and the hotel owner had a briefcase to give to Uncle Mori, right? Maybe there are some clues in there?"

After this reminder, Kogoro Mouri suddenly realized, "Oh right, since this matter is related to the hotel owner and staff, they must have some information. Maybe they were the ones who committed this crime. Ran, let's go!"

As he said this, he also looked at Jiang Hang beside him with some wariness. "This is a case handled by our Mouri Detective Agency. At most, I'll let you watch from the sidelines. Don't even think about interfering."

Jiang Hang spread his hands helplessly. "I already told you I came here to investigate this suicide hotspot. I just didn't expect to run into you guys. Don't worry, although I'm a little interested in this case, I don't need the commission fee. I won't compete with you for this case."

He just wanted to piggyback on a case; how much could the client possibly offer? It couldn't compare to the small sum the system guy could easily earn for a case.

Sure enough, after hearing that Jiang Hang didn't intend to compete with him for the commission, Kogoro Mouri immediately patted Jiang Hang on the shoulder, indicating that as long as you don't try to steal my money, we're friendly neighbors.

Since the neighbor is curious about this request, there's no harm in following him to see what's going on.

In short, as long as it doesn't involve money, everything is fine.

The group walked into the hotel arm in arm, and soon Misao Yamamura pointed out a hotel employee to them.

"Ah, that's Mr. Urakawa Eiji, who discovered the body."

As he said this, he walked over and greeted the other person.

Because the Gunma Police Station had already summoned him to the station once when the body was discovered, Urakawa Eiji had some recollection of Misao Yamamura's appearance and knew that he was there to question him again. He greeted Misao Yamamura warmly.

Before Misao Yamamura could introduce Jiang Hang and Kogoro Mouri to the other party, Urakawa Eiji had already started talking about how he discovered the corpse.

"To be honest, I was really scared to death at the time. After all, although there are quite a few suicides here every year, most of them are discovered not long afterward."

"I never expected to find a corpse that had been completely reduced to bones in that place."

He touched his head as he recounted what had happened back then. Although he said he was scared, more than a week had passed, and now when he brought it up, he naturally showed no fear at all. He simply treated it as an extraordinary experience to talk about.

Jiang Hang, who was standing nearby, added, "I heard from the Officer Yamamura that you found the body when you went to the mountains to dig for wild vegetables. Did you find the body by yourself?"

Urakawa Eiji nodded. "Yes, usually it's just me, the hotel owner Mr. Toda, and another employee, Jinbo, who take turns going to the mountains to collect wild vegetables. I found this body when it was my turn to go to the mountains. However, because of the discovery of the body, we can't go to the mountains to collect wild vegetables recently. Otherwise, we could let you taste our hotel's special wild vegetable soup."

When food is mentioned, Kogoro Mouri gets a little hungry, but when he hears that he can't have it, he seems a little disappointed.

It was only at this point that Urakawa Eiji thought to ask Misao Yamamura about the identities of Jiang Hang and Kogoro Mouri.

After all, Kogoro Mouri was accompanied by a girl and a child, and Jiang Hang was also accompanied by a girl; they didn't look like police officers at all.

When someone asked him about himself, even though he had no connection with Jiang Hang or Kogoro Mouri, Misao Yamamura still introduced Jiang Hang and Kogoro Mouri quite solemnly.

"Ahem, these two are the famous detectives known as the Twin Stars of Detectives, whose names strike fear into the Tokyo of even children who have done something wrong and want to hide it!"

"They are—!" Misao Yamamura introduced Jiang Hang and Kogoro Mouri in a dramatic and somewhat childish way.

To be honest, if Misao Yamamura hadn't mentioned it, Jiang Hang would have almost forgotten that besides being known as the Eagle-Eyed Detective, he also formed the Beika Twin Stars bond with Kogoro Mouri.

However, before he could finish speaking, Urakawa Eiji nodded in sudden realization. "I understand now, you are Mr. Kogoro Mouri's companions, aren't you?"

"We've been eagerly awaiting your arrival!"

"Huh? Companions?" Both Kogoro Mouri and Jiang Hang couldn't help but ask in confusion.

Misao Yamamura also sensed something was wrong and quickly tried to explain it to the other party.

However, Urakawa Eiji had already started talking to himself.

"Mr. Mori arrived three hours ago and is waiting for you in his room!"

"What? Kogoro Mouri has already arrived at this inn?"

Listening to the hotel employee's explanation, Kogoro Mouri began to doubt his own identity.

Jiang Hang, on the other hand, stroked his chin, watching the situation unfold with great interest.

He was just suspected of being an imposter, and now, in the blink of an eye, an imposter has appeared on Kogoro Mouri's side as well.

It looks like this case is going to be quite entertaining.

When Kogoro Mouri stormed over to the hotel receptionist to ask questions, the receptionist nodded quite affirmatively.

"Yes, Mr. Mori is resting in his room right now. Would you like to go find him?" The hotel owner, Toda Yoshiro, even produced the imposter's autograph. "That Kogoro Mouri is much more approachable than we thought. Almost all of our hotel staff have asked him for autographs, and he's always agreed."

Seeing that imposter not only taking his benefits but also signing autographs for people, Kogoro Mouri was furious.

What's even more infuriating is that when the owner saw Kogoro Mouri staring at the autograph board, he specifically reminded him, "Ah, please don't get it dirty. I was planning to frame it and use it as one of the symbols of our hotel."

"What about that briefcase?!" Kogoro Mouri practically asked the hotel owner through gritted teeth.

"Of course, Mr. Mori took that to his room. He's probably still thinking about what's inside."

The briefcase had been in the boss's possession for five years, during which time he had naturally secretly opened it to check its contents.

If he hadn't racked his brains for years without coming up with anything of value, and if it hadn't just happened that the body of the person who had deposited the briefcase was discovered by his hotel staff, he might not have bothered to come to Kogoro Mouri.

After the hotel owner mentioned the fake man's room, Ran instinctively wanted to go over and teach the imposter who was impersonating her father a lesson.

However, Kogoro Mouri immediately grabbed his daughter.

"No need to rush," he glanced at Jiang Hang, who was having a good time, "Don't let others look down on us. If we make a big fuss now, I won't be able to prove my identity, and it might even have a negative impact on my image."

Ran Mori looked at her father with some suspicion. "But Officer Yamamura and Mr. Jiang Hang are both here. They can both verify your identity, right?"

Kogoro Mouri waved his hand and explained to his daughter in a low voice, "Jiang Hang has to use a fake image to appear on TV. He himself needs us to prove his identity, otherwise people will suspect that he is an imposter. Asking him to prove our identity is like asking one 'imposter' to vouch for another 'imposter,' which will probably only make people more suspicious."

"Officer Yamamura doesn't seem like a reliable person. If the other party turns around and accuses us of deceiving Officer Yamamura, others will be more likely to believe the fake product. So the best thing to do now is to wait on the sidelines."

"Isn't this kind of thing often done in TV dramas? A showdown between the real Mori and the imposter. Let's see what that guy is trying to do with my identity first, and then I'll expose his flaws directly. That way, my reputation won't be damaged, and maybe I can even create another good story about the real Mori playing the fake Mori?"

Ran Mori shook her head helplessly as she listened to her father's whimsical thoughts.

She wanted to try to persuade her father, but judging from his expression, she knew he had made up his mind and wouldn't give up easily.