Mysterious Moonlight Sonata
After leaving the matter of asking around about Keiji Aso to the two girls, Jiang Hang did not continue investigating Keiji Aso himself. He believed Koharu Yoshino and Shizuka Sakaki could handle it well.
What he needed to do now was understand the island's current situation.
Twelve years had passed since Keiji Aso's death. Much of what had been recorded in the files back then might have changed by now.
His first stop was Moon Shadow Island's village office, where it would be easier to learn about the island.
There were not many people at the office. After all, it was a small island with few residents. Even the office staff openly slacked off during working hours, secretly doing other things.
When the staff member saw a stranger walk in, his attitude remained somewhat languid.
"Hello, may I ask what you need?"
Jiang Hang directly handed over a business card.
"I would like to invest in Moon Shadow Island and would like to ask about a few things. Is the person in charge of such matters here?"
The staff member accepted Jiang Hang's card with suspicion. Seeing the words "Investment Manager, The Pioneer Foundation," he could not help hesitating.
The staff member probably had not expected an investor to take an interest in a place like Moon Shadow Island. Though he could not find any information about the Foundation online, his attitude changed immediately after making a phone call. He respectfully said he would notify the person in charge, then eagerly invited Jiang Hang to wait in a nearby meeting room.
Although the Foundation was merely a front and he could not access the money inside it, that front could occasionally be pulled out to bluff people.
After communicating with his system a few days ago, he had conveniently forged this identity as well.
Less than ten minutes later, a middle-aged man in a suit and glasses, who looked quite amiable, hurried into the meeting room.
"Hello, hello, Mr. Jiang Hang. My apologies for the poor reception. I am Hirata Kazuaki, secretary to Moon Shadow Island's village mayor." With a flattering smile, he deeply bowed and extended his hand toward Jiang Hang, who was seated on the sofa. "I heard you were interested in investing in Moon Shadow Island and wished to learn about its current situation, so I hurried over."
Jiang Hang was naturally just a random alias Jiang Hang had chosen. After all, he had gained a little fame in Tokyo by now, and it would be awkward if someone recognized him under his real name.
Moreover, Jiang Hang had made some adjustments to this identity using his disguise skill.
His hairstyle and facial features made him appear around ten years older than he really was. Even if someone connected him to the detective, he could explain it by saying they were distant relatives.
Jiang Hang had not paid much attention to Hirata's deferential manner at first. However, when he habitually activated Eagle Eye, he unexpectedly noticed something remarkable on him.
As Hirata bent down and extended his hand, the motion tugged his sleeve upward slightly. An ordinary person would not notice it, but Eagle Eye keenly picked out several faintly visible needle marks on his arm beneath the sleeve.
As a Poison Master who had been poisoned to death 305 times and was practically proficient in all kinds of common poisons, Jiang Hang could tell at a glance that there was over an eighty percent chance Hirata was involved with drugs!
He had not expected to run into such a big catch the moment he arrived. Even if this had nothing to do with the case from twelve years ago, it would not stop Jiang Hang from solving this case along the way after dealing with the other matter.
With that thought, Jiang Hang withdrew his gaze and shook Hirata's hand with a smile. In his eyes, this secretary was no longer merely a secretary, but a walking twenty million yen.
The two then spoke normally. As an investor, Jiang Hang naturally had to put on the appearance of someone trying to understand the place where he intended to invest.
He simply brought up the acquisition of Beika Art Museum as proof that it was a project recently invested in by their Foundation. Although it had cost several billion yen, he still had funds available for investment on this trip.
Now that he had come to Moon Shadow Island and found the environment quite pleasant, he had developed the idea of investing here.
As for the amount, he repeatedly implied that as long as Hirata gave him a satisfactory answer, money would not be a problem at all. One hundred million yen was just a small target, one billion was nothing, and if everyone was happy with the discussion, there was even room to go higher.
It was all bullshit anyway. In a few days, you'd be in prison picking up soap, so he might as well let you be happy for a while.
Jiang Hang's words made Secretary Hirata even more enthusiastic, and he answered every one of Jiang Hang's questions without holding anything back.
After spending a little time on it, Jiang Hang had learned roughly everything about the island.
"So, Moon Shadow Island is currently holding a mayoral election?"
Jiang Hang deliberately brought up the matter because he had found it to be a good point of entry during Hirata's explanation.
Moon Shadow Island's current mayor was a man named Kuroiwa Tatsuji. According to the information Jiang Hang had received from Officer Takagi, he had been one of the four witnesses to Keiji Aso's self-immolation case twelve years ago.
From Secretary Hirata, he also learned that another of the witnesses from back then was running for mayor: a wealthy businessman on Moon Shadow Island named Kawashima Hideo.
With his immense financial backing, Kawashima was also the most likely candidate to become the next mayor.
"If the mayor is going to be replaced, won't that affect my investment?" Jiang Hang deliberately frowned.
"If you are worried, you may stay on the island for a few more days. After the memorial service for the late Mayor Kameyama, who passed away two years ago, is held three days from now, the new mayor will be chosen. You can discuss the specifics of the investment directly with the new mayor then. I am sure you will not be disappointed."
Jiang Hang's heart stirred. Mayor Kameyama had also been one of the witnesses back then. Jiang Hang had known before coming here that the man had died, but he had not expected to arrive just in time for his memorial service.
"A memorial service is still being held for someone who died two years ago?"
"You do not know this, Mr. Jiang Hang, but Mayor Kameyama's death was rather strange on Moon Shadow Island."
After hesitating for a moment, Secretary Hirata still told Jiang Hang about it. After all, it was no secret on Moon Shadow Island.
After listening to him, Jiang Hang learned the cause of the man's death.
He had died two years ago from a sudden heart attack, and the place of death had been the piano room of the Community Activity Center, where the memorial service would be held in a few days.
What made it strange was that his expression in death had been extremely twisted, as if he had seen something terrifying.
Furthermore, according to rumors, someone passing by had heard Moonlight Sonata being played from the Activity Center's piano room at the time!
Investigation and Surveillance
After obtaining more detailed information from Hirata Kazuaki about the witnesses from back then, Jiang Hang declined his dinner invitation and returned to the inn.
He also told Hirata Kazuaki that he would stay here for a few days to further understand Moon Shadow Island's situation, then discuss the specifics of the investment after the new mayor took office.
Although Hirata Kazuaki appeared somewhat disappointed, once he learned Jiang Hang was not planning to leave, he still eagerly said that Jiang Hang could contact him directly if he encountered any problems on the island.
Jiang Hang merely showed a subtle smile.
Don't worry. I'll be coming to "contact" you very soon.
As the sky gradually darkened, the two girls, who had spent the day "interviewing" people outside, returned to the inn one after another and exchanged the information they had gathered with Jiang Hang.
"Other than that Keiji Aso from twelve years ago, there isn't another family on the island with the surname Aso." Koharu Yoshino finally admitted that Jiang Hang's guess had been more reliable. Since there was no other Keiji Aso on the island, they could only consider the possibility that the sender had borrowed Keiji Aso's name to do something on the night of the full moon.
"I checked too. Keiji Aso's parents died many years ago, and he had no other relatives. So it probably was not one of his family members who sent the letter in his name." Shizuka Sakaki also took out her little notebook and began sharing what she had found.
After the two girls exchanged their information, they began discussing their earlier deductions and eliminated several clues with obvious flaws.
Both sets of information had issues. Koharu Yoshino had headed in the wrong direction from the start and wasted quite a bit of time, while Shizuka Sakaki had only paid attention to Keiji Aso's relatives and overlooked the possibility that the invitation might have come from relatives on his wife's side. Still, after this discussion, they would not make the same mistakes the next time they encountered a similar situation.
Every veteran had once been a rookie.
Jiang Hang glanced over Koharu Yoshino's information-gathering skill. She was probably not far from reaching the beginner level.
He was looking forward to the day Koharu Yoshino's clue-gathering skill reached the advanced level. By comparison, Shizuka Sakaki had slightly less potential in information gathering, but her focus was clearly acting. If she could master voice-changing techniques at Kid's level in the future, she would definitely be able to help him in many situations.
After the two girls finished discussing the information they had gathered that day, Koharu Yoshino suddenly remembered something.
"Oh, right. I ran into an elderly police officer today. He said he had participated in the investigation of Keiji Aso's self-immolation case back then, and that there were still some belongings Keiji Aso left behind in the storage room. I begged him for a while, and he said he was willing to help us find them. But those things are buried in the storeroom now, so he probably will not find them until tomorrow. Maybe we can find some clues among Keiji Aso's belongings."
Jiang Hang nodded. It was worth continuing to encourage Koharu Yoshino, since she had managed to get that information from the officer.
"Then you two can continue interviewing people around the island tomorrow. I'll organize the clues we gathered today."
Setting Keiji Aso aside for the moment, among the four witnesses from back then, former Mayor Kameyama had died of heart disease two years ago. According to the rumors, before dying of a heart attack, he had been playing Moonlight Sonata in the piano room.
That was a point of entry, but it would probably not be easy to investigate.
There were also two other witnesses. One was the current mayor, Kuroiwa Tatsuji, while the other was Kawashima Hideo, a wealthy businessman currently running for mayor.
Those two held high positions on the island, so it would probably not be easy to coax information out of them.
However, Jiang Hang had noticed something from Hirata.
Hirata's expression had seemed normal when discussing Mayor Kuroiwa, but when he mentioned Kawashima Hideo, his attitude had seemed somewhat subtle.
Kawashima Hideo was the strongest contender for the next mayor, yet Hirata Kazuaki, secretary to the current mayor, seemed quite certain that he would continue serving as mayoral secretary in the future.
Perhaps he had some secret deal with Kawashima Hideo.
Considering the possibility of Hirata's involvement with drugs, perhaps that was another point of entry.
As for the final witness from back then, a man named Nishiki Ken, Jiang Hang had not yet learned what he was doing now. He could not even confirm whether the man still lived on the island.
When chatting with Secretary Hirata, it had not been appropriate for him to ask Hirata Kazuaki about Nishiki Ken.
Sitting on the tatami in his room, Jiang Hang rested his chin on one hand as he considered the direction of his next investigation.
With the Meditation Method, he could keep his mind clear enough to think. But honestly, his deductive ability was only around the level of a third-rate detective.
He could use Eagle Eye to take advantage of Conan and bully him, but Jiang Hang knew perfectly well that he was just putting on an act, while Conan was genuinely incredible.
If Conan only needed three useful clues to link everything together through his wild imagination and solve a case, Jiang Hang would probably need more than ten interconnected clues. Then he would have to scribble and calculate in a notebook for half the day before reaching the final answer.
However, Jiang Hang did not intend to solve the case solely with his third-rate detective skills.
After night fell, he was also preparing to do something not quite so wholesome.
He opened his suitcase, took out a black hooded outfit, then removed several drugs he had recently concocted from a small pocket inside the suitcase.
Ezio Auditore's assassin outfit looked cool, but it was far too conspicuous. Jiang Hang had never considered wearing that set of clothes while tailing or infiltrating somewhere.
Near midnight, there were already few pedestrians on the streets.
Without anyone noticing, Jiang Hang quietly left the inn where he was staying.
He headed for Secretary Hirata Kazuaki's residence.
He had marked Hirata Kazuaki with Eagle Eye that afternoon, so it did not take long to find his home.
Jiang Hang had originally intended to sneak in while Hirata slept. Unexpectedly, while Jiang Hang was heading toward his residence, Eagle Eye revealed Hirata Kazuaki secretly changing into an outfit that would not easily attract attention before cautiously slipping out of his house.
Seeing this, Jiang Hang hid in the darkness and concealed his presence to avoid being noticed.
Hirata Kazuaki cautiously looked around and locked his front door behind him.
Only after confirming that there was no one nearby did he lower his head and quickly head toward the eastern end of the village.
Seeing Hirata Kazuaki leave, Jiang Hang followed him at a sufficiently safe distance.
Although Hirata Kazuaki vigilantly looked around every few steps, it was completely useless against Jiang Hang, who was trailing far behind him.
Very soon, Jiang Hang followed Hirata Kazuaki to a building.
Looking closely, was this not the Activity Center where Hirata had said the former mayor's memorial service would be held in a few days?
Hirata Kazuaki secretly observed the entrance for a while, then went around to the other side and entered through a side door. Jiang Hang did not follow him inside. Instead, he silently watched his movements with Eagle Eye.
Under Jiang Hang's gaze, he discovered that the room Hirata Kazuaki entered through the side door was the very piano room where former Mayor Kameyama Isamu had mysteriously died two years ago!
A Detective Was Not Such an Inconvenient Tool
After tiptoeing into the piano room, Hirata Kazuaki took several things from his body and stuffed them beneath the piano in the darkness.
After doing that, he dealt with the traces he had left behind and hurriedly departed.
He had no idea that every move he made had been under Jiang Hang's surveillance.
After Hirata Kazuaki left, Jiang Hang did not immediately follow him. Instead, once Hirata had gone far enough away, he used his Lockpicking skill to open the side door leading into the piano room.
Looking at the piano, which was at least a decade old, Jiang Hang frowned slightly.
If he remembered correctly, this old piano should have been connected to Keiji Aso.
He remembered the police records mentioning that Keiji Aso had performed at this Activity Center before returning home, after which the self-immolation case occurred.
This piano had also been brought here by Keiji Aso. It had remained here ever since his death.
He slowly approached the piano, then crouched down to inspect its underside.
He soon found a concealed compartment. Jiang Hang did not even need to open it to know what Hirata Kazuaki had placed inside.
This compartment had not been added recently. Judging from the piano's structure, it was obvious that the piano had been designed with this compartment from the beginning.
In other words, had Moon Shadow Island already been engaged in this kind of business more than a decade ago?
Perhaps even Keiji Aso himself had been a member of the drug trafficking ring back then.
Looking at the piano, Jiang Hang made a bold guess.
Originally, Jiang Hang had only wanted to use the drug lead to find the connection between Hirata Kazuaki and Kawashima Hideo, then investigate further. He had not expected to stumble upon something so significant.
If Keiji Aso had been a member of that drug trafficking ring, then the four people who witnessed his death were all highly suspicious.
Perhaps because of an unequal split of the profits or some other reason, the four of them had killed Keiji Aso and staged it as self-immolation.
The motive for murder was more than sufficient. With that thought, Jiang Hang did not take out the contraband yet. Instead, he quietly left and continued following Hirata Kazuaki.
This time, Hirata Kazuaki did not go anywhere else and instead headed straight home.
Come to think of it, this guy was truly quite cautious. He had even installed a hidden camera by his front door.
Before you continue