I'm the Great Detective Shu Yunwen

Shu Yunwen was chatting with Kudo Shinichi when a police officer standing beside Inspector Megure came over. "K-Kudo? What are you doing here?"

"Ah..." Kudo Shinichi immediately ignored Shu Yunwen and scratched his head sheepishly. He bowed slightly to the officer. "I'm sorry. The owner of this house, Mr. Iwata, invited my father to tonight's party. But my father isn't in the country right now, so he asked me to come in his place. I never expected to arrive just in time for a murder..."

Shu Yunwen listened to Kudo Shinichi and twitched the corners of his mouth.

This guy really was a walking disaster. Wherever he went, someone died. If Japan had a thousand Kudo Shinichis, would China even need to worry about the Japanese? This one guy could bring Japan to ruin.

"Is that so? And your father's relationship with the owner of this house, Mr. Iwata Daijiro, is...?" The officer took out a pen, seemingly ready to write something down.

"Mr. Iwata is a fan of my father's detective work. They've met a few times before..."

As Kudo Shinichi spoke, he had already followed the officer into the room.

Shu Yunwen couldn't be bothered to pay attention. He walked off to the side and began reciting a sorcerous curse. Yamazaki Akiji's soul, which had been hiding in a corner like a wisp of fog, was drawn into Shu Yunwen's hand.

The mist gathered together, slowly taking the shape of a ball.

A face resembling Yamazaki Akiji's writhed across the surface of the mist, its expression terrified.

"Mr. Yamazaki, good evening. I never expected that the first soul I collected would be yours." Shu Yunwen smiled as he spoke.

At the moment, he wasn't strong enough to communicate with ghosts. But ghosts had a special form, and newly formed ones like this could still hear people's voices.

"You were killed by Iwata Daijiro, weren't you?"

As Shu Yunwen muttered, Yamazaki Akiji's ghostly face nodded repeatedly.

"Don't worry. He won't get away."

When he finished speaking, Shu Yunwen began reciting the sorcerous curse again. A few seconds later, a strange power seemed to envelop Yamazaki Akiji's misty soul from deep within it. In just over ten seconds, the mist seemed to be drawn toward Shu Yunwen. Streams of power surged out of it, entered through Shu Yunwen's nostrils, and flowed toward his brain.

Ghost Sorcery—Judgment!

This was an essential spell in the Ghost Sorcerer's inheritance. Without it, a Ghost Sorcerer's power could never improve.

"What a strange feeling..."

Two minutes later, Shu Yunwen had successfully absorbed Yamazaki Akiji's soul power, and his own strength had increased as well. Of course, he had only absorbed it initially. It would take some time to refine it completely.

He looked around. The police had still sealed off the area.

Shu Yunwen had gotten what he wanted and couldn't be bothered to stay any longer. He had wanted to leave and hail a taxi, but the police stopped him. With no choice, he returned to the lounge and used the villa's phone to call Kojima Genji's home. He told them he'd been caught up in a murder case and might be back late.

About half an hour later, someone knocked on the door of Shu Yunwen's lounge.

Shu Yunwen got up and opened the door. A servant stood outside, along with three uniformed police officers.

Hmm... Inspector Megure was among them?

Shu Yunwen was still staring in surprise when Inspector Megure bowed slightly. "Hello, sir. Your name is Shu Yunwen, correct? In the course of our investigation, we learned that you knew the victim, Yamazaki Akiji, the general manager of Hachiryu Bank, and that you came to Mr. Iwata's house at the general manager's invitation. Is that right? Also, according to Mr. Yamazaki's driver, this item, which we found in the pocket of Mr. Yamazaki's clothing, was something you sold him..."

As he spoke, Inspector Megure took out the "spirit talisman"—the one that was completely useless—from its evidence bag.

"Uh..."

Shu Yunwen looked at their faces, especially Inspector Megure's stern gaze...

Damn it!

Had these guys mistaken him for the murderer?

"...You suspect me?" Shu Yunwen asked outright.

Inspector Megure replied, "No, we just need you to assist with the investigation and answer a few routine questions, Shu-san."

That line... You're obviously suspecting me!

Did you think I'd only watched Detective Conan in bits and pieces and wouldn't recognize that old line?

"I'm not the murderer." Shu Yunwen rolled his eyes. "You'll just be wasting your time if you keep questioning me. By the way, didn't Student Kudo come over earlier? He'll find the culprit soon enough. There's no need to worry, Inspector Megure..."

At this, Inspector Megure's mouth twitched.

What did he mean, Kudo would find the culprit soon? Was the police force incapable of doing that?

Was this guy looking down on the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department?

In Inspector Megure's mind, he was grabbing Shu Yunwen by the collar and slapping him left and right. Say that again! Go on, say it again!

As soon as Shu Yunwen finished speaking, an annoyingly smug voice came from beside him. "Shu-san, I'd say you're highly suspicious. I've already questioned the driver of the late general manager Yamazaki. He told me some very interesting things. According to his testimony, strange noises have been coming from Mr. Iwata's house at night these past few days, and Mr. Iwata has been troubled by them. General Manager Yamazaki thought it might be the work of an evil spirit, so he contacted you and paid you fifty thousand dollars for a 'spirit talisman'..."

Shu Yunwen turned toward the speaker. Sure enough, it was Kudo Shinichi, wearing an infuriatingly smug smile.

"F-fifty thousand dollars?" Inspector Megure exclaimed.

When the police questioned the driver earlier, they had learned about the talisman, but not how much it had cost.

Fifty thousand dollars for a single "spirit talisman" was ridiculously expensive!

"Quick! Go confirm that with Mr. Yamazaki's driver!" Inspector Megure ordered the officer beside him.

"Yes, sir!"

One officer hurried off. Kudo Shinichi kept smiling as he continued, "...So, if we follow the most obvious line of reasoning, what happened next is entirely possible."

"...Your 'spirit talisman' didn't work at all, so General Manager Yamazaki thought he'd been swindled and came to demand his fifty thousand dollars back. You refused to return the money, and the two of you argued. Then you lost your temper and... did away with General Manager Yamazaki."

As Kudo Shinichi spoke, he wore a wicked grin, thinking, Let's see you talk your way out of this! That'll teach you to pretend to be a sorcerer!

Beside him, Inspector Megure glared at Shu Yunwen as if to say, "You're the murderer."

Shu Yunwen pursed his lips. "Student Kudo, we're in the same class, at least. Is this really fun for you?"

"Hm?" Kudo Shinichi was taken aback.

The guy hadn't been scared at all?

Shu Yunwen immediately asked, "Have you checked the windowsill?"

"Of course I have. Carefully examining the scene and overlooking no detail is essential for a detective." Kudo Shinichi answered with his usual smugness.

Shu Yunwen sighed. "If you've already examined the scene carefully, then you should be able to confirm that the culprit was the owner of this house, Iwata Daijiro. Is it really fun to frame me like this?"

"W-what? The culprit was the master?" one of the servants exclaimed.

Kudo Shinichi was also astonished.

He was now almost certain that Iwata Daijiro was the culprit. But there was still one point he couldn't explain: Iwata Daijiro's injured leg. He had come over hoping to ask Inspector Megure to question Iwata Daijiro's personal doctor and confirm whether the injury was real...

But how had Shu Yunwen figured it out?

"What? Student Kudo, is what Shu-san said true?" Inspector Megure turned to him.

Kudo Shinichi paused, then scratched his head and smiled. "Well... I can't say for sure yet!"

Shu Yunwen rolled his eyes again. "Inspector Megure, please have someone investigate this. As far as I know, Yamazaki Akiji and Iwata Daijiro had some debts between them. You could also ask Mr. Iwata's personal doctor. If my guess is right, Mr. Iwata's leg should have healed a long time ago. Also, may I take a look at the crime scene? If necessary, I can explain what happened."

Inspector Megure looked at the forensic examiner. When the examiner nodded, he said, "All right."

The forensic examination was already finished, so there was no harm in letting Shu Yunwen go in.

Once they entered the room where Yamazaki Akiji had been killed, Shu Yunwen went straight to the third-floor window and spoke from memory. "At the time of the murder, this room was locked from the inside, and there was nothing unusual about the door lock, so we can rule out the possibility that someone came in through the main entrance. There were no footprints outside the room, either, so the culprit couldn't have been an outsider. It had to be someone inside the villa, someone familiar with its layout. In other words, Mr. Iwata Daijiro."

As he spoke, Shu Yunwen pointed to the room diagonally across from the balcony. "...Mr. Iwata came out through that room's window with a rope tied around him, then walked along the eaves to the corner. From there, it wasn't far to the balcony. Someone strong enough could easily jump across. After entering the room from the balcony, Mr. Iwata killed the victim, tied a piece of wood to the rope, and lowered it down so it could be secured. Then he climbed back along the rope. Once he was back on the other side, he could simply release the rope, and the piece of wood secured here, along with the rope, could easily be retrieved... That's more or less what happened."

Inspector Megure looked down and spotted the scratches on the balcony railing.

Kudo Shinichi, meanwhile, stared blankly, thinking, This guy's unbelievably good, despite all that sorcery nonsense. His deduction is almost the same as mine.

Shu Yunwen turned to the butler beside them and asked, "Mr. Butler, if I remember correctly, you said that strange noises had been coming from the villa at night over the past few days. They must have been coming from here, right?"

"Y-yes," the butler stammered.

Shu Yunwen said, "So, if I'm right, Mr. Iwata was rehearsing his murder plan for tonight. Those noises must have been made by this piece of wood hitting the railing and the wall. Inspector Megure, there should be more than one scratch on the railing, too, right?"

Inspector Megure nodded. "That's right. That's exactly right."

Kudo Shinichi gave an awkward laugh. This guy even knew that Iwata had rehearsed beforehand...

Even he, the famous high school detective, hadn't figured that out!

Shu Yunwen continued, "As for the evidence, if we can confirm that Mr. Iwata's leg is fine, then a thorough interrogation should make him confess. Student Kudo, do you still think I'm the murderer?"

"Well... Hahaha..." Kudo Shinichi scratched his head, a bead of sweat on his forehead, and felt a little frustrated.

All of this deduction should have come from his own mouth, shouldn't it?

Which of them was the detective here?

Kudo Shinichi had planned to show off tonight, but now this sorcerer wannabe had stolen the spotlight.

This was so frustrating! So frustrating!

Shu Yunwen sat down on the sofa beside them. About ten minutes later, the officer sent to investigate returned with confirmation. Faced with the evidence, Iwata Daijiro finally bowed his head and confessed.

Eleven o'clock that night.

Inspector Megure sat in the front passenger seat of the police car, while Shu Yunwen and Kudo Shinichi sat in the back. The case was solved, and although there was still some follow-up work, Inspector Megure had the car take Shu Yunwen and Kudo Shinichi home first.

Inspector Megure said, "Shu-san, you really are a great detective, every bit as good as Student Kudo!"

Shu Yunwen shook his head. "You're too kind, Inspector Megure. I can't compare to Student Kudo. He has real talent, while I knew what happened ahead of time. Besides, I'm an exorcist, not a detective."

I've read the original series, after all!

"Huh? You knew ahead of time?" Inspector Megure exclaimed. "Who told you, Shu-san?"

"..." Shu Yunwen didn't know how to answer. He couldn't very well tell Inspector Megure and Kudo Shinichi, You lowlifes are actually characters in an anime.

As he thought about it, a mischievous idea came to him. "...Didn't I say I'm an exorcist? So naturally, the one who told me everything was Mr. Yamazaki Akiji himself!"

The other three people in the car all felt a chill, as if a cold wind had swept through.

Yamazaki Akiji? How could a dead man talk to you?

"Hahaha... You really are a joker, Shu-san..." Inspector Megure laughed.

Shu Yunwen turned to Kudo Shinichi. "By the way, Student Kudo, did you finish the homework our teacher assigned today?"

"Ah! That's right! I haven't done my homework..." Kudo Shinichi groaned.

After going home that afternoon, he had gone out to play soccer. He hadn't returned until nearly dark, and after resting for a while, he'd headed to the Iwata residence...

He'd planned to head home after making a brief appearance and do his homework, but then the murder happened.

"Then make sure you finish it tonight, even if you have to stay up late!" Shu Yunwen teased casually.

Kudo Shinichi was in a bad mood. He rolled his eyes. "Mind your own business!"

Inspector Megure immediately scolded him from the front seat. "Student Kudo, how can you speak to your teacher like that? That's terribly rude! Apologize to Teacher Shu at once."

Shu Yunwen's expression froze, while Kudo Shinichi burst out laughing. "Inspector Megure, you've got it wrong. Shu-san is my classmate, not my teacher. He may look like an old man, but he's only eighteen."

"Huh?" Inspector Megure stared at Shu Yunwen's middle-aged face...

After Iwata Daijiro confessed, there was no need to continue investigating Shu Yunwen as a "suspect." Inspector Megure knew only that Shu Yunwen had come from Teitan High School. He hadn't had time to look into Shu Yunwen's exact identity. But surely, someone with a face like that should be a teacher, right?

How could he be a student?

Kudo had to be playing a prank!

The corners of Shu Yunwen's mouth twitched. "Inspector Megure, I'm sorry. I thought you'd already looked into it. My name is Shu Yunwen, and I'm in Class 2-B at Teitan High School. I'm sorry for the trouble I caused you earlier. Here's my student ID..."

With a screech, the police car swerved into a sharp S, then steadied again.

"H-he really is a high school student?" Inspector Megure asked in disbelief.

This made no sense!

Kudo Shinichi said in an infuriatingly smug tone, "Inspector Megure, I told you! He may look like an old man, but he really is a student!"

Shu Yunwen turned to Kudo Shinichi. "Student Kudo, you'd better watch what you say. You know what I do for a living. Aren't you afraid a curse will fall on you?"

"No!" Kudo Shinichi answered without hesitation.

Shu Yunwen rolled his eyes. He was tempted to cast "Bad Luck" on Kudo Shinichi. But after thinking about it, he decided against it. He hadn't yet finished refining the soul power inside him from Yamazaki Akiji. The power he could use was enough for only one more sorcerer's trick, and it wasn't worth wasting it on this guy.

As he thought about it, Shu Yunwen suddenly realized that since Yamazaki had been killed today, Kudo Shinichi would be taking Ran to the amusement park tomorrow—and then turn into Conan...

"...Student Kudo, I can see misfortune between your brows and dark clouds hanging over your head. Something very bad is going to happen to you tomorrow..." Shu Yunwen said.

Suddenly turning from a teenager into a little kid definitely didn't count as a good thing, did it?

Kudo Shinichi clicked his tongue. "Shu-san, I don't believe in that stuff."

Shu Yunwen smiled. "No, you'll believe it."

Starting tomorrow, you'll believe it.