I'm the Great Detective Shu Yunwen~

Chapter 6: I'm the Great Detective Shu Yunwen~

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

"Ah~" Kudo Shinichi immediately ignored Shu Yunwen. He scratched his head sheepishly and 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..."

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

That guy really was a walking disaster. Wherever he went, someone died. If Japan had a thousand Kudo Shinichis, would China have anything left to worry about? He alone could bring Japan to ruin.

"Is that so? May I ask what your father's relationship is with the owner of this house, Mr. Iwata Daijiro?" The officer took out a pen, as if he wanted to record something.

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

While Kudo Shinichi was talking, he had already followed the officer into the room.

Shu Yunwen couldn't be bothered to pay them any mind. He walked off to one side and murmured a Sorcerous Curse. Yamazaki Akiji's soul, which had been hiding in the corner as a cloud of mist, was drawn into Shu Yunwen's hand.

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

A face resembling Yamazaki Akiji's struggled back and forth across the surface of the mist, its expression terrified.

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

At present, he wasn't strong enough to communicate with ghosts. But ghosts had a special form, and newly formed spirits like this one could hear people speaking.

"You were killed by Iwata Daijiro, right?"

Shu Yunwen muttered to himself as Yamazaki Akiji's ghostly face repeatedly nodded.

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

As soon as he finished speaking, Shu Yunwen began chanting a Sorcerous Curse again. A few seconds later, a strange force seemed to emerge from the depths of the soul and envelop Yamazaki Akiji's misty spirit. In a matter of seconds, the cloud of mist seemed to be drawn toward Shu Yunwen. Streams of energy surged from it, entered through Shu Yunwen's nostrils, and flowed toward his brain.

Ghost Sorcery—Judgment!

In the Ghost Sorcerer's legacy, this was an essential spell! Without it, a Ghost Sorcerer's power couldn't grow at all.

"What a strange feeling..."

Two minutes later, Shu Yunwen successfully absorbed Yamazaki Akiji's soul power, and his own strength increased. Of course, this was only an initial absorption. It would take some time to fully refine it.

He looked around. The police still had the area under lockdown.

Shu Yunwen had gotten what he wanted, and couldn't be bothered to stay any longer. He had planned to go outside, hail a taxi, and leave, but the police stopped him. With no other choice, he returned to the lounge and used the villa's telephone to call Kojima Genji's house. He explained that he'd been caught up in a murder case and would probably 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?

As Shu Yunwen stood there, momentarily stunned, Inspector Megure bowed slightly. "Hello, sir. You're Shu Yunwen, correct? Our investigation found that you knew the deceased, Yamazaki Akiji, general manager of Hachiryu Bank, and that you came to Mr. Iwata's home at General Manager Yamazaki's invitation. Is that right? Also, according to Mr. Yamazaki's driver, this item, which was found in Mr. Yamazaki's coat pocket, was something you sold him..."

As he spoke, Inspector Megure took out the "talisman"—the one that was useless—inside an evidence bag.

"Uh..."

Shu Yunwen looked from one person's expression to another, especially Inspector Megure's stern gaze...

Damn it!

They weren't seriously treating him as the murderer, were they?

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

Inspector Megure said, "No. We just need you to assist with the investigation, and answer a few routine questions."

That line... You're absolutely suspecting me, aren't you?

Did you think I watched Detective Conan out of order and wouldn't recognize that old line?

"I'm not the murderer." Shu Yunwen rolled his eyes. "Continuing to question me would just waste your time. Besides, didn't Student Kudo just get here? He'll find the culprit soon enough. There's no need to worry, Inspector Megure..."

Inspector Megure's mouth twitched at that.

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

Was he looking down on the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department?

In his mind, Inspector Megure was holding Shu Yunwen up with one hand and slapping him back and forth. You wanna say that again? Say it again!

Just as Shu Yunwen finished speaking, an annoying voice came from beside him. "Shu-san, if you ask me, you're quite suspicious. I've already spoken with the dead General Manager Yamazaki's driver, and he told me some 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 quite troubled by them. General Manager Yamazaki thought that an evil spirit might be responsible, so he got in touch with you and paid you fifty thousand dollars for a 'talisman'..."

Shu Yunwen turned to look at the speaker. Well, it was Kudo Shinichi, wearing that smug, annoying grin.

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

The officers who had questioned him earlier had only asked about the talisman. They hadn't learned how much it cost.

Fifty thousand dollars for one "talisman" was outrageous!

"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 reason things out normally, the following scenario is quite possible."

"...Your 'talisman' was completely useless, so General Manager Yamazaki thought you'd swindled him. He came to you and demanded his fifty thousand dollars back. You refused, and the two of you started arguing. Then you lost your temper and... did away with General Manager Yamazaki."

Kudo Shinichi spoke with a smug grin, thinking, That ought to scare you to death!

That'll teach you to pretend you can see ghosts!

Beside them, Inspector Megure glared at Shu Yunwen as if he were already convinced of his guilt.

Shu Yunwen pursed his lips. "Student Kudo, we're in the same class, after all. Do you really think this is fun?"

"Huh?" Kudo Shinichi blinked.

The guy hadn't even been scared?

Shu Yunwen immediately followed up, "Have you been to the window ledge?"

"Of course. Carefully examining the crime scene and not overlooking a single detail is essential detective work." Kudo Shinichi replied at once, full of himself.

Shu Yunwen said helplessly, "Since you've examined the scene so carefully, you should be able to tell that the culprit was the owner of this house, Iwata Daijiro, right? Is it really that fun to frame me?"

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

At the same time, Kudo Shinichi was also surprised.

He was basically certain that Iwata Daijiro was the culprit. But there was still one question: Iwata Daijiro's leg was injured. He had come here hoping Inspector Megure could question Iwata Daijiro's private doctor and confirm whether his leg really was hurt...

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... we can't be sure yet!"

Shu Yunwen rolled his eyes again. "Inspector Megure, please have someone investigate the following. As far as I know, there seems to have been a debt between General Manager Yamazaki and Iwata Daijiro. You can also ask Mr. Iwata's private doctor. If my guess is right, Mr. Iwata's leg should have healed some time ago. Also, can I take a look at the crime scene? If necessary, I can explain what happened."

Inspector Megure turned to look at the forensic investigator. After seeing him nod, he said, "All right."

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

After entering 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 lock. That rules out someone entering through the main door. There were no footprints beneath this room either, so the culprit didn't come from outside. It had to be someone inside the villa who knew its layout well. Hmm... in other words, Mr. Iwata Daijiro, as I said."

As he spoke, Shu Yunwen pointed at the room 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. The distance from the corner to this balcony isn't far. Anyone strong enough could make the jump. After entering the room from the balcony, Mr. Iwata killed the victim, tied a piece of wood to the rope, and lowered it down before securing it in place. That let him climb back up the rope. Then he could simply untie it from the other side and retrieve the wood and rope he'd secured here... That's more or less how it happened."

Inspector Megure looked down and spotted scratches on the balcony railing, just as Shu Yunwen had said.

Kudo Shinichi, meanwhile, was dazed, thinking, This guy's so good at pretending to talk to ghosts, but he's incredible. His deduction is almost the same as mine.

Shu Yunwen turned to the villa's butler beside him and asked, "Butler, if I remember correctly, you said strange noises had been coming from the villa at night for the past few days. Those sounds must have come from here, right?"

"Y-yes," the butler stammered.

Shu Yunwen said, "So if I'm not mistaken, Mr. Iwata was rehearsing his murder plan for tonight. The noises must have been from this piece of wood hitting the railing and the wall. Inspector Megure, there should be more than one scratch on the railing, right?"

Inspector Megure nodded. "Yes, that's 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 known that!

Shu Yunwen continued, "As for the evidence, once you confirm that Mr. Iwata's leg is fine, a thorough interrogation should be enough to make him confess. Student Kudo, do you still think I'm the culprit?"

"Well... hahaha..." Kudo Shinichi scratched his head, sweat beading on his forehead. He was a little annoyed.

Seriously, he should have been the one to explain this whole chain of deductions, right?

So which one of them was the detective?

Kudo Shinichi had planned to show off tonight, but a guy who pretended to talk to ghosts had stolen the spotlight.

How irritating! So irritating!

Shu Yunwen sat down on the sofa nearby. About ten minutes later, the officer sent to investigate returned with a report confirming the information. Faced with the facts, 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 to do, Inspector Megure decided to have the car take Shu Yunwen and Kudo Shinichi home first.

Inspector Megure said, "Shu-san, you're quite the great detective—just as good as Student Kudo!"

Shu Yunwen shook his head. "You're too kind, Inspector Megure. I can't compare with Student Kudo. He has real talent, whereas I knew in advance what had happened. Besides, I'm just an exorcist, not a detective."

I've read the original story, after all!

"Huh? You knew in advance?" Inspector Megure asked in surprise. "Who told you, Shu-san?"

"..." Shu Yunwen had no good answer. He couldn't very well tell Inspector Megure and Kudo Shinichi that they were all low-tier characters in an anime, could he?

As he thought about it, Shu Yunwen's mischievous side took over. "...Didn't I say? I'm an exorcist, so naturally, Mr. Yamazaki told me everything!"

The other three people in the car all felt a chill, as if a cold breeze had blown past them.

Yamazaki Akiji? Damn it, how could a dead man talk to you?

"Hahaha... Shu-san, you really do like to joke..." Inspector Megure said with a laugh.

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

"Ah! That's right! I haven't done my homework yet..." Kudo Shinichi said with a miserable look.

After going home that afternoon, he'd gone out to play soccer. He'd gotten home just before dark, rested for a while, and then headed to the Iwata residence...

He'd planned to make a quick appearance and go home to do his homework, but then the murder happened.

"Then you'd better stay up late and finish it when you get home tonight!" Shu Yunwen teased casually.

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

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

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

"Huh?" Inspector Megure froze, staring at Shu Yunwen's middle-aged face...

After Iwata Daijiro confessed, there had been no need to keep investigating Shu Yunwen as a "suspect." Inspector Megure knew only that Shu Yunwen had come from Teitan High School. He hadn't yet had time to look into Shu Yunwen's exact background. But judging by appearances, a middle-aged man like that should obviously be a teacher, shouldn't he?

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 my background. My name is Shu Yunwen, and I'm in Class 2-B at Teitan High School. Sorry for the trouble earlier. Here's my student ID..."

With a squeal of tires, the police car swerved into a very obvious S-shape before straightening out again.

"Y-you really are a high school student?" Inspector Megure asked in disbelief.

This made no scientific sense!

Kudo Shinichi spoke beside him in an especially annoying tone. "Inspector Megure, I told you. He may look like an uncle, but he really is a student!"

Shu Yunwen turned to Kudo Shinichi. "Student Kudo, you'd better watch what you say! You know what my profession is. Aren't you afraid of a curse?"

"Not at all!" Kudo Shinichi replied without hesitation.

Shu Yunwen rolled his eyes. He was sorely tempted to cast a "bad luck follows you" spell on Kudo Shinichi. But on second thought, he let it go. He hadn't yet finished refining the soul power from Yamazaki Akiji inside him, and the power he could use only allowed him to cast one more sorcerer's trick. It wasn't worth wasting it on that guy.

As he thought about it, Shu Yunwen suddenly realized that since Yamazaki had been murdered today, Kudo Shinichi would go to the amusement park with Ran tomorrow and turn into Conan...

"...Student Kudo, I see a black aura between your brows, with dark clouds gathering above your head. Something very bad is going to happen to you tomorrow..." Shu Yunwen said.

Going from a teenager to a little kid all of a sudden definitely wouldn't be a good thing, right?

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.