Chapter Summaries

The Detective Boys told Jiang Xia and Conan that they had smelled decay near a park tree, and Jiang Xia insisted they investigate despite the boys’ attempt to leave. As they reached the tree, Jiang Xia’s Ghosts sensed a faint, puzzling Ghost Fetus nearby, while Conan began to suspect Jiang Xia’s presence meant another case was coming.

• Yoshida Ayumi told Jiang Xia and Conan that the Detective Boys had smelled something like a decaying corpse while picnicking near a park.
• Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko and Kojima Genta tried to dismiss the smell as a false alarm and leave, but Jiang Xia picked them up and insisted on checking the park.
• On the way to the park, Jiang Xia’s Ghosts sensed a faint aura of a Ghost Fetus nearby, though Jiang Xia could not detect it himself.
• Ayumi pointed out the tree where they had smelled the decay, and Conan found no obvious place to hide a body nearby.
• Conan reconsidered his dismissal of the children’s report when he remembered that Jiang Xia had been present during every occasion he had encountered multiple cases in a day.

Jiang Xia discovered a dead cat in a tree and encountered its ghost, which recognized him and eagerly rubbed against his hand. He realized the Cat Ghost was the Siamese that had once belonged to Branch Manager Masuo’s family.

• Conan wondered whether Jiang Xia’s sudden run of cases had a supernatural cause, then reminded himself to believe in science.
• Jiang Xia climbed into the tree and found a dead cat among the branches, with a small ghost hiding beneath it.
• The Cat Ghost escaped Jiang Xia’s grasp and attacked Mist Tengu before Mist Tengu caught it and brought it to Jiang Xia.
• The Cat Ghost calmed down and rubbed against Jiang Xia, who recognized it as the Siamese he had once been asked to find for Mrs. Masuo.
• Jiang Xia recalled that Mrs. Masuo had died, Branch Manager Masuo had gone to prison, and their niece had later adopted the cat.

Jiang Xia found the dead cat in the tree and discovered that its ghost had joined him. After the Detective Boys identified the cat as belonging to someone named Masuo, they described a suspicious masked person they had seen nearby, whom Jiang Xia recognized as the driver he had recently followed.

• Jiang Xia kept the Cat Ghost restrained by Mist Tengu and examined the cat's corpse in the tree.
• Jiang Xia brought the dead cat down, and Haibara Ai recognized the name Masuo on its tag.
• The Detective Boys grew angry about the cat's death, while the Cat Ghost meowed in agreement.
• Yoshida Ayumi told Jiang Xia and the others about a hooded person wearing a mask and sunglasses whom the children had seen while fishing.
• Conan noted that the cat had been dead for a while, and Jiang Xia connected the description to the driver he had recently followed.

Jiang Xia and the children investigated a cat that had been beaten to death, and Matsuda Jinpei found evidence suggesting a person had been killed nearby. Jiang Xia planned to return the cat to its owner before following the suspicious driver’s trail, while his new subordinate Okiya Subaru still had not replied.

• Jiang Xia recalled the suspicious driver’s strong killing intent and suspected the driver had returned to clean up after a murder.
• Matsuda Jinpei pointed out bloodstains and a branch with cat fur near a park bench, leading Jiang Xia to suspect someone had killed a person and moved the body.
• Jiang Xia checked the Transmitter’s route and noticed Okiya Subaru had not replied to his message.
• Jiang Xia decided to take the tagged cat’s body to its owner, hoping to lure the cat’s Ghost home after solving the case.
• Jiang Xia and the children found the address on the cat’s tag, and he returned with a dark gift box to carry the body.

Jiang Xia left the returned cat at its owner’s home and set out to collect an item, with Haibara Ai and Conan following him. Their plans changed when they encountered a crime scene, where Sato Miwako recruited Jiang Xia to help with the investigation.

• Jiang Xia left the cat and his business card at Masuo's home, then reviewed the route of the car linked to the suspicious person.
• Jiang Xia planned to collect a sculpture for his boss before investigating the suspicious person, while the Detective Boys seized the chance to leave him.
• Haibara Ai and Conan followed Jiang Xia, though Haibara Ai hoped the outing would be safe and Conan wanted to observe Amuro Tooru.
• Jiang Xia, Haibara Ai, and Conan diverted to a crime scene at the Young Master Pavilion restaurant after hearing police sirens.
• Sato Miwako recognized Jiang Xia and decided to bring him into the investigation.

Jiang Xia arrived at Young Master Pavilion and examined the body of an employee found stabbed in Sanshiro Pond. As the inn’s costumed staff gathered, the investigation focused on the people connected to its Natsume Soseki theme.

• Jiang Xia entered the courtyard with Officer Sato, while Conan and Haibara Ai also slipped past the police tape.
• Haibara Ai noticed the victim’s yellow-and-pink plaid shirt matched fibers found on a dead cat, and wondered whether the incidents were connected.
• Officer Sato told Jiang Xia that Akazawa Zenichi had found the body and that police had not yet located the murder weapon.
• Conan and Jiang Xia watched as the inn’s employees arrived in eccentric costumes and reacted theatrically to the victim’s death.
• Haibara Ai and Jiang Xia recognized that Young Master Pavilion was themed around Natsume Soseki’s novels and identified the victim as a character called Laoyang.

Jiang Xia and Officer Sato investigated the death of Laoyang at a restaurant where employees acted out characters from a novel. The employees all had possible motives, and Jiang Xia continued gathering clues while keeping Haibara Ai calm about a clue involving a cat.

• After the employees discovered Laoyang's body, Officer Sato brought them in for questioning while Conan tried to eavesdrop.
• Haibara Ai asked Jiang Xia why he had not told the police about the cat's claws, and he said he wanted to gather clues before sharing them.
• Jiang Xia examined the courtyard and body, then joined Sato, who identified the store manager as a suspect because he had been Laoyang's romantic rival and had found the body.
• The store manager denied killing Laoyang, while Jiang Xia studied him and did not seem convinced by the case against him.
• Conan asked Madonna about the rivalry, and she explained that the employees stayed in character even when no customers were present.
• Sato told Jiang Xia that the whole staff had motives because Laoyang had been strict and could fire employees.

Jiang Xia identified the perfume-scented murderer among the restaurant staff and realized the killer still intended to murder someone else. He questioned Yoshikawa Gozo, whose outburst revealed his resentment toward Laoyang, then left the room with Conan and Haibara Ai.

• Sato Miwako received the autopsy report and let Jiang Xia question the three restaurant workers without alibis before she interviewed them.
• Jiang Xia connected the murderer's route to the restaurant and recognized the perfume-scented Killing Intent clinging to one of the workers, along with a Shikigami attached to his leg.
• Jiang Xia, Conan, and Haibara Ai entered Yoshikawa Gozo's room to ask about Laoyang.
• Yoshikawa Gozo explained that Laoyang had assigned him the role of Lackey and repeatedly scolded him for not acting the part.
• Yoshikawa Gozo became furious and punched through the wooden floor, so Jiang Xia shielded Haibara Ai from splinters and ushered the group out.

Jiang Xia, Conan, and Haibara Ai questioned the remaining suspects in Laoyang’s murder, finding no clear evidence against the Young Master or Porcupine. They left after Porcupine broke down over being denied the role of Madonna, while the investigation remained unresolved.

• Haibara Ai and Conan discussed whether the lackey could have killed Laoyang, and Jiang Xia secretly pocketed the Killing Intent the man had dropped.
• Shima Rokusuke told Jiang Xia, Conan, and Haibara Ai that he resented Laoyang for threatening to replace him as the Young Master, but denied killing him.
• Conan prepared his Stun-Gun Wristwatch before Jiang Xia opened the final suspect’s door.
• Porcupine told the three that he prayed Laoyang would stop casting him as Porcupine because he wanted to play Madonna, then burst into tears.
• Jiang Xia hurried Conan and Haibara Ai out of the room, and Haibara Ai remarked that two of the suspects seemed mentally unstable.

Jiang Xia questioned the restaurant employees and developed a general idea of who killed Laoyang, though he had not yet found evidence. He joined Sato Miwako, Conan, and Haibara Ai in her car and proposed setting a trap that night, revealing that the body had been moved from the real crime scene.

• Grandma Kiyo said the employees disliked Laoyang and explained that Madonna had taken the job to honor her late sister.
• Madonna described her sister’s love of Natsume Soseki’s Botchan, while Porcupine complained that Laoyang favored her.
• Jiang Xia told Sato Miwako he had no leads, but stayed at the scene instead of going home.
• Jiang Xia got into Sato Miwako’s car with Conan and Haibara Ai as the officers prepared to leave.
• Jiang Xia said he had a general idea of the killer’s identity and suggested luring the killer into a trap that night.
• Sato Miwako realized Jiang Xia believed the body had been moved from the real primary crime scene.

Jiang Xia told Sato Miwako that the wetland park was likely the real crime scene and predicted the killer would try to make Akazawa appear guilty. That night, Madonna was caught sneaking into Akazawa's room and striking what she thought was a sleeping person.

• Jiang Xia showed Sato Miwako fibers found on a cat's claws and explained why they suggested the victim, cat, and killer had been together in the wetland park.
• Jiang Xia reasoned that the killer had moved the body to Young Master Pavilion to frame Akazawa and might next try to make him appear to commit suicide.
• Madonna slipped into Akazawa's room at night and swung a Hand Chop at the figure beneath the covers.
• The figure rolled away, the lights came on, and Sato Miwako and the others revealed they had been waiting for Madonna.
• Sato Miwako found a large insulated box Madonna had left in the corridor and asked whether it was a murder weapon.

Jiang Xia and Conan exposed Madonna as the murderer after she tried to use the store manager to escape suspicion. Madonna confessed that she had planned to kill the manager to avenge her sister, and the police took her away.

• Madonna tried to lean toward the store manager for help, but Jiang Xia stopped her and Conan emerged from beneath the quilt.
• Conan searched Madonna's bag and found a bloodstained kitchen knife wrapped in plastic.
• Jiang Xia explained that Madonna's alibi failed because she had drugged Grandma Kiyo and cleaned the murder scene in the park.
• Madonna confessed that she had killed the clerk and planned to kill the store manager because she blamed him and Laoyang for her sister's fatal brain hemorrhage.
• The police arrested Madonna, and Jiang Xia waited for the Ghosts to collect the Killing Intent she left behind.

After solving Madonna’s murder plot, Jiang Xia returned home and used his blood to contract a new cat Ghost. He wondered what kind of puppet the cat Ghost would become, but dismissed the unsettling possibility of a cat-headed human.

• Jiang Xia and Haibara Ai left after Madonna’s plan was exposed and the perfume-scented Killing Intent had been collected.
• Jiang Xia arranged to supplement his statement with Sato Miwako, then went home and found Okiya Subaru’s excessively formal email saying he had received his orders.
• Jiang Xia pricked his Pattern Seal and contracted the cat Ghost, which eagerly leapt into his blood droplet.
• The cat Ghost’s Pattern Seal formed as a medium-sized z on its light-colored fur, and Jiang Xia worried that it might attract attention as a puppet.
• Jiang Xia imagined a cat-faced human puppet, then shook off the thought.

Jiang Xia turned a Siamese cat’s Ghost Fetus into a black cat puppet and discovered it could transform into a leopard. After bringing it home, he possessed the puppet and struggled to coordinate its four legs and tail.

• Jiang Xia fused the cat with Shikigami to create a black cat puppet whose Pattern Seal was hidden by its fur.
• Jiang Xia discovered that the cat puppet’s skill let it grow to leopard size, and he tested the ability at an empty construction site.
• Jiang Xia found that maintaining the cat puppet used very little Killing Intent, making it useful for travel and as a Persona.
• Jiang Xia possessed the cat puppet at home, tried to find a mirror, and tumbled onto the carpet when its legs and tail tangled.

Jiang Xia tried out his new black cat persona and went to show it to Haibara Ai, but found her asleep. The next morning, he marked the cat’s paw with a distinctive “z” and entered Professor Agasa’s House, where Professor Agasa mistook him for a stray and put him in a cage.

• Jiang Xia adjusted to walking as a cat, admired his reflection, and slipped out to visit Professor Agasa's House.
• Jiang Xia found Haibara Ai asleep and left without waking her.
• The next morning, Jiang Xia drew a “z” Pattern Seal on the cat’s paw and possessed the cat puppet.
• Jiang Xia entered Professor Agasa's House, where Professor Agasa picked him up and put him in an empty cat cage.

Jiang Xia escaped Professor Agasa’s cat cage in his new Black Cat Persona and approached Haibara Ai. Haibara mistook the cat for a stray she might adopt, then recognized Anonymous’s tattoo on its paw and realized she had kissed an apparent member of Anonymous.

• Professor Agasa locked Jiang Xia’s Black Cat Persona in a cage and left, while the Cow Cat in the neighboring cage watched.
• Jiang Xia squeezed through the cage bars and teased the Cow Cat before heading toward Haibara Ai’s room.
• Haibara Ai found the Black Cat by her ankle, checked that it was not one of the Delinquents’ cats, and wondered if it needed a home.
• Haibara Ai kissed the cat’s paw, then noticed the familiar ornate z tattoo on its pad.
• Haibara Ai recognized the mark as Anonymous’s tattoo and froze, realizing she had kissed someone who might be an official member.

Haibara Ai examined Anonymous's black cat and decided she could not keep it, then fed it while waiting for Jiang Xia. When Jiang Xia arrived, the cat eagerly rubbed against him, leaving Haibara wondering again about his connection to Anonymous.

• Haibara Ai cautiously inspected the cat's Pattern Seal and realized the black cat belonged to someone in Anonymous, so she could not take it home.
• Haibara Ai prepared breakfast for herself and the cat, interpreting its impatient behavior as a request to hurry.
• Jiang Xia entered after greeting Professor Agasa, whose face was black with soot, and sat down to wait for breakfast.
• The cat ran to Jiang Xia and rubbed against him more eagerly than it had with Haibara Ai.
• Haibara Ai wondered whether Jiang Xia belonged to Anonymous, but recalled that people had been rescued when he was absent and that other members' Pattern Seals were conspicuous.

Haibara Ai suspected Jiang Xia might be hiding a tattoo beneath his wrist guard, but kept her thoughts to herself. Meanwhile, Akai Shuichi met with Okiya Subaru to discuss the organization mission he had been assigned, leaving them to consider how to proceed.

• Haibara Ai noticed Jiang Xia's wrist guard and wondered if it concealed his tattoo, but she chose not to question him.
• Jiang Xia returned home, organized his belongings, and checked his phone about Okiya Subaru's situation.
• Okiya Subaru received a mission to make Mian Guan Yi Yi, president of Dongyuan Precision Machinery Co., Ltd., disappear before a board meeting.
• Akai Shuichi told Okiya Subaru that the mission did not appear to be a trap and said he had found no signs of surveillance nearby.

Okiya Subaru reluctantly accepted a mission to keep Mian Guan Yi Yi away from company affairs, while Akai Shuichi advised him to avoid killing and offered help. Subaru began surveilling Mian Guan Yi Yi’s home, still unsure whether Uzo had assigned the mission as a test.

• Okiya Subaru agreed to take the mission because his family owed Akai Shuichi’s father, though he worried about killing someone and jeopardizing his witness protection application.
• Akai Shuichi suggested Subaru steal Mian Guan Yi Yi’s private information or cause an accident, and offered to help after they determined whether Uzo’s assignment was a deliberate test.
• Okiya Subaru warned Akai Shuichi to stay away from the surveillance area because the Organization had extensive records on him, then left to begin the mission.
• Okiya Subaru watched Mian Guan Yi Yi’s villa from a run-down café while searching for information on his laptop.

Okiya Subaru considered how difficult it would be to threaten Mian Guan Yi Yi and worried about Akai Shuichi’s tangled romantic history before a young man in black confronted him at a café. The man identified himself as Uzo, Okiya’s superior in the Organization, leaving Okiya stunned by how openly and unexpectedly the Cadre had appeared.

• Okiya Subaru concluded that Mian Guan Yi Yi’s old phone and unmarried status made him a poor target for blackmail.
• Okiya Subaru considered the dangers Akai Shuichi faced because of his past relationships, then reasoned that Akai was strong enough to resist ordinary attackers.
• A black-haired young man in a black suit sat across from Okiya Subaru in a mostly empty café, and Okiya mistook him for a salesman or con artist.
• The young man grabbed Okiya Subaru and told him to greet his superior.
• Okiya Subaru realized the young man was Uzo, an Organization Cadre, and was shocked that Uzo had revealed himself so casually.