Luxury Hotel Murder Case ④

Inside the Metropolitan Police Department, the atmosphere was tense and grave. Inspector Megure had just received a report and immediately led his men to the scene. The moment he stepped inside, he spotted Kogoro Mouri's familiar face.

"Mouri, I'm not saying this to be mean, but can you stop causing trouble everywhere you go? Go pray at a temple sometime and get rid of that bad luck clinging to you." Inspector Megure spoke helplessly, his face as dark as the bottom of a pot.

Kogoro Mouri laughed awkwardly. "Haha! Inspector Megure, that's not right at all! It's because there's a case that needs the world-famous detective Kogoro Mouri to handle it!"

Ran Mouri could not help letting out a soft sigh. She was utterly speechless at Kogoro Mouri's behavior. At that moment, Ai Haibara asked curiously, "Ran, is your dad always like this?"

Ran blushed slightly and answered in a low voice, "Mm... yeah, Xiao Ai. I really wish I didn't know him. It's so embarrassing. Luckily A Yu isn't here. If he saw this, I'd probably want to die."

As they talked, they entered the crime scene and began investigating the case.

When they arrived at the scene, Conan was crouching beside the victim, frowning as he thought hard. The floor was covered with footprints from his pacing back and forth. Two large vein marks instantly popped up on Kogoro Mouri's forehead. Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! He gave Conan's head a brutal pounding, raising a string of bumps on it. Then, without the slightest mercy, he flung the head-clutching Conan away.

"Haha, brat, you had that coming!" Sonoko Suzuki laughed gleefully from the side.

Damn old hag! Conan cursed inwardly, but he did not dare say it aloud. He could only rub his head while continuing to think about the case before him.

He carefully examined the victim and analyzed, "The victim was clearly killed by having his throat slit. Judging from the wound, the murderer must be someone accustomed to using knives to make such a precise, fatal cut. And from the victim's expression before death, it's obvious that he knew the murderer."

Conan's sharp gaze swept over the surroundings as he tried to find more clues.

Just then, a figure suddenly appeared before Conan, drawing his attention. It was the head chef, standing there with an innocent expression as though he were defending himself. Meanwhile, Inspector Megure was sternly questioning his alibi.

The head chef calmly stated that he had been talking with Kogoro Mouri at the time and had no opportunity to kill anyone.

Conan frowned as he studied the head chef seriously. As a detective, his sixth sense told him that there was definitely something wrong with this man. However, the troublesome part was that the head chef truly had a perfect alibi, which left Conan in a difficult position.

After pondering for a moment, Conan decided to search for clues from another angle. He turned and walked toward the front desk, politely asking the pretty receptionist, "Excuse me, were you the one who accompanied Uncle Mouri to the kitchen at the time?"

The receptionist replied with a smile, "Yes!"

Conan pressed on, "Then, did you notice anything unusual or out of place at that time?"

The receptionist thought for a moment, then shook her head. "Hmm... I don't think there was anything particularly unusual."

"If there was anything strange, it would be that the head chef disappeared for a while," the receptionist said as she carefully recalled the events.

The moment Conan heard that, his eyes lit up. He immediately asked, "For a while? Exactly how long?"

The receptionist thought for a moment before answering, "About a minute, I think. I remember an apprentice accidentally knocked over a dish prepared for a customer, but strangely, the head chef didn't come out to handle it like he usually did. Since that almost never happens, I remember that period especially clearly."