Episode 199: The Enemy from Ten Years Ago, Kogoro's Shadow?
『 Kogoro Mouri, Ran Mouri, and Conan Edogawa reappeared on the screen, facing two doctors who had just stepped out of the operating room.
Ran Mouri couldn't wait and asked urgently, "How is my mom?" 』
『 .....』
〜Dimensional livestream, Chat Room〜
[ Ran Mouri (Detective Conan): "Mom?" ]
[ Ran Mouri (Detective Conan): "What happened to Mom?" ]
[ Kogoro Mouri: "That woman, it's impossible for her to get hurt. She's incredibly strong-willed." ]
[ Ran Mouri (Detective Conan): "Dad!" ]
[ Shinomiya Kaguya (Love Is War): "Regardless, a place like a hospital is never a good place. Coming here for no reason is indeed quite inappropriate." ]
[ Eri Kisaki (Detective Conan): "..." ]
[ .....]
『 One of the doctors easily took off his sterile cap, smiling comfortingly, "Don't worry, we have completely cleared the toxins from her stomach. Her vital signs are currently stable."
Hearing this, Ran Mouri and Kogoro Mouri obviously breathed a sigh of relief.
"Was it really food poisoning?"
The camera angle switched. Ninzaburo Shiratori and others were gathered not far from Kogoro Mouri. Holding his police notebook, he was full of doubts.
"Hmm, I suspect it might be a poison like pesticide."
The doors to the operating room suddenly opened, and the medical team slowly wheeled a hospital bed out. Lying on the bed was a lady with an outstanding temperament.
"Mom!" Ran Mouri's eyes lit up instantly, and she hurriedly stepped forward.
"Ran." The woman lying on the bed looked at her daughter, a gentle smile rippling at the corners of her mouth.
"Eri…" A trace of awkwardness flashed across Kogoro Mouri's face, immediately replaced by deep concern and tenderness.
"Oh? You actually came too?" Eri Kisaki saw Kogoro Mouri and chuckled with a hint of teasing.
"Are you alright? Auntie!" Conan stood on his tiptoes, tightly gripping the edge of the bed to ask.
"Conan is here too." Eri Kisaki smiled even more warmly. "Thank you for your concern, I'm fine."
"For safety reasons, it is better to stay in the hospital for observation tonight," a doctor on the side interjected.
"Okay, I'll leave everything to you."
Watching Eri Kisaki being pushed away, Kogoro Mouri's face turned gloomy. He lowered his head in thought, anger faintly appearing.
"First, Inspector Megure had an accident, and now it's Eri. How can this be just a coincidence?"
"Excuse me, did she suddenly feel unwell only after eating the chocolate?" Ninzaburo Shiratori asked other colleagues who were responsible for investigating the box of chocolates.
"That's right. It is said that the item was placed directly in the mailbox of her office."
The colleague explained while displaying the evidence bag in his hand.
"Zigoba Chocolate!? On top!? And a paper flower!?"
Inside the evidence bag, sandwiched within the chocolate packaging, was a pure white paper flower.
Ninzaburo Shiratori's expression turned serious. He turned his gaze to Kogoro Mouri, his tone heavy, "Could it be the work of the same culprit?"
Conan, listening on the side, was stunned and fell into deep thought again.
" Strange, that flower… where is it from!? Where have I seen it!? " 』
『 .....』
〜Dimensional livestream, Chat Room〜
[ Ran Mouri (Detective Conan): "Who exactly is that hateful guy? Why attack my mother?" ]
[ Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece): "Food poisoning, huh." ]
[ Keqing (Genshin Impact): "Something is wrong. This object seems to be left by the previous culprit." ]
[ Seven (Scissor Seven): "That's not right, did they just poison her directly?" ]
[ Paimon (Genshin Impact): "So scary, Paimon doesn't dare to eat random things anymore." ]
[ Lumine (Genshin Impact): "Then put down the thing in your hand before you speak." ]
[ Paimon (Genshin Impact): "Hehehe." ]
[ .....]
『 The scene shifted, and a magnificent mansion came into view.
"Speaking of which, for someone as cautious as her, how could she swallow poisonous chocolate for no reason?"
In the picture, Professor Agasa, who had appeared earlier, was fiddling with Conan's skateboard with a screwdriver. Hearing Conan's question from the side, his face was full of confusion.
"Because at dinner, Uncle Kogoro made Ran's mother unhappy and left. She might have thought it was a gift from Uncle to apologize." Conan said while examining a photo. The rapier and paper flower in the photo were the items left behind from the previous case.
"Oh, so that's how it is…" Professor Agasa suddenly realized, then announced, "Alright, done!"
Just then, suddenly—
"CLANG—!"
The sharp sound of shattering glass rang out abruptly!
Professor Agasa and Conan Edogawa looked up in surprise. They were in the basement laboratory of Professor Agasa's house, and the sound came from upstairs.
The two were first stunned, then quickly ran out of the laboratory, sprinting towards the main entrance.
When they reached the door, they saw the glass of the front door shattered all over the ground.
Professor Agasa looked displeased: "Who is it! What kind of prank is this!"
However, Conan looked through the hole in the broken door and saw a fully equipped motorcyclist outside, holding some unidentified object, poised to strike!
"Professor Agasa! Don't open the door!"
Seeing the Professor about to open the door to check, Conan hurriedly shouted to stop him.
But… it was too late.
The door had opened. The moment Professor Agasa turned his head in confusion—
Whoosh!
A cold light shot straight at Professor Agasa's back!
"AHHHHHHH!!" Professor Agasa screamed, his back was hit!
These young folks, with no sense of martial ethics, launch a sneaky attack, tricking me, a man in his fifties!
That arrow ruthlessly penetrated Professor Agasa's clothes, and the pain caused him to fall to the ground instantly.
"PROFESSOR!!"
Seeing this, Conan rushed up to check.
Seeing this, the attacker immediately retracted the weapon, started the motorcycle, and prepared to flee.
"I'm fine! Go chase him!" Professor Agasa cried out urgently upon hearing the sound of the motorcycle engine starting.
"But…"
Conan was more worried about Professor Agasa's safety.
Professor Agasa roared firmly, "Go!"
Hearing this, Conan had no choice but to pick up his skateboard and chase after him.
Although he accelerated with all his might, the speed of the skateboard was still hard-pressed to catch up with the motorcycle's taillights.
In the end, the criminal vanished without a trace into the crowd.
Conan Edogawa helplessly skated back to Professor Agasa's house, only to discover a cardboard swordsman model at the door.
Conan's eyes widened. He stared at this object, a thoughtful expression gradually appearing on his face.
" I see… SO THAT'S WHAT IT IS!!! " 』
『 .....』
〜Dimensional livestream, Chat Room〜
[ Professor Agasa (Detective Conan): "!!! Young people these days seem to lack martial ethics!" ]
[ Professor Agasa (Detective Conan): "Sneak attacking an old man like me!" ]
[ Haibara Ai (Detective Conan): "Even Professor Agasa was…" ]
[ Miyamizu Mitsuha (Your Name): "Is this an assassination?" ]
[ Miyamizu Mitsuha (Your Name): "In the previous hint, it also said there would be several people this time." ]
[ Conan Edogawa (Detective Conan): "…" ]
[ Conan Edogawa (Detective Conan): "To actually harm so many people, I will definitely bring him to justice!" ]
[ Ran Mouri (Detective Conan): "….." ]
[ .....]
『 The video playback continued, and the scene shifted to Beika Central Hospital—exactly where Professor Agasa was recuperating.
In Professor Agasa's ward, Kogoro Mouri, Ran Mouri, and Ninzaburo Shiratori were gathered together. And Conan, like a little detective, stood in front of the three of them, ready to reveal the answer.
"Playing cards?!" Kogoro Mouri looked at Conan with a confused face and blurted out.
"That's right. The culprit planned this series of cases based on the patterns of playing cards." Conan explained clearly, "The first one attacked was Inspector Megure. Megure's Japanese pronunciation is close to 13 [十三], which corresponds exactly to the King of Spades, the number 13."
Conan displayed a King of Spades card as he spoke and continued, "Look, the King on this card holds a sharp sword, exactly the same as the sword left at the crime scene."
Kogoro Mouri took the playing card, compared it with the photo, and fell into deep thought.
Conan changed the subject: "Next is Ran-neechan's mother, Eri Kisaki. Kisaki [妃] means Queen, so that is the Queen of Spades, number 12."
"The flower in the Queen's hand is simply identical to the decorative flower on that chocolate box." Ran took the card and photo, looked closely, and couldn't help but exclaim, "Oh my! It really is exactly the same!"
Ninzaburo Shiratori looked at Conan with a bewildered face: "But what is the connection between Professor Agasa and the number 11?"
Conan smiled slightly and answered, "In Professor Agasa's name, the Japanese pronunciation of 'Hiroshi'[博士]can be split into 'Juu[十]' ten and 'Ichi[一]'one, which just represents the number 11, thus corresponding to the Jack of Spades."
"The Jack of Spades symbolizes a servant or a soldier, and the sword in his hand naturally matches the soldier's sword found at the scene."
After listening to Conan's analysis, Kogoro Mouri and Ninzaburo Shiratori both bent down to examine the playing card, then looked at the soldier's sword in the evidence bag nearby, their expressions grave.
"It is indeed consistent, there is no doubt." Kogoro Mouri affirmed. 』
『 .....』
〜Dimensional livestream, Chat Room〜
[ Chika Fujiwara (Love Is War): "Ara, it's actually so complicated." ]
[ Chika Fujiwara (Love Is War): "That culprit actually used such a method and even left hints. How arrogant." ]
[ Kogoro Mouri (Detective Conan): "Who exactly is that guy? To dare be so arrogant in front of this detective. Just watch me bring him directly to justice!" ]
[ Ran Mouri (Detective Conan): ".…." ]
[ Conan Edogawa (Detective Conan): "..." ]
[ Kazuma Kenzaki (Kamen Rider): "Using cards as a basis for his murders, huh." ]
[ .....]
『 Ran Mouri was still completely confused: "But why did he use playing cards? And why did he choose the Spade suit…" Her train of thought obviously couldn't keep up with this complex rhythm of deduction.
Looking at the confusion flickering in Ran Mouri's eyes, just as Conan Edogawa was about to speak to explain, Ninzaburo Shiratori had already beaten him to it: "Spades symbolize death, just as Hearts represent love, Diamonds imply wealth, and Clubs embody happiness."
Kogoro Mouri looked stern and said in a deep voice, "So, this villain wants to use playing cards as a code to secretly… eliminate people whose names contain numbers from one to thirteen one by one?"
Conan remained silent for a moment, then spoke slowly, "Moreover, all these people are inextricably linked to Uncle."
As soon as Conan said this, it was like the clouds parting to reveal the sun; everyone suddenly understood the commonality between the victims.
"But who on earth is the mastermind behind this?!"
Learning that all the victims were actually related to him, Kogoro Mouri's face suddenly became heavy, and a chill penetrated his bones. He found it hardest to endure that his family and friends were being hurt because of him.
"The only current clue is the license plate number of that dirt bike. Unfortunately, it was a stolen vehicle." Ninzaburo Shiratori opened his police notebook and explained.
Unexpectedly, the ward door suddenly opened wide, and Inspector Megure walked in.
"Inspector Megure?!"
Everyone was surprised and even more puzzled—shouldn't he be healing in the hospital?
"Why are you here?" Kogoro Mouri frowned, puzzled by Inspector Megure's behavior of going out regardless of his injuries.
Does his body not matter anymore?
Inspector Megure laughed: "I heard that Lawyer Eri Kisaki and Professor Agasa were also attacked. I couldn't rest easy, so I came specifically to check."
Kogoro Mouri looked displeased: "Your wound hasn't healed yet. Why don't you rest properly at home?"
Inspector Megure laughed loudly: "The wound has been treated, no problem. I heard about it; that villain is probably Jo Murakami, right?"
Hearing this, Kogoro Mouri's face became even more solemn.
"Jo Murakami… so it's him."
Ninzaburo Shiratori was confused for a moment.
"Who is this person?"
Inspector Megure answered: "A single poker game dealer. He was imprisoned ten years ago for murder and was just released from prison a week ago."
Ran Mouri asked curiously, "What is a poker dealer?"
Professor Agasa leaned over and interjected: "It's the role specifically responsible for dealing cards to guests in a poker game."
Inspector Megure nodded, took out a photo, and showed a scene of a man dealing cards at a table, "This is Jo Murakami from ten years ago." 』
『 .....』
〜Dimensional livestream, Chat Room〜
[ Kurosaki Ichigo (Bleach): "You're still deducting over here, but the culprit over there is already confirmed?" ]
[ Rukia Kuchiki (Bleach): "Could the culprit really be this Jo Murakami person???" ]
[ Kogoro Mouri (Detective Conan): "So, it's that guy." ]
[ Ran Mouri (Detective Conan): "Dad, who is that person?" ]
[ Ran Mouri (Detective Conan): "Why attack the people around you? Why attack Mom?" ]
[ Conan Edogawa (Detective Conan): "Exactly, exactly, why?" ]
[ Kogoro Mouri (Detective Conan): "Keep watching, the answer should be coming up." ]
[ .....]
『 Kogoro Mouri kept a straight face and said coldly, "Sure enough, it's him. That's right. Speaking of which, he indeed has enough motive to hate me."
Hearing this, Conan looked blank: "What's going on?"
"Because back then… it was I who personally brought him to justice!"
Kogoro Mouri's words revealed a little-known past!
Ran Mouri felt indignant for her father: "What is this! Isn't it only right for police to catch bad guys?!"
Kogoro Mouri responded slightly awkwardly: "That is true, but…"
Ninzaburo Shiratori chimed in: "I've heard of this case too. I remember after that guy was caught…"
But before he could finish, he was interrupted by Inspector Megure.
"Officer Shiratori! Let's not mention the past anymore!"
Kogoro Mouri was full of confusion: "However, why didn't this Jo Murakami come directly for me? If he really holds a grudge, he should challenge me head-on!"
Inspector Megure speculated: "He wants to torture you slowly, driving you into a desperate situation step by step!"
This analysis was not unreasonable; after all, regarding the psychology of criminals, who can thoroughly understand that darkness?
Conan asked anxiously, "Uncle, among the people you know, is there anyone with the character 'Ten' Ju/Tou in their name?"
"Because the culprit's next target might be this person."
Kogoro Mouri pondered for a moment, and his expression changed drastically: "Miss Towako!"
The scene changed, and everyone split up to act.
Inspector Megure and Kogoro Mouri went to find Towako to ensure her safety.
Ninzaburo Shiratori was responsible for escorting Conan Edogawa and Ran Mouri home.
The camera moved with Conan, recording everything.
In the car, Ran Mouri looked at Ninzaburo Shiratori in the driver's seat and asked curiously, "Officer Shiratori, when you were at the hospital, did you have something you wanted to say?"
Ninzaburo Shiratori was surprised by Ran Mouri's memory. He hesitated for a moment, then spoke: "Yes, regarding Jo Murakami, I believe you could find out even if you investigated."
After finishing, Ninzaburo Shiratori fell into a memory: "Actually, I heard this from a senior…"
The video screen shifted, and the figure of a young Kogoro Mouri appeared on the screen.
Accompanied by Ninzaburo Shiratori's voice, the specific process began to be narrated to everyone watching the video.
" Ten years ago, Mr. Mouri, who was still a police officer at the time, was handling a case together with Inspector Megure. Anyway, with their combined efforts, they caught this murderer, Jo Murakami. "
Facing the desperate attack of Jo Murakami, who had nowhere to run, Kogoro Mouri used a clean and neat shoulder throw to directly knock the opponent unconscious.
" Later, just when they took him to the police station to take his statement, Jo Murakami suddenly made an excuse that he needed to go to the bathroom. "
" Mr. Mouri and Inspector Megure sent a subordinate to take him to the bathroom, while the two of them waited at the door of the interrogation room. "
Eri Kisaki, holding a young Ran Mouri, appeared in the video frame.
" It just so happened at this time, your mother, holding you who were still small, brought Mr. Mouri's clothes to the police station. It was at that moment that the incident occurred. "
Accompanied by Ninzaburo Shiratori's voice, Jo Murakami in the video suddenly rushed out of the BATHROOM!!
He was holding a pistol in his hand!
And the policeman in the bathroom had already fainted.
" Jo Murakami found an opportunity inside the bathroom to attack that policeman and snatched his service pistol. " 』
『 .....』
〜Dimensional livestream, Chat Room〜
[ Ran Mouri (Detective Conan): "Why, I don't have this memory…" ]
[ .....]