Yone Nanao nodded and shuffled into the kitchen.
The others split up to find dry clothes and towels, trying to shake off the cold rain that had soaked them.
Jiangxia Tongzhi glanced at the kitchen door, looking a little worried — in his memory, Ichieda did something suspicious whenever coffee was brewing.
The key to Ichieda Takashi's murder method was setting up a timed killing device to create an alibi.
Earlier, Ichieda Takashi had secretly knocked out Yotsui Reika, taped her to the bathtub, and then used a sprinkler to slowly fill it with water. That way, Reika would drown at a precise time — her nose and mouth submerged — while Ichieda Takashi was off creating an ironclad alibi by hanging out with witnesses.
But Ichieda Takashi wasn't satisfied with just one "death by drowning" case. He figured if there was only one example, it might not sound convincing enough.
So he decided to create a second case — he planned to spike a cup of coffee, drug some random person, and shove their unlucky head under water once.
That way, the victim could give live testimony about "being drowned by someone pressing their head into water." Two drownings: one dead, one alive — case closed, suspicion averted.
Jiangxia Tongzhi thought about Ichieda's trick and frowned.
Although it was helpful for Ichieda Takashi's cover to have someone almost drowned for testimony... nearly drowning someone wasn't exactly a controlled science.
Ichieda Takashi wasn't an experienced murderer — if he panicked even a little, the soaked "survivor" could actually die. Choking is surprisingly fast.
Jiangxia quickly did the math: there were nine people here. Excluding Ichieda Takashi, who obviously knew which coffee was spiked, there were eight potential victims left.
Among those eight, half were important assets — Mouri Ran, Conan, Suzuki Sonoko... and himself. The odds of one of them getting picked were way too high for comfort.
Jiangxia mulled it over. Letting any of his precious classmates, blessed with "incident physique," get waterboarded? Absolutely not. And obviously, endangering his own precious body was even less acceptable.
Luckily, the solution was easy: with the help of his shikigami puppets, Jiangxia could easily spot which cup was poisoned. There was only one spiked cup, after all.
In other words, as long as one person heroically "took the cup," everyone else would be safe.
As for who would act as the tool person... Jiangxia decided his immortal puppets were perfect for the job.
Right now, the coffee in the kitchen wasn't ready yet. Still plenty of time to get things in place.
Thinking this, Jiangxia leaned back on the sofa, picked a quiet corner, and casually scattered his shikigami, getting them ready to steal the poisoned cup when the moment came.
After Conan went to the bathroom, he bumped into Masahiro, who handed him a few towels to dry off.
He returned to the dining room, passing out towels to the others. But when he reached Jiangxia, Conan looked up—and froze.
There was Jiangxia again, lost in space, dead-eyed, soul completely evacuated.
The body by the pool earlier must have really gotten to him. Was it because the victim was a man this time? Was it easier for Jiangxia to emotionally connect, compared to last time when a black-haired woman died in the bathroom?
Conan sighed internally.
Destroyed cars, water, explosions… these were practically daily specials in Tokyo's murder cases. If Jiangxia shut down every time, it was going to be a problem.
Thinking about it, Conan remembered an old saying: when God opens a door, he closes a window.
It seemed even God, facing the unstoppable detective monster that was Jiangxia, could only nerf him through motion sickness and emotional breakdowns...
...Wait a minute. If that was true, then he, Kudou Shinichi, who had been reduced to a child for being too good at reasoning, was also sanctioned by the will of God?
...Which meant that in God's eyes, Kudou Shinichi and Jiangxia were basically the same level of threat?
Conan had a sudden, bizarre epiphany — and weirdly, his mood lifted.
One second later, he facepalmed.
What was he doing, seriously entertaining theological conspiracy theories...
Conan shook off the ridiculous thoughts and got back to work.
Originally, he planned to help Jiangxia dry off by toweling his hair. But when he compared their heights... yeah, no chance.
Giving up instantly, Conan turned to Mouri Ran and Suzuki Sonoko. After crossing out Mouri Ran (who was already busy), he headed for Sonoko to hand her a towel and ask for backup.
But at that moment, Suzuki Sonoko let out a squeal.
Everyone jumped, following her gaze — and spotted a child standing awkwardly in the hallway.
The kid was half-hidden behind a tall potted plant, peeking out like he wanted to come over but didn't dare.
Seeing him clearly, everyone finally understood — Suzuki Sonoko's shriek wasn't fear, it was sheer excitement.
...Which was fair. The kid didn't look like a creepy ghost doll from horror stories — he was downright adorable, the type that instantly boosted everyone's "favorable impression" stats.
In the warm, fuzzy atmosphere, the only one who stayed frozen was Conan.
Because he recognized that kid immediately: not a cute child. A suspected adult shrunk down into child form! A classic fake child move!
Conan frantically wanted to warn Mouri Ran and Suzuki Sonoko not to let their guard down.
But before he could even open his mouth, whoosh — a gust of wind.
By the time Conan blinked, Mouri Ran and Suzuki Sonoko had already teleported to the kid's side, crouching and cooing, trying to pick him up.
Originally, they'd been worried about scaring him and had decided not to reach out immediately. But somehow, once they got close to Jiangxia's puppet body, their hands moved on autopilot.
Conan's expression collapsed: "Don't pick him up, he—"
...is an adult!!
...But he couldn't say that out loud.
If he blurted that out, his own identity would instantly be exposed too.
The words burned on Conan's tongue — and he could only swallow them back down, feeling like he'd just taken psychic damage.
*Goal #1: Top 200 fanfics published within the last 31 - 90 days by POWER STONES.
Progress: 51/60(approx) for 10 BONUS CHAPTERS
Goal #2: One BONUS CHAPTER per review for the first 10 REVIEWS.
Progress:2/10*