"Are you also here to see Uncle Mitsui?" The little kid trotted over to his side in a few quick steps, a pair of bright blue eyes staring at him unblinkingly.
Kisaragi Chiyo lowered her eyes and locked gazes with the child for a few seconds, then reached out and pushed the plate of sweets in front of her toward him.
Would you like some tea?" Kisaragi Chiyo lifted the teacup in her hand, but then quickly dismissed the thought. "But tea is bitter, so it might not be very popular with children. You should just have some sweets instead.
"No.. thank you, big brother." Conan Edogawa had originally intended to refuse, but for some unknown reason, he suddenly changed his mind and reached out to pick up a snack. After taking a bite, Conan suddenly felt that the temperature around the other person seemed a bit too low.
But Conan didn't pay it any mind; after all, there were signs that the temperature was dropping again, since he had just been caught in the rain, it was normal for him to feel a chill.
Thinking this way, Conan's gaze fell upon Kisaragi Chiyo's clothing. Chewing on the snack in his mouth, he thought to himself that she was truly a strange person; although she gave off a somewhat gloomy impression, unexpectedly, she had a quite decent personality toward children.
But if he weren't not a real elementary school student, he probably would have instinctively tried to take a detour the moment he laid eyes on her, after all, she looked like someone who was quite difficult to approach.
“Big brother, you still haven't answered my question?” Conan didn't forget his purpose. He took another bite of the snack and suddenly felt that the taste was quite good; perhaps he could remember the brand name on the packaging and try buying some for Ran with his pocket money next time.
You still remember," Kisaragi Chiyo murmured. "Didn't they say that a child's attention is the easiest to divert?
"It's probably because Conan is a member of the Junior Detective League." The blond young man sat cross-legged in the spot the old lady had occupied previously. Kisaragi Chiyo subconsciously glanced at him and noticed that while the blond man's eye shape was somewhat similar to Hara Kenji's, his iris color was a gentle purplish-gray.
When he smiled, he couldn't help but make people feel a sense of goodwill; he looked completely like a reliable adult.
I haven't introduced myself yet, have I?" The blonde young man smiled at him. "I am Amuro Tooru, a waiter at the Poirot Cafe, a part-time detective, currently working hard as a student under Mr. Mori.
This is little Conan Edogawa," Amuro Tooru said, reaching out to pat Conan's head. "He is a huge Holmes fan.
"I see." Kisaragi Chiyo nodded understandingly; the introduction perfectly explained why this blue-eyed boy possessed such immense curiosity.
One must realize that being a detective is a popular profession, with no restrictions on gender, age, species, or expertise.
I am Kisaragi Chiyo.
I have come to visit on behalf of a friend to retrieve some borrowed books.
"Was it borrowed by Uncle Mitsui?" As if he had heard a keyword, Conan suddenly jumped up and asked Kisaragi Chiyo anxiously.
I don't think so." Kisaragi Chiyo thought for a moment before answering truthfully. "The person who lent the book was actually my friend's grandfather. Judging by the timing and his age, he must have borrowed it from someone of the same generation as the old lady.
"I see.." Upon hearing Kisaragi Chiyo's answer, Conan's expression instantly turned somewhat disappointed.
Noticing this, Kisaragi Chiyo blinked slowly. He lowered his eyelids, his misty gray eyes staring at Conan's somewhat disappointed expression.
Perhaps due to a novelist's keen sense for material, his intuition told him that he could gain inspiration for new material from Conan's mouth.
"You've only just succeeded, now you're abandoning me?" Hara Kenji leaned in quietly from behind, tilting his head as he looked at Kisaragi Chiyo with an intimate tone.
Kisaragi Chiyo paid no mind to the other man's deliberately high-pitched, aggrieved accusation. A faint smile played on her lips as she poured a cup of tea and pressed it into Conan's hands. Of course, she also didn't forget to pour a cup for Amuro Tooru as well.
How about some tea? You'll get tired of just eating sweets, won't you?
Kisaragi Chiyo shifted her posture slightly. She looked at Conan, then at Mr. Amuro, who looked friendly across from her, the silver earring in her hair swayed gently as she turned her head.
The rain is getting even heavier.
The rain poured down heavily, the noisy sound of the rain drifted in from outside the half-open shoji window, sounding like rhythmic drumming.
From the moment the two entered the Japanese-style room, Kisaragi Chiyo noticed that both the large and the small coats had traces of being soaked by rain, which indirectly indicated that neither of them had brought an umbrella.
Since the rain had become heavy, it was only natural that they wouldn't be able to leave for a while.
If you don't mind, could you tell me what has been troubling the two of you?
Perhaps I can provide you two with some other perspectives or clues from an outsider's point of view.
"But if it's something that needs to be kept confidential and cannot be spoken of, that's fine too." Kisaragi Chiyo had not forgotten Amuro Tooru's identity as a detective's apprentice; she figured if it were a client's personal matter, it would naturally be inconvenient for them to reveal it to an outsider like him.
Please forgive my rudeness; it is just the curiosity of a writer.
Kisaragi Chiyo's smile was so gentle and humble that it left no room for criticism.
But seeing the expression on his face, Hara Kenji, who was standing nearby, let out a scoffing laugh. Propping his elbows on the low table and resting his chin in one hand, he looked up at Kisaragi Chiyo, his dark purple eyes gleaming with a hint of mischief.
"Chiyo-chan's smile is imitating mine," Hara Kenji said in a meaningful tone.
He was, of course, more than familiar with his own face; although he rarely observed his own expressions, it didn't stop him from finding Kisaragi Chiyo's smile familiar when she flashed a smile that didn't match her usual personality.
He recognized it almost instantly; it was the same expression he had once shown Kisaragi Chiyo. Even the curve of the smile was nearly identical to his own.
He might not necessarily be a good teacher, but Kisaragi Chiyo is definitely the most worry-free type of student.
Hara Kenji sat with his eyes narrowed, lost in aimless thought.
Suddenly, a bolt of lightning streaked across the rainy sky, a pale flash of light illuminated the room. If the other two people in the room could see Hara Kenji at this moment, they would have noticed that, under the dim and hazy light, the spot where Hara Kenji sat overlapped perfectly with Kisaragi Chiyo's shadow.
They were indistinguishable from one another.
Author's Note:
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Thanks to all the little angels for your collections and kisses, mwah, 0330
Chapter 19
"It's not actually something that can't be said." Amuro Tooru and Conan exchanged a glance, finally decided that, as an adult, Amuro Tooru would be the one to explain the matter to Kisaragi Chiyo.
Uncle Mitsui is a teacher, today the police discovered that one of his students committed suicide at home.
"But it wasn't an ordinary suicide case." Amuro Tooru's tone was very calm; he stared intently into Kisaragi Chiyo's eyes as he spoke, his voice clear and steady.
It wasn't overdose, hanging, or slitting the wrists.. or rather, compared to those, the student's method of suicide was more like a sacrifice.
A sacrifice..
Kisaragi Chiyo couldn't help but frown involuntarily upon hearing that word.
Yes, a sacrifice." Amuro Tooru nodded slightly, reaching out to point toward his own chest. "That student's death pose was very strange; he was kneeling on the ground with his knees together, hands gripping a dagger that was plunged deep into his chest near his heart, with an expression that was incredibly devout and a smile on his lips.
Amuro Tooru was not a stranger to crime scenes, but this bizarre method of suicide, which felt strange in every detail, still made him feel a moment of discomfort.
Near the heart?" Kisaragi Chiyo noted Amuro Tooru's choice of words. "Not a direct stab to the heart?
I think it might be an estimation error." Amuro Tooru lowered his eyes, masking the dark expression in them. "In the public's perception, the heart is located on the left side, but to be more accurate, it should be in the middle of the chest, slightly to the left.
In other words, it's located behind the sternum and between the two lungs, with specifically two-thirds of its volume on the left side of the body's midline and one-third on the right.
"So, the student's true cause of death should be excessive blood loss?" Kisaragi Chiyo asked in a low voice, gripping her teacup tightly.
Yes, that's correct.
According to the police's estimation, the student died from excessive blood loss approximately half an hour after stabbing the dagger into his own chest.
"In other words, if someone had found that student before then, he might have been able to be saved." Amuro Tooru's expression was very serious, but that wasn't the key point he wanted to make.
Besides that, the police also found a book at the scene.
Kisaragi Chiyo repeated with a hint of hesitation in her voice, "A book?"
Yes, a book. A book soaked in blood. There was a book lying right where that student was kneeling.
What kind of book was it?
I don't know." Amuro Tooru shook his head. "That book has no title. It looks like it was privately printed; some of the pages aren't even cut.
Then what does that have to do with Uncle Mitsui?
As for news regarding this matter, we also learned it from the mouth of that student's close friend," Amuro Tooru said, letting out a soft sigh as he spoke. "According to the deceased's friend, the deceased's entire family had the habit of believing in the Church of Hope.
"Church of Hope?" Kisaragi Chiyo subconsciously rubbed the teacup in her hands, searching her memory for any information regarding this church.
However, even though she had never heard of this church, the name alone didn't sound particularly legitimate.
It's normal not to have heard of it." Amuro Tooru seemed to have read Kisaragi Chiyo's confusion regarding the name Church of Hope, he explained, "There are over seven thousand churches across all of Japan, that's just the ones officially recorded; private small churches appear one after another. If the Church of Hope can pop up today, there's no telling if another opposing doomsday cult won't appear tomorrow.
When Amuro Tooru said this, his tone carried a hint of mockery; he seemed very dissatisfied with the current situation, being just a step away from directly calling that so-called Church of Hope a cult.
But Kisaragi Chiyo knew nothing about this, he himself was not religious, so he simply nodded at Amuro Tooru's dissatisfaction and remained silent.
Fortunately, the other party didn't expect Kisaragi Chiyo to agree with his statement. After both sides remained silent for a while, Amuro Tooru continued from his previous topic.
According to the deceased's friend, the deceased once suddenly mentioned one day, 'I saw Uncle Mitsui in the church.'
So you want to use Mr. Mitsui as a breakthrough.
Yes." Amuro Tooru's eyes darkened, his expression solemn. "This isn't the first suicide case linked to that church; there were three others before this, occurring three, six, nine days ago, respectively.
It seems like a member of the church commits suicide every three days." Kisaragi Chiyo set down her teacup, resting her chin in one hand as she asked pensively, "Did that student's parents not have that book?
"No." Conan, sitting nearby, shook his head. He had already finished his snack and was now taking small sips of his tea.
According to the deceased's parents, not every member has that book; it seems only a small portion of people were issued them, there is no pattern to the recipients—it seems to be random.
"Random," Kisaragi Chiyo narrowed her eyes, her misty gray eyes drooping slightly as she stared aimlessly at the half-empty cup of tea on the table. Just as she was lost in thought, another sound echoed from the ceiling.
But this time, amidst the sound of the rats scurrying, there also seemed to be the sound of something being dragged.
However, regarding the matter of the rats, neither Amuro Tooru nor Conan paid it much mind. On the way here, they had already heard Uncle Mitsui complain several times about a rat infestation in his home; they figured the rats were likely just stealing food.
"It seems you have a different opinion, Kisaragi-kun." Amuro Tooru, who had been paying close attention to Kisaragi Chiyo's movements, did not miss the flash of thought across the other's face. He flashed a smile and looked at Kisaragi Chiyo with great interest.
"Just a personal opinion." Kisaragi Chiyo paused while speaking, because he noticed the tentacle that had been quietly wrapped around his wrist suddenly began to extend its tip, trying to squeeze into the gaps of his glove.
Kisaragi Chiyo squeezed the tip of the tentacle forcefully under the table without changing his expression. He shot a glance at Hara Kenji beside him, signaling that he had better behave while others were present.
"Can what it does be blamed on me?" Hara Kenji, having understood Kisaragi Chiyo's warning, put on an innocent expression. At this moment, he began to deny it again, claiming that the tentacle's movements were controlled by its own consciousness.
But Kisaragi Chiyo paid no heed to Hara Kenji's sophistry, ignoring the bored evil spirit rolling around on the tatami nearby, continued with what she had been saying before.
Since it's a church, it must have its doctrines. Otherwise, you couldn't just attract people to the faith with supermarket discount coupons like you're handing out flyers on the street.
Although Kisaragi Chiyo had only used it as a casual example, Conan still couldn't help but laugh when he heard the mention of supermarket 40% off coupons.
But after laughing, Conan quickly realized what she meant, he suddenly looked up at Kisaragi Chiyo: "You mean.."
Whether it be money, power, or even the pursuit of love, family ties, or something else entirely, the goal is to make the followers feel like they can have whatever it is they desire.
"But compared to all of those.." Kisaragi Chiyo said, looking up at Amuro Tooru.
Just as Mr. Amuro mentioned just now, a suicidal sacrifice.
The price to pay is far too heavy; it would be better to consider what exactly one is seeking that could equate to such value.
Amuro Tooru gazed at Kisaragi Chiyo, a coldness flickering in his purplish-gray eyes, but that chill was not directed at Kisaragi Chiyo herself.
He was a smart man, he quickly reached an absurd speculation through Kisaragi Chiyo's words.