A Genius In The World Of Conan

Chapter 3: Without a Doubt, This Is Murder

Conan and Sera Masumi followed Detective Sato Miwako to the scene of a car accident on the national highway across from their apartment.

"Yumi!"

"Miwako, you got here fast!"

A beautiful traffic officer, Miyamoto Yumi, greeted Sato Miwako warmly as she ran over.

However, when Yumi spotted Conan and Sera stepping out of Sato’s police car, a look of surprise spread across her well-defined features.

“This is little Conan… and Sera-san?”

“Hello, Officer Miyamoto!”

Conan greeted her sweetly in his childlike voice.

Beside him, Sera Masumi crossed her arms, resting one hand on her chin, as she gazed at Yumi with curiosity.

"So, this is the woman who’s swept my brother off his feet. You’re as beautiful as I’ve heard.”

Miyamoto Yumi was engaged to Sera’s second brother, Haneda Shukichi, a fact Sera had only recently learned.

Yumi felt a little unnerved by Sera’s scrutinizing stare and shifted her gaze to Sato Miwako, her eyebrows furrowing slightly.

"Miwako, did you already brief the detective on the situation?"

Unless a case was particularly challenging, the Metropolitan Police Department rarely involved outsiders in investigations.

If word got out that Sato had immediately brought a detective to the scene of a murder, it could give the impression that the department was incompetent, relying on private detectives for every tricky situation.

“Oh, no, Detective Sato didn’t tell us anything about the case,” Conan said, cutting in with his innocent tone before Sato could respond. “We asked her to bring us along.”

“Huh?”

Yumi was taken aback.

If Sato hadn’t revealed any case details, why had they insisted on coming?

To an outsider, this incident should appear to be nothing more than a routine traffic accident.

“Detective Sato works in the Division 1 of the Criminal Investigation Section, which specializes in homicide cases,” Conan explained with a smile, seeing Yumi’s confusion. “If she’s rushing over here, it’s likely a murder has occurred.”

"Couldn’t it just be because Miwako was nearby and got called over?"

“If it were an ordinary case, there’d be no need to trouble a police inspector like Detective Sato specifically,” Conan replied.

Detective Sato held the rank of Assistant Inspector, second only to Inspector Megure. For a typical case, the department would usually send officers like Takagi Wataru or Chiba Kazunobu, who were both Police Sergeants.

“Hmm?” Yumi narrowed her eyes at Conan, leaning in closer. “How does an elementary school kid know so much about the police department?”

“Uh… Sera-neechan told me all about it!”

Realizing he had said too much again, Conan quickly shifted the blame to Sera.

Yumi didn’t question it further since Sera Masumi was a well-known detective herself.

“Let’s not waste any more time. Yumi, you mentioned someone was stabbed to death—what’s going on?”

Sato Miwako’s serious tone broke through the group’s meandering conversation.

Yumi snapped back to the matter at hand and led them to the scene of the car accident.

“The accident was triggered when the lead K-car suddenly braked, causing a chain reaction of rear-end collisions.”

“The lead car—the ‘culprit’—lost control after being rear-ended and crashed into the roadside guardrail. It’s heavily damaged.”

Yumi walked the group to the driver’s side of the lead vehicle.

“But when I went to check on the driver and passengers, I saw this—”

As the group finally got a clear view of the car’s interior, their faces collectively paled.

In the driver’s seat, a woman’s head lolled to the side, her body soaked in blood.

Her neck, chest, and abdomen were covered in stab wounds.

Even in her abdomen, a dagger was still embedded.

"She's dead."

Sato Miwako, after checking the woman’s pulse, shook her head.

Sera Masumi approached the woman. After borrowing a pair of white gloves from Sato, she carefully lifted the woman’s clothing to examine her wounds.

"Almost all the wounds show signs of vital reaction, which means the woman didn’t die in the car accident but from the knife wounds."

"Without a doubt, this is murder."

"Just looking at the number of wounds and the force of the stabs, it’s clear the culprit harbored intense hatred toward the victim."

"This was almost certainly a premeditated murder."

No one disagreed with Sera’s deduction.

After all, it wasn’t common for someone to stab another in a fit of rage after a car accident involving a brand-new vehicle.

"So, the next step is to check if the victim left a dying message or if any witnesses in the cars behind saw the perpetrator..."

Conan muttered to himself as he tiptoed to get a better look inside the car.

But what he saw made his eyes widen in shock.

He noticed that while the interior of the car was covered in blood splatters, the passenger seat was almost spotless.

Quickly turning to Yumi, Conan asked loudly:

"Officer Miyamoto, did you see anyone in the passenger seat?"

"Ah, Conan, how did you know there was someone in the passenger seat?" Yumi asked, puzzled.

"There was a young male passenger in the front seat," Yumi explained. "At first, we thought he was dead too, but after checking, we found he was still alive, though in critical condition. So Naeko and I pulled him out of the car. He’s lying over there now."

Yumi turned her head, and the group followed her gaze. Sure enough, they saw a man covered in blood lying on the ground. Beside him, another traffic officer, Miike Naeko, was urgently making a phone call.

Conan, Sato Miwako, and Sera Masumi were all shocked by the revelation.

Unable to hold back, Sera spoke up:

"Officer Miyamoto, in a case where murder has been confirmed instead of an accident, isn’t preserving the crime scene the most critical task?"

If the passenger seat had an occupant, then the most likely suspect for the murder was already apparent. However, Yumi and Naeko had moved the potential suspect out of the car before the detectives arrived, risking contamination of the crime scene.

"I’m well aware of that," Yumi responded firmly.

"Then why...?"

Even as the question left her lips, Sera began piecing the answer together.

If Yumi understood the importance of preserving the scene yet still decided to move the primary suspect, there had to be an urgent reason compelling her to take such a risk.

Glancing at the now-silent car engine, a thought formed in Sera’s mind.

"Officer Miyamoto, there was a carbon monoxide leak in the car, wasn’t there?" Conan asked in a serious tone, fixing his gaze on Yumi.