## Chapter 150: The Grand Stage of Beika - Come If You Dare
Thirty minutes later, the police deployed to Dr. Agasa's house arrived, accompanied by Kogoro Mouri and Conan.
"Fujino, is this the culprit?" Inspector Megure asked, glancing at the unconscious Kohei Zemiki lying on the ground.
"He brazenly attacked me with a crossbow right at my doorstep," Fujino replied, pulling a steel arrow from his pocket and handing it to Megure. "Luckily, I reacted in time and escaped unscathed. Otherwise, Inspector Megure, you might never have seen me again."
"This is the same type of steel arrow that was used to attack me."
Megure examined the arrow and nodded. "It seems this guy is indeed the culprit."
As he studied the arrow, Megure couldn't help but feel a bit shaken, the pain from his still-healing wound subtly reminding him of the danger.
With a grim expression, Megure looked at the unconscious Zemiki and then signaled to the officers behind him. "Take him back for questioning."
"Yes, sir!" The suited officers understood and approached Zemiki, handcuffing him swiftly. Two officers lifted him by the shoulders and legs, carrying him like a dead dog and tossing him into the back seat of the police car.
"How could Zemiki be the culprit..." Kogoro Mouri muttered, watching with a strange expression.
Standing by his feet, Conan shared the same confusion. He had seen this man just last week, a skilled bartender who seemed to have a good relationship with Kogoro.
"What's wrong, Mouri?" Megure noticed Kogoro's odd expression. "Do you know this person?"
"Yes, I know him," Kogoro admitted, recalling their long-standing acquaintance. "I just visited his restaurant last week."
"Did you offend him somehow?" Megure asked.
"I don't think so..." Kogoro scratched his head, genuinely puzzled. He hadn't expected Zemiki to be the one who poisoned Eri Kisaki.
"Now that you mention it, I think I saw this guy last week," Fujino interjected.
"You saw him, Fujino?" Megure looked at Fujino in surprise.
The others also turned their attention to Fujino, who pretended to think for a moment before continuing, "Yes, it was in the morning, right below my apartment. A man dressed simply wanted to visit Kogoro but found he wasn't home. Just as the man was about to leave, Zemiki approached and took him away."
Of course, Fujino hadn't seen Zemiki taking Murakami Jo away; he was making this up based on his memory.
Originally, after killing a few people, Zemiki would have been exposed by Conan, who would use his tranquilizer watch to put Kogoro to sleep and reveal the truth. But now, Zemiki had been taken down early by Fujino. If he didn't steer the investigation, Murakami Jo's murder might be overlooked, leaving Zemiki with lesser charges.
"If I remember correctly, the person Zemiki took away might have been Murakami Jo," Kogoro recalled with Fujino's prompting. "But why would Zemiki and Murakami be together?"
"I suspect Murakami has already been killed by Zemiki," Fujino suggested, feigning serious deduction.
"Murakami might be dead?" Megure was puzzled. "Fujino, do you have any evidence?"
The bait was taken! Fujino's eyes narrowed slightly. He asked Megure, "Wasn't Murakami the primary suspect from the beginning?"
"Yes, although we didn't rule out other possibilities, Murakami was the most likely suspect given his recent release from prison and clear motive," Megure confirmed. "But we couldn't find any useful clues or Murakami's whereabouts."
"That's because Zemiki killed Murakami to divert suspicion," Fujino explained. "By framing Murakami, Zemiki ensured the real killer couldn't be identified. If Murakami was taken away by Zemiki, he likely didn't survive."
"I see," Megure sighed. "If what you say is true, Murakami is likely dead."
Both Kogoro and Megure looked grim, feeling the weight of a recaptured criminal being murdered. Conan, on the other hand, eyed Fujino with increased seriousness.
...
Prompted by Fujino, the police found a witness near Zemiki's apartment who reported seeing him carrying a suitcase out one night. Additionally, an explosive device was discovered in Zemiki's apartment. During questioning, a defeated Zemiki confessed to attacking Eri Kisaki, Fujino, and Megure, as well as murdering Murakami Jo.
Following Zemiki's directions, the police found explosives in the Crystal Restaurant and Murakami's dismembered body in a nearby river. The officers handling the case were appalled by the gruesome discovery.
"That guy's a complete lunatic!" remarked one officer.
...
That night, at Fujino's apartment.
"Is it that easy to get bombs in this world?" Fujino mused, putting away his phone with a strange expression. "First there was Teiji Moriya trying to blow up the Beika Municipal Building, and now Zemiki targeting the Crystal Restaurant. Both incidents happened in Beika. Truly, it's a grand stage where you come if you dare."
Reflecting on the ease with which people in Beika seemed to acquire explosives, Fujino found it bewildering.
Just then, a system notification interrupted his thoughts:
[Detective Mission: The Eleventh Target completed]
[Reward: 1 million yen, 100 detective reputation points, 1x profession point]
[Current balance: 6.2 million yen]
[Congratulations! Detective level up!]
[Current Detective Level: Intermediate 1-star]
[Profession points available: 1]
[All-profession points available: 2]
"Intermediate, huh?" Fujino allocated his points, one to detective enhancement and two to "Sword as Body."
[Detective Enhancement: Beginner 5-star (225% temporary body enhancement)]
[Sword as Body: Level 5 (140% all-attribute boost)]
Feeling refreshed after the allocation, Fujino eyed his balance of 6 million yen. He considered a ten-draw on the Intermediate Profession Orb, which, with the student profession's 8.9% discount, would cost 8.9 million yen. He needed 2.7 million yen more, likely achievable with one or two more profession tasks.
"I wonder if a bounty will trigger this time," Fujino pondered, knowing that detective level-ups often came with lucrative bounty tasks. If triggered, he could afford a ten-draw and be on his way to more upgrades.
(End of Chapter)