Chapter 148: Is Your Kidney Okay?

After hanging up Sato Miwako's phone call, Fujino pinched his brow and fell into deep thought.

Inspector Megure Juzo was shot with a steel arrow?

This should be part of the plot of the fourteenth target, right?

But he remembered that Megure Juzo only suffered minor injuries.

However, during the call just now, Sato Miwako said that Megure Juzo's kidney was pierced by a steel arrow...

Could it be some strange butterfly effect?

Fujino sighed helplessly.

But thinking too much was useless.

He'd find out by going to see.

Putting away his phone, he quickly brought his motorcycle out from the underground garage and headed to Midorimo Police Hospital.

Parking the motorcycle and entering the hospital building, he saw a nurse in a uniform with long brown hair sitting behind the reception desk.

"Miss Nurse."

Fujino walked up and inquired, "May I ask which room Officer Megure from the Metropolitan Police Department is in?"

"Inspector Megure?"

"That's right."

After confirming Megure Juzo's name, the nurse looked down and checked the admission records.

After a while, she handed Fujino a small book, which was the hospital's visitor log.

After signing his name, the nurse responded, "Inspector Megure is currently receiving treatment in Room 622."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

The nurse had a sweet smile on her face the whole time, looking innocent and kind.

But Fujino wasn't fooled by this appearance.

After all, this was the world of Detective Conan.

The more innocent a girl looked, the more dangerous she might be.

One moment she could be smiling sweetly at you, and the next moment, she might turn into a murderer who killed her cheating husband or boyfriend.

Fujino strolled to the door of Room 622.

Seeing the nameplate: Megure Juzo, he confirmed it was the right room and pushed the door open.

Inside, Megure Juzo was lying on the hospital bed.

At this moment, Megure Juzo was wearing a hospital gown, his complexion looking quite healthy, showing no signs of someone who had their kidney pierced by a steel arrow.

"Oh! Fujino, my boy! What brings you here?"

Megure Juzo greeted warmly upon seeing Fujino enter.

Fujino scrutinized the enthusiastic old inspector, frowning slightly.

Was this the man whose kidney was supposedly pierced by a steel arrow?

Glancing at Megure Juzo's body covered by the blanket, Fujino asked doubtfully, "By the way, Inspector Megure... Is your kidney okay?"

"Kidney...?"

Megure Juzo was puzzled.

"Yes."

Fujino continued, "I heard your kidney was hit by a steel arrow, so I rushed over."

Megure Juzo was taken aback and fell into contemplation.

Wasn't it just his waist that was hit by the steel arrow?

How did it turn into his kidney being hit?

He couldn't understand how his waist injury was misreported as a kidney injury... Who spread this rumor?

And how did it reach Fujino's ears?

What a major embarrassment...

Thinking of this, his mouth twitched as he looked at Shiratori Ninzaburo.

"Ahem."

Shiratori Ninzaburo lightly coughed, holding back a smile as he explained to Fujino, "The steel arrow didn't hit a vital area. Inspector Megure's kidney wasn't injured; it was just a minor wound. He'll be discharged in a few days."

"That's good."

Fujino sighed in relief.

He had thought it was some bizarre butterfly effect.

Turns out it was just a rumor.

"Knock, knock!"

At this moment, there was another knock on the door.

Besides Fujino, Kogoro Mouri had also received the same news.

He arrived at Megure Juzo's hospital room with Conan and Ran.

Shiratori Ninzaburo explained Megure Juzo's injuries again, then started talking about the investigation into the attack:

"The assailant who attacked Inspector Megure used a handheld crossbow to shoot the steel arrow. However, we still don't know the motive behind the attack, but we are investigating both random attacks and targeted revenge."

"By the way, we found something strange at the crime scene."

Saying this, Shiratori Ninzaburo took out an evidence bag.

Inside the bag was something that looked like a cardboard western sword.

"A western sword?"

Fujino examined the abstract cardboard sword, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

In that case, everything matched up.

This was indeed the plot of the fourteenth target...

He vaguely remembered the details from the movie, though he hadn't watched it many times in his previous life.

But he did remember that the culprit was a bartender Kogoro Mouri knew... He couldn't recall the bartender's name.

However, he did know who the next victim would be.

It was Eri Kisaki...

Megure Juzo's "thirteen" corresponded to the King of Spades, the king holding a western sword on a playing card.

And Eri Kisaki corresponded to the Queen of Spades, with "queen" translating to "女皇" (queen).

"If I act now..."

Fujino thought, about to say something, but was interrupted by a phone ringing.

It was Kogoro Mouri's phone.

Under Fujino's gaze, Kogoro Mouri answered the call and shouted after a brief conversation, "What?! Eri has been poisoned!"

Hanging up, Kogoro Mouri's face turned grim.

"How is my mother?!"

Ran anxiously asked.

After a moment of silence, Kogoro Mouri took a deep breath and replied, "She has been taken to Toto University Hospital. We don't know her condition yet."

"How could this happen..."

Ran's eyes widened in worry.

...

Soon, they rushed to Toto University Hospital, with Shiratori Ninzaburo following.

By the time they arrived, Eri Kisaki had already been resuscitated.

Two nurses pushed the disheveled Eri Kisaki out of the emergency room on a hospital bed, her face pale.

To be honest, even disheveled, Eri Kisaki looked quite attractive, almost on par with Yukiko Kudo.

No wonder there were so many admirers in his previous life.

The doctor explained the situation, saying Eri Kisaki needed a few days of observation, and then sent her to a hospital room.

At the crime scene, the investigating officers had found critical evidence: a box of Gickba chocolates and a white flower.

"Gickba chocolate?!"

Kogoro Mouri exclaimed at the sight of the evidence, "That's Eri's favorite chocolate!"

"Kogoro-san, let me see."

Fujino took the evidence bag from Kogoro Mouri, examining the chocolate packaging and the flower, frowning.

After a moment of thought, he spoke seriously to the others, "If I'm not mistaken, the culprit of these two cases is the same person."

"Fujino-kun, did you discover a pattern?"

Shiratori looked at Fujino in surprise.

Fujino then explained the pattern of the culprit's crimes based on his memory.

"So the culprit is choosing targets based on the order of playing cards?"

After hearing Fujino's reasoning, Shiratori Ninzaburo nodded in agreement, "Megure Juzo's name corresponds to 'thirteen,' the King, and Eri Kisaki's title 'queen' matches the Queen. The evidence at the scene also aligns with this."

"So the next target should be 'eleven,' which is the Jack..."

Kogoro Mouri scratched his head in frustration, unable to think of anyone matching this description, "But this doesn't help us identify the next target!"

"It's not hard to find. If Inspector Megure's attack was a coincidence, then Eri Kisaki's attack wasn't. It's deliberate revenge against someone specific."

Fujino paused and continued, "If I'm right, the culprit is someone Kogoro-san knows and has some grudge against."

"Could it be that guy?!"

Kogoro Mouri's face darkened.

"That guy?"

Conan was puzzled.

"Jou Murakami."

Shiratori Ninzaburo explained, "Jou Murakami committed murder over gambling ten years ago and was caught by Kogoro-san and Inspector Megure. He was released a week ago. We suspect he's seeking revenge."

"I don't think it's Jou Murakami. If he was just released a week ago, he wouldn't have prepared so thoroughly."

Knowing the culprit was a bartender, Fujino paused, organizing his thoughts, "And knowing Eri's favorite chocolate brand suggests the culprit is familiar with either Eri or Kogoro-san."

In his memory, Jou Murakami wasn't the culprit.

Murakami was killed by the bartender, who then used him as a scapegoat to mislead the police.

The next victim, if Fujino remembered correctly, would be Professor Agasa.

Though he had no personal connection with Professor Agasa and no reward was involved, it felt wrong not to intervene after Agasa had recently given him two million yen.

Thinking this, Fujino said, "Although we can't identify the culprit, we can predict the next target. As mentioned, the culprit is attacking in reverse order from thirteen, so the next target's name should include 'eleven.'"

"But that's still too vague."

Kogoro Mouri frowned, pondering, "Someone with 'eleven' in their name... It's hard to think of anyone immediately... Could it be Miss Juuichi Matsushita from the cabaret?"

(Chapter ends)