Chapter 236: Sera's Pure Reasoning

"Does Mr. Tsukino always wear a mask?!"

After Conan heard Toru Amuro's words, he quickly turned to look at Sera Masumi.

"The Mr. Tsukino we just met didn't seem to be wearing a mask."

"That's right."

Sera Masumi nodded and turned to Matsumoto Kenichi and the others.

"Speaking of which, are you sure the Mr. Tsukino you saw yesterday was really Mr. Tsukino?"

"!!!"

Sera Masumi's words were completely unexpected, and most of the guests present displayed surprised expressions.

"Could this even be possible?"

"Are you suggesting that the Mr. Tsukino from yesterday was disguised as Kaitou Kid?"

Nakamura Haruna asked incredulously.

"No, it couldn't have been Kaitou Kid."

"As I've already mentioned, Kaitou Kid's announced time to steal the gem is today."

"While it's possible for him to sneak into the Tokyo International Exhibition Center in advance, it's absolutely impossible for him to act ahead of schedule."

Nakamori Ginzo once again denied the possibility.

"Then couldn't Kaitou Kid have disguised himself as Mr. Tsukino and simply waited until midnight before taking action?"

Akikawa Kyousuke suddenly raised the question at that moment.

"As long as it's past midnight, it counts as today, right? So if Kaitou Kid infiltrated in advance as Mr. Tsukino, wouldn't it suffice for him to just wait for the right time?"

Matsumoto Kenichi agreed with Akikawa Kyousuke's statement.

After Akikawa Kyousuke finished speaking, the elderly professor nodded and murmured, "It's possible."

Then, Nakamori Ginzo's exasperated voice was heard.

"If Kaitou Kid disguised himself as Mr. Tsukino and snuck in yesterday, then where is the real Mr. Tsukino?"

"If Kaitou Kid wanted to ensure he wasn't exposed, he would've had to act against Mr. Tsukino before yesterday's meeting."

"In this case, it would actually violate the terms written in his notice letter."

Nakamori Ginzo's words made Akikawa Kyousuke fall silent for a moment.

On the other hand, Matsumoto Kenichi, who had initially agreed with Akikawa Kyousuke, once again displayed doubt after hearing Nakamori Ginzo's reasoning.

"Does Kaitou Kid really have such strong principles?"

"Yes."

Nakamori Ginzo nodded firmly.

Although he was quite frustrated with this thief who continued to toy with the Second Division of Investigation, he couldn't deny that Kaitou Kid was principled in his actions.

"Moreover, Kaitou Kid is a master of disguise and voice mimicry. If he disguised himself as Mr. Tsukino, he wouldn't need to wear a mask to avoid suspicion."

"Is it possible that Kaitou Kid anticipated that you'd think this way, so he wore a mask after disguising himself?"

Just as Nakamori Ginzo finished speaking, someone asked another question.

He turned again to look at the young artist who seemed inexplicably familiar to him.

'What's with this matryoshka doll logic, huh?'

'You just explained everything so clearly—why can't this artist understand?'

Nakamori Ginzo couldn't help but complain inwardly.

Conan, who stood to the side, watched Nakamori Ginzo grow increasingly exasperated with Akikawa Kyousuke. While he found it a bit strange, he also felt a bit sorry for Nakamori Ginzo.

Finally, someone else had experienced what it felt like to team up with Akikawa Kyousuke to solve a case.

It's exhausting!

Just as the impatient Nakamori Ginzo was about to snap, "Idiot!", Sera Masumi spoke up first:

"Officer Nakamori just made it very clear that Kaitou Kid would have to act in advance if he wanted to impersonate Mr. Tsukino."

"So I'm guessing that perhaps someone else disguised themselves as Mr. Tsukino and attended yesterday's rehearsal."

"Because that person didn't have the same level of disguise skills as Kaitou Kid and couldn't mimic his voice, they used a mask and pretended to have a cold."

"That way, their strange behavior wouldn't arouse suspicion."

"But even if they wore a mask, wouldn't someone still notice that Mr. Tsukino had been replaced by someone else?"

Nakamura Haruna asked in confusion.

"It's fine if it's someone you've never met before—but everyone here knows Mr. Tsukino!"

"Mr. Tsukino has also done many live broadcasts recently, and basically everyone is familiar with his appearance."

"Not to mention, Mr. Tsukino is responsible for organizing this exhibition."

"But during yesterday's rehearsal, we didn't sense anything strange about Mr. Tsukino's appearance."

"Moreover, Mr. Tsukino's knowledge of the jewels on display yesterday isn't something an outsider could fake."

In response to Nakamura Haruna's doubts, Sera Masumi quickly offered an explanation:

"Indeed, if a complete stranger pretended to be Mr. Tsukino, they would soon be exposed."

"But what if the person impersonating Mr. Tsukino is someone who looks very similar to him and also knows the collection very well?"

Sera Masumi's statement once again stunned everyone present.

Everyone grasped the hidden meaning behind Sera Masumi's words.

The Tsukino Foundation, much like the Suzuki Foundation, was a large consortium born from a family business.

Descendants of the founder's family essentially held key positions on the board of directors and in management.

One of the main reasons Tsukino Takashi was so well-known was because he had been selected as the next heir of the Tsukino Foundation.

But he also had siblings.

If one of Tsukino Takashi's brothers had impersonated him and attended the rehearsal, then no one would have recognized the difference.

And as Tsukino Takashi's brother, he would also be familiar with the foundation's collection.

Even after Nakamori Ginzo caught on to the hidden meaning in Sera Masumi's words, he couldn't help but be stunned by her extremely bold deduction. It left him speechless for a long time.

"Of course, this is just one of my hypotheses."

"This reasoning is based on the assumption that the Mr. Tsukino who attended yesterday's rehearsal and the Mr. Tsukino discovered today are not the same person."

"Fortunately, Mr. Tsukino's life is not in danger. Whether my reasoning is correct or not should soon be confirmed."

Not long after Sera Masumi's words fell, Nakamori Ginzo's walkie-talkie sounded.

"This is me. How's the surveillance footage?"

"Understood."

After Nakamori Ginzo finished speaking, he turned to look at Sera Masumi.

"It's confirmed. Mr. Tsukino was dragged into the collection room by a man in black around midnight."

"And the Scarlet Heart Gem disappeared afterward."

(End of Chapter)