Chapter 23

Hearing the word "murder" come from Kudo's mouth, Mouri Ran's eyes widened in shock.

"They really killed Uchida?!"

Kudo, however, signaled her with his eyes to stay calm. Then, he leaned in and whispered softly in her ear:

"It's just a theory for now. I can't be completely sure yet."

"So don't act rashly, and don't confront those two."

"Let me investigate further first."

"I need more clues to confirm my suspicion."

With that, Kudo put on an act of backing down and quickly led Mouri Ran away from the two bullies.

Ran cast a reluctant glance at Ishikawa, who still looked completely unrepentant, then turned to Kudo and asked,

"How are you going to investigate?"

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

Even if she wasn't throwing punches, she instinctively wanted to contribute to solving this case.

"Don't worry," Kudo Shinichi said confidently. "Just leave it to me."

Without hesitation, he turned and walked toward an old fire escape welded onto the outer wall of the department store in the alleyway.

"Hey, what are you doing over there?!"

As soon as Ishikawa saw Kudo approach the fire escape, his expression changed slightly.

He scowled and snapped, his voice laced with forced bravado,

"T-This is the crime scene! You shouldn't be running around messing with things!"

"Oh?"

Kudo didn't stop walking.

"I never would've guessed…"

"A delinquent like you actually has the sense of duty to guard a crime scene?"

"But wasn't Uchida's death ruled a suicide?"

Perhaps influenced by Shiho Miyano's previous jabs, the great detective had now mastered the art of sarcasm.

"There's no mystery at all in a suicide case like this. So it shouldn't matter if I take a little stroll around, right?"

"…" Ishikawa was at a loss for words.

His face stiffened as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he remained silent.

Meanwhile, Kudo climbed onto the fire escape without looking back, ascending step by step.

The metal staircase was heavily rusted.

Each step creaked under his weight, trembling ominously.

The corroded handrails wobbled at the slightest touch, as if they might break off at any moment.

"Shinichi!"

Mouri Ran called out anxiously.

Back when they were in New York, she and Shinichi had saved someone who almost fell to their death because of a broken fire escape railing.

After such a harrowing experience, she couldn't help but worry about Kudo climbing the unstable stairs.

But Kudo remained focused as he climbed higher.

Finally, he reached the top of the fire escape.

The department store had six floors, but the fire escape only went up to the fourth.

At the fourth floor, Kudo reached out and touched the iron door built into the building's exterior wall.

"As expected, it's completely rusted shut."

"There's no way into the building from here."

He rubbed his chin in thought, then lowered his gaze, scanning the small platform at the top of the stairs.

But he didn't find anything there.

Instead, he got a close-up view of the gap in the railing.

Comparing its length and shape, he was even more certain—the broken piece of railing found beside the body had come from here.

"The clues aren't enough yet…"

"Looks like I'll have to check somewhere else."

With that in mind, Kudo swiftly descended the fire escape, returning to the alley below.

His actions only made Ishikawa more suspicious.

"Hey, you little punk, don't you think you've done enough?!"

"Running around a death scene like you're some kind of detective—who do you think you are?!"

Ishikawa growled at Kudo, trying to intimidate him.

But Kudo simply chuckled.

"You've got a good instinct."

"I actually *am* a detective."

"Ever heard of Kudo Shinichi from Teitan High?"

"K-Kudo Shinichi?!"

Upon hearing that name, Ishikawa's face turned pale.

Aoki, who had been silent this whole time, suddenly looked up, his face even paler.

"You're that famous high school detective?!"

"Yeah, that's me."

Kudo Shinichi nodded seriously, smiling politely.

Ishikawa and Aoki: "…"

The corners of their mouths twitched, and their expressions were priceless.

Ignoring them, Kudo turned toward Lin Xinyi.

Lin Xinyi was still crouched beside the body, carefully studying the injuries.

"Mr. Lin Xinyi."

Kudo directly addressed the forensic specialist.

"What's the body temperature like? Is there any warmth left?"

"Oh?" Lin Xinyi raised an eyebrow.

He knew that even though Kudo had taken a different approach, the great detective had also noticed something was off.

Asking about body temperature was essentially asking about the time of death.

If the victim had just jumped, as it seemed, their body should still be warm.

But if they had been killed earlier and then thrown from the building, their body temperature would have dropped over time.

However, the reality wasn't so simple.

"The body is still warm," Lin Xinyi said. "There's residual heat on the skin."

"But it's summer, and the sun hasn't set yet."

Unlike at dawn, when he first met Kudo, the Tokyo heat was still lingering.

"The higher the ambient temperature, the slower the body cools."

"And once the body temperature matches the environment, it barely drops any further."

"Right now, the environment isn't much cooler than normal body temperature, so just feeling the warmth on the skin isn't enough to accurately determine the time of death."

Kudo quickly caught the implication behind his words.

"So, the victim may not have *just* died?"

"That's one possibility."

Lin Xinyi nodded and was about to share his findings.

But before he could finish, Kudo cut him off.

"I got it!"

Whatever he had "gotten," he didn't say.

Instead, he turned confidently and said,

"Mr. Lin, I'll leave the scene to you."

"I'm heading to the department store."

"Uh…" Lin Xinyi had a complicated expression, as if he wanted to say something.

But Kudo, as if racing against someone, had already rushed off.

"Wait!"

Ishikawa hesitated, then quickly followed.

"I-I'm coming with you."

"You want to tag along?"

Kudo's tone was laced with amusement.

"Yeah…" Ishikawa gritted his teeth. "I-I'm interested in how a detective investigates."

"Sure, you can watch."

Kudo shrugged, completely indifferent.

He kept walking, and Ishikawa, stiff-faced, followed.

"Shinichi, I'm coming too!"

Seeing Ishikawa's strong build, Mouri Ran hurried after them.

There was no way she was letting this suspected murderer stay close to Shinichi alone.

And so, led by Kudo Shinichi, the three of them left the quiet alley.

But just before stepping out,

Kudo suddenly stopped at the alley entrance and turned back, his eyes sharp as he looked at Lin Xinyi.

"Mr. Lin Xinyi."

"I know this might sound improper, but this might be another chance for us to compete."

Lin Xinyi: "…"

He wasn't the type to turn crime-solving into a contest.

But Kudo was already getting excited at the challenge.

"Let's use this opportunity to see who's better."

"I'll investigate my way, and you use yours—let's see who finds the truth first."

"Uh…" Lin Xinyi hesitated.

But before he could respond, Kudo had already disappeared down the alley.

"See you later! I'm off to investigate."

With Ishikawa and Mouri Ran following behind, the alley soon fell silent.

The only ones left were Lin Xinyi, Shiho Miyano watching from the sidelines, and Aoki, who was now trembling.

"Hmm…"

"Oh well, let him investigate more if he wants."

Lin Xinyi watched Kudo's determined figure vanish, his expression unreadable.

"But really, what's there to compete over?"

"This case is so simple—just looking at the body solves it."

He sighed, then stood up and calmly said,

"Aoki."

"Ah?!"

Aoki jolted in fear.

Lin Xinyi's sharp gaze locked onto him.

"Still trying to hold out?"

"Stop pretending—just confess already."