Chapter 53: Tanaka Eats… Shi

"Officer! His younger brother is back!"

Just as Fujino and Inspector Megure were searching a room, a uniformed police officer walked over with a refined-looking man in tow.

The man's appearance was identical to the man they had seen earlier.

"Good day, officer. My name is Tanaka Tomofumi. I currently work at a securities company…"

"Tanaka Tomofumi."

Fujino studied the man in front of him, muttering to himself in surprise.

Tanaka Tomofumi… Tanaka… eats shi(t)?

What kind of weird name was that?

Under Fujino's puzzled gaze, the man greeted them politely, then glanced around at the police busy searching the house and asked in confusion,

"What exactly happened here? Why are the police making such a big fuss searching my home?"

"Well, Mr. Tanaka, we received a tip-off from citizens reporting that a corpse was discovered here."

"A… corpse?"

Tanaka Tomofumi blinked in surprise.

"But only my brother and I live here. How could there be another body?"

Before he could finish speaking, a shout came from upstairs:

"Hey! Can't you guys be quiet for a second?!"

"Sorry, big brother!"

Tanaka Tomofumi immediately looked up and called back apologetically.

Then, scratching the back of his head, he turned to the surrounding officers and explained,

"I'm sorry. My brother has a really bad temper. Even the slightest noise irritates him. If possible, please try to keep the noise down during your investigation."

"Understood."

Inspector Megure nodded, then asked curiously,

"By the way, what does your brother do for a living? Why's his temper so foul?"

"My brother is a freelance writer. He spends his days at home writing poetry and such."

Megure nodded again in understanding.

No wonder the man's temper was so foul.

Freelance writer—sounds respectable, but most of the time it just means a broke loser chasing unrealistic literary dreams while sponging off family.

"We've already checked the attic and under the floorboards. The only place left is your brother's room."

The police continued their search, but despite combing through almost the entire house, they hadn't found the corpse Conan and the others claimed to have seen.

Finally, Megure's gaze fell on one last place:

Tanaka Tomofumi's brother's room.

It was the only room left unchecked.

"Big brother!"

The group gathered at the door to his brother's room.

Tanaka Tomofumi knocked, but there was no response. After a moment, he pushed open the door.

After stepping inside briefly, he poked his head out and called to the others,

"Come on in. He's asleep."

"Asleep?"

Fujino, Inspector Megure, and another officer entered the room.

The layout was simple.

Next to the entrance was a row of cabinets pressed against the wall.

Diagonally across was a chunky old TV, standing beside a floor lamp.

In front of the TV was a single chair, with a desk telephone resting on a side table nearby.

And in that chair sat the man from earlier—the one who had been yelling—apparently asleep.

Fujino stared at the man seated in front of the TV, frowning slightly.

After thinking for a moment, he walked over to the man's side and remarked meaningfully to Tanaka Tomofumi,

"I must say, Mr. Tanaka… you do look a lot like your brother."

"Yeah, people often say we resemble each other."

Tanaka's face remained calm, but inwardly, he was panicking.

A drop of cold sweat trickled from his temple.

Trying to maintain composure, he quickly stepped closer,

"Alright, sir, please don't disturb my brother. He has a heart condition, and if he's startled awake, he's liable to lash out…"

"Is that so?"

Fujino, without a word, patted the man on the shoulder.

The moment his hand made contact, the man's body trembled—and then, his head slumped forward as his entire body collapsed onto the floor.

"…"

Tanaka Tomofumi's expression froze for a second before rushing forward, grabbing his brother's limp body, shaking it violently,

"Big brother! What's wrong?! Wake up!"

"Let me see!"

Megure stepped forward quickly.

He checked for a pulse… and after a moment, solemnly shook his head.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Tanaka… Your brother is already dead."

"How… how could this be?!"

Tanaka dropped to the floor, disbelief written all over his face.

"My brother… how could he…"

Then, he turned his anger toward Fujino, shouting furiously,

"It must've been you! You must've startled him awake while he was sleeping, causing his sudden death!"

"No, that can't be."

Megure frowned, checking the body carefully as he explained,

"If he'd just died, his body would still retain warmth. Judging from the rigor mortis… he's been dead for some time already."

Although Megure wasn't much of a detective, as a veteran officer, basic forensic knowledge was second nature to him.

"How can this be?!"

Tanaka clutched his head in despair, tears streaming down his face,

"Could… could it be that he suddenly died of a heart attack earlier?"

"Well, for someone who died of a heart condition, the pale complexion does match typical symptoms…"

Megure sighed heavily, clearly uncomfortable with the situation.

Swish.

"That's not what happened."

At that moment, Fujino drew back the curtains, drawing everyone's attention to him.

He turned around, speaking in a firm tone,

"The victim didn't die from a heart attack. He was drowned!"

"Oh?"

Megure raised an eyebrow,

"Fujino, have you already figured out the truth?"

"If I'm right… the murderer is none other than the victim's own younger brother—Tanaka Tomofumi!"

"Impossible!"

Tanaka immediately protested,

"My brother was talking just moments ago! Besides, I was with you guys the whole time!"

He even looked to Megure for support,

"Isn't that right, Inspector?"

"That's true," Megure nodded,

"Fujino, are you sure you haven't made a mistake? We all heard his brother shouting upstairs earlier."

"I did hear it. However…"

Fujino smiled slightly and pulled out his phone, pressing the dial button.

Biz.

"Hey! Can't you guys be quiet for a second?!"

That familiar voice echoed once again—but this time, the sound came from the telephone sitting on the table.

"If I'm not mistaken…"

Fujino's gaze sharpened.

"When Conan and the others saw the corpse earlier, that corpse was likely this man—Mr. Tanaka's brother!"

(End of Chapter)