books44 Chapter 306 The Blood of Criminals
Chapter 306 The Blood of Criminals
When that handsome face looked at her with deep affection, Sonoko Suzuki blushed instantly.
If I remember correctly, the meaning of yellow tulips is cheerfulness, optimism, purity, and elegance, right? Could it be that in his heart, I am as lovely as a tulip swaying in the sea breeze?
In other words, is this a flirting attempt? To me?!
Sonoko shook her head, her desire tinged but her courage insufficient, and linked arms with Ran, stammering, "Ran, this is your chance..."
“No.” The young man handed her the flowers. “What I really want to ask you is, Miss.”
"Eh--"
"Absolutely not! Ugh!"
Haruya Kuromon pinched Conan's little mouth, waved her hand and laughed, "It's alright, it's alright, you guys continue!" Then she whispered, "Children shouldn't interfere in adult matters!"
With his lips freed, Conan glared at him in protest, then frowned and argued very seriously, "Kuromon-kun, you don't understand the seriousness of this matter."
"It's really strange that when the two of them are together, it's impossible for one of them to be only interested in Sonoko. I think there must be another purpose lurking beneath this man's facade, it must be!"
Kuromon Haruya: ...Don't you feel any remorse saying that?
"If I remember correctly, you and Sonoko were childhood friends, right?"
“That’s right!” Conan said righteously, “It’s precisely because we’ve been friends since kindergarten and have seen everything, big and small, that I find it even more rare!”
"This," Kuromon Haruya was speechless for a moment, feeling that the statement was a bit harsh, but it made some sense.
Even he himself, because there were so few men in the whole story who genuinely tried to flirt with Sonoko, immediately thought of this point in time—the first appearance of Super Saiyan Makoto Kyogoku!
"Right?" Seeing that he no longer refuted, Conan raised his eyebrows smugly.
On the other hand, Sonoko Suzuki was caught off guard when she realized that the person who had approached her was actually her.
Normally, she would be overjoyed if a handsome guy approached her. But since she had just built a good relationship with Manager Sasami yesterday, even though he hadn't shown any intention of going beyond friendship, it would be rather impolite to suddenly agree to his advances.
Seeing that Sonoko hesitated, the man put his hands in his pockets and said, "Haha, but this is a bit sudden! I am Masahiko Dokyo, how about we become friends first?"
"sure!"
...
Ten minutes later, Masahiko Dokyo had already successfully blended in with everyone thanks to his eloquence, while Naomi Asahi arrived late.
"Sorry for being late. Mr. Hanzawa had some business to attend to, so he asked us to meet him this afternoon." What was particularly striking was that Asagi was carrying two enormous bouquets of tulips, the exact same variety and type as those from the Dokyo!
The worst thing about people is comparison. Compared to others, Dokyo Masahiko's single flower seemed particularly stingy.
"What a beautiful bouquet! There are even delicate pink lilies interspersed throughout!" Ran Mouri exclaimed. "Did you buy this, shop owner?"
“No.” Asagi glanced at the suddenly silent Daoxie and sat down next to Kuromon Haruya. “Mr. Hanzawa was helping his relatives sell flowers this morning, on the south side of the beach, where it enters the bay. These are the ones they left over after they closed up shop this morning, and I thought I’d bring two bouquets since you two were here.”
"It seems Mr. Fanze had a great time at home. We should thank him properly this afternoon!"
Kuromon Haruya noticed with his sharp eyes that the Dao Association was silently clenching his water glass.
Ah, so it seems you really bought it from a real person? Buying flowers from an acquaintance and then giving them to another acquaintance, and only buying one... what a lame way to pick up girls.
Conan sat on his lap, giving him a meaningful look: How lame!
Dokyo Masahiko gradually increased the pressure on the water glass.
"So what exactly did Makoto go to do?" Kuromon Haruya asked quietly.
Asahi hesitated for a moment, then sighed, gave a cryptic smile, and shook his head: "He has a surprise for everyone to see. It's not as exciting to hear it verbally. Kuromon, you'd better see it for yourself."
Completely unaware of the involution he had created, he looked around.
"By the way, where is Mr. Mori? Is he not here? Did he go to investigate the incident?"
"I don't know. He just received a call and left very seriously. Did it happen near the railway? What exactly happened?"
"I heard what the locals said when I passed by, but it wasn't the whole story."
His fingertips tapped the table in a certain rhythm as he began to recall:
"Exactly one year ago today, on a beach not far from here, a woman with long brown hair was stabbed to death in the abdomen. Due to a lack of eyewitnesses, the case remains unsolved. This area has only recently started developing tourism, so there aren't many outsiders, and murders are even rarer. Therefore, the residents have a particularly deep impression of every case."
The victim discovered today was also a woman with brown hair, stabbed in the abdomen. The incident likely occurred between 8 and 9 pm last night.
"Didn't we just happen to be passing by at that time?" Ran Mouri asked with some concern.
“That’s right.” Asagi nods. “So I was thinking that since Mr. Mori is a famous detective, maybe he went to investigate a case.”
Tea hair... I feel like I noticed it before I even heard about it. Ran Mouri fell into deep thought. Where exactly was it? I think I was even a little angry about it back then...
"That's it!" She slammed her hand on the table and stood up, exchanging a glance with Conan, who had just jumped off the table. She shouted to everyone, "No wonder Dad kept staring at the woman with the tea this morning. He must have known about this all along! I'm going to the scene to find him!"
She picked up her sandals, jumped off the restaurant platform, slipped them on, and ran quickly towards the distant woods. Conan, like a knight guarding a princess, faithfully stood behind her.
"Ran, Conan, wait a minute!"
Slowly lowering her hand, which had been trying to stop her, Sonoko rubbed her arm, which was covered in goosebumps, and muttered with lingering fear, "Really, why did she run so fast all by herself?"
Her eyes were watery, her face was deathly pale, and her teeth were chattering.
"I'm also a beautiful woman with tea-colored hair. I happened to be passing by last night. Could I be next...?"
Michiwaki Masahiko timed his move perfectly and put his arm around her shoulder: "It's okay, I'll protect you during this time."
“That’s right.” Kuromon Haruya patted him on the shoulder and said with a smile, “Ran’s father is the famous detective Kogoro Mouri, and you have me, the famous photographer, by your side, so there won’t be any problems!”
"In that case, let's all go take a look." Asagi helped pick up the bouquet and the lost bag.
"Ok!"
......
Whisper.
The cicadas, emerging early, clung tightly to the tree bark, vibrating their wings and emitting a chainsaw-like cacophony from their resonant cavities.
A dark mass surrounded the woods, and those familiar faces from their hometown whispered among themselves, greedily sucking the sap from the new buds like cicadas in summer.
"Isn't this that person's son? When did he come back?"
"Yesterday, the night before the incident."
"This incident happened right after I got back. Do you think such a coincidence really exists in the world?"
"Isn't he the suspect from a year ago, the one who's rumored to be the one?"