Chapter 414: Motive for murder

Chapter 414: Motive for murder

Hattori Heiji still didn't quite believe it, so he asked again, "Uncle, did you really see it clearly? Is that a mermaid?"

When asked this, the uncle was a little uncertain. He hesitated and said, "I think so? It fell down all of a sudden. Actually, I didn't see it clearly."

"But I saw the tail clearly, it was indeed a tail, not a human leg!"

Conan groaned and said, "Uncle, could it be that the skirt or something got wet and stuck to the body, causing it to look like a tail?" He remembered the scene where Sumi Ebihara was hanging on the waterfall.

At that time, her skirt was stuck to her body, and from a distance it looked like a mermaid's tail.

The uncle shook his head repeatedly: "No, no, I can still tell the difference clearly."

Conan was speechless now. This old man was so sure, he didn't seem to have vision problems, unless he was mentally ill...

The uncle was worried that these three young men would send him to the police station, even though he had not done anything illegal. He told them what he knew and left.

Hattori Heiji looked at his back and suddenly had an illusion - it was as if this uncle was an NPC who triggered the plot and left after telling them important information.

He shook his head and threw away this strange idea.

After the uncle left, the three of them stood by the pool and looked down.

The water was clear, but the pool was too deep and it was pitch black and I couldn't see anything underneath.

Hattori Heiji squatted down, picked up a few stones, and threw them in from time to time, asking, "Do you think the mermaid who threw Miss Sumi into the water left from here?"

"Where does this pool lead to?"

Conan shook his head: "How should I know? I have to ask the locals."

Yuya stood next to Conan, stroking his chin and said, "Maybe we can try to go down and take a look?"

The two friends looked at Yuya in surprise, "Isn't that inappropriate? What if a merman attacks you from down there?"

Yuya was stunned. He looked at his friends with a strange look: "You... don't really believe it?"

Hattori Heiji and Conan shook their heads at the same time: "Of course I don't believe it. Someone is definitely playing tricks and trying to frame the merman for the murder. But the other party didn't expect Miss Sumi to survive."

"But the problem is, we don't know his or her motive for doing this."

Unable to find anything at the pond, the three of them started discussing as they walked towards the shrine.

Conan pinched his chin and analyzed: "Generally speaking, the motives for murder can be roughly divided into love, hatred, profit, and impulse killing."

Hattori Heiji said: "Then we can rule out impulse killing first."

Conan and Yuya both nodded in agreement. If it was an impulsive murder, there would be no need to disguise as a mermaid.

Youye continued, "I think murder for money is unlikely. If it's for money, shouldn't they kidnap and extort ransom? How can you get the money if the person is dead?"

Hattori Heiji speculated: "Do you think it is possible that Ms. Sumi bought a huge amount of insurance?"

"Insurance?" Yuya and Conan's expressions changed. If it was insurance fraud and murder, there were many such cases.

"If it's insurance fraud, then the range of suspects is very small..."

If Sumi Ebihara bought the insurance herself, the beneficiary would generally be her husband or parents, in addition to herself.

If the insurance is bought for her by someone else, the coverage is not large and only those who have insurance obligations to the insured are eligible to buy it, usually between couples, family members or companies.

Hattori Heiji continued: "For this, we just need to investigate whether Ms. Sumi has purchased insurance. As for the other two, love killing and revenge killing..."

The shrine was not far from the Mermaid Waterfall, and the three of them had already reached the door while they were talking.

As soon as I entered the door, I saw Shimabukuro Kimie holding a broom, sweeping the fallen cherry blossoms on the ground.

"Ms. Jun Hui." Youye raised his hand and greeted her.

Shimabukuro Kimie looked over when she heard the voice, a little surprised: "Why are there only a few of you?"

Yuya said, "Mio and the others are resting in the hotel. We are investigating the incident of Ms. Sumi falling into the water."

"I see," Shimabukuro Kimie asked with concern, "Did you find out anything?"

Youye sighed: "Nothing. It's better to say that what I found is a little bit unbelievable..."

He told Shimabukuro Kimie the information he got from the uncle.

Then he asked: "Ms. Jun Hui, have you ever seen a mermaid?"

Shimabukuro Kimie shook her head repeatedly: "Never."

She thought of the mermaid's smile last night, and for some reason she felt a little uneasy. Could it be that the mermaid was...

Yuya and the other two looked at each other without saying anything more.

Hattori Heiji asked, "Um, are Miss Kimie and Miss Sumi good friends?"

Shimabukuro was stunned for a moment, not knowing why they suddenly asked this question. Are they doubting me? But she nodded and said, "That's right."

"We suspect someone is deliberately murdering Miss Shoumei, and we would like to find you to learn more about the situation. Is that convenient?"

Shimabukuro Kimie's heart tightened, and her hand holding the broom unconsciously clenched.

Conan noticed it keenly, but didn't think much about it. He just thought that he was nervous because he heard someone wanted to kill his friend.

"Okay, let's go sit inside and talk."

The four of them came to the room where the shrine received guests.

Shimabukuro Kimie prepared some tea and desserts, and the four of them sat around the table.

"What do you want to ask?" Shimabukuro Kimie asked while pouring tea.

Yuya spoke first: "We still don't know who wants to kill Miss Shoumei and for what purpose, so if Miss Junhui knows anything, please try to tell us so that we can find out the truth as soon as possible."

Shimabukuro Kimie nodded seriously. She suddenly realized that in addition to killing people, she might also be able to use the hands of these three detectives to reveal what happened that year.

So he said, “Just ask.”

Yuya asked, "What is Ms. Shoumei's family situation like?"

Shimabukuro Kimie was stunned for a moment, then thought for a while and said, "His father is the owner of a ship and donates money to the shrine every year. I think he can be considered a rich man, right?"

"Did she buy insurance with a very large amount of coverage?"

"Insurance?" Shimabukuro Kimie was a little confused. Why did she ask this? "As you know, fishing at sea all year round is bound to encounter shipwrecks and so on, so most people in our village will buy insurance. Everyone in Sumi's family has one. But it was purchased by the village chief from an insurance company. They are all ordinary personal accident insurance, and the amount of insurance is not particularly large."

"Is that so?" The three nodded thoughtfully. If it was just ordinary insurance, the possibility of killing for the premium would be relatively low.

Conan tilted his head and asked, "Sister Kimie, I think Sister Shoumei and that big brother seem to have a special relationship. What is their relationship?"

Shimabukuro Kimie smiled and said, "They are engaged!"

"Huh? It doesn't look like that!" Conan was a little surprised and couldn't help but look at Yuya. The relationship between those two didn't seem as close as that between Yuya and Frankenstein. Are they really an engaged couple?

Shimabukuro Kimie smiled helplessly: "In fact, it was arranged by their parents when they were young, so it can be considered a child marriage. But Rokuro was not very satisfied with this matter, and because his parents had long passed away, he had been thinking about canceling the engagement."

"But Shoumei seems to be interested in Rokuro, but she has not agreed yet."

"I see." Hattori Heiji and Conan looked at each other.

One is interested, the other wants to get rid of the other.

Isn't this the motive for murder?

Fukuyama Rokuro was somewhat suspicious, but as a detective he obviously could not be so arbitrary.

Hattori Heiji continued to ask about the third possible motive for the murder: "Does Ms. Sumi have a bad relationship with anyone?"

Shimabukuro Kimie frowned slightly and muttered involuntarily: "The relationship is not so good..."

After a while, she shook her head: "Of course she can't have a good relationship with everyone, but it can't be said that her relationship is relatively bad. At most, she doesn't interact with everyone that often."

"Is that so?" Hattori Heiji was a little disappointed.

Seeing that there was no more information, the three said goodbye to Shimabukuro Kimie and found Fukuyama Rokuro.

Fukuyama Rokuro was about to go to the hospital to visit Ebihara Sumi.

There was a sudden strong wind on the sea today, and it would be dangerous to go out to sea, so Sumi Ebihara is still staying in the hospital.

According to Fukuyama Rokuro, although he did not want to marry the other party, they were childhood friends after all, and it was only right for him to visit her when she was hospitalized.

As for last night, he had a clear alibi when the crime happened, so it wasn't Fukuyama Rokuro who pretended to be the mermaid.

The clue was suddenly cut off.

They had no choice but to go to the hospital again to see if they could get any clues from Sumi Ebihara.

In the ward, they met the Ebihara father and daughter and Kuroe Naoko.

Fukuyama Rokuro casually placed the fruit on the table, looked at his other friend and said, "Naoko, you are here too."

Naoko Kuroe smiled and didn't say much.

"Have you found the mermaid?" Sumi Ebihara asked Yuya and the other two expectantly.

Yuya shook his head: "No."

"Is that so..." Sumi Ebihara lowered her head in disappointment and muttered a few words to herself.

"Hmm?" Hattori Heiji stood closer and moved his ears. He seemed to hear something. The mermaid was really alive?

What do you mean?

Hattori Heiji winked at his friend, and the three of them left the ward.

"What's wrong, Hattori, what did you find?" Conan asked, looking up.

Hattori Heiji whispered, "I just heard Ms. Sumi say something about the mermaid being resurrected."

"The mermaid is resurrected? What does that mean?" Conan was stunned.

Yuya seemed to have thought of something, pinching his chin and saying, "In fact, I have always wondered why the murderer would go to such great lengths to disguise himself as a mermaid and leave such obvious traces by the river. It's as if he was telling others that Miss Shoumei was killed by a mermaid."

"Now that I hear the words 'The mermaid has indeed resurrected', I seem to understand something."

Hattori Heiji and Conan were puzzled and asked: "What did you understand?"

Youya glanced at the two of them and said slowly, "The mermaid is really resurrected. Don't you have any thoughts when you hear this?"

Hattori Heiji and Conan frowned and thought for a while, then suddenly looked at each other and said to Yuya in unison: "The corpse in the warehouse three years ago?!"

"That's right!" Youye nodded. "The person who was burned to death in the warehouse three years ago, although the police said it was a middle-aged woman, many people thought it was a mermaid, and some even dug up the grave and stole the body."

"Ms. Sumi and Ms. Naoko all believed that those were the remains of a mermaid, so it was reasonable for her to say that the mermaid had been resurrected."

"But what I care about more is why did she say that?"

"Could it be that···"

Yuya didn't finish his words, but his meaning was already very clear, and both Hattori Heiji and Conan understood.

The three of them pinched their chins in the same motion, and finally said, "It seems that we need to investigate what happened three years ago. Miss Shoumei may have something to do with the fire."

···

There is only a small police station on Mermaid Island, with only one old policeman stationed there.

The old policeman was a little surprised to see three young men coming, and even more surprised to hear that they were detectives.

"A case occurred on the island?!" The old policeman narrowed his eyes and looked like he was not in good health.

The three of them looked at each other. No wonder they didn't call the police last night. It would be useless even if they arrived at the scene like this. They would be no better than the new police officers who had just graduated. At least they could run errands.

Hattori Heiji had a subtle expression and couldn't help asking, "Sir, you are still a policeman here at such an old age?"

The old policeman's face changed slightly when he heard this, and he said unhappily: "Why, do you look down on me, an old man? Don't look at my age now, I caught a lot of criminals when I was young!"

Hattori Heiji was speechless. What he said was like who hasn't caught criminals when they were young. The detectives caught murderers!

"Hmm, cough!" Yuya pretended to cough and gave Hattori Heiji a look.

Hattori Heiji understood and didn't bother to think about why the old policeman hadn't retired at such an old age. He changed the subject and said, "Mr. Policeman, are there any files here about the fire at the shrine three years ago?"

The old policeman squinted his eyes and did not move.

Hattori Heiji waited for a while and almost suspected that the old man was asleep.

I only heard the old policeman ask: "What are you looking for that file for?"

Hattori Heiji did not hesitate and told everyone his and his group's reasoning.

The old policeman's narrowed eyes suddenly widened, and he looked up and down at Youye and the others, and said slowly: "Do you think that the fire was not an accident, but there is another hidden story?"

Hattori Heiji nodded and shook his head: "We are not sure either, but the only clue now is the fire three years ago. Maybe we can find something from it."

The old policeman was silent for a while, then sighed and said, "It's been three years. Even the grave has been moved. How can there be anything left..."

Hattori Heiji was stunned. Is he talking about the mermaid's tomb? He couldn't help but ask: "Do you know where the tomb is reburied?"

The old policeman's eyes flickered, as if he realized that he had said something wrong. He waved his hand and said, "This is not a secret. Everyone on the island knows that the mermaid's tomb has been dug up. Later, the longevity lady had someone move it to another location."

"I see." Hattori Heiji didn't think too much about it. This statement was exactly the same as Shimabukuro Kimie's.

It can't be that they colluded to say this, right?

"Wait a moment, I'll go get the file." The old policeman said, then stood up and walked into the archive room at the back.

After a while, the old policeman came out with a thick leather file bag in his hand.

He handed the things to Hattori Heiji and said, "You can only look at them here, you can't take them away."

The three of them responded, found a place to sit down, opened the file bag, and each of them took a few pages and started reading.

Soon, they raised their heads.

Yuya pointed at the photos and said, "The most special thing here is this photo of the skeleton. It is indeed as they said. The bones below the waist are all smashed, and there are no broken bones in the feet."

Conan came over to take a look and said, "It does look a bit like the skeleton of a mermaid. Could it be that the person has no feet?"

Hattori Heiji was speechless: "How did this person get into the warehouse without feet? Who brought her in?"

The old policeman sighed, a little disappointed on his face: "The warehouse was completely burned down and nothing was left. The bones were burned so badly that even DNA tests could not confirm the identity. We can only roughly determine that it is a middle-aged woman."

"Plus, no one came to claim the body, so the case was left unresolved."

Yuya and the other two fell silent and did not refute anything.

There are actually many unsolved cases like this, and this fire is just a drop in the ocean.

Conan pointed to a record in the file and said, "Look, the lock left at the scene was confirmed to be the lock used in the warehouse. It was locked."

Yuya took over the conversation and said, "In other words, when the fire broke out, the people inside were locked in and had no way to escape, so they were burned to death?"

"Ok?"

The three of them suddenly looked at each other, their eyes slightly widened.

"In that case, this is not an accident, but..."

"murder?"