"Brother Aizen, do you know who the culprit is?"
Inspector Megure perked up upon hearing this. He had great faith in Aizen's deductive abilities, and seeing Aizen like this, he immediately felt that Aizen might have already solved the mystery.
Conan and Heiji Hattori glanced at Aizen upon hearing this. They hadn't solved the case yet, and if Aizen truly knew the culprit, it meant he had won. They were far inferior to him.
Aizen said, "I have a suspect, and I think he's the culprit, but I don't have evidence yet, so I can't guarantee it 100%."
Inspector Megure said, "Brother Aizen, please state your reasoning. The police will search for evidence."
"Alright, please come in."
Aizen took the glass shard from Conan and went inside.
Conan and Heiji Hattori naturally followed.
Aizen said to Inspector Megure, "Inspector Megure, could you please have someone bring me a thin thread and a small piece of tape?"
Inspector Megure immediately ordered them to prepare.
Conan and Heiji Hattori nodded secretly upon hearing this. They had already anticipated this method of closing the window when they learned about the small hole in the glass, so they weren't surprised.
Soon, the police officer brought over the thread and tape that Aizen had requested.
As he worked, Aizen explained, "First, tie a loop to one end of the thread, then use the tape to secure the thread. Next, hang the loop on the doorknob, then thread the other end of the thread through the small hole in the glass. Finally, the murderer goes out onto the balcony, without locking the door. If he pulls the thread..."
Aizen went to the balcony and pulled the thread, saying, "The thread will come loose from the tape, and the door will lock automatically. Then, a locked-room murder will be complete."
To everyone's surprise, the door was indeed locked, and the thread was pulled out. Aizen then unlocked the door through the broken glass and went back inside.
Inspector Megure nodded, "This method is indeed feasible. Brother Aizen, who exactly is the culprit?"
Aizen smiled and said, "Since the culprit left the room and came to the balcony, then the culprit disappeared from the balcony. I checked, although this is the third floor, as long as one is nimble, it is still possible to go down from the third-floor balcony to the second floor."
"So..."
Inspector Megure looked at Yuji Sakuraba and Morizono Kikuhito. Of the five people present, only Yuji Sakuraba and Morizono Kikuhito fit this description.
"It wasn't me, I didn't kill anyone!"
Seeing Inspector Megure and everyone looking at him, Yuji Sakuraba hurriedly waved his hands, explaining anxiously.
Kikuhito Morizono chuckled and said, "If what Mr. Aizen said is true, then I can't possibly be the murderer."
Aizen said, "I remember during the day, Butler Shigematsu mentioned that Mr. Kikuhito has a fear of heights, so if that's true, then Mr. Kikuhito is indeed not a suspect."
Mikio Morizono said, "That's beyond doubt. If officers ask any of the servants in the villa, you'll get the same answer."
Aizen said, "Mr. Morizono is obviously injured; he can't possibly escape from the balcony. Miss Yurie and Miss Kaede are women; unless they've had special training, they couldn't have done that. Plus, Miss Yurie looks injured, so she's even less likely to be the culprit."
Yurie Morizono spoke up, "I accidentally slipped and fell while taking a bath earlier."
Seeing his suspicion growing, Yuji Sakurabau frantically explained, "I didn't kill anyone! You have to believe me, I really didn't kill anyone!"
"The cat!"
Aizen exclaimed, "This cat is here. I think you deliberately left it here, Mr. Sakuraba, to create an alibi."
Yuji Sakurabau protested, "No, I was really looking for the cat."
Conan and Hattori Heiji frowned. From the beginning until now, Aizen's reasoning had been flawless, but they just felt something was off—that's a detective's intuition, isn't it?
Morizono Mikio glanced at Yuji Sakuraba, thinking that given Yuji Sakuraba's feelings, he shouldn't have killed the butler Shigematsu. Therefore, he spoke up, "Mr. Aizen, based on just these two points, you can't simply say he's the culprit, can you?"
"Of course, it's not just that," Aizen nodded. "Perhaps none of you have noticed, but I have. Mr. Sakuraba and Ms. Kaede's relationship is unusual. I think they like each other, don't they?"
"What?!" Hearing this, everyone in the room looked at Yuji Sakuraba and Katagiri Kaede in shock, only to find that the two didn't refute him, but instead lowered their heads. Clearly, Aizen had hit the nail on the head. Seeing this, Aizen continued, "Mr. Kikuhito and Ms. Kaede's wedding was arranged by Butler Shigematsu.
Mr. Sakuraba harbored resentment and killed Butler Shigematsu in revenge, while also sabotaging tomorrow's wedding. That's very possible, isn't it?" " Sakuraba, is that true?" Mikio Morizono asked. If that were true, then it was very possible that Sakuraba Tsukasa killed Butler Shigematsu. "Was it really this man who killed him?" Yurie Morizono frowned slightly. Shigematsu Akio's death occurred after this man left her place.
If there was an opportunity to commit the crime, this man certainly had it. But she didn't understand why, if Sakuraba Tsukasa really wanted to kill someone, he would rape her beforehand. Could it be that he was worried about being exposed and wanted to vent his anger beforehand? "No, he didn't kill anyone!" Katagiri Kaede suddenly spoke up, raising her head to look at everyone.
He was with me the whole time. We were looking for the cat together, so he couldn't have killed anyone." Inspector Megure said, "Miss Katagiri, you didn't say that before."
As he spoke, Inspector Megure approached Yuji Sakuraba and said, "Mr. Sakuraba, please come with us to the police station to assist with the investigation."
"I really didn't kill Uncle Shigematsu, you have to believe me, I really didn't kill anyone!"
Yuji Sakuraba anxiously protested. Takagi Wataru and another officer came to his side, one on each side, to prevent him from making a desperate attempt to sabotage the investigation.