Turning back, he then asked Fujino, "When you arrived, the door should have been locked tight, and the safety padlock on the door was also fastened, right?"
Fujino: "..."
That's true, but... why does that line sound so familiar? Another suicide, is that it?! So you guys are just here to slack off! Fujino paused, rubbing his temples.
Actually, it made sense. Closing the case as a suicide would be the easiest way out. Continuing the investigation would not only be thankless but might also lead to public criticism...
That being said, he had a mission, so there was no way he could let this case be ruled a suicide. He sighed and said gravely, "I don't think it was suicide."
"Huh?"
Mito Kouichi was surprised and pressed on, "You mean to say..."
"I believe this is a locked-room murder."
Fujino looked back at the padlock. "There are marks of a hard object being forced against both the padlock and the doorframe. I think the killer might have left those marks when they used a screwdriver to unscrew the safety lock from the crack in the door, finding it awkward and unable to see the screw clearly, while creating the locked room."
"That's true..."
Mito Kouichi leaned in to take a look, rubbing his chin. "If that's the case, a locked room could indeed be created using that method."
Fujino: "..."
You just noticed that...? Brother, did you even properly examine the crime scene? Fujino silently complained to himself.
He then turned to look at the small coffee table near where Bizen Chizuru had been found hanging. The forensics team believed that Bizen Chizuru had stepped onto it and hanged herself. But if they could determine it was murder, then on this table...
Thinking of this, Fujino turned to the forensics officer in a blue uniform and asked, "Officer, are there any toe fingerprints of Ms. Chizuru on this coffee table?"
"Consultant Fujino."
The officer stood up and thought for a moment: "We didn't find any toe fingerprints of the deceased on this coffee table. Perhaps the victim committed suicide while wearing slippers?"
"But Ms. Chizuru wasn't wearing slippers."
Fujino was speechless for a moment, looking at Bizen Chizuru. "I've been observing her since we entered the crime scene; she's been barefoot the entire time."
"The marks on the door lock, and no toe prints on this table... If that's the case, then Ms. Chizuru wasn't suicide at all, but murder!"
Mito Kouichi's expression was a bit agitated, not worried about not catching the killer. Among the police, those like Megure who constantly encountered their "personal detective little brother" were incredibly envious. After all, solving murder cases counts as a merit, and solving the murder of such a popular celebrity, even if it doesn't lead to a promotion, will at least bring a year-end bonus.
He straightened up, looking at Fujino with some relief. When his emotions ran deep, he blurted out that classic nickname: "Just as I'd expect, Little Bro Fujino, you even noticed details like this!"
Fujino: "..."
This is considered a detail? Anyone paying a little attention should be able to notice it, right? Why does it feel like anyone can be a detective? And now he's "little bro" again... It's hard not to suspect you guys are like Officer Megure, spending too much time at internet cafes and getting lightheaded.
---
### The restaurant at the hotel.
Shimokado Shinobu had brought Arimori back from the mountaintop when the police arrived. Since this case had been classified as a murder, everyone in the hotel was called into the restaurant for questioning.
"Regarding Ms. Chizuru's death, I have a few questions for everyone present."
Mito Kouichi stood in the center of the living room, looking around at everyone. "Mr. Joumoto, your relationship with Ms. Chizuru didn't seem very good. Last night, you even had an argument about topics like divorce, correct?"
"That's right, because the alimony she demanded was simply too enormous."
Joumoto lowered his head. "Our company's cash flow isn't smooth right now. If we paid her alimony, our ongoing development project might face a massive debt burden due to a broken capital chain and lead to bankruptcy."
"Besides that, it seems Mr. Miyabe, from her agency, also had a conflict with Ms. Chizuru."
Saying this, Mito Kouichi looked at Miyabe Kouta. "I heard you wanted to remove Ms. Chizuru from the drama she was filming, but she herself disagreed..."
"There was nothing I could do about it..."
Miyabe Kouta kept wiping sweat with a handkerchief, looking very nervous. "Replacing her was a sponsor's request. If she wasn't replaced, the sponsors would refuse to provide funding, and our entire production team is now facing the risk of halting filming."
"Both of you had financial conflicts with Ms. Chizuru... I see."
Mito Kouichi pondered, his eyes narrowing as he looked at the two, murmuring, "In other words, both of you are suspects in Ms. Chizuru's murder."
"Hey, hey, what are you trying to say?"
Joumoto couldn't sit still at this point. He stood up, looking at Mito, and questioned, "Wasn't Chizuru's death a suicide?"
"Exactly..."
Miyabe Kouta also said nervously, "Even if we had conflicts with her, there's no way we'd kill her."
"According to Consultant Fujino's deduction, we believe Ms. Chizuru did not commit suicide. The killer must be someone very familiar with this hotel..."
Mito Kouichi looked back, giving Fujino an appreciative little look.
Fujino: "..."
Can you please not take credit for this and put it on me? You're practically telling the killer to come after me for revenge, aren't you?
Turning back, Mito Kouichi continued facing the group: "The killer is highly likely to be an insider of this hotel. If possible, I'd like everyone currently in the restaurant to state their whereabouts between one and two o'clock, the time of Ms. Chizuru's death."
"Mr. Joumoto and I left the hotel around ten in the morning and didn't leave the lakeside until we returned at seven in the evening, but..."
Miyabe Kouta looked down at Joumoto, frowning. "However, at one point in the middle, Mr. Joumoto left for a while."
"I left because I forgot my bento."
Joumoto Hidehiko explained, "I came back at twelve-thirty and ate in the lobby. I finished eating around one-thirty and then went back to the lakeside to fish. The two sisters can confirm this for me."
Hearing this, Mito turned his gaze to the Shimogasa sisters: "Is what he says true?"
"Yes, we were cleaning rooms in the morning. At noon, Mr. Joumoto returned, and we brought him his bento."
The Shimogasa sisters sat on the sofa, clearly terrified by encountering a murder case for the second time. They gripped each other's hands and nodded in unison. "After Mr. Joumoto left, we watched TV in the lobby for a while, and then we went to prepare ingredients for everyone's evening barbecue."
"Did either of you go to Ms. Chizuru's room?"
After thinking for a moment, Mito asked the two sisters.
"No, Manager Arimori told us earlier not to disturb Ms. Chizuru."
Honami spoke first, followed by Minaho, who continued, "So neither of us went to disturb Ms. Chizuru."
"Mm, ah, I see."
Mito Kouichi watched the two sisters for a moment, then woodenly nodded. He was startled by the sisters' seemingly psychic synchronization. He pulled his gaze back and looked suspiciously at Joumoto Hidehiko. "Did you go to Ms. Chizuru's room at that time?"
"I did go to her room at that time, but only to knock on the door."
Listening to his explanation, he thought for a moment, then turned to look at Arimori and Shimokado Shinobu, who were sitting nearby. "What were you two doing during that period?"
"We went to the top of a small hill nearby after leaving the hotel and didn't return until seven in the evening. We were together the whole time, but Kouki's car engine broke down, and I just went to pick him up."
Shimokado Shinobu said, and Arimori immediately added, "Detective Fujino and his group can confirm this for us."
Mito Kouichi looked at Fujino and quietly asked, "Detective Fujino, is what they say true?"
"Yes, that's about right."
Fujino nodded, glanced at Arimori, and narrowed his eyes. "They were indeed with us playing on the mountaintop all day, and then they were a bit late returning in the evening because the engine broke down."
"If that's the case, the only ones with a suspicion would be the Shimogasa sisters and Joumoto."
Mito frowned at this, feeling a bit uncertain. So, he turned to his "little brother" beside him and asked in a low voice, "Little Bro Fujino, what do you think?"
"I don't think the Shimogasa sisters are suspicious. They only arrived here recently and have no disputes with Ms. Chizuru."
Fujino thought for a moment, ignoring the "little bro" address. "As for Joumoto, if he wanted to kill someone, logically, he wouldn't use such a clumsy method. He could have done it at home. Doing it here would be far too conspicuous."
"Hm, if you put it that way, the killer could indeed be someone else."
Nodding, Mito agreed with Fujino's assessment. Suddenly, he seemed to remember something. He looked up and asked, "Mr. Arimori, I just saw a door at the end of the hotel corridor. That should be an emergency exit, right?"
"That's right, our hotel has emergency exits on every floor."
Arimori paused, then continued, "However, those are automatic locks. They can be opened easily from the inside, but to open them from the outside, you need our hotel's master key. But today, the master key has been in my possession, and no one else has touched it."
"If that's the case, it must have been done by an internal hotel staff member!"
Miyabe Kouta suddenly stood up at this point, saying with a determined air, "It must be those two sisters who duplicated the master key! The killer must be them!"
"No! We didn't do anything!"
Suddenly accused of murder, the Shimogasa sisters were overcome with panic.
"This guy..."
Fujino glanced back at Miyabe Kouta. This guy had always seemed so weak. How is he so energetic now...? Bullying young girls, are we?
"We can't determine who the killer is yet!"
But before Fujino could speak, Mito interjected, "Even without a hotel master key, one can easily enter the hotel."
"For example, when Mr. Joumoto returned upstairs to ask Ms. Chizuru a question, he could have opened the emergency exit from the inside, propped the door open with a stone or something, and then used the excuse of leaving to return to the scene and commit the murder."
Saying this, he looked at Miyabe and said gravely, "If you and Mr. Joumoto worked together, you could simply hide in the trunk when he returns. He could open the door first, allowing you to enter the hotel, murder Ms. Chizuru, and then drive away."
"This guy, his deduction skills aren't bad after all..." Fujino looked at Mito, feeling a bit surprised. He didn't expect this guy's reasoning to be quite plausible.
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