The next morning.
Tsuneo jogged to the usual small park.
Today was supposedly the last day of a thirty-day training session.
Well, "supposedly" because the repairman had completely lost track of the days.
And that didn't even include the days the Mouri family went on trips, wreaking havoc wherever they went.
Of course, the culprit behind all this was, without a doubt, a certain elementary school kid!
"Heh!"
Sure enough, the famous detective was waiting there, holding a soccer ball, flashing a grin at the repairman.
"What's so funny?" Tsuneo said, clearly annoyed.
If you've got nothing better to do, stay home and don't go out.
Speaking of, with a Grim Reaper like him around, it was downright unnatural that this park hadn't seen a single murder case in so long…
"Even Genta's eel rice meal got pinned on me, and you're the one who's mad…?" Conan turned and started kicking his ball against a tree.
Ran must've gone to the bathroom or something, because the famous detective was talking pretty casually.
"Do you know how awkward it was when they asked me for details?!?" Tsuneo gave Conan's head a hard tap.
Who the heck are these culprits and victims? Do I know them?!
Thank goodness he'd mastered the art of the bathroom escape…
"Inspector Megure? Just brush it off. If it comes to it, say you were half-asleep during the phone call," Conan said, rubbing his head, unfazed.
If there were any holes in the story, the police would fill them in themselves—no need to worry.
"Be honest. Have you ever aimed that thing at me?"
Tsuneo grabbed the kid's wrist, staring into his eyes.
There'd been a few times when Uncle Mouri wasn't around, and he'd felt a chill down the back of his neck for no reason.
"Big brother Tsuneo, why would I ever do something like that?!"
Conan suddenly switched to his signature innocent, bubbly tone.
Sure enough, Tsuneo turned and saw Ran walking over.
"Tsuneo, what's up?" Ran looked a bit confused.
Still, Tsuneo and Conan's relationship was pretty great—they always had so much to talk about.
"Nothing. Just asking him if he's got any puppy love problems," Tsuneo said, letting go of Conan's wrist and ruffling his hair hard.
Conan: …
That's a lame excuse.
"Puppy love?!" Ran looked down at Conan.
"N-No way, haha!" The famous detective scratched his head and scampered off.
Spouting nonsense first thing in the morning. This guy…
…
"Not bad. You've improved a lot," Tsuneo said, rubbing his left shoulder with a smile.
That kick had actually stung a bit.
"Phew, a lot of my seniors said the same," Ran said, catching her breath and wiping sweat from her forehead.
As expected, Tsuneo's stamina was insane.
She could hold her own with Hattori, but going solo against Tsuneo was still too much.
"See? It's working. Looks like we can add some more training…"
Just as Tsuneo was about to pile on more lessons, a man's shout echoed from nearby.
"Help! Somebody!"
"Anyone there?!"
A middle-aged man with messy hair, glasses, and a briefcase tucked under his arm came running from the other side of the park.
Tsuneo: …
Here we go. Has the Grim Reaper finally struck?
The man spotted Tsuneo and the others like they were his saviors and rushed over. "P-Please, help me call the police!"
"Sir, what happened?"
Conan, holding his soccer ball, stopped and stood in front of the man, curious.
This guy didn't look hurt.
He was still clutching his briefcase, so it didn't seem like a robbery.
But it was barely past six in the morning—way too early to be heading to work, right?
"Over there, someone's dead!"
The man's face was full of panic as he pointed in the direction he'd come from.
"Someone's dead?!" The famous detective's expression shifted, and he took off running, soccer ball in hand.
Ran, worried about him, followed close behind.
Tsuneo, unfazed, patted the man's shoulder, grabbed his phone from nearby, and dialed Inspector Megure's private line.
Don't worry!
It's just a dead body. No big deal.
The Grim Reaper's wind had finally blown into this park.
"Inspector Megure?" Tsuneo asked the slightly silent voice on the other end.
"Tsuneo, my man, don't tell me…" Inspector Megure suddenly had a bad feeling.
His breakfast was probably doomed…
"Just like you're thinking. And it's a shooting," Tsuneo said, rounding the park's corner and spotting a body lying by the grass.
"A shooting?!"
Inspector Megure snapped awake, throwing on his clothes and heading out.
Anything involving firearms was no small matter!
"Why do you keep holding onto me…?" The middle-aged man, still clutching his briefcase, grumbled about Tsuneo's grip.
He'd just escaped that scene, only to be dragged back to face the corpse's unblinking stare.
"Sir, you're the first witness. The police will definitely need to talk to you," Conan said, glancing at the scene before looking up at the man.
"Clean and precise. One shot, straight to the head," Tsuneo said, examining the body.
The victim was a woman, shot between the eyes, around forty years old, wearing athletic clothes, likely out for a morning workout nearby.
"Looks like another company president or something."
Tsuneo noted her designer workout gear and the flashy women's watch on her wrist—pricey, no doubt.
Conan, standing beside him, nodded silently in agreement.
"Good thing," Tsuneo said, standing up and breathing a sigh of relief after studying her face.
"Good thing?"
Conan and Ran exchanged confused looks.
How was this situation "good" by any stretch…?
"Good thing she's not one of my clients," Tsuneo said with a smile.
…
Once the police arrived, they began investigating the victim, but Tsuneo had no interest in getting involved.
Mouri Kogoro, hearing about the case, took a taxi straight to the scene.
The repairman decided to head home, leaving the scene to the famous detective.
The news hit the TV stations fast.
The victim's identity and social connections were quickly dug up.
Just as Tsuneo had guessed, she was the president of an electronics company.
Time of death was around six in the morning.
By noon, Conan—whether he'd skipped school or not—showed up at Tsuneo's place.
"This case isn't as simple as it looks."
"What's so complicated about it?" Tsuneo said, looking at him with exasperation.
If you're a company president, you'd better be ready for this kind of thing!
"That shot you saw—it's not something an average person could pull off."
Conan shook his head. The shot was steady, precise, and ruthless—hardly the work of a typical revenge-driven amateur.
"You're saying they've learned to hire hitmen?!?" Tsuneo's expression was a mix of surprise and amusement.
Hiring a pro like that to do the job!
You guys have finally wised up!
(End of Chapter)
------------------------------
Thank you for enjoying my stories! If you want to go further and support my work, Patreon is the best way to do it — many of the newest chapters will be posted there!
👉 pat*eon*com/DaoistRoeoNQ