"Oh, a little earlier than agreed, Little President."
Her voice sounded very magnetic.
"And you brought two 'family members'? This isn't quite like the agreement of 'coming alone'."
Mouri Kogoro immediately blocked Koleda, and asked sharply, "Are you Tachibana Maya?"
"The one and only."
Tachibana Maya smiled, her gaze lingering on Mouri Kogoro's face for a moment, then she looked at Conan.
"However… it seems my worries were unnecessary. I was wondering how I would escape if you, Little President, brought the police to ambush me."
She pointed to the room's window.
"I saw you all get out of the car from the window. This uncle, I think I've seen him in the newspaper, isn't he the famous Sleeping detective? And…"
Her gaze turned to Conan, her smile deepening.
"You even brought such a cute little brother. This combination doesn't look like you're here to catch me at all. It really looks like a parent bringing a child to meet a friend. So, I came out on my own."
Her explanation was reasonable and logical, not only demonstrating her vigilance and observational skills but also somewhat dispelling some of Mouri Kogoro's doubts.
"Let's go inside and talk, standing in the hallway is too conspicuous." Tachibana Maya stepped aside, letting the three into her Room 2103.
Her room was completely different from the tidiness of 2104, an open suitcase lay on the table, revealing items like wires and cosmetics, and a half-empty bottle of red wine sat on the bedside table, giving it a casual, lived-in feel.
After everyone sat down, Koleda went straight to the point. "Tachibana Maya-san, you said in your letter that you would tell me the client's information."
"Of course, this is my sincerity for abandoning the mission."
Tachibana Maya was very straightforward, she pulled up a photo on her phone and handed it to Koleda.
"The person who hired me is named Yoshida Taro. He's a security team leader at the nearby Yoshida Construction Company. Here, these are his details."
The photo showed a middle-aged man with a somewhat fierce face, wearing a security uniform.
"Security team leader?" Mouri Kogoro leaned over to look, then paused, "Why would he want to kill Koleda-san? Do you two have a grudge?"
Koleda looked at the photo, thought carefully, and shook her head, "I've never heard of this person, let alone have a grudge."
"I don't know the motive, Assassin just take orders and don't ask why."
Tachibana Maya shrugged.
"However, besides you being a minor, there's an even more important reason why I decided to abandon the mission and find you—"
She paused, a nearly mocking smile on her face. "The commission he offered was simply too insulting."
"How much?" Mouri Kogoro asked curiously.
Tachibana Maya held up two fingers.
"Twenty million?" Mouri Kogoro guessed.
Tachibana Maya shook her head.
"Could it be… two hundred million?!"
Mouri Kogoro gasped, thinking that this would be more fitting for the status of Belobog Heavy Industries' President.
Tachibana Maya scoffed. "Detective Mouri, you think too highly of him. It was two million Yen."
"Two… two million?!" Mouri Kogoro, Conan, and even Koleda all exclaimed at the same time, their faces filled with disbelief.
Two million Yen might be a significant amount for an ordinary person, but for hiring someone to murder the president of a large heavy industry company, it was ridiculously cheap, even a blatant insult!
"That's right, just two million."
Tachibana Maya affirmed, with a hint of displeasure in her tone.
"One million upfront, and the remaining one million after the deed is done. When I first received this quote, I thought the other party had omitted two zeros.
After confirming, I felt this guy was either crazy or deliberately trying to disgust me. If I take a job like this, what will happen to my reputation in the industry?"
Conan thought, Two million is indeed too low. Either this Yoshida Taro doesn't know the market price, or… his goal might not be simply murder, but something else? Or, is there someone else behind him? Did he take a cut from the commission given by his superior?
"So,"
Tachibana Maya leaned forward, looking at Koleda, a hint of slyness flashing in her eyes,
"I decided to turn it around and let him know what 'you get what you pay for' means. Little President, do you want to teach this guy, who wants to achieve big things with little money, a lesson?"
"What do you mean?" Koleda asked calmly.
"It's simple."
Tachibana Maya snapped her fingers.
"I'll help you solve this problem. You cooperate with me and pretend to have been killed by me.I'll use ketchup to make some 'bloodstains' on you and take a few sufficiently realistic photos to send to him.
Once he sees the photos and confirms the mission is complete, I can arrange to meet him under the pretense of collecting the final payment.
Then, whether you call the police to arrest him or handle it yourselves, that's up to you. How about it?"
Mouri Kogoro stroked his chin in thought. "Pretending to be killed to lure the snake out of its hole… that's a good idea! It's safe and we can catch the mastermind!"
Koleda thought for a moment, then nodded decisively. "Okay. I agree."
"Great!"
Tachibana Maya smiled, and immediately started acting, actually pulling out a half-eaten bottle of ketchup from her suitcase.
Then she instructed Koleda to lie on the hotel's pristine carpet, applied "bloodstains" to her chest and the corner of her mouth.
Adjusting the lighting angle, she used her phone to take several extremely realistic "crime scene" photos from various angles.
"Perfect!" Tachibana Maya looked at the photos, nodding in satisfaction, "A little more editing, and it'll be enough to pass for real. I'll finish it and send it to him now."
She operated her phone, sent the photos, and then began composing a message.
A few minutes later, the other party replied.
Tachibana Maya looked at her phone, a smirk on her lips. "It's done. He saw the photos and is very satisfied, he's already agreed to pay the final installment. He told me to go to the usual spot to get the money now."
"Excellent! Where is he now?" Mouri Kogoro asked eagerly.
"Don't rush, Detective Mouri."
Tachibana Maya put away her phone and stood up.
"People like him are very cautious, the agreed-upon place requires a detour. Let's go, I'll take you there now. The sooner we resolve this, the sooner I can be rid of this bothersome request."
The four left the room and took the elevator downstairs. They exited the hotel lobby and stepped onto the chilly street at night.
Tachibana Maya looked left and right, then suddenly clutched her stomach, a slightly embarrassed expression on her face.
"Um… excuse me, everyone, I think I ate something bad tonight, I need to go to the public restroom over there first. You all wait for me here, I'll be quick!"
With that, without waiting for Mouri Kogoro's response, she clutched her stomach and quickly jogged towards a public restroom around the street corner, soon disappearing around the bend.
Mouri Kogoro, Koleda, and Conan had no choice but to wait there.
One minute passed, two minutes passed… five minutes passed… Tachibana Maya still hadn't returned.