On the second day of the Singapore Karate Tournament.

A murder case had happened in a part of the event area, that is the Indoor Stadium, but as the organisers had given their full cooperation to the investigators, they announced that the event would proceed as planned.

Jamaluddin who had qualified for the finals had decisively won early in the match by punching his opponent in the middle and doing a high round house kick and knocking him out.

When Jamaluddin was returning to the waiting room after his match, an announcement played out throughout the entire event area.

“We have an announcement to make. In the second semi-finals match between Kyougoku Makoto and Tan Lee, Kyougoku Makoto has withdrawn and Tan Lee will proceed to the finals.”

As roaring came from the audience seats, Jamaluddin struck the wall in front of him with his fists.

“I didn’t ask for this……tch!”

 

At that time, Kyougoku was with Sonoko in her hospital room.

Kyougoku knelt down in front on Sonoko who was seated in a wheelchair, bandages wrapped around her head, and told her about withdrawing from the tournament.

“Why? Is it because of me?!”

Sonoko leaned her body forward and asked. Kyougoku replied her with a frank expression.

“There is a possibility that the people who attacked us might attack us again so I can’t possibly leave your side, Sonoko-san……”

“So it really is because of me. Go to the event. There is someone that you want to fight against, right?”

“……Yeah.”

A peculiar smile appeared on Kyougoku’s face. He stood up and walked round to the back of the wheelchair.

“But, Sonoko-san, since I couldn’t even protect you, it feels like I still lack something.”

“You sure are lacking in something.”

Sonoko muttered in an icy tone.

“Makoto-san, all you do is hide from me.”

“……Hide?”

“The charm bracelet, the plaster, you won’t tell me about any of those things.”

“No, that’s really no….”

Kyougoku frantically hid the plaster with his hand.

“Get out!”

Sonoko’s voice was furious.

“I don’t want to be protected by a man who’s just full of lies!”

Sonoko turned her head and her eyes were brimming with tears.

Kyougoku left the hospital room, speechless. He faced the door for a while but in the end, he turned such that his back was facing the door and like that, he stood motionless, like a statue.

 

Ran and Kid, disguised as Shinichi, took a late breakfast at a café along the street.

They were eating Kaya toast, which was butter and Kaya put between toast. Kaya jam is made by cooking coconut milk, eggs, sugar, pandan leaves and vanilla together. They also had coffee.

“I was really worried about you yesterday. I couldn’t contact you at all.”

Ran, who was seated right across, said and Kid apologised saying “Sorry, sorry”.

“It’s just that I got so absorbed with chasing after Kid. But it’s just what one would expect of the Magician under the Moonlight. Catching him would be impossible even for me, Kudo Shinichi………Gehh–!”

In the middle of his statement, Kid who suddenly got his foot stepped on let out a cry.

“Oh, Arthur-kun.”

Conan, who had stepped on Kid’s foot, appeared at some point of time.

“Hello. Is your friend, Sonoko-nee san alright?”

“Yup. I just dropped by the hospital earlier and the results of the examinations showed that there are no problems. It seems like she’ll get discharged in the afternoon and return to the hotel.”

“Heh—that’s great.”

“Thanks for worrying about her.”

Ran expressed her gratitude while Kid who was in agonizing pain finally raised his head.

“Speaking of which, what is that Kogorou-occhan doing?”

“He’s been drinking at a Prawn Mee (Prawn noodle) shop since morning.”

“How undisciplined.”

“Exactly. And he even ruined one shirt by getting booze spilled on it.”

Ran said with a bewildered expression and stood up.

“Anyway, we should head back to the hotel. I want to pack up the luggage.”

“Is it alright to just leave Sonoko-nee san and that person alone?”

Conan asked and Ran said “Umm….” With a slightly troubled expression.

“I’m just going to leave them alone for a while….something seemed to have happened between the two of them….Kyougoku-san even withdrew from the tournament……”

Ran frowned as she spoke then she raised her head—At some point of time, Shinichi and Arthur who were before her eyes had disappeared.

“Eh? Shinichi?!”

 

Kid and Conan had left the café and went over to the front of the world’s largest fountain – The “Fountain of Wealth” which was located in the shopping complex “Suntec City”.

(T/N: Is it really the largest fountain….goes google. Seriously? It’s the world’s largest?!)

The round fountain which was located at the first floor of the basement level  was within a traffic circle. Conan and Kid walked up the staircase, left the basement and sat down on the steps that was within a small park in the traffic circle.

“So, were you able to gather anything from yesterday? Great detective.”

Kid asked and Conan muttered an “ah” while looking in the direction of the fountain.

“Based on the investigation reports I saw in Rishi’s house, it’s like this. Based on the witness testimony, Sherilyn-san was not stabbed in the shopping mall where she died. Instead it was probably in the elevator of Tower three. But why would someone bother to commit the crime in the elevator……”

“If they screw up, they’ll have no place to run right?”

Kid had the same doubts as he did.

“With a store-bought knife still stuck in her back, she proceeded to move towards the shopping mall. And right after she collapsed, her car exploded on the basement carpark. Because of that, there was a blackout in the entire hotel.”

“And due to this, all the feed from the security cameras got cut?”

“What bothers me is that Leon was at the scene of the crime. He was the one who made the arrangements for his own room and Sherilyn-san’s room. However, at the time when she got killed, many eyewitnesses said they saw Leon in another elevator carrying a suitcase.”

“With his alibi verified, he was excluded from the line of investigation?”

Kid shrugged and with both of his palms facing upwards.

Conan nodded saying “Exactly.”

“Come to think of it, why did Leon have a suitcase?”

Kid wondered. Even though he had a room in the hotel, it was not as though he was on an overseas trip, so it was a bit unnatural for him to have a suitcase.

“Ahh, of course, the police did check the interior but it was empty. He had only sent the suitcase to be repaired and then came to pick it up. And it was verified that a store near the hotel did receive his request.”

“A perfect alibi, huh?”

Kid said that and then frowned, feeling uncomfortable.

“There’s one more thing. Why did he leave my advance notice at the scene of the crime……Where was the need to drag me into this?”

“And he even went as far to have clotted blood smeared on it.

Conan recalled the photo of Kid’s advance notice which he saw in the investigation information.

“About that, it’s an attempt to pinning the crime of murdering Rachael-san on you. The knife used to kill her was the same kind used to kill Sherilyn-san.

“Rachael-san was placed in the podium of the vault before I went in. But to do so, one would need to get through the security guards and the countless security systems first.”

“Some who can slip past the eyes of the security and get in without touching the sensors….”

As Conan said this, he shot a fleeting glance at Kid who next to him.

“No, it’s not me!”

Kid gave a mocking smile at Conan who was staring at him.

“Just as I thought, Leon Lowe is the most suspicious. As the person managing the vault, he would be completely familiar with the security systems in place. Furthermore, the Championship belt had been brought to the stadium yesterday morning. Also, we can be sure that Rachael-san was alive all the way till two nights ago. In other words, there’s a high chance that the crime was committed between that night till the morning the belt got moved.”

“However, why would he kill her? Why was it necessary for him to kill his own secretary?

“Perhaps his motive was that.”

Conan thought about the name card that Rachael passed to Kogorou at the bar. The card had the time and location where the two should meet up. Also, it even had “Tell no one” written—

“There was something that Rachael-san wanted to tell Occhan….”

Next to Conan who was deep in thought, Kid recalled the bloody words he saw written on the inside of the pedestal located in the vault.

“Those clues she left behind, those bloody words. “She”…… “Another woman?” Who is it?”

“Rachael-san was still alive when she got put into the pedestal. Then, until she breathed her last, she left behind a message. But what does….?”

Conan shook his small head.

“It’s no use. It feels like something terrible is going to happen but my thoughts won’t come together.”

“Even the great detective has given up?  Then let’s take a break for now”

Kid grinned, not expecting that Conan would give up, and lightly clenched his left hand, showing it at Conan.

“So, what do you think is in this fist?”

“……Coconut Water.”

Kid’s eyes grew wide when the correct answer was given to him.

“How did you know that?!”

“Didn’t you buy it just now?”

“Oh, you were watching?”

Even though his trick was revealed in such a blunt manner, Kid passed Conan the coconut water. Conan stared at the coconut water…….

(Magic……! I get it!)

“By the way, did that Lady Sonoko have a falling out with that Karate guy?”

Kid asked, remembering what Ran said in the café then Conan answered, “It seems so.”

“Well, they’re on a trip but then she first gets into a brawl then a traffic accident, so she became uneasy I guess?”

“So that’s it.”

“Huh?”

Conan closed the cap to the coconut water he was drinking and then replied Kid.

“He caused Sonoko to get hurt and shook up Kyougoku-san emotionally. Because the greatest obstacle to Jamaluddin’s victory is Kyougoku-san.”

“……I see. So Leon was behind that traffic accident as well.”

Conan gave a small nod.

“And Kyougoku-san withdrew from the tournament just as he planned. In this way, Jamaluddin will definitely get his hands on the Championship Belt. In other words, it will be passed to his employer, Leon.

“……Together with the “Fist of the Blue Sapphire”.”

“But why is Leon so fixated on the “Fist of the Blue Sapphire”……?”

Conan could not understand. Leon was not a jewel collector or anything like that so why—

“I got a clue about that.”

Kid grinned and he crossed his left hand that was holding the coconut water with his right hand quickly. Once he did so, the coconut water vanished in a blink of an eye and he reached out his left hand towards Conan and showed his smart phone.

On its display was the image of a long haired man wearing a Chinese style shirt.

“This man met with Leon at dawn. Detective, can you find out who this person is?”

“Well, it’s not like I can’t do it……”

Conan took out his smart phone from his pocket.

 

Haibara Ai was reading a book on the sofa in the living room of Agasa’s house when she received a call from Conan.

Afterwards, Yoshida Ayumi, Tsubura Mitsuhiko and Kojima Genta who had come over to play ran around while making a racket.

“Now listen here! You suddenly called the professor saying “On second thoughts, I’ll go Hokkaido”  then hung up. What are you doing now?!”

“Sorry, Haibara. Various things happened here……”

While listening to the voice on the phone, Haibara turned her head to the children who were running around her.

“Be quiet for a moment! You guys!”

“O-K” The children replied but as they were wondering what was happening, they stood behind Haibara and peeked at her.
“Seriously….I’m sure you somehow got dragged into some case, right?”

“Actually, that’s exactly it. I’m just sent you a data file containing a photo that Kid took….”

Haibara’s eye’s widened when she heard a name she did not expect.

“Kid? Did you just say Kid?!”

“No way-! Kaito Kid appeared?!”

Hearing Kid’s name, the children leapt up.

“That call came from Conan-kun right? Conan-kun said he’s in Hokkaido right now?

“What’s Kid planning to steal?”

“A wood carving of a bear?”

“Maybe it’s Sapporo Ramen?”

“He won’t steal stuff like that.”

The three who were having a lively discussion about Hokkaido ran towards Haibara, saying “Ai-chan!”

“Please let me talk to him!”

“Me, me too!”

Genta who was running at the back had too much momentum, falling over and bringing Ayumi and Mistuhiko down with him. With a “Wah~!!”, they fell like dominos.

Haibara, who was still on the phone, looked in the other direction of the children who had fallen over.

“Sorry, the kids just came over to play….”

“I…I see. I’ll tell you the details when I get back but for now, I want you to investigate more about the man in the photo.”

“Alright, alright, I get it.”

Haibara took the laptop that was placed on the sofa and put it on her knee, opening it.

“Are you really alright?”

“Yeah, somewhat.”

Just when it seems like Haibara’s expression softened upon hearing Conan’s voice,

“I’m sure there’s no point in me telling you this but don’t do anything rash.”

She said in her usual tone before cutting the call.

 

Conan who got hung up let out a sigh with a “fuuu” and moved his smart phone away from his ears.

“Thank you, fu. Well, we’ll be fine now.”

“So, what are we going to do next, great detective?”

Conan listened to Kid and stood up, his gaze turned towards the fountain.

“I’m going to watch and see how things play out. I’ll see what moves Leon makes after he’s gotten his hands on the “Fist of Blue Sapphire”. But before that, we need to find Occhan.”

He ran off as he said that.

“Eh? Ah, oi! Wait!.”

Kid chased after him frantically.

 

The finals between Jamaluddin and Tan Lee was currently being held at the Indoor Stadium. Jamaluddin displayed his overwhelming power to his finals’ opponent.

Early in the match, he had launched continuous attacks before giving a last final kick which sent Tan Lee flying.

A loud cheer erupted from the audience seats when the word “WIN” appeared under Jamaluddin’s photo on the large monitor.

“The Winner of the Zhong Han Cup is Jamaluddin–!!”

Leon, who was in the VIP room, smiled cruelly.

A memory from when he was younger replayed in that mind of his–.

* **

 

“So what do you think of my city plan?”

Leon, who had finished explaining his plan in a one-sided way, looked around the meeting room.

There was a large table placed in the middle of the colonial style room and on both sides were elderly men seated next to each other in a row.

They were supposed to be dignified men who were heavyweights in the business world, however it seemed like they barely took a glance at the plans that were placed next to their tea and were hardly listening to Leon’s explanation.

Among them, seated right in front of Leon was Zhong Han Chen who was putting his mind into reading the plans.

“We cannot accept your proposal.”

“Why?”

Leon asked as held back his anger.

“You lose nothing with this plan. It also benefits the country.”

Zhong Han removed his glasses and started wiping it.

“It’s too hasty. If you proceed with this much development, some may be forced out of their homes.”

“We can  give them another place. My plan is perfect!”

Leon said forcefully, then Zhong Han snorted. Then he slowly put his glasses back on.

“You are too young. Learn some more and come back.”

The other elderly men laughed as Leon took the harsh words from Zhong Han.

Drowning in their laughter, that humiliated expression contorted–.

***

Among the cheers and applause, the championship belt was wrapped around Jamaluddin’s waist on top of the stage.

Without a smile on his face, Jamaluddin raised his head and looked at the VIP room with a stern expression.

Next to him was Zhong Han who was clapping.

Leon was clapping lightly while standing at the window of the VIP room. His ambition had spilled out and a twisted smile appeared.

“Your era is now at an end. I will build a new city………!”