Chapter 25: Sword Saints Are Real

“Is it possible that you deliberately carved it yourself?” Yuji Suwa remained unconvinced. “You inscribed my name, and then…”

“First, why would I disrupt the arrangement of the drawers after carving your name? Wouldn’t it be more advantageous for me not to mess it up?”

“Second, I have no idea whether you have an alibi. If I left such a message and you did have an alibi, wouldn’t that actually clear your name?”

“Generally speaking, if you want to forge a death message, without knowing whether the person can provide an alibi, you shouldn’t casually make the message so explicit… forget it.”

Moré caught the slightly hostile look from Inspector Megure and wisely dropped the subject. “In any case, Mr. Suwa, your accusation doesn’t hold.”

“Do you have anything else to say now?”

Yuji Suwa fell silent.

“But if he intended to repay the money, why kill Mr. Maru?” Inspector Megure wondered.

“Because of the sword.”

Yuji Suwa, who had been silent, finally spoke.

“The sword? The one the deceased was holding?” Megure questioned.

“That piece of junk?” Suwa scoffed. “It’s my family heirloom sword—the kukishindō named Kikuchiyo, once wielded by the Shinsengumi warrior Suwa Shinnosuke.”

“That scoundrel… when my family suddenly faced a crisis, I had no choice but to pawn the sword with him for five million yen as emergency funds.”

“But when I gathered enough to redeem the sword, he was surprised.”

“He said to me in astonishment, ‘Redeem it? Why would you say that?’”

Suwa clenched his fist tightly. “I thought he was being kind and would just return the sword to me… but he said, ‘Didn’t you already give the sword to me? I lent you the money because of that, you know?’”

At this point, a faint glint flickered in Suwa’s inscrutable eyes. He nearly shouted, “That bastard said he was willing to sell me the sword at a ‘friendship price,’ only needing another million… but then days later, he said someone else wanted to buy it, raising the price to two million! And today, he said Mr. Moré has already bid nine million! He sneered, demanding three million from me, claiming it was a kindness, and that I could pay a million less than Moré…”

“What was most unbearable! He! Actually! Insulted my samurai spirit! Insulted Bushido! Insulted the Suwa family’s two-hundred-year history!”

“I originally thought that if I killed him, I could get through this period and escape abroad… but since you’ve seen through me, I won’t pretend anymore.”

“Yes, that’s right, I’m the one who killed him! Why should someone like him live?!”

His fierce gaze swept over everyone, causing them to recoil in fear.

“So, I did this…” With a swift motion, he snatched the murder weapon—the sword—from the officer’s hand. His right hand gripped the hilt with a speed too quick for others to see; then he turned, bent over, stepped forward, and with a sharp sound, the blade—

Did not leave its sheath.

At the moment he turned, Moré activated a strengthening spell and instantly moved forward, delivering a punch to Suwa’s abdomen. Before Suwa could draw the sword, his body curled up like a shrimp under the blow and slammed against the opposite wall.

Everyone was frozen in place. Ran Mouri let out a startled cry but, seeing the situation, felt awkward and coughed twice, acting as if nothing had happened.

“Was that self-defense?” Suwa looked toward Inspector Megure.

“Ah? Oh, yes, self-defense…” Megure wiped the sweat from his brow.

What kind of strange strength is this… Is this foreigner even human?

Ran didn’t find it strange at all. But there was one thing that caught her attention.

“Moré-kun?”

“Hmm?” Moré turned around. “What is it?”

“When you were arranging the drawers earlier, I was curious… when exactly did you figure all that out?”

“What?”

“You know, the order of the cabinet…”

“Yeah, I was wondering about that too!” Conan said excitedly.

“Just now,” Moré yawned.

“But how did you calculate it?” Ran asked, puzzled.

“With my brain?” Moré was confused. “Is that strange?”

“Absolutely strange!” Conan blurted out. “How on earth could you mentally arrange twenty completely scrambled compartments into the right pattern?”

Moré didn’t rush to respond.

“Conan-kun, Miss Mouri, how are your math grades at school?”

“As for me… they’re okay, I guess…” Ran smiled sheepishly, tapping her fingers.

That means not very good, Moré understood.

“I’ve always been number one,” Conan said nonchalantly.

Yeah, no kidding. If you’re a high schooler sneaking into elementary school and can’t get first place, you might as well give up. Moré was speechless.

“Conan-kun is still in elementary school, so that doesn’t count. What about Shinichi Kudo’s math grades?”

Mentioning Shinichi, Ran suddenly grew confident. “He’s super good at math!”

Moré nodded. “Mine are pretty good too.”

“…So?”

“People good at math can usually do this,” Moré glanced at his watch. “I figure that Kudo-san can probably do it too.”

No way! Conan muttered silently.

“When you see him next time, you can ask.”

“Really? Didn’t expect he’d be that impressive,” Ran chuckled.

He should be able to do it… Conan encouraged himself.

“It’s getting late. I should head back and rest. Inspector Megure!” He called out. “I’ll come by tomorrow to give my statement.”

Without waiting for a reply, he headed straight for the door.

“Moré, my boy—ah, forget it,” Inspector Megure sighed.

“Moré-kun.” Yuji Suwa, now handcuffed, spoke up.

Everyone’s attention turned to him; even Moré, who was about to leave, paused.

“What is it?”

He didn’t answer immediately but looked toward Mrs. Maru.

“I returned the ransom, so by rights, the pawned item should be returned to me, right?”

Mrs. Maru had just realized the situation. Her husband was dead, the estate now hers. The threat of her affair being exposed was gone, so why not legitimize her lover?

Planning a bright future, she paid no mind to a worn-out sword and didn’t want to make enemies with a skilled swordsman capable of murder. She agreed it was only proper and said she would send the sword to the Suwa household.

“I don’t trust you,” he said, turning to Moré. “Moré-kun, Maru Tsunejirō’s notebook should have my family’s address. Please return this sword to my home, will you?”

“What’s in it for me?” Moré, planning to keep the sword, was unmoved.

“In truth, a master who can cut through sword energy really exists,” Suwa said after a pause. “My ancestor once helped one of his ancestors… He’s currently at my home, wanting to retrieve my family heirloom sword to repay that debt of gratitude.”

The faint glow at Moré’s fingertips and the magical reaction confirmed this was the truth.

“I want him to demonstrate it for me. Is that okay?” Moré asked.

“That’s ridiculous…” Kogoro Mouri muttered.

“Yes,” Suwa nodded. “Tell him that once he demonstrates for you, the old debt is considered repaid.”

“Alright,” Moré agreed.

You really believe that? Conan’s lip twitched.

Then Moré waved his hand and headed for the door, looking back.

“Mrs. Maru, I’ll come for the sword tomorrow.”

With that, he left, leaving everyone inside exchanging bewildered looks.

Yuji Suwa was escorted into a police car.

“That strange kid… believing in sword energy and being so rude…” Kogoro Mouri was displeased.

That kid dared to shut me up! Doesn’t he know how to respect his elders?

“People with abilities tend to be a bit odd, right?” Inspector Megure glanced at him. “Today he solved a murder case, but what did Detective Mouri contribute?”

“Well…” Kogoro Mouri smiled awkwardly.

Moré stopped at a street corner not far from the Maru residence.

“Did you hear everything Mr. Suwa entrusted to you?”

A figure leapt down from above.