Volume 39

Volume 39
Information
Release date:	November 18, 2002
Chapters:	393-403
ISBN:	ISBN 4-09-126169-8
Publisher:	Shogakukan
English release date:	July 12, 2011
English ISBN:	ISBN 1-4215-3499-1
English Publisher:	Viz Media
Featured Detective & Keyhole
Lew Archer Inspector Yuminaga
Aoyama's death & Conan side images
Chronology
Prev volume:	« Volume 38
Next volume:	Volume 40 »
List of chapters • List of cases

Volume 39 was released on November 18, 2002 in Japan.

Cast

Characters
Conan Edogawa Ran Mouri Kogoro Mouri Heiji Hattori Kazuha Toyama Hiroshi Agasa Ai Haibara Ayumi Yoshida Genta Kojima Mitsuhiko Tsuburaya Suguru Itakura (background) Juzo Megure Wataru Takagi Yoko Okino Sango Yokomizo Shinichi Kudo (background) Eri Kisaki (background) Misari Ito (background) Kusukawa (background) Kamen Yaiba (On TV)

Gadgets

Gadgets
Wristwatch Flashlight Voice-Changing Bowtie Stun-Gun Wristwatch

Chapters

Red Horse Case

Characters introduced

Inspector Yuminaga
	Police inspector Arson division Kogoro's old colleague

File 393 - The Luring Red Horse

Kogoro explains the serial arsonist's MO.

The protagonist trio, along with Heiji and Kazuha, recount the events of the day over dinner. Kogoro is relieved because if Misari Ito had gone through with her plan of killing Kazuha and Kusukawa by setting the house on fire, the case may have been blamed on the recent serial arsonist. Interested, Heiji asks for more details. Kogoro explains that though the methodology of each arson is different, the perpetrator always leaves behind a "charred, red horse doll." Because "Red Horse" is an old police term that refers to an arsonist, Heiji guesses the arsonist is challenging the police. Additionally, because the arsonist burned the houses of unrelated families on the first block of Rizen, the second block of Toriya, and the third block of Okuho, the arsons were likely in cold-blood. Following the pattern, the next victim will be a random house on the fourth block of some ward. Luckily, Kusukawa had told Heiji of suspicious activity at the fourth block of Haido and had asked him to investigate. With it being their best lead, Heiji wishes to take Kogoro and Conan there tomorrow, but Ran refuses, saying Conan has a field trip. She turns to Conan and shows him a special teru teru bōzu she made that had previously ensured sunny skies for Shinichi's football matches and will surely disperse the rain clouds for tomorrow—irritating Heiji.

Heiji sabotages the teru teru bōzu.

That night while everyone sleeps, Heiji sabotages the teru teru bōzu. Seemingly, as a result, Conan's field trip is canceled due to heavy rainfall. Heiji, Kogoro, and Conan head to the client, Ryoko Morozumi's, house. Heiji worries for Kazuha's safety, but Conan assures him the Mouri Detective Agency isn't on the fourth block.

At the site, the trio sees Ryoko callously driving away an antique salesman, Genda Takanori. She also sends the detectives away, claiming that what she saw was "just her imagination." Though suspicious, they return to their car, as they observe Ryoko welcome her feng shui adviser, Misao Soga, into her home. Soon after, Ryoko's older sister, Keiko, who works as a fortune teller, comes to ask for money but is rebuffed. Two hours pass with no signs of Soga exiting. Heiji, fed up, sneaks his way around the house and spies through a window. The trio discovers Ryoko having an affair with the adviser, but in a moment of his mistress' absence, Soga begins to tear through the drawers in search of something. Ryoko catches him, stating the video of their affair is kept somewhere safe and that she intends to use it as blackmail for him to divorce his wife and marry her instead. She tells him to get changed as her husband, Akira, will arrive.

A red horse burns in the flames of Ryoko's home.

Back at their car, the detectives observe Takanori meandering through the streets before Akira eventually comes home. Akira and Soga greet each other and leave for a bar, leaving Ryoko in the house alone. Soon, Ran calls Kogoro home, forcing the trio to leave their post. As Ryoko's four associates go about their evening activities, a fire blazes brightly on the fourth block of Haido, engulfing the Morozumi's home with Ryoko still inside, all while a blood-red horse doll burns in the flames.

File 394 - Shadow of the Red Horse

An old police reunion.

Heiji tells Kazuha they'll have to skip dinner tonight as they found the Morozumi household up in flames. Conan notices that Soga and Akira have already returned from the bar, the latter mourning the death of his wife. Heiji overhears a young boy telling his mother that the arson was the work of "the Red Horse that makes fire." Heiji and Conan inquire about what the boy witnessed. The boy says while watching Kamen Yaiba, he saw a horse's shadow appear on his curtains. The two detectives immediately rush off to investigate, jumping the boy's wall into his yard. They spot the red horse doll on a window seal inside the Morozumi home, concluding the light from the fire had cast the horse's shadow onto the neighbor's curtains. Based on the allotted time slot of Kamen Yaiba's show, the boys deduce the arsonist placed the horse doll at around 19:30. Amongst the crowd, distressed Genda watches the scene.

A little while later, the trio is approached by an old senior of Kogoro, Inspector Yuminaga, from the 1st Division Arson Investigation. Kogoro explains he and Yuminaga met while the former briefly worked under the arson division. Yuminaga proceeds to give a rundown of the information they've acquired. The plastic horse doll placed at the crime scene was a replica of those left at the other sites, and because the doll is custom-made, tonight's arson wasn't committed by a copycat. The source of the fire was a small room in the back corner of the house; the culprit likely poured gasoline through a window before sparking a flame. Additionally, they found many footprints in the side-yard, which Yuminaga believes will soon lead to the arsonist. Panicking, Kogoro explains some of those footprints are theirs, recounting their investigations from earlier that day. Heiji states Soga and Akira are not the culprits as those two weren't present based on the suspected time of the fire. With two suspects absolved, Ryoko's sister, Keiko, seems suspicious.

Yuminaga shows familiarity with Genda.

Kogoro, Yuminaga, Heiji, and Conan arrive at Keiko's fortune-telling stand and inform her of Ryoko's death. Keiko is distraught but also confirms with a neighbor that she has an alibi. As the men turn to leave, Keiko expresses a malignant grin under her teary facade. On their way to the police headquarters, they discuss the fourth suspect, the antique store owner. Based on Kogoro's description, Yuminaga is reminded of Genda but dismisses the idea.
At the Mouri Detective Agency, Ran and Kazuha remember their friendly encounter with Genda on the bus, who gave the two his store catalog and a boxed key holder. At the Police Headquarters, Heiji and Conan inspect the red horse dolls left at each scene. They notice only the first one is placed on a base and flip the doll over to see the kanji for "Rabbit(兎)" written on it. Back at the detective agency, Ran sees the key holder is shaped like Guan Yu riding a red steed. While the two girls marvel at their gift, Genda ominously takes a stand before the agency.

File 395 - Owner of the Red Horse

Genda spots the two girls.

Kogoro is shocked to learn the doll depicts the Red Hare. Inspector Yuminaga wonders if Soga, who practices the Chinese Feng Shui, is knowledgeable about the Chinese War Horse, while Kogoro wonders if Soga burned the house down to destroy Ryoko's footage of their affair. Heiji then proceeds to list the motivations of the other suspects. Ryoko's late father proclaimed her to be the sole recipient of his inheritance money, meaning Keiko, who struggles with money, would've fancied her younger sister dead so she could claim the inheritance. Meanwhile, Akira wanted to demolish their house and build a clinic, but Ryoko refused. Along with his wife's affair, Akira would have plenty of reasons to commit the arson. However, since all three have alibis, the likely culprit is Genda—though Kogoro and company still don't know his identity. Conan notices a strange protrusion on the side of the first horse and realizes it likely had a figure of a man riding it and the leg welded onto the horse's body due to heat. Conan and Heiji think of Guan Yu, but Kogoro has some reservations. Since Genda carried a key holder box that probably contained a figure of Guan Yu atop the Red Hare, the two high school detectives believe Genda is the arsonist. Hearing their theory, Yuminaga finally shows a photograph of Genda to the trio.
At the Mouri Detective Agency, Ran and Kazuha prepare for bed, hanging the teru teru bōzu outside their window. Genda observes the two girls, thinking "he's finally found them."

The men discuss Genda's motivations en route to the detective agency.

Yuminaga explains Genda was among the crowd that observed the first arson at Rizen. He heard him mumble to himself, "father... father." The inspector explains Genda's father was a firefighter who died in the line of duty. He theorizes that Genda's delusions are causing him to commit arsons, hoping his father will return and push back the flames. The group decides to call Genda's antique shop, but the workers say the manager went home early and was passing out Maneki-neko key holders today, not Guan Yu. Kogoro calls Ran, who is knowledgeable about ancient Chinese warlords, and the latter tells of the new key holder she received from Genda. Alarmed, Heiji demands to know which block the detective agency is on, to which Kogoro answers the fifth.
On the car ride to the agency, the group deduces, based on Ran's encounter with Genda, that the antique store manager did go home. Heiji asks why Yuminaga didn't arrest a man so suspicious. Yuminaga faintly responds he's "gotten rusty." The car approaches a police car parked outside their home with officers arresting Genda. Ran and Kazuha explain the teary-eyed man had asked to return the key holder as it would bring about another fire. With Genda seemingly confessing to his crimes, he's sent to the police headquarters while Conan and Heiji feel as though the case—serial arsons following a pattern, the sudden arrest of a cooperative culprit, and the true motive being just one single murder—seems oddly familiar. After Kogoro's idea of eating dinner at the Café Poirot, something sparks in the two boys' minds.

File 396 - Witness of the Red Horse

A perfect shadow was cast upon the boy's curtains.

Heiji and Conan realize this arson case is similar to the trick used in Agatha Christie's famous detective story, The A.B.C. Murders. In the story, Hercule Poirot investigates a case where the culprit murders random people in the order of the alphabet. However, the killer's true goal was to murder victim C, so they made their targeted murder look like a cold-blooded murder. Additionally, he gaslighted an innocent person into thinking he was the culprit, just like Genda in this situation. Believing something is fishy, the two boys return to the fourth crime scene the following day. Kogoro, Ran, and Kazuha join the two as Yuminaga informs them of Genda's affiliation with the other three suspects. Genda would have periodic conscience loss and visited Akira's clinic to seek treatment. Soga was a usual customer of Genda's antique store and recommended Akira's clinic. Keiko has no apparent ties but reportedly seemed spooked when seeing a small zabuton clutched in Ryoko's hands. Heiji says they should ask the boy next door more questions.
The boy watched baseball, followed by Kamen Yaiba on TV in a dark room. Conan wonders how he could've read the clock during the baseball game if the lights were off, but the boy states light was coming from the window. Furthermore, the horse's shadow on the curtains didn't have a wavy profile but a rigid outline. Hearing this, Conan and Heiji jump the wall and into the Morozumi storage room. They rummage through the scraps and find a broken light bulb and several pieces of burnt tissue. They conclude that any one of the suspects could've started the fire, but they still need to know how they manipulated Genda.

Kazuha and Ran angered by the boys' remarks.

The group heads to Genda's home and searches for evidence to absolve him. They find footprints all over the house floor belonging to Genda and burnt clothes in a box. Kogoro sees this as evidence of his crimes, but Yuminaga states it's not him, and "he's not that kind of guy." Heiji finds the receipt for the telephone bills and sees Genda's been charged 30,000 yen (~$300) this month. It reminds the two boys of how Ran and Kazuha spent long hours calling on the phone, which the two mock. Suddenly, the two girls slam open the door, upset. They explain they heard their voices on the radio, meaning the house was tapped. Heiji and Conan look for listening devices, finding one in a vase. They continue searching but find a crystal ball that belongs to a fortune-teller. Conan finds another listening device stuffed in the zabuton the ball was laid on. Yuminaga comes along and points out it looks just like the small zabuton Ryoko was holding. Heiji swipes the piece of evidence and rips it open, finding a plaque inside with the words "Red Hare(赤兎馬)" written on it.

File 397 - An Obtuse Imitation

The other suspects are stopped.

By the request of Heiji, Yuminaga calls all three suspects, stating they haven't found any incriminating evidence in Genda's house and that tomorrow, the forensics department will open a more extensive investigation. He purposely withholds the information about finding listening devices that likely belong to the suspects. Kogoro, Ran, and Kazuha stand confused by the scheme, but Conan and Heiji assure them it'll succeed.
Later that night, three silhouettes approach Genda's house. Kogoro stops the first silhouette, Misao Soga, from removing his listening device from his vase. Ran and Kazuha stop another silhouette, Keiko Gondo, from removing her listening device from her zabuton. Lastly, Yuminaga, Heiji, and Conan stop the last silhouette who was tampering with a lamp, seemingly trying to cause a fire.

  Show spoilers »

The lights turn on, revealing Akira Morozumi as the arsonist.
How it Began:
The first "arson" in Rizen was actually a complete accident. The house owner had received a boxed key holder from Genda but hadn't opened it. The box and the Guan Yu figure melted away when the house burnt down, leaving only the Red Hare doll. Because the owner never checked the box's contents, he wouldn't know where the doll came from, leading Genda to question himself.

Conan states why only Akira could be the arsonist.

How Akira became the arsonist:
Genda came to Akira for help, as his childhood sleep-walking condition was responsible for the recent events. Hearing his patient's worries, Akira devised a plan to frame Genda for several cold-blooded arsons, including the murder of Ryoko Morozumi. He would prescribe sleeping medication for Genda, which allowed Akira to sneak into his home and leave items typically belonging to an arsonist, all in an attempt to gaslight him further. Using his listening device, Akira heard Soga tell Genda that he may find luck passing out key holders in Ryoko's neighborhood, so Akira swapped the Maneki-Neko key holder Genda was supposed to be passing out with the Red Hare doll, which would lead him to suspiciously walk around and collect the misdistributed key holders.
The Trick:
Genda wrapped tissue around an incandescent light, which can reach temperatures of 214 degrees. Akira poured gasoline on the floor of the Morozumi storage shed and waited for the tissue to burn and fall to the ground, lighting the place on fire. The boy saw such a clear image of the placed horse doll because the consistent light from the incandescent bulb was on before the wavering fire.
Evidence:
The plaque Ryoko held onto matched perfectly with the horse from the Okuho arson, and if Akira's fingerprints show on the plaque, he's the undisputed culprit. While the other suspects have plenty of motivation, they wouldn't have set the listening device in the telephone (the listening device was using Genda's telephone signal, thus eating into his monthly bills). To remove the telephone's listening device, one would have to enter Genda's home; if they do so, they'd also likely remove the listening devices from either the vase or zabuton they used for their con jobs, which could spark suspicion in Genda.
Motive:
Ryoko likely witnessed Akira practicing his arson trick in the storage shed. After searching, she also discovered Akira's stash of Red Hare dolls, confirming that her husband is the serial arsonist. She then used this information as leverage to get him to divorce her and leave the house.

Heiji's attempt at lowering Genda's antique price.

While the process of law enforcement continues, Yuminaga thanks the group for their help. Heiji then asks why he was so adamant about Genda's innocence. Yuminaga had once met up with Genda at a park after the former's name appeared on the suspect list. After thirty minutes of silence, Yuminaga decided to leave, but when he turned around, Genda desperately searched for something in the grass. He would only leave after it began raining. Yuminaga realized Genda was searching for his used cigarette, which was the cause of the fire that claimed his father's life. The inspector couldn't bring himself to believe a man like that would commit arson. A few days later, Heiji is seen trying to bargain a lower price with Genda for his antique clock.

People

Takanori Genda
	42 years old Antique store manager

Ryoko Morozumi
	Victim (burned) 39 years old Housewife

Misao Soga
	45 years old Feng Shui instructor

Keiko Gondo
	41 years old Fortune-teller Ryoko's older sister

Akira Morozumi
	45 years old Psychiatrist Ryoko's husband

Camper Van Murder Case

Characters introduced

Elena Miyano
	Ai Haibara's mother

File 398 - Torn Friendship 1

Ayumi realizes her relationship with Haibara is oddly detached.

Ayumi calls her classmate, Megumi, asking if she could take care of the class pet over the weekend. The girl agrees, allowing Ayumi to join the Detective Boys on a Sunday camp. While prancing about the room, Ayumi notices something on her list of contacts: she refers to all of her friends with the casual "chan" honorific, except for Haibara, who she refers to with the formal "san" honorific. Ayumi resolves to change their friendship dynamic during the camp. When Sunday arrives, Ayumi tries to refer to Haibara as "Ai-chan" but has difficulties.

Professor Agasa recounts his meetings with the Atsushi and Elena Miyano.

On the car ride, Conan talks to Professor Agasa about Suguru Itakura's diary entry on a female Black Organization member saying they want to "resurrect the dead." Agasa reveals there was more written in the diary. The professor believes the woman dislikes cats as Itakura wrote how she hastily hung up after hearing the meows of a cat slowly approach her. However, Conan quickly dismisses it. The boy wished Agasa had information on Haibara's father, Atsushi Miyano, but to his surprise, Agasa says he met the man several times at science conventions. He remarks that the label "Mad Scientist" is not very befitting, as he was a pleasant man who showed interest in his inventions. On the other hand, his wife, Elena, was a reticent foreigner from Britain who was difficult to read. While Conan wraps his head around Haibara being half British, Agasa's eyes stray from the road, almost leading to an accident with a parked camper van.

Takuto shows Ayumi the fireworks from atop the camper van.

The Detective Boys marvel at the luxurious vehicle, the van's owner, Haruka Tendou, and her friends: Reiji Fukuura, Yasumi Shirafuji, and Takuto Meshiai, return. The two groups introduce themselves to each other as Genta is attracted by the smell of Takuto's camp cooking. Yasumi recommends sharing it, stating they'll borrow Haruka's wallet and buy more ingredients if they run out. The van owners were former members of the outdoors club at their college, going on many trips to exotic locations with the help of Haruka's sponsorship. Hearing their story, Conan is oddly reminded of the friendship between Ran and Sonoko.
The group continues their camping until nightfall when Takuto notices Yasumi is missing. Haruko points out their missing bicycle, leading Takuto to believe she's off visiting the "special place." Because Ayumi expresses interest in seeing their "special place," the group decides to head there in the camper van. Reiji drives the van through the mountain pass while Takuto opens the sunroof and hoists Ayumi up so she can see the fireworks in the distance. Suddenly, Reiji spots something on the road and slams the breaks. The group goes out to investigate but seeing it's just an old fence, they carry on. They reach the summit and view the spectacular fireworks display; Yasumi is nowhere to be found. After enjoying the show, the group decides to head back and look for their friend somewhere else, but that's when Reiji spots Yasumi's lifeless body sprawled on the road.

File 399 - Torn Friendship 2

Inspector Megure visualizes the likely scenario that led to Yasumi's death.

Inspector Juzo Megure and Wataru Takagi arrive at the scene. They identify the victim and determine the time of death to be between 17:00-18:00. The Detective Boys express their skepticism as they did not see her body on the road when they drove by at 19:00. Reiji does mention their interaction with a fallen fence post, leading the group to believe Yasumi had biked through the guard fence and fell to her death. Conan notices a strange scratch mark on Yasumi's hip and an octopus-like string of strings attached to her pants.

Haibara comments on the beauty of the view.

The police ascend the mountain and examine the lookout. Megure sees the tire marks from Yasumi's bicycle in the dirt while Takagi finds the bicycle stuck in the trees below. But before the officers can label the case as an accident, Conan realizes the ground shows no sign of brake pressure, despite the bicycle's breaks being fully operational. Megure considers the potential involvement of foul play, causing him to gather information on Yasumi's friends. The students inform the inspector of their actions during the van ride up the mountain, but none of them have an alibi during Yasumi's expected time of death. Megure suspects Reiji as he could've avoided Yasumi's body during the ascent, but the boy denies its plausibility.
Conan notices a strange line streaking across the sunroof and hops atop the van to investigate. After finding its blood, Conan believes he has found the killer, but after Mitsuhiko draws attention to the high-speed winds and Haibara points out the beautiful view from the van's roof, Conan has an epiphany. He leaps off the vehicle and runs down the road—with Takagi on his tail. Using his Wristwatch Flashlight, Conan discovers a plastic sheet stained with blood. The discovery throws a monkey-wrench in Conan's theory as anyone could be the culprit now. While gauging the suspects' reactions to the sheet's discovery, Conan realizes the killer had to have been splattered with Yasumi's blood. The boy smirks as he's found the killer.

File 400 - Torn Friendship 3

While the suspects and Megure continue to bicker about case details, Agasa sneaks atop the roof of the camper van and calls for everyone's attention. Agasa continues to mouth words while Conan uses his Voice-Changing Bowtie to start the deduction show.

  Show spoilers »

Agasa appears above the sunroof.

Agasa states the culprit placed Yasumi's body above the van. They had lured her to the sunroof and bludgeoned her, attaching the body to the ceiling so it could fly off during the drive. Suspicions of Reiji's guilt immediately rise, as he was the driver and could've used the fallen fence post as a cue to stop the car, flinging Yasumi's corpse off the van. The boy denies the allegation, questioning how he could've attached the girl's body to the roof. In response, Haibara points out the series of strings on Yasumi's pants and how only one of the lines was knotted. Agasa confirms the culprit used the knotted string to anchor the corpse, and the streak of blood across the sunroof came from when the culprit wiped the blood off the window. The window was slightly open during the murder to hasten the attaching process. The line of blood formed in the seam between the window and the van's roof—visible once the sunroof was fully closed.

The plastic sheet used to guide Yasumi's flight.

Megure still believes Reiji is the killer as only a person with considerable driving skills like him could've pulled the trick off. However, Agasa denies it, saying by utilizing the plastic sheet as a sail, one could reliably send Yasumi's corpse flying in the winds and in a reliable direction. But because anyone could pull this trick off, they should look at the case differently.
Then, Ayumi notices Haruka Tendo's belt is missing the back loop despite it being properly secured in the photographs they took earlier that day. She had changed her pants as the other pair was smeared with Yasumi's blood after she had bludgeoned her.
Motive:
In truth, Haruka was not a rich girl and had faked her family's wealth to become friends with Yasumi and Reiji. One day, she overheard a conversation between her three friends: Yasumi had discovered her lie and intended to use her money to continue their exotic trips until graduation. Takuto sympathized with Haruka, but Reiji joined Yasumi in bashing their friend. Thus, Haruka murdered Yasumi and attempted to frame Reiji for it.

Haibara allows Ayumi to call her "Ai-chan."

Hearing the killer's hateful prose, Haibara states the group was not true friends, as friends are more than just a means to an end. As the girl finishes her principled speech, she remembers what Conan had noticed about the group when they first arrived. Unlike the true friendship between Ran and Sonoko, where the former once declined an offer to go skiing as she was low on funds despite the latter being a multi-millionaire, this group of students used Haruka's supposed wealth to get ahead, even using the formal "san" honorific to distance themselves.
On the car ride back home, Ayumi again tries to call Haibara by her first name. Finally noticing her friend's attempts at getting closer to her, Haibara accepts to be called "Ai-chan," filling Ayumi with joy. Comically, she does not grant Mitsuhiko or Genta the same privilege.

People

Reiji Fukuura
	21 years old College student

Yasumi Shirafuji
	Victim (bashed) 22 years old College student

Haruka Tendo
	21 years old College student

Takuto Meshiai
	23 years old College student

Child Star Case

File 401 - A Small Client

Kinukawa Kazuki, a 7-year-old child actor, wants to find a woman named Atsuko who sent him many postcards. She commented about his movies and drama series. She sent 1 postcard a month, from spring 2 years ago until the winter of last year. She never wrote her address. The postcards’ stamps range from Hokkaido and Okinawa. The postcards are badly crumpled, and he says he left them lying around.

Kazuki says that the postcards are from his biological mother who abandoned him in front of a convent 6 years ago. The handwriting is the same as the note that was left in his bassinet.

Kazuki says that his mother had a mole on her chest. He remembers falling asleep staring at the mole and listening to her chop food on a dicing board.

Conan says Kazuki’s mom lives in Atami. She must be a cleaner at a hotel or a waitress at an inn.

There are three copies of the same postcard, which features a statue’s hand-- the statue of Kanichi and Miya that is on the beaches of Atami. 1. The postcard is probably sold at a restaurant, hotel, or store at Atami, so she must have visited Atami at one point. 2. It is part of a 4-piece set of postcards, but she only sent the least recognizable corner. She doesn’t want him to know where she is. 3. She sent three copies of the same postcard. If she was rich enough to travel all around Japan, she should have more variety in her postcards.

Conan, Ran, Kogoro, and Kazuki go to Atami and find an inn that sells the postcards.

Kusano Mitsu, a 34-year-old waitress, says that the cards are limited edition. She says that the inn discontinued them because they didn’t sell well and that a few of the employees took them home. She says that no “Atsuko” works in the inn. She is a fan of Kazuki’s. She has a mole of her lower right collarbone.

Saegusa Tomoka, a 28-year-old, is a grumpy waitress. She has a mole on the back of her neck.

Kamoshita Yasuhiro, a 37-year-old freelance writer, speculates that Kazuki is looking for his mother. He is a guest who booked Room 205. He calls his editor, saying that Kazuki’s father might have been a murderer.

Conan, Ran, Kogoro, and Kazuki check into Room 308, which is free after a guest canceled.

After dinner, Conan, Ran, Kogoro, and Kazuki go to the springs. Ran finds a cover of a camera lens that belongs to Kamoshita, and she goes to return it to him.

Kogoro enters the mixed baths, and he sees the three employees bathing. Betsuho screams when he enters, and she protests when Mitsu invites them in. Tomoka is bored. He notes that all three have a mole.

Yasuhiro’s fully dressed corpse is later found in an overflowing bathtub. He was strangled.

File 402 - Woman With a Mole

The detective Sango Yokomizo comes to investigate the murder.

On Yasuhiro's phone, there is a photo of a woman with a mole on her chest who is strangling him with a thin black wire that is ~1 meter long. It was taken at 11:48 PM. The photo is blurry and the culprit’s face can’t be seen. Sango Yokomizo speculates that the culprit took the photo to create an alibi for themselves, but Conan disagrees. The woman used both hands to strangle him, so the victim took the photo. If the culprit took it, she would have covered herself so the photo wouldn’t reveal her gender. The phone was set so that it doesn’t make a click sound, so the culprit probably didn’t know about the photo.

Yasuhiro had called up female employees in the inn. He told them, “If you remember about 20 million yen, come to my room or I will reveal everything.”

10 minutes before his death, Yasuhiro had called Izumiya, the manager of the magazine “Hot.” He had said that he had found Kazuki’s mother and that he would send Izumiya a photo of her. He claimed that “Atsuo” had blackmailed Kazuki’s agency; allegedly, she threatened to reveal that Kazuki’s father was a murderer if they didn’t send her 20 million yen. Kazuki’s agency sent her the money when she revealed the name of the convent where she had left Kazuki and identified Kazuki’s birthmark. She had contacted the agency by email, so no one knew her face or voice.

Only three female employees don’t have alibis for 11:48 PM: Kusano Mitsu, Toshiko Betsuho, and Saegusa Tomoka. Sango Yokomizo tells the employees that the culprit had a mole on her chest. Saegusa indignantly asks if he wants her to strip in front of him, and Mitsu is embarrassed. Yokomizo offers to bring in a female police officer, but Betsuho exposes her chest, which doesn’t have a mole. Tomoka exposes her chest, and she doesn’t have a mole either. Mitsu has a mole on her chest, but it’s on the opposite side.

Before he died, Yasuhiro had rented out a movie, which was on a cassette tape. It was a horror movie, featuring Kazuki.

Yasuhiro has marks on the side of his head. He was hit, but not hard enough to kill him. He was probably knocked out and strangled.

The shower head has a luminol reaction. The culprit knocked him out with the shower head, and it was splattered with blood.

Conan brings a screwdriver, and he orders an officer to rent the same movie from a video store. He knocks Kogoro out.

File 403 - A Red Mole...!?

As Kogoro, Conan explains the murder.

The magnetic material on a tape’s surface leaves a black mark on the hands. Yasuhiro had black marks on his neck. As the culprit tried to wash it off, she got his bathrobe wet. To deflect suspicion, she dumped his body into the tub.

The mole was Yasuhiro’s blood spatter, which looked like a mole because the photo was taken against the light. The culprit took off her clothes to prevent the blood from spattering onto her clothes.

The culprit went into Yasuhiro’s room. She cut the tape from his movie. She said that the shower was broken to lure him into the bathroom. When he entered, she hit him on the head and strangled him with the tape. She didn’t know that he had a camera open to discreetly take a picture of her, nor that he took a photo of her in his dying moments. After cleaning off the blood from the floor and her body, she put her clothes back on and left Yasuhiro’s room. She returned the scissor and screwdriver to their rightful places. She went into the mixed bath to clean off the magnetic powder on her hands and any remaining blood on her body.

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The culprit is Toshiko Betsusho. Betsuho hated her co-worker, who abandoned her son and sent him postcards after he became famous. She was jealous, because she was infertile. She threatened Kazuki’s agency as a prank, lying that she was Kazuki’s mother and that Kazuki’s father was a murderer. She was shocked when they sent her the money. Yasuhiro found out and blackmailed her.

Betsuho was alarmed when Sango Yokomizo told her about the mole, because she didn’t know that blood splattered on her chest. The area is a blind spot, so it was the only area she didn’t wash off before putting her clothes back on. Although she washed off the blood mole, the bloodstain adhered to her dress. She used her hands to cover the collar and exposed her bare chest, hoping that the police wouldn’t search her body and find the blood splatter on the collar of her dress. Conan was suspicious that a shy, reserved woman like Betsuho showed her chest to strange men.

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Kazuki's mother is Tomoka Saegusa, who has a mole on the back of her neck. He fell asleep looking at his mother’s mole and heard her cutting food. If she cradled him to her chest, she couldn’t cook. She was carrying him on piggyback. The nuns at the convent cradled him to their chests, so he assumed that his mother had held him the same way. Tomoka acted cold to prevent him from realizing she was his mother.

People

Kazuki Kinukawa
	7 years old Child actor

Mitsu Kusano
	34 years old Hostess

Toshiko Bessho
	29 years old Hostess

Yasuhiro Kamoshita
	Victim (strangled) 37 years old Freelance writer

Tomoka Saegusa
	28 years old Hostess

Izumiya
	Chief editor for "Weekly Hot" Kamoshita's acquaintance

Trivia

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According to the BLACK PLUS Super Digest Book, the gradually increasing sound of meows that startled Vermouth in chapter 397 came from the Black Organization boss, Renya Karasuma, holding a cat and approaching her.

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See also

• Manga
• Volume 31-40
• Detective Conan