Chapter 263: Conan and Heiji's Defeat

In the eyes of the others,

Senichi seemed like those villains in movies who held their adversaries' secrets, as he squatted in front of Saori and whispered a few words in her ear.

Then, seemingly terrified by what she heard, Saori jumped out and immediately confessed, earnestly answering Senichi's questions.

Then, amidst the astonishment of the island residents, she slowly recounted everything that happened during the massive fire three years ago.

Afterward, she successfully implicated the other two as well, and those two began accusing each other of being the mastermind, revealing their ugly faces and pointing fingers at each other.

"Thank you, Officer Senichi."

With the sudden sound of a clear and young female voice, the squabbling insults came to an abrupt halt.

And at the next moment, Elder Mikoto's diminutive form suddenly grew tall, and Kimie Shimabukuro removed her mask, revealing her true appearance.

However, this twist differed from what Kimie Shimabukuro had imagined. Except for the three squabbling individuals and the amazed expressions of Kogoro Mouri and others on the sidelines, the rest of the island's residents didn't show much shock.

As it turned out, the incident three years ago involving the death of Kimie Shimabukuro's mother in the fire was already known to the older generation of island residents.

In consideration of the island's well-being, they had silently accepted the fact that Kimie Shimabukuro had posed as an elderly woman.

Finally, amidst the scene of the older generation collectively apologizing to Kimie Shimabukuro as they knelt down, tears streamed down her sorrowful face.

Upon learning that Elder Mikoto was Kimie Shimabukuro in disguise, and that they had inadvertently caused the death of Kimie Shimabukuro's mother, Saori, Toshimi Ebihara, and Naoko Kuroe also woke up from their fanaticism. They were filled with guilt and regret.

They would also face legal judgment and pay the appropriate price for their actions.

And from that day on, the dugong ceremony Festival on Mermaid Island vanished forever.

As for this incident, Conan, Heiji, and the others were more shocked than anyone else.

What's going on? Did we time-travel or miss a few days?

How did the case suddenly go beyond just finding a person and turn into a long-hidden old story that permeates the entire island?

After asking Senichi curiously, Conan and Heiji... fell silent.

Because once again, Senichi prevented a case from unfolding!

Moreover, in the short half-day since arriving on the island, he had completely unraveled everything and even managed to resolve an old case from three years ago.

The saying goes, "Experts see the way, while laymen see the show." The trio of girls marveled more at Senichi's skill, not fully comprehending the difficulty involved.

However, under the keen observation of Conan and Heiji, two accomplished detective geniuses, they could see the immense challenges embedded within.

Despite being dealt numerous blows by him before, this time they truly felt like isolating themselves.

Everyone was obviously on the same island, but comparing themselves to Senichi was like comparing heaven and earth.

On one hand, they were still stumbling around trying to find Saori, while Senichi had already taken a broader perspective, traced the connections, found the mastermind, and thwarted their attempted murder plan along the way.

If it weren't for Senichi seeing through the whole truth behind Saori's disappearance, stopping Kimie Shimabukuro's crime, they might have already stumbled upon a body at the Mermaid Waterfall by now.

"Officer Senichi, how did you manage to uncover all of this?" On the side, after Senichi finished recounting the entirety of the island's case, Conan suddenly realized and couldn't help but wonder how Senichi had discerned the clues.

Despite racking their brains, neither he nor Heiji managed to spot any flaws.

To be honest, after learning the whole story, Conan felt that if Officer Senichi hadn't come along, and it would have been just him and Heiji. They would have likely ended up chasing after the culprit.

At that point, all three of them would have been in danger.

"It's actually quite simple."

Senichi looked at the curious Conan and Heiji and smiled, "The two of you got too caught up in Saori's disappearance, but you overlooked the cause and effect."

"Cause and effect?" Heiji furrowed his brow, "Are you talking about the reason behind Saori's disappearance? The letter said she was afraid of mermaid retaliation..."

"That's right, it's exactly that—mermaids."

Senichi nodded and said, "Have you ever thought about how the legend of mermaids came about? And why is Saori so firmly convinced of this?"

"But can you really grasp the whole picture just by investigating these things?"

Conan frowned, "From the information we gathered on the island, the legend of mermaids comes from Elder Mikoto's longevity, and Saori's disappearance stems from her fear of mermaids. I just can't see how Officer Senichi, you managed to deduce the full story from these elements."

"So, I'm saying your perspectives are too narrow."

Senichi sighed, adopting the manner of an elder brother giving guidance, "You need a broader perspective to understand the complete picture, make daring hypotheses, and then verify it carefully in person.

Have you never wondered how just a hundred-year-old elderly person could inspire such fervent belief in three young people?

But why is it that the older people on the island don't react this way at all?"

Saying this, Senichi took out his phone and showed the message he had already prepared to the two of them, "This is the information about the island that I asked Officer Takagi to investigate for me. If you know about the incident from three years ago, you can easily connect it to everything happening now."

This message was something Senichi had sent through Officer Takagi in advance, precisely for this moment. He knew that after this case was resolved, Conan and Heiji would undoubtedly come to him for explanations, so he had prepared his counterarguments.

Upon hearing Senichi's approach, Conan and Heiji fell into a long silence.

Without the information, making accurate judgments was inevitably difficult—it was a given.

This case once again highlighted their shortcomings.

Never mind Senichi using his connections to gather island information or anything of the sort.

Did Conan and Heiji have any fewer contacts?

"Kanto's Kudo, Kansai's Hattori," they're both renowned high school detectives.

Firstly, Kudo Shinichi from Kanto, with the connections his old man established and his exceptional deductive abilities, he's been dubbed by the media as the "Savior of the Police."

Being a rich second generation and a star second generation hasn't brought any negative influence; instead, he has a legion of young female fans. He's even popular among celebrities.

Next is Hattori Heiji from Kansai, with his father Hattori Heizo as the Chief of the Osaka Police HQ, it's a breeze to gather information about a small island through his dad's subordinates.

But they failed to consider this point. That's where their lack of preparation comes in, it's the gap between awareness and judgment!

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