Chapter 88: Speculation and Arrangement

Once again, as he opened his eyes, the familiar ceiling greeted Senichi.

Slowly climbing out of bed, Senichi glanced at the time and realized it was already past five o'clock.

His brain gradually started functioning, making his thoughts clearer.

Soon, Senichi began to piece together his memories from the previous night until he fell asleep.

Compared to his clear mind, the later memories felt sluggish and somewhat blurry due to the fatigue from staying up late.

"Toyo Fireworks Depot... such a familiar name," Senichi muttered with a furrowed brow.

Previously, he had been interrupted by others or engulfed by drowsiness, leaving him no time to think carefully. But now, with a clear mind, he felt that he had some memories related to this.

However, this elusive feeling was not pleasant. Nevertheless, the hunger pangs in his stomach forced him to get up and fill his belly.

As he walked and pondered, he suddenly overheard his colleagues' conversation.

"Hey, did you hear? There was a fire in Mika Town, and Cup House Town also had a house fire."

"I heard. The fires were quite fierce. The flames rose even higher when the firefighters arrived. This world is really chaotic nowadays."

"First, the theft of explosives, and now a series of arsons. We're in for a wild ride."

These words unintentionally slowed down Senichi's footsteps. And then, Sato Miwako appeared, escorting a female prisoner towards him.

"Hey, you worked hard last night. Is this for our meal?" Sato Miwako greeted Senichi with a smile.

"Ah, it was really tough yesterday. I wonder how the situation is now," Senichi sighed and waved his hand, saying, "Let's not talk about that. Sato-san, what's happening on your end?"

"Revenge," Sato Miwako replied, shaking her head slightly as she looked at the woman she was escorting. "She murdered someone in the Kurokawa family's house, and then Detective Mouri found evidence against her."

"I see. Well, you're busy, so I'll go ahead."

Senichi nodded understandingly and bid farewell to Sato. In his mind, he muttered, "Mouri Kogoro is just a tool. I guess it's the culprit Conan found... But the Kurokawa family..."

"The Kurokawa family!?"

In the next moment, Senichi suddenly realized and unconsciously stopped in his tracks.

Toyo Fireworks Depot, a series of arsons, and the Kurokawa family—these three points, like perfectly aligned gears, instantly activated and set Senichi's brain in motion.

Wasn't this Moriya Teiji's case!!

Wasn't Toyo Fireworks Depot the place where Moriya Teiji stole the explosives!? And the Kurokawa family's house was the case Conan initially resolved but was later burned down by Moriya Teiji.

Finally, he remembered why Toyo Fireworks Depot felt so familiar!!

It was mainly because Toyo Fireworks Depot was mentioned in the news in the movie version.

Everyone had seen it, knew that explosives were stolen, and it was most likely the work of the culprit. Who would bother remembering the location where explosives were stolen if they had nothing to do with it!

Moreover, it had been a long time since he watched the first movie version, and these background details didn't leave a strong impression compared to the main plot.

If Senichi hadn't revisited that movie version and if his colleagues hadn't mentioned various keywords by chance, he might not have connected the theft of explosives with Moriya Teiji.

Fortunately, he had thought of it in advance.

Otherwise, he would have to wait until Conan was bombed and faced the railway crisis before he could match this case with his memories.

In the current real world, those original background props become real events. For example, the investigation of the explosives involved hundreds of people, but it was only mentioned briefly in the movie version.

However, for Senichi, it was happening right in front of him, so he couldn't simply match it with a few words.

But now that he knew, he needed to plan carefully. This could be a significant reward.

With this thought, a smile crept onto Senichi's lips.

I wonder what expression Moriya Teiji will have when the time comes. I'm really looking forward to it.

...

"What?! You have clues about the serial arsonist!?"

After hastily finishing dinner, Senichi immediately informed the Sansei team about this news.

He had considered reporting it to the headquarters, but without evidence, these real pieces of information couldn't be proven.

So it was merely speculation, and it wouldn't be taken seriously. It was a drawback of the system that couldn't be avoided.

After all, he was just a low-ranking police officer, and his words carried little weight. He didn't have the authority to take charge or give orders to the commander.

Of course, if Senichi accumulated great achievements in the future, his opinions would be considered. But for now, despite his name recognition, his reputation was not enough to overcome these limitations.

At least there were still many people who didn't believe in him and thought Senichi was just a lucky newcomer.

It was only natural for people to think that way. Society was like that.

And after all, in three departments he belonged to the first line of people, So Officer Megure and others naturally trusted Senichi.

Although the serial arson wasn't as serious as the stolen explosives case, it was still a troublesome event.

In this situation, even a clue was a cause for celebration. Officer Megure immediately gathered his subordinates for a meeting.

"After my investigation, it turns out that the burned houses have a pattern," Senichi handed out the printed materials to everyone after finishing his meal.

"This is..." Officer Megure's gaze froze as he looked at the information on the burned houses. "All these houses were designed by Moriya Teiji?"

"Yes, the burned houses of Mizushima and Yasuda are both works of Moriya Teiji. It's a common point in these two arson cases," Senichi looked at everyone and said, "I have some knowledge about design, so I immediately noticed this."

"Moriya Teiji? You mean the famous architect Moriya Teiji?" Shiratori, who was interested in architecture, immediately realized and started flipping through the materials. "These are Moriya Teiji's early works. They're completely different from his current style."

"Yes, that's why it's worth paying attention to," Senichi nodded. "Moriya Teiji, as a renowned architect, can also be considered an artist. But the more artistic one is, the more they have incomprehensible obsessions in their own field."

"Are you saying that Moriya Teiji could be the arsonist!?" Shiratori exclaimed in surprise, then shook his head and argued, "That's impossible. Which architect in the world would destroy their own works?"

"Well, you never know," Senichi explained, shaking his head. "I've studied his works. His early buildings were asymmetrical, but later on, they became uniformly symmetrical. This transformation in style might have made him unable to bear his previous works, and the motive for burning them down is unknown!"