Coroner: A Detective Conan Fanfiction

On the other side, Shinichi Kudo strode briskly into the department store next door.

Ishikawa and Ran Mouri followed closely behind. Under Shinichi's lead, they quickly arrived at the rooftop on the sixth floor.

The rooftop was empty, with only some construction debris scattered haphazardly.

Shinichi walked over to the pile of debris, crouched down, and casually picked up a brick, examining it closely.

Seeing this, Ishikawa's breathing became slightly erratic.

But Shinichi quickly stood up.

"Let's go. We should check the surveillance footage downstairs."

He had visited this mall before with Ran and knew that it was equipped with security cameras.

Hearing that Shinichi planned to check the footage, Ishikawa's expression suddenly relaxed.

"Yes, this mall has surveillance cameras."

"That way, we'll be able to see if Uchida really came alone to jump."

He emphasized the words alone in a way that almost felt like a guilty slip.

"Exactly. We'll know the truth once we check the footage."

Shinichi responded nonchalantly and took the lead in heading downstairs.

Soon, they reached the security room on the first floor.

Ordinarily, surveillance footage wouldn't be readily accessible to the public.

But Shinichi Kudo's reputation as a high school detective carried more weight than even the police.

As soon as he revealed his title as the Heisei Holmes, the mall's security personnel turned into enthusiastic fans, respectfully inviting him into the surveillance room.

Just like that, Shinichi easily gained access to all the mall's entrance footage.

After fast-forwarding through the recordings, they found the relevant footage from about five minutes ago.

"Look! Uchida came in alone!"

Ishikawa eagerly pointed at the figure on the screen.

"And Aoki and I never entered this mall today at all. If you don't believe me, keep checking. The cameras definitely didn't capture us."

Shinichi remained silent, his eyes fixed on the figure labeled as "Uchida."

Due to the camera angle and the baseball cap obscuring his face, his features were completely indiscernible.

Yet, Shinichi's expression betrayed nothing.

He simply turned around and said calmly to Ran:

"Let's head back. There's nothing more to investigate here."

"Oh?"

Before Ran could respond, Ishikawa quickly asked, "You're not going to investigate anymore?"

"So Uchida's suicide was completely legitimate, right?"

Shinichi gave Ishikawa a deep look.

"There's no problem. We can go straight back to the scene."

"When the police arrive, I'll explain the situation to them as a witness."

"Oh, I see…"

Hearing this, Ishikawa let out a long sigh of relief.

"Well then, let's go back right away?"

He seemed eager for Shinichi to leave, hastily taking the lead in heading back.

As Ishikawa walked ahead, Ran sidled up to Shinichi, whispering with concern:

"Shinichi, were you serious just now?"

"This was really just a suicide?"

"No, that was just to put him at ease."

Shinichi walked forward as if nothing was amiss, lowering his voice.

"I don't have definitive proof yet, so I can't accuse them outright."

"But I'm already certain—this was a murder."

"A murder…"

Ran frowned in confusion.

"But when Uchida appeared on the rooftop, Ishikawa and Aoki were with us the whole time."

"And the surveillance footage clearly showed Uchida entering the mall."

"That's simple."

Shinichi spoke evenly.

"Ran, think carefully—when 'Uchida' stood at the edge of the rooftop, did anyone actually see his face?"

"The mall's surveillance only captured his silhouette, and his face was hidden by the baseball cap."

"If we never saw his face, how can we be sure that was really Uchida?"

"Uh…"

Ran hesitated, then asked in surprise,

"You mean the person we saw wasn't actually Uchida, but the murderer in disguise?"

"Ishikawa and Aoki had a third accomplice?"

"Exactly."

Shinichi nodded.

"The real Uchida was already dead by then."

"The third accomplice disguised himself as Uchida, entered the mall, went up to the rooftop, and deliberately showed himself."

"Meanwhile, once he was in position, Ishikawa and Aoki shouted from across the street, drawing attention."

"As bystanders started gathering, the fake Uchida pushed the real Uchida's corpse from a high place, staging a suicide."

"This way, the police would conclude it was a simple case of suicide."

"And suicides are never thoroughly investigated…"

"The case would likely be closed hastily."

"I see…"

Ran began to grasp the truth.

But then, she realized a major flaw.

"But something still doesn't add up."

"The surveillance footage only showed one Uchida entering."

"If the one on the rooftop was an imposter, and the real Uchida was already dead…"

"How did the killer transport Uchida's corpse to the rooftop?"

"With so many people in the streets and surveillance cameras everywhere, there's no way they could have carried a body unnoticed."

Ran thought hard.

"Could Uchida's body have already been inside the mall?"

"Was he killed in here?"

"That doesn't seem right either…"

"The footage only ever captured one Uchida, and it never showed Ishikawa or Aoki entering the mall."

"And with so many people around, it would be nearly impossible to kill someone here without being noticed."

"Haha."

Shinichi chuckled lightly.

"That's the trick they used."

"They exploited the presence of surveillance cameras to create an alibi for themselves."

"The footage proves that 'Uchida' only entered the mall once, while Ishikawa and Aoki never entered at all."

"If my guess is correct, the cameras probably didn't capture the third accomplice entering either—because he was Uchida, as far as the footage was concerned."

"So, using the surveillance footage…"

Lowering his voice, he carefully explained the murderers' plan.

"All three of them now have airtight alibis proving they never entered the mall."

"With those alibis in place, the police won't suspect that Uchida was killed inside."

"And since it's impossible to transport a corpse into the mall unnoticed…"

"Most people will simply assume Uchida walked in by himself and committed suicide."

"But the real question is…"

Shinichi paused slightly before continuing.

"Who says Uchida's body fell from the rooftop?"

"Think back—why didn't 'Uchida' just jump from the side facing the street?"

"At the time, the sidewalk below was empty, so there was no risk of harming pedestrians."

"If he really wanted to die, why take the trouble of moving to the side and jumping into a secluded alley instead?"

"You're right…"

Ran nodded thoughtfully.

"I found that strange too."

"If it was really a suicide, Uchida's actions didn't make sense."

"But if 'Uchida' was actually the murderer in disguise, his strange behavior makes perfect sense."

"He first stood at the edge facing the street to create witnesses."

"Then he moved to the side alley to drop Uchida's body…"

"Because the truth is—"

Shinichi's eyes sharpened.

"Uchida's corpse was never inside the mall."

"It was never on the rooftop."

"It had been in that alley the entire time."

"Huh?"

Ran was baffled.

"But we heard something heavy falling."

"And you said the body fell from a height."

"It's simple."

Shinichi explained.

"The killers used the fire escape."

"That alley was where they bullied Uchida. It was also the crime scene."

"After accidentally killing him, they couldn't move the body out of the alley without being seen."

"So they used the only available structure—the rusty fire escape."

"They propped his body against the unstable railing on the fourth floor."

"Then, while the fake Uchida distracted everyone on the rooftop, he threw bricks down onto the fire escape…"

"Ah!"

Ran gasped.

"The bricks broke the railing, causing the body to fall—"

"Making it look like he jumped."

"Exactly."

Shinichi smirked.

"They tried to use us as their alibi witnesses."

"Too bad for them…"

"They picked the wrong people."