There was a reason for luring Tarumi to the bathhouse for the murder.
Besides making Tarumi appear as a suspect to establish an alibi for himself, it was also to conveniently use the bathhouse's environment to clean the paint from Tarumi's body after killing him.
This action could also create a false impression for the police, making them think that the culprit wanted to use hot water to obscure the time of death of the victim. However, the real purpose was to conceal the cleaning of the paint from the victim's body.
To perfect this method, it was necessary to apply blood to the vaulting horse that Tarumi leaned on. Otherwise, when the police examined it and found no bloodstains, the ruse would be exposed.
When Senichi's deduction ended, Kotegawa gritted his teeth and said, "So... you found the clues when we returned to the storage room again? Then you just waited for me to come to you?"
"That's right," Senichi nodded. "After all, this method could have been used by any of you three, and I didn't know which one of you was the actual murderer. So waiting for the rabbit to jump into the trap was the best choice."
After listening to Senichi's words, Kotegawa felt like his mind was exploding.
I carefully planned and outsmarted, trying to perfect my method, and you were just waiting for me to come to you at the finish line?
His mind is exploding!
This feeling of carefully strategizing and then finding out it was all in vain, with someone looking down on you as you act out your one-man show, instantly turned into a mixture of anger and embarrassment.
"So you came here to wait for me on your own?" Kotegawa asked, and when Senichi nodded, he gave a sinister smile. "Since you act like you're all high and mighty, as if you know everything, do you know...
—the katana stolen from today's demonstration by the iaido instructor is still in my possession!!!"
As he was halfway through his sentence, Kotegawa grabbed the sword bag placed near the vaulting horse, drew the sword with his right hand, and slashed directly at Senichi!
As soon as the words fell, the longsword was raised high as if it would strike down any moment, directly aiming to kill Senichi!
However, after raising the sword, it never came down again. The raised arms were firmly grasped by numerous burly, muscular hands, holding Kotegawa's hands that held the sword as if in a vice grip in mid-air.
"Kid, daring to attack a police officer, you've got some guts!!"
With Otaki's rough words, Kotegawa was pressed down onto the ground in the next moment.
"What the heck!?"
Being pinned to the floor by several brawny men, Kotegawa roared, "You sneaky guy..."
"I didn't nod to answer your question," Senichi chuckled and said, "I was signaling to Officer Otaki to let him know that it was time to act. Misinterpreting it is not my fault."
"You sly..."
The anger of being played with once again filled his mind, making Kotegawa even more furious. However, Senichi's face turned cold as he looked at Kotegawa and said, "For a criminal like you, who kills for personal gain, what qualifications do you have to earn my respect?"
"You knew everything?" Kotegawa's pupils shrank when he heard Senichi's words, and his voice became hoarse.
"Of course, during your argument earlier, my friend Heiji was paying full attention," Senichi nodded and said, "He was very cautious when he heard Tarumi's threats. When Officer Otaki arrived, I asked him to help investigate recent incidents at Shinnai University.
In your case, didn't something happen at your kendo club last year? There was a death during practice, wasn't there?
Although your University claimed that it was an accident, based on your reaction, I'm afraid there is something hidden, and it has something to do with Tarumi?"
"Right, you're correct."
Seeing that there was no point in hiding it anymore, Kotegawa nodded cleanly and admitted, "That happened during the freshman welcome event last year. Tarumi was causing trouble with the new students, and there were some conflicts.
Originally, our club president, Hakamada, who could usually handle the situation, had something to attend to that day, so there was no one to intervene.
After the fight between the two, Tarumi accidentally killed the other person. However, Tarumi threatened us, saying that if he got caught, he would drag us all down with him, claiming that everyone was an accomplice.
We were all about to graduate, and it was a critical time for starting our careers, so causing such trouble would have been disastrous."
"So you all helped him cover up this murder. Then, today, after your argument, he used this incident to threaten you, which led you to turn to murder."
Senichi looked at Kotegawa, who was now handcuffed. "This might be the most foolish choice you've made in your life."
Kotegawa didn't say anything more; he just remained silent as Officer Otaki and others escorted him into the police car.
[The Disappearing Corpse in the kendo hall]
[Congratulations to the host for gaining 300 Fate Points]
As usual, Senichi counted the rewards from the case and earned 300 Fate Points. When Otaki bid farewell and left, Senichi also left the annex and headed toward the nearby competition venue.
The finals had already concluded, and at this moment, Soshi Okita was leading the members of Kyoto Senshin High School onto the awards podium. Hattori, on the other hand, wore a look of frustration as he stood on the runner-up's podium.
"Hey, the competition is over?" Senichi greeted Conan and the others as he approached. "It looks like Heiji lost?"
"Yeah, he lost," Conan returned the digital camera to Senichi. "Take a look for yourself. Although they were evenly matched in the beginning, as Hattori pushed to win, Soshi's strength surged like a burst of cosmos energy, completely suppressing Hattori's efforts."
As a C-ranked (12 years) kendo practitioner, Senichi might not surpass Hattori in pure kendo skills right now, but he could understand the intricacies of the match.
That's precisely why Senichi could discern the terrifying aspects of Soshi Okita.
Soshi, who could achieve an A+ combat rating with a wooden sword, second only to Makoto Kyogoku, lived up to his reputation. Every move and gesture of his effectively blocked all of Hattori's attacks.
As the match progressed, it became even easier for Soshi, as if he had completely figured out Hattori Heiji's sword techniques. Even Hattori's final desperate attempt proved futile.
Instead of decisively winning, it became his greatest vulnerability, as Soshi seized the initiative with a preemptive strike.
After watching the match between the two, Senichi gained a more comprehensive understanding of the combat capabilities in this world. He even felt that the rank displayed on his status panel corresponded to the official combat rating system that had published.
At least, that was the case when it came to combat rating classifications.
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