Kael snapped back to attention, looking at the rambling Mouri Kogoro, and asked curiously: "Are you certain this person was killed by Okino Yoko?"
Kogoro's expression faltered, and he sighed dejectedly. "Although I don't want to admit Okino Yoko-san killed someone, based on the current evidence, there's no other possibility."
Kael gave a quiet "oh," and glanced at Kudo Shinichi—no, Edogawa Conan. Mai's assessment was correct: Mouri Kogoro was a bumbling detective. Few of his cases ever caught the real culprit. He always overlooked the true killer for various reasons. So whoever he pointed to was usually not the murderer. Solving the case always depended on Conan.
But what surprised Kael was that Conan seemed to agree with Kogoro's judgment, or at least didn't refute it. That made Kael curious. What was going on?
He looked carefully at the corpse and was shocked to find the knife wound was in the chest, not the back. The face still showed surprise, as if unable to believe someone had dared to kill him. This was different from the original storyline. Originally, the man had stabbed himself in the back to frame Okino Yoko. But now, the cause of death was completely different.
Kael asked: "Whose knife is in the victim's chest?"
Okino Yoko answered: "It's mine."
Kogoro sighed. "Inspector Megure already checked. The knife only has Okino-san's fingerprints, no one else's. And they confirmed no third person entered the room. So the killer can only be Okino Yoko."
Kael gave another "oh." Based on the evidence, there was no other suspect. No wonder Conan stayed silent, even agreeing with Kogoro. The evidence was indeed damning for Yoko.
Kael turned to Mai and asked softly: "How did you get involved in this? Tell me what happened."
Mai nodded and explained.
Not long ago, after regaining her presence, she decided to return to her life as a star. Today she appeared on a program with her senpai, Okino Yoko. After the show, she noticed Yoko was gloomy and asked if something was wrong.
Kael interrupted: "You asked her directly?"
Mai nodded. "She's looked after me many times. Seeing her upset today, I asked."
Kael hummed. "Go on."
Mai continued: "She told me she felt someone following her these past few days. She suspected stalkers or obsessed fans. So I advised her to hire a private detective. That's how we found this bumbling detective."
Once again called bumbling, Kogoro grew more annoyed, but since Mai was young, he held back. Conan looked amused, while Ran smiled awkwardly, knowing her father was unreliable at times.
Mai went on: "After hearing our request, the bumbling detective was indignant and volunteered to come to Yoko's apartment to catch the stalker. But when we opened the door, we found this man dead, a fruit knife belonging to Yoko stuck in his chest. Then the detective called the police and accused Yoko of murder."
Kogoro protested: "I… I didn't want to accuse Yoko. I'm her loyal fan. But… but…" He trailed off, sighing heavily.
It was clear he didn't want to accuse her, but all the evidence pointed to her.
Kael said calmly: "I understand the situation. Now let's ask the dead man who killed him."
"Ask the dead? What do you mean?"
Not only Kogoro, but Ran, Conan, Inspector Megure, and Sato Miwako all looked bewildered. Only Mai wasn't surprised—she already knew the world wasn't simple.
Kael stepped forward, kicked the corpse lightly, and cast a small soul-summoning spell. "Rise and answer."
The corpse, cold and lifeless, suddenly sat up before everyone's eyes. Everyone was startled. Even Mai was astonished—she hadn't expected "asking the dead" to be so literal.
"Who killed you?" Kael asked patiently, ignoring their shocked faces.
The corpse's eyes widened and it spoke slowly: "It was a yokai. A yokai killed me."
This wasn't true soul-calling, which summons the spirit back. That would be necromancy. This was a soul-awakening spell, using mana to stimulate brain cells, creating a brief state of lucidity before death. During this time, the dead would answer any question. Once the spell ended, the body would collapse again.
Kael had used little mana—enough for five minutes. He checked the time. "We have about four and a half minutes. Ask quickly."
Kogoro was the first to recover from shock. "Was it really a yokai that killed you?"
The corpse said: "Yes."
"What kind of yokai?"
"It was Ao Nyobo who killed me."
"Ao Nyobo?" Kogoro exclaimed. "So yokai really exist in this world!"
Even Conan was shaken. His worldview shattered completely. Turning into a child could still be explained scientifically. But this? Science couldn't explain it. A corpse speaking was unbelievable. Without seeing it himself, he would never have believed such a thing possible.
Inspector Megure stepped forward. "You're certain Ao Nyobo killed you?"
The corpse replied: "It was her. It was her. It was her."