“It’s a fake name,” Fukuzawa immediately pointed out. “Damn it. I shouldn’t have taken my eyes off him.”
Fukuzawa had known there was something suspicious about him, but he’d gotten sloppy and let Ranpo and the sudden turn of events blind him.
“How long ago did he leave his seat?”
“Witnesses say he was still seated when the curtains rose,” replied the officer while he looked at his notes. “But it’s not like we took roll during the second half of the play, so who knows if he was there?”
The second half—in other words, the moment when Murakami was killed.
This meant he could have left his seat for a moment to remotely control some sort of device.
Fukuzawa tried to think back to when he ran onstage. When he looked back into the audience, did he see the man in the suit? It was too hard to say. Fukuzawa clicked his tongue. He couldn’t remember. He was focused too much on the exit then because he figured the killer would have rushed for the door. His eyes were so glued to the last row closest to the door that he neglected to check the seats right in front of him.
Ranpo would’ve been able to immediately memorize the entire audience with just one glance, thought Fukuzawa.
“I want you to keep an eye on the audience!”
He thought back to what Ranpo had said. Ranpo probably already knew then that the killer was in the audience. That was why he told Fukuzawa to keep an eye open. Yet another oversight on Fukuzawa’s part. The suited gentleman was gone. Ranpo was gone. Don’t tell me that Ranpo was—
“I’m going to search the building,” said Fukuzawa. “Contact me if you find anything out.”
“You got it.”
Fukuzawa turned his back to the officer before hastily walking away. He ground his teeth and blamed himself for inspiring Ranpo. In the end, Ranpo went off on his own and disappeared, but it was supposed to be Fukuzawa’s job to stop the killer and protect Ranpo.
No matter how talented Ranpo was, he was still just a kid who lacked the means to protect himself. Even if he confronted the enemy, he would immediately be attacked. He wouldn’t stand a chance. Ranpo might have been a genius detective, but he wouldn’t be able to efficiently exhibit his gift alone. It was meaningless without a shield for Ranpo who could fight back, punish the enemy, and create a safe environment for him to use his talents.
Detectives needed to be armed.
“Oh, Fukuzawa! I finally found you.”
A woman up ahead jogged right over to him. It was the theater owner, Ms. Egawa.
“Sigh. I’ve been looking all over for you. For someone so tall, you can really disappear when you feel like it. Anyway, we need to talk.” She approached Fukuzawa and immediately grabbed his sleeve.
“What is it? Sorry, but I’m in a hurry. I need to find Ranpo.”
“It’s about Ranpo,” Ms. Egawa replied hastily. “Come on, now. He told me to be discreet.”
“What…?”
Ms. Egawa looked up at Fukuzawa, then whispered secretively, “I have a message from him.”
Ms. Egawa headed toward the theater control room. It was a fully equipped, narrow space packed with a control panel and recording devices. There was a clear bird’s-eye view of the murder scene from the window on the wall. Whoever used the equipment here could watch the play while changing the lighting or background when needed. Ms. Egawa looked around to make sure nobody else was there before closing the door.
“So?” Fukuzawa urged her to go on.
“Honestly, there are a whole load of things I want to ask you as well,” Ms. Egawa ranted. “Like, just who is that boy? He’s full of surprises… How did he know about me?”
“What do you mean?” Fukuzawa shot her a questioning glance. “Ranpo was looking for the killer. What did he say to you?”
“Hmm? …Ohhh. Don’t tell me you thought I was the killer. Giggle. That’s not what I meant. I was wondering how he knew so much about my personal life. Anyway, he left me a message for you. He said to make sure no one else was listening.”
She was in an uncomfortably wonderful mood. Fukuzawa quietly urged her to continue.
“After Ranpo read me like an open book, he told me there were two people behind this. Then he asked me to help lure the killers out.”
What? There were two killers? And he requested the owner to help him catch them?