144: Chapter 144: Told a Little Lie

"Two months ago? That should be around the time Mr. Niina disappeared, right?"

"That's right!"

Nearby, Niina Kaori wiped away her tears. "My father disappeared the week before it was published in Bungei Jidai."

"So Mr. Niina disappeared after restarting Detective Samonji."

Fujino pondered for a moment, then continued asking the honest man: "Is there anything strange in Mr. Niina's books?"

"There is something strange."

The honest man nodded, continuing, "In the prologue of the work, Mr. Niina said:

'A notice to all famous detectives nationwide, those who believe their reasoning abilities surpass mine, come uncover the truth of this case!' After this prologue was published, it attracted a lot of feedback from fans... Moreover, this time, Mr. Niina also appeared in the book, becoming Detective Samonji's old friend... This is the first time since Detective Samonji began serialization."

"Does Detective Samonji have many fans?"

"Yes, there are many fans, and they are very fervent."

The honest man nodded. "Just half a year ago, some fervent fans threatened us, saying if we didn't restart the Detective Samonji serialization, they would set fire to our publishing company."

"Meaning, Detective Samonji has many fans, including a certain number of fanatics."

Pausing, Fujino continued asking: "Have those fanatics reached the point where they would threaten arson against the publishing company?"

"Could it be... those fans kidnapped Mr. Niina?!"

The honest man waved his hands, realizing suddenly: "If those fans forced Mr. Niina to revive Detective Samonji, it's indeed possible!"

"I don't think so."

Fujino said, then asked Niina Kaori: "If I remember correctly, Mr. Niina decided to restart the Samonji series before he disappeared. Before that, you still contacted them frequently, right?"

"Yes."

Niina Kaori nodded. "The day before my parents disappeared, I had just gone to their house for dinner... and stayed overnight. I only found the note saying 'going out for a bit' the next morning."

"But if that's the case... why would Mr. Niina disappear without reason... If it was kidnapping, what was the culprit's motive?"

As the honest man wondered, the printer nearby suddenly whirred to life.

It was a new manuscript written by Niina Jintarou.

Fujino walked over and picked up the new manuscript.

The honest man saw this but didn't stop him. After all, it was now almost certain that Niina Jintarou was embroiled in some trouble... perhaps had even met with misfortune.

The manuscript still had the '1/2 Summit' title, and the signature remained unchanged.

If Fujino remembered correctly, the code should be hidden within the '1/2 Summit' title.

Flipping through several pages of the manuscript, Fujino suddenly said to everyone: "If that's the case, I already know the secret hidden in the manuscript."

"The secret hidden in the manuscript?"

Hearing this, Niina Kaori and the honest man both leaned closer.

"The secret is actually hidden in the manuscript's title... '1/2 Summit'."

Saying this, Fujino showed the manuscript to the two, pointing to the text exceeding the normal ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠format on each page: "'1/2 Summit' should refer to the top character of each line of dialogue between Mr. Niina and Samonji whenever Mr. Niina appears in the book, only half of it, meaning half the characters... Looked at this way, it should be 'Please come save me quickly'."

"What?!"

"If that's the case, then my father must have been kidnapped!"

"Then these codes must have been deliberately written by Mr. Niina to mislead others, right?!"

"Perhaps, but the codes in the other manuscripts can't be deciphered using this method..."

Saying this, Fujino placed the manuscript on the nearby table. "Applying this method to the others results only in meaningless text."

"Could it be a different format?"

The honest man also leaned closer, puzzled.

"I don't think so. There must be some other trick."

Fujino looked at the manuscript, his peripheral vision glancing towards Ai Haibara nearby.

Honestly, his memory of this part was quite fuzzy.

Solving the case, knowing who the culprit was, combined with some recalled details and observing the scene, could usually be done through deduction.

He knew Niina Jintarou was in room 2407 of the Beika City Hotel, but reasonably deciphering these codes was somewhat troublesome.

Troublesome, yes, but a conclusion could still be reached.

The reason he pretended not to know was entirely to verify a conjecture of his own...

Under Fujino's peripheral gaze, Ai Haibara silently approached Fujino's side, stood on tiptoe to pick up a manuscript page from the table, and examined it.

After a moment, she suddenly said calmly: "Niina Jintarou always appears in France. According to the rule of silent 'h' pronunciation in French, rearranging those characters should reveal the subsequent code, right?"

Then, Ai Haibara, gently twirling a strand of hair by her ear, put on the little girl facade again: "Right? Am I correct?"

Fujino: "..."

Alright, still a bit weird.

Why did it feel like Conan's vibe?

Compared to Conan's husky act, Ai Haibara was the pouting little loli.

No comparison.

However, this did confirm Fujino's conjecture...

Thinking this, Fujino picked up the manuscript, looked it over, and said: "If based on the silent rule, then these codes can indeed be deciphered. The first code is 'Please come save me quickly', the second is 'My current location', the third is 'Beika City Hotel', and the last one is 'Room 2407'."

"Putting it together, the information obtained is that Mr. Niina is currently in room 2407 of the Beika City Hotel."

"Then let's hurry over!"

Niina Kaori said anxiously: "If we go now, my father might still be..."

"Let's call the police first!"

The honest man took out his phone. "If Mr. Niina was really kidnapped, rushing over recklessly might cause the culprits to harm him!"

As the editor, Niina Jintarou's life directly affected his interests.

If Niina Jintarou died, the Detective Samonji series would definitely die with him.

Then, not only would his performance plummet, the publishing company would also suffer significant losses.

"I don't think that's necessary."

Just then, Fujino suddenly stopped the honest man. "If I'm not mistaken, Mr. Niina wasn't actually kidnapped at all."

"Not kidnapped?"

"It's a bit complicated to explain..."

Saying this, Fujino looked meaningfully at Niina Kaori: "Ms. Niina, once we arrive at the Beika City Hotel, everything will become clear."

Niina Kaori looked puzzled, paused for a moment, but still chose to trust Fujino.

Subsequently, the group drove to the Beika City Hotel.

Beika City Hotel, Beika Grand Hotel, Beika Hotel – they were actually all the same place.

Just different names...

Speaking of which, Kaito Kid was supposed to make an appearance on the roof of this hotel last time.

Outside room 2407, Fujino, carrying his bokken, knocked lightly on the door.

A moment later, the door opened, revealing a middle-aged woman.

She looked to be in her forties or fifties, her face etched with a visible sadness.

"Mom?!"

Upon seeing the woman, Niina Kaori couldn't help but cry out.

"Kaori?"

The middle-aged woman was also surprised to see Niina Kaori.

"Where's Dad?!"

Niina Kaori asked anxiously. "Were you kidnapped by someone?"

"Kidnapped?"

The middle-aged woman frowned, thought for a moment, and was about to say something when a voice came from inside the room: "Is that Kaori?"

"Dad?"

Entering the room, Niina Kaori walked quickly towards the room opposite the entrance.

Fujino and the others followed. Inside, they saw an old man lying in bed, his hair white, his face haggard.

"Dad, what is all this...?"

Niina Kaori looked at her father's worn face, asking anxiously.

"This was all staged by me."

Niina Jintarou managed a weak smile on his pale face. "I found out I had cancer two months ago. I'm sorry for not telling you... I wanted this code to be more realistic... Besides, with my current condition, you would surely be heartbroken."

"Dad..."

Tears streamed down Niina Kaori's cheeks.

"Alright, don't cry."

Niina Jintarou laboriously raised his hand, his thin fingers wiping away Niina Kaori's tears. "Since you were able to come, someone must have deciphered my code, right? Did this alert the police?"

"The police weren't alerted, but someone did decipher the code you left, Dad."

Niina Kaori nodded, turning her gaze towards Fujino nearby. "The one who broke your code was Detective Fujino... and it was Detective Fujino who requested not to involve the police."

"Detective Fujino?"

Niina Jintarou struggled to sit up in bed, leaning against the headboard, looking towards Fujino. "Not calling the police means you already saw the truth behind this matter... even guessing that I staged the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠whole thing."

"Mhm, explaining it is a bit troublesome, but yes, that's correct."

Fujino nodded, not wasting words.

He could see that the old man before him was nearing his end.

Wasting time was equivalent to wasting the man's remaining life.

Just then, Niina Jintarou spoke again, his voice weak: "The readers' recognition of my work has been the greatest happiness of my life. I've walked the path of a writer for 40 years, yet there's one happiness I haven't experienced – hoping someone would rush up to me and say they solved this old man's puzzle ahead of time..."

"Your wish has been fulfilled."

Saying this, Fujino shouldered his bokken. "Speaking of which, I'm also a fan of Detective Samonji."

"Is that so?"

A gratified smile appeared on Niina Jintarou's face.

Of course, Fujino told a little lie. He wasn't a fan of Detective Samonji, but to fulfill a dying old man's wish, this little lie was acceptable. He could make up for it later.

Afterward, in the final moments of his life, Kaori and Jintarou talked a lot, occasionally exchanging a few words with Fujino.

Just like that, time slipped by until midnight.

Niina Jintarou, after a period of silence, completely stopped breathing.