Chapter 32: Why is the elevator overweight? |
The library at night was pitch black, devoid of any sound.
As per his usual practice, Jiang Xia borrowed the night vision ability from the Shikigami.
Once he could clearly see the surroundings, he oriented himself and walked directly towards the elevator.
*****
In Jiang Xia's recollection, there was only one case that had occurred in the library.
The library's director had been involved in drug trafficking and was discovered by one of his employees. In response, the director killed the employee and hid the body on top of the elevator.
Initially, the body was well concealed. However, this afternoon, Conan happened to be at the library with some of his classmates to study. Although he didn't know where the body was hidden, Conan's keen senses led him to detect the presence of the body. Upon learning that an employee was missing, he became more convinced that the missing employee was likely dead, and someone had hidden their body in the library.
So, after closing hours, a group of children secretly remained in the library, hoping to find the body of the missing employee.
At the same time, the library director, using the lights, had also noticed that there were people still in the library who hadn't left after closing time. Now, the library director was holding an iron rod, planning to find these "rats" in the dark and silence them.
On the first-floor lobby.
Jiang Xia quickly arrived at the elevator and looked up at the electronic screen above. Based on the displayed numbers, the elevator was currently on the third floor.
Jiang Xia raised his hand and boldly summoned the elevator down.
Although this might create noise, unlike several children desperately hiding, Jiang Xia had no intention of staying hidden to avoid alerting the library director. In fact, he preferred that the director quickly detected the disturbance, willingly came to confront him, and perhaps even brought the Shikigami and the murderous intent with him.
*****
As the elevator descended, Jiang Xia walked toward the nearby staircase.
By the time he reached the second floor, the elevator had already stopped on the first floor.
Jiang Xia walked up to the elevator door, pried it open, and looked down.
On the elevator's roof lay an undignified corpse. A rope was wound around the neck, and a small puddle of blood had formed below the back of the head, indicating that the person was first strangled and then thrown into the elevator shaft.
However, there was no Shikigami clinging to the body's legs.
"..." It was unclear whether the Shikigami hadn't formed or had already formed but was currently attached to the library director's legs.
Disappointedly, Jiang Xia released the elevator door and let it close.
It appeared that he would need to pay a visit to the library director to retrieve his Shikigami.
Jiang Xia glanced at the ceiling, listening to the faint sounds coming from the distant parts of the building.
*****
He remembered that on his way home from work, the library director had noticed that someone was in the library when the kids from the Junior Detective League turned on the lights. The director had returned, his face darkening.
In other words, during this time, the library director should be playing a deadly game of hide-and-seek with the kids from the Junior Detective League, where the consequence of getting caught was "Uncle will strangle you."
Thinking of this, Jiang Xia took out his phone, checked the elevator, which would block signals, and then headed for the stairwell.
He dialed Inspector Megure's number.
As an amiable cop who liked to take young fellows under his wing, Inspector Megure had already given Jiang Xia his private phone number.
Calling him was more convenient than dealing with a dispatcher, where you had to leave your name, contact information, and all the basic details before anything could get done. With Inspector Megure, you could just get right to the point.
*****
At the police headquarters.
Inspector Megure was once again working late tonight.
He was searching for the missing library employee.
When he answered the phone and heard Jiang Xia say that he had found a body in the library's elevator, Inspector Megure immediately realized that Jiang Xia might have found what he was looking for.
*****
During the day, Inspector Megure had already led a team in a search of the library but couldn't find the body.
Now, hearing that the body was actually on top of the elevator, he got goosebumps when he realized that he had ridden that very elevator. Inspector Megure quickly headed out of his office and called in a few of his subordinates.
Suddenly, he had some doubts, "At this time of night, why are you at the library? Well, that's a question for later. You need to leave as soon as possible! The fact that the killer dared to hide the body on the elevator suggests he may be an insider at the library, very familiar with the surroundings. He might be lurking around even after hours. You..."
"Ah—!!!" In the background of Jiang Xia's call, a muffled child's scream suddenly rang out.
Listening through the phone, Inspector Megure paused for a moment. "What was that sound just now? Are there kids in the library?!"
On the staircase, Jiang Xia's footsteps faltered slightly.
He looked up through the gaps in the staircase, saying, "Possibly."
*****
With that, Jiang Xia quickened his pace.
At the same time, he didn't forget Inspector Megure's question and patched up his own story on the fly:
"I misremembered the library's closing time, so when I came to return a book, the library was already closed. But I saw a room on the third floor where the lights suddenly came on for a few seconds, and I could faintly see a child by the French windows. I was concerned that a child had missed the closing time and got locked inside, so I broke in to check the situation..."
Inspector Megure was almost frantic, "Stop talking now! If the murderer is really in the library, this might expose your location!"
"Alright," Jiang Xia lowered his voice agreeably, "I'll go take a look first, and you all come as quickly as you can."
He hung up the phone.
"Wait..." Inspector Megure wanted to remind him about safety and strategy, but Jiang Xia had hung up too quickly.
Calling back now would be very risky. So, he had to set down the phone and urgently instruct his subordinates, "Hurry up!"
An enthusiastic detective went to confront the ruthless murderer. He might be in danger!
Oh, and those brat detectives who sneaked into the library...
*****
On the library's top floor, going back a little in time...
While Jiang Xia was calling Inspector Megure...
Conan wiped the dust from his hands as he descended from the mechanical room.
He went to the elevator and forcefully pried open the doors. Then he pushed the button next to it.
Afterward, Conan turned around and spoke with satisfaction to his three first-year classmates, "I've found the body. During the day, when we took the elevator, the 'overload' warning appeared because there was an 'invisible passenger' in the elevator."
*****
While he was talking, the elevator gradually ascended.
The body on top of the elevator appeared in Conan's flashlight beam.
The faces of the other three children turned ashen, and they let out a collective scream of horror.
Conan didn't realize that all of this was too heavy for the three kids to handle.
He furrowed his brows and began to say, "This is too cruel. It should be the library director who killed him. We need to quickly..."
He hadn't even finished the words "call the police" when a light suddenly rose from beneath his feet.
After the elevator had lifted the body and continued to move upward, it gradually revealed the bright elevator car underneath.
There, standing in the elevator car with a malevolent smile on his face was a man oozing with murderous intent.
At this moment, the elevator doors were wide open. As the elevator continued to ascend, Tsugawa, the library director, emerged into the children's view, starting with his head, then his neck, and the rest of his body. He held a metal pipe and had a sinister smile on his face.
Conan's heart skipped a beat. He quickly turned to the children and gave them a few hurried instructions.
Then, as Tsugawa, the library director, stepped off the elevator, Conan used reasoning about hidden drugs and the murder of an employee to divert Tsugawa's attention.
Meanwhile, the other three children took the opportunity to slip into the elevator and press the button for the first floor.
The elevator began its slow descent.
When the elevator had descended about halfway, and the elevator car on this floor was only less than half a meter away from the one above, Conan slid under Tsugawa's legs, narrowly making it into the elevator.
