Chapter 21 1. Challenge

In the large conference room in the afternoon, about twenty people sat on steel pipe chairs. They are, the ultimate weapon of the women's table tennis club, Minister Sagawa who was once mistaken for a prisoner; Yuzuno's friend Sanae Nomina, their adviser and science teacher Masumura; the two badminton club boys who happened to be there when the incident happened; the drama club The group of four, the four members of the student union; the five members of the broadcasting department, including Miho Akizuki who was not present yesterday; Rieko Saotome and Taito Saotome sat together, and it seemed that they had decided to announce their relationship in front of everyone.

The tables in the conference room were originally placed so that the attendees would sit facing each other, but now they are all placed at the back of the room, only the chairs are placed opposite the podium.Sitting in the chairs, they are like the audience waiting for the opening of the stage. Yukino and Kaori were not in the same position as the relevant personnel. They were sitting by the window, beside their older brother who was lack of sleep and was yawning all the time, and Sendo who was holding his arms with a straight face. It was raining harder and harder outside. "Did he really find the culprit?"

The elder brother lowered his voice and brought his face closer.Yukino could only shrug. "No idea. He just told us to wait here too." "You haven't heard anything?" "Well...he is very confident in himself." "Is it really okay?" A repeat of the failed trick this morning flashed through my brother's mind again.There was also a trace of uneasiness in Yukino's heart. How did Sato find the culprit? Yuzuno and Kaori couldn't think of any clues. "Trust him." "He said he couldn't go wrong this time. Pegasus will definitely do it."

Although her words were too optimistic, through the glasses, it could be seen that her eyes were very serious, and her trust in Liran hadn't loosened since yesterday.But now I can only choose to believe. Just trust him and wait. "Yeah, that's right..." "Believe in Liran" when Yunon was cheering herself up - Lingling Lingling.A bell rang from the horn. Because only relevant personnel are gathered here, other students are still in class.It was the bell for the sixth class just now. At the same time, Riran Tenma opened the door and appeared. Instead of the usual casual attire, he wore a dark blue winter western-style school uniform with a dark green tie at the neckline. This was the "formal dress" of Windhill High School.Bottled drink in one hand.

He walked to the blackboard expressionlessly, facing the audience. He took a breath, stood at attention, and said nothing.The atmosphere of the scene was very tense. It can be seen from the faces that everyone has understood what it means for everyone to gather here. "—What a troublesome event." Like a teacher before the start of class, Liran began to speak. "The incident itself was very simple. On the stage of the gymnasium, Tomoki Asashima, the director of the broadcasting department, was assassinated. That's all. But if you look at the inside of the incident, the scene is a secret room, many testimonies are full of mysteries, and almost no criminals left behind. Not to leave any noteworthy trace. It is a difficult problem. The prisoner is very cautious and very clever."

He looked back at the people involved in the incident—as if announcing that the real culprit was among them. "For some reason, I was appointed to solve this incident. I accepted this commission easily at the time, but I have to reflect on it now. My thoughts at the time were too naive. Now it has been 48 hours since the incident happened. The police search has reached a dead end, and my investigation has become unsustainable. "But just now I finally came to a conclusion. That is, I found the prisoner. The prisoner is among you." As soon as these words came out, there was a commotion on the scene, and Xiantang also asked aloud.

"Really?" "Of course. Otherwise, it wouldn't have brought everyone together like this." "……impossible." The police department firmly denied it and shook his head, which was the opposite of the attitude of Yukino and others.Riran was used to this opponent's attitude. "Judging from your tone, you think my correct rate is only 1%? But unfortunately, my correct rate is 100%. The reasoning I will make later is based on certain evidence and is a logical fact. This It's fair competition, Mr. Criminal Police. As long as you use all the clues correctly, you can draw conclusions yourself. Haha, I'm just pretending. But what I said is true, please rest assured."

"You've been sophistrying all along." "Whether it is sophistry or not, please judge after listening." "..." Hearing what he said, Xiantang could only give in.It seems that he already knew that Liran was hiding Miho, so he was more anxious than usual.The older brother who had defected to Yuzuno's side since this morning comforted the boss. At this point the door opened. Shirato, the inspector of the Hodogaya Police Station, walked in.For some reason, his suit was wet. He approached Li Ran and whispered a few words.Li Ran smiled and thanked him.Shirato wiped his hairless head with a handkerchief, and walked to his brother's side.

"What's going on?" Yuzuno asked Kaori with her gaze.Kaori made a gesture of "I don't know" just like Yuzuno's attitude towards her brother just now. "Then, the preparations are all in place. That's all for the preface, let's get to the point." "...the topic?" Chita Maita from the broadcasting department asked in a hoarse voice.Even if you know what Liran means, you can't avoid asking this question. "Yes, on to the topic. Then we have only one question to think about. That is—'Who killed Tomoki Asashima?'."

Risen announced the theme with a challenging attitude, and then—— It's time to solve the puzzle.