11:17 PM
As soon as a taxi stopped in front of the hospital, several figures rushed out.
"On the 15th floor!"
Kogoro Mouri ran ahead, followed closely by Ran and Conan.
The hospital was quiet at night, with only a few people milling about.
The three of them hurried to the stairwell and climbed up to the 15th floor. Following the signs, they quickly found a room labeled "Hayashi Yoshiki."
Through the small window in the door, Mouri saw a doctor standing at the bedside, taking notes.
He pushed the door open imdiately.
"How is he, Doctor?!"
"Ah, you must be relatives," the doctor said, turning briefly to glance at them before continuing,"Don't worry. The patient is not in any critical danger. However, the explosion impact caused blast-related injuries, including mild internal bleeding, so he'll need bed rest. In addition to abrasions and bruises, the most concerning injury is a distal radius fracture in his right hand—it will require ti to heal."
"...How could this happen?"
Ran looked at Hayashi Yoshiki, lying weakly in bed, connected to monitors and an oxygen mask. Her heart ached.
Just two hours ago...
He was smiling so gently, talking about silly things, complaining about his dad's obsession with Yoko Okino...
We said good night, and then—this?
"What exactly happened?" Conan asked, frowning.
They had only just returned to the hotel when they got the sudden call: Hayashi Yoshiki had been hospitalized after an explosion. Without hesitation, they rushed over.
Kogoro Mouri's expression darkened as he looked at Yoshiki's fragile form.
Footsteps echoed from the hallway.
The group turned and saw Hattori Heiji approaching quickly, with Osaka police inspector Otaki Goro following behind.
"How is he?" Heiji asked imdiately.
"The doctor says he's stable," Mouri replied, before turning to Inspector Otaki."Inspector, what happened to Yoshiki?"
"We pulled surveillance footage from the ti of the incident. It appears Mr. Hayashi was caught in a serious accident," Otaki explained while setting up his laptop.
With nothing more to add, the doctor exited the room.
Conan stepped forward, eyes focused on the laptop screen.
Otaki Goro played several videos from different traffic and street caras.
The first clip showed a black car driving normally.
As the footage progressed, the car's movents grew erratic. It failed to turn, then was struck by another vehicle from the left, forcing it into the opposite lane—straight toward a figure standing on the curb.
That figure was Hayashi Yoshiki.
At the last mont, the car's front tire blew out. The sudden shift caused the vehicle to swerve; its rear clipped Yoshiki while the front slamd into a nearby building.
From the footage, it was clear that Yoshiki had taken the hit hard.
He stood up slowly, hands limp—likely when the fracture in his right wrist occurred. Despite the pain, he staggered toward the wrecked vehicle, raising his broken hand to try opening the driver's door.
Ran gasped slightly, her eyes moistening.
But then—the fire ignited.
Flas forced Yoshiki to retreat.
Just seconds later—
BOOM!
The explosion flung Yoshiki back like a ragdoll.
The group watching the footage fell silent.
"That's... impossible..."
"The man driving—that was the guy from the party earlier!"
There were multiple cara angles.
In two of the clips, they clearly saw Ed Michael behind the wheel—frantically turning the steering, the car refusing to respond.
"Yoshiki was in the wrong place at the wrong ti..."
"...But what about Ed Michael?" Heiji muttered.
Mouri frowned. "Whether it was the steering failure, the sudden fire, or the explosion... nothing about this feels normal."
"Inspector Otaki," Conan asked, turning, "did you find anything from the car?"
Otaki nodded solemnly.
"The explosion destroyed most of the car's evidence... but we confird the steering linkage was disconnected. The fire and explosion were likely caused by a fuel leak in the engine compartnt. There's also a possibility that old wiring caused a short circuit."
"...So this could have just been an accident?" Ran asked softly, glancing again at Hayashi Yoshiki—still unconscious and pale.
He looked so frail.
For the first ti, she saw him like this.
The ever-capable, composed Yoshiki—who always stayed calm under pressure, always helped her—now lay completely still.
"We still need more investigation to determine the cause," Otaki said, folding his arms."But... Mr. Hayashi may know sothing."
"What do you an?"
Conan and Heiji both turned their heads sharply.
Scratching his cheek, Otaki replied,"...So passers-by who helped bring him in said he whispered sothing like 'It's dangerous... don't gather...' before losing consciousness."
"...He suspected sothing."
Both young detectives looked at Hayashi Yoshiki again.
They knew how sharp his mind was. If he said that before passing out...
Just then, footsteps echoed again in the hallway.
Before Heiji could react, Otaki's expression shifted.
"Mr. Honjo!?"
Heiji turned and froze.
"Dad!?"
The man entering the room was none other than Hattori Heizo, Chief of the Osaka Prefectural Police Headquarters.
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